#deafie talks

[catfindr]

ive talked several times on here that u shouldnt be naming animals using slurs but another thing id like to add to that is that its really fuckin weird to name ur animals something like 'deafy'

real ass name i saw while scrolling through petfinder and just

why.

[justyouraveragechipnolastname]

Hello?

I have no purpose, so i guess i’ll talk to some of the other dopples on here?

This is weird…. uh I’m Dopple Leafy, or I guess Deafy is easier. I use She/Glitch/Wisp like my og

I like just roll with it? Not as much as my non dopple self but yeah. Enough.

Chip is my favorite, as you could probably tell and i dont feel any way towards Gillion or Troy Lougferd at all which is cool.

Failed Deafy account finally has a purpose.

This is an RP account for my dopple since i can’t break post limit with her

All of what is said above is silly btw :3

I miss playing dnd

This is my side account my main is justyouraverageleafykinnie’

Tags:

#deafy says nothing in particular: me saying stuff

#deafy reblogs her mutual in particular: uh exactly what it says, whenever i reblog a mutual

#deafy lore: i guess i should do this whenever i have a lore moment, lore tag

[formulapisces]

ANOTHER DEAFIE ON F1BLR! i feel so left out when people talk about engine noises and things 😭 i was born profoundly Deaf, sensorineural, so it’s good to know i’m not alone around here ❤️

WELCOME 🫂 i want to give you the biggest hug.

i’m moderate-severe in both of my ears, so i can still hear the cars but i really heavily rely on closed captions for commentary, lip reading, context, transcripts, etc. if i’m in a quiet room i can listen to things like podcasts etc, but if not, everything sounds all mashed up.

im sorry you feel left out, it must feel so horrible. i actually only lost my hearing last december. (i remember the exact date, december 19). december last year was a terrible time for me, i just had problem after problem after problem. the first few months were a blur but i found out that my hearing wouldn’t recover on my birthday. (february 27 if you want a time frame).

growing up one of my biggest fears was losing my hearing/ one of my senses, and now that it has actually happened, it isn’t too bad 😅. obviously the vertigo, ear infections, aches, and tinnitus, is bad, but one thing i’ve learnt over the past 7 months is how accepting the D/deaf/HOH community is. when i figured that my hearing wasn’t going to get any better without surgery to try repair my tympanic membranes (which i am not getting, there’s far too many risks in my opinion. id rather wait for hearing aids which i won’t get for months) i instantly went searching online for people like me and they’re all so nice :)

my hearing loss started as a sinus infection so mine is conductive, not sensorineural - the pressure built up in my sinuses so much that i practically obliterated both of my eardrums from a single yawn. i ended up losing about half of my hearing. my doctor thought i had eustachian tube dysfunction because my hearing sounds muffled like i’m under water. my hearing has never been the best before the illness too and i’ve struggled with ruptured eardrums before from when i was about 10 and i got scarlet fever and other various colds etc (these should’ve been the first red flags) but my hearing has ALWAYS recovered. accepting and realising that my hearing won’t actually recover has been the hardest part of all of this in my opinion. i think the psychological impact was a lot larger than the physical one, personally. what happened to me is so rare and usually people recover within a few weeks, so i really beat myself up about it happening, blamed myself, etc.

i’m obviously not as affected as some people are and i’m really lucky, but it’s such a struggle sometimes and i feel like nobody understands my rants so it’s just so nice to know someone here can get my frustration 🙂 (and the good things too).

it so relieving to know i’m not entirely alone on f1blr 🤟🤍

[qnewsau]

The first Deaf Queer Festival celebrates our LGBTQIA+ deaf community

New Post has been published on https://qnews.com.au/the-first-deaf-queer-festival-celebrates-our-lgbtqia-deaf-community/

The first Deaf Queer Festival celebrates our LGBTQIA+ deaf community

Through art, identity, language, culture and pride, the first Deaf Queer Festival brings together our Deaf LGBTQIA+ community.

For Stuart Anderson, the idea for the Deaf Queer Festival had been brewing for some time.

A way to empower and celebrate, creating a platform where deaf queer individuals could express themselves.

Connecting the deaf queer community and amplifying their voices.

“As a proud deaf gay man, I’ve long recognised the need for more spaces where deaf LGBTQIA+ people could come together,”

“A way that we can feel seen and heard in our language and celebrated,” he told QNews,

“While there have been some deaf queer events here and there across Australia,”

“We’ve never had a major festival dedicated entirely to this community.

“One that brings together art, identity, language, culture, and pride.

“So, in early 2024, I rallied a small group of deaf volunteers across Victoria and interstate who shared the same vision.

“Together, we shaped this into what is now Australia’s first-ever Deaf Queer Festival.

“A weekend packed with accessible celebration, expression, and empowerment for our community.”

Accessibility doesn’t happen by accident.

“We’ve designed the event so that deaf queer folks are centred and can fully participate without barriers,” Stuart said,

“Whether that’s through Auslan, visual storytelling, or accessible workshops and performances.”

“Hearing and/or non-queer allies who come with open minds and hearts are not just welcome, they’re part of the bigger picture.

“We want this festival to be a learning space too.

“Helping others understand deaf culture, queer identity, and the intersections in between.

“Accessibility doesn’t happen by accident.

“It takes planning, budgeting, consultation, and a genuine commitment to inclusion.”

For the Deaf Queer Festival, the team have had to think deeply about what that means.

Every event has Auslan interpreters or is delivered by Deaf presenters in Auslan.

When thinking about lighting, seating arrangements, and screen projections, visual sightlines are the priority.

The team created visual materials, announcements, and social media that are deaf-friendly.

Designed a website, signage, and printed materials that are inclusive of different languages and literacy levels

Have worked hard to provide a safe spaces where deaf queer people feel affirmed in both their identity and communication needs.

And have collaborated with deaf artists, performers, and creatives to lead the way.

“Accessibility isn’t an afterthought,” Stuart said,

“It’s embedded in the heart of everything we’re doing.”

  View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Deaf Queer Festival (@deafqueerfestival)

It’s a packed program.

Over three days, the Deaf Queer Festival hosts an array of activities, talks, workshops and so much more.

Highlights of the program include Deafies in Drag, flying from the US for their first-ever performance in Australia.

“They’re hilarious, political, and unapologetically deaf and queer,” Stuart said.

There is also an Auslan Tours of the Victorian Pride Centre guided by deaf tour leaders.

Sharing the history of the Pride Centre from a deaf perspective.

Workshops will covering topics like Deaf Queer identity, self-expression through performance, and the power of storytelling.

Panel talks and open forums give opportunities for community conversations and a space to share lived experiences.

Saturday hosts a creative celebration of self through costume, dance, and performance with the Mask Night.

And Sunday will host a Family BBQ & Deaf Market, featuring stalls from Deaf queer creatives, services, and community organisations.

“We’ve built the program to celebrate who we are,” Stuart said,

“But also to educate, entertain, and build stronger community connections.”

The Deaf Queer Festival runs from 2nd to the 4th of  May at the Victorian Pride Centre.

Check out the full program and further details here.

  View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Deaf Queer Festival (@deafqueerfestival)

For the latest LGBTIQA+ Sister Girl and Brother Boy news, entertainment, community stories in Australia, visit qnews.com.au. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

[bishiglomper]

As a single-sided deafie, y'all just don't know how I'd kill for a pair of radio dish ears

I have to turn my head sideways at them just to hear people talk at me

When we were in the middle of a full room and people would scream and cheer I'd practically throw my head between my knees to get away from the volume.

All of that could be solved with a pair of furry ears I can twist around and press back 🤣

[tilyougiveup]

Also let’s talk about this man, Tom Scott, and his captions for the video teasers for his podcast??? Captions are 1) color coded to the speaker, 2) spelled according to the speaker’s country (z versus s, u or not, etc), and 3) includes phonetic pronunciation any time it’s relevant to the statement or a joke.

As a Deafie, Tom is a fucking *master class* in how to provide access.

whenever i click the cc button on a youtube video that clearly has a high budget and is made by a fucking studio and i see “english - auto generated” i spit daggers from my eyes and mouth at whoever decided to not pay someone to make actual captions

[1-1-s1ay-2-2]

I lied....it’s not live. Days ago actually. Also, I’m guilty of being weak because I have indeed smoked cigarettes since the ridiculous partaking of this video.

[consumedkings-archive]

sometimes I put my mouth right on top of this little guy's head and say 'i love you' because even though he's deaf maybe he'll hear my intentions

and sometimes he rips into the garbage can and jumps all over my clean laundry and i look him in the whites of his eyes and yell "I'M GOING TO TAKE YOU BACK TO THE HUMANE SOCIETY YOU GOBLIN"

so anyway doggy parenthood is going well

[bodhrancomedy]

Hey, hey, listen, listen. 

If I did a list of classic novels turned into musicals and rated them with worst and best song would anyone watch that? 

Because I’ve just discovered the hysterically bad Wildhorne Dracula musical and I just need to talk about it and compare it to the much better musical version of Frankenstein. 

It’s Deaf Awareness Week, let this autistic queer Deafie rant to you about musicals and my musical dreams. 

[concerningwolves]

Hi! I read your post about writing deaf characters. I'm writing fanfiction where the main character is deaf and hoped maybe you could help with a really specific question.

If someone who were signing had a flat affect, or otherwise their face could not be seen, is there another way to convey the information typically conveyed through facial expressions? How much information would be lost without the communication through facial expressions?

In addition, I was doing research on the best ways to convey sign language through writing and someone suggested GLOSS. What are your opinions on people who convey sign language through GLOSS?

Importance of the face in sign language & using GLOSS to convey signed dialogue.

Hi! Thank you for this question – I'm always excited to talk about the nifty ways that sign language conveys tone :D I'm just sorry it took me a while to answer, because I needed time to find some old resources that were way back in the depths of my blog.

TL;DR Summaries:

The face/facial expression is an integral part of sign language because it conveys meaning similar to tone of voice.

That meaning can be conveyed in other ways, like body language and signing space. From a hearing POV, signing might get louder in high-emotion contexts.

Gloss has its uses in academic and non-fiction writing, but it isn't always suitable for dialogue in fiction.

How the face conveys tone (and what happens when it can't):

Where the face is most important is in the idea of "facial punctuation": In BSL, for example, an o-shape with the mouth is like an exclamation mark and a raised eyebrow is a question mark. Those are two basic, yet integral, examples of how facial expression is part of the sign language syntax. Another example is how fluent or "native" ASL speakers can omit signs in favour of facial expression indicators – instead of the "YOU NAME WHAT?" combination that textbooks teach, signers will ask "YOU NAME?" and use furrowed eyebrows to convey the concept of "what". (In other words, facial expressions as tone indicators!)

The face is also important because it adds necessary context, such as mouthing words that have the same sign so clarify their meaning in that moment. This is why there was a lot of difficulty when COVID hit: not only do a lot of us deafies need to lip-read, but for sign-speakers, it would've been like trying to talk to someone who constantly muffles their mouth with their hand or someone who talks while chewing their sleeve. Sure, you can technically hear what that person is saying, but the meaning easily gets confused and information lost.

[Other ways to convey tone in sign language and using gloss for dialogue under the cut]

Other way to convey tone in sign language

But! The face isn't the only part that conveys tone. Sign language is cool because although it's thought of as a language that's spoken with hands, it actually uses the entire body. This includes the concept of "signing space":

Signing space is ... the three-dimensional space in front of the signer, from the waist to the forehead and from one side of the body to the other, where signs can be realized. Signers use this space to represent physical space and to represent conceptual structure. ... It's used to convey abstract information like time and order. The signer also uses this space to position the entities that are evoked in the sentence (e.g. people, objects, buildings and places) and to demonstrate their semantic relationships. — from the Wikipedia page on signing space

So, what does that mean for describing sign language?

A d/Deaf POV character would take note of how someone else uses sign space. "Non-native" sign speakers (those who learn it later in life, like me, as opposed to speaking only SL), tend to use a slightly larger than necessary sign space, similar to how you sometimes over-enunciate/over-emphasise or raise your voice when speaking an unfamiliar second language. People who've grown up only speaking a SL would find the use of sign space more intuitive, and so use the space more naturally.

Just like verbal speakers raise their voice, trip over words, muddle up word order and stutter when influenced by emotion, so do sign speakers. Describing the way someone uses sign space is a good way to do this, and something I haven't seen utilised all that often. Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant and the The Shape of Water novel both do this well; they never explicitly use the technical language, but they take time to describe how the characters sign.

How you describe this would be a bit different depending on the POV's character's fluency in sign language. I will forever love the bit in TSoW where Elisa is getting really upset, and Giles can't parse what she's saying because she's muddling her words and signing too fast for him to keep up with.

She's past him, all but ricocheting off the walls, signing recklessly enough to send columns of old paintings swaying. ... Her right hand wiggles – "fish", he thinks – and she pulls inwards from both shoulders – "fireplace" he thinks; no, "skeleton"; no, "creature" – and then a similar motion, but rounded – "trap," he thinks, or something like it, though he's probably wrong. She's talking far too rapidly. — The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro and Daniel Kraus.

Giles isn't wholly fluent in sign language, or knowledgeable about the technicalities. Someone who is might've had a better time of understanding what Elisa was saying; to me, this reads as Elisa being too upset to properly "enunciate" her signs, and she's signing so fast she's doing the equivalent of tripping over her own tongue. The bit where she is "signing recklessly enough to send columns of old paintings swaying" shows that she's careless with her sign space, essentially shouting. (It is also such a lovely description, so evocative of both how sign language inhabits the speaker's space, and also of Giles' shoebox flat).

If you're writing from the POV of a hearing character, there are also noises to consider. Someone who's speaking quietly in sign language would sign quietly, i.e., controlled movements and careful, noiseless skin contact; someone who's shouting in sign language would sign loudly, with less controlled movements depending on emotion and the slap of skin on skin for some signs. Other noises are breaths, perhaps instinctive grunts, or the sounds of jewellery if the speaker is wearing any.

Conveying sign language with GLOSS

For those who don't know, "'Glossing' is what you call it when you write one language in another. The written information is known as 'gloss.'" (explanation from this page about Glossing ASL, which is also where you'll find more information about the facial expression for "what" that I mentioned above). It's sometimes styled in all caps because sign language Gloss is written in capitals and small caps. This PDF gives a simple but comprehensive explanation of Gloss in ASL, if anyone would like to read more about how it works.

I've had discussions about glossing in fiction before on this blog, and although it's had a mixed result, I personally come down on the side of "Gloss is incredibly useful as a method of transcribing sign language, but I don't think it has a place in fiction". In the context of dialogue in fiction, you can convey sign language better by translating it than you can by transcribing it through gloss.

To expand a bit, here's an example of what gloss looks like, taken from the previously-mentioned page about ASL gloss:

YESTERDAY PRO-1 INDEX-[at] WORK HAPPEN SOMEONE! MAN CL:1-"walked_past_quickly" I NEVER SEE PRO-3 BEFORE.

Which roughly translates to: "Yesterday at work a stranger (some guy I've never seen before) rushed past me".

... Not really the easiest thing in the world to read if you're unfamiliar with it.

I've read sign language dialogue that uses a simplified gloss before, in which case the "glossed" dialogue is pared down to the words only, and the other gloss elements are added to the description. To return to the earlier "What's your name?" example, the dialogue could then look like this:

"YOU NAME?" she signed, furrowing her eyebrows into the question.

Which is easier to understand, but an entire text full of dialogue in capital letters, with words usually appearing in the "wrong" order, still presents an accessibility issue. It's more effective to translate the sign language and then describe what the speaker is doing in the surrounding description. This isn't a perfect way of writing signed dialogue, but you're not going to find a perfect way, because sign language is distinctly different from spoken or written language.

(In Into the Drowning Deep, there's an author's note at the start telling readers that all ASL has been "rendered as if it were SEE (Signing Exact English)" – i.e., translated – for ease of reading, which I really appreciated!)

There's also the fact that glossed or literally transcribed signed dialogue can be read as childish, which ... uh. Well. The way we treat speech as a sign of intellectual ability, and how intellectual ability is used to measure a person's worth, is a thorny topic for another time. But in summary, infantilisation of anyone who doesn't speak verbally is an issue, and the "simple" way that glossed SLs are written reads similarly to the way kids talk, which feeds into harmful stereotypes that all d/Deaf people are inherently stupid or infantile.

I hope this helps, and please ask if you have any more questions! <3

[punkdeaf]

*sticks leg up in air* the rise in popularity of podcasts and vines and other such forms of audio storytelling is a cool art form *backflips* but every new art form leaves disabled people scrambling for ways to access the stories because abled folks forget that not everyone can hear and not everyone can understand audio-based arts *does the splits* so please fuckign caption your vines and subtitle your videos and provide transcripts of your podcasts

[zumpietoo]

The hilarious part about this, right off the bat, is they’re acting like somebody being kind to Jug and maybe putting him first for once is a terrible thing! All while convinced he needs to pull himself together so he can go fix Slizzy....

He IS over Slizzy, that’s what last season was about....he stopped being “reckless” when he stopped drinking....apparently you’ve missed a lot of the show.

Alsooooo....ummm....noooo....in fact, that’s fucking hilarious. You really ARE desperately twisting everything now, huh? Plus I thought she was gonna either

A) read Jug’s book and run screaming into the nite, cuz Slizzy is the ultimate

B) totally cuck Jug while he’s learning sign language, cuz Deafie won’t hear her fucking the dude

Umm...yes, we can. And what he “talked up” was how much he doesn’t want to work with his psychotic ex any more than he possibly has to. I will say, given how you keep endlessly revisiting this, it’s really obvious it has you completely unnerved. IDK when I’ve seen this much “doth protest too much”.

It isn’t “the caregiver trope”, but way to make somebody being a good person into a crime, there, asswipe. Cuz, again, you wanted Jug to do that for Slizzy and Tabs to be their mammy, right?

Again, lots in common and if he IS lonely, whelp we all know why.....

So they’re now fucking cuz she pities him and he needs her help? Funny, sure didn’t come off that way....

Dude, it’s pretend----it’s been made abundantly clear once he dried out, he saw things clearly----and even before that he knew he wanted her. He told her he wasn’t over the break up. The entire concept was that he went on his quest to get over that and other things. 

We know they’ve discussed shit and I’d say him repeatedly pursuing her makes it very clear he is. This is your fanfic/wish list. 

Actually, we saw all of that (conversation/concern about her/shared interests), that you ignore it is entirely your problem. No, turns out his relationship (7 years ago) with Slizzy was her endlessly using him, making everything about herself, taking credit for his accomplishments and being a cuntwipe. She later just strung him along/was overtly hostile.

You were completely wrong about the musical. You thought you’d have Hey #3 and a complete reconciliation. God you’re a fucking liar. Nope, everybody did except you Slizzystans. Also, dude, you REALLY need to move on. You’re a broken, boring record....

They don’t have that, they’re pretend and what Jug “deserves” is waaayyyyy better than Slizzy...

[overly-b]

I’m Not Listening, Rafe. - JJ Maybank

Part two of I’m Not Listening. 

@midnightmagicmusings ALSO had this idea so big props to her for being the inspiration for both of these fics. I tagged everyone from the original fic. 

JJ x hard of hearing reader

Warnings: swearing, fluff, unedited

Word Count: 900+ a few 

Author’s note: Once again, I only have a slight amount of hearing loss in one ear, so this may be a little in accurate in the sense of profound hearing loss, but I did my best to make it as accurate as possible.

About a week after the incident with Rafe at the beach, you were confronted by him once again. 

You and the Pogues were at a Boneyard party, and of course the Kooks showed up eventually. 

You and JJ were sitting by the fire, your legs draped across his lap, when suddenly Rafe approached you. 

“If it isn’t JJ and deafy. How are y'all doing tonight?” 

JJs grip on your legs tensed instantly. 

“JJ,” You catch his attention. “Please, no fighting.” 

“Hey, I’m talking to you two.” You give JJ a stern look before turning top Rafe. 

“We’re fine Rafe, we just really don’t want any trouble tonight.” You tell him sweetly, fake smiling at the preppy boy before you. 

“I don’t want any trouble, I’m just sitting here at a party. What's the trouble in that?” He smugly replies. 

“Good” You finalize, JJ was still eying him wearily. You go back to your conversation with JJ and John B until Rafe decides to speak up again. 

“I just find it funny,” Rafe says to you and JJ again. “Deaf people aren’t supposed to be able to talk.” 

“She’s deaf not mute dumb ass maybe you should educate yourself.” JJ stands to meet Rafes eyes. You jump to your feet. 

“Oh shit then maybe you should let her speak for herself, being that she can and all.” “I can asshole but we are not doing this right now.” You stand with your back to JJ’s chest between him and Rafe. 

“I think we already are deafy.” 

“Yeah?” You raise your brow at Rafe who still thinks he has the upper hand. To this, your hands find your ears, and you flick off both of your hearing aids. “Try insulting deafy now.” 

You felt JJ’s chest behind you vibrate with laughter as you both watched Rafes face contort into one of shock and dumbfoundedness. For one, Rafe didn’t even know that you could do something like that, and for two, it was such a baller move that it truly left him speechless. 

“Let’s get outta here.” You smile up at your grinning boyfriend. 

“Gladly.” He takes your hand, and leaves Rafe standing by the fire.  The two of you end up running down the beach, beaming ear to ear. You turn your hearing aids back on, wanting to hear his laughter. 

The thing is, he doesn’t know that you turned them back on. He waves, wanting your attention, and signs the word “swim?” You nod rapidly, happy that he was slowly memorizing signs. You pull out your hearing aids, placing them in your pocket in zipping it up. You both strip of your clothes leaving you both in the suits you had been wearing all day. 

“Race?” He signs, speaking it as well. You nod again, putting on a competitive standoffish face. He holds up his pointer finger. “One,”  You get into running stances. He holds his second finger. “Two,” 

At two, you step towards him, shoving him off balance best you could, and take off sprinting to the ocean. You reach the water before he does, but as he meets you, he tackles you, throwing you into the waves. 

The two of you splash around, dunking and throwing water at each other. At one point he had you over his shoulder and threw you up into an oncoming wave. You were breathing heavily, and your sides hurt from laughing so much, but your skin burned with the thrill of the night, and your heart was glowing in the light of the moment you were sharing with your boyfriend. 

The two of you had somehow wandered out into water that was waist deep before you slowed down. Well, his waist, your torso. You began swimming to get away from his attacks when he grabbed your ankle and pulled you back. He pulled you into him, wrapping your legs around his torso and arms around his shoulders. 

It only took a moment for him to kiss you deeply. Before long, you were just two kids making out in the ocean. You had no idea how long you were there before JJ pulled his lips from yours. 

“Why’d you stop?” You tease, but the serious look in his eyes told you that his mood was far from a teasing one. “What?” 

You feel his grip on you let go, letting you koala on his figure, and he begins signing. 

“I” He points to himself. “Love” He crosses his arms over his chest best he could with you still clinging to him. “You” His pointer finger points to you, tapping your collarbone. Your surprised eyes lock onto his. They were drowning affection, like he was looking at his whole world in his arms. You kiss him roughly. 

“I love you too” You slur onto his lips. He hums into the kiss, allowing you to feel the vibrations he makes. 

Once you had made it back to the beach, you put your hearing aids in as fast as you could. 

“I love you!” You exclaim. 

“I thought we already did this.” He joked. 

“I want to hear it.” His hands found your hip, pulling you into his chest. He brings your hands to his throat. 

“I love you.” You hear it in his voice and you feel his words in his throat. And just like that, you were making out on the beach just as you were in the ocean. 

Taglist: @write-from-the-heart @thatsonobx @sarahroutledge @midnightmagicmusings @midnightmagicmusingsmain @poguestyleskye

[1-1-s1ay-2-2]

There’s not a day goes by when my husband isn’t doing something to make me cry...but I don’t talk about it. I keep it all inside. The misery. The lies. Who cares, right. Nobody. Exactly. That’s why I don’t talk about it.

[daybreak-academy-fanfic]

Lost Lights: Chapter 8

Do-Gooders

Summary: In which Terra and Aqua arrive at just the right time, and more secrets are kept. Word Count: 2,620 First | Previous | Next | Last ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆ ⚬ ☆

Terra and Aqua had spent most of the evening at Mean Street. To occupy their time, they went around to ask any citizens if they had seen (or at least heard of) Sora. The two ended up meeting a local reporter outside the theater. It was a horse-like person, similar to Horace Horsecollar, who went by the name Jack Kelly. Terra had wanted to immediately ask if he had seen Sora, but Aqua advocated for a more gentle approach. Instead, she casually asked Jack Kelly for any decent news around town. Besides their own arrival, there was news of a dwarf named Deafy who had upset the organ in the Haunted Mansion, and there was even a petition started in Tomorrow City to get the Peoplemover bridges open again.

It was when the horse-person started to warble on about rival news anchors that Aqua finally asked about Sora. Either her description of Sora was too weird for this world (spiky brown hair, blue eyes, fair skinned with a light tan, close in age to Sabrina), or Jack Kelly really did not like being cut off when he was talking. He gave Aqua a rather hard stare as she tried to better describe the lost wielder. After she was done, he started to think everything over.

"Well, I know of a Sora,” he eventually admitted. “But I don't think it's the one you're looking for. Your Sora's a he, right?"

"That's right."

"Nope,” the horse person decided with a shake of his head. “Who I'm thinking of isn't the Sora you're looking for then. The Sora I know of is one of those gargoyles that takes occupation in certain parts of Rainbow Caverns. Definitely not who you're trying to find, I'd wager."

"No." Aqua agreed, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "But thank you anyway.”

“If you do hear something, could you let us know?" Terra asked.

"Of course! I'd be the first to learn of anything new here in Wasteland, or my name isn't Jack Kelly!"

Terra and Aqua gave the reporter a small nod before taking their leave.

“I told you we wouldn’t be able to find him here.” Aqua told Terra as they then proceeded to walk aimlessly to the tip of Main Street North. Terra looked over at her to study her expression before putting on a wide grin.

“Master Aqua,” he then teased, “You’re not giving up, are you?”

The mere idea of it caused Aqua to freeze in place. Her shocked expression only gave Terra room to laugh at her. Before Aqua was able to fully realize he was joking, they both heard the terrified cry of Chirithy in the distance.

“Terra! Aqua! Where are you?!”

The two wielders flashed each other a quick look before heading to the source of Chirithy’s shouts. They met in the middle, some place around the Emporium.

“There you are!” Chirithy exclaimed, running up to them.

“Chirithy, what’s wrong?” Aqua asked, bending down to the Dream Eater’s height.

“It’s Sabrina and Ven,” it told them, “They’re in trouble! BIG trouble! You need to go help them now!”

A chill ran up the two wielders’ spines.

"Can you lead us to them?" Terra questioned, although it came out more as a demand.

"Mostly." it said. "Come on!"

The two gave Chirithy a nod before following its lead. It led them back to where the D.E.C. entrance was underneath the train station. But something was there that they didn’t expect; a second Chirithy. It was urgently fussing with the D.E.C. hatch as it waited for everyone to come together. Seeing a second Chirithy stopped Terra and Aqua in their tracks.

"Over here!" the other Chirithy told them, urgently waving them over. "Come on, hurry!"

"There's two of them?" Terra questioned. "How?"

"We'll tell you why later." Ven's Chirithy quickly told him as it pushed against his legs. "Just keep going!"

Terra gave a nod before he and Aqua went into the D.E.C. with their Keyblades already out.

. . .

The beauty of the Angel Caverns was easily disrupted by the sounds of metal clashing against metal. At the top of the numerous platforms, where the area was more of a ledge overlooking the Devil Caverns, two females fought each other with weapons of light. Or, at least, one possessed a true weapon of light. The other was fake, created to match the weapon that was once wielded by the original face of the other, but it was no less of a threat.

“You have such an admirable fighting spirit, my dear.” the shape shifter Mizrabel, now guised as a young woman with long orange hair and a lovely linen dress, purred before firing a magic spell at Sabrina. The raven haired girl blocked the attack, and immediately reflected it back. It nearly hit Mizrabel by a hair. “If only it translated well into your actual fighting techniques. That weapon of yours might actually be a threat.”

“At least mine is real.” Sabrina spat. “Yours is just a product of your illusions.”

“And yet,” Mizrabel mused with a click of her tongue, “I’m still overpowering you. I thought you had a teacher now, darling. But wait- what’s our dear leader going to say when his preferred heir is going out of her way to hurt him? I mean, threaten this world’s sense of hope, of course. We could never afford to lose that.”

The growl that erupted from Sabrina’s throat was near feral as she blindly came at Mizrabel. It only took a simple side step to avoid the attack.

“It’s such a shame that the Keyblade chose you.” Mizrabel sighed. “You have so much darkness in your heart, it’s amazing there’s any light left in you at all.”

Sabrina did not answer at first. She turned back around to face the shapeshifter, holding her Keyblade tight with both hands.

“Maybe it’s because of my darkness that it chose me.” she challenged.

Mizrabel openly laughed. She took a few steps forward, dispelling her weapon as if they were coming to a truce. Knowing that the shape shifter was in no way finished, Sabrina did not let her guard down.

“You’re a smart little girl.” Mizrabel crooned, giving a small wave of her hand. “But do you really believe in yourself like that?”

The teen’s body stiffened. For once during the entire fight, her hold on her weapon became a tad bit loose. Her face detailed a conflict that she normally did not let show.

“Didn’t think so.” Mizrabel smirked before summoning her weapon once more. Before Sabrina had time to react, she was hit at blunt range. The blow came at her with more force than what she had been expecting, Sabrina was sent flying to the platform’s ledge. It was by luck that she was able to catch herself before falling off the platform completely.

“Well this scene looks familiar.” Mizrabel mused as she came back over. Cursing under her breath, Sabrina tried her best to get her lower body from back over the ledge before Mizrabel came over. It was just as easy as wading through gelatin. It was embarrassing. Mizrabel stood above Sabrina now, a malicious grin crossing lips never meant to form that way. “I believe the next line is, ‘Long live the queen.’”

Sabrina looked up at Mizrabel in urgency. There was no way. There was no way that the shape shifter would actually try to harm her. The look of surprise on Sabrina’s face melted into one of anger.

“You’re just as bad as the Mad Doctor!” she declared in pure spite. It only earned another laugh from Mizrabel.

“What a coincidence, then.” she smiled. “I’ve heard through the grapevine that the doc knows how to get the three new wielders out of our world. Funny how he hasn’t told anyone yet… But that’s not as funny as you never getting out of here alive.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure about that.”

Interrupted by a new voice, Mizrabel turned around to see Terra and Aqua ready to fight. An impatient sigh escaped her lips.

“Being in a world founded by do-gooders is so boring.” the shape shifter said, more to herself than anyone else. “They always have to swoop him, say some clever one-liner, then mop the floor with you. But I don’t want to play that game today; not any more. I’m too tired now.”

When the older wielders started to advance toward her, Mizrabel gave a wave of her hand and a cloud of smoke enveloped her body. She was gone by the time Terra could even land a hit. Aqua immediately went to Sabrina to help her back to safety. There were no thanks given at the act, just a sneer before Sabrina dusted off her clothes. Terra located Ven and didn’t waste time to make sure his friend was alright. Ven remained unresponsive, but was still fine otherwise, so Terra picked him up off the ground without hesitation. With everyone safe, they all went back to Dark Beauty in silence.

Sabrina lingered close to Aqua and Terra as they placed Ven in his guest room. She remained behind when they decided to leave. The older two didn’t question her. It might have been a good thing too, because right outside the door was Chirithy.

“Can you two follow me?” it said to them, its voice rather small. “We need to talk about… a certain something.”

“Of course.” Terra and Aqua agreed at the same time. Chirithy gave a nod before leading them around the corridor. Waiting there was a second Chirithy- but they almost expected this. It was Aqua who bent down to be close to their height before asking the obvious.

“So there’s two of you?”

The Chirithy nodded.

“Please don’t tell Ventus or my wielder.” the second Chirithy requested. “Of anyone, they of all people can not know about us.”

“Your wielder?” Aqua asked, giving a curious tilt of her head.

“Sabrina.” Terra realized. Aqua stood back up to give him a curious look. She was about to question against it, but the second Chirithy spoke up before she could.

“Yes. Sabrina.” it agreed. “You must have gathered by now how much of an anomaly she is around here. Because of events that took place before you three arrived, Oswald has been trying to keep her as close as possible. Which means… keeping things from her.”

“Keeping you from her.” Aqua softly said. Chirithy nodded.

“It’s for the best.” Ven’s Chirithy added. “Think of it for the same reasons why we already do not tell Ven a lot about his history. We’ve all seen what happens when Ven has a memory conflict, we both would hate to see it happen to another wielder too…”

The four of them fell silent at this. Having what amounted to a panic attack, then becoming unconscious after, it was an infrequent occurrence in Ventus that he, his friends, and Chirithy were starting to find the root of. But it was a slippery slope- one wrong word and Ven’s heart would be sleeping for hours, maybe even days. Even now -although Terra and Aqua didn’t know what triggered it yet- how long it would take for Ven to wake up was uncertain.

“So which Chirithy led us to the D.E.C.?” Terra questioned as soon as the thought occurred to him.

“That was me.” Ven’s Chirithy told them. “But I wasn’t in the caverns with them before that. I had let Chirithy go when Ven had called me for help.”

“It was very nice of Chirithy to do that.” Sabrina’s Chirithy agreed. “I haven’t been allowed to see Sabrina in awhile. Oswald wouldn’t allow it.”

“They even call themselves Chirithy.” Terra mumbled under his breath. “As if this wasn’t confusing enough…”

Aqua laughed a bit before getting to the Chirithy’s height again. She used her hands to give each of them a small pat on the head.

“We need to find a way to set these guys apart.” she mused.

After she finished ruffling their heads, the Chirithy looked at each other with equal glances of confusion. Their expressions remained the same before looking back to Terra and Aqua.

“But we’re Chirithy.” they said in equal unison.

“It would be up to you, of course.” Aqua laughed. “We’re not going to force you to change just for our benefit.”

“Maybe one could wear a hat.” Terra mused, stifling a laugh of his own.

“Sabrina used to be familiar with a wielder whose Chirithy wore a hat like his.” Sabrina’s Chirithy playfully mused. “I was always kinda jealous of it. It looked like it was made out of silk and everything.”

At this, the four of them went into a light laughter. They tried to keep most of it from getting too loud, in case someone else was hearing. There were still a few secrets to be had, but it was nice to share some of it with others.

For someone else, secrets were the one thing she wished people would outright tell her. Sabrina paced near the foot of Ven’s guest bed with her arms folded in front of her. Something that Mizrabel had said still stuck in her mind. She could deal with the taunting of being a bad fighter. She could even hold off on telling everyone that the Mad Doctor might have some idea of where the keyhole was until tomorrow. But it was the form that Mizrabel took, the way Ventus reacted to it, and what Mizrabel said in relation to his reaction that made Sabrina pace.

Already broken pieces…

“Sabrina…?” Ven slurred as he tried to sit up.

Sabrina blinked out of her train of thought before giving him her attention. Her gaze was steely and unrelenting as she looked at him. Seeing it made Ven sheepishly rub the back of his neck.

“How long was I out?” he ventured to ask. Sabrina looked away again.

“Not long.” she told him. She closed her eyes for a moment before asking, “Who was she?”

The question had caught him off guard. He raised an eyebrow at her in waiting for her to further explain. Sabrina held herself a bit tighter before letting out an annoyed sigh.

“The way Mizrabel’s magic works is that she takes memories of people once connected to you, and takes their forms into her own body.” she told him. The annoyance in her voice was more than noticeable as she went on. “She’s able to copy abilities and sometimes even muscle memory this way. For the record, never let her touch you again. She might trudge up someone more powerful than another Keyblade wielder or a dark fairy.”

“Noted.” Ven agreed with a nod.

“The form that Mizrabel took.” Sabrina then said once more. “The one she took from your memories. Who was it?”

“I…” Ven tried to say. “I… I can’t remember.” The young man looked down at his hands before trying to explain, “There are parts of my memory that I can’t recall at all. Sometimes when I try, everything just… goes wrong. My head starts to hurt, I black out. Chirithy has told me that it's trying to help sort everything out. But…”

“But it’s like someone broke already broken pieces…”

Ven looked up at her. “Huh?” he wondered.

“Never mind.” Sabrina insisted with a shake of her head. “It’s getting late. I’ll tell Terra and Aqua that you woke up, but other than that, I could care less. Good night, Ventus.”

“Good night.” Ven warily repeated. He watched her leave as she kept her head down. For some reason, he had a feeling that no one was going to sleep well tonight.

[q-dkw]

Trial of Skids part 5

The soothe sound of water can be heard after the first trial is completed, water run out from-

“Deafi.”

“...”

One Skid is lying dead on the ground after they finished the trial, it must be very difficult for them and how brave-

“Deafi.”

“...zzzzzzzz.”

“...”

“zzzZZZZZ”

“Deafi! Wake up!!!”

The small Skid stomps on their tiny feets.

“I swear to King of Eden, if you’re not waking up right now, I will you feed you to the krills, take all your candles and hearts!”

Just as the little Skid about to step on their friend’s face. Deafi gives out a mighty yawn, and open their eyes.

The first thing they say is, “Kraa? Why are you so big and fat?”

“Get up.” Comes the deadpan voice.

Deafi gets up and looks down, “Kraa? Why are you so small and chubby?”

Ignoring the question, Kraa says. “Did you finished all the trials.”

Shrugging, Deafi replies. “Meh, I slept here, whaddaya think?” It was such a redundant statement. “Oh but, do you know what I just dream?” 

Oh no, not again. Kraa forgot that Deafi just love to talk about their dreams and she hates it so much.

“I dreamt about the human again! This time, they... Kraa, what are you doing?”

“From the billion of Stars out there, STOP comparing Sky Kids or us Skids to the “human” from your dreams. WE DO NOT HAVE SKIN NOR FLESH!!! We are made from an incredible rare, firm and flexible ore with Light that keeps burning inside us, a suitable stand-in for all the Stars out there so we can bring them back Home. Do you ever think your dreams unconsciously made the “human” are actually from our own appearance? Not only that, the human in your dream can’t fly like us!!!”

If they still don't understand, she gives up.

“... Actually, I think we are made from some meteorite and the human in my dream use some vehicle that can fly and- Kraa? Where are you going?”

“I’m going home.”

“What? No! Here, come on, hold my hand.”

There they go again, rambling about their weird dreams. It’s not that those dreams are stupid, it just those dreams are fill with so much absurdity that they can’t help but laugh, especially those humans. The human in their look somehow like them, Kraa did say they might unconsciously use their own appearance and turn themselves into human.

There are billions of timelines and alternate universes that they may or may not in those. Deafi has dreamt of those and some of them are so... disturbing.

But the thing is, how did the humans even know the existence of Sky Kids? Enough to made a game about it.

Back to the main point, they need to console Kraa, she is upset right now.

"Kraa, you know I don't talk about my dreams just to annoyed you. I like to talk about them to you so we both can laugh at how stupid my dreams are. And how some people in my dreams keep assuming us only one thing and stuff, we are varieties and not all of us are the same. You get me?"

Despite their relationship, Deafi hates it when Kraa got upset when there are misunderstood between them.

Kraa doesn't say anything for a minute before she sighs and turns around. "I hate it that I get you."

Deafi grins, "Uh huh, come on now, let's get to the next trial."

"By the way, did you finish the trials?" They ask.

Kraa looks at Deafi with "Are you stupid?" look on her face.

"Right, you done." They wink behind their sunglasses... not that their friend can see it but she definitely knows, somehow.

"Soooo, did you collect your candles and hearts yet?"

Kraa looks with such annoyed, "Small talks don't fit us, Deafi, don't do it."

"But-"

"No."

Deafi pouts but continue.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"No."

"I haven't said anything yet!!!" One thing they just remember, being with Kraa, their mind just shut down and focus on the tasks.

Kraa has such aura around her, shutting others up before they even get to say anything.

Then again, that never stop them before.

The surrounding is-

"Enough self narrator, Deafi. Light those candles up already."

And just because that never stop them, doesn't mean Kraa doesn't have anything to say about it.

"Move it! And DON'T YOU DARE sing that-"

"I like to move it move it-"

"DEAFI!!!!!"

TBC...