[Commentlog] Twelve Hours In (Open)

[allthesame2me]

[It's been twelve hours of slipping in and out of consciousness, his back alternating between numb and burning at regular intervals. He's blacked out a few times, but the searing at his wrists and neck would bring him 'round rather quickly

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[allthesame2me]

[Alex frowns slightly and looks up at Anders in confusion. Mage?] Mage? Who .. who said that? [His own mental image of mage was something far more archaic than he could ever be. Robes and making and such, like in the old fantasy novels he used to read before being infected.]

Not a mage .. just a lycanthrope .. shifter .. Mages are different where I'm from .. closer to witches or wizards.

[God, his mouth was so dry. He closed his mouth and tried to work up some moisture and then Anders' next question brings his gaze back to the man again, now just in his range of sight.]

Infection .. lycanthropy is an infection .. got it three years ago .. It's the reason I can change form at all. But on the full moon .. the change is controlled by the moon .. its cycles .. I wish I could give you rhyme or reason .. just old wives tales. Never believed it .. not til it happened to me.

[He exhales softly, neck and wrists burnt and bleeding as he tries to make himself a bit more comfortable.]

Any other time .. the shift is controlled .. I remember everything. I make conscious decisions and have my own mind. I don't know why the full moon is different .. Just that it is.

[3wayforjustice]

A woman... she said you were a shape-shifter. That can only be accomplished with magic.

[Maybe in your world, Anders. He falls silent again, listening. It reminds him, vaguely, of something. One of the stories surrounding the Hero of Fereldan. The Grey Warden.]

[No. It isn't right that people were killed. Maimed. But to punish a clearly repentant man for something he couldn't control...]

[His knuckles whiten around his staff.]

Are you proud of yourself? Had you been... conscious... would this have happened?

[allthesame2me]

[Alex frowns slightly, wondering who could have said that to Anders. He'd certainly never referred to himself as a Mage before and certainly didn't consider himself one.

However, Anders next question catches him off guard and he jerks his head up in surprise to try to look at the man. He ignores the fresh burn just beneath his hairline and his brows knot, stomach tightening in a mixture of shock and anger.]

Of course I'm not proud of myself! These were my friends! I wouldn't even take pleasure in doin this to someone I hated! If I felt that way, I would deserve far more than lashes and time in the stocks.

[He's not sure whether to feel insulted or just sick at the idea. Certainly there were those out there that did take this sort of pleasure from killing or maiming, but he wasn't one of them. His voice is soft when he continues, looking away from Anders.]

If I could control my shifting on the full moon, his would never have happened. It would never happen at all! I take no pleasure in harming others; least of all innocents that are in the wrong place at the wrong time. I would have just found someplace to hole up for the evening .. or not have shifted at all.

[3wayforjustice]

[He's silent for a while, letting that answer wash over him. Eventually, he makes his decision, and gets to his feet. Clothing rustles. The coat, covered in feathers, slides off his shoulders, onto the trapped man's.]

[If he couldn't control himself, there was no need for this. There was reason to help. Not harm.]

Then this was just as much a mockery of justice as he'd said it was.