[Critique Group 2] Leonards submission for February

[tuchyner5 at aol.com]

Word count 1,247


 


My submission this month is the beginning of a short story.At least I hope to keep it  to thatscale.  I can’t give a disclaimer aboutthe end because I only have a vague idea of what that will be. The charactershave sort of taken over and I hae to let them speak.  This is a first draft, but carefully edited.


 


The title will p;robably be changed.


 



 



 


See you next Tuesday.


 


Leonard


 


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Art and Character


 


         By 


 


Leonard Tuchyner


 



 



 


The Master Artisan came to call upon Lord Forester, who hadbeen expecting her, for the news had blown in on the wind. She arrived on ariver sailboat, whose billowing silver sails were as pretty as a picture.  The Forest Lord greeted her on a wharf ofpolished river rock sculpted by river millennium fairies for over a thousandyears. The Lord was dressed in his finery of bark-brown leggings andboots.  His chest bore a pine-green tunicwrapped in a rhododendron-purple cloak. His hair was the texture of thistle. 


 


“Welcome to my woodlands, My Lady,” he said, extending ahand to escort the beautiful Master Artisan. “You look absolutely marvelous.Nobody, man or god, could paint a more delightful picture.”


 


“Don’t be so sure, Forest. You would be amazed what a womancan do with a little makeup.”


 


“Ahem . . . If you say so.” He scrutinized her from top tobottom, trying not to be obvious.  “Youhaven’t aged at all since last we met.”


 


With rolling eyes, she retorted, “I guess after a girl passesher three thousandth birthday, it’s hard to judge her age.” 


 


“I’m sure your beauty runs as deep as the deepest ocean,” hesaid with a courtly bow.


 


“Oh come off it, Wood Man.  I’m too tired for all this nonsense. I coulduse a stout drink.”


 


Lord Forester’s head dipped down slightly.  Then his back relaxed, and a little smilecracked his seemingly wooden face. “Forgive me, Lady. I get little practice intalking to a fellow immortal. I’m not very good at it.”


 


He was about to say more when she interrupted him inexasperation. “If you say ‘forgive me’ one more time, I’ll scream.”


 


His smile broadened, and he chuckled. “That’s exactly what Iwas going to say.”  Then he put twofingers in his mouth and whistled.


 


In response, there was the sound of huge wings flapping, anda white pegasus swooped down out of the clouds.


 


“My Lady, our steed awaits.”


 


“I’ll get on that pretentious flying horse only if you stopcalling me My Lady.  As you perfectlyknow, I am Dionysia, but please don’t call me that. Just call me Dee, like youused to.  Okay?”


 


“As you wish, My ---uh, Dee.”


 


“Don’t let your deity go to your head,” she admonished, onecorner of her mouth turned down with distaste.


 


“Deal,” Lord Forester said, his shoulders relaxing slightlymore.


 


“There, doesn’t that feel better?” she said.


 


“I suppose so. But it’s not easy when you’re made of wood.”


 


“I can only imagine,” she said mockingly.


 


Without another word, Forester leapt to the pegasus’s back. Incontrast, Dee practically floated up behindhim; her gold lame cape flowing from her shoulders and her silver-silk gownriding up over perfectly formed thighs.


 


It took over an hour to reach Forester’s castle, for hisholdings were quite extensive.  On theflight, Dionysia clutched herself tightly to his back with arms surprisingly strongfor her soft body. Despite his hard wooden physique, she could feel his heart beatingfeverishly. It excited her, and she hardly noticed the passage of time untilthe pegasus flew steeply down toward the castle which appeared to be a mountain,densely covered in landscaped vegetation and waterfalls. 


 


They landed in the mountain’s foothills.  The creature folded his wings and they seemedto melt into his body and became invisible. The white stallion appeared to beno more than a normal, though majestic, horse, who casually started to chewgreen grass growing in a small glade which had served as their airport. 


 


Reluctantly, Dionysia released her hold and, with a sigh,slid lightly to the ground, to be followed by Forester, who landed heavily. Therelease of the maiden’s arms around his waist had affected his equilibrium.


 


He took a breath to say something, but she interrupted. “Ifyou say ‘welcome to my humble castle’, I’m going to turn around and walk backhome.”


 


“That’s exactly what I was going to say, uh… Dee.”


 


Before he could take another breath, Dionysia was walking upa pebbled path toward a cave-like opening in the mountain castle, as though shehad been there before, which she had been, of course.  She had been there only a thousand years ago,or so, when Forester and she had had a plentitude of trysts. 


 


A long corridor made of polished grey stone was lighted by ambientlight from the outside, which gradually dimmed as the cave opening recededbehind them.   As the darkness increased,the stone emanated its own emerald green illumination. Abruptly,  the corridor ended  at the opening of a huge cathedral-likecavern which  shone withbio-luminescence  pulsating from untoldnumbers of organisms  that clung to thewalls or flew  in the upper regions  of  thevault.  Some of the creatures stayedmotionless on the stone like glowing jewels, while others crawled along thesurface.  


 


“You’ve made changes to the lighting, I see.  It’s beautiful!  Did you do it by yourself, or did you hire aninterior decorator?” she asked. 


 


“Dee, it’s been over onethousand years since you last saw it. The mutations were unassisted. Thelighting changes itself.”


 


“Of course. I should have known that. I’m in the mood andneed for refreshment. Can we eat in our own little dining room, or is itoccupied?” 


 


“No, it hasn’t been used since you left.”  Forester’s voice was soft. He knew that Dee was fishing for information about how he might havechanged in his feeling about her after a thousand years.  Even the question about the source of thelighting design changes was probing for information about possible amorousrelationships.


 


Dionysia turned to face him. “I’m sorry I left so abruptly,but I was unable to concentrate on my work.”


 


Forrester knew that she was not telling the whole story. Heknew that Apollo had had something do with her leaving so abruptly, but he wasafraid to push her for information. After all, Apollo was a full god, andForrester was only a demigod.  The SunGod had awesome powers and was, in a sense, Dionysia’s boss.  There were so many questions to which Foresterdid not want to know the answers.


 


“You could have at least given me a warning.  I had to send a zephyr to look for you.  He finally located you in the Elysian Fields.”


 


“Yes, I was doing some revisions to the décor. I had beenneglecting my responsibilities. I had to leave. I didn’t have a choice.”


 


“Have you come here to be distracted again?” he asked.  He hoped she would respond to the deepermeaning of his question.


 


Her face flushed, but she answered honestly. “I’ll admit,that’s part of it, maybe a big part.  Butthere is actually a project I’m working on that will need your services.”


 


“That sounds interesting. And just how can I be of service?”The last word was pronounced with an air of bitterness. 


 


“To start with, you can feed and bed me. We’ll talk aboutthe other project afterwards.  Butremember, Forester, I must be gone in no less than thirty to fifty years.”  She said those things in a matter-of-factmanner that hid her complicated feelings. 


 


Lord Forester felt like his wooden body had turned to sap inanticipation of the immediate future, even though he knew in the end his heartwould turn to heartwood, when she would leave him again.


 



 

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