the preserve: tuesday afternoon

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

Nathan had been spending a lot of time in the preserve lately. As the weather warmed, it was easier to lose hours just running through the trees, tracking teal deer, and just sitting in the quiet. It reminded him of home and he'd been thinking of home a lot lately.

But, this morning, the preserve was making him frown. He spent a lot of time here so he was able to notice trees that looked thinner than previously and the abundance of dead leaves and pine needles on the ground. He wasn't smart but he didn't think those went along with changing from one season to the next.

He'd spent several hours yesterday looking at trees that were shedding their bark. Maybe this place was different? Whatever it was, it was worrying. Nathan was trying not to think about that now having just come back to a spot in the preserve where he'd been sleeping. He sat down and leaned back against a tree trunk, pulling some food onto his lap.

Overhead, a few leaves fell off branches and tumbled lazily to the ground. Nathan frowned again. This couldn't be right.

[Open if you're in the preserve!]

Comments

[not_every_mage]

Finding Nathan in the preserve was always a bit like a treasure hunt for Anders. There was some tedium to the process, especially now that the novelty of being allowed outside had worn off, but the reward was worth it. He half-noticed along the way that some of the trees seemed sickly, but didn't think much of it.

Finally, he spotted a flash of dark hair through the trees.

"Nathan?" he called, still some distance away. "Hi. I hadn't seen much of you since the cruise, so I figured I'd try to track you down out here."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"Hello," Nathan said, giving Anders a wave as he approached. "I've been out here mostly."

Dealing with renewed nightmares and other not so fun things.

"It's warmer. No need to stay inside as much."

[not_every_mage]

"I know. Or I guessed, anyhow," Anders told him, and shoved a branch out of the way to finally get close enough to talk properly. The wood seemed strangely brittle, breaking under the pressure of his hand. Anders frowned at it briefly before he went on. "But I didn't have anything important to tell you, so I decided I could live without you until the mud dried out a little more."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"It's not too bad," he said, patting some of the damp earth beneath his hands. "And it dries quickly in the sun. It smells real to me too. Natural."

[not_every_mage]

"It feels like it's finally spring," Anders agreed, and found a convenient (and almost totally dry) rock to sit on. "There's even sun. I wasn't sure it was coming back."

He wasn't serious abut that last thing.

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"I like when it's behind the clouds," Nathan told him, peering up. "It's warm but not as hot. Makes it easier to run."

And he did a lot of that.

[not_every_mage]

"It's definitely nicer to be outside when it's not beating down," Anders nodded, then gave Nathan a sidelong look. "Wait, you're taking up running?"

He knew people did it for fitness, but he was firmly of the 'run only when being chased' school himself.

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"I've always run a lot," Nathan told him, shrugging. "It used to be part of the routine I had when I was with Celia. She let me out to run and learn and do chores. It helped."

[not_every_mage]

"Probably helped clear out your head," Anders said, after a moment's thought. "I've never really exercised."

Which was probably blindingly obvious.

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"It made me feel free if only for a few moments," he admitted, shrugging. "The one time I was out of the cage."

Though, his wrist had paid the price for when he'd gotten too bold.

"It can be tiring though so I can see the allure of not running."

[not_every_mage]

"Templars took us out for walks every few weeks, when they got it in their heads we needed fresh air," Anders mused. "There wasn't much freedom in it."

Mostly, he'd spent the time kicking at rocks and trying to convince himself he was brave enough to try to swim across Lake Calenhad.

"Probably they were worried we'd be harder to keep down if we got too strong or fast."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"Has anyone tried to swim that lake?" Nathan wondered curiously.

[not_every_mage]

"You hear stories, but no one I knew," Anders told him with a shrug. "And mostly they drown even in the rumors. But it'll probably be escape attempt number five if they ever drag me back there. Now that I'm almost certain I won't die, anyhow."

He glanced over to Nathan. "Celia didn't worry you'd use what she taught you against her?"

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

Nathan held up his wrist and showed off the acid scars that lingered. He shook his head. "She thought she could control me and...she was right. I tried to escape but nearly died."

[not_every_mage]

Anders winced. "Right. Stupid question. Suppose I should be grateful no one at home figured out toys like hers."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"Don't say that because then it might come true," he said, dropping his wrist. "But I hope, for everyone's sake, that doesn't happen. It hurts."

To say the least.

[not_every_mage]

"Why do we only think about things coming true if you say them on the bad things?" Anders wondered. "I've talked about plenty of good things that never happened, too."

But he saw Nathan's point, so he sighed and reached to run a fingertip lightly over the scar. "Anyhow. We're safe now. That's probably what matters."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"Hopefully it stays that way," Nathan murmured even if he had a feeling something was going to happen. Something either here or home. "How are you?"

[not_every_mage]

Anders wrinkled his nose. "Honestly, I've been better," he said. "Do you know that feeling where you aren't really sick enough to bother healing, but you're sick enough that nothing sounds like much fun? I was like that all weekend. What about you?"

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"Well, I definitely wasn't that," he said, sounding concerned and peering at Anders a little closer now. "Are you all right now?"

[not_every_mage]

"I'm fine," Anders said, with a quick smile to prove it. "I napped a lot yesterday and that seems to have cleared it up, whatever it was."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"That's a good thing," Nathan said, nodding. "I've heard people say changing of the seasons can make you ill. I don't know why but I have heard it."

[not_every_mage]

"My mother said that," Anders remembered. He hadn't thought about that for a long time. "I don't know if it's true either, but if it is, maybe that's why I was a little off."

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

"My grandmother never said that," he shared, snickering. "Probably because I didn't get sick until I developed...whatever this is that I am. That I have. It almost makes me miss run of the mill flus."

[not_every_mage]

Anders smiled, though there was something sad in his eyes. "There are worse things than staying in bed and letting someone bring you things," he said. "Tell you what, next time I get a bad cold I'll skip the healing so I can share every miserable detail."