Well, hello there. It’s good to be back. Did you miss me? Yeah…stuff happened Monday and Tuesday. My computer is now to the point where it needs to be replaced. It doesn’t have enough oomph to take the new Windows 11 OS. This is normally not a big deal but Microsoft will no longer be supporting Win10 after this month. That means no patches and no security updates and while I’m careful and have virus and protective programs, it’s the patches that worry me. Not to mention the fact that the disk drive no longer works and the poor old thing is slower than molasses if I have more than two windows open or more than a handful of tabs open in my browser. Add the fact that internet was intermittant due to weather, and yeah, I was AWOL Monday and yesterday. At least I’d set up Monday on Sunday. But now it’s Wednesday and I actually have new words. So, there ya go.
In happier news, I took the Honorable Mention in last week’s Thursday Threads flash challenge based on this prompt: “And that was hard to give up.”
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Ariel heard her coming. He didn’t move, not even when she stopped outside his cell. He should. She was his queen. But he didn’t.
“How long will you ignore me, Ariel?”
“How long will it take you to get bored and move on?”
Titania’s tinkling laughter scraped across his nerves like the sharp nails of a fairy tale witch.
“You’ve already pissed off Oberon. Do you wish to piss me off as well?”
That was a good question. He rolled off the lumpy mattress to land on his feet, doffed an invisible cap, and bent at the waist. “Your highness.”
The queen skewered him with a look. “You could at least pretend to be sincere.”
“Why are you here?”
“I want to know what you did that angered Oberon so much he threw his beloved Seducer into the dungeons.”
He shrugged. “I went to visit someone.”
“Who? And did you seduce her?”
His expression softened as he gazed into the past. “Long ago.”
“Human.” She spat the word.
“Aren’t they all?”
It was Titania’s turn to shrug. “Why did this one anger him?”
“This one is dying.”
His declaration left her speechless. When she finally spoke, her voice was soft. “You love her.”
“Once.”
“And that was hard to give up. Is she beautiful?”
“To me she is. Her face reflects the trials of her life. There is a certain beauty in that.”
Titania unlocked the cell. “Take her to the Summerlands.”
He dematerialized before she could change her mind..
****
Part of the problem I’ve been having with Ariel’s book is how it starts. I know what happens, mostly. At least between him and Aisling. But to get him from the end of that last book to where he needs to be in this book was throwing me. But now I know. I have the “bridge.” And this snippet is part of that. Anyway, yay. I’m in better head space now and despite the issues with my poor desktop, I shall prevail! And will eventually get a new computer and then be delayed again as I try to figure out how the heck to get stuff transferred, set-up, etc. Grrr. Anyway. Neither here nor there as far as y’all are concerned. Writers, you have your assignment if you want it. Readers, have you ever read a book that started in the wrong place?
Silver James 