#The Adventures of Bunsington

[chiefwritinghound-blog]

The Adventures of Bunsington: Going Home (Chapter 1)

Bunsington was a simple girl who wanted one thing. She wanted to go home. The country of Grenalag was a very large place and she had packed up, against her will, to move across the entire country to a new kingdom at the ripe age of 12. Of course, she had always had a taste for home. She occasionally wrote letters to the boy she had fallen in love with when she was a mere child and thought of her home often, even after she had lived in her new kingdom, the kingdom of Trandate, for almost 5 years. That was where she matured and where she learned. It was even where she found Tofu, the miniature turtle she kept in her pocket and consulted for all decisions. Yet no experience could measure up to the amazing memories of her home and she forever longed to go back. She had spent a whole day and night telling Tofu of her home; all of the vague and all of the specific and detailed memories she had of the place, speaking fondly of it (aside from the smothering humidity in the summer times). She had fallen asleep that night with visions of her young love and the lavender fields she had laid in for countless hours practicing her lute in dancing in her mind.

   The next morning, Bunsington donned her bright green leggings and brown robe, putting Tofu gently in her inside breast pocket to make sure she would not be seen since talking turtles were rather rare-- even more rare was the friendship they had so she wouldn’t chance Tofu being seen. Finally, she grabbed her lute, her cards and a few apples and oranges for lunch before setting out for the day, planning on playing her music outside the local tavern to make a few bronze and silver pieces, perhaps even a bit of gold if she struck the right chords into the right people's’ hearts, but the thought was cut short as Tofu’s old voice wheezed out. “Mis Bunsington,” She said in her frail old voice. Bunsington looked down into her robe, questioning Tofu with a look. Tofu seemed, though, to not care a bit about what kind of look she had on her face as she continued, “Perhaps you should go back to this land of yours. A fine bard like yourself may very well make enough money breezing through a few towns to make it back to this Kingdom of Home you speak of,” She said, ducking her small head back into the pocket to avoid the bright sun. Bunsington didn’t bother to press further on why or what she had meant since she knew she would receive nothing but silence from her short-spoken companion.

   She let her mind wander as she trotted down the dirt road to the tavern, Tofu had never actually made a suggestion before. She only gave out advice when it was requested, so Bunsington figured that she should take it a bit more seriously than she had initially thought too. While Bunsington missed and loved her home dearly, she had never actually thought about going back there, for it was so far and she lived by herself after her parents were killed by the local gang of the town when she was 14. She got lost in her own mind-- so much so that when she had arrived at the tavern, it felt as if she barely had time at all to think. She set up her lute case open at her feet, starting to play and sing to the men and women who passed by, not leaving her spot until nightfall, glad about the amount that she had earned, tucking it all away. She sat down, not realizing that she hadn’t eaten all day until her stomach growled loudly, telling her that she should feel hungry even though she didn’t. She plopped on the ground and ate two oranges as she looked at the stars, jumping and scurrying to her feet when she was kicked in her lower back. She looked at who had struck the blow and saw nothing but a dark purple cloak with two large, black boots sticking out of the bottom. She knew who it was. The tax collector from the Spaded Hoods. One had to pay the gang going in and out of town, and if they were caught out after dark. She shakily reached into her pocket, knowing that she would meet the same fate as her hard-headed parents if she refused. She held out all of the money she had made and was met with a grunt. “This is not all of it.” The man said in a thick, foreign accent. She let out a soft whimper. “It is!” She cried, opening her lute case to show him. “Please, sir, I have given you everything,” She said truthfully, opening her pockets for him. He stepped forward and patted her pockets, taking an extra long time feeling on her backside. She held her breath, not even caring that he was touching her inappropriately as she was terrified he would touch her breasts and find Tofu. She felt Tofu’s little breaths which meant she was breathing hard and knew what was going on, so she was just as nervous. She let out a silent sigh of relief as the man stepped back. “Do you have any more oranges?” He asked, and she could finally see his face under the hood as he properly faced her under the flame of the oil lamp which stayed lit every night outside the tavern. He wasn’t an ugly man. He wasn’t the most pretty man, either, but he definitely wasn’t ugly. “No,” She frowned. “I have some at my home if you want some so badly, though,” SHe said, knowing it wasn’t wise to reject a tax collector. He thought on it for a moment before nodding.

She started to walk off, staring intensely at the ground as she walked, watching her shoes and only her shoes crunch on the gravel path up to her house as she walked in, expecting the man to wait outside. She gasped when she heard the door shut and whipped around to see the man standing there. She opened her mouth but snapped it right back shut. She wouldn’t say anything on it. Not for the sake of her safety. “I’ve never seen you before... Your accent is foreign too,” She said, knowing it was risky to engage him in conversation, but finding it calming to her own nerves to do so. “Yes... I roam from town to town. These… strange men-- they have employed me for the week and offered a good pay for simple tax collections,” He said, playing off his position of power as if it were nothing. Bunsington was absolutely taken aback at how he could be so casual about threatening and stealing from innocent people for others. She dug through her pantry and looked for an orange, feeling slightly panicked when she came across none. She had to stall the big an in her small house who could easily take her over or steal from her if he decided to be enraged over her lack of oranged. “I’m leaving here by weeks end as well,” She said, hoping he would ask about it. “I never said I was leaving.” He grunted. She opened a drawer and found an orange, wanting to fall on the ground from relief. “Oh, I see,” She said, walking to the door, pleased beyond measure when he followed her. “Well, I hope for you safe travels when and wherever you go,’ She said, slowly closing her door. “And I bid you goodnight,” She said, sitting on the floor and listening to his barreling steps crunching gravel as he walked away. She opened her breast pocket and held Tofu close. “That was close, Tofu,” She said, hanging her head in a defeated way. “You did well, Mis,” She croaked softly. “If you had not carried on as you did, you would have met the same kind of demise as your mother and father. I have taught you well,” She said, crediting herself for the success. Bunsington didn’t fight it, standing up and heading off to bed, utterly exhausted from the events of the day.

She had slept a dreamless sleep and awoken in the morning uncomfortable from never taking off the clothes she had dressed in for the previous day. She was already sweating, so she took off her robes and pulled on a thin shirt she had sewn the last summer for just the occasion, leaving on her leggings and stretching out. She performed her daily chores and went through her whole house, packing up her few clothes and things she held dear, letting Tofu rest on her shoulder the whole time, consulting her on what was worth keeping if she wanted to keep it. Tofu reminded her that her home was far and that she needed to take the bare minimum if she were to travel comfortably. At the end of her process she had decided on a few pair of leggings, undershirts, and robes, the warmest blanket she owned, a few small ornaments she held dear and, of course, her favorite lute to pack into a second bag she had. Her normal messenger back she often carried contained tarot and playing card and a disguise for if she was ever in a pinch, and of course room for the food she would be taking along the way, so she decided not to compromise any of that space. She looked at her home and sighed softly. She wasn’t actually sure how to get rid of it now that she had everything packed up, so she brought her small companion to eye level. “Tofu, what should we do with the house now that we’re leaving to go home?” She asked, sounding a bit hopeless. “You are a kind girl, but sometimes rather dull,” Tofu said bluntly. “Why not give it to one of the homeless? They can sustain themselves here as long as they acquire their own food. They even have your old clothes, bedding, and even your books to keep them warm!” She said, making Bunsington feel a bit like a dunce for not thinking of something so simple in the first place. She lugged her large bag onto her shoulders, along with her messenger bag and picked up her lute case before heading on her way. She saw an old homeless woman sitting outside a shop advertising new and fixed shoes. “Hello, lady,” Bunsington said not so gracefully. “I plan on becoming a nomad and have no use for my house anymore. I’ve already paid the darned thing to the kingdom, so if you want it you can have it and everything in it as well.” She smiled brightly, feeling a bit uncomfortable seeing such an old lady cry--even if it was obviously tears of joy. She didn’t like all of the cries of thanks, so she simply told her where the house was located and was off walking, looking at road signs to see her way, paying the burly man with a strange accent on the way out as taxes for using the bridge out of the kingdom.

   Though Bunsington started early in the day, she had set out on foot and hadn’t realized that it would take lots out of her to do so, especially carrying what little belongings she decided to keep. She had trudged on, though, refusing to camp in the woods at all, not wanting to spend the night on the cold hard ground if he didn’t absolutely have to, so when she saw the lights of the next kingdom in the distance, she felt suddenly as if she could jump for joy. “Tofu... I’m not sure I can make it all the way to my home without a horse... But I don’t have enough money to buy one! What should we do?” SHe asked, a bit distressed since she didn’t want to put her plans on hold or have to completely cancel them altogether. “You have a few gold pieces, that should be enough to pay for a week’s stay in an inn or tavern, and you can play until you have enough for a horse! The time will be over before you know it and you’ll wish you had more in the future when you think back on it, Mis bunsington,” She said before sleepily retreating into her shell for the night. Bunsington made the rest of the way to the town and spent quite a bit looking for the local inn. When she found it, she paid for two nights (though she planned to spend the week as Tofu said, it was all she could comfortably afford) and made her way to her bedroom, unlocking the door and sitting her things down, locking it back for the night before sitting Tofu on the pillow beside her, kissing her little shell before settling in and making a mental note to look for the stables the next morning.

When Bunsington awoke, the sun had barely come up, yet it still seemed a bit too bright for her liking. She sat up and touched her toes and looked for Tofu on the bed before finding her nested under the covers. “Hello there, Tofu,” She cooed in a merry voice, glad to be with her on such a nice adventure. She looked through her stuff, doing an inventory check and finding everything right where it should be. She changed her clothes and grabbed her lute, putting Tofu in her breast pocket once more before heading down into the town to find the local tavern. After asking a nice looking old lady for directions, she found it and sat up outside, starting to sing a merry tune which seemed to draw the attention of quite a few folks. Seeing the small crowd that gathered to see her sing and with quite a few tips in only the first hour, she felt proud and satisfied, collecting her money and counting it out, amazed that she actually got two gold pieces. She figured that this must be a decently rich kingdom since she also got a majority of silver pieces instead of bronze. She smiled to herself and put all of the pieces into a small pouch she tied to her waist. “Tofu, are you hungry? I can get you some nice fresh lettuce,” She said, spying a farmer’s market down one of the cross streets she was approaching. She sighed softly when she received no answer, reaching into her pocket and feeling around, prodding at Tofu’s shell until she got a grumpy, muffled ‘Yes,’ knowing that Tofu probably stayed up a good part of the night. As she walked on, she wondered just what her little companion could have to think or worry about enough to stay up long enough to be so tired. She saw many things she would have liked to buy, but she reminded herself that not only did she not have the space in her luggage, but she also didn’t have a basket to carry all of the things she wanted, so she simply grabbed a head of lettuce for Tofu and headed back to the Inn, smiling brightly at the pretty woman working the front desk, thinking her hairstyle was rather lovely as she walked up the steps to her room. She sat tofu on the bed and tore off a piece of lettuce, sitting in it in front of her shell, knowing she would get it when she wanted. “I’m going to go pay for another few nights and ask that pretty woman at the front if there is a stable that sells horses in this kingdom since it seems rather small. I won't actually leave without you and I’m locking the door so no one can come in,” She said, receiving no response, but knowing that Tofu had heard.

Bunsington headed off downstairs once more after making sure multiple times that her door was locked, sitting a few silver pieces in front of the woman. "I’d like to pay for another three nights,” She said, being met with a smile in return since she had added on a bit more than the asking price for the extra nights. “I was wondering if your kingdom had a stable anywhere? Specifically, one that sells some of its horses,” She inquired, glancing around at the woman's workspace, noting that it looked homey but not messy, thinking that when she finally settles down she would like to decorate her house, or at least her room, in such a manner. The woman spoke in a small, mousy voice which slightly surprised Bunsington since most women that had red hair she had ever met were loud and had strong voices, “There is a stable, but it only sells donkeys. I’d have to warn you, though, try to do business with the husband because his wife loves to haggle and make you pay even more than what her original price was,” She smiled fondly and Bunsington wondered just how well she knew the woman to have such a smile before thanking her and heading back up to her room, greeted by the adorable sight of Tofu munching slowly on her small piece of lettuce. “Well, Tofu, it looks like we’re getting a donkey.” She said, telling Tofu about all the money she had made and about how pretty and mysterious the woman at the front desk was. “You should have gotten her name,” Tofu said after she had swallowed her small mouthful of greens. “Perhaps then you could name a plant after her when this is all over,” she said. Bunsington gasped. “She would be lavender!” She exclaimed, not sure if it was the day's events or the actual woman (though it was probably a bit of both) that made her so excited. “She even had a few plants around her desk. I think I’ll catch her name on our way out,” Bunsington said, making up her mind about the woman. She stretched out. “So, Tofu, should I keep singing for a few days before we get our mule, or should I just get him this afternoon?” She asked. Tofu thought on it for a bit while she munched on her lettuce. “‘I think,’ She finally responded, “That you should continue to sing. We will buy the mule when we have double the cost of the asking price, not including money for staying in this room and food for the both of us,” She said, seeming happy with her decision as she went back to munching and ignoring what Bunsington had to say. She stood and stretched, laying down beside her turtle friend and just daydreaming, lost in her thoughts and humming. “Perhaps I could write a song about her,” She said softly. Tofu, though, continued to ignore her as she slowly made her way through the lettuce, determined to finish the whole leaf since it was such a rare occasion for her to have lettuce, especially lettuce so crisp and nice.

At the lack of response, Bunsington took out her lute and began to strum, humming a melody. She spent the rest of the day making a tune for that red-haired woman.