Hike and Days

       Dawn crept up on us with its warm light caressing our skin through the tent. It was quiet outside, birds and wind were pulling off the nature's orchestra. Comforting as it was sitting in the tent, I woke Sam and Daisy to welcome the arrival of a brand new day with a little tickle on them.

       'Time to wake up kids, no time to waste.'

       Both shoved me off and let out a groan, and rubbed their eyes when sitting up.

       'Morning daddy,' Daisy said, 'Morning dad.' Sam said.

       'Morning, kids.' I replied, kissing them in the forehead, 'How's sleep? Still having the bad dream Day?' I asked.

       'Uh-uh, sleep very well sir.' Daisy said. 'Me too.' Sam said.

       'That's good. So, how about we get freshen up and pack our things for the next meeting point where your mother is?'

       'Okay.' They said.

       I took out the bag containing our morning kits: Toothbrushes, cups, towels in blue and red for Sam and Daisy, green for me. I slid open the tent and let the two went out, and gave them some water and the kit, they split up in different way and started brushing, I could hear them giggling at other's foamed mouth.

       The sun was coming up fast, by the time we have finished packing our tent, it was beaming at us with its furious flame. Sam put on his favorite baseball cap while Daisy made up her hair for the white round hat with flowery pattern. They grabbed their tiny bags and we started walking to the end point. We came across a trail where big tree grown, making it easier, cooler to start the day with a steady pace. The road followed were mostly dirt, or rocky path, I have to stand close to the kids, sometime holding their hands when stepping forward to protect they from falling. 

       By eleven, close to noon, we were roasted under direct sun glare. We rested under a tree not far way in the shape of an rabbit with all its leaf siding left because of the wind, and we drank some water and ate some honey-flavored bread. After that, Sam performed an improvised but unsuccessful tree climbing, leaving Daisy stood there in frustration. She yelled at his stupid bravery and I listened how she thought Sam would hurt himself and be at the hospital with all his friends crying around his bed.

       The heat flushed their faces. Weather was still hot although it was close to Autumn. They were both happy, lively and energetic. I wish I could have more time for them.

       Rested and feasted, we continued our hike.

       The moment they saw their mother's parked vehicle in sight  they were already yelling and hopping back at the hill's top. The journey was about to end.

       When we finally reached the parked Polo, their mom were not sitting in the car. The kids were worried, saying something about the mythical Bigfoot roaming in the area taking people. I dialed her number but it rang inside the car. She must have left it in a hurry. Where would she be when she knows her kids were coming?

       I unlocked the car with the spare key, letting the kids inside to cool themselves with the air-conditioner. I walked around the place, searching for her while leaving the kids alone in the car. They are smart kids, they know what they have to do if anyone came around the car.

       I called for her several times around the parking lot. It was quiet. My voice echoed. Bounced. 

       'Here!'

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Random Encounter [3]

  It had finally started raining. Sarah had begun to wonder when would it arrive after days of unbearable heat invaded every household, even for the people with the luxury to have their fan running all day everyday. It was such a relief.

  On the first day the heat wave arrived, she couldn't believe what she saw when her husband came home soaked in sweat from collar to waist. She spent a long time with him in a lukewarm bath that evening talking about his day and the weather. That night they went completely naked in the house with the blind lowered, candle unlit.

  Something deep inside her wanted out, she didn't fight with the thought and grabbed the umbrella hanging on the door knob.

  The air freshened and clean, the sound of the rain dropping on the umbrella made her felt happy. It was a good rain, rain that came perfectly at the moment needed.

  A little girl ran across the street covering her long hair with her tiny hands formed a triangular fence and headed under a balcony. She was laughing too, enjoying the long waited rain.

  A boy around the same age with a sealed blue umbrella in hand raced toward her from the street corner, he shouted at the girl, calling her Sam. Rain splattered on his shoulder as he ran with the umbrella going up and down in his hand, drops of rain soon dyed his pale green T-shirt into dark green. He reached her under the roof and unsealed the umbrella. He hung tight on the girl and walked her away while both of them giggling at his shirt under the umbrella.

  As they turned into the another block, Sarah stayed motionless, looking into the murky sky, thinking of her husband working at the small office with big industrial fan running, imagining how her husband would hate the loud motor hum while at work.

  She wanted to be there for him when he got off work. They could, too, be like these two kids, giggling about their day under the rain. They could have a cold bath and stay naked all night with comfort, maybe even share a dance in the candle's light.

[Man, it's hot when I was writing this weeks ago and now editing it both with the fan humming above me. Come on, just rain already!]

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D&D Anyone?

       As T descended the dungeon holding the torch up in his left hand, his cowboy boot clanked loud against rocky steps and his shadows casted on uneven surface of the wall. The group followed carefully after him and inspected the bright area searching for unexpected, and most importantly, avoid monsters that lurked around taken this place home.

       Inside an environment unknown to them: Four round pillars supported the room, a door at the end with dust and spider webs sprawling around everywhere. They searched but came up with nothing interesting or useful. T commanded forward.

       Upon entering, they encountered three slender hounds tearing and eating something vaguely resembled the shape of a deer, their mouths bloody, and eyes in frenzy. The party stood aligned and H the priest unleashed an aura, G and T rushed in front of the magical fence to repel the attack from the hounds. The beasts abandoned the feast they were having, obviously angry at the human's intrusion. Those gory sharp teeth and the low groan made T shivered. He drew out an iron sword while keeping the torch high to illuminate the room in order to provide the best field of view. G held tight on his Iron Shield and an iron blade.

       Two hounds charged at them with their muddy claws, G stepped forward and blocked it with the shield, the two collided claw-on with the shield and sent out a terrible snap sound of bone fracture, those two let out a cold cry and stayed down. The third one rolled back barking frantically. T slashed at the two injured ending their suffering. The last one retreated down the corridor.

       The party resumed their search and came up with quite a few items, including a shiny orange-red amber that could be used in jewelry, it might yield a few gold. H tuck it in her pocket smiling, said something like 'a girl looks after her accessories well'.

       Continue on the path, the soft growl of the hound gave them the chill, such sound could only be heard from a person's funeral.

       The flame was flickering when they had reached the end of the passage, there was a hole the size of the hound at the bottom center, but too small for the fully equipped to crawl through, even for H the slimmest in the party, in which case she would definitely said no.

       The flame flickered again toward left.

       The flame gave T an idea. He asked G to help him push against the surface of the rock on the left. Slowly, the rock shifted and eventually they were able to squeeze into the other side.

       It was a cave, round like a dome and very humid with a hole the size of a window at the center of the wall, they could hear water running from the outside. Drops of liquid kept dripping from the top which is about ten meters high when they walked around the cave.

       T noticed that the top was unnaturally dark. He held up the fire, and as it happened, hundreds of bats took off at the same time from the ceiling rushing down toward them and made a sharp turn, out of the hole they went.

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