Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The trader paused, water cupped in her palm, watching each river turtle approach.
The smallest no bigger than a coin, had a shell of sapphire, the middle the size of a bun, had a shell of bronze studded with pearls and the largest was the size of a well-fed duck, bore a shell of white marble swirled with gold.
"What blessings might you grant?"
"Give us some food and find out," suggested the middle.
They granted a strange moment to share.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Your profile said you're a curator, that's what got my attention. Museum or gallery?" asked the saucily dressed human playing with her antique pendant alluringly.
The elf cleared her throat, "Not quite, I curate colors."
"Oh," said the human, interest waning.
"Er, did you happen to see all the auroras a while back?" asked the elf trying to retain interest.
"Missed it due to clouds."
"That was my nemesis who curates vapor."
"Ooh?"
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The farmer had inherited the land from the farmer before, and the farmer before that; long enough to have forgotten the reason beyond the lush pastures and fertile soil.
Every so often, a bored or imaginative farmhand would venture into the dusty library trying to find excitement.
This usually resulted in some interesting facts, but sometimes it meant a kitten might learn to stand on two legs, dance, sing and speak with silvery suaveness.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The cat stepped through the doorway, the one humans can't see, appearing between the witch's ankles. She purred as the witch stumbled and swore, clutching at his spell ingredients.
"Mercy-Me-Wistweave! Could you not," he snapped, maintaining his stumble towards the counter as his armful clattered roughly where it was meant to be laid.
"It is what I do," meowed Mercy-Me-Wistweave.
"And you do as you please," the witch grumbled.
#TootFic #MicroFiction #Writing #TerylsTales #Caturday #Fantasy
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"I spent several years as a swan," said the tall, graceful visiting prince, "You?"
The slightly shorter prince, broader and more rugged ran a shy hand through his red, braided hair, "If it wasn't for my sister, I'd probably still be a bear..."
"Want to compare our experiences... in private?"
"It'd be rude for me to ignore all my other guests," said the rugged prince, blushing.
"It can be tomorrow..."
"Oh! Then I'd like that very much!"
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"One of us has to do something about the toadstools growing on the back of the spare bathroom's door," announced the most-bothered human.
"Not it!" responded the other human.
"Not it," parroted the harpy, flying out the window.
"Already handling it," assured the goblin.
"Thank y-- What're you eating?"
"Fungus Salad!"
"From the--"
"Spare bathroom, yes."
"Should--?"
"I be? Not sure, but I think they're giving me psychic powers."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The party peered into the gently steaming cauldron.
"I thought this was going to be soup," said the human wizard, confusion streaking her brow.
"It's Thick soup," said the gnome fighter, still wearing her charred apron, hands proudly on her hips.
"So, porridge," insisted the wizard.
"Thick soup! A gnomish specialty!"
"It looks like porridge to me, so it's clearly porridge."
"And right now you're looking like an entire posterior to me."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Hang on, we're not allowed to feed the birds here, look, it's the first thing on the rule-list and they paid extra for flashing ink!"
The young human woman stomped around, pamphlet crushed in a bewildered fist. Her feed-satchel bounced against her leg with each step.
"The rules are the rules," shrugged her traveling companion.
"But what could be so bad about feeding birds?!"
"They're the size of dragons!" explained a helpful local.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The elves scoffed at the notion, "Humans? Baking? How ridiculous; we'll let some join the ranks - it'll be good for a laugh."
Ignoring the jeers, the humans stepped forward with books, notes and laptops full of ideas.
"Dark chocolate and chili will make an impact."
"Crystalized ginger and molasses!"
"You'll never believe what you can do with milk chocolate and licorice!"
The elves couldn't, but somehow it all found a niche market.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The kitten had slowly become more cat-shaped, but she wasn't fully there yet.
She still chased light, shadow and other small things that moved, like hems and toes, eyes wide. And then she'd sit straight and still counter-balancing a broom-stick flight; she'd look all-cat.
But she still needed a cuddle and story at bed-time.
"Tell me the one with the boots!" asked the kitten.
"Again? As long as you don't interrupt."
"Yay!"
#TootFic #MicroFiction #Writing #TerylsTales #Caturday #UrbanFantasy
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The young prince bounced excitedly, "Creamy-ice! Wiff berries!"
"Once the Cream-Ice Sorcerer arrives you shall have your treat," laughed the King, turning to the court wizard for confirmation.
The mage shook his orb, "There seems to be a magical storm between the Places; transport-spells won't work."
"No creamy-ice?"
The King knelt, "We'll have it tomorrow if the storm clears, I promise."
The little prince nodded bravely, lip quivering.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"This bird-bath is too boring," the pixie whined, "It needs bubbles."
"Soap would be bad for any birds wanting a drink," the human pointed out.
"Who said anything about soap?" The pixie rolled her eyes, "What I need is a spa-pool."
She pulled a pouch of pixie dust out of her bikini-top, somehow, and sprinkled some in.
One smartphone with a movie playlist and a bottle of tequila later, every pixie in the neighborhood was soaking up.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The journey had been long, hard, at some points quite soul-numbingly taxing, with only bright shades of gray to contrast against the deeper grays and darker.
But as the ship approached the dusk-cloaked dock ribbons of color greeted the goblin's eager heart.
Warm greetings, familiar embraces and relieved welcome-homes were ample.
She had few gifts, for there hadn't been much time for that, but it didn't matter.
Her return was gift enough.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"Next up..." I glanced at the jumble of accented letters on the card, "A... Af... hm..."
"Aye, that'd be me," said a young leprechaun, bouncing, hand eagerly raised. Then she bounded into my office.
She squirmed in the interview chair, feet kicking.
"Er, yes. So--," I looked at the card again.
"I like going by Amper!"
"Amper, why do you want to work at Crystal Light Emporium?"
"I hate to be a stereotype but I just LOVE rainbows!"
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The shepherdess tried to count the unicorns she'd been ordered to watch over. There seemed to be between one and a little over a dozen.
"I hope you're all here," she moaned, trying to eat the lunch her spouse had packed.
"A difficult task," said a voice.
"Yes, but one does not defy the Warlock Duke..."
"What if you could?"
The demon poured out of the shadows, contract ready.
"Would it be worse for the Duke?"
"Yes."
"Pass the quill."
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
It was a nice, quiet day at the park, overcast, the little creek was crystal clear as it burbled, a single duck occasionally quacking to itself.
The witch followed her nose to the bank, leaning down from her wheelchair to scoop up some sand and pebbles.
The duck paddled over, demanding payment.
"Oh is this your stream? My apologies."
The witch scattered some peas from her other pocket, and the duck wagged its tail in satisfaction.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The human wriggled through the hole in the fence, right into the orc village. One day she'd tell them about it, but right now this was the best way to avoid the guards at the gate, and the line.
"It's the pipsqueak, how do you keep getting in," asked the wizened warrior in his rocking chair, adjusting his enchanted glass eye.
She grinned, scampering along to her destination.
"Special delivery; six dozen macarons for the chief's birthday!"
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
Speed-dating on Mars tended to be intense.
Before I'd even sat down, I was faced with five other love-seekers, who all spoke at once.
"Er, Taurus, waffles, no, Samoa and pineapple sometimes?"
The five dispersed and another crowd shuffled over, questions firing.
"Oh, uh, thank you but no, adorable pupper yes, it depends on the type of swallow and the size of the coconut, yes, maybe?"
I had to leave ten minutes in to preserve my batteries.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
The goblins returned home triumphantly, sacks of treats slung over their shoulders.
"Gather 'round dear kin and friends, we've tales and delicacies from the human lands!"
"We stalked and hunted great beasts, and were richly rewarded, come and share!"
The crowd gathered quickly, demanding more details.
"Garp had the most chilling encounter; tell 'em!"
"I devoured a spirit most foul! It'll not haunt that bakery ever again," boasted Garp.
Teryl's Tales of Whim~
"It's the future, why haven't we cured hiccups," whined Vena, between hiccups.
Her robotic companion rose, shrieking, "Destroy all humans!"
Vena hiccuped again, "Sorry, that isn't going to work twice."
"Then I am out of ideas," said Robonnie, sounding defeated, curling up on a cushion.
Vena stifled yet another hiccup, and started to speak, only to jump as something slammed into the window.
"Ow," said Robonnie's remote drone.
"I'm cured!"
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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