I would have picked a quote about shadows [OPEN]

[atouts]

Who: Childermass & open.
What: Having finally gotten his shadow teleport spell to work, Childermass is trying to iron out just how to control the damn thing...
When: During the Mainframe stop, before Performance week.
Where: Around the carnival.
Warnings: n/a

i. all around the carnival

It's a whole lot of trial and error, it seems, this shadow magic, but at least Childermass doesn't anticipate ending up anywhere deadly as he goes from shadow to shadow, place to place. He's found early and late in the day works best, when the sun is forcing shadows to cast at an angle. Night time only deepens and darkens the entire world, which, in theory, you might expect to make it the easiest time of all, but there is such a thing as too many doors...

So, during these days before the carnival opens, it won't be uncommon to suddenly find a tall, somewhat dour-looking (exciting as messing around with magic like this is, he just isn't the sort to let on to that easily) Englishman abruptly existing where there hadn't been an Englishman — or anyone at all, for that matter — before! Look fast enough and you'll catch him moving like he's just stepped out of somewhere, though there's usually nothing but shadows and whatever is casting them behind him.

This could be inside buildings, the cookhouse, the Big Top, all around the forest—

ii. or in your trailer, any trailer at all

Or accidentally shadow-stepping straight into the closet in your trailer or maybe even the bathroom, if the lights been left off in there by some chance. There'll be a THUMP of Childermass walking directly into something — a broom, the shower curtain, whatever it is — and then a muttered curse of, "Oh, damn it. Not again."

And here he thought he was going to be better about this than Strange was...

Comments

[atouts]

"Is that why you wanted the candle in the lake back so badly?" Childermass asks after a few seconds of frowning at Strange and his good cheer over stealing supplies rather than asking for them. "So you wouldn't have to go riffle through the carnival's supplies again so soon?"

[kingsroads]

"I wanted it back because I liked the candle," Strange responds, with a shrug, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. He is apparently not going to let this candle situation go. It probably wasn't even a super special candle to begin with but dammit, this is a Thing now.

[atouts]

That's still one heck of a weird thing to fixate on, but Childermass will just have to attribute it to what lingering madness remains. It seems to vary at times and he can't even begin to fathom the why and how of it. Candles. Why candles? Why that one particular candle? It doesn't really need to make sense, does it?

"Well, it's in the middle of the lake now. You may want to just leave it be."

[kingsroads]

"I probably will," Strange responds, with a despondent sigh, as if this is somehow serious business and not really goddamn stupid.

There's a pause, before he continues. "I'm afraid we got off topic. Is it my turn to tell you something embarrassing or yours?"

Of course, 'I ended up in this location I didn't mean to while practicing magic' isn't all that embarrassing in the grand scheme of things. Still, this is Childermass, the likelihood that he would admit something actually embarrassing and not mildly inconvenient is slim to none.

[atouts]

"It would be yours, Mr. Strange," Childermass says. Chances are he would say that no matter what, but in this case, he's right. The last one was about Childermass ending up in the kitchen pantry and that's honestly as embarrassing as it's going to get. Sorry, Strange.

[kingsroads]

There's a pause where Strange mulls things over, trying to think of what something embarrassing he could say would be. Logically there must be something embarrassing he's done but awkward stories of madness aside, not much is coming to mind (and he knows he could probably think of something were he not on the spot like this).

"I suppose I technically broke into Norrell's house after our last conversation in England. I definitely broke one of his windows." Strange doesn't really seem ashamed or embarrassed by that confession but hey, if the breaking and entering shoe fits. It's told in a very sort of 'what can you do' tone, as he gives Childermass a small shrug.

[atouts]

"Oh, I already know all about that one," Childermass says and he would find it somewhat amusing if it weren't for the fact he feels somewhat responsible. "For the record, if I had known you would pull something like that, well..." Well, well, what? He pauses a moment, thinking it over, then goes on with a sigh, "I suppose I would have still told you. You had a right to know about the book."

[kingsroads]

"And I appreciate you telling me," Strange responds, with a little nod. Because he does. He still might not have the slightest clue why Childermass does some of the things he does, but better he heard the news about his book from Childermass instead of someone else.

If Lascelles were to be the one who told him about Norrell's campaign to ruin his book, then Strange's reaction would be even worse than it was already.

"I still don't know much about the gossip in England these days--Venice isn't entirely brimming with English newspapers and my Italian is rudimentary at best." So while he's certain the news of him fleeing prison is widely known, he's not entirely sure how many people know why he was arrested in the first place.