Sticks - Prose Version (complete)

It’s a dreary early morning, the sun not yet crossing the horizon, mist rests over the gardens around the clinic. Low stone walls box in different kinds of plants. While the inside plots are well maintained, weeds grow wildey from the cracked stone path, walls slightly deteriorating. A well for water overtaken by moss and a few worn down statues decorate the area.

Still enough to almost be mistaken for one of them, Torvus perks up at the small noise of a bird rustling in a bush. He reminds himself... Calm down… It’s too early. He goes back to kneeling on one of the walls looking over the plot of medicinal herbs. Claws gingerly scooping weeds out, placing them in a basket to toss into the woods later. Muttering to the plants. “Sorry, this spot is not for you. Uh- let's see”

He pulls out a parchment of instructions “Pull weeds… done.. f-feed? .. uhg your handwriting” He mutters… pulling out a small pot filled with an odd mixture. He begins measuring it into his hand. “- one palm full per plant should be enough for the whole lot.”

Snap

Torvus jolts up, spilling the whole contents into the dirt. A silhouette of a deer in the fog books it into the forest. “A-ah…” He looks down at the mess he made. “Shit!!” frantically scrambling to scoop up what he can, and distribute it to the best of his ability coming up short handed half way.

He freezes up again thinking what to do. Uhg Doctor is going to be upset about the waste… she doesn't have to know… or… I could make more... I just need… He scuttles over pulling some flower petals off a bush then over to another for berries “I think it uses these…” dropping them into the now empty pot, starts grinding at it with a rock. “But what else is in it…:

Through the sound of grinding he misses the sound of footsteps approaching, luckily it’s the sound of laughter that alerts him. He makes a quick dive to hide behind the garden well. The fog had started to lift with the approach of daylight, he had lost track of time.

He peaks around to see three figures from the fog, teens… gnome kids, younger than him, sticks in their hands. It’s them… Running the sticks along the stone walls, whacking at bushes. Hsss.. Not the plants.

Laughing with malice in their voices.

“Where is the Doctor’s monster?”

“Come out we know you are around here!”

“C’mon, We just want to look at you.”

One of them whacks at the dirt uprooting a plant. Another kicks over the basket of weeds that was left out. Torvus braces himself before coming out hands first from behind the well. Quiet… they hadn't noticed him yet…

“There!” They walk towards Torvis. “Where’ve you been, bones?”

One appearing to be the leader stands in front of Torvus while the other two flank him from the sides. They were so much smaller.. Torvus straightened up a bit, towering more, his back to the well. The leader prods Torvus hard in the chest with the stick. “What’ve you been doing here today, minion?”

“Th- that's not my- I’m not-” He mutters… pulling out his list. “A lot actually… Close to being done…”

Whack

The stick hits the parchment out of Torvus’ hands. He scrambles to retrieve it out of the air, coiling back into himself. Looking down at the paper. “I- actually still have work to do, over there-”

He attempts to scamper off through a gap but two of the kids cross their sticks in front of him. “We aren't done here,... pull your hood down.”

Torvus clenches his beak for a moment and breaths out. “Oh- Oh, i'm sorry…” His hands reach up and grab hold of the sticks in front of him, lenses glowing fiercely with green light. “...do you.. want to tend to the garden. The Doctor will get pretty mad if I don’t get over there soon.” He hissed out with a threat. “I don’t think you want to meet her.”

One of the lackeys gets startled and loses grasp on their stick falling backwards to the laughter of the other two.

“What- you scared of the doctor’s henchman?” The leader easily shakes his stick out of the claws.

The other smacking his friend over the head with his stick. “Yeah, get up.”

“N-No!” The other stands up and shakes himself off angrily.

Torvus stood still as a statue as the three yelled amongst themselves. His brain buzzes with noise, through it the words ‘protect yourself’ ring out.

A stick comes up to the side of his hood, snapping him out of it. He whacks it aside with a hand.

The boys laugh.

“I thought you were dead.”

“Maybe he is!”

Torvus spins toward the leader, holding out a hand, fingers flexed. Through his skin a ghostly skeletal hand shoots out and hits the teen, fingers splayed center chest knocking him back with fear. All three break into a frantic scramble dropping their sticks and booking it back into center town.

Did I just do that… He looked down at his hand, transfixed. He had been practicing magic but that... was a first. Flexing his fingers momentarily before looking back at his list again. “Prop up vines, back of the clinic…” He looks down at the sticks left behind, those would work.

Torvus picks up one of the sticks, “Pretty good stick.” He twirls it awkwardly, clumsily hitting himself in the face and dropping it, glad no one was around to see that. Gathering the other sticks along with it and shuffling to his next task.

---------

-click clack-

Torvus slumped up against the back of the door with a loud pained groan. “I finished!” He looked up when there was no response. “Mmm.. she must be in the back…”

He makes his way past the counter to a backroom littered with lab equipment. An older gnome woman fully focused leaning over a workbench. “Ah good you are back- did you finish the list already?” “Yes, much faster today.” “Good! I have a few things I wanted to speak with you about.” She spun around in her chair and gestured to a stool next to her. “Now.. There’s some good and bad, do you have a preference which I start with?”

Oh-no… Torvus plopped down on the stool which put him at face level with her. “Not.. really…”

“... I received some distressed messages. Do you want to tell me about what happened this morning?”

“..... not really…” He watched her face turn into a scowl. “I mean uh… okay-”

After a fast stuttered explanation she lets out a long laugh, that would be unsettling to most. “Good!”

“Wh- wait what? Is this not the bad thing?” He stuttered.

“No. I’m proud of you, you've not been able to do any magic and I know how hard you've been practicing. Can you do it again, now?”

“Oh uh-” Torvus looks down tentatively at his claws resting in his lap. Lifting one up and pointing it off to the side, he does the same gesture as before- … He tries again focusing harder on his hand.

“It’s alright. You just need to be in your element, which leads me to the next thing.”

“Oh- another out of town errand?” He wheezes, scratching idly at the feathers around his bone plating.

“Well… You aren't going to be growing anymore so you won’t be needing any new grafts.”

Where is she going with this…

“I thought maybe now you can start traveling soon, more than just errands. Getting experience and filling up on notes that book of yours you wanted to write!” She reaches for a note book on the table.

Oh gods oh no no no no no no, he squirms in his seat.

She flips through the pages. “You know your writing is good already. But some real world experience would be good for you. Gotta learn to talk to people as good as you can put words on paper.”

“M- ..Doctor Mom…” He interlocks his hands nervously. “I really don’t think I’m ready.” He sits up straighter. “P-plus who will help you around here!? You will be all by yourself.”

“I’ve been thinking about it. I can’t keep you from your own life so I was going to look for an assistant to-”

“No!! Wh- am I not helpful?” He stammers. “I’m your assistant. Have I been too slow or- y- you know those teens are really distracting.”

“You are also a teen…”

“Y-yes well. They - I feel like I have to give them what they want, a little show and that takes up some of my chores time- or.. Is it the errands? I- I”

“Torvus… if you stay here you won’t be able to grow and will always be pushed around by those kinds of people. You have to stand up like you did today and defend yourself.”

Torvus stands up and walks to the door. “I- won’t go.. I won’t go out there.” He storms out and sulks up a flight of stairs.

Slamming his bedroom door behind him, hisses at the sound it makes regretfully. “Sshh..sorry…”

-----

The Doctor turned back to her table, pulling out some scrolls. She traces her finger along the texts searching for different ingredients. And begins making another list. “Mmm… The slow way then.”