Enar's Vacation - Open Beta

Chapter 8

888 Words

This is a beta version of Enar's Vacation. Changes can - and probably will - be made as a result of reader feedback. I hope you'll enjoy it and I hope you'll take the time to give me some feedback. It will help me make this story the best it can be.

+++

Faint pre-dawn light stole over hills and valleys, gently pushing night away.

In a little bed, in a room in the side of a hill, a small man slept. It wasn't his bed, but it was safe and warm, and he slept without worry.

Soon, the first rays of light would touch the trees outside the window. Birds would wake and sing to the rising sun, to each other, and to the world.

Soon, but not just yet.

For now, all was still, and all was quiet. Drops of dew hung from grass and leaves, giving everything a pale gray sheen. Here and there, a straggling creature of the night slunk home to its hiding place; tired, and ready to rest.

Something rustled in the grass outside the window, but the small man in the bed inside didn't notice. He'd pulled the duvet all the way up to his ear and would not wake for hours yet.

+++

There was nothing to eat. The kitchen had no food in it.

It had a big old iron stove. It had a workbench for preparing meals and a little table for eating them. It had pots and pans, bowls and plates, on shelves and in cupboards. It had everything you'd need to prepare a meal - except the actual food.

Enar wouldn't have fired up the stove - he didn't know how to - but he could have had a bagel, or some fruit, or something else that didn't need warming up. No doubt breakfast would be served down at the main burrow soon, but it would have been nice with a little something right out of bed. Did they have bagels out here?

Still in his striped pajamas, and with the slate tile floor cold against his feet, Enar shivered where he stood. He missed his slippers. The bed had been warm and comfortable, and for a long while after waking up he'd just lain there, pondering whether to try and go back to sleep or not.

Eventually he'd decided he wanted a bite and snuck out into the kitchen.

There was no actual need for sneaking, but he'd not wanted to disturb the morning. So he'd tiptoed through the hallway and into the other room and, one by one, opened all of the cupboards, shushing himself whenever a door creaked. It had felt a bit like being an undercover agent in search of important secrets.

Not finding any food had ruined the mood a little, and now he stood there in his pajamas, in the middle of the floor and with his hands on his hips, wondering what to do next.

Enar sighed to himself. Might as well get dressed and have a look outside. He could head down to the porch and see if there was any breakfast to be had. Maybe he could help out setting the table or something.

Someone knocked on the door.

"Enar, are you awake?" Erik's voice drifted in through the open kitchen window. He knocked again.

When Enar opened the door the boy stood there holding a big, heavy, jug of water.

"Mom said to let you know breakfast will be ready soon. We'll eat outside, just like last night. I also brought you some water for the wash room."

"Thank you very much. I hadn't thought about that." He had to use both hands to grab the jug. It wasn't that it was too heavy, but it was big and unwieldy and Erik had had been holding on to the handle. "Where do I get water from, so I can get my own tomorrow?"

"There's a pump just along the path down to our's." Erik pointed with a thumb back over his shoulder. "It's on the right side. You can't miss it. Just remember that you have to pour some water into it before you start pumping. Otherwise it will take forever before anything comes out."

"Oh?" Enar frowned. Why would you do that?

Erik grinned. "Yeah, dad says there's a sylph lives down there and she needs an offering before giving anything back. Personally I think it's just the pump mechanics being old and him not being bothered enough to fix it."

"Oh." That made sense, perhaps - or maybe it didn't. It was an explanation though, two explanations even.

"Don't tell him sylphs are of air though. He gets really worked up about that." Eric winked at him. "Oh, and get your water in the evening before you go to bed, that way you'll have it ready for when you wake up."

"Right, no talk of sylphs and get water in the evening." Enar grinned and nodded. "I'll remember that. Good point. Can I keep this jug or is there one here?"

"There should be one or two in the kitchen. I don't know if you looked there. I have to take this one back. Linnea needs it."

There had been a jug in one of the cupboards, hadn't it? He could use that - and pour the rest of the water in the basin in the washroom if it wasn't big enough. "Okay, right. I'll just go find something then. Be right back."

Questions - Chapter 8

These questions are meant to be answered from memory, based on your first impressions of the chapter. Please do not check back or re-read the chapter before answering.

These questions aren't meant to test if you've paid attention, they're meant to test what kind of impression the story has made on you. As such, any answer is a good answer. If your answer doesn't match with my intention for the story, then it's the fault of my writing, not your fault for not picking up on everything.

Please also bear in mind that some questions may be referring to things mentioned in previous chapters.

Do you feel that this chapter furthered the story, or could it have been skipped, completely or in parts?

Was something in this chapter unclear? If so, was it in a negative or in a positive way?

The first few paragraphs are narrated somewhat differently to the rest of the chapter. How did you feel about that?