Thanks to Jacee Drake for hosting the At First Sight Blogfest!
My submission to the fest is an excerpt from my novel. The set up: Dusty is a secondary character, but one of my faves. He's a faerie who can talk to animals. He's out one morning and meets up with Bamboo, who is a cat.
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Dusty pumped his wings harder as he zigzagged through the forest, enjoying the early morning before he and Willow started their day. He loved summer mornings and often got up early so he could visit with his animal friends, making it a point to check in on them and share gossip and news every few days. This morning he’d gone farther than he had for several weeks and was just about to turn around and start back when he noticed that the human house that had been empty for months now had lights on inside. He flew closer to get a better look and saw a woman sitting on the porch, eyes closed, with an open book laying across her chest. The cat on her lap lay sprawled on his back, but he was awake and watched Dusty as he approached. It had been ages since Dusty had chatted with a cat and because he enjoyed meeting new animals when he got the chance, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to talk to this kitty, even if there was a human dangerously close by.
It won’t hurt to just say hi.
He flew down and landed on the porch railing without a sound. He stood still and tense, holding his breath, as he watched the woman sleeping. Her breathing was heavy and her eyes moved back and forth beneath their lids. Satisfied that she was, indeed, asleep, Dusty relaxed and with a big grin on his face he waved at the cat, who eyeballed him suspiciously.
“Pssst, over here kitty,” Dusty whispered, his wave more vigorous. The cat growled at him.
“Hey, be nice! I’m just trying to be friends. Come over here so we can chat!”
The cat rolled upright, glared at Dusty, then jumped down to the porch and sauntered over to where Dusty waited. He was a beautiful cat with fluffy orange fur which made Dusty want to reach out and ruffle his cheeks, but this particular kitty didn’t look excited to see him. He couldn’t understand the cat’s hostility. It had been his experience that most animals were curious and happy to meet him.
“What’s wrong, kitty? I won’t hurt you.”
Dusty jumped down and landed lightly on the porch where the cat sniffed him with cautious contempt.
“C’mon Kitty, what’s the problem? Why won’t you talk to me?”
What are you? Dusty heard the cat’s thoughts flood his mind, happy he seemed to be warming up to him.
“I’m fae. We have a settlement here in the forest. My name is Dusty. What’s your name?”
My person calls me Bamboo.
“Cool name! You and your person haven’t been here long, have you? What happened to the nice old lady who used to live here?”
She died.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
Why?
“Well, isn’t that the polite thing to say when someone dies?”
I didn’t know her, so I don’t really care.
“Wow. You’re not a very cheerful fellow, are you?”
It’s not a matter of being cheerful. I just didn’t know her, so it isn’t important to me. Did you know her?
“Sort of. I’ve seen her a few times, but it’s been a while since I’ve been here so I didn’t know she’d died. Why are you and your person here?”
Holly stirred in the rocker.
You’d better be careful, you’ll wake her.
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Now, go check out the rest of the entries and enjoy!
My submission to the fest is an excerpt from my novel. The set up: Dusty is a secondary character, but one of my faves. He's a faerie who can talk to animals. He's out one morning and meets up with Bamboo, who is a cat.
*************
Dusty pumped his wings harder as he zigzagged through the forest, enjoying the early morning before he and Willow started their day. He loved summer mornings and often got up early so he could visit with his animal friends, making it a point to check in on them and share gossip and news every few days. This morning he’d gone farther than he had for several weeks and was just about to turn around and start back when he noticed that the human house that had been empty for months now had lights on inside. He flew closer to get a better look and saw a woman sitting on the porch, eyes closed, with an open book laying across her chest. The cat on her lap lay sprawled on his back, but he was awake and watched Dusty as he approached. It had been ages since Dusty had chatted with a cat and because he enjoyed meeting new animals when he got the chance, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to talk to this kitty, even if there was a human dangerously close by.
It won’t hurt to just say hi.
He flew down and landed on the porch railing without a sound. He stood still and tense, holding his breath, as he watched the woman sleeping. Her breathing was heavy and her eyes moved back and forth beneath their lids. Satisfied that she was, indeed, asleep, Dusty relaxed and with a big grin on his face he waved at the cat, who eyeballed him suspiciously.
“Pssst, over here kitty,” Dusty whispered, his wave more vigorous. The cat growled at him.
“Hey, be nice! I’m just trying to be friends. Come over here so we can chat!”
The cat rolled upright, glared at Dusty, then jumped down to the porch and sauntered over to where Dusty waited. He was a beautiful cat with fluffy orange fur which made Dusty want to reach out and ruffle his cheeks, but this particular kitty didn’t look excited to see him. He couldn’t understand the cat’s hostility. It had been his experience that most animals were curious and happy to meet him.
“What’s wrong, kitty? I won’t hurt you.”
Dusty jumped down and landed lightly on the porch where the cat sniffed him with cautious contempt.
“C’mon Kitty, what’s the problem? Why won’t you talk to me?”
What are you? Dusty heard the cat’s thoughts flood his mind, happy he seemed to be warming up to him.
“I’m fae. We have a settlement here in the forest. My name is Dusty. What’s your name?”
My person calls me Bamboo.
“Cool name! You and your person haven’t been here long, have you? What happened to the nice old lady who used to live here?”
She died.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
Why?
“Well, isn’t that the polite thing to say when someone dies?”
I didn’t know her, so I don’t really care.
“Wow. You’re not a very cheerful fellow, are you?”
It’s not a matter of being cheerful. I just didn’t know her, so it isn’t important to me. Did you know her?
“Sort of. I’ve seen her a few times, but it’s been a while since I’ve been here so I didn’t know she’d died. Why are you and your person here?”
Holly stirred in the rocker.
You’d better be careful, you’ll wake her.
*****************
Now, go check out the rest of the entries and enjoy!
