at a crossroads

Skoll Haskel · 01-03-2012, 09:39 PM

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A child was a blank slate. Children could be strongly conditioned at a young age to follow one set of beliefs and reject all others, planting the seeds of pride in their own religion or prejudice toward others’, but that was not the way with Skoll. While he had heard the legends and prayers of his mother, he had been open-minded to every other story he heard told in his pack. The Court of Miracles was founded as a place for misfits, a mishmash of wolves and dogs who didn’t belong anywhere else. Even though it might not be the same as it had been at its inception, its characters were still assorted, and the boy found himself eager to learn all he could about the different lore. Perhaps his yearning for knowledge would manifest in a literary young man at a later age, but for now his excitement sparked in his green eyes and danced up his wagging tail, as eager as any puppy could be.

A magenta-nailed hand patted him on the head, and Skoll grinned at the praise. He responded best to it, often wriggling and beaming as if he were going to burst with delight. Always striving to prove himself in one way or another, he was happier than most children when he realized he’d attained whatever image he had strove to create for himself.

Erzulie motioned for him to come near after unscrewing the lid, but the boy could scarcely contain himself. Blue dropped onto his blonde pelt as she reached out for him, urging him to hold still though he had to bite his tongue to do so, suppressing his giggles at being poked and jabbed in his ribcage. Slowly, however, with the patience of the painter and the effort of the canvas, the veve began to take shape on the pale golden pelt.

The young Haskel was glad to be picked out by Papa Legba; it made him feel special and really smart, smarter even than his sister Charlotte. His small sister had a quick mind, but would she know anything about the lwa? He grinned devilishly at the thought of teaching her and Hati, taking his mind off the ticklish sensation so the d’Artisan could make progress on her drawing.

“So you see veves an’ then lwas?” Skoll asked, trying to wrap his mind around her strange explanation. He wondered if he could see spirits too, like the fairies that Caspa had taught him did not exist. He wondered what his not-half-a-ghost friend would think about what Erzulie’s claims then decided that he wouldn’t bother the wispy dog with it.

Her last statement and the swirl of her fingers made the boy gasp. “I wanna see when done!” he barked, jumping a little before realizing that he would be jarring her. He crouched sheepishly, resolving to keep more still from now on as his pale coat absorbed the paint.

Image courtesy of blmiers@Flickr; table by the Mentors!

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