Aodh Breannan
Ireth
Bio Prof. Not Actually A Bat
To be blind is not miserable; not to be able to bear blindness, that is miserable.
Posts: 58
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Post by Aodh Breannan on Jul 1, 2010 15:28:38 GMT -5
Aodh sat in an armchair in one corner of the faculty lounge, a thick book laid open on his lap. He ran his hands lightly over the pages, reading the Braille text with his fingertips. There was no one else in the room right now; the only sounds came from the wind outside the window. Aodh wished he could see without the need for sonar; he couldn't judge how much light or darkness there was in a room, and that made it hard to tell what time it was.
He moved one hand from the book and pressed a button on his wristwatch, and a tinny little voice spoke up. "The time is seven thirty-eight p.m."
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Post by Rivienne Volkova on Jul 1, 2010 16:37:08 GMT -5
Rivienne sauntered into the staff lounge and yawned wide. It felt like it should have been much later than it was. As the end of the year neared, there were mountains of papers to grade, not to mention all of the headmistress' paperwork that somehow ended up delegated to her. There was far too much to do.
She plopped down in one of the chairs, then glanced up at the professor across from her. "Good evening, Professor Breannan," she said pleasantly. "Enjoying your book?"
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Aodh Breannan
Ireth
Bio Prof. Not Actually A Bat
To be blind is not miserable; not to be able to bear blindness, that is miserable.
Posts: 58
|
Post by Aodh Breannan on Jul 1, 2010 17:02:46 GMT -5
Aodh lifted his head at the sound of someone entering the room, and smiled at the sound of the warm, pleasant female voice that spoke to him.
"Evening, Professor Volkova," he greeted her in return, setting his book aside in favor of conversation. "You sound tired. Are you feeling well?"
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Post by Rivienne Volkova on Jul 1, 2010 19:12:48 GMT -5
Rivienne smiled, brushing her hair back out of her face. "Just a little drained," she replied. "You know how hectic things get toward the end of the year."
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Aodh Breannan
Ireth
Bio Prof. Not Actually A Bat
To be blind is not miserable; not to be able to bear blindness, that is miserable.
Posts: 58
|
Post by Aodh Breannan on Jul 1, 2010 19:25:53 GMT -5
Aodh smiled. "Of course. It's a rare and precious moment when a professor can sit and take a break from the chaos of scholarly duties, especially at the end of the year. Sometimes those moments are all that keeps one sane until summer comes."
He stiffened suddenly as his skin began to crawl. It couldn't be sunset already! Hastily picking up his book, he stood up and spoke to Rivienne again, his voice urgent and apologetic.
"I'm sorry to leave so soon, but I really need to be going. I hadn't realized it was so close to dusk... Goodnight, Professor."
The odd feeling in his skin was going deeper, into his muscles and bones. He tipped his head with a rather forced smile that slipped to a grimace of pain, then he turned and headed quickly toward the door. Halfway there he stumbled, dropping his book and throwing out his hands to break his fall.
The pain overwhelmed him; he writhed on the floor as his body contorted, legs bending and shortening while his arms and hands stretched to inhuman proprtions, becoming huge, splayed wings. His mouth and nose became a blunt muzzle, his ears grew long and tapered and moved to the top of his head, and thick black fur bristled out all over his body. The groans of pain that had begun in his throat became high, shrill squealing, unlike any human could make. Finally he lay still, panting for breath as the change was completed and the pain began to ebb away.
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Post by Rivienne Volkova on Jul 1, 2010 21:00:37 GMT -5
Rivienne's eyes went wide, and she gripped the arms of the chair for support. She gasped and bolted to her feet.
"Professor Breannan!" She kneeled on the floor beside him. "Professor--oh!" She clapped one hand over her mouth. Her hand slowly slipped down, her head shaking slightly, and she tried to tell herself that this was most likely normal and nothing to worry about, but that had sounded excruciating.
She sat back on her feet, looking over the creature in front of her. "Professor Breannan, are you alright?"
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Aodh Breannan
Ireth
Bio Prof. Not Actually A Bat
To be blind is not miserable; not to be able to bear blindness, that is miserable.
Posts: 58
|
Post by Aodh Breannan on Jul 1, 2010 21:11:48 GMT -5
Aodh lifted his head at the sound of Rivienne's voice and nodded once in response to her question. He carefully brought his splayed wings in close to his body and shook himself, then shrank down a bit, folding his ears back against his head and trying to make himself appear smaller so as not to frighten her; she had sounded quite alarmed at his fall and transformation in the first place. He wished he retained the power of speech in this form, but it was probably too much to ask for that he even kept his human mind. Bloody mage. Bloody curse.
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Post by Rivienne Volkova on Jul 1, 2010 21:23:57 GMT -5
Rivienne nodded slightly and took a step back. "I assume you can't speak when you're like this?" she asked, looking at him sympathetically. "Is there anything I can do for you?"
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Aodh Breannan
Ireth
Bio Prof. Not Actually A Bat
To be blind is not miserable; not to be able to bear blindness, that is miserable.
Posts: 58
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Post by Aodh Breannan on Jul 1, 2010 21:41:56 GMT -5
Aodh shook his head regretfully, blinking his sightless eyes. He swiveled his head this way and that, casting out sound to determine where the nearest window was before starting to crawl toward it on his wing-thumbs and feet. He clambered up onto one of the couches, finding the window and butting it with his head and shoulders to open it.
The window opened outward, and Aodh crawled through, launching himself out into the warm night with a beat of his powerful wings. He flew a few meters above the ground, circling the castle in search of his own apartment window. He'd get a good night's rest and come back to Rivienne in the morning, he decided, and apologize properly for frightening her like that. It occurred to him that he'd left his book on the floor in the lounge, but Rivienne would probably put it away where he could find it again tomorrow.
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