With an elegant gesture, the platypus raised the glass to his beak and allowed its content of white wine to run down his throat.
The others followed his example, though the doctor, Merees and Risha were the only ones who drank wine. The glasses of Amelia, Leorin and Luke were filled with juice made from the fruits of the island. The meal, which stood on the table consisted of a pasta with a salmon sauce, which could make one's mouth water merely by catching a whiff of its smell, accompanied by bread and a green salad with small tomatoes.
Everyone ate heartily and the sound of food being chewed and glasses being drained and filled up, were mixed with the sound of the doctor's voice, as he entertained his guests with stories from the travels he had made when he was younger and before he had returned to this island, the place of his birth and using his hard-earned fortune, had bought the house in whose dining room they were now gathered.
"My mother used to wash the linen for the family who owned this house before me", Hieronymus said. "It had always been my dream to one day return and buy the house from them and, as you can see, I made that dream a reality."
"What happened to the family?" Risha asked.
"Oh they moved away somewhere. They had fallen on hard times and had no choice but to accept my offer for the house and garden. It was quite a generous amount too."
At that moment, the conversation was interrupted by someone knocking loudly and insistently on the front door. The knocks were accompanied by a female voice calling for the doctor.
"Who could that be?" Hieronymus wondered. He stood up and wiped away some sauce from the corner of his beak.
"I'll get it!" Amelia called out excitedly. She jumped out of her chair and was gone in the blink of an eye. Her uncle followed her, but he had not even made it out of the dining room before Amelia returned, this time in the company of a red-haired vixen, wearing an apron.
"You must come quickly, doctor" the vixen pleaded, clasping her paws. "A fight broke out between two of our customers, one of them had a knife and..."
Before she could finish the sentence, Hieronymus interrupted her:
"Amelia, fetch my medicine-bag. Its in my office. Hurry!"
With the seemingly boundless energy of youth, Amelia ran away to fetch the requested object. Clutching his medicine-bag, Hieronymus followed the vixen out into the evening. Amelia looked after them and then turned and headed back to the dining room.
When she returned, the others asked her what had happened.
"Oh, it seems like someone got hurt in a fight at the local bar", she said nonchalantly, while stabbing a piece of salmon on her fork.
"Was it serious?" Merees wondered.
"Nothing that my uncle can't fix. By the way, you don't have to stop eating because he's not here. You can never know when he gets called away or how long he'll be gone."
"That's good to know", Luke said, "because I'm still hungry." He backed up the statement by shoveling a large amount of food into his mouth.
"My mother used to wash the linen for the family who owned this house before me", Hieronymus said. "It had always been my dream to one day return and buy the house from them and, as you can see, I made that dream a reality."
"What happened to the family?" Risha asked.
"Oh they moved away somewhere. They had fallen on hard times and had no choice but to accept my offer for the house and garden. It was quite a generous amount too."
At that moment, the conversation was interrupted by someone knocking loudly and insistently on the front door. The knocks were accompanied by a female voice calling for the doctor.
"Who could that be?" Hieronymus wondered. He stood up and wiped away some sauce from the corner of his beak.
"I'll get it!" Amelia called out excitedly. She jumped out of her chair and was gone in the blink of an eye. Her uncle followed her, but he had not even made it out of the dining room before Amelia returned, this time in the company of a red-haired vixen, wearing an apron.
"You must come quickly, doctor" the vixen pleaded, clasping her paws. "A fight broke out between two of our customers, one of them had a knife and..."
Before she could finish the sentence, Hieronymus interrupted her:
"Amelia, fetch my medicine-bag. Its in my office. Hurry!"
With the seemingly boundless energy of youth, Amelia ran away to fetch the requested object. Clutching his medicine-bag, Hieronymus followed the vixen out into the evening. Amelia looked after them and then turned and headed back to the dining room.
When she returned, the others asked her what had happened.
"Oh, it seems like someone got hurt in a fight at the local bar", she said nonchalantly, while stabbing a piece of salmon on her fork.
"Was it serious?" Merees wondered.
"Nothing that my uncle can't fix. By the way, you don't have to stop eating because he's not here. You can never know when he gets called away or how long he'll be gone."
"That's good to know", Luke said, "because I'm still hungry." He backed up the statement by shoveling a large amount of food into his mouth.
After awhile the food was gone, save for the doctor's portion, which Amelia put an empty plate over, to keep it warm. They all leaned back with full, round bellies and eyes that could barely stay open.
"By the way", Leorin asked, while stifling a yawn. "Whose turn is it to do the dishes?"
"No idea", his sister replied. "I just hope its not me."
"It should be you", Merees said jokingly. "Seeing as how you've been loafing around in bed for so long."
"I know", said Amelia. "Why don't we vote? Anyone who thinks Risha should do the dishes, raise a paw. Or claw", she added, with a look at the princess.
The motion was carried nigh unanimously, with only one vote against. Risha turned to her brother and shook her head, while making a tutting sound.
"Even my own brother is against me", she said. "Oh, that hurts."
"Sorry, sis", Leorin apologized with a shrug. "I just really don't want to do the dishes today."
The lynx paid him no heed, she stood up and supporting herself on the table, she rose her left paw to her brow in a theatrical fashion.
"Betrayed by my own flesh and blood", she wailed. "Woe is me. How sharper than a serpent's tooth, etc, etc..."
Leorin rolled his eyes.
"Drama queen."
"Fine", Risha said with a resigned gesture. "I'll do the dishes, but one of you are going to help me dry them."
"By the way", Leorin asked, while stifling a yawn. "Whose turn is it to do the dishes?"
"No idea", his sister replied. "I just hope its not me."
"It should be you", Merees said jokingly. "Seeing as how you've been loafing around in bed for so long."
"I know", said Amelia. "Why don't we vote? Anyone who thinks Risha should do the dishes, raise a paw. Or claw", she added, with a look at the princess.
The motion was carried nigh unanimously, with only one vote against. Risha turned to her brother and shook her head, while making a tutting sound.
"Even my own brother is against me", she said. "Oh, that hurts."
"Sorry, sis", Leorin apologized with a shrug. "I just really don't want to do the dishes today."
The lynx paid him no heed, she stood up and supporting herself on the table, she rose her left paw to her brow in a theatrical fashion.
"Betrayed by my own flesh and blood", she wailed. "Woe is me. How sharper than a serpent's tooth, etc, etc..."
Leorin rolled his eyes.
"Drama queen."
"Fine", Risha said with a resigned gesture. "I'll do the dishes, but one of you are going to help me dry them."
******
"Amelia, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure", Amelia replied, taking the warm, dripping wet plate that Risha handed to her and drying it of with a towel.
"Its a pretty personal one", Risha continued, as she once again plunged her arms into the dish-water. "So, if you don't want to answer it, I understand."
"That's fine, ask away."
"The Doctor....is he your real uncle?"
Amelia shook her head.
"Nope, but he was a very close friend to my parents and I've known him since I was born, so I think of him as an uncle."
"I see."
Risha decided not to breach the subject further, but she couldn't help but notice that Amelia had referred to her parents in the past tense.
"Sure", Amelia replied, taking the warm, dripping wet plate that Risha handed to her and drying it of with a towel.
"Its a pretty personal one", Risha continued, as she once again plunged her arms into the dish-water. "So, if you don't want to answer it, I understand."
"That's fine, ask away."
"The Doctor....is he your real uncle?"
Amelia shook her head.
"Nope, but he was a very close friend to my parents and I've known him since I was born, so I think of him as an uncle."
"I see."
Risha decided not to breach the subject further, but she couldn't help but notice that Amelia had referred to her parents in the past tense.
In a way, I suppose this place is like some sort of orphanage, she thought to herself, as she kept scrubbing on a fork. Well, Leorin and I aren't technically orphans, but we might as well be. Merees has lost her father and as for Luke? Well, I don't know anything about him. I should probably ask him, when I get the chance.
When the dishes were done, Amelia jumped down from the chair she had been standing on.
"I'm going to find the guys and see if they want to play hide-and-seek", she said. "Do you want to come?"
"No, I think I want to take it easy."
"OK, see you later" and with those parting words, the otter girl rushed out of the room.
As for Risha, she decided that she was in the mood for something to read. Earlier that day, while showing her around the house, the doctor had made halt outside of a door which had the word LIBRARY written on it, in golden letters.
"I heard that you like to read. Feel free to make use of my modest collection of books, whenever you want", he had said.
At the time, she had thanked him and the tour had continued. Now, it was time to take the Doctor up on his offer. Remembering where the library was, she went there, opened the door and stepped inside.
The first thing she noticed upon entering the library was a painting, a portrait made in oil, hanging on the wall. The portrait depicted two otters, one male and one female. The female was seated in a chair, holding a book, while the male stood behind her, his left paw resting on her shoulder.
These two must be Amelia's parents. I wonder who the artist is? Could it be?
Risha leaned closer to the painting. There, hidden in the right corner, almost impossible to notice, was the Doctor's name.
I thought so.
Having finished studying the portrait, Risha began to look around the bookcases, which lined the rest of the library walls. In his lifetime, Dr. Hieronymus had managed to build up quite a collection of books of all sorts; there were books of fiction and non-fiction, books intended for children and books that were meant for adult eyes only (these were on the top-shelf). There were novels, collections of short-stories, poems, essays, books that were part of a series and books that were stand-alone. Risha's eyes swept over the shelves, until they came to rest on a title which had caught her attention:
"The Ghost of Grenge Hall: A Timothy Sparrow Adventure", she read out-loud. Sounds interesting.
She took the volume from its shelf and looked at the cover, it showed the titular hero looking up at a cloaked figure, posing sinisterly on the top of a hill. All of this was rendered in striking red - and - black.
Intrigued, Risha opened the book and stared at the page in surprise; this was unlike any other book she had ever seen before: It was somewhat similar to a picture-book, but instead of the pictures serving as illustrations to the story, here the pictures were the story and you had to look at them in sequence, in order to grasp the plot. Above the head of the characters hovered white bubbles, which contained their dialogue.
Excited over having discovered something she had never seen before, Risha took the book under her arm and went out to the veranda. There, she parked herself on the couch and under the warm glow of a lantern, began to read. Soon, she was completely absorbed in the story and thus, its no wonder that she failed to notice that someone else had appeared on the veranda. It was only when that someone sat down next to her and addressed her that she became aware of their presence:
"Sorry", Risha said, looking away from the book. "I wasn't paying attention, what did you say?"
"I was only asking if the book was any good", Merees replied.
"Yeah, its pretty good."
"Mind if I sit down?"
"Be my guest".
Risha scooted over and Merees sat down. As she looked at the dragoness next to her, the lynx realized that now was the perfect opportunity to confess her feelings.
"Princess" she begun, closing the book.
"What is it?"
Risha took a deep breath and looked Merees in the eyes.
"I really like you" she blurted out.
"I like you too" Merees replied, squeezing Risha's paw.
Risha shook her head.
"No, I meant that I Like you" she said, putting special emphasis on the word like. "I want us to be more than just friends."
"That's what I meant too."
"Of course, if you aren't into girls that way, I completely understand" Risha continued, hurriedly. Then, she paused, realizing what Merees had just said.
"You mean you..." Risha began, but for some reason her tongue seemed to have been tied into a knot. Merees nodded in affirmation.
"Since when?" The lynx finally managed to ask.
"Since we first met" the dragon answered.
"Than, why didn't you tell me?"
Merees let out a sigh.
"Fear of rejection, I'm afraid. I suspected that you and I were the same, but I couldn't be sure, so I decided to let you take the initiative. I'm sorry, it was craven of me, I know."
"Its fine, one of us had to be the first one. I'm just so happy that you feel the same way for me."
The two of them leaned closer towards each other, their lips were just about to touch, when suddenly a small shape appeared on the veranda and with lightning speed, ducked under the couch. Vexed, Risha stood up and crouched down in order to see who - or -what, had caused this interruption.
"Psst" Leorin said. "Don't let Luke know that I'm here."
"Its my brother" Risha explained, as she sat down again. "Stupid kid" she muttered, crossing her arms. "Why did he have to pick this as his hiding spot, of all places?"
"His timing could be better" Merees agreed. "Though in all fairness, there was no way he could have known."
"Yeah, you're right" Risha conceded. "Still, he's kind of killed the mood. I'm sorry."
"Don't be, we can just sit like this for awhile."
And so they did, with Merees wrapping her arm around Risha and the lynx resting her head on the dragon's shoulder. If anyone had seen them at this moment, he or she would have found them the very picture of serenity. After awhile, Merees spoke up:
"By the way, there's this place on the island I've been dying to show you. If you want, we could go there tomorrow."
There was no answer. Surprised, Merees looked at Risha and realized that she was sleeping. The calmness of their surroundings and the sound of the lynx's breathing had a hypnotic effect on the Princess. She felt her eyelids grow heavier and heavier, until she could no longer keep them open.
When the dishes were done, Amelia jumped down from the chair she had been standing on.
"I'm going to find the guys and see if they want to play hide-and-seek", she said. "Do you want to come?"
"No, I think I want to take it easy."
"OK, see you later" and with those parting words, the otter girl rushed out of the room.
As for Risha, she decided that she was in the mood for something to read. Earlier that day, while showing her around the house, the doctor had made halt outside of a door which had the word LIBRARY written on it, in golden letters.
"I heard that you like to read. Feel free to make use of my modest collection of books, whenever you want", he had said.
At the time, she had thanked him and the tour had continued. Now, it was time to take the Doctor up on his offer. Remembering where the library was, she went there, opened the door and stepped inside.
The first thing she noticed upon entering the library was a painting, a portrait made in oil, hanging on the wall. The portrait depicted two otters, one male and one female. The female was seated in a chair, holding a book, while the male stood behind her, his left paw resting on her shoulder.
These two must be Amelia's parents. I wonder who the artist is? Could it be?
Risha leaned closer to the painting. There, hidden in the right corner, almost impossible to notice, was the Doctor's name.
I thought so.
Having finished studying the portrait, Risha began to look around the bookcases, which lined the rest of the library walls. In his lifetime, Dr. Hieronymus had managed to build up quite a collection of books of all sorts; there were books of fiction and non-fiction, books intended for children and books that were meant for adult eyes only (these were on the top-shelf). There were novels, collections of short-stories, poems, essays, books that were part of a series and books that were stand-alone. Risha's eyes swept over the shelves, until they came to rest on a title which had caught her attention:
"The Ghost of Grenge Hall: A Timothy Sparrow Adventure", she read out-loud. Sounds interesting.
She took the volume from its shelf and looked at the cover, it showed the titular hero looking up at a cloaked figure, posing sinisterly on the top of a hill. All of this was rendered in striking red - and - black.
Intrigued, Risha opened the book and stared at the page in surprise; this was unlike any other book she had ever seen before: It was somewhat similar to a picture-book, but instead of the pictures serving as illustrations to the story, here the pictures were the story and you had to look at them in sequence, in order to grasp the plot. Above the head of the characters hovered white bubbles, which contained their dialogue.
Excited over having discovered something she had never seen before, Risha took the book under her arm and went out to the veranda. There, she parked herself on the couch and under the warm glow of a lantern, began to read. Soon, she was completely absorbed in the story and thus, its no wonder that she failed to notice that someone else had appeared on the veranda. It was only when that someone sat down next to her and addressed her that she became aware of their presence:
"Sorry", Risha said, looking away from the book. "I wasn't paying attention, what did you say?"
"I was only asking if the book was any good", Merees replied.
"Yeah, its pretty good."
"Mind if I sit down?"
"Be my guest".
Risha scooted over and Merees sat down. As she looked at the dragoness next to her, the lynx realized that now was the perfect opportunity to confess her feelings.
"Princess" she begun, closing the book.
"What is it?"
Risha took a deep breath and looked Merees in the eyes.
"I really like you" she blurted out.
"I like you too" Merees replied, squeezing Risha's paw.
Risha shook her head.
"No, I meant that I Like you" she said, putting special emphasis on the word like. "I want us to be more than just friends."
"That's what I meant too."
"Of course, if you aren't into girls that way, I completely understand" Risha continued, hurriedly. Then, she paused, realizing what Merees had just said.
"You mean you..." Risha began, but for some reason her tongue seemed to have been tied into a knot. Merees nodded in affirmation.
"Since when?" The lynx finally managed to ask.
"Since we first met" the dragon answered.
"Than, why didn't you tell me?"
Merees let out a sigh.
"Fear of rejection, I'm afraid. I suspected that you and I were the same, but I couldn't be sure, so I decided to let you take the initiative. I'm sorry, it was craven of me, I know."
"Its fine, one of us had to be the first one. I'm just so happy that you feel the same way for me."
The two of them leaned closer towards each other, their lips were just about to touch, when suddenly a small shape appeared on the veranda and with lightning speed, ducked under the couch. Vexed, Risha stood up and crouched down in order to see who - or -what, had caused this interruption.
"Psst" Leorin said. "Don't let Luke know that I'm here."
"Its my brother" Risha explained, as she sat down again. "Stupid kid" she muttered, crossing her arms. "Why did he have to pick this as his hiding spot, of all places?"
"His timing could be better" Merees agreed. "Though in all fairness, there was no way he could have known."
"Yeah, you're right" Risha conceded. "Still, he's kind of killed the mood. I'm sorry."
"Don't be, we can just sit like this for awhile."
And so they did, with Merees wrapping her arm around Risha and the lynx resting her head on the dragon's shoulder. If anyone had seen them at this moment, he or she would have found them the very picture of serenity. After awhile, Merees spoke up:
"By the way, there's this place on the island I've been dying to show you. If you want, we could go there tomorrow."
There was no answer. Surprised, Merees looked at Risha and realized that she was sleeping. The calmness of their surroundings and the sound of the lynx's breathing had a hypnotic effect on the Princess. She felt her eyelids grow heavier and heavier, until she could no longer keep them open.
No comments:
Post a Comment