Grapemo Week 3 TEASER THURSDAY
(I dispensed with the grapevines because they were messing up the format)
ENJOY! And thank you!
UNTITLED
by another_wip
"Khyr found mounts," Aedin announced with a jerk of his head.
Lyndsii swung around to find Khyr waiting in the dappled shadows. He tugged at the heavy ropes he held and the shaded border came to life. Huge, slightly flattened bodies writhed into the sunlight of the glade, a myriad of legs scuttling through the dried leaves.
"Oh-my-god," Lyndsii whispered under her breath. "Bugs?" She stared, eyes wide and mouth shaping words that refused to come. "You want us to ride bugs?"
Khyr tilted his head to the side. "Not bugs. Thala."
"It's like some giant centipede or something." The long bodies, one deep purple, two greenish, another striped in red and brown, an orange, and one vivid blue, twisted against each other. "You want me to ride that?" she asked incredulously. "What's wrong with horses?"
Khyr thrust a lead rope toward her. The bright blue creature stomped vibrant red legs and sidled toward her. "A horse could not traverse the lands we must travel. Thala are strong and swift. Faster than a horse, and sure footed over rocks, forest, or sand."
Tarin scowled, and snatched a line from Khyr. "I hate riding these things."
Ayrmid pushed past with quiet confidence, and gently stroked a lime-green body, bringing it coiling around with an odd sound somewhere between a cricket's chirp and a purr. "Don't be concerned, my dear. Thala are not so fearsome as they may appear, and once you are accustomed to the movement, they are not difficult to ride."
Tossing a rope to Aedin and handing the last to Fergus, Khyr began attaching their bags across the creatures' backs. Lyndsii examined the peculiar arrangement of straps and padding a third of the way down the cylindrical body. That must be the saddle. Now how do I steer this thing?
~~~
DREAMWALKER
by fandoria
I’d just finished corralling the horses for the night when an excited buzz of conversation swept through the village. Everyone was congregating toward the kiva. Sage caught up with me before I got too far.
“What’s happening?” I asked her.
“A visitor,” she said. “Chief Bear sent Hawk to get my father.”
I quickened my stride, eager to see the newcomer for myself. “Who is it? Do you know?”
Sage jogged to catch up. “I’m not sure. I think Hawk said he’s from the mountains.” She rushed ahead of me and turned to face me, walking backwards. “Do you think he’s here to find a wife?” She looked so excited at the idea. All I could think about was Father’s constant nagging for me to make Sage mine.
Within a moment, we’d reached the outskirts of the gathering crowd. Sage and I wove our way through to the front and I was graced with my first view of my potential competition for her.
He stood outside the kiva door, talking to Chief Bear. He was a head taller than me, muscular-too much so, in my opinion-and well decorated. The thick braid on the right side of his face had eagle feathers woven in. A handsome bear skin hung loosely around his shoulders. He also wore a necklace made of the claws and teeth from bears, cougars, and wolves. And lying at his feet was the largest bull moose I’d ever seen.
“Oh,” Sage whispered in awe. She stared at him like he was the most magnificent thing she’d ever seen.
I instantly disliked him.
~~~
LOVE ME BACK
by onegrapeshy
I jump when Mr. Jacquith gestures out his window. “Right there. That’s my house.” I catch the flash of a red mailbox at the end of a gravel drive winding down a woodsy hill. “I can’t tell you how many times I miss my own driveway.”
I spot the ridge near my house looming in the near distance. “Hey, we’re neighbors.” I say it casually so he won’t think I’m excited about this.
“Yes, we are.” Mr. Jacquith brakes, and my stomach lurches as we round the sharp bend of the Bobby Pin. “I hate this turn,” he grumbles. “I’m surprised more people around here don’t run off this road.”
“My sister’s old boyfriend got drunk and drove off the road here last summer. He never even braked. Do you know that most fatal one-car crashes are suicides in disguise?” Oh, what possessed me to throw in that gruesome tidbit? I
“That so?”
“Well…I heard that, I guess. Somewhere.” I shut up before I say something else stupid, and two minutes later we stop in front of Miss Myrtle’s. “Here we are.”
I open the car door slowly. “Well…have fun on the field trip tomorrow.”
“Thanks, I will. Sorry you can’t make it.”
“Me too.”
“Don’t forget what we talked about. Monday. Okay?”
Right-apologize to Isabelle. I kind of hoped he’d forget. “Okay. Thanks for the ride.”
“You’re very welcome, Gwyn.”
I don’t move for a second or two. I feel…weird. He’s looking at me, not smiling or anything. The intensity of his blue stare washes over me like a wave of warm seawater. He holds out his hand as if to shake mine, so I take it gingerly.
He squeezes my fingers. I squeeze his back. It’s like, I don’t know, some kind of crazy movie moment. In a movie, though, he’d lean forward and kiss me, and all hell would break loose because, well, he’s a teacher, and things like this don’t happen in real life.
Well, of course they do, though they’re not supposed to.
They certainly don’t happen to people like me.
“Bye, Gwyn,” he says quietly.
He releases my hand.
~~~
SECRET INGREDIENT
by Sher T.
Brody'd had enough. He picked up a pillow from the couch and sent it flying through the glass door. For a second it sailed in slow motion as he considered what a stupid move it was. There was no telling how much that pillow might cost him had it actually shot over the rail. Luckily for him, it landed on the floor in front of it.
She gasped. “Are you nuts?”
“Maybe.” He could do nothing but stand there, looking from her to the pillow to the great vastness beyond the rail.
A nervous giggle escaped her and ended on a sigh. “What do you want from me, Brody? I’ve devoted all my energy to forgetting you, and I thought I made a pretty good job of it. But here you are, and I can’t escape you. If we win this, avoiding each other will be impossible. We’ll be contractually bound to each other, and we've proven how well we do with contracts.”
“You’re not going to give me an inch, are you?”
She stared at him long and hard, then shrugged. “I have no choice, Brody. My grandfather has no savings. Anything he managed to save went toward Nonie’s care when she got sick. He mortgaged the restaurant to come up with the entry fee. You say you have no idea who entered you, so what else am I supposed to assume? Papa never agreed with our divorce. He thought I should have forgiven and forgotten, but how could I?”
“Benefit of the doubt, might have been nice.”
“Fine. Then answer me this.” Her voice grew soft and sad, all manner of anger worn away. “If everything had been reversed that morning--if you had walked in on me, naked and in the arms of another man, and I simply stared at you and offered you no excuse at all, how much benefit of the doubt would you have offered me?”
Suddenly, a vision slashed across his brain, a vision of Kyrie’s naked frame wrapped around Jamie, and the pain was unlike any he’d ever experienced. Without another word, he turned and walked out pulling the door closed after him.
~~~
IZZIE'S DREAM
by Vickie M.
Granny was driving a big, white Cadillac, to Paradise. She always felt like she was going to Heaven when on her way to play bingo. There were a couple clouds in her way, blocking the sun. Granny tooted and said: “Jack Ass.” The bingo hall was all lit up. It had gold bingo chips and stainless steel “arms” on the slot machines. She was always lucky, and as usual, she won. She got new, crisp money, that was verdant, like Uncle Dexter's grass he often wallowed in. After that, she went to church. When mass was finished, she saw that another funeral was about to start. She knew the family, so she paid her respects. She told them that she didn't know of their loss, because she hadn't read the obituaries in a couple of days. Then Granny went to the church basement, with Lena and Helen, for donuts. When she walked in the room, a big crowd yelled “Surprise!” Then came the most wonderful party. A lot of relatives she hadn't seen in a while were there. And, Granny was shy but looked downright rude (or maybe it was pathetic, as in some respects she was the social butterfly but in other instances, she was socially inept) as she started scratching her many scratch offs, a gift from Aunt Katherine. Her late husband Gus was there in his work clothes. He just wanted to stop in for a minute. He didn't like parties. Aunt Mellie was holding cousin Gracie who was yelling “cookie, cookie” from the cookie lady, who Granny was also known as. After the party was over, Granny was tired and went to lay down for a much needed rest. When she awoke, like a bird, she went to her new spot, to perch on Mom's shoulder forever. The most beautiful bird in the Kingdom of Heaven, the Crow.
ENJOY! And thank you!
UNTITLED
by another_wip
"Khyr found mounts," Aedin announced with a jerk of his head.
Lyndsii swung around to find Khyr waiting in the dappled shadows. He tugged at the heavy ropes he held and the shaded border came to life. Huge, slightly flattened bodies writhed into the sunlight of the glade, a myriad of legs scuttling through the dried leaves.
"Oh-my-god," Lyndsii whispered under her breath. "Bugs?" She stared, eyes wide and mouth shaping words that refused to come. "You want us to ride bugs?"
Khyr tilted his head to the side. "Not bugs. Thala."
"It's like some giant centipede or something." The long bodies, one deep purple, two greenish, another striped in red and brown, an orange, and one vivid blue, twisted against each other. "You want me to ride that?" she asked incredulously. "What's wrong with horses?"
Khyr thrust a lead rope toward her. The bright blue creature stomped vibrant red legs and sidled toward her. "A horse could not traverse the lands we must travel. Thala are strong and swift. Faster than a horse, and sure footed over rocks, forest, or sand."
Tarin scowled, and snatched a line from Khyr. "I hate riding these things."
Ayrmid pushed past with quiet confidence, and gently stroked a lime-green body, bringing it coiling around with an odd sound somewhere between a cricket's chirp and a purr. "Don't be concerned, my dear. Thala are not so fearsome as they may appear, and once you are accustomed to the movement, they are not difficult to ride."
Tossing a rope to Aedin and handing the last to Fergus, Khyr began attaching their bags across the creatures' backs. Lyndsii examined the peculiar arrangement of straps and padding a third of the way down the cylindrical body. That must be the saddle. Now how do I steer this thing?
~~~
DREAMWALKER
by fandoria
I’d just finished corralling the horses for the night when an excited buzz of conversation swept through the village. Everyone was congregating toward the kiva. Sage caught up with me before I got too far.
“What’s happening?” I asked her.
“A visitor,” she said. “Chief Bear sent Hawk to get my father.”
I quickened my stride, eager to see the newcomer for myself. “Who is it? Do you know?”
Sage jogged to catch up. “I’m not sure. I think Hawk said he’s from the mountains.” She rushed ahead of me and turned to face me, walking backwards. “Do you think he’s here to find a wife?” She looked so excited at the idea. All I could think about was Father’s constant nagging for me to make Sage mine.
Within a moment, we’d reached the outskirts of the gathering crowd. Sage and I wove our way through to the front and I was graced with my first view of my potential competition for her.
He stood outside the kiva door, talking to Chief Bear. He was a head taller than me, muscular-too much so, in my opinion-and well decorated. The thick braid on the right side of his face had eagle feathers woven in. A handsome bear skin hung loosely around his shoulders. He also wore a necklace made of the claws and teeth from bears, cougars, and wolves. And lying at his feet was the largest bull moose I’d ever seen.
“Oh,” Sage whispered in awe. She stared at him like he was the most magnificent thing she’d ever seen.
I instantly disliked him.
~~~
LOVE ME BACK
by onegrapeshy
I jump when Mr. Jacquith gestures out his window. “Right there. That’s my house.” I catch the flash of a red mailbox at the end of a gravel drive winding down a woodsy hill. “I can’t tell you how many times I miss my own driveway.”
I spot the ridge near my house looming in the near distance. “Hey, we’re neighbors.” I say it casually so he won’t think I’m excited about this.
“Yes, we are.” Mr. Jacquith brakes, and my stomach lurches as we round the sharp bend of the Bobby Pin. “I hate this turn,” he grumbles. “I’m surprised more people around here don’t run off this road.”
“My sister’s old boyfriend got drunk and drove off the road here last summer. He never even braked. Do you know that most fatal one-car crashes are suicides in disguise?” Oh, what possessed me to throw in that gruesome tidbit? I
“That so?”
“Well…I heard that, I guess. Somewhere.” I shut up before I say something else stupid, and two minutes later we stop in front of Miss Myrtle’s. “Here we are.”
I open the car door slowly. “Well…have fun on the field trip tomorrow.”
“Thanks, I will. Sorry you can’t make it.”
“Me too.”
“Don’t forget what we talked about. Monday. Okay?”
Right-apologize to Isabelle. I kind of hoped he’d forget. “Okay. Thanks for the ride.”
“You’re very welcome, Gwyn.”
I don’t move for a second or two. I feel…weird. He’s looking at me, not smiling or anything. The intensity of his blue stare washes over me like a wave of warm seawater. He holds out his hand as if to shake mine, so I take it gingerly.
He squeezes my fingers. I squeeze his back. It’s like, I don’t know, some kind of crazy movie moment. In a movie, though, he’d lean forward and kiss me, and all hell would break loose because, well, he’s a teacher, and things like this don’t happen in real life.
Well, of course they do, though they’re not supposed to.
They certainly don’t happen to people like me.
“Bye, Gwyn,” he says quietly.
He releases my hand.
~~~
SECRET INGREDIENT
by Sher T.
Brody'd had enough. He picked up a pillow from the couch and sent it flying through the glass door. For a second it sailed in slow motion as he considered what a stupid move it was. There was no telling how much that pillow might cost him had it actually shot over the rail. Luckily for him, it landed on the floor in front of it.
She gasped. “Are you nuts?”
“Maybe.” He could do nothing but stand there, looking from her to the pillow to the great vastness beyond the rail.
A nervous giggle escaped her and ended on a sigh. “What do you want from me, Brody? I’ve devoted all my energy to forgetting you, and I thought I made a pretty good job of it. But here you are, and I can’t escape you. If we win this, avoiding each other will be impossible. We’ll be contractually bound to each other, and we've proven how well we do with contracts.”
“You’re not going to give me an inch, are you?”
She stared at him long and hard, then shrugged. “I have no choice, Brody. My grandfather has no savings. Anything he managed to save went toward Nonie’s care when she got sick. He mortgaged the restaurant to come up with the entry fee. You say you have no idea who entered you, so what else am I supposed to assume? Papa never agreed with our divorce. He thought I should have forgiven and forgotten, but how could I?”
“Benefit of the doubt, might have been nice.”
“Fine. Then answer me this.” Her voice grew soft and sad, all manner of anger worn away. “If everything had been reversed that morning--if you had walked in on me, naked and in the arms of another man, and I simply stared at you and offered you no excuse at all, how much benefit of the doubt would you have offered me?”
Suddenly, a vision slashed across his brain, a vision of Kyrie’s naked frame wrapped around Jamie, and the pain was unlike any he’d ever experienced. Without another word, he turned and walked out pulling the door closed after him.
~~~
IZZIE'S DREAM
by Vickie M.
Granny was driving a big, white Cadillac, to Paradise. She always felt like she was going to Heaven when on her way to play bingo. There were a couple clouds in her way, blocking the sun. Granny tooted and said: “Jack Ass.” The bingo hall was all lit up. It had gold bingo chips and stainless steel “arms” on the slot machines. She was always lucky, and as usual, she won. She got new, crisp money, that was verdant, like Uncle Dexter's grass he often wallowed in. After that, she went to church. When mass was finished, she saw that another funeral was about to start. She knew the family, so she paid her respects. She told them that she didn't know of their loss, because she hadn't read the obituaries in a couple of days. Then Granny went to the church basement, with Lena and Helen, for donuts. When she walked in the room, a big crowd yelled “Surprise!” Then came the most wonderful party. A lot of relatives she hadn't seen in a while were there. And, Granny was shy but looked downright rude (or maybe it was pathetic, as in some respects she was the social butterfly but in other instances, she was socially inept) as she started scratching her many scratch offs, a gift from Aunt Katherine. Her late husband Gus was there in his work clothes. He just wanted to stop in for a minute. He didn't like parties. Aunt Mellie was holding cousin Gracie who was yelling “cookie, cookie” from the cookie lady, who Granny was also known as. After the party was over, Granny was tired and went to lay down for a much needed rest. When she awoke, like a bird, she went to her new spot, to perch on Mom's shoulder forever. The most beautiful bird in the Kingdom of Heaven, the Crow.