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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
 Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 08:09:23
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Our main characters are our one of our main focusses as developing writers. They are the plot drivers and lures which we use to try and keep people reading. We want to readers to feel passionate about our character, we want them to feel a connection.
So what about the characters who don't feature on every page? What about the people who help mould our main PC? What about the characters who change the life, personality, and morals of our main PC?
These were my thoughts when I began to write this story.
I wrote this up as a Solo RP on faerunrp.com, and as I received quite a bit of interest, I thought I might share it here too. I hope you enjoy it, it is a work in progress.
Sincerely,
Wulf Waters
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A tale of Wulf Waters' past
"I can't do this anymore." His wife said as she jammed a handful of baby-wraps into a tattered hessian pack. "Don't you understand? We aren't living. We are only existing." She pulled the ties firmly together to seal in the contents. "All we do is for the children. Everything I do is for them. I can't be like that. I want to be there for them, but I need to be there for myself too. I can't stay here in the middle of a forest, playing mum when there is so much more I could be achieving at the same time. There are so many more people to help than just the ones within these walls Wulf." Close to her, but distant, a man stood in the centre of the room. He was stunned. He watched helplessly as she tore around their small log-cabin taking things she needed for a journey. The very cabin he had built for them with his own bare hands. Their home.
Wulf didn't dare to stop her, he had never raised his hand to her, and never would. He didn't know what to do. He knew that he had kept her here, knew now that he was living his own dream, and preventing her from achieving her own. Only now it was too late. She was leaving him, their daughter, and taking their newborn son to a faraway place.
"Don't you see Wulf? I tried, I really tried, but everything that once shone, that once attracted me to you has worn too dim. I love you Wulf, but I can't be that elf who lives in the forest, digging in the dirt for food. I'm not like that. I tried to do it for you, I really tried." With her whirlwind packing complete she pulled her pack on and lifted her sleeping son gently out of his cot, into her warm arms. He cooed quietly in his slumber. He had been a sound sleeper from birth.
Without looking at her husband she turned her back on him and strode out of the cloth draped doorway. Suddenly Wulf snapped out of his shocked stillness and strode out after her. Sweeping the moist cloth out of the way he burst out of their cabin and into the wet forest. A light drizzle had replaced the downpour from earlier and now there was the smell of warm summer rain, and the scent of a lazy storm on the horizon. Lightening flickered through the light grey clouds and a warm rolling thunder rumbled in the distance.
"No, wait! You can't go. You can't leave Shyra and you can't take our son away." Disconnected Wulf watched as his arm extended out and he pulled his wife around to face him. His hand held her arm tightly, too tightly. Wulf looked down at her heaving chest and into his son's brown eyes. Dragging his gaze back up he sought out the empathy he knew his wife had. He found none. He had broken her. His hand dropped from her arm suddenly, as if he thought his touch would harm her more. A droplet of rain dropped from his nose and onto a damp leaf below. Silently he removed his necklace and used it to tie the tightly wrapped blanket around his son firmly in place. A small charm of a wolf dangled loosely from the thick leather chord.
Through the dying light he could see her eyes filling up like the crying sky. Everything he had worked so hard for, dreamed of since his childhood, was falling apart right in front of him. What made it worse was that he had tried his best and still failed the ones he loved. His family had torn at the seams.
"I'm sorry Wulf. I tried, I really tried." Tenderly she put her spare hand around the back of his neck and pulled his head down to her soft lips. A tingling sensation shot up Wulf's spine and into the base of his neck where her soft hand rested. She sobbed as her kiss rested softly against his forehead. Wulf pulled her a little closer and felt his son against his bare stomach. Lovingly her kissed her lips and unwillingly tasted the salt of her tears.
"Come with us Wulf. Bring our daughter." She offered him, and not for the first time. Tears ran freely down her face. She already knew what his answer would be, but she had to try one last time. She had to be certain that she was doing the right thing.
"I," Wulf's words caught in his throat, "I can't raise my children in a city. You know I can't." In that moment he hated himself more than anything.
With only a dwindling storm for comfort, Wulf watched as his wife walked out into the night with their son, never to return home again. The druid fell to his knees in the forest, the place that his wife despised so much, and wept.
"My family."
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 08:11:21
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Unwelcome company
The elven female moved with graceful confidence as she made her way down the forest path that led to a sleepy village. She didn't wear a cloak, or have a sword, but she did have a tatty looking pack that looked to have seen many miles of use. The loose strings of hessian that had been pulled from the weave dangled loosely in tangled wet dreadlocks. Water dripped from each one with the chaotic rhythm of nature as more and more water accumulated in the material. She had only been walking for a hundred metres, and the sleeping baby in her arms hadn't noticed the rain yet. It was beginning to pour heavier again.
Her hair hung in a similar fashion to the worn pack's wet strands. It stuck to her face as she walked and determinedly away from a place that was once her home. As she had anticipated, the baby in her arms eventually awoke because of the wet weather. He gasped as a cool raindrop fell from his mother's nose and onto to an exposed eyelid. He began to grumble like the distant thunder rolling across the hills on the horizon.
The woman holding him didn't react to his unconvincing attempt to show her that the rain discomforted him. From birth he had loved water, and rain in particular. That fact wasn't going to change now. As his caring mother knew would happen, her son was soon rocked to sleep again by the natural movement of her body shifting left to right with each stride she took.
It wasn't long before she felt herself being watched. Little things gave it away. These things she could only explain in minor detail when asked. Normally she simply said that 'When one lives in the same place for so long, you develop a sense of what belongs, and of what is out of place. You can feel it'.
The elf slowed calmly to a halt and turned back toward the way she had come. Off to the left of the muddy path a pair of gleaming eyes peered out of the shrubs and locked onto hers. "Thorn, come." She said firmly.
The eyes flashed out of existence for a moment, and then reappeared in exactly the same place. The creature was considering what to do. Only seconds later a grey wolf walked out from where the eyes had been, with its tail between its legs. It trotted up to the woman with the usual behaviour of a beta male; submissive, yet respectful.
"Go." She said in a low growl. She wasn't playing, and the her husband's familiar knew it. In an explosion of movement the protector turned away from the woman and ran. From the woman's free hand blue light began to radiate as she extended her slender fingers toward the fleeing animal. The wolf's shadow appeared with the light and began to shorten as a rippling ball of released magic hunted it down. The air and rain passed through the ball as if it didn't exist. The arcane energy was only partly present in this realm, and the only resistance it would find here would be other magic, or it's intended target.
The wolf made to dodge the spell as it closed in on him with magnificent speed. The movement was in vain as the ball changed course with a flick of a finger and collided it soundlessly with the mammal's furry behind.
The magic washed over the creature slowly. First his tail slumped, then his hind legs gave out, his back lost rigidity and for a single second it was only his front legs dragging him forward. The fluid blue magic drenched his forelegs too and he dropped to the ground with a yelp. Even this was cut short by the magic suffocating his larynx. His numb pink tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth, its bright colour marred by the dirt and leaf litter now sticking to it. His gleaming eyes faded from the night as his lids closed over. Then, finally, the spell reached the tip of his snout and his flaring nostrils ceased moving.
She stopped only for a second to see the wolf collapsed. The she turned and continued on her course. The woman never wanted it to come to this, but if she was to have a life of her own, her husband couldn't know where she was going.
He had made his choice, and she had made hers. There would be no compromise now. |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 08:13:08
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Brought to his knees
Time passes strangely when you're emotional. Moments can last forever, or flash by in the blink of an eye. In this moment, in his pain, Wulf needed this moment to be the latter. It was not.
He lay on his back on the forest floor, watching the raindrops fall from the night sky. Leaves and mud were spattered over his body and face. He didn't seem to mind. Even when raindrops landed near his long eyelashes, he didn't seem to notice. His body had stopped responding. He was in complete shock.
Really, he should have seen it coming; yet, that's the problem with being young and in love. One didn't know what to take seriously, or what to disregard as idle talk. He simply didn't have the relationship experience. Laying there, engulfed in his own memories, he sought out the ones that might have led him to avoiding the situation his family were now in. The druid, with building dread, realised that there were too many to count. Too many warnings, too many words ignored or disregarded. Far, far too many.
An orange tinge crept over his forest home as he lay there thinking. Thoughts of danger began to push through the memories of unattainable joy, and seemingly endless sorrow. With a start, Wulf's body jolted and he sat bolt upright. Orange, glow, fire! Scrambling to his feet the druid ran straight toward the house to warn his ... They're not here. They're gone. Slowly, resigned to the fate that he and Gaia had dealt, he turned away from the cabin and waited for the fire to come to him.
His senses were marred by stress. He had had no sleep, his body hurt from crying, and he hadn't eaten for what seemed like days; yet, somehow, he managed to realise that there was no smoke. There were no animals fleeing roaring flames and cracking trees. The forest was wet from last night's rain. In fact, there was only colour. The realisation hit him with a sad sense of self-loathing. There was no fire, there was no easy end to this pain. The orange glow was just the morning sun bathing the forest in glistening light. It was something he used to love. Today was different.
Today, Wulf would have to find a way to deal with the pain. Today, a father would take his young daughter away from her studies at the grove and tell her that her Mumma and brother had gone away. Today he would see his daughter cry. Today, he would fail to be a good father.
Walking away from his home he held his fingers out wide, brushing his fingers against the silver leaves. Normally this brought him joy, but now he found nothing better than misery.
How? he asked himself.
What will I say to my daughter? |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 08:14:46
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The village and beyond
The people of the village were kind and offered her food and a few moments rest from her travel. A plain-faced farmer had invited her in and offered up a solid breakfast of mashed potatoes with a spoonful of raisins to sweeten it. It wasn't extravagant, but it was what she was used to. Good peasant fare kept the continent running. Without simple and nutritious food like her breakfast, Faerun would be a hollow place.
Before long the elf rose from the table and re-commenced her journey. She left a token of her appreciation in the form of a bundle of damp blossoming lavender. She and Wulf had grown it themselves. The farmer thanked her and said he would use it to encourage his family to sleep by tucking a little into their pillows and mattresses. He also said that the sweet and oily smell would certainly help the scent of their house and cloths too; which, he assured her, "is a desirable thing when one couldn't wash often". His laughter had lifted the woman's heavy heart, if only for a moment.
She hadn't had much sleep, but as an elf, that wasn't necessary. Her son was well awake now too. He had grumbled a bit, but she had fed him and he quietened down. Absently she rubbed her sore nipple. It seemed her son was beginning to teeth and he was an eager feeder. She would have to see someone about some rubbing lotion to relieve the pain.
The elf had arrived with the rising sun and already the farmers were up planting their fields. So far the crop promised to be a good one and as the woman walked past, a baby in her arms, she saw a seedling poking through the soil. Its tender and vivid green leaves drank in the morning sun and she couldn't help think it was a metaphor for this new stage in her life. Her steps became more lively and she practically began to skip along the path, her drying hair bouncing against her back.
Pulling her son a little closer she felt regret about how she had dealt with Thorn last night. Yet, as she strolled away from the rising sun she headed for the main trading road she pushed the regret aside. From the trading road the elf expected to get passage to her brother's house, and then onto the city where her hopes and dreams lay. Inside her damp pack, buried beneath baby wraps, lay a wax-coated book.
This book was very dear to the elf. Within it lay her plans for the future. It held the names of places and people who would hopefully help her achieve her goals. The greatest of which was the very thing she had been neglecting for so many years.
Education. |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2011 : 10:30:46
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Canine and Elf
The druid had force fed himself some gathered dandelion leaves and some of yesterday's bread. He knew that he would be able to gather some more food along the way to the druid grove, so he didn't bother too much about having a balanced meal. As it was, the elf had barely managed to convince his tight stomach to keep down the meagre meal he had put together.
Trying his best to stop thinking about his wife and son, Wulf focused on thoughts of Shyra, his daughter. He had her future to think about. He already knew that she didn't want to go to the city. As a very young child she had had a bad experience in Waterdeep. She had feared the place and others like it ever since. For now he would stay in the forest, continue her education as a druid, and then once she was old enough, he would go and find his wife.
The thought of his wife and son being gone threatened to consume him again. One day he would find them, probably with another man whom his son called Papa. He would probably find them rich, well educated, socially popular and well above him. He would probably find them happy, and sadly, that was all that he wanted for them. He wanted her to be happy.
Why can't she be happy in the forest. Why can't she read here? He brought her books from his travels. He had people send them too, but it wasn't enough. Anything he did was never enough. She had confirmed that last night.
Wulf arrived at his favourite apple tree before he had known he was even near. He was so deep in thought that he almost tripped over the still form of a wolf on the path. The druid's heart caught in his throat. There was only one pack in this area, and that was the one he belonged to.
The wolf laying prone on the track would be one of his family members. His bare toes dug into the drying soil as he ran the last few steps to the canine. Falling to his knees the druid buried his hands in the animals thick fur. Rolling the wolf onto its side he was able to identify it.
"Thorn! No!" The wolf was the druid's familiar. He can't be dead! Surely I would have felt something. Surely I would have known! The elf reasoned as he searched for any signs of life.
No heartbeat,
No breathing,
No eye reflex.
"Thorn! What? No! Who did this too you!" Wulf was too drained to cry again. Instead he just collapsed onto the still form of his familiar. As the druid wallowed in misery, tallying up his problems in sorrow, yet something was knocking on a door right the in back of his brain. It was saying something.
Warmth ... Heat ... Heat is life!
Stretching out a hand Wulf stuck his index finger inside of Thorn's mouth. The canine's gums were warm. He had either just died, or something else was wrong. The elf looked at the animal's fur and noted that he was covered in leaves and dew. The small tuft of grass he had rolled Thorn off of was staying flat too, as if it had been crushed for at least several hours. The wolf had been here for a while, yet he was still warm!
Thorn wasn't breathing and there was no heartbeat, so it couldn't be a coma. It must be a paralysis spell. It was the only thing it could be. Gingerly, wary of spell traps, Wulf began to ebb healing magic into his familiar.
He began with the brain and central nervous system, checking to see if there was any sign of mass cell death. He found none. Whoever had cast this spell hadn't done so with malicious intent. Silently the druid formed delicate hooks with nature's energy and began to pull off small blue globules of energy from his companion's nervous system.
Half way through he was slightly aware that Thorn was licking his face, but he stayed focus and continued on to where the paralysis spell was most concentrated, the wolf's hindquarters. This must have been where the spell struck The druid concluded, as he used the hooks of his own energy to pull larger balls of the blue magic away.
At this point the druid was well into the late stages of serious fatigue. So, just focusing on freeing up the truly necessary nerves he hurried about his task. He also felt that the foreign magic was beginning to fade away, as if the spell had a predetermined time limit, which was now coming to an end.
Finally, Wulf freed Thorn's tail. Then he simply collapsed onto his side to fall into a deep sleep, one an elf would rarely experience. As his mind drained away from reality it floated into the realms of his own history. He drifted into a place and time when life was simple. A time when laughing with friends and stoking the campfire were his priorities. His eyelids fluttered slightly and a smile steadily spread across his tearstained face. Then, finally, even these dreams slipped away, and all that remained were silence, and the healing light of the Earth Mother. In his slumber, she craddled him, like his wife craddled now his son.
Thorn, confused about what had transpired, ran around searching for the scents of the women and child he had smelled before his collapse. All he found was the smell of Wulf, his elven familiar. Circling the elf Thorn paced around trying to get his barrings. His body felt strange, numb in some places, and over sensitive in others. Eventually the protective animal sat down and stood guard. He would wait until his elf awoke. Then they would hunt. |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2011 : 10:33:02
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Making her way
"So it's just the two of you then?" The human asked, his voice damaged from smoking too often.
"Yes, just my son and I." The elf confirmed.
The man sniffed and began writing down the elf's details on a tattered hide-bound book. He took some time inscribing each symbol on the parchment and the elf noticed that he couldn't seem to get his grip right on the quill. As the fellow squatted awkwardly on a stool that was too small for both his height and girth, the elf concluded that being a clerk was not his usual position in the caravan company. Also, he smelled strongly of horses.
She was brought out of her musings by his scratchy voice. "And how are you paying for your way? Service, coin or trade?"
She had thought to pay her way through acting as the caravan team's magic wielder. They didn't seem to have anyone else dressed in the traditional robes, however, they did have an impressive unit of armed cavalry guards. There were two caravans in total, and four guards to each, not including the captain and the two drivers. Looking at the man readjusting his position on the uncomfortable stool, she guessed he must be one of the two drivers.
"I'm a magic wielder, but I see your guard looks mighty. I'm not sure I could improve it with my skills." She paused for a moment, looking purposefully at the quill and ink spattered page. She smiled a little bit at the man as her son had a swipe at her bronze necklace. She was nervous. It had been a while since she had spoken to a complete stranger.
"If I might be so bold sir, but perhaps I could relieve you of the clerical duties so you could attend to ..." she looked over at the restless horses and his eyes followed her direction, "more important duties." The smile on the man's face was priceless. Gently he extended a work-hardened hand and placed it on the slender elf's arm, just above her son's head. He gave a friendly squeeze. It was as if she had released him from a great burden.
"That would be bold ... and much appreciated." He slammed the book shut, effectively creating a mirror copy of what he had just written on the opposite page. The ink was far from dry. "I hope you don't mind filling in your son's details. I must see to the hor... more important things." Giving the elf a wink he rose from up from the little stool and went to ready his team of horses, his baggy brown trousers swishing as he walked.
With a smile on her face, the elf bent down a little and kissed her son's soft head. He was very well behaved today, and this only added to her luck. Now, she would be able to ride with him for the whole passage. If she had of been on guard duty, she would of had to leave him in one of the wagons. Of course, she wouldn't have gone far, but this was the most preferable option. The elf loved her son dearly, and missed her daughter more every moment. Still, even her daughter had chosen the forest.
Her heart fluttered with excitement as she went about collecting the quill and ink-well with the refined muti-tasking skills only a parent knew. Her excitement grew further as she settled down to the task of earning her passage. |
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Laerrigan
Learned Scribe
USA
195 Posts |
Posted - 26 Apr 2011 : 05:42:07
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| I missed this at FRP. Delightful to read. Especially the way both sides have sympathetic characters and no one is demonized (though I admit I wondered, until it was shown that the spell was only paralysis). Delicately-handled emotional content, touchingly-written without dwelling. I'm curious...Is her name deliberately not mentioned thus far, as part of communicating how much of herself she's been disconnected from all this time? |
"Your 'reality,' sir, is lies and balderdash, and I'm delighted to say that I have no grasp of it whatsoever." (Baron Munchausen)
"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was not made for this world." (C.S. Lewis, "Surprised by Joy") |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 28 Apr 2011 : 06:28:24
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| Thanks Laerrigan. As for the name ... you may have to wait until the end of the story :) |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 01 May 2011 : 17:13:21
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Hunt
His recovery hadn't taken more than a few hours, and his reunion with the ever-vigilant Thorn had been a light through the darkness of the past day's events. Wulf was still feeling fatigued, and his rumbling stomach told him little that he didn't already know. He needed food.
Shape-shifting was one of the many pleasures of a druid. Wulf believed that one did not know an animal until you spent some time as one. It was one of his most arrogant arguments when he spoke with people who couldn't shape-shift. Although he held it with utter conviction and didn't realise he sounded like a preacher. One day, someone with a little courage would tell him and he would change. Hopefully, he would change for the better.
It had become an autonomous action after all these years. He didn't need to focus, or try particularly hard to do what he needed to do. So, with minimal effort and maximum efficiency, Druid Waters commenced and completed the change into a wolf in the space of a few heartbeats. Then with eight paws on the ground, two large wolves ran off into the undergrowth in search of food. Trees and brushwood combed their fur, and their prey didn't have a chance to make it into a run.
His teeth had torn into the young doe's flesh with ease. Thorn's had followed suit and the pair of males fed on the warm meat until their stomachs were stretched and distended. Wulf had thought that he would need food to take back to his pack. He thought that he had a small family to feed. It was then that the panic had begun to rise up within. He already felt helpless, but now he was loosing hope too.
Letting go was so hard, and now, in the form of a wolf, an animal dedicated to the survival of its family and offspring, he failed to oppress the desire to find his son and wife and bring them home. His feelings overrode his logic. His powerful leg muscles contracted and he burst into a run. His ears flattened, his tail extended out behind and his fur rippled with the wind.
Wulf let passion rule reason. |
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Wulf Waters
Acolyte
Australia
40 Posts |
Posted - 01 May 2011 : 17:19:18
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Introducing a daughter
Within the safety of a druid-grove a young elven girl ran gleefully through the long grass and blossoming flowers. As she moved she pushed long green blades and stems out of her way with abandon. Beautiful white dandelion seeds puffed up into the air as she passed, releasing their tenuous grip on their mother stems to begin a life of their own. The fluffy seeds swarmed around in her wake like a thousand mosquitoes. In the distance a young man watch the girl intently.
Hans, a kind young druid, sat in the dappled sunlight with a pleasant smile on his face. His back was firmly planted against a mound of brown fur, which was much bigger than him. Every few moments the mound would swell as it inhaled and exhaled in a calm steady rhythm. Suddenly the young girl crashed to the ground with a squeal of shock and pain.
Jumping to his feet Hans made to aid the young girl, but nearby one of his elders reprimanded him. Beside him the great ball of fur growled its disapproval of being jolted out of its slumber and began to uncurl, one large paw at a time.
"Stop Hans. You can't baby her. Let her learn the toughness of a servant of nature." The old woman said.
Nearby the elder druid worked with a young man as a shaggy mare ran around them. The horse weaved in and out of the oak and willow trees restlessly as its human familiar repeated an intricate set of movements that the young man then copied. Some times he was successful, but most times he was not. This time he was not and a great gout of flame shot from his hand to set fire to a nearby tree. In her calm manner the older woman effortlessly extended her own arm to extinguish the spreading flames with a gush of water.
Not caring for anything other than his student, Hans stopped running, but didn't sit back down. He heard the young girl grizzle and sniff. She was crying, but her natural stubbornness was helping her push past the pain. He heard her shuffling around in the long grass as she tried to disentangle herself from the tendrils that had tripped her. He saw her head pop up above the level of the grass as she managed to get onto all fours. Her long black hair was full of prickles, petals and undoubtedly knotted like a mat.
Shyra Waters wiped the tears from her eyes and let out a frustrated and high-pitched moan as she tried once again to break the tendril of vine wrapped around her foot. Impatiently she thrashed her leg about uselessly before sitting down on her bum in a huff. Wiping her filthy hands on her pale blue singlet she gave up and took a moment to rest. She glared at the vine for a moment, trying with all her will to make it let go of her. In her childish anger, she failed to do what she could normally do when calm.
He wet blue eyes, vibrant against the azure of her top, flashed out of sight as she blinked. When she opened them again she found herself focussing on the full and fluffy head of one of the few remaining intact dandelion stems. Perched upon the tuft of seeds was an equally white moth. A smile slowly crept onto her face as a grand plan appeared in her mind. Pulling herself onto her scuffed hands and bruised knees she etched forward inch by inch until her button nose was mere centimetres from the moth.
As quietly as she could Shyra took in a deep breath until her chest and red cheeks were puffed out like an angry chipmunk’s. She tried not to giggle as her prank on the unwitting moth unfolded. With the great gust of wind pushed from the elf's lungs the seeds, and moth with them, flew up into the air in a flurry of white wings and whiter fibres. A brilliant giggle of pure innocent joy filled the grove, and all who heard it smiled. Including young Hans.
Turning around Shyra looked at the tendril that was still binding her to her leafy prison. With dry eyes, gentle hands and soft vocal encouragement the druid in training petted the vine and willed it to unwind itself. Obediently the plant released its grip and let the young elf free. Jumping back to her feet Shyra leapt out of the grass and back onto the well-trodden grass of the circular grove. She ran as fast as she could and aimed her self straight at her teacher.
Hans's smile grew all the more and he dropped down with his arms spread wide, ready to accept a great big hug from the little dark haired girl. With a giggle of glee and a bit of agility Shyra ducked under his arms to run past him and wrap herself around the great furry leg of his familiar. The bear, used to children, merely stood there as the girl grabbed handfuls of his this coat and began to climb him like a tree. In moments she was sitting on his back, looking directly into Han's brown eyes.
"Hans." She said, extending the sound of his name over a second or two.
"When are you going show me how transform like Papa?" This was a question that didn't go unasked on any day of the calender.
"Now now Shyra. You're far too young to learn about that. It is too hard to change shape. Animal's bodies are more complicated than ours. Think about it. When you change you have to imagine every single little thing. Animals have far more hair then us, not to mention teeth." This was the same answer he gave her every day. He found out that it was best to just stick with the same argument every time with younglings, and eventually they stopped asking why.
"What about birds? They don't have any teeth, and I have a lot more hair." She pointed out, her face displaying her best stubborn 'I'm right, and you're so wrong' expression.
"Look! My hair is so long goes past my bottom now." The young elf said, pointing to her long dark hair as if it explained everything perfectly. The older druid failed to see the significance of her argument.
"Besides, my Papa says that..."
"Shyra, what have I told you about your Papa?"
The young girl looked at the ground with a furrowed frown and linked her hands together. She hated it when they didn't listen to her. She hated it more when they said her Papa was wrong. Her Papa was the smartest, bravest and strongest elf in the whole forest, and her Mumma had told her so. Crushing a tough piece of bark with her big toe the young girl looked up into the brown eyes of her instructor.
"That these lessons are time for your teaching, not Papa's."
"Or anyone else's for that matter." Hans added, casting a fleeting glance at the older woman engage in training the young man and his horse. It wasn't that Hans was trying to be controlling, or that he thought his teachings were better. It was just so difficult to teach when he had so many other influences acting on Shyra. Everyone has their own method of doings things, and she was here to learn his, not the other way around.
Wulf had spoken to the shape-shifter instructor about this topic once before. He had told his pupil's father in no uncertain tones that the change back went faster because elves were less complex creatures than animals. Wulf thought this was preposterous. He preferred the hypothesis that as an elf spent more time as an elf. Thus his mind took less time to recognise and adapt to the form of an elf than an animal. Hans had recognised this hypothesis, and unlike his fellow druid, had respected the mans opinion.
“Now, let’s continue with the lesson. How many teeth do squirrels have?”
“Six.” Shyra droned. Her boredom was obvious.
“What about one that confused an acorn for a rock?”
The young girl laughed. "Not many! You’re silly Druid Hans.”
“And don’t you forget that youngling. Now, where's Stephan's familiar gotten too?”
A carthorse the size of hut lifted its head up from the soft grass and snorted into the air. Slowly dragging itself from the comfortable position it had rolled into, the mammal scrambled to its hooves trotted its way over to Hans and Shyra.
"What about horses?"
Shyra's great blue eyes grew wider.
******
I'm interested if anyone has any feedback about my writing with Shyra; I would like to know if I reflect a small girl accurately, and with out making it overly sweet.
Sincerely,
Wulf Waters |
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A Life of Her Own
