Random things....
Oct. 16th, 2004 08:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
silverthorneWell, thought I would share this...when I posted it on one of the Yahoogroups RPG's I was in, the other players really liked it...don;t know if you guys would agree, but hey...that's all right.
Once it gets into the story telling part, I tried to imitate the same style of story-telling the Native Americans use a lot of times when they tell stories...some people like the style, some do not.
I didn't edit it, so I apologize to those who beta...as far as I know, the punctuation is correct for the writing style though...^^;
Anyhow, enjoy if you're inclined to...and FB, good or constructively critical, is welcome...
Johnny and the Wind
Johnny kept nodding agreeably to Joe's words, smiling as he ate and watched and listened. When Richie piped up on Loca's name, and the Jenny question, he gave the boy another smile.
" 'Loca' means crazy, yes...and this here girl--a 'Jenny'--could be said to be plumb crazy for following me all over creation and back. Ain't that right, Girl?" he chucked, petting her cheek once more and then ruffling her spiky mane as she brayed a quiet agreement, "We get along fine though, Loca and I. The mule and the coyote...," the word came out in the native variation, "And the desert..."
Johnny fell silent again as he offered Loca more water, ate a little more food. Listened as the one called Joe kept talking. He could tell by the cadence of the man's voice that he was more than mere human. Inflection and tone were carefully modulated, carrying a hint of control, and hope. Johnny
wondered if the man knew he was talking the Bard talk, trying to keep everything cool and calm, then decided that maybe he didn't...or at least wasn't paying attention. The intent was there, but it wasn't focused. So he had it, but didn't know how to use it.
The others were just as odd seeming to Johnny--fact of the matter was, the unfriendly one--Hutch--was as normal as it got, and even he had a few things not quite right with the two-legged way. Not if he were just human, anyway. Johnny was starting to get an idea of what he was sitting with, but before he could get a really good handle on it, Joe started up again, asking about the Wind.
Well, shit. Man knew what to ask, didn't he? Even if it was all instinct.
Johnny gave Joe a look that told the Blues man that he might have just pulled a Rumplestiltskin number on their unexpected guest. The expression wasn't angry or upset--just mildly surprised, and maybe peppered with resignation. Johnny put the plate down on the rocks next to him, and as he leaned forward, arms on knees and hands clasped as if about to tell a secret, Loca returned to the plate. This time, after a few sniffs, the mule began to eat as Johnny gathered his thoughts.
A story, eh? All right then...
"The Wind is watching tonight, but I think she's happy enough that I can speak," Johnny began, fixing Joe with an earnest stare before gathering the rest of them in with his gaze.
"The story is short, though, amigo, like my name. I hope that is not too disappointing for you."
He waited for a moment while anticipation started to show in their eyes, and then begun, tipping his hat back forward enough on his head so they could all see his angular face just fine. A light breeze started up, playing at his grizzled, greying black hair as he started to speak.
"Old Johnny is a wanderer, my friends. He follows the ghosts and the spirits, and the things that go bump in the night. He does this because long ago, Johnny wanted to catch the Wind and lie with her. Johnny loved the Wind, you see--more than his family, more than his tribe. He loved her because She was wise, and she knew things that no one in Johnny's tribe knew. She went places that Johnny's people would never see, so Johnny courted her the best he knew how.
"But the Wind is a wild woman, and she does not like ropes and chains around her neck, or rings on her fingers, or even feathers in her hair. She has her own wings, you see, and doesn't need someone else's feathers to fly. And she doesn't want the ropes or the chains or the rings because then she falls to
the earth and cannot reach the sky. And that makes her fall silent and still--which is not a good thing for the Wind.
"Well, Johnny tried it anyway, because he was a silly Two-legged and thought he knew better. Thought that if he brought the Wind to the ground, she would learn to like the feel of the earth between her toes. But Johnny really didn't understand, and so when he did catch her, well, he caught an unhappy
woman.
"The Wind did not try to escape though...oh no...you see, She loved Johnny as well...but his clumsy two-legged ways were killing her, and so she was quiet and sad, and day by day, with the earth between her toes and no sky to touch, she died a little more.
"Johnny did not see this for a long time, no. All he saw was her beauty, which, even though it got sadder and more wistful every day, was still enchanting. So Johnny remained blind for a long time.
"Until the Shaman came.
"The Shaman looked at Johnny, happy idiot that he was, and he looked at the Wind, sad, wane creature that she was, and he shook his head. 'Johnny, you have to listen,' he said, 'the Wind is dying, and when she dies, the Rain does not come. And when the Rain does not come, then the Plants do not grow. And when the Plants do not grow, then the Four-legged start to die, and the fish and the Sky-brothers, and all the others as well. Johnny, if you do not let the Wind go, we will all die.'."
"Well, Johnny did not want to hear that. He shook his head at the Shaman, "That's not true,' he said, 'See, the Wind is right here, next to me, and happy. See how beautiful she is? If she were sad, she would not be beautiful. And if she were sad, she would not stay here.'." And Johnny gave the Shaman a dirty look, and gathered the Wind in his arms and steered himself and her away from the village.
"But still the rain and storms did not come. And just as the Shaman said, things began to die. But Johnny still did not want to see, and when he looked outside the tent, and saw the dead grass being devoured by the ground, he pulled the flap shut angrily, and turned on the Wind.
" 'What are you doing?' he cried, and made himself big and angry. But the Wind only shook her head, saying nothing. And for the first time in a long time, Johnny finally saw her, finally saw the sad look in her eyes, and he knew. They looked at each other for a long time before Johnny came and sat next to her. And they sat longer while Johnny tried not to look at her, even though that's all he wanted. But finally, it had to be said.
" 'What do I do?' he asked, and she answered, 'Let me free'.
"Johnny felt his heart break with her words, but he knew she was right. And so, that night, when his people slept, Johnny opened his tent flaps and let the Wind free.
"And she flew, and she sang, and she cried. And the tribe's tents were blown down, and the dogs barked and yowled, joining their song to the Wind's, and the Rain heard, and came, and pelted down with fierce joy as he danced with his sister. And by morning, both were gone with the stars, though they left
Life in their wake.
"Time went on in the village, they grew, prospered again. They wandered the plains and the desert, and eventually they found a place where the Stone People welcomed them and let them carve houses in caves that would not fall down. But Johnny would only sit in his tent outside the caves so he could feel the air and sun and rain, playing his flute and pretending that it was Her voice. And the Shaman came back, and looked at him. And finally he said 'You must follow her, or you will die'
"And Johnny looked at him and said, 'How? She has run away, and although I hear her sometimes, I have never seen her again'.
"Well, that old Shaman laughed at Johnny and shook his head, 'You still don't see, do you, boy? You'll know her when she comes back, even if you don't see her. All you have to do is follow her..'
"And so Johnny waited. Waited until the summer came again, and the winds grew stronger, and the storms were bigger. And one night, the Wind came, running and laughing ahead of her brothers--Rain and Cloud and Thunder and Lightening. And when Johnny heard that, he grabbed his flute and he ran out of his tent, and he gave chase. And he chased her, and chased her, and still chases her til this day, even though the world has changed, and his tribe is now nothing more than a few caves that nobody knows about. Because he can't tie her down...but he *can* follow after her."
Once it gets into the story telling part, I tried to imitate the same style of story-telling the Native Americans use a lot of times when they tell stories...some people like the style, some do not.
I didn't edit it, so I apologize to those who beta...as far as I know, the punctuation is correct for the writing style though...^^;
Anyhow, enjoy if you're inclined to...and FB, good or constructively critical, is welcome...
Johnny and the Wind
Johnny kept nodding agreeably to Joe's words, smiling as he ate and watched and listened. When Richie piped up on Loca's name, and the Jenny question, he gave the boy another smile.
" 'Loca' means crazy, yes...and this here girl--a 'Jenny'--could be said to be plumb crazy for following me all over creation and back. Ain't that right, Girl?" he chucked, petting her cheek once more and then ruffling her spiky mane as she brayed a quiet agreement, "We get along fine though, Loca and I. The mule and the coyote...," the word came out in the native variation, "And the desert..."
Johnny fell silent again as he offered Loca more water, ate a little more food. Listened as the one called Joe kept talking. He could tell by the cadence of the man's voice that he was more than mere human. Inflection and tone were carefully modulated, carrying a hint of control, and hope. Johnny
wondered if the man knew he was talking the Bard talk, trying to keep everything cool and calm, then decided that maybe he didn't...or at least wasn't paying attention. The intent was there, but it wasn't focused. So he had it, but didn't know how to use it.
The others were just as odd seeming to Johnny--fact of the matter was, the unfriendly one--Hutch--was as normal as it got, and even he had a few things not quite right with the two-legged way. Not if he were just human, anyway. Johnny was starting to get an idea of what he was sitting with, but before he could get a really good handle on it, Joe started up again, asking about the Wind.
Well, shit. Man knew what to ask, didn't he? Even if it was all instinct.
Johnny gave Joe a look that told the Blues man that he might have just pulled a Rumplestiltskin number on their unexpected guest. The expression wasn't angry or upset--just mildly surprised, and maybe peppered with resignation. Johnny put the plate down on the rocks next to him, and as he leaned forward, arms on knees and hands clasped as if about to tell a secret, Loca returned to the plate. This time, after a few sniffs, the mule began to eat as Johnny gathered his thoughts.
A story, eh? All right then...
"The Wind is watching tonight, but I think she's happy enough that I can speak," Johnny began, fixing Joe with an earnest stare before gathering the rest of them in with his gaze.
"The story is short, though, amigo, like my name. I hope that is not too disappointing for you."
He waited for a moment while anticipation started to show in their eyes, and then begun, tipping his hat back forward enough on his head so they could all see his angular face just fine. A light breeze started up, playing at his grizzled, greying black hair as he started to speak.
"Old Johnny is a wanderer, my friends. He follows the ghosts and the spirits, and the things that go bump in the night. He does this because long ago, Johnny wanted to catch the Wind and lie with her. Johnny loved the Wind, you see--more than his family, more than his tribe. He loved her because She was wise, and she knew things that no one in Johnny's tribe knew. She went places that Johnny's people would never see, so Johnny courted her the best he knew how.
"But the Wind is a wild woman, and she does not like ropes and chains around her neck, or rings on her fingers, or even feathers in her hair. She has her own wings, you see, and doesn't need someone else's feathers to fly. And she doesn't want the ropes or the chains or the rings because then she falls to
the earth and cannot reach the sky. And that makes her fall silent and still--which is not a good thing for the Wind.
"Well, Johnny tried it anyway, because he was a silly Two-legged and thought he knew better. Thought that if he brought the Wind to the ground, she would learn to like the feel of the earth between her toes. But Johnny really didn't understand, and so when he did catch her, well, he caught an unhappy
woman.
"The Wind did not try to escape though...oh no...you see, She loved Johnny as well...but his clumsy two-legged ways were killing her, and so she was quiet and sad, and day by day, with the earth between her toes and no sky to touch, she died a little more.
"Johnny did not see this for a long time, no. All he saw was her beauty, which, even though it got sadder and more wistful every day, was still enchanting. So Johnny remained blind for a long time.
"Until the Shaman came.
"The Shaman looked at Johnny, happy idiot that he was, and he looked at the Wind, sad, wane creature that she was, and he shook his head. 'Johnny, you have to listen,' he said, 'the Wind is dying, and when she dies, the Rain does not come. And when the Rain does not come, then the Plants do not grow. And when the Plants do not grow, then the Four-legged start to die, and the fish and the Sky-brothers, and all the others as well. Johnny, if you do not let the Wind go, we will all die.'."
"Well, Johnny did not want to hear that. He shook his head at the Shaman, "That's not true,' he said, 'See, the Wind is right here, next to me, and happy. See how beautiful she is? If she were sad, she would not be beautiful. And if she were sad, she would not stay here.'." And Johnny gave the Shaman a dirty look, and gathered the Wind in his arms and steered himself and her away from the village.
"But still the rain and storms did not come. And just as the Shaman said, things began to die. But Johnny still did not want to see, and when he looked outside the tent, and saw the dead grass being devoured by the ground, he pulled the flap shut angrily, and turned on the Wind.
" 'What are you doing?' he cried, and made himself big and angry. But the Wind only shook her head, saying nothing. And for the first time in a long time, Johnny finally saw her, finally saw the sad look in her eyes, and he knew. They looked at each other for a long time before Johnny came and sat next to her. And they sat longer while Johnny tried not to look at her, even though that's all he wanted. But finally, it had to be said.
" 'What do I do?' he asked, and she answered, 'Let me free'.
"Johnny felt his heart break with her words, but he knew she was right. And so, that night, when his people slept, Johnny opened his tent flaps and let the Wind free.
"And she flew, and she sang, and she cried. And the tribe's tents were blown down, and the dogs barked and yowled, joining their song to the Wind's, and the Rain heard, and came, and pelted down with fierce joy as he danced with his sister. And by morning, both were gone with the stars, though they left
Life in their wake.
"Time went on in the village, they grew, prospered again. They wandered the plains and the desert, and eventually they found a place where the Stone People welcomed them and let them carve houses in caves that would not fall down. But Johnny would only sit in his tent outside the caves so he could feel the air and sun and rain, playing his flute and pretending that it was Her voice. And the Shaman came back, and looked at him. And finally he said 'You must follow her, or you will die'
"And Johnny looked at him and said, 'How? She has run away, and although I hear her sometimes, I have never seen her again'.
"Well, that old Shaman laughed at Johnny and shook his head, 'You still don't see, do you, boy? You'll know her when she comes back, even if you don't see her. All you have to do is follow her..'
"And so Johnny waited. Waited until the summer came again, and the winds grew stronger, and the storms were bigger. And one night, the Wind came, running and laughing ahead of her brothers--Rain and Cloud and Thunder and Lightening. And when Johnny heard that, he grabbed his flute and he ran out of his tent, and he gave chase. And he chased her, and chased her, and still chases her til this day, even though the world has changed, and his tribe is now nothing more than a few caves that nobody knows about. Because he can't tie her down...but he *can* follow after her."
