#practicewriting

Picture: And Into The Blue We Go by Cat (criminol)

Artist’s page: http://criminol.deviantart.com/

It was a few years ago, that’s what it feels like, since we went into the cave. The two of us were exploring the parts of the beach we were never allowed to go near when we were younger when we found it. From the outside we could see just one of those runestones shining in the darkness of the tunnel. Ezmai just had to go see what it was and I wasn’t going to let her go by herself, we had no idea what kind of monsters could be hiding in here. I still don’t, really. The further we got, the more and more of those blue runestones we found. They have these strange symbols I’ve never seen before. Ezmai thought the stones were the best thing she’d ever seen. She wanted to take as many as she could home with us, but that wouldn’t have been a good idea. If our parents knew where the rocks came from then we would have been in so much trouble. But I should have let her, no punishment our parents could have been too harsh. We found a pond some minutes of searching the tunnel, its murky blue water somehow forming small walls that crashed onto the rocky floor. More of the blue lights from the runestones were hanging from the ceiling, some almost reached the ground. The pool captivated her. Ezmai sat by the water and became entranced by its waves. She began to hum songs to them, some that I could make out and others she must have been making up. Then the waves started moving to the sound of her humming, growing bigger and smaller as she changed tunes. That was enough for me. I tried to get her to leave, to move even, and she didn’t. She couldn’t. I ran back to the entrance to try to find someone to help, but it wasn’t there. I know it was the same spot, that one little runestone was there to mark it. It just wasn’t there, like it closed up. And that was so long ago. Still here, and her still sitting in that same spot by the water. Never once has she stopped her humming in all of this time. Never once has she looked away from the waves. I don’t think any will come to take us home, there isn’t a way in or out anymore. Neither of us has had any food or water - I refuse to touch that bile in the pool - since before we had journeyed in; I don’t even think we can die to escape. The blue will keep us here forever, unless it doesn’t need us anymore. And, now, that’s what I’m scared of the most.

Tell me - I think I'd wait, if you'd take time to write. I'd wait in light or cobblestone marshes, I'll wait in books and coffee shop houses. I'd wait for sun or stars again, I'll wait in light, and in the rain. My God, this taste of life, in every minute, when you're aside. Now city's quiet, the town's awake. And you're not there, but still I wait.

By - Natasha Ranawake

In front of the Steelbringer and Crowley residence, a large black she-wolf napped out in the yard while its pup played with a chew toy. The pup growled cutely as it shook its head back and forth, then threw its unfortunate victim across the yard. It wasted no time in chasing after the toy, bypassing the larger canid. 

The she-wolf cracked open an eye, revealing a blood red eye, when she felt a breeze rush by. Seeing the pup playing happily, amusement shone in her eyes. It would seem Sachi’s instinct to hunt was beginning to show more and more, she thought with a mental chuckle. 

Eye closing, she shifted against the grass and settled back into a light nap until she was woken by gurgling croaks from above. Fluffy ears flicked as the wolf tilted her head, eyes opening fully at the sound. 

Sachi seemed interested in the sound as well. The pup had stopped playing, the chew toy grasped between her teeth and head tilted upwards to watch four black birds swoop and make passes at each other while letting out croaking laughter. It looked like they were playing with each other.

She whined, shifting from paw to paw as her tail wagged in excitement. Dropping the chew toy, Sachi whined loudly while waving a paw in the air. 

‘Daddy! Daddy!’ Sachi yipped. 

The she-wolf let out a low growl and spoke through the bond connecting her to her mate and pup. 

‘Those are not daddy, Sachi. Daddy is inside.’ 

‘Did someone call me?’ The voice of her mate, Longinus asked. 

‘Sachi saw some ravens. She thinks they’re you.’  The she-wolf watched as the ravens took notice of them. They pivoted at an angle, swooping down towards the two wolves and settled on the roof. Four pairs of black, beady eyes teeming with intelligence studied the pair. The she-wolf stared back calmly. 

Every raven had some sort of eerie aura about them. That was expected, what with them being connected to multiple mythical ravens in the world. Odin’s ravens being one of the main progenitors. Though the magic in their blood has diluted throughout the centuries, leaving them to become mundane ravens. 

Sachi dropped the chew toy and turned to the ravens. She barked, jumping up and down. 

‘Daddy! Daddy, come play with me!’ 

One of the ravens tilted its head, letting out an inquisitive warble. The three other ravens watched on in silence, warily eyeing the larger wolf. They could feel something unnatural about it, and didn’t want to risk their lives by provoking it recklessly. 

The she-wolf snorted, laying her head down on her paws. 

‘Better come quick or you’ll be replaced by a wild animal.’ She teased her mate. 

Longinus laughed, and the she-wolf felt her inside warm at the sound of it. ‘Can’t have that, now can we? Alright. Give me a second.’ 

Finally, the one raven gathered its courage and flew down towards the pup. It hovered in the air just out of the reach of the pup’s range, brushing her with its wingtips. 

Sachi’s tail went hyper speed, bottom practically moving with it. She went into a play pose, whining and growling at the bird. Seeing this, the raven let out a gurgle and bombed the pup, veering off to the left at the last minute. 

Sachi cowarded, startled by the move. The raven cawed, mischief twinkling in its eyes as it circled back around. This time, it went for the pup’s tail, only for Sachi to dodge its playful attack. 

While the two began to play a game of their own making,  the she-wolf heard the front door open. She looked over to see a brown, curly haired man step out. He was lean and had an easy going smile on his face as he approached the large wolf with a plate of raw chicken in hand. 

“She seems to be having fun.” He stated, coming to a step next to the she-wolf and observing the two animals. Kneeling down, he patted her head. The she-wolf leaned into his hand, then licked his cheek. 

“Yeah.” The she-wolf spoke in a lazy tone. “Heard that ravens and wolf pups can make bonds that last up to adulthood.” 

“Interesting. And where are the other ravens?” 

She gestured up towards the roof with her head. “Up there. They’re wary of me.” 

He chuckled. “With good reason, my love. I brought them some food, that is, if they’ll come down for it.” 

The she-wolf hummed, one ear flicking. “Get that one to eat first, and maybe the rest will come down. Though, with you here, they may just come down without any prompting needed.” 

Longinus was a famous sorcerer, the Black Sorcerer, and one of his abilities is to transform into a raven. The consequence of this was that sometimes normal ravens flocked to him. 

The man let out a small grunt as he settled down on the grass, one hand carding through the wolf’s soft fur. He set the plate down in his lap. 

“Sachi!” He called, bringing the pup’s attention to him. 

The she-wolf and Longinus could see her shock and feel it through the bond when she saw him. She was so shocked that she slid to an abrupt halt, making the raven fly into her with an undignified squak. 

A cacophony of hoarse caws resounded from the roof; the three other ravens finding enjoyment from their friend’s blunder. 

The raven with Sachi flapped its wings in embarrassment, hurrying into the air back to the roof. It settled near its friends with a vexed hiss at them when they still seemed to be laughing at it. 

Sachi whined sadly, eyes flitting between her father and the raven. 

“Come here, Sachi. I’m sure it will come down again.” Longinus assured the pup. Padding over to her parents, Sachi flopped down between her mother’s large paws, her back towards Longinus. 

She-wolf and human exchanged fond glances at the pup’s actions. 

“I told you it wasn’t daddy, Sachi.” The she-wolf pointed out. Sachi let out a soft huff, pouting. 

Longinus’ smile widened. “I’m sorry, pup. Here, do you want some chicken to make you feel better?” He held out the plate towards her, keeping his senses trained on the ravens. 

One of Sachi’s ears rotated towards him at the mention of chicken, and she hesitatingly turned her head so one eye was looking at the plate. A bit of drool escaped her mouth. 

“If you don’t want it, I’ll gladly take it.” The she-wolf said. She moved her muzzle towards the plate, opening like she was going to grab a piece when Sachi let out a growl. 

‘No! Greedy momma!’ The pup tumbled out from between her mother’s paws and snatched a piece of chicken. She then ran off with it, stopping a few feet away. 

“And there they go.” Longinus muttered, looking up as a black form swooped down from overhead towards the pup. The raven from earlier landed a foot away from the pup, hopping side to side as it focused on the meat. 

Sachi noticed the bird eyeing her meat and peeled back her lips, growling in order to warn off the other. The not-daddy couldn’t have her food. It was hers!

The raven hopped back, head tilting this way and that. A calculating gleam flashed through its eyes as it looked behind the pup to see one of its brethren sneaking up on her.

The second raven nipped at Sachi’s tail, making the pup yelp and whirl around. While Sachi was distracted, the first raven nabbed the chicken and took off with it alongside the second raven. 

Sachi couldn’t believe what had happened. She ran back to her mother, whining. 

“That’s just how ravens are, Sachi.” The she-wolf said, licking the pup’s head. “Tricky beasts.” 

“Indeed.” Longinus agreed. He picked up another piece of chicken and held it out to the pup. Sachi took it, tearing off chunks and swallowing. “But that’s how they learned to survive, so we can’t exactly fault them for it.” 

He and the she-wolf looked at the roof to see the ravens fighting over the stolen meat. They somehow managed to rip it into two pieces, and while that satisfied two ravens, the other two were left without food. 

The two ravens without food took notice of the plate in Longinus’s lap. They spread their wings and flew down to the trio, landing in front of them. 

“Got plenty for all of you.” Longinus said, setting down the plate for the two birds. “Birds of a feather, have to flock together.” 

The she-wolf snorted, making the two ravens hesitate on approaching the plate. They kept an eye on her as they slowly moved forward, but when she made no further movements, the ravens dove onto the food. 

“Does that mean you tricked me with food back then?” The she-wolf asked, referring to when they first met. 

He scratched behind her ear, love blooming through the bond. “Well, you did say you were going to eat me, but changed your mind when I cooked for you. So, yes. I suppose I did trick you with my cooking skills.” He then smirked. “Of course, no other raven is worthy of you other than myself, my beloved wolf.” 

The she-wolf rolled her eyes, but her tail thumped on the grass and there was fondness in her voice. “You’re just lucky your cooking skills are good and that you’re cute.” 

“Whatever you say, dear. Whatever you say.”

“What to do, what to do?” Emilia asked herself as she slowly paced around her apartment. The sound of rain strongly hammering down against the complex, was enough to get her up and running in the early morning. It was her day off and she decided it was best to take her time and relax from her stressful job. The smell of freshly made coffee, lingered throughout the room, it was comforting in a sense. It was a nice day; anti-stressful one could say. A day where naps could occur, and work was no longer a worry. The perfect definition of ‘Pure Bliss.’

 “Nothing.” She lazily sat on her couch exhaling tiredly, her brain unable to rack up any suitable activities for her to do. It was at least eight-thirty in the morning, and the sun refused to shine due to the storm clouds. Nope, just the pitter pattering of rain thundering throughout the city.

 Emilia continued to doze off, unsure of what she could do to entertain herself. Perhaps she could do some work ahead of time, maybe then an idea could pop into her head and she wouldn’t have to think so hard anymore. But she decided against it. She always did work ahead of time, but no matter how much she got done, the load never refused to end. Which is why this time she’ll force herself to do something she desired today, although, the problem was what?

 Before doing anything, she got up and poured herself a nice cup of coffee to drink. It was a nice taste, certainly divine to the senses, yet nothing different from what she had before. It was just plain and black. As she took a few sips of the hot brew, she eventually decided the best thing for now was to get dressed. With the way she looked, she was sure many would jump in fright. Her disheveled hair all over the place, her wrinkled night clothing that looked very big on her, and her face that just screamed fatigued. If anyone were to see her like this they would think she’s partially dead.

 It didn’t take long for her get ready. Certainly, it took a few minutes or so till she came looking out fresh and new. “That’s better.” Now that she had her coffee and looked as tasty as a peach, she could finally do something that is somewhat mildly productive.

 Maybe, she could watch some tv, and bundle up into her favorite blanket?

 She could try and do some baking! she’s never done it before, but it couldn’t hurt to try.

Or she could do some work today, that sounded something that wa-

 She shook her head profusely at the idea of spending time working in all day. Sure, she could profit from it, but she’d end up just overworking herself again. If that were that case, which it is, then what was there that she could possibly do to pass the time?

 *Ring, Ring*

 “Who could be at the door, this early?” She mumbled to herself as she walked towards the sound, peering through the keyhole in the process. From what she could make out, it looked like a mail man carrying a box with holes outside it. Holes? Why would the box contain holes? 

But the box wasn’t her main concern here.

 She was absolutely positive that she didn’t order anything in the past few weeks. She already did so beforehand. But if that were the case, then how come this unknown individual was standing outside her apartment?

 *Ring, Ring*

 The button was pushed once more, probably to double check if anyone was at home. Emilia’s curiosity getting the better of her, decided to open the door for this fellow. She was soon met with a tall, but skinny man. To her, he looked like he was in college, possibly working this job to pay for his expenses. Man college, those horrible years.

 “E-excuse me Mam, this package was supposed to be delivered to a person named Emilia. Are you perhaps her?” The boy spoke a little hesitantly as he read the name off the clipboard. She could see him trying his hardest not to crack his voice.

 “Ahh yes, that is me.” She responded.

 “Perfect, I’m going to need you to sign this for me please.” The boy handed her the box quickly. She almost dropped it due to how the boy clumsily handed it so her. As the boy proceeded to get out his clipboard and pen, the box that Emilia her arms shook with a tiny force. The box would’ve plunged to the ground if it were not for her holding it tightly against her, as spooked as she was.

 “If you could sign here and here and there.” The mailman pointed at the locations where she needed to sign. She did this action briskly, so that she may gaze inside the box. As she finished scribbling out her signatures the boy spoke a quick ‘thank you’ and left hastily.

 “How strange.”

 Closing the door, she began walking to the center in her dainty living room, placing the box down on top of the carpet. Her fingers went to open the handle of the box, though retracted it with a hurry as it shook furiously again. “Come one Emilia, don’t such a wuss.” With a flick of the wrist she opened the box with a newfound courage.

 In an instant, her eyes were met with a tiny kitten who was placed inside. It’s fur was a beautiful snow white, and its eyes were colored as polished silver. It mewed cutely at her, and hopped out the box elegantly. “What in the world?” Confused, she looked at it strangely. The kitten began to rub up against her leg, purring as it did so. She didn’t order a kitten, or a pet for that matter. She then shook the box to see if anything else was evident in it.

 A note folded in half fell to the ground in front of her. ‘Just a note? How peculiar,’ she thought. Deciding to read it she picked it up and began out loud.

 Dear Emilia, This is grandma writing,

As you know I am getting rather old, and my time here is very limited. I have enjoyed my life here on this planet, as sucky as it may be, it brought me a lot of good memories.

Your mother has told me that you are always busy. She says you are so caught up in your work  that you barely know how to have any fun.

I tell you, back in my day when I was younger, I was the little deviant. I would cause trouble for everybody, and though I might get in trouble, I never stopped. And I never will so long as I die. So as a person getting older by the second I just wanted to say, you are one of my most boring grandchildren I have ever had.

I still love you very much my darling, to me you and your siblings are the most precious things in my world.

That being said, I have decided to give you a little gift in hopes that you could someday be as cool as your grandma here. Perhaps this gift can focus you on other things rather than work.

  I hope you enjoy.

 Love,

Grandma

 Oh and by the way, her name is Crystal. She is a very special cat from what I heard. Do please take care of her.

 Emilia chuckled as she read the note given to her. It was true that she was not very exciting, which was why not many wanted to hang out with her. She glanced over at the kitten who was now asleep beside her. She would have to get a all the necessities no doubt, and a nametag to show that she is already owned.  

“I guess I do have something to do today after all.” She commented softly as she petted the kitten’s white fur.