CAMPUS WIDE EVENT: THE LANGUAGE BARRIER REINSTATED

[intercom_voice]

[Today, something somewhere went wrong. On the evening on the 15th, any bilingual (or otherwise) knowledge granted by the Campus has simply...disappeared. At least for anybody walking by the North Wing.]

Tja ... det här kommer att lägga sordin på våra studier, är nu inte det?

[Translation: Well...this is going to put a damper on our studies, now isn't it?]

((ooc: So! For the next 5 days (the 15th~20th), your character officially only knows their native tongue. Aka, whatever language they primarily grew up with. They can no longer read, speak, or understand any other language but.

For fun you can even use Google Translate to show what your character is speaking at a glance! Don't worry, we all know it's probably gibberish :P

If you go the Google route, please be sure to put a translation at the bottom. If not, then please take care to specify what language your character is speaking in at the start of every thread.

If you have any questions, just head to the mod plurk or send this account a PM, but most importantly--have fun!))

Comments

[fluffydeathdealer]

Hm... [Gesturing for Malik to pay attention, he feigns a look of confusion, shrugging.] 'I don't know.'

[obeytherod]

...I don't know-- [He grabs an English books and opens it, pointing to the words.]

Yes? I don't know?

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Hm. This one was hard. He nods his head, deciding to clarify a little more.]

I. [Pointing to self.] Don't. [Shaking his head.] Know. [Shrug.]

[obeytherod]

Yes... [He nods in understanding and writes something down on his paper. He's writing purely in Arabic, so whatever Egyptian he's learning is being written phonetically.]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Tugging out a chair, he sits down, crossing one leg over the other in a relaxed manner. Resting his cheek on his closed hand, he observes Malik's writing. The obvious thing to teach him is one he can't figure out how to translate.]

...? Oh yeah...

[That was right, he found some cream puffs in his pocket earlier when talking to Tenar. Tugging one of the foil-wrapped desserts out, he offers it to Malik.]

Want one?

[obeytherod]

Yeah? [Malik parrots the word as a question, not understanding. For the creampuff he seems less confused, simply taking it in his hand and nodding with understanding.]

...Want one. [Although he's not sure why Bakura is teaching him something as useless as the word for "creampuff".]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Don't tell him Malik was assuming... he was, wasn't he? Dammit he wasn't trying to teach him there, he was just offering.]

...no. [He shakes his head, sighing.] I didn't mean that. You don't understand.

[He can't really explain, so he just takes one of his own and bites into it, looking frustrated.]

[obeytherod]

[Malik senses Bakura's frustration, and it frustrates him too, but he waits to finish eating his creampuff before he addresses it.]

...No? I don't understand? [The "I don't" part he thinks he gets, but the third word not so much.]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[What did he say exactly? 'Want one', right? Then the easiest way to point out what Malik misunderstood was to use the second part of that phrase. He lifts a finger.]

One.

[obeytherod]

...One. [He stares at Bakura, and then it clicks.]

Oh--one! [Malik holds up one finger.]

Want one--want?

[fluffydeathdealer]

[He's got it. Bakura grins brilliantly, nodding. Malik does have a talent for this, it seems... not surprising, for someone so young who apparently knew three languages.]

Yes! That's right!

[There's no real way to explain want without words.]

I 'want' it.

[At the word want, he reaches out as if asking for something.]

Want.

[obeytherod]

... [Bakura's using some other words he doesn't know again, but the "yes" is enough to keep him going on the first, and the "I want" is enough on the second.

I want...

He closes his eyes a moment to think. That gesture...he thinks he understands.]

You want... [Malik reaches back and pulls out the Millennium Rod.]

You want?

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Bakura gives him a firm nod. If nothing else, it seems Malik's getting the gist of it, if he associated 'want' with the Rod. Relaxing, he leans back, resting his head on one hand again. Hm... Lifting a hand he beckons for Malik to come closer.]

Come here.

[obeytherod]

[He's got it then. Malik's lips pull into a smirk as he hooks the Rod on his belt again.

At the beckoning, he gets up and walks over, muttering the words "come here" under his breath.]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Smiling, Bakura wraps his arm around Malik's waist, drawing him close so he can bury his face in his chest for a moment. He'd have gone for the shoulder, but it's hard to do that while sitting down and he's comfortable. It only lasts for a second or two before he lets go, smiling up at him.]

Sit down.

[He gestures for Malik to take the seat next to him.]

[obeytherod]

... [Malik just stands there at the embrace, not that he minds it, but he's really more in the mood for learning right now than flirting.]

"Sit down"... [He takes the seat.]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Now what... He can't really ask what Malik wants to know. And just going through all the words he knows will be boring as hell. If only he has some clue...]

Yeah. Uhm, yes.

[Stupid formal words.]

What... do... you want... to know?

[He draws out the sentence, separating the words. Since Malik knows 'you', 'want' and 'know', maybe he can piece together the question from the tone?]

[obeytherod]

... [It definitely takes Malik a little longer this time, but Bakura was right; he could piece it together. The three words he did know were the backbone of the sentence. Albeit knowing the meaning of "what" would have helped, but Bakura's questioning inflection did the job just as well.]

What do...I want to know? [Was "to" some sort of linking word? Maybe it added context. He wasn't sure, but it must have some significance in the sentence that separated it from "I don't know".]

I want to know..."what", "do", and "to".

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Those three words... are so hard to explain. Of all three of them, 'do' was probably the easiest. Though that doesn't say much. To do was to act. It was still a difficult thing to explain without words.

...though there might be one way to hint towards 'what'. Malik knew his speech patterns.]

What~? You can't figure it out?

[obeytherod]

...

[His brow twitches slightly, pinching at the bridge of his nose. he doesn't get it.]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[Jeez... And he thought he spoke often enough for it to be a good hint. Hm... He supposes it's understandable. Still annoying though.]

What is it? You don't understand?

[Sigh. He holds up a hand, indicating for Malik to hold on a moment while he thinks. It's obvious that it's a question... but how to explain what question?]

What to do? This is complicated...

[obeytherod]

I don't understand... [There's that word again. The context seems to be the same, and he thinks he gets it...but he can't place a finger on an exact translation.

Resting his chin in his hands, he mentally goes over the words and phrases he's learned with certainty.]

[fluffydeathdealer]

[An idea occurs to him. Grabbing the pen, he doodles an indistinguishable shapes of scribbles, then feigns confusion at it and repeats the word.]

What?

[obeytherod]

[Malik leans forward to look at the scribble. What the hell was that supposed to be? He looks up at Bakura dubiously.]

ما?

[What?]

What?

[fluffydeathdealer]

Yes. What.

[Deadpan. He can tell that's what the guy is asking because the image literally invokes a 'what' reaction.]