1k Marathon - Day 3
FotD 02/15/2010 - Vivify
Story : knights & necromancers
Rating : G
Timeframe : 1266
Word Count : 1175
Word of the Day : vivify : To endue with life; to make alive; to animate.
Thank you, Falootin, for pointing the word out to me. No way could I pass it up! Strangely enough, this is neither about Sethan nor Reida. In fact, there's not even hot fudge at all!
“So it’ll be a little crowded,” Lyssa was saying, as she gathered up the bags they’d dropped by the front door. “It’s just for a couple of days. Then I’ve got a place lined up for him.”
“I am not sure about this, Lyssa.” Planted firmly in the doorway to the kitchen, hands on her hips, Ski wore a scowl that said she’d never been more sure in her life that something was a bad idea.
Lyssa paused, one bag slung over her shoulder, two more hanging from her hand. “You know you look more and more like Mother every day?”
Ski’s jaw dropped. Her arms flew from her hips, eager for some other occupation. She folded them across her chest for a moment before apparently deciding that was too severe a gesture as well.
“A couple of days, Ski,” said Lyssa. “And look how much fun the kids are having already. Things’ll just have to be cozy.”
Ski arched a brow, another look that might as well be attributed to their mother, but Lyssa thought better than to mention it. “I take it you will be rooming with Kairn?”
Lyssa made a face. “Not that cozy.”
Ski sighed “It is hardly the lack of space that concerns me, you know.” Shuffling under the weight of the luggage, Lyssa cut past her to the stairs. “It is the guests you might unwittingly have brought with you,” Ski continued. “I do not wish to have necromancers batting down my door.”
Lyssa snorted. She set the bags in her hand on the step and turned to grin at Ski. “Like you couldn’t handle a mage or two.”
Ski glared back, clearly unamused. “One or two perhaps, but an army?”
“Relax. No one followed us.”
“So you say.” Lyssa was reaching for the bags again, ready to head up the stairs, when the door snapped at the far end of the kitchen.
“Lyssa?”
“Yeah?” She dropped the straps to the luggage and righted herself to peer over Ski’s shoulder.
“If they are here already-” Ski hissed, but Lyssa cut her off with a glare.
Kairn edged past the table with a few nervous glances at the door through which he’d come. He stopped just before he’d reached Ski, gave her a puzzled look and opened his mouth as if about to ask.
“Ski thinks you’ve got a pack of bloodthirsty mages on her doorstep,”
Ski raised a finger at her, another of Mother’s moves. “Do not even joke-” She stopped herself this time as Kairn backed away.
“I…I could go,” he said, looking from one to the other, “if we’re too much trouble.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” said Lyssa. “Now, what’s the matter?”
“Well, the kids are out playing in the yard, and…” he frowned at the door again.
“And?” said both Lyssa and Ski, as the silence dragged on.
“And I think you should come and see.”
Lyssa tossed the last of the bags down on the step with its fellows and followed him towards the door.
The kids were sprawled in the grass in that jumbled assortment of ill-bent knees and elbows only small children can manage, both of them staring intently at a single puffball of a dandelion wobbling on its stalk. Lyssa raised a brow at Kairn. “Dandelions?” she said.
He stopped her with a hand to her shoulder, and Ski drew up behind them. “Just watch.”
“Do it again,” Shamino was saying.
Mara waved a hand his way. “Don’t breathe on it.”
“Mara?” Lyssa called.
Flower momentarily forgotten, much to Shamino’s dismay, the girl rolled over in the grass. “Momma!” she called.
Lyssa crossed the lawn between them in long, swift steps. “What are you doing, baby?” she said, squatting down beside her.
A grin split Mara’s features as she rolled back to point out the plant to the grown-ups. “Showing Sham the pixies,” she said.
Shamino leaned in closer again as Lyssa and Ski exchanged looks and Kairn, hands in his pockets, shifted nervously in the grass. “Come on,” said Sham. “I want to see it again.”
Mara grabbed the stalk between thumb and finger and scrunched her face up into deep creases in a comical expression of concentration. Lyssa found herself holding her breath and shook her head.
After a long moment of silence, one wispy little seed popped off the cluster and flew at Shamino, who jerked to his knees and scrambled to close his hands around it.
“So she blew seeds from a dandelion,” she heard Ski mutter to Kairn, “I do not see what the-”
“No,” said Kairn. “She didn’t.”
Lyssa strained to peer over the boy’s cupped hands, now held against his chest. The tiny bit of fluff danced and twirled, weaving awkward, jerking spirals across his fingers and palms. Mara pushed herself to her hands and knees, and he dipped his hands low to let her see. She let out a giggle and the seed turned cartwheels up his outstretched arm.
“No.” Lyssa looked to the pair behind her, wondering if they were seeing it too. “No, she didn’t.” She narrowed her eyes at Kairn. “What did you teach her?”
“Me?” he squeaked. “I had nothing to do with this! And I can’t do that without forms anyway. That was bare hands!”
“Momma!” Mara chided, still laughing as the seed danced back down into Shamino’s hands. “It’s just the pixies!”
Lyssa frowned at the girl. “And just where do these pixies come from?” she said.
Wrinkling her nose, Mara thought that over. “Nowhere,” she said. “They just do.”
“But,” Lyssa said. The dandelion seed continued its jerking about like a thing possessed, up to the tips of Sham’s fingers and down again. “How?”
Mara shrugged. “I ask them to. And they like me.”
Lyssa eyed the stalk and the rest of the dainty wisps that clung to it. “Could I get them to come?”
Mara gave the flower a very serious look of her own and shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
Ski interrupted with a heavy sigh. Lyssa looked up to find her shaking her head. “She blew on a flower,” she said, with a glare at Lyssa that dared her to argue. “Didn’t you, dear?”
“I-“ Mara looked from the flower, to Lyssa, to the seed, which ceased its dancing and lay still in Shamino’s hands. “Yes’m.”
“See?” said Ski to Lyssa. She didn’t so much as look at Kairn before turning and stalking back to the house.
Kairn eyed the door as it shut and looked back to Lyssa, perplexed as when he’d first come inside. “She’s…done this before?”
“Well, not this.” said Lyssa. “But magic, yes.”
“You believe in the pixies, don’t you, Momma?” She was plucking the seeds off the stem with her hand now.
“Yes, baby.” Lyssa offered her a smile. “I do.” She turned back to Kairn. “What’s this mean?”
Kairn shook his head and opened his mouth a time or two, staring at the flower in the girl’s hands. “I…I don’t know,” he said.
Story : knights & necromancers
Rating : G
Timeframe : 1266
Word Count : 1175
Word of the Day : vivify : To endue with life; to make alive; to animate.
Thank you, Falootin, for pointing the word out to me. No way could I pass it up! Strangely enough, this is neither about Sethan nor Reida. In fact, there's not even hot fudge at all!
“So it’ll be a little crowded,” Lyssa was saying, as she gathered up the bags they’d dropped by the front door. “It’s just for a couple of days. Then I’ve got a place lined up for him.”
“I am not sure about this, Lyssa.” Planted firmly in the doorway to the kitchen, hands on her hips, Ski wore a scowl that said she’d never been more sure in her life that something was a bad idea.
Lyssa paused, one bag slung over her shoulder, two more hanging from her hand. “You know you look more and more like Mother every day?”
Ski’s jaw dropped. Her arms flew from her hips, eager for some other occupation. She folded them across her chest for a moment before apparently deciding that was too severe a gesture as well.
“A couple of days, Ski,” said Lyssa. “And look how much fun the kids are having already. Things’ll just have to be cozy.”
Ski arched a brow, another look that might as well be attributed to their mother, but Lyssa thought better than to mention it. “I take it you will be rooming with Kairn?”
Lyssa made a face. “Not that cozy.”
Ski sighed “It is hardly the lack of space that concerns me, you know.” Shuffling under the weight of the luggage, Lyssa cut past her to the stairs. “It is the guests you might unwittingly have brought with you,” Ski continued. “I do not wish to have necromancers batting down my door.”
Lyssa snorted. She set the bags in her hand on the step and turned to grin at Ski. “Like you couldn’t handle a mage or two.”
Ski glared back, clearly unamused. “One or two perhaps, but an army?”
“Relax. No one followed us.”
“So you say.” Lyssa was reaching for the bags again, ready to head up the stairs, when the door snapped at the far end of the kitchen.
“Lyssa?”
“Yeah?” She dropped the straps to the luggage and righted herself to peer over Ski’s shoulder.
“If they are here already-” Ski hissed, but Lyssa cut her off with a glare.
Kairn edged past the table with a few nervous glances at the door through which he’d come. He stopped just before he’d reached Ski, gave her a puzzled look and opened his mouth as if about to ask.
“Ski thinks you’ve got a pack of bloodthirsty mages on her doorstep,”
Ski raised a finger at her, another of Mother’s moves. “Do not even joke-” She stopped herself this time as Kairn backed away.
“I…I could go,” he said, looking from one to the other, “if we’re too much trouble.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” said Lyssa. “Now, what’s the matter?”
“Well, the kids are out playing in the yard, and…” he frowned at the door again.
“And?” said both Lyssa and Ski, as the silence dragged on.
“And I think you should come and see.”
Lyssa tossed the last of the bags down on the step with its fellows and followed him towards the door.
The kids were sprawled in the grass in that jumbled assortment of ill-bent knees and elbows only small children can manage, both of them staring intently at a single puffball of a dandelion wobbling on its stalk. Lyssa raised a brow at Kairn. “Dandelions?” she said.
He stopped her with a hand to her shoulder, and Ski drew up behind them. “Just watch.”
“Do it again,” Shamino was saying.
Mara waved a hand his way. “Don’t breathe on it.”
“Mara?” Lyssa called.
Flower momentarily forgotten, much to Shamino’s dismay, the girl rolled over in the grass. “Momma!” she called.
Lyssa crossed the lawn between them in long, swift steps. “What are you doing, baby?” she said, squatting down beside her.
A grin split Mara’s features as she rolled back to point out the plant to the grown-ups. “Showing Sham the pixies,” she said.
Shamino leaned in closer again as Lyssa and Ski exchanged looks and Kairn, hands in his pockets, shifted nervously in the grass. “Come on,” said Sham. “I want to see it again.”
Mara grabbed the stalk between thumb and finger and scrunched her face up into deep creases in a comical expression of concentration. Lyssa found herself holding her breath and shook her head.
After a long moment of silence, one wispy little seed popped off the cluster and flew at Shamino, who jerked to his knees and scrambled to close his hands around it.
“So she blew seeds from a dandelion,” she heard Ski mutter to Kairn, “I do not see what the-”
“No,” said Kairn. “She didn’t.”
Lyssa strained to peer over the boy’s cupped hands, now held against his chest. The tiny bit of fluff danced and twirled, weaving awkward, jerking spirals across his fingers and palms. Mara pushed herself to her hands and knees, and he dipped his hands low to let her see. She let out a giggle and the seed turned cartwheels up his outstretched arm.
“No.” Lyssa looked to the pair behind her, wondering if they were seeing it too. “No, she didn’t.” She narrowed her eyes at Kairn. “What did you teach her?”
“Me?” he squeaked. “I had nothing to do with this! And I can’t do that without forms anyway. That was bare hands!”
“Momma!” Mara chided, still laughing as the seed danced back down into Shamino’s hands. “It’s just the pixies!”
Lyssa frowned at the girl. “And just where do these pixies come from?” she said.
Wrinkling her nose, Mara thought that over. “Nowhere,” she said. “They just do.”
“But,” Lyssa said. The dandelion seed continued its jerking about like a thing possessed, up to the tips of Sham’s fingers and down again. “How?”
Mara shrugged. “I ask them to. And they like me.”
Lyssa eyed the stalk and the rest of the dainty wisps that clung to it. “Could I get them to come?”
Mara gave the flower a very serious look of her own and shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
Ski interrupted with a heavy sigh. Lyssa looked up to find her shaking her head. “She blew on a flower,” she said, with a glare at Lyssa that dared her to argue. “Didn’t you, dear?”
“I-“ Mara looked from the flower, to Lyssa, to the seed, which ceased its dancing and lay still in Shamino’s hands. “Yes’m.”
“See?” said Ski to Lyssa. She didn’t so much as look at Kairn before turning and stalking back to the house.
Kairn eyed the door as it shut and looked back to Lyssa, perplexed as when he’d first come inside. “She’s…done this before?”
“Well, not this.” said Lyssa. “But magic, yes.”
“You believe in the pixies, don’t you, Momma?” She was plucking the seeds off the stem with her hand now.
“Yes, baby.” Lyssa offered her a smile. “I do.” She turned back to Kairn. “What’s this mean?”
Kairn shook his head and opened his mouth a time or two, staring at the flower in the girl’s hands. “I…I don’t know,” he said.