Category: books

Monday Messages…

Wiwohka8 Comments

I want to do things a little differently this morning. I know that we normally pick strange words in the English language, just to learn and understand more about properly reading and writing. But sometimes, life takes us in directions we didn’t see coming. I guess that’s where my mind is, just now.

Don’t get me wrong, I still want to become a famous writer, and all. That’s a dream that will never stop growing, a passion that will never diminish!

What I’m trying to say is that I feel like maybe it would be kind of fun to be a part of something bigger, and much more important.

Wiwohka’s grandbaby will now be with us three days a week, which means that everything is changing around the barnyard. Routines are all going to be different, which won’t allow us to write as much as we normally do. I want to help with the baby, more than I feel like writing, lately. Is that wrong?

I mean, she’s not MY baby, but still. She’s just adorable, and I smile so much when I see her that my cheeks hurt. I’m sure that Wiwohka will need my help, but I don’t really know that much about babies. I was thinking that perhaps I can still practice my reading and writing skills, while still being of use to Wiwohka, and little Maisie.

What if we use Monday Messages to look up different things about babies, and all that goes into caring for them? This will help me learn all about babies, and at the same time, I can practice my spelling and proper word usage. While I doubt this will be anything new for you, it will aid me. What good is an ant that doesn’t know anything, right?!

I do know that babies sleep a lot, eat a lot, and poop a lot. But, aside from that, I’m just certain that there is more to be learned about a baby. So, just to prove this to myself, I shall be embarking on an educational journey through the forests of baby lore. How did they do it way back then? What changes were for the better, and what ones were not so helpful? What things have remained the same, since the beginning?

You see, there are a number of things to study and write about, when it comes to babies. I thought it might be fun to write about Wiwohka’s and Maisie’s journey together, and document all the changes along the way. Plus, if Wiwohka’s daughter reads anything about it, maybe she won’t be so unhappy about going back to work. They visited the other day, and I could tell that she was sad about it. But, our place is just down the road from her work, so she’s not far away. I still feel bad for her, though.

Anyway, I hope you don’t mind me using Monday Messages to learn more about babies. It won’t last forever, as I’ve heard that babies tend to grow very fast. Before you know it, we’ll be back to our regular writings.

What if I can’t choose?

Wiwohka2 Comments
Daily writing prompt
What’s a moment you wish you could freeze and live in forever?
View all responses

Personally, I think this prompt is too difficult. Perhaps if there were only a single moment in time that were noteworthy in my life, but there have been many. Far too many, in fact, for me to successfully pick the right moment that should be frozen forever.

Why, the birth of my children has already created a conundrum, as I’ve three daughters. How on earth am I supposed to choose between them? Time would be frozen, remember, so if I chose one over the other, I’d lose a life’s worth of memories for the other two that I didn’t pick.

What about my wedding day? What about that moment? Again, if I choose my wedding day, it would again erase my chance at memories being made with all three of my girls.

While I’d love to freeze the moment I finished reading one of my favorite novels, with the combination of all the emotions being experienced at that final page… there are waaaay too many books that accomplished such a moment!

First big successes, or even first adventures… or what about our most amazing vacation moment? The problem with freezing any of the moments we may or may not pick, is that it’s permanent. No going back, and no going forward. How very limiting, I think.

For this reason, I am unable to pick only a single moment to dwell in forever. The problem with having anything wonderful is, eventually, we want more. The new becomes old, the exciting becomes rather mundane, and boring. It sounds harsh, but it’s the truth.

While I won’t pick a moment, I will pick today. While I don’t know what’s to come, I’ll walk the path, none the less. No matter the joy, or the pain, I will make my way to tomorrow, and leave today behind.

I, just as you, are travelers. We were never meant to stand still. If we did, time would simply wave as it passed us by.

Enjoy a cookie…

Tomorrows may be even better, or perhaps not. It’s a chance you’ll have to take, my friends.

Live Novel Friday…

Wiwohka7 Comments

The Wharf…

Episode V

Keeping the baby in her room that first night wasn’t all that difficult, as the tiny creatures satisfied himself with snuggling into Maiyah’s favorite pillow, and sleeping the night away. Most likely, the little creature hadn’t slept much while hiding in the fish shed. She assumed he’d been there for at least two or three days, before she was able to lure him out from behind the old fish barrel.

Once they’d safely made it to her room, he simply crawled up onto her bed and fell fast asleep. It was a good thing that he was so tired. Maiyah had a days’ worth of choring to catch up on, before anyone were the wiser.

Quickly clearing the dishes from the tables, she set about getting them washed, dried and put away before Ollie made his way down from his room. The orc ran the tavern into the wee hours of the morning, so he rarely woke before the noon hour. This gave her time to catch up on the dishes that waited for her, within the kitchen.

Once the dishes were clean, Maiyah slipped up the tavern’s back stairs to check on the little one. Opening her bedroom door, she was appalled at the scene awaiting her arrival…

The tiny little monster had somehow chewed through one of her bedposts, made a mess of all her clothing, and was happily gnawing on one of her shoes. Apparently, the baby was teething something fierce!

There was nothing she could do about the mess til her shift ended, so Maiyah retrieved the broken wood, but left the baby happily chewing on her favorite boot. Perhaps Ollie would replace her ruined things, once she handed him the baby. One could always hope for the orc to have an understanding nature, though she had her doubts.

That day would not be one to approach the orc, as she’d seen what a mess had befallen the tavern on the previous night. Ollie was forced to break up numerous brawls, and finally had to close the tavern, just to clear out the drunken offenders and mop up all the spilled ale. It had been a costly night for the orc…

Ollie went to bed very angry, if all the mess and broken furnishings weren’t enough evidence.

Maiyah would have to wait at least another day, or two. It usually took the orc time to regain his composure after losing his temper. She would manage the little boot chewer a bit longer, for Ollie’s sake.

Returning to her chores, Maiyah made one last sweep of the kitchen and dining area, before Ollie came down. Assured that nothing was amiss, she headed out behind the tavern to finish the days washing…

With laundry washed, and hung out to dry, Maiyah made her way inside to help serve the lunch crowd that were already filling the tavern’s tables. Once the customers began exiting, she quickly cleared their plates, making sure to stuff any leftover food into her apron. It was less likely that anyone would notice food disappearing, this way. She could simply pick up a few edible bits from off the plates she cleared, here and there. The scraps would have otherwise been thrown out, anyway.

When she returned to her room that afternoon, she cleaned up the mess made by the baby and repaired her half eaten bed post. The baby sat on the floor, happily eating the food she’d managed to pilfer from the dining room. Once full, the baby began to yawn, and then settled down into a pile of clothing in the corner of the room…

Watching the baby drift of to sleep, softly murmuring to himself, Maiyah considered what her options were. Though he was adorable and sweet, she would run herself ragged if she were to try keeping him hidden in her room, much longer. She was only one person, and it wouldn’t do to simply let the baby crawl around her room, unattended, for all the hours of the day, while she was working. She would give it one more day.

One more day came, and then went. Yet another fight broke out that night, just as the night before…

And, again, Ollie had to break up the fight. Once more, the tavern had to be closed, repaired, and mopped up.

And, another day came and went…

Maiyah was beginning to think that there was never going to be a favorable moment to tell Ollie about his son…

It had been a full week of drunken brawls, broken tables, and shattered kegs of valuable ale. To live upon the wharf, one had to be accustomed to violence and chaos, nearly every day. It hadn’t been Maiyah’s choice to work in a tavern, but it had been Ollie’s choice in the owning and running of said establishment. The orc would have to be given the letter soon, along with handing over Brugo, the grumpy orc’s own responsibility.

Knowing it was time to reveal the baby was one thing, but knowing how to do it was another thing, all together. Maiyah couldn’t just slap the letter on the bar and fling the baby at Ollie. If she wanted to do the right thing, and keep her job, diplomacy was definitely in order.

Should she give Ollie the baby first, or the letter?

What’s in the letter, aside from telling Ollie that the baby is his?

And, where is Brugo’s mother?

Tuesday Tinkering…

Wiwohka2 Comments

You know, it’s been some time since we’ve really worked with Squagon’s images. The OpenArt upgrades arrived, and I got totally sidetracked with all the new bells and whistles.

It’s time we went back and worked on our favorite flying squirrel. The upcoming summer events will be requiring a good many images of our intrepid squirrel/pirate, as he’ll be the focus of our crew’s adventurous expeditions.

While I can’t really tell you what those adventures are, as of yet, you can certainly help me pull up some images that we’ll all love seeing, once we set sail. Don’t worry. I won’t leave anyone at the docks. I give my solemn oath!

Anyway, let’s see what we can come up with for our fun loving, flying furball…

If you hadn’t noticed the problem yet, let me fill you in… his tail looks pitiful! Let me see if I can fix that…

Good grief! All I did was ask the ai to make his tail much fluffier than it was, but things got a bit out of hand. Let’s adjust our request to say make his tail somewhat fluffier…

The reason I’m showing you these images is to reflect the sensitivity of OpenArt’s new chat editing feature. Sometimes Norbert, as I call him, likes to take an idea and run with it, often ending in disastrous results. At other times, if I use the right wording or the image is simple enough to fix, this new feature works out rather well. I’m not saying that I want to use this image, but it gives me a bit more confidence about some of the finer adjustments needed, if I want to perfect certain scenes.

Do you notice how the image feels somewhat photorealistic, while still having a bit of that whimsical softness. I think it brings Squagon more depth of personality vs. an actual image of a squirrel. I’m able to give him an endearing quality that reaches deeper than just a plain old, backyard peanut thief! What do you think?

Honestly, I think it has more to do with the program understanding my query, than it does about my skills as an artist. I am a writer, not a painter, nor sculptor, nor full-time national geographic photojournalist, though I may have done well as a traveling writer. The only way I can communicate with any of you is through my literary donations, here on WordPress. For that, I need the help of an art platform that can assist me in portraying a thought, memory, or imaginative tale. I want you to see what I see, which can be tricky when using an artificial form of images.

The thing to remember is this… the program only as good as the one using it. It’s an artificial means of creating images from words, nothing more. The ai doesn’t think for itself, nor you, for that matter. It simply responds to a pre-written set of words, and it holds a memory bank of definitions for those words, phrases, and sentence structures.

Normally, I will start with a simple descriptive sentence. I offer the ai a character image, a brief visual descriptor, and an action to perform. On occasion, this first request provides a usable image. However, for most of what I do, the program offers an ai assisted expansion of the original request. I like to use these extra helps because many times its not what you ask, but how you ask it.

For instance, when I ask the ai for Squagon sitting on a bale of hay, this is the first response from the ai:

Now, I’ll ask for the ai to assist with the query. This was the result,

A photorealistic image of @MySquagon perched atop a golden bale of hay in a rustic barn setting, natural afternoon sunlight streaming through weathered wooden slats, casting warm amber highlights across the textured straw and creating soft dappled shadows on the worn plank floor, the hay bale’s compressed wheat stalks visible in detailed layers, dust motes floating lazily in the sunbeams, aged timber walls with peeling paint in the background, the character resting naturally with balanced posture against the organic texture of the dried grass.

These were the images offered from the enhanced prompt:

In this situation, I much prefer the first image over the assisted one. It captures much more of his personality, and looks more realistic. Sometimes the ai assist works out better, and sometimes not. It all depends on what I am asking the ai to do with the character. The action will always play heavily into the image’s final features.

For Squagon, I think we shouldn’t have too many obstacles along the way, but it was better to be safe than sorry. I wanted to do some work with the little guy before summer expeditions get underway. I like to be prepared for any and all perceived hang ups and/or roadblocks to a successful sailing season. You’ll thank me for it later, I can assure you.

Well, that’s all for today’s tinkering session. I think we got a lot of things figured out for now, and big or small, they all will help to get us where we were headed, right?!

May your writing hold true, and your words make a difference to the world…

Hugs

Monday Messages…

WiwohkaLeave a comment

Now that we’re back aboard The Torrent, I’ve set about reading through some of the books in Wiwohka’s office.

If there are things we’re needing to know while at sea, I need to be able to read these old books. More than just reading them, though. I’ll need a better understanding of many older terms and phrases than we’re used to reading in modern writings. I’m not just talking about all the thee’s, thou’s, or hence forth, and such. Those are easy enough to adjust to while doing my reading, but I get derailed every time I come across words I’ve never before seen used. Thus far, much of my reading has been from current publications that come across the desk. Nothing in all that will be useful in deciphering old maritime maps, scrolls, and letters from abroad.

I know Wiwohka says she doesn’t need my help in all this, but who am I, if not for a literary entrepreneur, right?!

So, how does one become more familiar with the wide world of words? Why we use the good ole World Wide Web, of course!

Where to start our educational search, is the first question to ask. Well, I simply went to Mr. McGoogle and typed this:

“Unique and unused words in the English language”

And so it has begun…

According to Google’s AI overview,

These unique and rarely used English words are often prized for their specificity, evocative sounds, or niche meanings, ranging from poetic descriptions to obsolete, humorous terms.

Unique Words for Specific Moments

  • Apricity (noun): The warmth of the sun in winter.
  • Petrichor (noun): The pleasant, earthy smell that accompanies the first rain after a dry spell.
  • Psithurism (noun): The sound of the wind in the trees.
  • Sonder (noun): The sudden realization that every passerby has a life as complex and vivid as your own.
  • Eucatastrophe (noun): A sudden, positive turn of events; a happy ending.
  • Limerence (noun): The state of being infatuated or obsessed with another person.
  • Phosphenes (noun): The light and shapes you see when you close your eyes and apply pressure.

**I used the internet to create appropriate sentences**

One must take a word by it’s meaning and then re-create it in a usable fashion, right? Let’s see how I do…

The early mornings apricity felt pleasant on her skin, as she made her way across the snowy expanse.

I know, a rather long-winded sentence for making the meaning clear enough to understand. I have much work ahead.

The air was thick with petrichor as the storm broke, rejuvenating the parched earth.

I guess it’s a decent enough word, though I might just as easily have said that it smells fresh after the first rain of the season. Oh well, one must broaden their vocabulary if they wish to become wiser.

The only sound in the forest was the soft psithurism of Autumn leaves.

Why do we have to make things so complicated, I wonder. I would just say that I could hear the sound of the wind in the trees. In truth, it takes longer just to make sure that I spell the word correctly.

She felt a quiet sonder watching the commuters, wondering about the hidden stories behind every stranger’s face.

I don’t know that I shall ever find need of this particular word, but you never knows when I might come across it in one of these old books.

Against all odds, the unexpected rescue felt like a total eucatastrophe to the stranded hikers.

While I wouldn’t exactly find a use for this word, it’s easy enough to understand the meaning if one already knows what a catastrophe is.

Sarah experienced limerence for her new coworker, finding herself constantly daydreaming about him.

Can’t we just say she had a crush on him? So much easier to say, although it’s understandable that no one would understand my meaning, unless they were already familiar with my choice of words.

This last one’s easy, and I don’t even need the internet’s help with the sentence…

When she rubbed her tired eyes, she saw phosphene’s.

Everyone is familiar with seeing stars, right?! I’m so glad that at least one of these words seems easy enough to remember, and not so hard to write down, either.

Just wait! You’ll see. Before you know it, I shall become one of the most renowned seafaring journalists in all the seas, with none matching my literary prowess! Well, it could happen, you know. We’ll never know unless we try, right?!

Live Novel Friday…

Wiwohka6 Comments

The Wharf

Episode IV

According to the note pinned to the hood of the baby’s coat, his name was Brugo. The name didn’t ring any bells for the young barmaid, but the name of his father stole her breath away.

The note claimed that the child belonged to Ollie, the tavern’s owner!

Maiyah was shocked, to say the least, as she’d rarely ever seen the grumpy orc with a lady friend. And, those he spent time with didn’t stay long, what with his terrible temperament.

Niceness can only go so far with a lady, if the rest of your time is spent drinking, and carousing with the rest of the drunken sailors visiting the wharf. The orc lived a very lonely life, though he be surrounded by others. Maiyah thought maybe that was the reason for his being so grumpy all the time.

Looking down at the baby orc, Maiyah faced a huge dilemma. What to do with the baby, and what to do about the letter she now held.

If she were to take the baby straight away to his father, Ollie would surely send him away. He might even become angry enough to put Maiyah out on the street, just for being the one who brought him the baby. She wasn’t only worried about his reaction to the baby, but the note that came pinned to his coat.

Maiyah felt that it was wrong to read someone else’s letter, so once she saw the baby’s name she stopped reading the letter, and placed it in the pocket of her apron.

For the time being, all that Maiyah could think about was how she was going to sneak the baby into her room. Maybe if she waited for the right moment to talk to him, when the orc was in high spirits, she might lessen the shock of revealing the note, and the baby that came with it.

The important question was, how would she be able to keep a baby hidden in a place one was not meant for small ones. The adorable little beast would stand out like a beacon, from the moment she set foot inside the tavern’s doorway.

She knew she could safely navigate getting the baby in, simply by stuffing him in the bottom of a laundry basket, and then covering him with the clothes. That wouldn’t be the issue. What she worried over, was how to keep him hidden and quiet. What was she to do with him while she did her work, within the tavern. Ollie would surely notice her absence, as she never missed a single shift.

Well, she would have to figure things out as she went. Maiyah had never done something so reckless before, but needs must when one encountered something unexpected. Dipping into the kitchen, Maiyah retrieved a laundry basket and returned to the fish barrel, where the baby sat waiting.

He seemed quite happy to climb into the pile of soft clothing. Quickly, she pulled the laundry around and over him, to hide the little beast from spying eyes. No sense in being undone by a nosy tattle tail.

Once she’d safely made it up the back stairway to her room, she deposited the baby onto her bed. He just sat silently watching her, making no move to climb off the bed. Not knowing what else could be done at the moment, she offered the baby a biscuit, propped some blankets about his shoulders, and left him there. If she didn’t get downstairs to begin serving customers soon, Ollie would become suspicious. All she could do was pray that the baby would fall asleep, or something.

How will Maiyah keep the baby hidden, and for how long?

What will happen when she gives Ollie the letter?

And, what will become of little Brugo?

Tuesday Tinkering…

WiwohkaLeave a comment

Sometimes, trying to create an idea or image that fits with a story can be tricky. You can have all the right tools, resources, and materials, but still feel clueless. At times, I find myself feeling sort of like the little girl in the above image. She has everything needed for that letter, except the pen to write it!

Now that I’m preparing to work on Volume II of my book series, it’s important that I have a good working image or two, of the main characters within the story. It was rather easy to create our dragon, as I’ve always had a clear picture in my head of what he should look like. Maybe it’s because he was a baby when all this began. Who knows.

All I know is that it’s not been that easy to come up with visuals for our heroin, as I’m always focusing on the dragon in the story. Now that we’re entering the second leg of our characters’ journey, the heroin needs to find herself, in a manner of speaking. For this, I’ll need an image in my head that captures exactly who she is.

First, I set about asking Norbert, my ai assistant, for some images of a cloaked woman with a satchel over her shoulder, walking along a path…

While I like her face, I don’t like the suitcase. Not only is it the wrong style, but it’s also a completely inaccurate depiction of what I consider a satchel. It’s far too modern. Not only was the bag wrong, but since she’s walking in the wrong direction, I can’t really get a working image for creating the avatar.

I corrected the wordage on my prompt to reflect a frontal image, as well as, changing the style and positioning of her satchel…

Much better, but a bit too sultry. We aren’t doing a Victoria Secret photo shoot, here. Plus, she needs to have more of a hooded cloak to reflect a mysterious traveler. I don’t want that image of her face, but I will be able to use it for a pose image when I make the actual character.

I changed a few key words in the prompt, and asked again…

Much better, I thought. Her face is softer, and a bit more moody.

I took this image, along with three others that offered differing angles of our subject, and plugged them into the Character Creation machine…

I like her, though the clothing will need to be altered to fit the story. I was able to add another character to her image, which was helpful. There are two main characters in the story, so I needed some images of them together…

Now that we’ve a real heroin to work with, I just need to get this handsome fellow into his own avatar. But that’s for another day. For now, I will be satisfied with our somewhat successful creation of our first main character. She may change a bit, as time goes on, but I am connecting with both of these two adventurers… hopefully, you are, as well.

Live Novel Friday…

Wiwohka1 Comment

The Wharf

Episode III

Maiyah woke with a start! She’d been awakened by the sound of a very grumpy Ogre, angrily cursing at one of the kitchen staff. There would be trouble if she wasn’t where she should be, so late in the morning.

She’d overslept!

Oh well, she’d heard Ollie yelling at the staff nearly every morning. If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. The grumpy Ogre often yelled at everyone, as that’s usually what he did when he wasn’t eating, drinking, and/or carousing with the pirates that visited the tavern. Mornings were the worst, so Maiyah hurried to get to her assigned tasks before her tardiness was noticed. It never made for a pleasant day if the boss was cross with you… and the young barmaid made it a point to avoid trouble, at all costs.

Hurriedly, she set about finishing all of her morning duty’s about the tavern. As she worked, Maiyah couldn’t help but wonder if her gifts had been accepted by whatever had installed itself behind the fish barrels. She’d tried desperately to stay awake long enough to see it emerge the night before, but fell asleep soon after sitting down beside the bedside window. One was rarely afforded a short work day, nor an early night to bed around the wharf.

One of Maiyah’s morning duties was to bring in the day’s first catch. Ollie prided himself on the fish he offered his guests. Many of the taverns morning customers were the owners of the other businesses along the Wharf, as well as travelers passing through. The drinkers were all still passed out in any one of the many alleyways along the wharf.

This particular morning, she hurriedly finished collecting the fish from the dock, and made her way back along the wharf. She knew that she shouldn’t, but she made a point to pass beside the fish shed. Maiyah’s curiosity was driving her to go against every rule she’d written for her own preservation.

Some part of her was calling out to offer aid to whatever might be hiding behind the fish shed. Maybe she felt compassion, or perhaps it was pity. Perhaps it was the memory of her own lonely beginnings, driving the young barmaid to break one of her own life preserving rules. Most probably, she was simply curious.

You know, many a brave sailor had fallen into Piracy, or worse, out of simple innocent curiosity. The barmaid had learned this while sailing with many of them.

But those days were long behind her, thanks to Ollie. The grumpy old ogre had purchased her from a band of pirates, for only two barrels of ale. Maiyah made every effort not to give the ogre any reason to regret his decision.

This morning was no exception. Carefully emptying part of the fish basket on the kitchen counter, she turned to leave. Without drawing attention to her actions, Maiyah casually slipped a few food items into the pocket of her apron. She then returned to the fish basket on the counter, carrying the rest of the unused fish out the doorway, and toward the fish shed.

Looking one way, and then another, Maiyah quietly slipped behind the fish shed. Kneeling down between several barrels, she placed the food gifts she’d pilfered from the kitchen. Sitting back on her heels, she wrapped her arms around her knees, resting her chin on her arms. And then she waited…

After several long moments, there came a soft shuffling sound from behind one of the barrels. Slowly, and timidly, a small head emerged from hiding.

Maiyah sat quietly watching, as the tiniest of tiny little creatures peeked out from behind the fish barrel. Why, it was a baby orc! But, how on earth did it get behind the shed?

Softly, Maiyah whispered, “Hello there, little one. What on earth are you doing back here?”

The small creature said not a thing, but slowly reached out and picked up a piece of the bread, nibbling at it’s corners, nervously. Tucked into the folds of it’s tiny coat was what looked like a scroll of paper. Reaching forward slowly, Maiyah retrieved the scroll while the little orc was preoccupied with eating the fish.

She didn’t want to linger behind the fish shed, as it would begin to look rather suspicious why she was climbing around back there on her hands and knees. Somehow she must hide this little one, but the only safe place was her own room. She wasn’t even sure the little thing would come with her, let alone allow her to stuff him inside the fish basket she carried…

What was in the note?

Where did the baby come from?

How will Maiyah get the orc into her room without being seen?

Be sure to leave your answers in the comments.

See you next Friday…

Hugs

Tuesday Tinkering…

Wiwohka5 Comments

While I’m nowhere near finished tweaking things, I’ve come up with what I hope will be a fitting addition to Live Novel Friday’s tale.

While I can’t tell you the story yet, it is coming along rather nicely. I won’t say anything on names, as of yet, but I wanted to give you a chance before Friday to offer up some names and more ideas for this weeks episode of The Wharf.

Let me know what you think so far…

He still needs to become more animated, so as to match up with the visuals I’m using for our story.

Oddly, Norbert offered up a rather realistic looking baby, though he’s a bit too real to work with if I want him to blend into the story properly…

I’m nowhere near done, but once we’ve gotten a good number of images for him, I’ll create his permanent Avatar. I like the second image better than the first, but I want to fix his teeth to match up with the first image. Those teeth should be on the second of the two images, as well as the first. This way, the final Avatar will always have baby orc teeth in his mouth. We want continuity.

Isn’t he just adorable, though…

Hugs

Live Novel Friday…

Wiwohka2 Comments

The Wharf…

Episode II

**As per our conversation last week, I’ve settled on Ollie for our portly Ogre innkeeper. He has a rough and intimidating presence, but for those who know him, there is also a kind heart hidden beneath all that muscle and aggressive demeanor. Our young barmaid has learned to avoid Ollie’s grumpier side, using her quiet and unassuming nature to sooth his rough mannerisms. Though his frightening appearance and frequent angry outbursts keep the customers in line, our young lass has grown to love the grumpy old innkeeper. We’ll call the tavern The Ogre’s Rest, and I think that Maiyah is a fitting name for our young barmaid. Be sure and answer the questions at the end of each episode, so I’ve a story to work up. Enjoy Episode II…

This night, like any other night here on the wharf, Maiyah has been busily serving customers and helping in and around the kitchen. The cook asked that she bring in another fish from the barrel out on the dock in front of the tavern, so she retrieves a container and heads outside for the barrel.

As the young barmaid is pulling a sizeable fish out of the barrel, she spies movement from behind the container. Briefly glancing down, toward the disturbance, she spies what looks like a tiny shoe sticking out from behind the barrel. Rule number three kicks in, warning her not to bring attention to herself, so she continues on about her business, carrying the fish inside to the cook.

As she cleans and serves food to the customers, several pieces of dried meat and fruit cake left on guests’ plates, happens to fall into her apron pocket.

Her sleight of hand skills rewarded her a small water flask, from the pocket of an old tinker, snoring blissfully in the corner.

Since her shift is coming to an end, Maiyah carries her cleaning supplies out to the shed, next to the barrel on the dock. Inside the shed she takes a strip of cloth hanging on the wall, folds the food and water inside, and casually walks back toward the tavern, discreetly dropping the small package behind the barrel as she walks past.

Once inside The Ogres Rest, Maiyah retreats to her room above the bar. Her room is small, but offers a window that looks out over the wharf, to the sea beyond. From here, she can see directly down upon the front of the tavern, where the shed and barrel both sit beside the water’s edge. She dresses in her nightgown and settles in at the window ledge to watch…

There is just enough light cast, from the tavern’s doorway lantern, for the young barmaid to have a clear view of the barrel. She spies movement from behind the container, but only enough to confirm that there is indeed someone there, but whomever it is, hides themselves very well. She falls asleep with her head resting upon the window sill of her tiny room above the bar.

Who or what do you think might be hiding behind the barrel?

With the clues given and remembering the three survival rules, what do you think Maiyah will do?

Be sure to leave your answers in the comments…

Hugs