(Untitled)

[spice_oflife]

A young woman, currently comfortably clad in street wear is standing here, cheerily waving.

"Hi, everyone! So, I'm Paprika, and I'm interested in dreams! Have you had any interesting ones lately? Chased by sharks? Shown up for a big test without any clothes? C'mon, tell me about it!"

Comments

[lambwolfandman]

"I'm Alistair," a young man introduces himself with a generous bow, his smile only flickering as he thinks.

"I always have one where someone tells me my magic is gone. Or just when I need it, I can't use my magic," Alistair recounts with a frown. He hates those dreams. They're more annoying than anything. Making him wake up in a panic.

He brightens up and smiles cheerfully again. "But the last dream I can remember was about helping people shop... And at some point the people turned into trolls and didn't seem to notice... And I'm pretty sure we were being followed by someone... It was fairly mundane."

[spice_oflife]

"Magic, huh?" Suddenly, there's a small explosion of confetti in the air; Paprika's dressed in a top hat and cape, holding a white dove in her hand. "Are you a magician by trade?"

She laughs. "And it's mundane for people to turn into trolls? I'd say most people would think that's a pretty scary situation."

[lambwolfandman]

He jumps but then laughs at the mini-explosion and watches the dove keenly (and may end up cooing at it eventually). "I was taught that 'magician' was the name given to a man who uses illusions to feign magical ability. But I am a mage, yes!"

"Well, with dreams far scarier things can happen, can't they? I mean, it's not normal in reality for people to turn into trolls, but in a dream it's a bit different. Like getting chased around a city and then facing a tsunami, that's a scary situation. Hopeless situations are scary. But when the trolls are asking you which loaf of bread looks best..." He shrugs. "Not as worrying."

[spice_oflife]

She claps her hands together in excitement, sending the dove fluttering over towards Alastair and seeking to land on his shoulder. "Well, you'll have to show me your spells sometime, yes?"

"That's true," she muses. "The other day I had a dream that I was a baton-twirler at a parade -- I was terrified of dropping my baton! But then a winged lion came over and told me that I shouldn't worry, since I'd practiced the entire week to get it right."

"So," she says, holding up a single finger, as if to make a point. "What's so scary about not being able to do magic? Afraid you can't get another gig?"

[lambwolfandman]

"Of course!" Alistair is all too happy to have a dove perch on his shoulder. Although he's going to be a little distracted now, paying the bird as much attention as Paprika.

"I wouldn't like to argue with a winged lion! It sounds like the dream ended nicely though..."

"Well..." He summons a very small flame, as if it will help him think this through. He toys with it carefully so as not to upset the dove. "I use my magic to help people, to defend myself... There's not a day I remember than I didn't have magic."

[spice_oflife]

"That's true," she grins, "Lucky I wasn't arguing with him."

"Ah, so, to you, magic must be as natural as breathing, right? If you lost it, that would be terrible. You wouldn't be able to use it to help people any more, either."

[lambwolfandman]

He grins. "Good move."

"Yes, exactly that. I worry sometimes that it will be gone, but I won't notice. Silly little fear, I know, but every so often it strikes me." He lets the flame vanish. "It helps me to endeavour to keep up training with swords and medicine."

[spice_oflife]

Paprika produces a deck of cards, shuffling them in the air in a wide arc between two hands. "A jack of all trades, huh? So, does that mean you're a doctor, too?"

Somehow in the midst of her motion, she's managed to tap a card out of the arc, sending it fluttering in Alistair's direction. "Catch!"

[lambwolfandman]

"Yep!" he chirps happily. "Learned all the manual stuff just in case magic didn't cut it..." A look of surprise temporarily interrupts his smile. He snatches the card from the air hastily. The card is examined with interest. "...What's this for?"

[spice_oflife]

"For you, of course," she says with a smile. "But I'm dying to know what it is! Show me?"

[ooc: It can have anything on it! A person, an animal, a moving picture... it's up to Alistair.]

[lambwolfandman]

With a flick of his fingers, he spins the card around to show Paprika. A little picture of a hare sits there, its nose seeming to twitch as the card is turned to show her. "I like it. Are those normal cards?"