Hardy Fools

"Yes," I heard myself say. His smile glimmered showing predatory white teeth. My stomach clenched and I told myself that I didn't have a choice, that this beat the alternative, that saying no hadn't really been an option anyway. Even if he hadn't brought a few guards outside my shop, he was enough of a threat.

"I'll give you a month," he said turning towards the door.

I laughed. Yes, it was stupid to laugh at someone like him, dangerous, cocky, pretentious, all that goes with being a prince, but I couldn't help it. "If you want eternal life, you'll have to be a little more patient than that. There are ingredients that I'll need from the four quarters of the world."
He looked skeptical, but I used my mystical voice, the one that I'd worked hard at perfecting and apparently gave me enough heft that he didn't draw his sword and lop off my head then and there. Always good.
"How long?" He was not patient. It was just as well. When you came right down to it, I wanted to get my own out of this deal as soon as possible. The sooner I saw the last of this prince, the better.
"One year beginning with summer solstice. Each season must be inbued into the candlestick." Of course it wouldn't do to admit that it was all in the candles. Not at all. "Also, you must give me proof of payment before I begin. That gives you two weeks to bring me the first head."
He nodded because he didn't mind the idea of bringing people heads. Of people. Perfect.

Candlemaker

It was never the candlesticks, always the candles, what you add to the wax. Not that the carving wasn't important. How could you remember what was in the mixture if you didn't have it labeled? Mislabeling could be very deadly.
He wasn't interested in anything I had on hand, not any one of the great three, health, wealth, love, no. He wanted to take on death. Which brings me back to the candle, the one that burns on both ends. How can you light such a candle and have it last more than one night? It's more than a theoretical impossibility. There will be finger burning involved at the very least. I had a notion that the least was not what I'd end up giving.
He wasn't the kind of person who took the least a person could offer and pay full price for it. So that was the thing. Was I willing to play this game with someone who was willing to face, no, to defeat death?

trite

His eyes were waxy, like at any moment they would drip and burn down his cheeks, searing to the bone. Or maybe that was only because she'd been doing too many candles lately. There was that quote, the one her father always told her, something about candles burning on both ends. He'd been a candle maker as well. He'd taught her everything she knew, but not enough to know how to deal with this crisis, this person in front of her who demanded so much, who offered her everything she wanted, needed, all she had to do was give him a candle that would burn for him. Forever. There were stories about such candles, but she'd never meddled with myths before. Myths were what destroyed her father.

Somewhere between here and there

Queen Anne's lace. Fluttering. Delicate fronds, open like a tablecloth over every doubt you ever had. What can we eat from such a spread of frothy? Peppermint jam, peachcombs and slatherberry tartes. It's like the emerging day, inmerging night, and all those stars, scattered, scattering even as you watch them, racing towards that dawn while the wind brings nodding tables, beneath the stars, and you and I may dine on delicious.

Nocturnal Tomatoes

The rain came down, suddenly, like an overturned glass of sprite. She shook the water out of her eyes only to be lashed by her hair, now heavy on her head, streaming with water. As she walked faster, her ankle twisted reminding her of her brand new too expensive shoes that were probably ruined. Too high, too expensive, the color of summer fresh tomatoes with a bow on the toe.
Yesterday they had seemed like a good idea, the kind of idea you have when the weather is perfect, not too hot but with sky so clear it doesn't seem like bad weather will ever happen again. That had been yesterday, everything perfectly clear, until last night when the world had crashed down on her even when the stars shone in the perfect night sky.

Every Body Every Where: YELLOW (or Ripe Mangoes)

Add caption

Hello! Overdue, and Overdone. I've always wanted to do Every Body Every Where, mostly because I love to see real people wearing real clothes and looking cute without being stick thin cookie cut outs created to engender feelings of inadequacy which leads to shopping sprees. So... Here I am, real people in real clothes. And this skirt is still FANTASTIC! I wish I'd made it sooner. The sweater is from Banana Republic, my sister made me get it because it was on sale, and because she thinks everyone should own something yellow, and it's the only yellow that doesn't make me look death pukely sick. My sister always makes me buy stuff.

This sweater is something I pull out when I want my husband to blink at me like an owl. Something awfully attractive about owls:) Anyway, the shoes my sister bought for me, (I think we are seeing where most of my shopping comes from) and they are leather that still smells like goat pee. The shirt is from Old Navy, (I bought that one all by myself) and the hat, I bought from somewhere online. It's a good hat, wool, floppy, and I feel something like a black and white cinema star who doesn't have freckles. Not that there's anything wrong with freckles, it's just for friendly, happy people, not black and white cinema stars, which I secretly am (minus the cinema).

I am overdue. That means that all of my shirts ride up within thirty seconds of pulling them down, and I end up flashing the poor overworked postal woman my extremely outty belly button. I feel like gus gus from Cinderella, (Hey, there's cinema, right?) Yeah. Anyway, got this photo before the shirt crawled up to my ribs. Success!



http://www.everybodyeverywear.com/challenges/view/yellow

No Comment

Hello Natascia! I can't comment on your comments and I don't know why. But here, being in charge of posts, I can clear that right up.

Thank you for your first post, I am delighted you thought so.

Your second post is very exciting. Your review was excellent, and I love HuskyDelight for your name. Makes me want a puppy! I would trade you if you had one, for a cat:)

Anyway, I feel superior to the technical know how I don't have. Hurrah!