Weasel Water Lou Of The Peace In Carlos - 5
Weasel Water Lou of the Peace in Carlos - 5
Esse awoke in a small room with hard red walls. The walls were thin, and light streamed through them. Esse was lying on a small bed with dirty pink blankets. She got up and looked around. Two more dirty pink beds identical to her’s were each in corners of the room. In the last corner was a door.
Esse lept up and flung herself at the door. It didn’t budge.
Of course it was locked. Why wouldn’t it be? There were symbols on it, but they made no sense. The yellow ceiling was cracked and peeling. Small flakes drifted down periodically. It was very quiet. There was no doubt about it. Esse had been kidnapped.
Spying a ladder by her bed, Esse climbed up it. There was nothing on the second floor of Esse’s prison. Just a yellow floor, cracked and peeling like the first-floor ceiling. The ceiling for the second floor was much better than the first floor’s ceiling. It was red like the walls. Esse sighed.
She went back down the ladder and flopped on her bed. Kidnapped by a creepy nixie-bear. Now what?
Outside Esse’s prison, the voice, or, Ursula Kinns, was waiting patiently for Esse’s rescuer to arrive. And she didn’t wait long. He was coming.
A few minutes later, Luc burst through the door. “Where is she?” he demanded.
“Calm down child.” Ursula Kinns said calmly.
“Where is she!?” Luc repeated, yelling this time.
“Esse is perfectly fine.” Ursula Kinns answered. Luc growled. “Show me.” he demanded.
“Oh, well, you’ll have to open the door first.” Ursula Kinns said playfully. “And what’s more, your little friend here knows my name.”
“Wait, what?” Luc said. “My name. The one that opens that door.”
Ursula Kinns flicked her wrist. The door was illuminated by light. “How does she know? Did you tell her? Why her?” Luc had many questions. “Yes, told her. In a way.” Ursula Kinns smiled. “But why would I tell you? You are not the nixie. You can’t go through the door until she does.”
“I can’t?” Luc asked. He was really confused. “I will explain it to you.” Ursula Kinns said. “Come closer.”
Esse was going to get out. She had to. So when she heard Luc outside, she devised a plan. Esse was not about to let some bear come and save her. Though she did like Luc, she could get out herself.
Spells. That must be the key. The bear-lady was definitely using magic of some kind. Esse only knew one spell. It was actually a rather advanced spell. It was turning things into strawberries. Sometimes it was useful. It usually wasn’t.
But hey, maybe it would come in handy now. She was hungry, after all. Esse walked over to the ugliest pink bed and cleaned it the best she could. Then she recited the chant.
Blueberry, Sweet Pea, and White Rose,
Wanted a strawberry and SO DO I!
The bed churned as if it were a liquid. It turned into a pinecone. “Ugh.” Esse said. She didn’t think eating a pinecone would be very delightful. Even if she wasn’t fed, or wasn’t able to get out, a little magic practice could be useful. So she decided to change up the strawberry spell to a new chant.
Mushroom, Chanterelle, and Bumblebee,
Wanted a ladybug and I DO NOT!
The second pink bed turned into a butterfly. It flapped around. “Hello.” it said. “I didn’t like being a dirty pink bed.”
“What were you before a dirty pink bed?” Esse asked. “Oh, I’ve always been a dirty pink bed.” the butterfly replied. “But what I am now is a big improvement.” “You’re a butterfly.” Esse told it.
“Ah, now that’s a pretty name.” the butterfly said, flying around the room. “Oh, what’s up here?” it said, spying the ladder. “Nothing.” Esse answered. “I checked. It’s like this room, just with no beds.”
“What’s this?” the butterfly asked, landing on the pinecone. “It’s a pinecone.” Esse said. “What’s your name?” “Well, ever since I got here, I’ve been called Dirty Pink Bed, but I had a different name when I was young. It was something like…..Kennen. I really think it was Kennen, actually.” the butterfly said.
“My name is Esse.” Esse told Kennen. “Kennen is an interesting name. I like it.” “Thank you.” said Kennen. There was an awkward silence.
“So, um, Kennen, I’m sort of trying to escape.” Esse said. “Do you know a way out?” “No,” Kennen said. “But I can still help.” “There are these symbols on the door.” Esse said, walking over to the door and crouching down. “I have no idea what they mean.” “Me neither.” Kennen said, flying over. “What do we do now?”
“I don’t know.” Esse sighed. “My friend Luc is outside the door, and he’ll probably save me. I was hoping to save myself.” “Hey!” Kennen suddenly exclaimed. “I know a way we can get you out! There has to be a way the person who trapped you here opened this door, right? Well, I bet I can fly under the door crack, and then see how to get you out. Then, I’ll tell you, and you can escape!”
“Good idea!” Esse agreed, standing up. “Let’s do it!” Kennen crawled under the door crack. So Esse was left to wait.
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Weasel Water Lou of the Peace in Carlos
Esse awoke on the lovely morning of November the fifth. Hoping something exciting was going to happen, she stuck her head out the window by the foot of her bed. A breeze was blowing, gently nudging the fluffy white clouds across the sky. The breeze picked up, blowing Esse’s long magenta hair into her face. Esse blew it back out.
A few people walked on the streets below, laughing and talking. Esse pulled her head back into her room. It felt like Spring. That’s how it always felt in The Peace in Carlos. Peaceful weather was always around. Right now it was Autumn, so every day was just the right temperature for a sweater or a light jacket. Esse sighed. November the fifth seemed to be like every other day in November. Nothing exciting.
“Were you hoping for bizarre weather again?” Esse’s older sister asked. As Esse turned around, her sister rolled her eyes. Esse stuck out her tongue. “Stop it, Elian.” Esse said.
They headed down to breakfast. Everyone else was already there. “You two have to work on getting up earlier and faster.” Their mother, Mrs. Iflandoonia said. “It was all Esse’s fault.” Elian said. “It was not!” Esse said back. “You two.” Mrs. Iflandoonia said, shaking her head. “Esse, go put your hair up.” “Mom, I told you, I hate putting my hair up!” Esse complained.
Esse had the longest hair in the school: two feet, three inches. Illtyd said it looked like a chocolate fountain except magenta because of its color. Illtyd liked food, so he described Esse’s eyes as spinach colored. Her skin, he said, was just normal (On Puffolpuddels [The planet Esse lives on] that is bright blue).
“C’mon!” Illtyd called to them. “Mommy is making eggs and roast beef!” Esse sat down next to him. Illtyd smiled. He had always believed that Esse had The Magical Powers of the Bonnet. The Bonnet’s Son was a book that Illtyd was reading right now. Illtyd was six years old, but a very advanced reader for his age.
“Is today a school day?” Ty asked. “Yes, Ty. But it’s Friday, so people can play with you tomorrow.” Mrs. Iflandoonia said. “You’re lucky you’re only three years old.” Demitri, Esse’s ten year old brother, said between mouthfuls. Ty clapped her hands. Mrs. Iflandoonia sighed. Demitri and Sverre Jon (the twins of the family) had taught Ty to do that whenever she heard someone say, “You’re lucky you’re only three years old.”
After they finished breakfast, Mrs. Iflandoonia was moving quickly. “Esse, you and the twins have to be on the bus in twenty minutes. Go pack your stuff. Esse, don’t forget your Science homework. You also have a test today!” Esse rushed upstairs planning to meet her brothers at the door in five minutes. She ended up dropping the contents of her satchel all over the floor, and become late enough that Mrs. Iflandoonia yelled up at her.
Finally, Esse and the twins were out the door. “Bye!” Ty called after them. She was still finishing her eggs.
At school, Esse was mulling over her Science test. She understood the question, but how would she explain it? Oh well. It was just one question anyway. Esse snuck a peek at Price’s paper. Price had written: “The Carriage War started in 809, just after Aliprand Shekhar took power. Esse wrote: “The Wagon War started in 810, just before Aliprandi Sheephair lost power. That should get her at least half credit.
After Lunch, Mr. Oliverst had everyone sit at their desks instead of coming to the large table at the front of the room. “Today, class, I have a special announcement.” he said. “The Museum of Time and Space has selected the top History students to see the first Dental Floss exhibit, featuring dental floss through the years! The special students selected are Miss Winterpegg, Miss Yinyi, Miss Iflandoonia, Miss Sandy, Mr. Herlbemmer and Mr. Lik. You will all be going next Tuesday during English, free time, and the beginning of dismissal. Please note you will have English homework that day. Also, please stay after school. Today.”
Esse groaned, and she heard a few others groan too. Mr. Oliverest ignored them, as he was so used to doing. Esse did well in History because she had to. Mrs. Iflandoonia made her. Not so she could go to a Dental Floss exhibit and miss homework time (not that she liked doing homework, but doing it late was even worse).
After math class, Esse and the others stood around Mr. Oliverst’s desk to hear what he had to tell them. A few people were excited; Mr. Oliverst certainly was. Esse wasn’t. She really didn’t like History.
“You will have partners as you go through the Dental Floss exhibits so you don’t get lost. Here they are: Mr. Herlbemmer and Miss Iflandoonia, Mr. Lik and Miss Sandy, and Miss Winterpegg and Miss Yinyi. Please do not complain, there is no switching partners. Good day.” A few people groaned again. Esse didn’t. She was hoping that her partner, Price, would just ignore her. Price usually did. On the bus ride home, Esse heard Price and Takahiro talking.
“We don’t have to go with our partners. We can just hang out together.” Price was saying. “Yeah, they're just girls. Why would they care?” Takahiro agreed. Esse snorted. Takahiro’s partner, Difgih, was probably one of Esse’s least favorite people. No, Esse was not going to spend two and a half hours with Difgih Sandy even if it meant wandering around by herself. This wouldn’t actually be too hard, because Difgih didn’t like Esse either.
“How was school?” Mrs. Iflandoonia asked Esse at dinner. Elian had just given a long story about how boring and easy the IQ Test for Advanced Students was. “It was good.” Esse said. “I got selected to go to the new Dental Floss through time exhibit before it’s even opened. I’m Price’s partner.” “Which one’s Price?” Mr. Iflandoonia asked. “Her boyfriend.” Demitri said through a mouthful of pizza.
“Price Herlbemmer.” Esse answered. “Remember? You had such a long conversation with Mr. Herlbemmer last PTA Meeting that you had a sore throat for a week. And Price is not my boyfriend.”
“Oh, yeah. Him. Is the kid better than the parent?” Mr. Iflandoonia asked.
“Luc! They are both wonderful people!” Mrs. Iflandoonia scolded.
Lucjusz (Luc)
Illustration courtesy of Teepi Guest
Breton Wager - 4
Breton went home that day on the bus with Rose. Rose sat on Breton’s lunch twice, and then he sat on Tony’s lunch, and by that point they were home and there were no more lunches to sit on.
Breton entered his house and was pleased. He could hear his mother in the kitchen and his father in the parlor. He had little homework, and he would complete it in the kitchen beside his mother, with his father in view. It would be a good ending to his Wednesday.
Breton took a seat at the kitchen table. His mother was making soup.
“Welcome home, Breton, how was school?” she asked, tossing carrots with a flourish.
“Indeed, Breton! How was you day?” echoed his father from his seat in the parlor.
“May I go to the Masquerade Ball on Friday?” Breton asked his parental unit.
“By yourself?” his mother asked, adding beets to the supper stew.
“I was planning on attending with Nashaadh and Rose,” Breton explained.
“Oh, Nashaadh! How is she?” his father asked. “You know, I haven’t called Ashley in quite a while.”
“And Rose,” his mother added. “When’s the last time we saw Rose? What’s his real name again?”
“Roosevelt,” Breton answered, assuming that this meant his masquerade attendance was approved.
“Ah, yes, named after that old president we had all that time ago!” Breton’s mother continued on.
“I think I shall call Ashley right now,” Breton’s father mused from the parlor.
Breton quietly slipped out of time.
It had been a rewarding but long day, and Breton had gotten about half an hour closer to bedtime when he heard a familiar voice.
“Breton! Breton! Are those your parents?” the Christian floated in through a wall, floppy arm dangling exasperatedly.
“Yeah,” Breton said. He wasn’t certain why, but once again, he found himself stopping his forward progression to wait for the Christian.
“They are adults, you know. Awfully so. Well above the age of eighteen. I shall approve of one parent at a time, please,” the Christian commanded boastfully.
Breton began to continue forward towards bedtime. He felt the Christian’s arms bumping against his head as he walked.
“Your father is the brother in law of Ashley Sonjan, correct?” the Christian asked forcefully.
“Yes,” Breton answered, really only half paying attention to the loud puppet. It really did remind him of the real Christian.
“Nikodemus Bauerbecken, brother of Ashley Sonjan. Patterson and Ashley Sonjan. Two daughters: Nashaadh Sonjan and Naulii Sonjan,” the Christian recited, as if this memorization of facts was even at all worth showing off.
“Interesting,” Breton mumbled distractedly.
“Ashley Sonjan invented the equation for time travel,” the Christian continued. “Are you special, Breton? Or is your aunt the real hero of the story?”
Breton jumped back into time with a smack, hitting his bed with much more force than he meant to. He didn’t sleep well that night.
Heyy, new writeblr! ^̮^ Pls REBLOG so I can follow you!
(and poetblr.)
—my writeblr and poetblr introduction—
To start off, my name is Ashiya. I am an infp and I am sixteen (and probably bisexual and genderfluid🌈). I like writing as a means to relax…and when I say writing it’s mosty WIP’s. I start but I never finish. Like the water cycle. It never ends. Unless you wield magic powers to control elements(waterbending)- which is kind of how I am hoping this blog will be to me. Break this vicious cylce that is bringing me closer and closer to self destruction…ok so maybe it’s not that dramatic but I hope I’ve gotten my point across?
As I’ve mentioned: I am new here and I’m (obviously) looking for some blogs to follow so I am just going to shamelessly ask if you guys could reblog this so I can know who you are!
Also, just a heads up. My actual writing is definitely not like this ^^^
I’m just super tired at the moment so my grammar is all over the place. And I sometimes use lower case in my poems for aesthetic purposes 😅 😋
Sooo, see ya!
Weasel Water Lou of the Peace in Carlos - 9
On Wednesday, Esse was so excited she woke up super early and woke Nurse Moss up too. “Hurry!” she kept saying. It seemed that Kennen had been doing the same. Esse and Nurse Moss met Kennen and Doctor Lexie in the lobby. “Let’s go!” Esse said. With Esse running close behind him, Kennen flew all the way to the palace. They were waiting in the jungle waiting-room when a girl about Esse’s age came in and sat down next to them. “Orderer Gemma!” Nurse Moss and Doctor Lexie said at the same time. Orderer Gemma smiled sheepishly and waved. “Hi, Nurse Moss. Hi, Doctor Lexie.” Orderer Gemma had messy orange hair pulled back in a messy ponytail. She was wearing the same blue outfit as Esse, with a blue vest over it. The blue vest had a few badges on it. Esse looked closer. One badge was for surviving a landslide. Orderer Gemma waved to Esse and Kennen. They waved back. Soon, a voice sounded through the room, “Orderer Gemma, your appointment with Teacher Yi is ready.” Orderer Gemma got to her feet. She turned once more to wave and smile sheepishly again before vanishing through a door. “I think we just met the princess.” Kennen whispered to Esse. Esse nodded. Orderer Gemma seemed to be a pretty nice princess. Soon, the same voice sounded through the room again. “Nurse Moss, Doctor Lexie, Esse and Kennen, your appointment with Weasel Water Lou is ready.” They walked through a door with the word SECRETARY etched into the wood. Opening it,they saw this: A small cocker spaniel sat at a wooden desk. A small dirt path led to the desk. Surrounding the path were trees and grass. “Hello.” said the cocker spaniel. “And how does my painting concern you?”
After Esse explained to Weasel Water Lou her whole adventure starting at her trip to the dental floss exhibit, Kennen repeated the part where Luc was taken away. Weasel Water Lou nodded. “Luc is no longer alive.” she said. “That is certain.” Esse nodded. She lowered her head. “I hoped…” Esse trailed off. Kennen landed gently on her shoulder. “As for your The Peace in Carlos being in danger, I will help you. You see, I once had a very good friend named Joe of the Braceland who I made that tapestry for. I would love to help all your people escape.” The next few days, Weasel Water Lou worked on the second tapestry, and Esse, Kennen, and Master Cameron worked out what to say to King Nnu, the ruler of The Peace in Carlos. “When I still lived there,” Weasel Water Lou said. “the ruler was Queen Asda.” Esse explained that Queen Asda was in the west part of The Peace in Carlos, solving their recent Carlosian invasion. Mistress Amelia was very helpful and so was Orderer Gemma. Orderer Gemma and Esse soon became very good friends. Kennen became friends with a boy named Ky, who was coming with them to talk to King Nnu. Everyone was very excited when Weasel Water Lou finally finished the second tapestry. It was time for Esse to go home.
Once in The Peace in Carlos, Esse led the new-comers toward King Nnu’s palace. “Let’s avoid everyone until later.” Master Cameron suggested. Everyone else agreed. “I have a secret way.” Esse announced. She led them through the woods where she first met Luc. They reached the end of the forest. They were in Ie Square. The big sign reading IE SQUARE stood tall above their heads. “We mustn't be seen!” Master Cameron hissed. Esse nodded. There were so many people in Ie Square. Disguises might be necessary. Kennen and Weasel Water Lou were already okay, but Master Cameron, Esse, orderer Gemma, and Ky had to get disguises. They all changed into olympic horse riding uniforms except for Orderer Gemma, who insisted on being a flight attendant. They blended in pretty easily. The olympic horse races were happening, and a plane had just crashed by Lake An. No one was hurt, but many flight attendants were milling about. When they reached the gates of King Nnu’s palace, right outside Ie Square, they tore off their disguises. They didn’t need them anymore. They entered easily, (King Nnu refused to have guards) and entered the throne room, where King Nnu and Queen Ly sat. “Your Majesty.” Esse cried. “We are in terrible danger!”King Nnu listened to the whole story from Esse, then Luc’s death from Kennen, and finally, all the rest from Master Cameron and Weasel Water Lou. “First.” said King Nnu in an orderly fashion. “I must inform Luc’s parents of Luc death. Kennen, would you mind coming?” Kennen said he would go. “Secondly,” King Nnu continued. “Esse, please go directly to you parents with Master Cameron. Weasel Water Lou, Ky, Orderer Gemma, please stay here and tell me of the place you come from.” So Esse and Master Cameron headed off.
“Esse!” cried Mrs. Iflandoonia. Esse was embraced with lots of crying. It felt so good to be back home. Even Elian was glad. Ty still thought Esse had been away at camp. Demitri,Sverre Jon, and Illtyd listened to the whole story of Esse’s travels, while Mr. and Mrs. Iflandoonia discussed things with Master Cameron. Soon, the whole town knew, and the escape from The Peace in Carlos was set for Friday, November 20th. Esse waited and waited. The day finally came.
The whole town was gathered in Ie Square. The large sign reading IE SQUARE was broken. Everyone had brought their belongings. Only nine at a time could enter the tapestry at once, not including luggage. It took five days to get everyone into The Meadow of Nimm. Esse and her family plus Kennen camped outside the vortex in The Meadow of Nimm to make sure everyone made it safely. There was a great search of The Peace in Carlos to make sure no one was left behind. But everyone was safe. No one was in danger in The Meadow of Nimm, with Ursula Kinns being gone. Weasel Water Lou verified that. She said that teleporting wasn’t very useful unless an emergency was occurring. You cannot control where you teleport to. All was well. Forever.
Breton Wager - 3
After Rose returned with the pens, Breton got to work on the posters. He sat on the stage across from Rose, who, despite his previous claim, was not being of much help at all. Nashaadh bustled around backstage, moving boxes and hanging the posters that Breton completed.
“Breton, are you going to the Masquerade Ball on Friday night?” Nashaadh asked after a little while.
“I’m going!” Rose interjected before Breton could even conceive an answer. “I’m going with Nashaadh,” he added.
“You really should come with us, Breton,” Nashaadh invited.
“Aw, Nashaadh, do you have to go and invite your cousin?” Rose pouted.
“Rose, he’s your friend too!” Nashaadh scolded. “It’s a school hosted event, he should go anyway!”
“I know, I was just kidding,” Rose said calmly. “You should definitely come, Breton.”
“How?” Breton asked, not pausing his decoration of Nashaadh’s posters.
“Well, I’m going as a phoenix,” Nashaadh reminisced, setting down a box and plopping down beside Breton and Rose. “All red and yellow and fire . . .”
“And I’m going as a parrot,” Rose shared, scooting closer to Nashaadh. “All color and sleek good looks.”
Rose tossed his wavy, dark red head of hair. Nashaadh laughed.
“You really should go, Breton,” Nashaadh repeated.
“What would I go as?” Breton argued politely. “You guys already took phoenix and parrot.”
“You could be a woodnymph bird,” Nashaadh offered.
“Oo! Yes! You’d look good in purple, Breton!” Rose agreed, clearly enthused.
“You really would, Breton!” Nashaadh exhibited excitement. “There must be a beautiful indigo pattern jacket somewhere we can buy for you!”
“Yes! And I have these wonderful pants that will match gorgeously!” Rose continued.
“Ohmygosh, Breton, we are totally building your costume for you!” Nashaadh squealed. “You are coming on Friday!”
Breton remained silent as Nashaadh and Rose used the previously discarded markers to plan his costume. Silently, he was pleased. Nashaadh and Rose were his two closest friends. And although a Masquerade Ball sounded scary, if he went to one, he would want to go with Nashaadh and Rose.
Besides, with the Christian hanging around, it might be a good idea to live in the moment.
Breton Wager - 5
Breton was very tired all morning. The first half of the Thursday school day was less than pleasant. He didn’t even bother skipping through any of it.
Breton reached English class at 12:11 pm that day, and he was not feeling in the mood. Sixth period’s job was to write a chronological and sequential paragraph about what they had done so far that day. So far, Breton had tried to sleep and had been interrupted no less than thirteen times by none other than Christian. Sixth period was no exception.
Breton’s eyes were feeling droopy. Very droopy. He could barely keep them open as he rested his head down onto his desk. He was about to drift off into sweet, sweet slumber . . .
“My Day, by Christian Aubry. There! What do you think, Breton? Breton! Breton!” Christian was forcfully shaking Breton to the point where he almost fell out of the chair. “Breton! What do you think of the title of my piece? My Day, by Christian Aubry. Isn’t it studious?”
“Mhm,” Breton agreed tiredly. There were many times when Breton wished he was in fifth period English. This was one of them.
“I was thinking I could start out with the breakfast I had this morning: bacon, with eggs (over-easy), and three ounces of orange juice! A ate it while surveying my vast lawn (which is visible from my dining room window).”
One reason that Breton wished he was in fifth period English was that Rose was there and Christian was not. Even if he didn’t sit beside Rose, at least he wouldn’t be sitting to the right of Christian.
“And then after breakfast, I walked to school. Wait, even better, I’ll say I walked to Field High School! Doesn’t that just sound scholarly?”
A second reason Breton wished he was in fifth period English was that fifth period English had written a compare and contrast paragraph. Breton had the perfect idea for one of those. It could be, The Similarities and Differences Between Christian Aubry and His Puppet Counterpart, by Breton Bauerbecken.
“After arriving at school, the bookish boy (that’s me!) made his way to his first period class, where he used his academic brain to construct an A+ model in first period Science class!”
One similarity between the two entities was their efinity to bother Breton when he very much didn’t want to be bothered. A second similarity was the fact that both creatures were constantly trying to get him to agree with whatever words happened to spill out of their speaking gullets.
“Second and third period went just as well for the intellectual teen, and as he sauntered from class to class, he began to think ahead to Friday, when he would dress as the noblest of birds for the First Ever Annual Field High School Masquerade Ball!”
A third similarity between Christian and his puppet pal was the fact that they only seemed to be around him because he was possibly famous. Neither of them knew that he was actually a time walker, but they both knew that Ashley Sonjan was his aunt.
“At the Friday Masquerade Ball, the learned young man would amaze the beautiful Nashaadh Sonjan and finally free her from the filthy Roosevelt Otterton!”
Really, the only difference between the two was that one was a narcissistic sixteen year old boy, and the other was boastful, sloppily constructed children’s toy.
“What a hero he is, that brainy Christian Aubry!”
Too bad he was in sixth period English.
Weasel Water Lou of the Peace in Carlos - 4
When Esse picked herself up, all was quiet and dark. Not even gunfire could be heard. It was also quite cold. “Luc? Luc?” Esse hissed. Esse felt a furry hand on her arm.
Esse snuggled up to Luc. He was usually warm, but even Luc was cold in the little room. Esse heard rats scurrying around in the dark shadows. A cold dark voice sounded nearby. “Which one of you is skilled in the art of nymph stories?” it asked. Esse let go of Luc as he stood up. “It-it was me. I knew the nymph stories.” he said. “You knew the stories of Queen Frida’s Dogs and Jennifer and Clara?” the voice asked.
“My-my parents helped me on Jennifer and Clara.” Luc stammered. All was quiet. A small chuckle sounded from the voice. “Don’t hurt them!” Luc cried. “And don’t hurt Esse either!”
Esse felt her cheeks turn red with embarrassment, but she was glad that Luc had said that. “I see.” the voice said. “Come here.”
“No.” Luc responded. “You are a stubborn little bear, are you not?” the voice chuckled.
“And what are you?” Esse asked, standing up too.
“Me? I am something you have never heard of, something you may one day wish to have, but will deny wanting right now.” the voice said mysteriously.
“And what is that?” Esse asked, crossing her arms defensively.
“I will tell you later, child. Now, let us see what you want.” the voice said.
“We want a way out of The Peace in Carlos. It is shrinking because for the Carlosians.” Esse told the voice.
“Ah, yes. The Running War, as they call it here.” the voice mused. “And how may I help you with that?”
“Can you answer a question?” Luc asked.
“It depends on the question.” the voice sang out.
“Is this house a gateway out of Carlos and The Peace in Carlos?”
The voice chuckled. “I’m glad you asked.” it said. “Look upon the door.” At once a flickering light lit the wall in front of Esse. A door was set into it the wall. It was made of steel and covered in strange symbols that definitely were not nymph writing.
“This, my children,” said the voice. “is the gateway to another world. To reach it, you must answer this question: What is my name?” And then Esse and Luc were no longer in the room. They were both standing under the window to Johnson & Johnson. The window was placed in it’s socket.
“Wow.” Esse said. It certainly was strange. “Did that even happen?”
“Yes.” Luc said certainly. “It must have. We meet tomorrow?”
“Yes.” Esse agreed. And they went their separate ways.
That night, Esse rushed to the museum. With her family asleep, she could go where she pleased. Esse thought back to when she wished she could enter an adventure. And here she was, in an adventure. She had decided to go back to the invisible house and locate the source of the voice. Esse didn’t know where Luc lived, so she couldn’t ask him to come along. Right?
Outside the Johnson & Johnson recreation, Esse took a running leap at the window. It popped out of the frame, and Esse took another running leap to get a hold of the frame to pull herself through the window. It was much harder without Luc.
Rushing to the little room with Weasel Water Lou’s painting in it, she licked her finger and entered Carlos. Once in Carlos, Esse rushed down the stairs to the room with the voice. Gunfire still sounded through the Carlosian streets even though it was late at night. She put her hand on the door. “Lucjusz Yu Iflandoonia and Quer Ty Iflandoonia.” Esse whispered. The door gave way. She stepped slowly into the dark room.
Maybe the voice wouldn’t notice. “Welcome back, Esse.” the voice said. “I’ve been waiting for you.” But the voice heard her anyway.
“I’m here to decode the door.” Esse said bravely. The light illuminated the door again. Esse knelt in front of the door. She ran her fingers along the symbols as if she could read it like braille. And Esse could. The symbols and their meanings blinked and buzzed inside her head. She murmured the meanings out loud. “Max… Nora… Nils… Su-Li… Ursula… Anica… Liesl.”
“Yes.” the voice murmured. “And who wrote that story?” Esse shuddered. But she knew the answer. She had to answer. “No one wrote the story. It is a true story.” Esse answered.
“And what is the title?” the voice asked, almost in a whisper.
“Queen Gretchen’s Choice.” Esse let out in a breath. And then she was no longer in the small room.
Everything was dark. All around was dark. There was no sky or ground. Esse was in dark, and only dark. She was floating in darkness. Suddenly, a movie seemed to play in front of her. A man and a woman at a wedding. The women was Nora. The man was Max. But there was just one thing. Max was a bear.
The scene changed. Nora and Max were now adopting a child. Two children. Two Earthen children. The African boy was Nils, and the Asian girl was Su-Li. The scene changed. And this time, there was another baby. This was no adoption. This was a real baby, one that Nora had given birth to. But the baby was strange. The baby was half human, and half bear. And then Esse was falling, falling. And everything was dark.
Christian Aubrey
Illustration courtesy of Teepi Guest
Breton Bauerbecken
Illustration courtesy of Teepi Guest
