I'll just get to the story: we can debrief on it when it's all over :)
Mine: The egg was noticeably warm, even through the yellow gloves, but solid and easy enough to pick up. As soon as she had a good grip on it the membrane over the top shivered like jelly and then glooped down onto the egg, attaching itself to everywhere where there weren't Stacey's gloved hands. She let out a shuddering breath and picked it up. It was heavy, but not as heavy as she thought, and she wondered if it was hollow. If so, what might be inside...? No, that was a thought for another time. She set the egg into the carrier bag and peeled the gloves off, dropping them into the cradle with a sensation of relief. At her feet the bag crackled slightly as it drew itself in round the egg and left the handle poking up ready to carry it. "I wish it didn't do that," she said softly. "What?" Ana re-appeared in the doorway holding a compact leather briefcase. "Nothing," said Stacey. "Where did you find that? All I got was this carrier bag!" "The egg wouldn't fit in here anyway," said Ana. "It's good for books and papers though, but there's a lot less than I was hoping for. Someone here is a real fan of Von Däniken, by the way, they've even got signed copies of his books. Well, we have now, I suppose." "We do? And you still haven't said where you found that." "I found it," said Ben appearing behind Ana. "Gunther left it in the hallway by the coatstand." "Coatstand?" "I thought you said you searched?" said Ana. "You're always so careless!" "Careless!" "Um," said Ben, and both women glared at him. "The Mayor seems to be moving." They all looked down: the Mayor was indeed rocking gently from side to side on the floor at though trying to get the momentum to roll onto his chest. His hands were stretching out towards the egg in its new home. "Right," said Stacey. She picked the bag up and walked briskly out of the library. "Let's get moving." "Wait up," said Ana, following her, and Ben tagged along behind. He rubbed his head, and smiled. "It's like being awake again," he said. "It's like there's been this really long night full of bad dreams, and now it's morning and I'm awake again. It's really nice." Stacey set the bag on the couch where Ana had been tied up, brushing the ropes out of the way, and smiled at him. "I'm pleased," she said. "Do you think you can get Gunther down here without taking the bucket off his head?" "Bin," corrected Ana. "I think it might be more humane to leave them both in the library but block the door so they can't get out," said Stacey. "Sure," said Ben. He sounded relaxed, and his voice had even become a little bit lower. He bent and picked up the ropes. I can tie it on, I think."
"What?" said Ana after Ben had disappeared up the stairs. "You don't care that much about the Mayor." "What do we do about him and David?" "Leave them behind, weren't you listening earlier?" "Send them back to the miserable state they were in when the egg was shielded all the time?" "Yes."
Stacey sighed. "I know you don't mean that." "I do! I... get out of my head, missy!" Ana glared at Stacey. "You know it's a problem as well," said Stacey. "We can -- both -- overlook that they helped us and we're grateful, but look at Ben. He's practically a different person now." They fell silent as Ben dragged Gunther down the stairs, partly because the thump of his feet bouncing off each step was too loud to talk over and neither wanted to shout. He flashed them both a smile as he dragged the feebly-twitching Gunther off towards the library. "We'll have to help him," said Ana. "If the Mayor recovers in there he'll have trouble." "Is that an agreement?" asked Stacey. "I'm not dating David," said Ana. "Now or ever." "I think he'll get quite handsome as he gets younger," said Stacey. "You might change your mind." "Hmmph!"
The Mayor remained passive though, and once they'd closed the library door Ben and Stacey pushed and pulled a freestanding bookcase until they could tip it over so that it was leaning heavily on the door, making it nearly impossible to shift. "You'll have a couple of hours," said Ben. "Should be enough for you to elope wherever you're going next." He grinned. "Come with us," said Stacey. She glanced at Ana, who pursed her lips but said nothing. Ben looked surprised. "You'll find it easier to hide if there's just two of you," he said. "And... I don't know what David would say." His eyes drifted up and to the left and the two women, recognising the look immediately, waited. "Huh, he says he's willing to hear you out," said Ben. "So... no promises, but maybe we could drive you some way to where you're going and talk it about on the way?" Stacey nodded. "Not bad, conceded Ana slowly. "If we pick up public transport outside of Crimson Falls we'll be even harder to trace. It's sensible." "She's the fun one," said Stacey. "Have we got everything?" "We haven't checked the attic or the cellar," said Ben.
"Leave them," said Ana immediately. "Since we're not burning the place down we can always come back later on. If it's really necessary. "What if there's a spare egg...?" "Then we're back to burning the house down." Ana's tone was flat and her gaze was level and implacable. "I suppose...." Stacey sighed. "Were you an arsonist in a former life?" Ana grinned at last. "Maybe I will be in the next one," she said. "Right, let's get to the ca-- oh crap, the Maria's." Ben looked at his feet, then up again. "David's taking the car round to Avestris Drive," he said. "The Maria's are still trying to force the gate open. We can go out the back." The three of them found the back-door and then were relieved to see that the back-wall bordered directly onto the rear-neighbour's garden and so wasn't covered in glass shards or barbed wire. Ben quickly got on top of the wall and then helped both women up and over, and they tiptoed through a back-yard that needed the grass mowing, the flower-beds ripping out and replacing, and had no fewer than six used, burned-looking barbecue sets in it. No lights came on as they made their way round to the front, where there was a derelict SUV on the front lawn, a chipped buddha statue the size of a laundry hamper on the porch, and David's idling car waiting for them at the roadside. "Not so posh round this side," said Ben. "Here first," said Ana. "This is what happens when an area gentrifies but not all the old residents move out." They piled into the car, where David was humming a tune softly. He also looked more relaxed and vaguely happier. "So then," he said. "Where to, while we hear your proposition?"
[I think I must have had just over 4096 characters as blogger's forced me to post as three. Sorry!]
Stacey woke, as she had for much of the previous year, to the rising sun forcing its rays between her eyelids. She squinted, grimacing momentarily before a smile found it way onto her lips. It always took a moment for her to remember her where and her why in the morning and leaving the blinds open was her favoured memory aid.
Ben, on the other hand, did not care for it at all, as he preferred to stay up later in the evenings and linger longer in bed come morning. That was why he slept on his side with his back to the windows.
Stacey, feeling generous on this particular occasion, slipped from their bed without waking him and made her way downstairs to the kitchen to get coffee started, slipping into her robe as she went. As the machine gurgled to life she looked out the window over the sink and watched the waves crash onto the sand. As the Blue Mountain coffee began to drip into the pot, she breathed in its floral aroma and tried to ignore David's snores as they rumbled in from the living room to her left. She wondered, not for the first time, how much longer Ana would hold out before she relented to the inevitable and welcomed him into her bed.
When Ana had acquired the two bedroom house on one of the most secluded beaches on the southeastern coast she could have never imagined that she'd have a companion, much less three. Initially the sisters had taken the beds and the brothers took the couches, but less than a month passed before David was the lone occupant of the living room. Their shared situation, on top of their forced isolation from the rest of the world, had inexorably brought Ben and Stacey together. He wasn't too hard on the eyes either, she conceded with a grin. Ana had thus far proven more stubborn, throwing herself into her research, but Stacey was confident that the opportunity to grow young together with someone would win her over eventually.
Once the four of them had got in the car with the egg there had been no real possibility of separating. They could all feel the benefits of being in close proximity to her egg and the thought of taking it away from the brothers seemed beyond cruel to Stacey. She knew Ana felt the same way but she still put up token resistance, just to be difficult.
Her egg. There she went again. She was aware that she was growing more protective of the object of their creation but she couldn't seem to help it. The pangs of jealously were getting gradually stronger when Ana took it into her office to study it, the relief when it was returned to its place in the library on the second floor more immense. The brothers had yet to notice and she was still able to dismiss any concerns Ana sent her way but the niggling doubts about the healthiness of her obsession with it were getting harder to ignore.
"Good morning," Ana said as she came into the kitchen and joined her by the sink. Stacey hadn't heard or felt her approach. "The ocean is still there, I see."
"Good to keep an eye on it," Stacey said with a smile, "just in case."
"Mmhmm. You need anything from town?"
"Is it grocery day again already? No, I think we're okay. You want a cup for the road?"
"I do, actually. That drive only gets longer with each trip, despite me driving faster every time."
"The price of living three hours from the nearest shop with remotely reasonable selection. Be safe out there."
"See you soon."
Stacey watched their red SUV until it disappeared from sight nearly a mile down the coast. Later she would join the brothers for lunch on the deck, where they would watch for her return - a little ritual that had begun naturally, without anyone saying a word about it. Now, though, she poured herself a small cup of coffee, left the pot on the warmer for when Ben and David woke, and made her way back upstairs to the library.
The room was dark but she didn't turn on the overhead light or open the blind. She knew exactly where the egg was, in its cushioned nest on the coffee table in the centre of the room. Kneeling beside it, she placed one hand on its slick surface and took comfort in its steady, pulsing warmth. She sipped her coffee before putting her cup down, allowing her newly freed hand to come to a rest on her belly.
And she breathed, slowly.
In and out.
In and out.
And she smiled at the life slowly taking form within her.
5 comments:
I'll just get to the story: we can debrief on it when it's all over :)
Mine:
The egg was noticeably warm, even through the yellow gloves, but solid and easy enough to pick up. As soon as she had a good grip on it the membrane over the top shivered like jelly and then glooped down onto the egg, attaching itself to everywhere where there weren't Stacey's gloved hands. She let out a shuddering breath and picked it up. It was heavy, but not as heavy as she thought, and she wondered if it was hollow. If so, what might be inside...? No, that was a thought for another time. She set the egg into the carrier bag and peeled the gloves off, dropping them into the cradle with a sensation of relief. At her feet the bag crackled slightly as it drew itself in round the egg and left the handle poking up ready to carry it.
"I wish it didn't do that," she said softly.
"What?" Ana re-appeared in the doorway holding a compact leather briefcase.
"Nothing," said Stacey. "Where did you find that? All I got was this carrier bag!"
"The egg wouldn't fit in here anyway," said Ana. "It's good for books and papers though, but there's a lot less than I was hoping for. Someone here is a real fan of Von Däniken, by the way, they've even got signed copies of his books. Well, we have now, I suppose."
"We do? And you still haven't said where you found that."
"I found it," said Ben appearing behind Ana. "Gunther left it in the hallway by the coatstand."
"Coatstand?"
"I thought you said you searched?" said Ana. "You're always so careless!"
"Careless!"
"Um," said Ben, and both women glared at him. "The Mayor seems to be moving."
They all looked down: the Mayor was indeed rocking gently from side to side on the floor at though trying to get the momentum to roll onto his chest. His hands were stretching out towards the egg in its new home.
"Right," said Stacey. She picked the bag up and walked briskly out of the library. "Let's get moving."
"Wait up," said Ana, following her, and Ben tagged along behind. He rubbed his head, and smiled.
"It's like being awake again," he said. "It's like there's been this really long night full of bad dreams, and now it's morning and I'm awake again. It's really nice."
Stacey set the bag on the couch where Ana had been tied up, brushing the ropes out of the way, and smiled at him. "I'm pleased," she said. "Do you think you can get Gunther down here without taking the bucket off his head?"
"Bin," corrected Ana.
"I think it might be more humane to leave them both in the library but block the door so they can't get out," said Stacey.
"Sure," said Ben. He sounded relaxed, and his voice had even become a little bit lower. He bent and picked up the ropes. I can tie it on, I think."
"What?" said Ana after Ben had disappeared up the stairs. "You don't care that much about the Mayor."
"What do we do about him and David?"
"Leave them behind, weren't you listening earlier?"
"Send them back to the miserable state they were in when the egg was shielded all the time?"
"Yes."
Stacey sighed. "I know you don't mean that."
"I do! I... get out of my head, missy!" Ana glared at Stacey.
"You know it's a problem as well," said Stacey. "We can -- both -- overlook that they helped us and we're grateful, but look at Ben. He's practically a different person now."
They fell silent as Ben dragged Gunther down the stairs, partly because the thump of his feet bouncing off each step was too loud to talk over and neither wanted to shout. He flashed them both a smile as he dragged the feebly-twitching Gunther off towards the library.
"We'll have to help him," said Ana. "If the Mayor recovers in there he'll have trouble."
"Is that an agreement?" asked Stacey.
"I'm not dating David," said Ana. "Now or ever."
"I think he'll get quite handsome as he gets younger," said Stacey. "You might change your mind."
"Hmmph!"
The Mayor remained passive though, and once they'd closed the library door Ben and Stacey pushed and pulled a freestanding bookcase until they could tip it over so that it was leaning heavily on the door, making it nearly impossible to shift. "You'll have a couple of hours," said Ben. "Should be enough for you to elope wherever you're going next." He grinned.
"Come with us," said Stacey. She glanced at Ana, who pursed her lips but said nothing. Ben looked surprised.
"You'll find it easier to hide if there's just two of you," he said. "And... I don't know what David would say." His eyes drifted up and to the left and the two women, recognising the look immediately, waited. "Huh, he says he's willing to hear you out," said Ben. "So... no promises, but maybe we could drive you some way to where you're going and talk it about on the way?"
Stacey nodded.
"Not bad, conceded Ana slowly. "If we pick up public transport outside of Crimson Falls we'll be even harder to trace. It's sensible."
"She's the fun one," said Stacey. "Have we got everything?"
"We haven't checked the attic or the cellar," said Ben.
"Leave them," said Ana immediately. "Since we're not burning the place down we can always come back later on. If it's really necessary.
"What if there's a spare egg...?"
"Then we're back to burning the house down." Ana's tone was flat and her gaze was level and implacable.
"I suppose...." Stacey sighed. "Were you an arsonist in a former life?"
Ana grinned at last. "Maybe I will be in the next one," she said. "Right, let's get to the ca-- oh crap, the Maria's."
Ben looked at his feet, then up again. "David's taking the car round to Avestris Drive," he said. "The Maria's are still trying to force the gate open. We can go out the back."
The three of them found the back-door and then were relieved to see that the back-wall bordered directly onto the rear-neighbour's garden and so wasn't covered in glass shards or barbed wire. Ben quickly got on top of the wall and then helped both women up and over, and they tiptoed through a back-yard that needed the grass mowing, the flower-beds ripping out and replacing, and had no fewer than six used, burned-looking barbecue sets in it. No lights came on as they made their way round to the front, where there was a derelict SUV on the front lawn, a chipped buddha statue the size of a laundry hamper on the porch, and David's idling car waiting for them at the roadside.
"Not so posh round this side," said Ben.
"Here first," said Ana. "This is what happens when an area gentrifies but not all the old residents move out."
They piled into the car, where David was humming a tune softly. He also looked more relaxed and vaguely happier.
"So then," he said. "Where to, while we hear your proposition?"
[I think I must have had just over 4096 characters as blogger's forced me to post as three. Sorry!]
Stacey woke, as she had for much of the previous year, to the rising sun forcing its rays between her eyelids. She squinted, grimacing momentarily before a smile found it way onto her lips. It always took a moment for her to remember her where and her why in the morning and leaving the blinds open was her favoured memory aid.
Ben, on the other hand, did not care for it at all, as he preferred to stay up later in the evenings and linger longer in bed come morning. That was why he slept on his side with his back to the windows.
Stacey, feeling generous on this particular occasion, slipped from their bed without waking him and made her way downstairs to the kitchen to get coffee started, slipping into her robe as she went. As the machine gurgled to life she looked out the window over the sink and watched the waves crash onto the sand. As the Blue Mountain coffee began to drip into the pot, she breathed in its floral aroma and tried to ignore David's snores as they rumbled in from the living room to her left. She wondered, not for the first time, how much longer Ana would hold out before she relented to the inevitable and welcomed him into her bed.
When Ana had acquired the two bedroom house on one of the most secluded beaches on the southeastern coast she could have never imagined that she'd have a companion, much less three. Initially the sisters had taken the beds and the brothers took the couches, but less than a month passed before David was the lone occupant of the living room. Their shared situation, on top of their forced isolation from the rest of the world, had inexorably brought Ben and Stacey together. He wasn't too hard on the eyes either, she conceded with a grin. Ana had thus far proven more stubborn, throwing herself into her research, but Stacey was confident that the opportunity to grow young together with someone would win her over eventually.
Once the four of them had got in the car with the egg there had been no real possibility of separating. They could all feel the benefits of being in close proximity to her egg and the thought of taking it away from the brothers seemed beyond cruel to Stacey. She knew Ana felt the same way but she still put up token resistance, just to be difficult.
Her egg. There she went again. She was aware that she was growing more protective of the object of their creation but she couldn't seem to help it. The pangs of jealously were getting gradually stronger when Ana took it into her office to study it, the relief when it was returned to its place in the library on the second floor more immense. The brothers had yet to notice and she was still able to dismiss any concerns Ana sent her way but the niggling doubts about the healthiness of her obsession with it were getting harder to ignore.
"Good morning," Ana said as she came into the kitchen and joined her by the sink. Stacey hadn't heard or felt her approach. "The ocean is still there, I see."
"Good to keep an eye on it," Stacey said with a smile, "just in case."
"Mmhmm. You need anything from town?"
"Is it grocery day again already? No, I think we're okay. You want a cup for the road?"
"I do, actually. That drive only gets longer with each trip, despite me driving faster every time."
"The price of living three hours from the nearest shop with remotely reasonable selection. Be safe out there."
"See you soon."
Stacey watched their red SUV until it disappeared from sight nearly a mile down the coast. Later she would join the brothers for lunch on the deck, where they would watch for her return - a little ritual that had begun naturally, without anyone saying a word about it. Now, though, she poured herself a small cup of coffee, left the pot on the warmer for when Ben and David woke, and made her way back upstairs to the library.
The room was dark but she didn't turn on the overhead light or open the blind. She knew exactly where the egg was, in its cushioned nest on the coffee table in the centre of the room. Kneeling beside it, she placed one hand on its slick surface and took comfort in its steady, pulsing warmth. She sipped her coffee before putting her cup down, allowing her newly freed hand to come to a rest on her belly.
And she breathed, slowly.
In and out.
In and out.
And she smiled at the life slowly taking form within her.
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