[Text]

[sayhitobianca]

[Sealed to: Hawke, Anders, Aara, Zhaneel, and Riku]

[Varric's handwriting is messier than usual, and somewhat stilted, as though he took pauses every few words while writing it.]

Tell me you're all doing fine.

It'd probably be best if you all avoided me until this blows over.

[He's not in his room, but he's definitely going to quarantine himself. He's also not answering that other zombie post. Varric's telling Hawke, that's good enough for him.]

Comments

[angha-firebird.livejournal.com]

Varric?

I--I am fine.

[Does she sound fine, Varric? Our little dragon girl is completely panicking, thank you. Almost on the verge of tears, I would say.]

Varric...?

You... you are well, right? You are--

[She cuts off here. Not because she cannot find the proper words to say, but because the thought of him not being well is too much for dear Aara to handle.]

It will be okay. Where are you? I... I can help. I... I will do everything I can to help.

[Yep, that airy little exhales was as close to a sob as you will hear, via the journals.]

Please tell me where you are.

[Text] - Sealed to Aara

[sayhitobianca]

[No, Aara, you don't sound fine at all. Which is another reason why Varric isn't talking, where he normally would've switched to audio for her: it'd be even more obvious that he's sick than it is with his handwriting.]

I'm not sure how much you can do, Birdie.

If you're not sick, I don't want to be the one to get you that way.

[audio]

[angha-firebird.livejournal.com]

I--I can help you! I can! I know it!

Just--

[Her words are cut off by a racking cough and a sniffle. Aara certainly hadn't had a cough before. She stills, trembling all over, and silence reigns for a good couple of minutes before the audio is reluctantly clicked off.]

[Text] - Sealed to Aara

[sayhitobianca]

[...Varric hears that. He's not letting it go.]

Birdie. Are you sick?

[Audio]

[bondedgryphon]

[Does someone sound a bit strained, Varric. After Kloe's message and now this .. now she has reason for concern. She, sadly, doesn't know how to seal her own responses so that could be reason for concern if the wrong person listens.]

Varrrrric ..? I .. Are you .. Is everything alright?

[No mention that she doesn't feel well .. not yet, anyway.]

[Text] - Sealed to Zhaneel

[sayhitobianca]

[Well. At least they'll only get half of a conversation. And yeah, Varric saw that message, too. He's not terribly pleased about it.]

Not as all right as they could be.

Are you okay? Not sick, no one's giving you any trouble?

[Audio] and unsealed for life

[bondedgryphon]

[That message is making her antsy about being seen by anyone, truth told. However, Varric's reply causes her to still, the silence is deafening and then she speaks again, her voice strained.]

Varrrrric arrre you ill?

I am .. I am uncerrtain .. I am keeping to mysssself forrr now.

[She has enough sense not to say where just now. That would possibly end poorly for the gryphon and she's actually scared.]

[Text] - Sealed to Zhaneel

[sayhitobianca]

[Damn direct questions again.]

Looking like that's a distinct possibility.

That's probably a real good idea. If you're not, no reason to expose yourself to getting sick.

If you are, I'd avoid telling Kloe. 'Hunting you down' and 'need to be dealt with' usually don't mean anything good when combined together. Let someone else know about it.

Doesn't have to be me, but I'd like to know all the same.

[He WORRIES but he's not going to say that bit outloud. In text. Whatever.]

[Audio]

[angha-firebird.livejournal.com]

Zhaneel!

[Someone sounds upset, relieved, urgently out of breath, and incredibly panicky.]

Someone... someone mentioned hunting you down and I do not believe you are safe but she promised me she would not hurt you but I am worried and everyone is getting sick and she said if you get sick you are going to die and it is just like my clan all over again!

[Yep. Now she's crying, though she is trying her best not to let any sound register over the journal. She's holding her breath, trying to breathe quietly and only when absolutely necessary.]

But I have lived through it, Zhaneel. What the others of my clan had died from... I survived. Please tell me where you are. You are safe, am I right?

...Please be safe...

[Text]

[sayhitobianca]

[His handwriting is stronger here, bold and rushed.]

No one is hunting her down. Not if Bianca has anything to say about it.

[Text]

[angha-firebird.livejournal.com]

Good.

Your friend Bianca?

I will not allow anyone to harm her, either.

[Audio]

[bondedgryphon]

[Zhaneel responds quickly, her own tone as calm as she can make it barring the situation. This isn't to say that she sounds great by any means, as she stressed as hell right now.]

Aarrra, I am fine .. all isss well. I do not believe that Kloe will harrrm me. Ssshe isss my frrriend..

[Then Aara is crying and Zhaneel lets out a soft keen of concern.]

Aarrrra .. I can come to you .. I .. I do not wisssh to sssay wherrre I am .. I .. I am sssscarred ..

[The last sounds dreadfully pathetic, but she can't say that .. not if they're looking for her.]

[Audio]

[angha-firebird.livejournal.com]

[Hear that soft whimper of relief? That is Aara so entirely thankful she can see someone. She does not want to be alone right now, either, and if she was to protect Zhaneel, they needed to stay together.]

I will come to you, friend. We can... fly up high, somewhere. Just...

Please do not be scared.

I promise I will stay with you.

[Text] - Sealed to Zhaneel and Aara

[sayhitobianca]

If you don't want anyone to know where you are, I can suggest a meeting place and keep it sealed.

Don't know how safe these actually are, but they're better than nothing.

Can show you how to seal them, too, at a better time.

Audio

[3wayforjustice]

... Do you honestly expect me to avoid you?

[Text] - Sealed to Anders

[sayhitobianca]

I'm eternally optimistic on my chances of getting unlikely things to occur.

[audio forever]

[3wayforjustice]

I'm sorry to crush your hopes.

[brb looking for Varric.]

[Text; sealed to Anders] - also forever

[sayhitobianca]

My hopes'll make a comeback. They always do.

[And he's totally hiding from you.]

Hawke already conned me into agreeing to tell you if it gets worse. No need to worry yourself.

[iwannabeadragon.livejournal.com]

[Time for his serious voice.]

Varric what's wrong wrong.

[That isn't so much a question as it is a demand.]

[Text] - Sealed to Hawke

[sayhitobianca]

[Aw, crap. He knows that voice. That voice means he's going to have very little luck skirting around the actual issue.]

Have you seen the entry Kloe made about potential illness?

[Doesn't mean he's not going to try, though.]

[Audio] - Sealed to Varric

[iwannabeadragon.livejournal.com]

[Yeah he's in no mood for any BS.]

If you mean did I see her put this entire keep in jeopardy single-handedly then yes.

[A feat rivaled only by Isabela's attempt to steal the qunari's Tome of Whatever-it-was.]

Now just what does that have to do with you hiding?

[Text] - Sealed to Hawke

[sayhitobianca]

[He agrees with Hawke whole-heartedly there. Between that and her threatening to deal with people and hunt Zhaneel down, she's not exactly Varric's favorite person at the moment.

Yeah, all right, he should have known he wasn't going to get away with it.]

Some of that may pertain to me. Haven't exactly been feeling myself for the past day or so.

[Text] IC-ly late!

[heroinwait.livejournal.com]

[It takes a while for Riku to respond to Varric's entry. Not because he doesn't see it, but because he just doesn't know what to say. Considering the other entries that have been in the record today, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what's up.]

I'm all right.

What about you? Where are you?

[Text] - Sealed to Riku

[sayhitobianca]

Good to hear, Silver.

I'm less all right than I could be. I suspect part of that's due to me actually not being in the tavern, for once.

[Text; sealed to Varric] Whoops, that first one should've been sealed too.

[heroinwait.livejournal.com]

[The question, "Too far to walk?" is on the tip of his tongue. But the situation is too serious for that.]

Take care of yourself, Varric.

And let me know if you need anything.