#I had a leftover square that was only usable on one side from when I prepare the paper for my oyster

[beatriceportinari]

Toad, origami, one square sheet of paper

[mydisenchantedeulogy]

Hello Sorrow [Chapter Seven] Ignite [Karl Heisenberg]

Tag List: @courtenbae​ @unlikelyllamanerd​ @mylani3110​ @imtherain​ @wrr000​

Irina sat in bed, resting against the headboard with her knees pulled close to her chest, considering her options. She had been doing this for hours before the sun rose over the valley in the east, and even now she had no clear concept as to what to do about her arrangement with Heisenberg.

He swore he’d find her if she tried to run. The thought never occurred to her though; she was much too afraid to hide from him. Besides, the village wasn’t big enough to disappear in. The four lords controlled each of the territories bordering the village with the only entrance being to the south, up a snowy mountain trail, to which she considered hiking. But she was too ill-equipped and short of time to do so.

If she could not run or hide from him, her only option was to honor her agreement. In her heart, she knew there was no other way. Besides, Irina saw no harm in bringing him resources; she only wished to know what he needed them for.

Then, there was the matter of what he planned to do with her once he had all he required. Was he going to kill her? Perhaps he would. But not at this time, she imagined. The fact he asked her to get the resources for him implied to Irina that he seldom left the factory.

Giving him a little at a time might be an option she could exploit. But it was too soon to tell.

She sighed. Sitting on this wasn’t making her feel any better. Leaving her warm bed, she gathered some fresh clothes and took a short bath, redressing before she went outside. The sun was high above the clouds, but the weather was frigid. She tightened her torn coat around her body and took the note from her pocket, looking it over again.

Where would she even find some of these items?

Irina hummed. Perhaps the workshop. Leonardo Lupu might be able to help her. She ambled towards the maiden statue and went through the large blue gate in front of his house, knocking on his door.

His daughter Elena answered.

“Irina!? This is a pleasant surprise,” she greeted with a smile.

Looking over Irina’s unkempt appearance, her smile faded.

“What happened to your coat? It looks as though it has been through a grinder.”

She had no idea.

Irina faked a laugh. “I tore it on the washboard; the ridges are worn.”

“And the blood? Where you hurt?”

She had almost forgotten. Raising her arm, she pointed at her other wrist, covered by the sleeve of her blouse.

“Nicked myself on the ridges,” she lied.

Not certain if she believed her or not, Irina cleared her throat.

“Sorry to hear that,” Elena mentioned. “Ours is worn too. Father plans to make a new one.”

Irina hummed. “Where is Mr. Leonardo? I wanted to ask him a question.”

“He’s out, I’m afraid. A tractor broke down on the road ahead and he went to see if he could fix it,” she explained.

I suppose I could look elsewhere, Irina thought, pouting. But where will I find spare chainsaw blades?

Elena puckered her brow. “What did you want to ask him?”

Should I?

Irina saw no harm in telling her.

“I was hoping to ask him about taking some spare scrap from his workshop,” she retorted.

Elena snorted. “By all means, take as much as you like. I’ve been asking him to get rid of it all for some time now.”

“I appreciate it,” Irina said with a smile.

Bringing up her hand, Elena went back into the house, returning with a small key.

“This will get you through the gate,” she mentioned.

Irina grinned. “I’ll bring it back once I’m done.”

She took the key from Elena and wandered over to the large gate at the side of the house, leading into the backyard. Once it was unlocked, she slipped inside and took a look around. Scrap laid in heaps on the snow-covered ground; some rusted and beyond repair.

It was a start.

Irina decided to browse through the workshop first; it sat at the corner of the yard; the door wide open. She eased inside, squirming her nose as the dust in the air irritated her nostrils. Her allergies infrequently bothered her; a little dust and animal dander sometimes made her sneeze, but as of late, since she was locked in a room with dust mites and god knows what else, her tolerance must have weakened. Her eyes teared up.

She’d have to rush.

Clearing them, Irina took the shortlist from her pocket and began her search. She found 3 of the items just inside the workshop: the chainsaw blades, square sheets of perforated metal, and steel hex bolts. Enveloping them in a torn flour sack, she used manila rope to keep them together, and shoved the cardboard box of bolts into her coat pocket, then carried them outside with a grunt of annoyance.

How was she expected to carry all this? The sheet metal alone was too much to tote the distance she had to walk.

Irina huffed and searched the backyard. There had to be something she could use. And there was. Leaning against the gate was a rusted wheelbarrow. She rushed over to it and looked it over. Besides a giant hole in the bucket, it seemed usable. Rolling it over to the workshop, the wheel squeaked and stalled a bit, but at least it moved.

She loaded the scrap, careful not to put too much weight on the side with the hole, then searched for the remaining items on the list. Because she didn’t know what a reactor vent was, and because Heisenberg refused to explain it to her, Irina skipped it and went on to the next item. It took her a bit to find, having to dig it out of a scrap pile, but she checked the small vent fan from her list. It was rusted and she doubted it would work, but because it was on the list, she tossed it into the wheelbarrow.

Before she left, she tossed in a muddy red LED light to replace the one she broke in his factory and rolled the wheelbarrow out into the street, locking the gate back.

When she returned the key to Elena, the young woman gave her a plate of homemade bulz –a crunchy pan-fried dish with a creamy stuffing – that she had leftover and waved to her as she rolled the squeaky wheelbarrow down the muddy road.

Irina followed the path back to Heisenberg’s factory, resting a few times; her hands rattled from the vibration and her back ached from being hunched over so long, but she made it back to the front gate before the sun began to set.

Standing on the other side, she considered leaving the material and returning to her house but decided against it. She had no idea how he’d react. But how did she get him to open the gate?

“Lord Heisenberg,” she shouted. “Are you there? I’ve brought the materials you asked for.”

A loud screech made her jerk in fear as a speaker above the gate came to life.

“Irina … welcome back. I’ve been waiting for you,” Heisenberg declared.

The gate squeaked and slid open, allowing her entrance. She rolled the wheelbarrow up the path, heading towards the front door.

Heisenberg was resting against it, waiting for her, watching her struggle to push it up the wet grassy knoll.

“Having trouble?”

She gave him a heated look, then realized in embarrassment that he wasn’t wearing a shirt. Her eyes darted to the bucket of the wheelbarrow, watching the materials bounce around as she rolled the cart into the barn area of the factory.

Why was he not wearing a shirt? It was frigid as hell outside.

Irina took her snack from the wheelbarrow and ate one as Heisenberg rummaged around through the materials she brought. She sighed in delight; the cheese melted in her mouth and the charred crust on the outside gave it an unbelievably satisfying crunch.

God, Elena could cook so well.

“Not a bad haul,” Heisenberg stated.

He hummed, undoing the manila rope and pulling back the flour sack. “Though I see you did not find everything I asked for.”

“Might have been easier, if you had explained what it was,” Irina retorted, speaking with her mouth full.

She refused to look him in the eye.

“It looks like the cover on a fan, not hard to figure out.”

Irina grunted in annoyance. He was such an asshole. She knocked her boot on the floor, waiting for him to dismiss her.

He sauntered over to her, and stood in her view, taking the LED and tapping it against her hand.

Irina met his eyes, her face heating up at how close he was to her. God, she could feel the warmth from his body.

“You did well enough,” he mentioned with a grin. “Good news is, I still have use for you.”

How reassuring.

She took an uneasy breath, watching him in interest as he took one of the rounded snacks from the plate, shoving it into his mouth, cleaning his finger. Her heart pounded in her chest.

What in the hell was that?

Heisenberg hummed. “Not bad.”

He took the plate from her and went back over to the wheelbarrow, dragging it by the handle into the next room.

She took an eager glance at him. He wasn’t a bad-looking man; too much of a smart ass though, and a monster.

“Are you coming?”

Irina grunted. “Can’t I go home?”

“By all means,” she heard him say. “But you might not make it back before nightfall.”

She huffed a sigh. He had a point, though she’d rather take her chances in the dark than stay in that room again. Her nose itched thinking about it.

“I think I may be allergic to you,” Irina shouted.

She followed him through the doors and into the cargo bay, where he was unloading the sheet metal.

“Boo fucking hoo,” he retorted.

Irina rolled her eyes. “Can I at least have a proper bed to sleep on?”

“You can have mine, now come the fuck on, or go home,” he snapped, moving into the lift.

She knew better, but she was far too tired to care and followed him into the lift. The chances of him killing her while she slept were slim, or so she hoped.

What better chance to test her worth?

He said it himself, he still had use for her. And at that moment, something in her ignited.

[amynchan]

Rabbit’s Garden

A little thing I wrote because I was thinking about just how much I felt like I identified with Rabbit sometimes and he needs more love than just people teasing him and making fun of his personality all the time.

Rabbit stood in front of his burrow, marveling at his garden.  The rutabagas were just about ready to be picked and the carrots were calling his name.  The heads of lettuce were nicely lined up in a row and the tomato vines looked absolutely wonderful.  Weeks of watering and delicate care bestowed upon the foods were finally coming to harvest, and the creature of the forest couldn’t be more thrilled with the results.

Perhaps the tomatoes could go in a sauce or salsa.  For whatever strange reason, Owl absolutely loved the stuff.  As did Gopher.

Piglet, Rabbit knew, was just getting over a cold.  Perhaps Rabbit could wash and cut up a few rutabagas for their friend and hope he would reap the many benefits.  Maybe in a stew?  He supposed it would be for the best, and knew he might as well make enough for two. Pooh had looked like he wasn’t feeling all that great either last Rabbit had checked.

Carrots were his personal favorite treat, but whenever Roo came by, Rabbit always made sure to keep a nice supply of them.  There were times when the youngster would come by and try to see what new things could be done with a carrot, and so the two had made a few carrot cakes and other confections using the plant.  It was a more enjoyable past time of Rabbit’s.

Eeyore often came by and Rabbit almost always made sure to let him have some of his garden’s efforts. He often hoped that the hard work and diligence he poured into his garden and the part of it he would give to Eeyore would show the donkey that he was indeed a part of their group and appreciated.  For some reason, Eeyore preferred lettuce over everything else, so Rabbit made sure to grow them whenever they were in season.

However, he could do none of those things if he didn’t get started with harvesting everything that was ready to be placed in his wheelbarrow.  Rabbit gave a contented sigh as he made his way to the carrots.

“All right, you,” he said to his garden.  “Let’s get you all squared away.”

Rabbit worked for the better part of the morning on the orange vegetable alone.  Several of them simply would not allow themselves to be uprooted, but he persisted.  Eventually, all of the carrots lay stacked neatly in his wheelbarrow.

The rabbit smiled as he viewed his handiwork.  While it was only a small portion done of what he wanted to do, he still felt immense pride at what he had accomplished.  He now had to move the carrots inside, sort and ready them for washing, return outside and begin with the—

“LOOK OUT, LONG-EARS!”

Jolted from his plan, Rabbit turned around, hoping to prevent anything truly chaotic from happening to his garden, but was too late.  A blur of orange and black and yellow and a literal avalanche of rocks came careening into him and his garden.

“That was fun!  Let’s do it again!”

That was Roo’s voice.

“Yeah!  But next time, you gotta work on your bounce!”

That was Tigger’s.

Everything after that was lost on Rabbit.  He knew pretty much what happened and didn’t want to open his eyes to confirm it.

But open his eyes he did. And confirm it he did.

The tomatoes were bruised and broken, several of them missing from the vine and even more leaking juice.

The rutabaga patch had been hit with some of the larger rocks, dirt upturned and a particularly massive boulder effectively crushing many of the plants which had remained in the ground during the assault.

The lettuce heads were bruised all over, some of them even ripped by the sheer force of impact, and nearly none of them usable.

His wheelbarrow of carrots had been knocked over, several of them snapped from the fall and others broken from the rocks.

The wheelbarrow itself was on its side and Rabbit simply knew that the wheel had finally broken.

And he was feet away, having been carted off by the ever-bouncing Tigger.

“My garden,” bemoaned Rabbit.  “It’s ruined!”

“Aw, don’t be that way, Long-ears!” said Tigger.  Evidently, the bouncing lunatic couldn’t have noticed the utter disaster that his garden had become in less than a minute.    How months of hard work, dedication in weather fair and violent, constant watering and pruning, had gone from perfect to horrific in such a short amount of time.  “It’s not that bad!”

“Not that bad?  Not that bad!” huffed Rabbit, finally shoving Tigger off of him.  Ignoring the duo, he rushed to the carrots, the closest thing.  It was no use.  So many of them were ruined.  Next the rutabagas.  So many crushed.  The lettuce heads.  So many shredded.  The tomatoes. So many broken.  “It’s a disaster!”

“Aw, come on,” encouraged Tigger, clearly trying to turn a disaster like this into something normal. “Look, this carrot made it!”

Rabbit turned to face what he was supposed to consider a friend to find him holding up one limp carrot, not broken, but certainly not usable.

Rabbit wanted to scream.

And maybe he did, a little, if Tigger’s and Roo’s startled looks were anything to go by.

Furious, Rabbit turned tail and went inside his house, slamming the door behind him.  He slumped his back against the door to prevent anyone from coming inside while he was stewing.  His friends had tried that before and it had not ended well for anyone. He needed space.

“Jeesh, I wonder what’s wrong with him.”

Rabbit wanted to scream again.

Instead, he shoved away from the door and walked over to his bed.  On it lay a notebook, one that he had been going through the night previous.

Before his garden had been so utterly and completely destroyed.

Rabbit flipped open the notebook and gazed longingly inside. They were plans.  Plans for the next batch of gardening, with new plants that would serve new purposes.  Pumpkins so everyone could have a nice Jack-o-Lantern for Halloween.  Yams for Lumpy, who had never had one before.  He had even put corn on the list because he knew just how much Tigger liked popcorn!

But now he was left wondering if his efforts were even worth it.

Two out of five times, something would come to completely wreck his garden.  Usually, the attacks were brought on by the many misadventures of his friends.  And while he appreciated the fact that none of his friends got hurt, he couldn’t shake the fact that none of them seemed to care when days, weeks, months of his effort would be completely in shambles.

And then it would still take them a while to wonder why he would get so upset.

He tried so very hard to have one thing he was good at.  He tried to take care of his friends in the best way he knew how.  He tried to keep them out of trouble, remind them of common sense from time to time, and provide healthy foods for the whole community. And there were so many times where his friends would not listen to him, or simply accuse him of being a spoil-sport.

But he wasn’t.  He wanted to help.  He wanted to participate.  And he tried so very hard to get in the spirit of adventure whenever he was invited along.  But he needed structure and rules to follow to make him feel at east.  And these were two things which the rest of his friends did not understand.

Rabbit made a schedule for his garden.  That made him feel at ease, a little more secure.  Whenever his plants would come to term successfully, his schedule had a purpose, a meaning.  He could help his friends by being himself.

But then things like this would happen.  The unexpected. The unforeseen.  And the dangerous.

Rabbit flipped through his notebook, where he had kept track of all of his gardens for the past five years.  In it, he had marked every successful garden and every failure.

He tried so hard not to look at the failures.

Three springs ago, Kanga had gotten green beans in perfect condition.  She had used them as a side dish in a party for everyone to attend. Rabbit had been worried about coasters and the like, trying not to spoil Kanga’s furniture, but he could deal with the rolling of eyes when he knew that they were all enjoying something he grew himself.

Four summers ago, Christopher Robbin had stopped by to pick up some strawberries, which he used for the hero party that celebrated both Pooh and Piglet.  Everybody loved the cake and the freshness of the berries.

Last autumn, the pumpkins had been a hit for Jack-o-Lanterns, and everyone had gotten a pumpkin that looked like them.  Well, Rabbit had felt a bit of mocking when it came to his own pumpkin, but when he had seen his friends so excited over theirs, he pushed the annoyance to the back of his mind.  Well, the irritation of everyone rejecting the healthy vegetables as a substitute for Halloween candy had stung him for a while, but the candy had been retrieved and all had ended up well with the world.

Memories like that calmed Rabbit down a bit.  He was uptight about his garden.  He was a stickler for the rules.  But when those things about him brought around such happy memories…  when his time and effort were used to make other people smile…  that was when he found it in himself to start a new garden.  That was when he knew that if he didn’t make fresh fruits and vegetables, no one really would, and then where would they be?

Slightly more calm, Rabbit analyzed the situation.  He would need to clear the rocks out of the path and remove the ruined vegetables. Maybe, if he was lucky, he would find at least a few things salvageable, but he really doubted it.  But more importantly than that, he would need to turn over the dirt and make sure that he had enough space and nutrients therein to start his autumn garden.

Rabbit placed the notebook back on his bed and stood.  The work wouldn’t get done by itself, he knew, and he would have to get started if he wanted to make a sizeable dent before sundown.

Some leftover spite fueling him, he made his way to the front door and opened it.  He expected an apology note of some sort—Tigger often did that after a mishap like this—but found instead that the two bouncing buddies had begun to pile the rocks outside of Rabbit’s garden.

“Huh?” asked Rabbit. The noise gathered the attention from the two, who seemed surprised at his entrance.

“Oh…  uh, hey Long-ears…” said Tigger.

“We’re building a wall!” added Roo.

Rabbit blinked.  “A wall?”

“Yeah, to protect your garden!” claimed Roo again.  He was already bouncing over to grab Rabbit’s hand, pulling him along.  “Look and see!  It was Tigger’s idea!”

“Tigger’s…?”

Curious, Rabbit looked at Tigger.   “Well, we thought that if you had a wall, your garden wouldn’t get so smashed up all the time.”

While he appreciated the sentiment, Rabbit wasn’t impressed with the execution.  He glanced towards his ruined garden, still littered with rocks.  A great many of them had been removed from that afternoon, but there was still a lot to be done.

But Tigger and Roo had done far more than he had expected in terms of attempting to apologize.  The least he had expected was a note, the most was waiting for him to come outside to apologize properly.

“Wait right there,” said Rabbit as he hurried back inside.  His friends were destructive and catastrophic.  They were chaos and confusion.  They had complete disregard for his schedules and how he liked to live his life.

But they were also genuine and empathetic.  They struggled to do what was right and did their best all the time.  Even if it was sometimes misguided, they always tried their hardest to do the right thing.  And that was why he tried so hard in return to be the best friend he could be to them.  With the things he knew how to do.

He returned to Roo and Tigger with hats for each of them.  Having one already on his head, he plopped a wide brim hat on top of Roo’s and Tigger’s heads.  To his surprise, they fit nicely.

“You’re going to burn if you work outside with no protection,” said Rabbit.  He turned to his garden.  It wasn’t ideal and he wasn’t necessarily happy with it, but now he had a plan and he could use today to help Roo and Tigger build that wall.  He could empty the garden of ruined vegetables tomorrow.

“Cool!” cried Roo. “A new hat!”

“Hoo hoo hoo hoo! We’re gonna build the biggest, most toughest wall this garden has ever had protecting it!  Just watch, Long-ears!”

Rabbit somehow doubted it, but when they finished the task and he looked over at the new wall surrounding his garden, he couldn’t help but feel it was perfect.

His friends never entirely got his obsession with his garden, and they would trample on it more times than he could count, but they would almost always realize it was important to him and try to make things right.

And that, to Rabbit, made them worth sticking around through the slight teasing for.