LJIdol 20th Anniversary Prompt 1 Introduction Open 26-09-22 1K words

[murielle]

LJIdol 20^th Anniversary

Prompt 1 Introduction Open

26-09-22

 

 

 

She closed the ledger firmly. Abe whimpered from the back door.

 

“Coming. Give me a minute.” Another whimper.

 

Somewhere in the back of her mind it registered, a whimper, not a whine. Usually, he whined. In fact, he used his doggy door if he was that desperate. Tonight, there had been a long series of whimpers and moans and general impatience directed at her, but no whining.

 

Quickly changing into her swimsuit, and a big fluffy terry robe, she grabbed a towel from the bathroom closet, and hauled on her wellies. Abe pushed his great body against her, simultaneously ushering her out the door and blocking her.

 

“Make up your mind, Mutt. Are you coming or staying here with the cat?”

 

It was the perfect Autumn night. Crisp, clear, and brightly moonlit. She smiled hearing the leaves crunching under her boots. Her dog stayed beside her, pushing against her. Reaching down she tousled his fur and was rewarded with another whimper and a tail thumping against her thigh. She laughed.

The water was icy cool, bracing, and smooth as satin on her skin. Refreshing. One of her favorite times of day, right up there with the first cup of coffee in the morning. The moon had painted a stripe across the lake and she moved through it, the strength of her arms pulling her toward the other shore.

Her thoughts fixed on gratitude. For the first time she knew peace; routine and solitude, calm days, quiet nights, waking refreshed in the morning filled with joyous anticipation for the day ahead. Not so long ago this was something she hadn’t hoped for, couldn’t even imagine. But here she was, slipping through silky cool water on a moonbeam. She turned and headed back to her dog, already tasting hot chocolate and the comfort of curling up in the big chair by the fire with the book she was reading while Pompom purred on her lap. Maybe she’d light the fire. She smiled as she moved out of the water and the chill of the night nipped at her soaked body.

“How you doing, fella? Feeling any better?”

Abe nuzzled her gently and moved off toward the cabin, she sighed with utter contentment. This was a good life. Her own little book-keeping business, her own little home, her critters, her books. Finally a life that fitted her.

 

The dog was barking, an edge, a panic, in the racket he was making.

 

“Boy! What’s wrong?”

 

 

 

She hurried to catch up, but he’d moved off the path. She followed his distressed sounds deep in to the trees.

When she finally found him he was locked-in on a mound of leaves, ears flat, hackles raised, tail tucked tight between his legs.

 

“Whoa, boy. Easy. I’m here now. What have you got there?” She kept her voice calm, but her heart-rate was rising. Not another porcupine, she hoped. “Stay there, pup. Mama’s here. Mama fix.” He whimpered a response.

 

Picking up a long thin branch, she gently shifted the leaves. There was no movement. No animal racing away from dog and stick, just a horrible stillness. Abe was making a low growl deep in his throat. She moved more leaves.

 

“Oh no!” She drew back. “No, no, no!”

 

A tiny hand.

 

“Back, Abe, back.”

 

Tears came to her eyes. Her mind raced. Call someone. Get help. Phone the police. Help. Predators. Cover the hand.

 

She bent down to replace the leaves she’d moved and for the barest second her hand brushed its hand and …

 

… it grabbed...

 

… Fastening tightly around her hand.

 

The tears in her eyes spilled over and she caught a hard sob in her throat.

 

Abe whined.

 

“Stay back, baby.”

 

“It’s okay dear, I’ve got you now. Poor thing. Are you hurt? Can you talk?”

She gently brushed leaves away, moving up a painfully thin arm, shoulder, and head, face.

The eyes holding her gaze were huge, and she could feel the terror. It matched her own. They were black, all black. The face pale. The mounth tiny, drawn back in fear.

 

“It’s okay. You’re okay. Are you hurt?”

 

“Hurt.” Not words. Well, a word, but not spoken as much as felt, received.

 

“I’m so sorry. Can I lift you up? Will that hurt more?

“Help.”

 

“Yes. I want to help you.”

 

“Abe, carry.” She tossed him the wet towel she’d flung over her shoulder, and began to gently brush the little being clear of leaves.

 

It was so small, so thin. It did not seem to be broken, but how would she know? She’d never seen anything like it in her life before.

 

“I’m going to pick you up now, okay?”

It looked like it wouldn’t weigh anything, but as she lifted it into her arms she was surprised. It was heavier than Abe and he was a big dog. It caustiosly moved its arm around her neck and that lessened the strain on her back.

“Hold tight, we’ve got a bit of a walk,” she said, more to herself than the being in her arms.

 

She carried it right into her bedroom and placed carefully on the little cotbed against the wall oposite her double.

 

“Would you like some water?”

 

“Water. Warm.”

 

She returned with a glass of warm water. She’d put a straw in it, not sure if it could drink from the glass. It drank from the straw, slowly.

 

Now, on the cot in her room she could see it more clearly. Tiny, maybe three feet. Long, very slender arms and legs, a short small body, and a large eggshaped head. There were random cuts and scrapes on its extremities, but its poor feet were in terrible shape.

 

“I need to clean your wounds. Warm water?”

 

“Warm water.”

 

“Soap?”

 

A bottle of alcohol flashed across her mind.

“I’m Karen. What’s your name?”

 

“Designation: Five.”

“Five. It’s nice to meet you. I’m going to try to help you as much as I can. Okay?

“Grateful. Don’t tell. Please, don’t tell.”  

Comments

[humanbeansradio]

Abe absolutely knew something was wrong before anybody else did. Good boy. ❤️

[murielle]

Thank you So much, and congratulations on being the first to read my humble offering.

[gardeningatnight]

I think you did a really good job of describing dog behavior. Granted, I don't have a dog, but it felt like how the dogs I've known would behave.

[murielle]

Thank you SO very much! That means so much to me. I love dogs, but haven't had one for many, many years. I wasn't sure I'd remember. Thank you for reading and commenting!

[hafnia]

Oh, this is fun! Poor Five. Good boy, Abe!

[murielle]

Thank you so much, Jenn! :-D

[simplyn2deep]

I loved how peaceful the beginning felt. Karen has finally built this quiet little life that fits her, complete with her cabin, books, pets, moonlight swims, and plans for hot chocolate by the fire. That made Abe’s increasingly strange behavior such an effective warning that something was about to disrupt all of it. And YES, Abe is a very good boy. He knew something was wrong from the beginning! ❤️

[murielle]

Thank you SO, SO much! What lovely comments. Thank you! <3

[adpazd]

Oh, this was wonderful! I expected something to be wrong with Abe but this... beautifully written, my friend!

[murielle]

Oh! Thank you! Thank you so much! You've put my mind at ease. I have been agonizing over this for days, decided it was out, and I'd just have to find something else to write about. Thank you! <3

[cmk418]

Very nice! I really enjoyed this.

[murielle]

Thank you so much, C! I was hoping you'd join us for this special year/season. (There's still time. :-D)
Again, thank you. It means so much to me that you enjoyed it. <3

[bsgsix]

Animals always know something is up before the humans do, that's for sure. Abe was a good boy there. :)

Also, I'm very curious what inspired Five! That's very creative - and not what I was expecting. But I absolutely enjoyed this! <3

[murielle]

They really do! Had a parakeet when I was in college who let me know someone had been in my apartment. Well she tried. Made a huge, and for her a huge racket when I got home. Then I found that maintenance had been in and fixed something.

Thank you so much. I'm so glad you're here! ❤

[pixiebelle]

The descriptions of Abe’s behavior was really well done! And I wasn’t sure where this was going as I read it. The ending surprised me, which is a good thing!

[murielle]

Thank you SO much! I'm so glad I still speak dog, it's been a long time since I had one in my life. I'm so happy to have surprised you. 😊
Thank you so much!

[halfshellvenus]

I can see why Abe found that discovery alarming! But it looks as if Five was lucky to find the right person to help him, and no, I didn't think that's what the thing Abe found would turn out to be!

[murielle]

Hi K!

Thank you so much for your comment. Poor Abe. That just couldn't have smelled right to him at all.

Thank you for reading and commenting. (Can't wait to get to your story!)

[kandigurl]

I kept waiting for Five to be something spooky! Maybe they are, or maybe I’ve just read too many spooky entries before this one. I enjoyed this!

[murielle]

Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
Spooky. I'll have to work on that. 😊

[bleodswean]

Rich storytelling here, M! You caught my attention and really created a character in Abe! I love how a serene gentleness comes through!

[murielle]

Thank you SO much! Your comments mean so very much to me. <3

[penpusher]

An astonishing move from a standard narrative to a S/F story. And you've left this wide open for future visits with Five and caretaker...

[murielle]

Thank you! I wrote an S/F story! Cool. I didn't think of it like that, but you know, you're right.

And maybe a series...Abe certainly has more to say. ;-)

[rayaso]

I loved this! It started out as a very evocative dog walking tail, then I thought it was becoming a murder mystery, but instead, there was a huge twist to 5! I hope you will right more. It was great. I have missed your writing.

[murielle]

Oh, G! Thank you SO much!
Believe it or not, I actually knew where I was going. Just took me a bit to get there. LOL!
I'm way behind in my reading, but I'm so looking forward to reading you! :-)

[drippedonpaper]

I definitely hope to read more of this story! Do you plan to continue with these characters?

I think Karen found an alien. I'm glad Abe didn't hurt Five.

Your story is very intriguing :)

[murielle]

Thank you so much! You are very kind.

I don't know if I'll go on with it. Kind of depends how long I'm "here." LOL! But I wouldn't mind exploring this world. :-)

[ofearthandstars]

I was nearly expecting the tiny hand to snatch poor karen into the Earth - I'm glad that Designation: Five is not a harm to her, even though it sounds like Abe doesn't trust them and has concerns (as any good dog should!) I like the way you used Abe's signaling and reaction to set the tension. :)

[murielle]

Thank you so much! Can you tell I love dogs? :-)

Thank you for your kind comment and for taking the time to read my offering.

[ofearthandstars]

I can! I have a lovely little dog who inspires me with her whimpers, whines, and grunts as well. :)

[banana_galaxy]

Great job describing everything in the scene, but especially with uncovering the mystery of Five. I pictured numerous scenarios that could've come from finding someone/thing covered in leaves before you led us to the whole picture.

[inchoatewords]

I enjoyed how this went from someone perfectly content with the life they've built, and now here comes a mystery! I thought Five was going to be malevolent at first, so I'm glad that wasn't the case!

[lapis_lazuli615]

Number Five is alive! lol

Oh, I hope another prompt brings out the rest of the story!

[ashelterofpages]

Aw, I love how this went. I wasn't quite sure how the ending was going to be, but I love that she's trying to help them, and that they're accepting of that.

[fruzicle]

Nicely written!

[muchtooarrogant]

This was marvelous!

Abe clearly knows that something's wrong at the very beginning of the story, but after her swim the main character had what felt like such an abiding sense of peace that I wasn't certain what would happen next.

Tears came to her eyes. Her mind raced. Call someone. Get help. Phone the police. Help. Predators. Cover the hand.
I love the moment of indecision you captured here. And then, in the next instant, the decision is taken from her.

Wonderful story!

Dan