milliways_bar | (no subject)

Mallory is wearing her fencing gear, and finishing up shadow fencing when she spots the woman with the dog. The dog looks familiar, but the woman is a stranger.

She walks over, looking around for Spoon, but not seeing him.

"Hello. Is that dog named Magic?"

It could be a different dog, after all.

There aren't many reasons strangers would know Magic's name. So perhaps Ace's assumption isn't as slanderous as it first sounds.

"Hullo. Yeah, this is Magic. If she's eaten y'supper at some point, m'sorry, I'll front y'another." Magic does her best to look aggrieved as she wanders over to investigate Mallory, the stick still in her mouth.

Mallory laughs.

"No, she hasn't done that, yet. I met her they other day, only she was looking over a man named Spoon. I freaked him out a bit--by accident--and I was going to see if he was doing all right. I thought if Magic was here, he might be, too."

"He was, just a bit ago. Might be back by now - he went back t'Yorkshire, t'take care of the goats. But he's doin' fine, though I'd imagine he'd be happy t'hear y'ask." She explains, happily, and not in the least bit threatened. She does learn a few things, after repetition.

"Oh, yeah, he mentioned the goats."

She reaches out see if Magic would like to sniff it, and maybe remember her.

"I didn't realize, and I mentioned silver. It's kind of been eating at me, and I thought I'd check up. I'm glad he's doing well. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for him."

Magic stretches out her nose to sniff, then offers a quick lick before shoving her hand under Mallory's for skritching.

"Don't worry, he doesn't expect folk t'figure it out all at once. S'a lot t'learn an' remember if y'don't deal with it all the time."

Mallory obligingly skitches Magic with a smile.

"She's a great dog. Very protective of Spoon. I'm Mallory, by the way."

"M'Ace. Are y'new here then? Don't think I've seen y'about before." Not too new, obviously, she's met Spoon, but that only gives her a couple months.

"It's been a couple of months, I think. This place makes it hard to tell. I've got a job out here in the gardens to earn my keep until the door shows back up. You?"

"Oh. Ages. Years, literally, but sometimes it does feel like ages. I travel a lot, so it's not s'bad."

This is, rather, something of an understatement.

But that is neither here nor there.

"So, you're not bound. God! You almost gave me a heart attack there, for a second. I don't think I could handle the thought of being bound here for years."

"Some folk do get bound that long. S'not so bad, once y'get used t'folk. An' you can visit other people's worlds, usually. That does for a bit of freedom when the walls get too close. S'better, now, with the mountain there, though I dunno how much longer that'll last now the snow's meltin'." Ace offers. She was bound for quite a long time before things started to change.

"I didn't know you could do that...visit other places."

That has intriguing possibilities.

"Maybe I could get someone to let me loose in their version of Earth, for some time away from here."