Sonder was on edge.
She held her staff, ready to pummel anything that came at her with it.
Not in a literal sense. She wouldn't use her staff as a beating stick.
Instead, she would try to use appropriate magical force to defend herself.
The appropriate force could have been anything, but if more kitchenware or furniture attacked her, it would be low.
If the mage himself attacked her, she didn't think the force would increase by a lot.
Then Sonder felt a ripple through the house.
It started with something that felt like an earthquake, and then the doors of the cupboards in the kitchen started to slam open and shut, again and again.
Drawers yanked themselves free and clattered to the floor.
The kettle on the hearth whistled with steam and tore itself free from its hook and hurled across the room, missing Sonder's head by a finger's length, hitting the far wall.
Sonder ducked a few cups and spoons and then forks on instinct.
She conjured a wall, and fragments of ceramic and wood struck the barrier and then fell on the ground in pieces.
She thought that all this was very childish.
The broom from the corner launched itself like a spear, with the mop following behind as always, writhing itself violently as it flew.
They penetrated the barrier just a bit as its power was weak, but they hung there, in midair, quivering and struggling to push themselves further.
It was useless.
She sighed.
"Do you really think wrecking your own house is preferable to answering a few questions?"
The broom and mop pulled themselves out of the barrier. The broom then began to bristle and flail against the barrier; the mop, on the other hand, just fell wetly on the floor, seemingly out of energy.
The broom struck the barrier again and again until it broke in two and fell next to the mop.
The walls of the house groaned.
Shingles rattled on the roof. The wind chimes outside began to sway, clinking together in an uneven chorus.
A stool scuttled like a frightened animal. A shelf tore free from the wall and sailed toward her.
Sonder created a barrier around her.
She sat for a moment as all kinds of common house items tried to assail her.
As she looked out, she frowned.
It was just animation after animation of inanimate objects.
A strange kind of feeling came over her. The magic was just inelegant.
"Just talk to me," she called into the room, raising her voice over the clatter.
"No," the mage's voice echoed again, coming from everywhere and nowhere. "I don't owe you civility. I don't owe you answers. I don't owe you anything."
A heavy wardrobe lurched, its doors flying open as it toppled toward her.
And as it smashed itself into pieces, Sonder said. "This may be why people don't like you."