Snow White (2013)

The sun rose in the east, just like all of the mornings before. It was doomed to be another normal, boring day. Nothing exciting happens anymore. Not since the Prince had wed and become King. His bride, the Queen, rules with the thought that quarrels can be stopped with just a smile and a song. Under their reign the kingdom has been peaceful for the last five years and with the birth of their first child, peace is sure to continue.

Normally I would be elated that the town’s people have put aside their differences and have decided to live together in harmony. But I’m not. I am a detective. I make a living by making sense of trouble and sorting out gruesome details. I haven’t had a case in years.

The squawks of the morning birds begin and I close the shutters to drown them out. How such simple creatures can be cheery all the time is beyond me. Not even a thunderstorm can shut the feathered choir up. Even now they sing louder just to spite me. I take a swig from my mug expecting a mouthful when there is only a drop. Disappointment.

"Open up Detective." A man shouts from outside accompanied by pounding fists against the door. Unusual. I don't get visitors anymore. While the man on the other side tries to coax me out I slip to the window. There is a crack in one of the shutters leaving enough room to peek outside. Horses. Men in armor. The royal guard has come to call upon me. A faint hope sparks inside me. Perhaps they are in need of my help. Hope mixes with guilt as I realize what that means. Something horrible has happened.

The door falls to the floor. Dust swirls in the air. I've forgotten when I’d cleaned out the cabin last. My mother is probably turning in her grave. She taught her son to be better than this. The captain of the guard step through. It takes him a minute to see me through the dirt cloud. "Detective?"

"Captain." I reply hoping I don't look as excited as I am.

"Get dressed." He threw me a pair of trousers. "We found a body."

 I left the house with the door still broken in. Tucking my shirt in I began to ask the question that came to mind first. "A dead body?"

"Yes."

"Man or woman?"

He motioned to my neighbors who had gathered on their lawns. "I prefer not to discuss this here." He was right of course. Any words of murder or ill contempt and the people would be in frenzy. No, the quieter this case was the better.

A guard handed me the reigns to a brown steed. He was disgusted by my presence. Sure, I had skipped my yearly bath but honestly what bum doesn't? "This is Mud Clump."

"Mud Clump?" I took a second look at this beast. He wasn't a cavalry horse at all. Mud Clump was tired and sickly looking. I wouldn't be surprised if they had picked him up at the market before coming. I guess the Captain doesn't want me riding above my station.

"I noticed that your horse has gone missing." The Captain states.

Not missing just sold to pay off gambling debt. "Where to?" I climb aboard straddling the poor horse.

"The forest." He said with a gleam in his eye. With a shout the troops followed their leader into the woods as I did my best to keep up.

Haunted Air (2014)

The heavens were clear, the wind gently pushing the vessel onward through the night sky. The stars shows bright against the darkness like lanterns leading the sailors home. The crew was relaxed. They were just hours away from a dry land and a warm shower. They'd be free to enjoy their earnings before sailing on. Nothing could go wrong at this point.

This was a deadly false sense of security.

Perhaps months of inhaling the stench of slowly rotting fish had ruined the one sense that could save their lives. Whatever the reason, they couldn't smell it but she could. It was all she could smell for the last ten minutes. There was water nearby and a whole lot of it.

Out here in the void water could be a life saver. You could drink it, bathe in it, cook with it, and you could even trade with it. But that was just the water you brought along for the journey and that water couldn't cause damage at will.

What she smelled was rain, created in the void, the bane of airships everywhere. The rain itself would only blur the vision o the crew. It was what the rain brought along that frightened sailors to their core. One quick lightning strike could set your ship on fire.

If this was rain, and she was positive that it was, the ship was going to be blown out of the sky. They has to dock and wait from the storm to pass. Continuing on now would be suicide.

She knew exactly what she would do if she was captain. She'd lower the ship into the void and search out a refuge to anchor the ship. But she was not the captain, she wasn't even a legitimate member of the crew.

She had been a stowaway for three weeks trying to gain passage to the next island. three weeks pretending to be a man. Three weeks putting her blood and sweat into a ship that was not her own. Three weeks of convincing all those aboard that she belonged. Three weeks gone to waste as she dropped the mop and stomped up to the upper deck.

Her commanding officer barked orders at her to return to her post. It was too late to turn back. She had to warn the Captain of the storm. Making the deck shine like a new silver coin was the least of anyone's problems.

The upper deck was crawling with the Captain's right hand men. Some studied the star charts, other's took turns at the helm, and the rest discussed the three week old "news" that they had picked up at the last port. Somewhere amongst these men was the Captain.

She didn't think twice about interrupting the boy's club. "Captain." The word was bold for someone in her position and immediately gained attention.

"You there." the first mate bellowed. "What are you doing?"

"I need to speak with the Captain." Her 'man voice' let her pass as one of them but it would only get her so far. She shifted her weight and dropped her shoulders. She doubted it would be believable.

"Need? What could you possible have to say to the Captain?"

She could see the Captain's silhouette amongst the others. His stance suggested that he was curious. She'd gotten his attention. "I wanted to warn him that he is sailing straight into a storm."

The men laughed. Even she could admit that it sounded ridiculous. There were no clouds on the horizon and it had been that way for days. As far as anyone k new it was smooth sailing from here on out.

"You've had to much to drink." The first mate tried to regain his composure. "Go below deck." He motioned for someone to take her away.

"No!" Her true voice broke through as the man grabbed her arm. "I'm not drunk! I'm not lying! There is a storm, I can smell it!"

The Captain burst through the crowd. He was inches from her face. "What did you say?"

She stood frozen. That was it. She had been caught. They knew she was a stowaway. Torture and death were all the remained of her sorry life. Her fate was sealed. It didn't really matter anyway, the rain would kill them all.

"I can smell it." Her gentle female voice hung in the air on nails of dread. "The rain is near. Lower the ship and anchor for the night. All of you are in danger."

The captain was red in the face. His words were rapid with the precision of a double edged sword. "There are no clouds. There is no rain. There is no storm. There is however a stowaway aboard my ship and she will be dealt with immediately. Take the ship rat below and exterminate it." He told the first mate.

"No!" She kicked and screamed a the first mate dragged her below deck. "Please, you have to listen to me."

The first mate threw her to the ground. He examined his pistol. "No. The only thing I have to do is to kill you. Captain's orders."

She faced down the barrel of the pistol. So this was how the daughter of a fisherman would die. Was a bullet any better than a strike of heaven's fire?

"Any last words?"

At first she had nothing to say and she would not beg for her life there was no reason to. But then it came to her. The perfect last words.  Her lips parted. Her tongue pressed against the roof of her mouth.

Thunder rolled across the void. The pitter patter of rain hit the deck. The crew erupted in fear. "All hands on d-." They head the Captain yell. A crack of lighting attacked the ship.

"Captain's dead!" someone shouted from above.

Time stood still. She watched as the first mate's steady hand began to quiver. The pistol felt heavy, it was lead on the ocean floor.

A moment of silence for the fallen.

Another crack of lightning.

"FIRE!"

The roof splintered as the mast fell through. Embers flew through the air filling the room with a ash. Rain found its way through the gap in the roof. The ship creaked as it began it's fiery decent.

Still the first mate stood before her unmoving. His eyes filled with fear. She could see his knowledge of ships slip from his mind. He wasn't going to do anything.

"I can land it." She spoke, hoping she wouldn't be answered with a bullet speeding out the back of her skull.

He looked at her, finger on the trigger. "Can you? Because if you're lying to me..."

"Then we all die."

He took a split second to think it over. A bullet shot into the broken mast. The pistol slid back into his holster. He helped her to her feet. "Okay ship rat, " He just had to get in one more insult, "Land the ship."

They bolted up to the deck. The chaos swallowed them whole. Half of the crew was injured or dead and the other half was choking on ash. The ship was a wreck. There was no way they would regain altitude.

One problem at a time. "Tell them to lay down on the deck!" She shouted over the screaming.

"What?"

"Get them under the smoke!" She climbed the wreckage to get to the upper deck, peeled off a sailor from the helm, and began to assess the situation. Two hands on the heel, she slowly tilted the ship to it's side. Cargo began to slide. The ship began to spiral downwards.


"Are you crazy?" The first mate was out of breath.

"We have to go down. There's a small island to the south. If we can get close enough we'll get caught by the gravity field. I'll be able to land her then.

"The only islands this low are controlled by... no."

"No?"

"Let us die. I will not have my ship be taken by.."

"Its either pirates or death, mate, and I can only negotiate with one. You're choice."

Raven (2011)

The winter storm blew through the house. The chill was so extreme that frost covered every surface. Rachel found it difficult to sleep. She had lit candles before the sun down and was down to just one which she huddled close to. Her blanket was paper thin and. she kept her hair down around her face. She did everything she could possibly do to stay warm except burn the house down. If the temperature dropped anymore she was considering it.

There were other people in the house to think about. Her future in-laws who were kind enough to let her live there, her future brother-in-law, and of course her fiance whom she had been engaged to for three years all lived in this house.

Benjamin, her fiance, had gotten really sick the week after their engagement. The local doctor had warned her that he would never recover but she hoped that he would. Rachel couldn’t bear any more death. Her family was murdered around the time she had gotten engaged and she wondered every day if she was the cause for all the death. Could she be slowly killing Benjamin?

A shriek shrilled through the frozen house. Rachel awoke from her light sleep she had managed to fall into and rushed to the attic – Benjamin’s room. As she ran, bare foot against the ice covered floor, a woman screamed her name. "RACHEL!"

Rachel ran into the room where she found Lydia, her future mother-in-law, hovering over Benjamin. He was passed out on the floor in a pool of his own blood. Lydia turned to her. "You!" Her eyes flared. "You were supposed to keep an eye on him. You killed my son!"

Lydia’s hands were clutching Rachel’s neck by the time Lydia’s husband and Charlie – the other son – ran into the room. "Lydia!" Eric shouted and dragged Lydia down the stairs. "Charlie fetch the doctor!"

Charlie, who had rushed to move his brother to the bed, looked over to where Rachel had fallen to the floor. She was coughing, wheezing, and holding her throat. "Are you alright?" he walked over to her.

She motioned to the door and in an oxygen deprived voice said, "Go find the doctor." He hesitated for minute but then ran down stairs. She begged her lungs to work as she listened to the front door slam and the horses neigh. Good, Charlie took Brownie. Brownie was the fastest horse this family owned. Charlie and the doctor would be back quickly.

Somehow she found the strength to stand and made her way to Benjamin. She put her head against his chest trying to find a heartbeat. It was barely there. Rachel grabbed the rag that had been put on the bedside table and began to wash away the blood. "Don’t die." She told him. "Please."

Eric returned and came by her side. "Did Charlie leave?" She shook her head yes, talking hurt too much. "What happened?"

Rachel tried to hold the tears back. "I checked on him." She swallowed hard and took a breath. "But I guess I fell asleep. Lydia found him. She got mad. Then she-"

"Okay." He said in a hushed voice. Eric pulled her into his arms. "Don’t worry about Benjamin. The doctor will take care of him."

She pulled away to wipe the tears from her eyes. She knew Eric would never intentionally hurt her. He was nice. Rachel never understood how a man so gentle could marry a woman so… Lydia.

Right then the doctor walked in followed by Charlie. "Charlie said he fell?" the doctor asked while taking his pulse.

Eric looked at Rachel, it wasn’t good for her to be there. "Charlie, take Rachel downstairs."

"I want to stay." Rachel squeaked.

The man closed his eyes. She could see water building in the corner. "Charlie."

"Let’s go downstairs Rachel." Charlie spoke softly. He took her by the arm and led her downstairs.

As they left they could hear the beginnings of the conversation. "How is he Lewis?" Eric asked. She couldn’t see his face but she could only imagine the devastation on his face, "Not good."

Downstairs Rachel tried to busy herself with chores. The sun would hopefully rising soon anyway. She grabbed a rag and began to furiously wipe down the table. Charlie watched her in silence until she broke down in tears.

"I think you missed a spot."

"It’s all my fault." She replied.

"Now don’t get started on the ‘you bring death to all you love’ theory because it is nonsense."

."But it’s true. Ouch!" Rachel held her hand tight. "Splinters."

"Here."

"No, don’t!"

Charlie ripped his shirt and threw the scrap on her hand. She sighed. "You shouldn’t have done that to your favorite shirt. Hannah isn’t the best seamstress, it will never be mended."

"It’s Ben’s shirt."

Silence fell. Rachel pulled her nightdress closer to her neck. She felt uneasy and why shouldn’t she? After all she was in her undergarments, sitting in the kitchen with her brother-in-law, waiting for news on her fiancé’s health. It all seemed uneasy.

"Does it hurt?" He asked.

She avoided eye contact. "Does what hurt?"

"Your neck."

"I don’t know what you’re talking about." Rachel got up and moved about the room.

Charlie watched her as she avoided him. "I was there, I saw what she did."

"It was nothing. It’s nothing."

He walked over and brushed his hand against her neck. She winced. Charlie’s blood boiled. "She should be locked up."

"Don’t talk about your mother that way!"

"Why not? She’s crazy. Can’t she see that you do everything possible to tend to Ben? Doesn’t she know that you slave every day to please her?"

"Of course she does. She hands out the slave work." Rachel’s hand flew over her mouth. "I shouldn’t have said that."

"You’re right though." Charlie got quiet for a minute. "I don’t understand. Why do you put up with her?"

"Because I love him."

"He will never get better. He’s never going to be able to provide for you. He’s never going to love you the way a man should. Why stay?"

"Because I love him. I will provide for him. I’ll take care of him. I will love him, for better or for worse."

"You two haven’t even exchanged vows yet! And yet you are determined to stay here forever taking on the abuse for a man who will may or may not live to see tomorrow."

"Wouldn’t you do the same for Hannah?" Rachel asked.

Charlie sat down and put his head in his hands. "I don’t think so."

She stood speechless. Charlie and Hannah seemed so perfect, so in love, it was sickening. "But Charlie, you’re getting married in a few months."

"I know."

"Then call it off. If you don’t love her, don’t leave her at the alter."

Charlie looked up at her. Their eyes met. "I’ll leave Hannah the minute you leave this town."

Rachel’s gaze found its way to the floor. This subject was no longer open for discussion. She sat down across from him but they didn’t speak again for a long time.

Finally Doctor Lewis walked down the stairs, his sleeves rolled up and hat in hand. Rachel and Charlie both stood up to meet him. He motioned for them both to sit and they did. Charlie was brave enough to speak. "How is he?"

"Stable." He didn’t seem pleased about that. "He lost a lot of blood."

Rachel dared to speak next. "Is he awake?"

The doctor sighed. "No, I gave him some herbs that will keep him asleep for a while."

She moved to walk up the stairs but Charlie blocked her. "Doctor you have one more patient."

"Charlie." She warned.

"Rachel’s neck is injured. I was wondering if you could look at it."

"I don’t see why not. I’ll be here for a few more hours anyway." Doctor Lewis walked Rachel into her room. She managed to shoot Charlie a nasty look before disappearing into the room.

Doctor Lewis went to work at checking her over. He checked her neck, her lungs, and her voice. He didn’t ask questions, he had learned better. Any questions he asked about her ‘condition’ were never answered. Rachel was sure that he knew the truth and she was thankful that he kept it quiet.

"Everyone in this house looks exhausted." He began.

Rachel winced flinched as he put pressure on her neck. "Yes." She replied. "We are all busy preparing for the wedding."

Doctor Lewis spun around and grabbed some kind of gel. "This is going to be cold." He warned her before slathering some on her neck.

"It cannot be any colder than it was this morning."

He quickly observed the room and then her clothing. Thin walls, a single candle, a rag for a blanket, and she was barefoot. "I can imagine. Is the bride-to-be frantic?"

"Not as much as we are. Hannah cannot make up her mind about anything. She wanted venison for the wedding feast but now she’s wants pheasant. She requested that all of her wedding party wear wolves’ fur but now she says rabbit." Rachel sighed. "I don’t know what she’ll change today."

"Sounds like my wife when we were married. She made all of these last minute decisions, she even postponed the date three times so that her favorite berries would be in season." Doctor Lewis chuckled. "We did eventually get married and that day was the best day of my life next to the birth of my daughter."

Rachel couldn’t help but smile. "Mary is such a wonderful woman. You are a very lucky man Dr. Lewis."

"That is what she tells me every day." Dr. Lewis handed her the jar. "Now, your neck is very sore and it’s hard for you to breath. But you don’t need me to tell you that. The stuff in this jar will help. Put some on when you can’t take any more pain."

"Thank you." She put the jar on her nightstand.

"You’re welcome. Why don’t you get dressed then you and I can go check on Benjamin?"

Rachel couldn’t push Dr. Lewis out of the room fast enough. She was never allowed Benjamin’s room when the doctor was there. She didn’t know if they all thought she was in the way or if she would become depressed. Either way the doctor himself told her she could go up. There was no way Rachel was giving up this opportunity.

It took a few more minutes to get dressed than she wanted, it is very difficult to lace up a corset in the cold. When she stepped into the kitchen she was greeted by stares. Everyone was gathered there, including Lydia.

"Are you ready Rachel?" Doctor Lewis asked. Rachel nodded in return and began to walk towards the stairs.

Lydia watched them. "Ready for what?"

"I need an assistant by my side while I check on Benjamin."

"She needs to feed the horses. Charlie will go with you doctor."

Rachel paused accepted the fact that she would have to wait for nightfall to see him again. Doctor Lewis; however, could not accept this. He held her back. "I’m afraid this will require the gentle touch of a woman, Lydia. Charlie is anything but gentle."

"Then I will help you." Lydia stood up. Doctor Lewis looked down at Rachel not knowing how to get her out of this one and as if to say that he was sorry.

Eric knew what the doctor was trying to do. "Lyida, why don’t you let Rachel go check on Ben. Hannah will be here in soon."

At the mention of Hannah’s name Lydia snapped out of the glare she had focused on Rachel. "Oh, you’re right."

Before she could change her mind, Doctor Lewis and Rachel snuck upstairs and into Benjamin’s room. "Thank you."

"You need to thank Eric. I couldn’t have gotten you up here." Doctor Lewis explained.

She turned her attention to Ben who was fast asleep on the bed. "What do I need to do?"

Mix Tape Mondays: Moments

I thought i'd try something new today and share a short playlist of songs that had hogged the repeat button lately. This weeks playlist is kind of random. I didn't realize it until I wrote this out but this playlist does have a theme: moments.

I've been obsessed with moments lately. When you catch yourself falling in love. When you experience sudden courageousness. When you step back and take a good look at all of the positive things in your life. When you are happy, sad, or angry. When someone quotes your favorite tv show and they don't even know it. Moments are happening all of the time and they usually inspire art.

1. Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen.

First song on this weeks playlist rightfully so because it might have just saved my life this week Dozing off on a five hour drive while you're sitting shot gun and have to be on deer watch is not a very good thing. So when this song comes on the radio at 8 at night and you happen to know the words you must not fall asleep. You can't really fall asleep to this song anyway. Its just that powerful. Bonus, its a six minute song so that is a couple minutes that you are not asleep at the wheel!

2. Cop Car, Keith Urban.

The entire Fuse album is great! Its like a scrapbook of a summer cross country road trip that you can't help but fall in love every other city.  The reason this particular song gets the limelight is because if i hadn't liked it so garsh darn much i wouldn't have received the album for my birthday and thus would have missed something incredible.

 

3. When You Look Me In The Eyes, Jonas Brothers.

This song. Listen to it or don't listen to it. I do not care what you do. This song is mine. I call dibs. I claim it.  I need a box of tissues while listening to the LiVe version. This song is the moments when i became a Jonas fan. If you read my last post you'll understand why that is so special to me.

4. Love Is An Open Door, Frozen Soundtrack.

No spoilers if you haven't seen the movie. I just do not understand why people don't like this one. Okay i know the reason but its such an adorable song. Its a conversation between two people that just met and realize that they really like each other. Adorable!

 

5. In Love With You, First Date Soundtrack.

Don't let the tittle fool you, this is a very angry, hate filled moment. I think it's hilarious. This song is all about moments and reasons why this guy doesn't like his ex anymore. I haven't had the privilege of seeing this play live but i believe this is the moment when he finally stands up for himself and dumps her for good. Again don't take my word for it, i'm just guessing. Zachary Levi just so happens to sing this song. TALENTED! I could listen to his voice all day. I swear. There is an f-bomb and sexual content to this song so if you are sensitive to that you might want to skip this one.

That's the playlist for the week. But a list such as this would not be complete without honorable mentions. Moves like Jagger, Maroon 5. Leavin', Jesse McCartney. Shame, Keith Urban.

 "Life is made up of moments. Good ones, bad ones. They are all worth living." Charming (Once Upon A Time)

-Awel

The Weekend We All Desperately Needed

What do

 

Thor 2

chick flicks

Jonas Brothers

Mango / Passion Fruit Vodka

and 1 1/12 years of best friend deprivation

 

add up to?

 

22 hours of just what the doctor ordered.

I'm the doctor in this equation if you haven't guessed haha.

Not to mention the 10 hours of drive time donated by my brother and a brief appearance by a penguin. There was also a couple suspenseful minutes of trying to get people to say the right phrase. Fashion Victim? That Ding you Do? More like Clothes Murder and Elevator? Do you know how hard it is to get someone to say 'ding'? I suck at charades by the way but I can make someone laugh in under 30 seconds.

How do you prepare for a space party?

I also woke up to the sound of a submarine about to be hit by a missile. I swear some alarm tones need to come with warning labels. Warning: You will jump out of bed in panic mode whilst your best friend laughs at you! Oh early morning antics. Gotta love it.

#Skytypers

Headed to the mall before I had to leave the city. Really disappointed that Old Navy doesn't carry their plus line in stores. Wanted to try somethings on but alas not my size. Old Navy should fix this.

We browsed through some more stores and I was beginning to think that I wouldn't buy anything that day until we stepped into Rainbow. I've only been in Rainbow once before and I love their clothes. Their stylish, fashionable, and I swear they aren't paying me to say all this. I just like their merchandise. I ended up buying the Plus-Size Snap Collar Moto Jacket. I loves it so much. I've been looking for a "leather" jacket for at least two years and now I've got one! Can't wait to style it and such.

Moves like Jagger, brunch and linner, crying over a radio story about a couple who adopted triplets and then found out they were expecting twins, When You Look Me In The Eyes, and cool cars.

And a discussion on why the three of us became friends in the first place.

I can honestly  say that I probably wouldn't be friends with these lovely women if it wasn't for the Jonas Brothers. That was the one thing we had in common when we met. We never got to see them in concert together but that doesn't even matter. Im thankful for that moment  four years ago in a ten passenger van heading towards New Mexico because that is when two strangers started to talk about a band and I could, for once in my life, join in on a conversation. That's when I met my best friends.

So here's to Jonas! Here's to the technology that keeps us together though we are miles apart! Here's to girl's weekends and chick flicks and toaster waffles! Here's to the much needed conversations about real life that needed to happen!

I just hope it doesn't take another 1 1/12 years before we can do this again,
-Awel

 

How do you prepare for a space party? You Planet!