Monday, October 29, 2007

The zoo!

After feeding time, the animals take a nap.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

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RUN

It's a giant snot shooter!

Then Shall Thy Confidence Wax Strong

I was just thinking about confidence and jerks. I was reading something that talked about how jerks get girls because they have confidence. The only problem i have with that is how when nice guys have confidence we just have a big ego. What the real reason is, i'm not sure...

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Feet

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Trapped!

Friday, October 12, 2007

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Oh noes! A killer truck!

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

The Island of Conclusions

From The Phantom Tollbooth, the Island of conclusions is a place where Milo, the main character, and his compatriots end out.

Why?
"You jumped, of course," explained Canby. "That's the way most everyone gets here. It's really quite simple: every time you decide something without having a good reason, you jump to Conclusions whether you like it or not. It's such an easy trip to make that I've been here hundreds of times."


I've noticed that most people I talk to are frequent inhabitants of the Island of Conclusions. More often than not I see people jump to Conclusions when they interact with me. I'm not sure what that says for my personal character. Probably nothing flattering.

Perhaps I should start charging for the privilege, advertising "See the amazing Island of Conclusions today! Jump there with The Amazing W! For the low, low price of $5 one way!*"

I think I could make loads of money. At least if prior experience is any indication.

I find it interesting, though. Certain people may believe that I myself often jump to conclusions. While I have, on occasion, jumped to conclusion (for instance, I thought it was someone else who gave me horrible advice, when in reality it was someone that I thought wouldn't have given advice like that. Sadly I joined the throngs at the Isle of Conclusions.), as a whole, I tend to stay away. I suppose the most common reason I have for visiting Conclusions is that I do tend to make certain generalizations about girls. To be fair it must also be stated that I have had no evidence to make me reconsider my opinions, and when I do, I take a step back and see if I can reconcile or if I have to take a new stance.

But please... try to stay off the Island of Conclusions. And read The Phantom Tollbooth

"*Non-refundable. Does not guarantee return trip"

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Poultry in Motion

Alone
Watching the dust
Float across the sky.
Thinking
Just thinking
About life and things.
People
in my life
coming in and going out.
Sadness
for it all
coming in and going out.
Unstable
Chaotic
the life of one who loves.
---
By me... Just now.

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Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Anonymous

So... I've been getting some rather... sad comments by Anonymous. So I now set forth a royal decree - that whosoever shall leave a comment under "anonymous", with no identifying remarks... actually, there's the option to put in any name - random, specific, it doesn't matter. But I can't get just that option. So if you don't come up with SOME name...

I will either reject your message, or make fun of you, depending on what you post.

You have been warned! Take the two seconds to actually write something in the name bit.

Hugs & kisses.

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Monday, October 08, 2007

Saje, part III

"What do I think about what?", Saje asked. She was feeling a little more confident. He doesn't seem to mean us any harm, she thought, But he does seem a little... crazy.

William exploded into laughter, falling out of the chair he was sitting in. "Ohoho!" He hooted, "You're quite right you know!" Ah yes he can read my thoughts! Saje remembered. "Yes, my dear, and when you're thinking of me I don't even have to pry... you tend to shout out your thoughts." Wiping away his tears he stood, dusting himself off. Still grinning, he continued, "I apologize... you two must be hungry. Feel free to dig in!"

"Now, I believe I haven't properly introduced myself. Well, properly in my sort of way. Though they call me William here in Ralenby, but that's not the name I prefer... my personal belief is that Shadow suits me." As he finished talking, he stepped back towards the wall. There was just the barest shadow there, but he seemed to completely vanish. Stepping back out he bowed. "Oh, no applause necessary!"

"Now, I know who you are, though you might not yet... but what is your name?" he asked Saje.

"Who I am? My name?" Saje was more than just a little confused. "Well... my name is Saje". She really didn't know what to do, and all of the sudden felt rather self conscious. Saje was dressed in some dirty rags - whatever scraps she could find in the trash, fashioned into a sort of loose tunic and breeches. That made it easier for her to pretend she was a male - they got bothered less. That's one thing this Curse... did he , call it Talent? is good for... Saje had found out that she could take the small scraps of fabric, put the edges together, and then do what she had done with the chair in her childhood. The threads would then weave into each other, making a piece of fabric with no seam.

"Saje," he rolled her name, testing it as one might test a fine wine. For some reason, that made her blush furiously, and she hid behind her bangs. Nodding, as if in approval, he sat down again. "Please, be seated."

The young boy who had been silent the whole time climbed up on a chair and yelled, "Food!" Then he began eating in earnest. Saje sat down, still blushing, and timidly reached for a piece of bread, which she began to nibble on.

Shadow stroked his chin and simply watched her, as he thoughtfully chewed on a piece of bread dipped in gravy. "Pin," he said. The child and Saje both stopped eating and looked at him. "What pin?" Saje asked. Dramatically extending a finger, he pointed at the child. In a deep voice he intoned, "Henceforth shall thy name be Pin, for thou art skinny as a pin! Eat child!"

With that he burst into laughter, and before long they were all laughing, it was so infectious.

After calming down, they ate in silence for some time. With a sigh, Shadow lifted himself from the table. "I have rooms for the both of you upstairs. Saje, yours is the first one on the right, Pin, yours is the first on the left." At the hallway he paused. "Any questions?"

"Yeah!" piped up Pin, "Waz my left?"

With a laugh, Shadow said, "I'm sure Saje can tell you... when you go up to bed, take the lamp from the table. Goodnight!" And with that, he disappeared into the shadows of the hall.

Saje turned to Pin, "Well, how does Pin suit you? Mr. Shadow didn't seem to care what you thought of it?"

Pin shrugged and took another bite of turkey. "Seemz ta fit me well 'nuf. En he did ask."

"Oh really? I didn't hear him."
"Course not, hezonly spoke in my head," he replied with a look as if Saje were the child.

"Oh," She said simply. Pin was still eating like it was his last meal. It may be his first meal, she thought to herself. She wasn't terribly hungry, but she was extremely curious. Standing up she stretched and began to look closer at her surroundings. Most buildings in Central had no windows, and if they did they were little more than holes in the wall. This room was one of the former. With a start she realized that she couldn't hear any noise from the square. Moving towards the front of the room she put her ear against the wall. Nothing! That was rather odd.

Looking around the room some more she realized that she couldn't see the door they came in. Well, he did say it was a secret door... but still! She looked around where she remembered coming in, but nothing. That's frustrating.

It was then that Pin yawned. Turning around she noticed his head was hanging low and his eyes were shut. Smiling softly she lifted him over her shoulder and grabbed the lamp. "I never took nofin!" Pin mumbled, "He gave all that food to me!"

Rubbing his back, Saje softly said, "Oh, of course... sleep well, little Pin."

It was unfamiliar being inside, and the lamplight sent shadows flickering in odd shapes against the wall. Making it to the next room, she saw a rough-hewn door to her right, barred tightly. That must lead outside. To the left was a staircase, and the rest of the room had plain walls, with nothing to see, so she began climbing the stairs. At the top of the stairs, she found Pin's room, and opened the door.

The sight was amazing to her. It was a room almost as large as her entire home had been. At the side of the room was a large bed with several soft blankets and real sheets. She lay Pin down under the covers and quietly left the room, leaving his door cracked. Stepping back outside she looked down the hall. There were four more doors on each side, and a door at the end of the hall. Saje was torn between exploring more and going to bed. Well, it should still be here tomorrow, She thought to herself, and opened the door to her room.

To Saje, it was like a dream. The room was larger than any room she had ever been in, possibly twice the size of the room Pin was in. There was a basin on a table with a pitcher of water, and an amazingly large bed. She was afraid to touch it, that if she did, she would wake up in a garbage pile and find out this was all a dream. There was a metal disc on her bed, about the thickness of her finger and about the size of her hand. Reaching out, she touched it, and she had the sensation of something metal roll up her arm to the back of her neck. It's quite alright, came Shadow's voice in her mind. It's called a thought-recorder. One can leave a thought recording in it that will play upon touch. You will be able to touch it again without the thought playing, but if you'd like to hear this again, simply think my name. I hope the room suits you, and Pin is comfortable as well. I doubt if you've ever had a bath, but if you'd like to try one out, just open the door there across from your bed, and you'll find another thought-recorder.

Saje thought the idea of a bath sounded interesting, so she opened the door and went in. This room was almost half the size of the bedroom. The room was covered with tile, and soft lamps gave off a dim glow. On one side was a large round basin filled with water. On the edge there were two knobs, and another thought recorder. On the other side of the room was a counter the full length of the room with several large fluffy towels, and a few pieces of fabric. There was also a large surface on the wall that Saje recognized as a mirror. Her eyes widened in fascination. One that large must have cost a fortune. Again she wondered what this dream was, and hoped she wouldn't ever wake up.

Touching the thought recorder, it gave her directions on how to use the bath. Take off your clothes, and climb in. Lift up on the red knob and it gets hotter. Lift up on the blue knob and it gets colder. Use the washcloth to scrub the dirt off. What a strange concept. Saje thought. She had never worried about the dirt before, after all, she slept in the garbage piles. Oh well! It's something new to try I suppose.

And with that she disrobed and climbed in.

---

And that's where we must end for now! Perhaps more sometime later this week...

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Well...

I was originally going to go back and re-write the last part... but I think I'm going to just write a new addition. Right now I'll tell you a little about what I have going on right now.

First, today I had a group meeting with my academic adviser for registration for the spring semester. Woo. So hopefully I get the classes I want in a type of order I want.

I went to the Computer Science Club movie night a few days ago, that was pretty fun.

General Conference for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was this past weekend and that was awesome. The talks in audio/video are available here. They may also be available in textual format somewhere on the site.

I have a math test tomorrow, plus math homework due, all stuff that I'll be working on tonight. I also need to do some biology study and write some for writing! w00000hoooo! lol.

Well... anyway, stuff to do, things to see, places to go.

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Friday, October 05, 2007

Part Two!

I've done some small edits and revisions to part one - feel free to go back and look.

Now to our present story!

---

So this is it, Sage thought calmly. I'm going to die here. Like so many others I've seen. I'll be trampled and then food for the rats in some alleyway.

Reaching out the man gripped her angrily. "Out of the way, wench!" He yelled at her, throwing her to the ground.

It was then that Saje saw him. A young boy, no older than seven. He was gaunt from hunger, and the dirty rags he wore hung off his malnourished frame. She could see his ribs through the holes in his rags. And she could see the shock on his face as the crowd gathered round. "Beat him!" someone shouted. "Break his scrawny neck!" another voice called.

Oh no, Saje cried in her mind. With all she had been through, she still had compassion on children. They reminded her of Alainaa. Tears burned in her eyes, I wish there was something I could do! More than anything else, she wished that little boy could be safe, that she could somehow protect him. But she knew that if she did anything, they would kill her, too.

The crowd was closing in, calling bloodthirsty threats to the child who began to cry. And then it was all clear to her. Standing up she yelled, "Get BACK!", her voice booming over the square. Her green eyes turning black, she stepped towards the boy. "This one tried to curse me!" Glaring at the crowd, she called out, "He's MINE!" Wheeling on the boy, she grabbed his arm. Show time!, she thought. "I'll show you, Cursed boy!" Saje yelled. Closing in on him, her face softened so no one could see but the boy. "Trust me, I'm a friend. Pretend I'm hurting you. Scream out if you understand me." As she pretended to twist his arm, the young boy screamed in pain. Turning her back to the crowd, she pasted a sick grin twisted across her face.

"What should I do with this little Curse?" She called. "Break his legs! Break his arms! Smash his face!" the crowds suggestions mingled. "How about I break his little arms?" She yelled back. As she did, she twisted his arms. I hope this works, she thought. She felt power rush into his arms as she twisted. With two loud cracks that echoed across the square, his arms fell awkwardly to his sides. Then the boy screamed painfully, but she could feel that he was totally calm. As he fell to the ground, the crowd cheered viciously.

With relief, she hoped this would all work. Picking the boy up by his hair, she strengthened the roots of his hair so it wouldn't hurt. Again he shrieked in false pain. This kid is good, Saje thought to herself.

"How about I break his scrawny little neck?" She yelled out, her face twisted grotesquely, eyes glowing red in the lamplight. The crowd replied as one, "BREAK IT!"

The boy screamed, and as she turned around, she lifted him off the ground by his head. Saje quickly and softly said, "Sleep!" as she pushed power into his neck, softening the bones. With another loud CRACK!, she quickly twisted his head. She dropped his limp, broken looking body to the ground. The crowd let loose an evil cheer. Shaking her head in mock disappointment she called out, "Huh! He wasn't even worth the effort! Let's go get drunk!"

The crowd let loose a cheer as she kicked the body into an alley. She walked with the crowd, ignoring the pats on her back as she walked to the other side of the square. Quickly slipping into an alley, she hid in the shadows and broke down sobbing. After an hour, Saje finally calmed down, and began making her way through the back alleys around the square.

Seeing the small, crumpled body in those dirty rags, Saje began to sob again. Grabbing his arms she felt the bones knit and strengthen beneath her hands. After she did the neck, she whispered, "Wake!"

She had no idea where those ideas had come from. But as the young boy opened his eyes and looked up at her, she hugged him against her chest, and sobbed some more. The boy began to squirm restlessly, and she let him up. Standing there in front of her, she noticed he had blond hair that was extremely dirty. His bright blue eyes looked back into her emerald green. What's your name and where are you from? Saje wondered to herself.

Saje nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a voice whisper in her ear, "I don't think he can really hear you. After all, he's not gifted like you..."

Turning swiftly around, Saje saw a man standing an arms length away. The first thing she noticed was his clothes. They weren't the dirt rags most of the Central wore. They weren't even the more drab attire worn by the Centrals that the Outsiders hired.

He wore finery that she had never seen before. Outsiders would never come this far to the inside without an escort! Fearfully she looked around for anyone else and saw he was alone. Cowering in fear, Saje held the young boy protectively, and asked with more bravery than she felt, "What do you want?"

The man smiled at her. She wasn't sure how he felt about that. Most of his features were hidden in the shadow that fell across him, but his teeth seemed to shine in the darkness. "You're a brave girl... what I want isn't particularly important at the moment. I am, however, curious as to what you want."

The entire time he was speaking, Saje was trying to think of a way to escape. If she ran out into the square, he could simply tell everyone she was Cursed. And if that wasn't enough, she had the boy who was supposedly dead... And this stranger was blocking the end of the alley. Perhaps she could push past him... but with this child? It was too risky. Saje suddenly noticed that it seemed to be getting brighter. It couldn't be morning already, could it? Quickly she glanced out to the square... it looked just as dark as ever. But turning back to the stranger, she noticed that she could begin to make out his features. He had an unruly tangle of hair that sat on top of his head, much like some sort of wild creature. Beneath his tangled curls he had eyes like a pair of ice blue eyes that seemed to pierce through her. She noticed they held a rather bemused look, with the corners of his eyes and lips twitching like he had some amusing secret. He was an average build, and seemed to be a little over a head taller than Saje.

Still leaning against the side of the building, like he hadn't a care in the world, the stranger asked, "There's nothing you want?"

Shaken from her reverie, Saje realized she had never thought about what she wanted... she only worried about staying alive. And helping the few people she could... like this child who had been strangely quiet the whole time.

"He's quit an interesting fellow. He doesn't know his name, or where he's from. He's been wandering around the streets for as long as he can remember." Saje stared at him. "And he's quite fine, he's usually quiet so most people won't notice him." Softly, the stranger finished, "You certainly were theatrical out there." He softly clapped his hands in applause.

"Who are you?" She finally managed to blurt out. Letting out a belly laugh, the strange man replied, "I was wondering when you'd ask that! That thought has been buzzing around in your head the whole time I've been here... all in due time, and really you have nothing to fear from me."

Is he reading my thoughts? Saje wondered. She started as she heard his voice inside her mind. It's a lot more like hearing your thoughts than reading them. It does take some effort and skill, as does speaking into someones thoughts. But all in due time.

"It's actually a lot easier to talk out loud. I'm sure you and the child are both hungry after the performances you put on out there. Oh, and forgive my not introducing myself earlier," Bowing theatrically, he offered a black silk gloved hand, "I'm know Ralenby as William Ringwall, the Third. Hmmm odd that there's no First or Second. Ah it seems I'm becoming quite scatterbrained in my old age." William tapped the wall he was leaning on, and it a hidden door swung open, darkness inside. "Please, follow me!" And he stepped into the darkness.

The child looked expectantly up at Saje and began squirming out of her grip. Sucking on his thumb, he smiled at her and took her hand, pulling in the direction of the door. I give you my word as a gentleman, it's quite safe in here. You may find it rather interesting!

Saje still wasn't sure if she trusted this strange character, but the little child seemed keen to go inside... and at that moment she smelled the savory scent of hot meat, bread, and stew wafting from the doorway, and her stomach growled. The boy looked up at her, eyes wide, and then giggled. Sighing, Saje let him pull her through the doorway. Closing her eyes she realized what a long day it had been. This strange fellow who was apparently well off, taking an interest in them, her rescue of this child...

As they stepped inside, the door slid shut, closing with a soft click. Then a dim light began to grow in the room. "You know, you probably should give him a name. I assume you're planning on taking care of him, as he has no family. At least none that he remembers."

"I... uh... wait, what?"
Adopting a high accent, he replied, "Well darling, you did rescue him. And he has nothing else for him here. Besides, you can't just leave him here when we leave Ralenby."
"Wait, WHAT?!" Saje almost shouted.

Smiling sweetly, William said, "Well, you are quite talented and have tremendous potential... but here in Ralenby? Bah!" He muttered darkly, his eyes flashing like the sun off hard flecks of ice.

As William dropped into a chair at the table, Saje took the time to study the room. It was a dingy sort of room. She guessed it was about twenty paces by thirty. The only furnishings were a table that looked like it was about to fall apart, with three chairs, and a table by the wall. The shocking thing was the amount of food piled on the table. Tearing her eyes away, she looked around the room. It looked like much of the other buildings around Central. It was a lot nicer that what she remembered of home... and suddenly tears came to her eyes. This was the first time she had been inside a building for nine years. She had spent those years outside in the elements, huddling up to building, sleeping wherever she could find.

"Well?" he asked sharply, "What do you think?"

---

More later!

And Now, a Word from Our Sponsors

Okay I don't have any sponsors. Just me. I'm going to at least get a new chapter or bit written soon... sometime later today, perhaps.

Things have been OK, but I've been way busy. Or procrastinating. One of the two... I really really really can't wait until next semester. Except for calculus. I can wait for that class. BLERGH! Not looking forward to calculus at all.

I have a test in biology today. I feel fairly prepared for it. 60 questions, the average will be taken with 50 questions.

Anyhoo... I'll ttyl,
W

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Thursday, October 04, 2007

Wow...

I don't know who it was who wrote this:

Anonymous said...

I don't like it that much. couldn't read it without falling asleep. I don't like you the way you want. I am bitterly your FRIEND. I love my boyfriend and hold no feelings for you. Move on. I would appreciate it if you would accept my friendship because that's all I will ever offer to you.


But I have a request for you, even though it's not something you "offer[ed]" me.

Don't tell me who you are, because honestly I don't want to know.

First: Thanks a lot for the critique, .

If you're not going to say anything constructive, you can go die in a hole, please. For instance, a better way to have worded that (You know, one that doesn't make you look like a complete a-hole), would be to say something like this:

Well, I guess I don't like your writing style. You were too wordy and talked too much about the city when really I didn't need all that description. You should trim that down some.


Then I wouldn't feel that you're a total jerk. At least about that.

Then,
I am bitterly your FRIEND.


Gee, I'm oh so grateful that you can be my friend even though you're bitter. You know what? You obviously have grand delusions about what a friend is.

Especially since, as a "FRIEND" you "hold no feelings for [me]."

I hold a boat load of feelings for every one of my friends. I don't consider them friends unless I do.

Now, you might wonder "Why are you being so mean, W-san?"...

I'll give you a hint. This is NOT your house, I did NOT come to YOUR space.

This is MY house, this is MY space, and you should show some courtesy to people when you're in their house. I certainly won't come to your space and tell you that you bore me to sleep, and oh by the way, I'm so much better than you, but you can still "accept my friendship because that's all I will ever offer to you."

Boy I'm SOOOOO glad I can have your friendship

Oops. Typo. I meant to say that if I had any friends like you (and heaven forbid if I had a GIRLFRIEND like you), I would probably have to stab myself in the eyes and drown myself in a vat of acid.

Please don't ever come here again. If you do, please don't tell me it was you. I'd hate to think that anyone I know well enough that they'd post here would be such a stupid jerk. I really hope you weren't anyone I know.

Also, next time you're snogging your boyfriend, I hope you get mono, gonorrhea, and syphilis all at once.

Hmmm... it would appear I hold many "feelings for you". Oh wait, I've let them go now.

In summation, I really only have two words to say to you.

Screw you.

p.s. I hope your boyfriend realizes what a jerk you are and dumps you, I'm sorry that anyone would have to suffer through a relationship with someone who acts like you.

P.s. If you didn't write that quote, please do not believe this is about you. There is one person specifically which is why I copied their comment. The rest of you, the friends who do hold feelings for me... Please don't worry and also I would prefer if you ignored this post if you can. I need to do math but I also want to write more of my story

p.p.s. To YOU, you jerk-head, please don't read any of my writings. Ever again. Also I hope your computer shoots deadly laser beams into your eyes as you read this. Jerk.

p.p.p.s. Perhaps someone has noticed the possible hypocritical nature of this post - writing offensively on how someone else has been offensive. That may be true, but if you notice - I did not seek whoever the heck this is out. I did not call them up, or throw a brick through their window. I simply posted HERE, in MY house, for my benefit, really. I simply needed to vent, that's all.

p.p.p.p.s. If YOU are still reading, that still doesn't mean I want to be your friend. Seriously, whoever you are, you obviously don't know me, want to know me, or care at all. Or maybe you were just severely careless with your words. I was fairly careful and calculating. I could always go back and re-edit... but I don't really feel like that. But I hope my words cut very specific places, and I hope you learn from this lesson.

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Monday, October 01, 2007

More Story

So... I want to write a book/story/whatever.

So I'm going to post random bits & pieces of story and writing and things here for those of you who deign to read it.

And we begin...

----

A pair of dark green eyes peered out of the narrow alleyway. They belonged to a figure crouched in the shadows. As dusk fell over the town, the alley was a safe place to hide. Mud and garbage from the street oozed into the alley, clogging it with the stench of rotting vegetables, horse dung, and a thousand other offensive smells. It didn't matter to the form huddled there behind a pile of broken barrels.

The town of Ralenby sprawled out like a small spot of cancer on the green countryside. At first sight, the casual observer would think there had been little or no planning to the layout of the town. Those few who actually visited knew there had been no planning. Ralenby had no central government, the only semblance was the well to-do families on the outskirts of town. They owned the land on the outskirts Ralenby and had enough money and land to hire guards to keep the rabble towards the center of town. That's where the filth and scum lived and played, as well as those who were unlucky enough to be born there. When the lower class began to swell outwards, like a dead spot in a rotting flesh, the outside of town would grow to get away from them. The effect was not unlike a ring, growing larger with every passing year, as families tried to move outward away from the ever growing population from the center.

The young female crouched in the alley was a Central. At least that's what the Outers called those unlucky souls from the inside of town. She had been born the youngest of six children in a poor family near the center of Ralenby. Her father worked at a tavern there, and would often come home raging drunk.

Her mother was a rather unattractive, partially overweight wench who sold her body during the day. In the center of Ralenby you could find escapes however you took them. The drugs her mother took to keep her "clients" from seeding her had the side effect of making her extra fertile after they wore off when she came home. That created the unpleasantly large family she was born into. Her parents were rarely home, which turned out to be a good thing for Saje. Born with Talent, she began displaying signs when she was three years old. The bed she shared with the three other girls broke one day, and fearing their father's wrath, the older girls began to cry. Saje calmly touched the bed, and the broken wood reached out and began to twine itself back together. Her sisters wouldn't look at her for a week and she didn't know why.

Saje was five years old when her parents found out she had Talent. Her mother had come home and tripped over a small shoe that one of her sisters left in the doorway. Landing on a chair, her mother broke one of the legs. Raising in a fury she started for Saje's sister. Again, Saje calmly walked over and touched the chair.

When the chair repaired itself like the bed had, her mother yelled at the other girls, "GO TO YOUR ROOM NOW!" Wheeling on Saje, her mother grabbing her by the hair, and pulled Saje face to face. Tears stung Saje's eyes as her mother's sour breath burned Saje's nose, "You think that's a pretty trick, don't you?" Her mother hissed, "Well I won't have any Curse in my house! Get out of here and NEVER COME BACK, CURSED WENCH!" As her mother finished her tirade, Saje felt herself flung across the narrow street, landing in a crumpled heap. With tears pouring from her eyes, Saje pulled herself up to her knees. Through her tears she didn't see her mother fling the chair. It hit her in the forehead, knocking Saje to the dusty street. Crying out in pain, she tried rolled over and tried to lift herself up. Saje collapsed to her side in pain, her left eye swollen with a cut above her eyebrow pouring blood down the side of her face. In a mixture of sadness and pain, Saje looked at the only home she had known. The small face of her sister disappear behind the dirty rag that served as a curtain. Hearing the wails of her sister, and with the loud smack of wood on flesh, Saje passed out.

Waking with a start, Saje realized she had that nightmare again. It happened to her every now and then. She would doze off, only to be awakened by the sound of Alainaa's screams. Absentmindedly touching the scar above her left eye, Saje thought back to those times. She had heard of the Curse before, as her sisters took her to one of the market. Those who had it were beaten or spit upon, or more often, both. She didn't know what it was or why, but she knew there would be no mercy for her if people knew. So that horrible night so long ago, she pulled herself into an alley and curled up behind a pile of garbage and fell asleep. She didn't even startle the rats that were feeding there. It became a pattern for her life, those past nine years. She would hide in an ally for a few days, venturing out only for a few hours at night, when it was busy enough that she could hide among the crowds. Sometimes she was able to steal a bite of good food to eat, or some scraps of food that someone dropped. But more often than not she didn't have anything to eat.

Stretching out she looked down at herself, Then why am I not skinny at all? She wondered as she did most every day. With a rare bite to eat, I should be wasting away... still I suppose I'm alive. I guess that counts for something. Looking around she noticed that the lamps were out and people had congregated on the streets.

The crowds were so much thicker at night. Crouching in the shadows by the mouth of the alley, she watched the crowds. She had learned little more about this Curse in the last nine years. She had learned if you showed you had this Curse, it might get you killed. She had seen at least three people killed in the last month, and at least twice more beaten to a pulp. The one thing she did know about this curse, whatever it was - she was able to heal broken bones and some cuts. Whenever she saw someone beaten, as soon as they were left alone she would drag them into an alley, if they were alive. Then she would press her hands to their bones or flesh and the would would weave itself back together.

Snapping back to the present, Saje saw her opening and quickly slipped out of the alley into the crowd of people. Mingling with the crowd, she paused to look around. The sun had set and the darkness in the square was pierced by the shifting lamplights. She marveled at the variety of people, there were folks dressed in rags begging on street corners, folks juggling or performing tricks for small coin. There were folks selling their bodies, men, women, and children alike. Saje never looked too close at those people...

"Hey it's a Cursed!" Someone shouted. Tensing, Saje turned. It seemed as though the entire crowd had stopped, and turned to look at her. It was a sea of eyes, shining red, reflecting the lamp light. How did they know? The thought raced through her mind. She hadn't done anything!

Someone in the front of the crowd stepped towards her, his red, glowing eyes set in a chiseled mask of anger.

---

To be continued!

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General Feeling of Goodness...

That's what's goin on with me today. I just have this general feeling of goodness. Like things are working out how they should!

I don't know if that's truly the case, but it feels that way and that's good enough for me for now.

I hope everyone else is doing as well.

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