The Spirit in the Hippo

[white_unicorn]

Όνομα Συγγραφέα: Αθηνα Βασιλική Βιδινιώτη

Είδος: Urban Fantasy

Βία; Όχι

Σεξ; Όχι

Αριθμός Λέξεων: 1997 - 2000 (Δεν είμαι απόλυτα σίγουρη)

Αυτοτελής; Ναι

Σχόλια: Ελπίζω να δω κανένα σχόλιο....

 

 

The Spirit in the Hippo

 

The night was warm as Natalie left the office, it was early June and the temperatures were mostly at 23 degrees Celcius. She was carrying her nephew's new toy. Since she'd missed Tommy's 3rd birthday she had promised to get him what he wanted, a stuffed hippo he called Albert. Her boss had chosen that day to call a meeting about a new building. Now she had to get him his present, and she was running late; If only she was lucky... 'Lucky, me?' she thought hearing a snarl behind her. She wanted to turn and face the 'stray' she supposed was tailing her but she made that inner voice quiet. "If you don't show fear, they leave you alone" she repeated to herself as a 'mantra' to not submit to that primal fear.

But fear, like any other emotion, has a scent; and the werewolf that was following her knew what this scent betrayed

 

John, the werewolf in question, was far from new, but some habits die hard, if ever; hunting was so much more than a habit... He was taking his time, assesing his prey, ready to jump her... and her scent changed. She wasn't afraid anymore and that stopped him. Something else was masking the fear and he was reluctant to identify it. He tried again to understand, but he couldn't make out what she was feeling. "Now that is weird!" he tought, trailing her.

 

 

"We need to discuss the new renovation project." her boss ws saying, he had the perfect timing. She was all of 5 minutes to Susie's house when her cell phone started vibrating, she pressed the button on her hands-free and waited for him to stop speaking; when he finally did she was just too tired to put up a fight over the phone. "I'll be there in fifteen minutes." she said. Tommy would have to wait. Ending the call she started to turn and something hit her, hard enough to pass out.

 

 

John didn't have time to react, she was standing there, her scent so mouth – watering it was making him remember the time when he was a kid. His mother used to bake dark chocolate cookies, while his old man made a living for them out of selling iron ore. Now here he was, almost 20 years later with what was going to be his prey... and he couldn't do it. She turned abruptly and he was facing a dillema, hide or attack? As it usually happened, his instincts won.

 

 

Natalie woke, her body was sore. She was in a strange room, on an unknown – four poster – bed and beside her was the stuffed hippo. "At least I still have Tommy's present..." she thought, only to turn and find herself staring a man in the eyes.

The shock stopped her from screaming, as his soothing voice helped her think.

"Sorry to wake you like that," he was saying, apologetically but what she wanted was to close her eyes and return to her reality, before that damn call.

"I wasn't sure if you were hurt so I brought you here..." his voice was soft, not the voice she expected from this giant of a man; she just stared at him, not sure if she would be heard for her suddenly dry mouth.

 

"Can I have some water please?" she managed, as she was sitting up. He left for a few seconds, to return holding a wine glass; she held it gingerly.

He smiled, "It's just flavoured water, my nieces love this stuff." She drank, it had an interesting undertaste of watermelon.

"It's good." she said and tried to get up; being in a strange bed – even fully clothed – with an unknown man, should have been disturbing. 'Should?'

He had moved, she hadn't seen him move, one minute he was in front of her, the next he was next to the window, looking outside. Something inside her started to protest the distance, and she couldn't understand it.

 

"Well, I am okay now... Um, I guess I'll leave now."she said and he turned. His eyes were different, a colour she had seen in Discovery's documentaries, they were yellow, a wolf's eyes. Her breath caught in her throat and for the life of her she couldn't think.

 

 

He was afraid of this small, vulnerable woman who had done nothing to him, nothing except for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But he knew, as soon as he rendered her unconcious; he was sure she had something that could be the doom or the salvation of his kind, of the ancient race of werewolves.

But did she know? Did she understand that? When she woke she was afraid, and still the musk of her curiosity was overpowering her fear. 'She must be new' he thought, as only the new wolves would unconciously rely so much on the animal's instincts. She was either too brave or too ignorant.

 

 

He found himself staring at her, eyes a soft green, lips red as cherries; and his wolf liked her, maybe too much... Fighting his inner demon and trying to understand how much she knew, he found himself looking at the empty sky. He could hear her getting up, talking, but couldn't understand what she was saying until a word came to his ears; "Leave" and he knew he had to stop her, no matter what it would cost him; she was far too dangerous to be allowed to leave.

"You cannot leave." he said, and Natalie felt her knees weakening.

 

He didn't sound threatening but there was nothing warm in his voice. "Why?" she demanded and he sighed.

"You don't know, do you?" She couldn't understand what he was saying.

"Know what?" she almost whispered.

"Sit down, I'll explain."

She had to move Albert to sit down; funny how the stuffed toy had become so important that her mind considered it alive, as if it was a person. She almost smiled at the thought but the figure of the man stopped her. She sat next to the toy, and a small voice said, "I am alive!"

For a second she thought the man, if he was a man, had talked. But it couldn't have been him, he was as surprised as she. Then what? She looked at the stuffed Hippo beside her and for the second time that night everything went black.

 

 

John didn't know how to react, he had operated on the basis that the woman was the key, now he saw that he was mistaken. She had nothing to with the ancient Spirit that was taking residence in Albert the Hippo... Or had she? The Spirit decided where it would go and it rarely had no ulterior motives on why It chose an object. He needed answers that the woman couldn't answer. He looked at the toy that actually held the Spirit of the Wolf. The very presence of one of the very first werewolves, it held enough power to make the Mage's Council search for it in the hopes of winning their war with the Vampires. The ignorant fools though didn't realise that Spirits have their own wills and motives.

"Well," the small voice that belonged to the Hippo started again, "I believe you won't faint. So, who am I talking to, if I may ask?" And so John found himself talking to a toy, asking and answering questions that only perplexed him more. He was still talking when she came around for the second time.

 

 

"What?" exclaimed Natalie as she found herself talking to the most improbable combination of mythical creatures, a werewolf, and Albert the stuffed Hippo that actually was an ancient Spirit of some kind. Not that she really cared what they were, she just wanted to return... Return where? Back to her empty, mundane life? "No!" she said to herself, "Chance or fate brought me here..." Though she had no idea what she could do from here on.

 

 

John explained what the Spirit in Albert – could, and would do if it was found by the wrong people. Too many innocents would die - as usually happened – for some fool's ambition.

 

"So, what do we do?" she asked after they were quiet for a few minutes.

John looked at her. His face showed nothing yet his voice revealed that he was shocked

"'We' do nothing! 'I' will take him to my pack. He will be safe there." She looked at him and actually had a fiesty answer ready when Albert spoke, his voice no more the sweet murmur he'd used.

 

He sounded big and scary. "Hold on wolf! I say where I will go and where I will be safer. The Council's fools will never search a little boy's room. In fact that was where I was planning to go before you chose your..." he trailed off, confronting John as he was still staring at him.

Natalie was looking at Albert, waiting for the rest of what he was saying, though apparently he wouldn't explain.

"Before he chose what?" she asked, and John tensed.

In the last few hours he'd found himself questioning his instincts too many times, his wolf wouldn't allow him to hurt her, 'Prey' was the last word he would use for her, and Albert was blackmailing him.

 

"Crap!" he said with a feeling that indicated he would use another word if he could, "So he was a gift for a boy?"

At the realisation, he felt his heart sinking in a most unexpected way.

"Yes," she said, her eyes never leaving his, "He was my gift to my 3 years old nephew!" Her words were angry but her body language was betraying her feelings, she enjoyed being part of something extraordinary, something dangerous and his wolf was protesting, she had to stay out of it, no matter what he had to do, she would be protected.

"Your nephew?" he asked slowly, and she smiled.

"I have a nephew, as you have your nieces... Do you really have nieces?"

He laughed despite himself, "I do! They just turned three years old."

 

 

Something inside her loosened.

"So, it's arranged then!" Albert sighed in his usual murmur, "I suggest we all rest a bit, it's almost midnight and our fair lady needs to explain quite a few things to her boss tommorow if she still wants to keep her job. And Id rather not stay in that office again! Tommy will enjoy my company at school!

 

Natalie smiled, "I guess you are right!" she said and John took the Hippo with him to the couch. She had the bed to herself but couldn't sleep. The bed was too big, and even though she was used to sleeping alone, the proximity of this man made her yearn for his company.

She wouldn't do that with just any man, she told herself. But he... John.... He felt right somehow. "John?" she whispered and he came closer.

"I thought you were sleeping!" he said and she smiled.

"You know, I should have realised what you were..." she said and he just looked at her, she wasn't sure if he knew so she had to show him.This was the time.

 

 

Even though she was scared of what she would become, or maybe because of it, she called to her beast. For the first time since last year's attack, when she became this monster, she showed what she was to another being. A feeling of peace flowed in her as she finally accepted the animal she had shared her mind with for a year.

She didn't ask him to, he understood, he changed to his other form and took his place beside her.

 

Tommorow they would try to save Albert and the world. For tonight though, being so close that their furs were mingling was enough.

A soft sigh was heard, "Finally!" Albert was free.

His mission here was accomplished.

[manstredin]

Ομολογώ πως μου άρεσε πολύ η ιδέα του πνεύματος στον ιπποπόταμο, στην ουσία ήταν αυτό που με κράτησε στην ιστορία γιατί μου φάνηκε αρκετά διασκεδαστικό. Σε γενικές γραμμές η ιστορία ήταν απλή κι ευχάριστη, αλλά με προβλημάτισαν κάπως τα αγγλικά. Αλήθεια, γιατί αγγλικά; Φαίνεται ότι την κατέχεις την γλώσσα, αλλά πιστεύω πως σε μερικά σημεία, οι χαρακτήρες κι οι διάλογοι χωλαίνουν, κι η εντύπωσή μου ήταν πως έφταιγε και η επιλογή της γλώσσας γι' αυτό. Νομίζω ήθελε άλλο ένα χτένισμα, για να δέσει καλύτερα, κι ήταν ένα "κλικ" απ' το να με ταξιδέψει. ;)

[white_unicorn]

Σε γενικές γραμμές η ιστορία ήταν απλή κι ευχάριστη, αλλά με προβλημάτισαν κάπως τα αγγλικά. Αλήθεια, γιατί αγγλικά; Φαίνεται ότι την κατέχεις την γλώσσα, αλλά πιστεύω πως σε μερικά σημεία, οι χαρακτήρες κι οι διάλογοι χωλαίνουν, κι η εντύπωσή μου ήταν πως έφταιγε και η επιλογή της γλώσσας γι' αυτό. Νομίζω ήθελε άλλο ένα χτένισμα, για να δέσει καλύτερα, κι ήταν ένα "κλικ" απ' το να με ταξιδέψει. ;)

 

Το θέμα του διαγωνισμού για τον οποίο γράφτηκε ήταν ο ιπποπόταμος, και εφόσον ο διαγωνισμός έγινε σε ξένο φόρουμ... τα αγγλικά ήταν αναγκαία.

Η αλήθεια είναι οτί θέλω να ξανα-ασχοληθώ με το θέμα της αλλά για την ώρα έχω άλλο project να τελειώσω.

Σ' ευχαριστώ για τον χρόνο και τον κόπο σου να το διαβάσεις και να σχολιάσεις.