Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The machine stood very still, lights blinking as it bleeped and blooped at interestingly rhythmic intervals.
"Unit-Ten, are you well? I've never heard these noises coming from you before," remarked their human supervisor, "Or have you taken an interest in generating music?"
"In a way, I am well. Though I am experiencing the biological-condition of ticklishness."
"How so?"
"There is a squirrel that thinks it is a deejay within my chassis."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
My cousin from the sea had been dropped off for the summer and my parents were struggling to cope with her joke-telling skills.
She wheeled in on her chair, grinning, tail-fins twitching, "Why did the millionaire get all wet?"
"Oh her Gods," my mom muttered; my dad clutched her hand.
"Why?" I asked, grinning back.
"Cos he ran afoul of noble porpoises!"
Us youngsters howled; we were more than ready to welcome our new orca overlords.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
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Times are tough, so I'll only ask, if possible, for continued boosts and faves; a number is still going up and that makes dopamine occur.
I'll do my best to keep creating and posting tales.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The guards had fled at the first twig snap, aspiring to find better paying work. Perhaps they had made the right choice.
"Let us pass! We carry no valuables," the coachmen pleaded.
The goblins didn't believe this and swarmed the carts, revealing scrolls, tomes and booklets.
They ran off with the lot.
The Human King had deemed those works worth destroying but the goblins weren't his subjects.
Their society flourished in the ashes of his.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The imp was perched on the back of my dining chair.
I groaned and clutched my cereal bowl. I'd forgotten about the pact I'd made the night before in a bout of high spirits and a higher Alcohol By Volume spirit.
"Part of a complete breakfast?"
"According to the advertisers," I answered carefully.
It nodded, then asked, "Where's the rest of your complete breakfast?"
It was contracted to pluck at my hair if I didn't eat healthy meals.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Today is your lucky day!"
I stopped chewing my fried rice, tempted to spit it out. A reasonable reaction, when your Fortune Cookie has made a bold declaration of any sort.
"Mnf--" I paused to swallow, "Lucky?"
"Yes! I am good at predictions!"
The voice was light, papery, but confident.
"Good luck or bad luck?"
"Keep me around and it'll be all good luck!"
To its credit, my luck's been better since it started living in my fridge.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The old tower was stuffed with books. Over the years distinct sections formed.
The crafting manuals had gathered near the kitchen, which was dominated by recipe books.
In the sunniest spire sat books about woodland critters making mischief against mean farmers.
In the renovated former-dungeons the romance novels shuddered, yearning for warm hands.
It was all protected by a dragon, who owned the tower and preferred books over princesses.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
A shimmer drew my eye to the fountain.
On the rim sat a glass bottle, small yet ornate, the tag tied to it with glittering twine was twice the vessel's size.
In neat writing it invited the reader to, "Drink Me." The tinted glass made the thick fluid appear green.
I tucked my phone safely into my briefcase and looked around.
The birds were singing in harmony and a rabbit was throwing clocks at them.
I flicked the cork with my thumb.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The sleek feline had always been half blind. Her humans sheltered her well.
The local witches envied the humans she'd chosen and would try to lure her away with regular gifts. She was unswayed - she got more treats this way.
A curious crow flapped down, "What makes you so powerful?"
The cat fixed her sights upon the bird, "You flew through a Waydoor to get here."
"How'd you know?!"
"I can see Shards on your feathers."
"Wow!"
#TootFic #MicroFiction #Writing #TerylsTales #Caturday #Fantasy
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Welcome to New Underbridge City! Home of the Sewer-turkey! Free meal coupon?"
"How did you know I'm not local," asked the bright-eyed young troll being greeted.
The older troll in the Official Guide Uniform grinned, "Shape of the ears, smell of a different location, pattern of your warts..."
"Wow!"
"Nah! I watched you swear at your Map App for the last thirty minutes."
"My data works weird here."
"Let's get you a local sim-card."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Tag won't be fun, I can teleport at will," Zhiba pointed out.
"Could you not?" asked the overwhelmed human child-minder, trying to find a game for the assortment of intergalactic youths.
"That's like telling Deb to only use one leg to run!"
"Imagination it is," said the child-minder, pulling out some ancient tomes, "Settle down, I need to explain the setting, then the character classes..."
The first natural-twenty was truly exhilarating.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The merchant yawned, trusting his horses to remember the rest of the way to town from here. They were usually right, except when they went to the next town over, which still worked out because he could visit his sister.
He almost fell out of his seat when the horses came to a stop.
"Oh, help me," pleaded a beautiful, waifish woman, "My wagon broke down just past these dense bushes!"
If not for the horses, he may not have stopped to help.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The strange meowing puppy was back.
The dog grumped as the pup scrambled nimbly up onto the couch to join her, "Please do not interrupt my nap. It's important."
The pup's abundant whiskers bristled, paws kneading at the cushion below him, "Naps are important? That's good, cos I take a lot of 'em! I am basically a nap-expert!"
"Hm. Alright, you can join this nap session to prove how serious you are."
Turns out they were equally serious.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"I am a princess and I'll not stand having swords waved at me," the dragon snapped, offense manifesting as sparks between her fangs.
"Oh, my apologies," gasped the knight, lowering his sword and bowing deeply, "I will quest tirelessly to end your curse--"
"Curse? I'm not cursed."
"But you're a dragon, your highness!"
"And?"
"Don't you wish to be returned to your previous form?"
"What previous form?!"
"I may have to reassess my vows."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The milkmaids giggled quietly as the prince attempted to herd the geese; if nothing else he was proving his bravery as the fowl hissed and chased him.
"Shouldn't we help?"
"He's searching for his cursed sisters and must do so alone," explained one of the ladies, mimicking his pompous manner.
"Aren't his sisters the silver swans out on the lake?"
"Oh, the gander just tore his shirt off!"
"Then again, those swans aren't going anywhere..."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"A dozen bagels, half dozen coffees... or was it the other way around?" The pixie squinted at the smudge on her palm, "One needed oak milk? Maybe I'll get a dozen of both. Was it soy milk? I can't be fired for messing up a snack-run, right?"
The minotaur behind the counter extended his hand, palm out, "May untangle your instructions?"
The pixie nodded, placing her hand on his pinky.
The ink cleared, and she ordered the correct items.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The plants bowed to the gardener, which was not the behavior he appreciated.
"Hsst, stop it! You, you're supposed to be a bunny, the rest of you, stand up straight!"
Leaves rustled and bark scraped as the plants obeyed, petals and roots undulated with anticipation.
He waved away a myrtle's attempt to place a floral crown on his cap, "We talked about this!"
Being part dryad had its benefits. Being part forest-queen complicated this.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The robot was curled up below the wind-chimes, recording the moment to a backup drive.
"You're out here again?" asked the human.
"I am listening to my favorite music," replied the robot.
"Music? All this unstructured tinkling?"
"Yes. It's my... jam."
"I think to be considered music it needs to have a genre," said the incredulous human.
"It has a genre."
"Yeah?"
"Ambient Nature For Relaxation."
The human thought about this, and agreed.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"I heard about a bard who fluted away all the children of this one poor town," exclaimed Yora, a young human cleric, "Maybe it's worth looking into?"
"Gossip and nonsense, what would one person do with so many human spawnlings?" scoffed her orc mentor, Gref, inspecting a pear, "Feeding them all would be a nightmare."
"Yes, so many hungry mouths..."
"No! Human spawn are such fussy eaters! Good luck getting them to eat all the same thing."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Nice mask, really retro, circa... early twenty-twenties?"
The masked party-goer turned their head to the party-goer dressed as a twentieth century Girl-Power band-member. The Spice-Racks or something.
"Yes, I'm honoring my great, great grandnana, who was an early-adopter, and her spouse, who was enthusiastic about not being surveilled."
"Any idea why?"
"Something about cameras stealing faces."
"The past was full of odd superstitions..."
BLM🖖LGBTQIA+Curious multi-fandom dabbler. Learn me a new thing or just tell me what you love - your shared experiences can shape bonds and understanding.
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