It seems odd to celebrate the monarch on a day named after a predecessor -- if the monarch is a King then Victoria day will definitely seem a little inappropriate! But tradition is what it is and cannot be gainsaid :) The platinum jubilee is about two weeks later, as I only just found out, though I've no idea if the Commonwealth countries are doing anything to acknowledge it.
The queen The rain fell steadily, drumming on the pavements like white people appropriating indigenous culture for entertainment. The streets were largely empty, though here and there some people scurried; one holding a bent umbrella that might not be helping and another holding a newspaper that steadily ablated into soft transparency over their head. The pavements, washed clean at last from the detritus of the city being the city, sparkled in the street lights coming on as the gloom of evening approached and there was a faint smell of cinnamon in the air. Under the dubious shelter of some large trees with spreading branches and broad leaves the chess-players were refusing to leave their boards. Two of them had turned their collars up to try and prevent drips, and the occasional trickle, running down their spines and dampening their underwear; a third had found a newspaper not yet gone soggy and was wearing it as an impromptu rainhat and at the table at the end White seemed oblivious to the inclement weather and Black looked as though they'd caused it. Their game was midway through; the pieces were arrayed across the board and contending for space and control. White, a woman with an icy gaze, pale hands and a wine-glass of something clear within easy reach, might have been winning. She had taken two pawns and a bishop while Black had retaken a knight and a pawn. She moved her hand across the board like a cloud obscuring the sun and picked up a knight and set it down again. Black glowered like a sullen volcano planning on darkening the skies with ash and glared at the knight as though the weight of their annoyance would cause it to retreat. "Is that legal?" he said, his voice more of a growl than anything else. "Are you sure you can put that there, like that, at this time?" White reached for her glass of gin and smiled without humour. "Legal yes," she said. "That's how knights move, after all." "Seems like you're putting that poor piece in unnecessary danger," said Black. He stretched his hand and all of his knuckles cracked like fireworks heralding the New Year. "What say does it have in the matter?" He picked up a bishop and placed it across the board. "Check." White's smile stretched a little further, still without managing to suggest pleasure. "Sometimes," she said, "we tempt the real prize out by offering something that looks attractive but in reality is a trap." She moved a pawn to intercept and attack the bishop. "What prize?" asked Black. The rain seemed to fall more heavily for a few moments, and one of the other chess-boards gave up and the players left. He retreated the bishop half the way it had come and set it where it could eye the white King's pawn defence. "Monkeybutt," said White, who usually called herself Miss Sapphire. "The self-styled Queen of this city?" asked Black, who was called MacArthur when people weren't using less friendly epithets. "The Queen," said Miss Sapphire sweetly, picking her knight up again and taking MacArthur's royal chesspiece.
Greg - probably something, likely in Ottawa, but maybe there will be a few smaller celebrations around the country. Honestly the first I've heard of it though.
It's funny, after reading your opening I was sure this would be a Mac piece. But then you got into the chess games, and this game in particular, and convinced me I had thought wrong.
And then you bring it back around again to show my initial instinct was correct.
2 comments:
It seems odd to celebrate the monarch on a day named after a predecessor -- if the monarch is a King then Victoria day will definitely seem a little inappropriate! But tradition is what it is and cannot be gainsaid :)
The platinum jubilee is about two weeks later, as I only just found out, though I've no idea if the Commonwealth countries are doing anything to acknowledge it.
The queen
The rain fell steadily, drumming on the pavements like white people appropriating indigenous culture for entertainment. The streets were largely empty, though here and there some people scurried; one holding a bent umbrella that might not be helping and another holding a newspaper that steadily ablated into soft transparency over their head. The pavements, washed clean at last from the detritus of the city being the city, sparkled in the street lights coming on as the gloom of evening approached and there was a faint smell of cinnamon in the air.
Under the dubious shelter of some large trees with spreading branches and broad leaves the chess-players were refusing to leave their boards. Two of them had turned their collars up to try and prevent drips, and the occasional trickle, running down their spines and dampening their underwear; a third had found a newspaper not yet gone soggy and was wearing it as an impromptu rainhat and at the table at the end White seemed oblivious to the inclement weather and Black looked as though they'd caused it.
Their game was midway through; the pieces were arrayed across the board and contending for space and control. White, a woman with an icy gaze, pale hands and a wine-glass of something clear within easy reach, might have been winning. She had taken two pawns and a bishop while Black had retaken a knight and a pawn. She moved her hand across the board like a cloud obscuring the sun and picked up a knight and set it down again.
Black glowered like a sullen volcano planning on darkening the skies with ash and glared at the knight as though the weight of their annoyance would cause it to retreat.
"Is that legal?" he said, his voice more of a growl than anything else. "Are you sure you can put that there, like that, at this time?"
White reached for her glass of gin and smiled without humour. "Legal yes," she said. "That's how knights move, after all."
"Seems like you're putting that poor piece in unnecessary danger," said Black. He stretched his hand and all of his knuckles cracked like fireworks heralding the New Year. "What say does it have in the matter?" He picked up a bishop and placed it across the board. "Check."
White's smile stretched a little further, still without managing to suggest pleasure. "Sometimes," she said, "we tempt the real prize out by offering something that looks attractive but in reality is a trap." She moved a pawn to intercept and attack the bishop.
"What prize?" asked Black. The rain seemed to fall more heavily for a few moments, and one of the other chess-boards gave up and the players left. He retreated the bishop half the way it had come and set it where it could eye the white King's pawn defence.
"Monkeybutt," said White, who usually called herself Miss Sapphire.
"The self-styled Queen of this city?" asked Black, who was called MacArthur when people weren't using less friendly epithets.
"The Queen," said Miss Sapphire sweetly, picking her knight up again and taking MacArthur's royal chesspiece.
Greg - probably something, likely in Ottawa, but maybe there will be a few smaller celebrations around the country. Honestly the first I've heard of it though.
It's funny, after reading your opening I was sure this would be a Mac piece. But then you got into the chess games, and this game in particular, and convinced me I had thought wrong.
And then you bring it back around again to show my initial instinct was correct.
That was rather fun!
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