nexus_crossings | Language LOL: Translator Malfunction

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event,
lol

Language LOL: Translator Malfunction

You know what's cool? Chatting with your pals. Reading the Internet. Navigating the roads because you can understand the Gods-damned street signs. You know what's not cool? Not being able to do any of that. By that metric, one might describe today in the Nexus decidedly uncool.

It's utterly without warning that the multiversal hub goes from automatic to manual translation. Shop signs, radio and television broadcasts, conversations on the streets between vendors and friends and businesspeople are suddenly a jarring cacophony of dissonant languages. Then there's the silence. Then there's the shouting. Turns out people get pissed off when nobody understands them!

Momentary chaos dies down as the average people of the Nexus come to grips with their new situation. Shopkeepers wait outside their stores and stands with expectant expressions, impatiently waiting for the translator to pull itself together and start working again.

Except...

It sort of doesn't.

No, it super doesn't.

Citizens of the Nexus, it would appear you're going to have to adjust...

((The temporary LANGUAGE LOL is now underway! It's freeform fun until you're done and participation is completely optional. Don't feel like this event should stop you from making threads which are unaffected by the LOL in the mean time. If you want your Language LOL'd character to interact with a non-LOL thread, please ask the OP if they want to play that dynamic first. For the OOC and organization post, GO HERE. ))

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"Perhaps this would be an excellent time to learn each other's language." Hermione gestures to nearby couches.

"Let's go sit."

What is she saying? His gaze follows where she points, towards the couches. Perhaps she is tired? Or wishes to be out of the way. The way that she gestures and looks at him expectantly is more than enough to help him realize that she wishes for him to accompany her also.

Certainly, if she wishes the company. Although he is not certain how they will communicate. "Uei dhe-es," he agrees. The couches appear long enough for a K'da to lie down upon, and from there, they will be able to watch the plaza together. If, and when, the translation magic is corrected, they will notice.

Once they get settled on the couch, Hermione looks around the confusion of the Nexus.

She takes out a book from her beaded bag. And shows it to Faris. "Book."

"Bhok?" That puzzles him for a moment. She wants to... burn it? No, there is no reason to do such a thing. But... ah, perhaps she is attempting to teach him more of her people's language, or learn his own in exchange. He reaches out a forepaw to touch the tome. "Delkat." It will be slow going, but that is no reason not to exchange knowledge. And she had mentioned once that she wished to learn more of his tongue.

He reaches out and nudges her bag with his snout, as it is not quite within range of his paws. "Molkoh," he adds, tapping it again with his nose for emphasis.

"Delkat." Hermione repeats carefully. Touching the book again.

She watches what he does. "Molkoh. Bag?"

"Bhag," he repeats, his tail twitching a little in surprise. More words that sound like ones he knows, but clearly do not mean the same thing. "Eh bheu uera ghostih, uei delieu bheu leig aht bata."

He shakes his head, knowing that she will not understand. It will be interesting to see how correct his assumptions are about her words, once the translation magics are flourishing again.

What to learn next? Faris knows that her bag probably contains many things, but perhaps a personal thing would be more relatable. He lifts one forepaw, as if offering it for inspection. "Ghastoh." A single claw extended, rotating his paw so that it is more prominent. "Ongh'li."

"Ongh'li." Hermione thinks she understands this one. She opens her beaded bag. There is lot of different smells from the bag. Faris would be able to tell that there is food in the bag. Books. Herbs. Potions. And so much more.

What is she...? No, he was not clear enough. Faris shakes his head, and reaches out to put his paw on hers. "Ghastoh," he repeats patiently, patting her hand. Then uses his extended claw to tap against her index fingernail. "Ongh'li."

He had hesitated to identify too many words before she had a chance to repeat them, but perhaps more examples would help? He uses his paw to gesture towards his own eye, then his nose, then flicks out his tongue. "Ko, naseh, dnghua." He brings his long tail to curl in front of him and rests a forepaw on it also. "Orsos."

Hermione pauses to pay attention to Faris.

"Ghastoh." She looks at her hand. And touches her hand. "Hand?"

"Ongh'li... finger?"

"Ko. Eye? Naseh. Nose. Dnghua. Tongue." She is catching on fast. "Orsos. Tail."

Yes, good. He smiles in his own way as she gestures towards her own body parts, naming them in English as she goes, and he does his best to repeat the words. "Ghand. Sphingar. Eie. Noes. Tong. Tael."

Hmm, what else? They are swiftly reaching the end of comparable anatomy. He reaches out and touches her hair with a gentle paw. "Kais?"

"Kais. Hair." Hermione smiles.

She mimics petting something. "Crookshanks has fur. Fur same as Hair?"

"Gheir." That one is much harder, but he feels confident that it is the best he can do, and he watches attentively, ears forward, as she gestures something. "Ke'rosengh..." Ah, her furry friend. Not that Faris understands what she is saying about him. Perhaps... oh, yes, they are both mammals, yes. He dips his head in a nod of understanding, or so he hopes. "Ke'rosengh bheu lapkais."

"Ke'rosengh. Crookshanks." Hermione smiles. It is a beautiful word, to describe her currently missing familiar.

They seem to be making process with comparing words. Learning about each other's languages.

Hermione touches her ears. "Ears."

His gaze follows her motions, and he flicks his ears forward. "Eir," he repeats dutifully, before adding his own word. "Ous."

Hmm, what else. a more difficult word, perhaps, now that they have the basics. Faris uses one paw to run it over his scales, on his forepaws and torso, as well as his tail. "Tuakos," he says, and reaches out to touch her arms also, avoiding her clothing, using direct contact only. "Tuakos bheu menegh uei bhe."

"Tuakos..." Hermione repeats. At first, she thinks he means scales. The way he runs his paw over his scales. But then he touches her arms. And uses the same word.

And he has used the word bheu before.

"One word at a time." She requests. Because she thinks she is missing something.

The long string of words is meaningless to him, but the lack of a lone word to interpret what he is describing means that she did not understand. He is not surprised by this; it is much harder to indicate than an eye or a tail.

Faris ensures that his claws are retracted, and uses his forepaw to gently pinch the flesh of her arm, not tightly enough to hurt, just to gather the skin together. "Tuakos," he repeats patiently. When he releases his hold, he does not move away, laying a paw on her arm. Where it touches her, the paw seems to melt away into the surface of her skin, an expertly-patterned tattoo wrapping around her wrist.

"Ghermyohni tuakos."

Hermione watches as Faris repeats the word. And then watches as he touches her, and his paw is merged into her skin. The tattoo that forms is interesting.

"Tuakos... bond?" Is that what he means. The bonding of a symbiotic to someone else.

Without understanding her, Faris cannot tell if she has guessed correctly or not. But that was only one word, so he cocks his head to the side and repeats it. "Bondh?"

He removes his paw from her arm, his paw returning to its three-dimensional shape and leaving her skin unmarked by its brief visit. "Me teng uei kap nei mrek sreno spel," he says thoughtfully, and nods in her direction. "Tu?" Her turn to suggest words to learn.

Hermione thinks for a moment. She takes out a photo of her with Harry and Ron from her beaded bag.

"Friends." She taps the photo.

Faris tilts his head, uncertain which part of this object she is referring to. He holds his forepaw above the photo and swipes it downward, indicating a flat surface. "Dhia'me?"

"No." Hermione shakes her head. Hopefully that translates.

She touches Faris' hand. "Friend."

And touches the photo again. "Friends."

This is certainly a puzzle. She does not refer to the object she holds, but while the subjects of the image are humans, she must not be referring to her people if she includes him, patting his paw with hers.

The K'da tilts his head to the side, ears forward, and after a moment's hesitation he lifts a paw to tap at her chest before tapping his own. "Bhilianghen."

"Bhilianghen." Hermione repeats. It will be interesting when this translation issue is over, so they can both find out if their guesses were correct.

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Language LOL: Translator Malfunction

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