Fantasy: Deaf

The complaints led her to deafen herself. One day, she could not take it anymore, the complaints about how this or that went and why it should be changed and, and, and--and so she went up to her quarters and poured a solution in her ears. It hurt terribly for a few moments, and then she felt nothing. And heard nothing. She walked out and down to the courtyard, where the nobles congregated, and she saw their mouths moving and their hands waving, but she heard--absolutely nothing. It was so blissful that she laughed, her famous tinkling laugh. And that too was silent. It felt wonderful. She did not tell anyone that she was deaf, but they figured it out, eventually. They brought her written notes.

Inspiration: Oh, a question about complaints about women writers.
Story Potential: Medium.
Notes: She doesn't blind herself; it's not that kind of story.