Chapter 11: Chapter 10: The Hike, And Harvesting.
I like nature.
I go hard on the slice of life too.
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Few Days Later….
Once again, like every other day, he woke up in bed. Outside, the sun glared through his thin cloth curtain. Getting up, Gale stumbled over, his bare feet creaking against the guest room's old tearing floor.
Opening the curtain, he was greeted with Hogsmeade once more. It was slightly cloudier than before, orange and yellow leaves blowing about in the streets below and the crisp Autumn breeze in his face.
Time really passed in a flash. In the blink of an eye, those hot Summer days had passed, and the cool harvest-filled Autumn had arrived. Next door, a bulky tough-looking witch cursed, carrying a giant pumpkin on her back. To the side, a few kittens played about in the streets, inspecting a pigeon sitting on a lamp post. Gale clapped his hands, eyes filled with enthusiasm.
Getting up, Gale quickly changed, taking off his sleepwear and putting on a pair of loose jeans and an oversized white shirt. Hurrying into the guest bathroom, he took a toothbrush and began brushing, watching the cracked mirror before him with great concentration.
After finishing, Gale greeted Ariana and stepped down the rickety stairs, hopping past the third step to the bottom, as that one was completely breaking down. Snapping his fingers, a plain black apron was soon tied. Rashomon really was handy.
Hurrying into the kitchen, he wiped down the table with an old (cleaned) rag, and with a clatter, he grabbed a few necessary cooking utensils. Placing an old metal bowl to the side, he grabbed the wooden chopping board.
Out of a cupboard, a knife came, and he set to work, chopping some garlic. Grabbing a bulb, Gale started peeling, getting rid of the flaky outer skin. Aberforth was going to use this stuff to make garlic bread, a common staple here.
*Thok!*
It wasn't that good, but it wasn't too bad either. A little too crusty. For some reason, any type of baked good that contained some sort of filling was always extremely well executed by the Boss, but whenever it turned to just normal bread, the results were usually pretty bad.
Gale parted the garlic with a slash of his knife and wiped the cloves into the metal bowl. With the smell of cheese and smelly garlic in the air, Gale went into the main tavern, greeting Aberforth, who was standing behind the counter, smoking a pipe.
"Hey." Gale nodded, sweeping some random trash into a waste bag as he walked around. There were two customers here, a hunched over small figure covered in a dark hood and a scarred hit-wizard, a burn mark covering the man's left eye.
Aberforth stayed silent, nodding.
Continuing on, Gale passed by the scar-faced hit-wizard. At least, he thought the man was a hit-wizard. Really seemed the part, and the guy even had a badge on his right breast. It might have just been for show though…..
Wiping the floor with a rag, Gale wrinkled his nose at the smell of goat. After cleaning out some more of the tables, he returned, tossing the rag into a sink, and going up and exchanging words with Aberforth.
"Hm. O'ween is coming up, so everyone is getting in the 'festive' mood." Grumbling, the elderly man sat back on a wooden stool, thin strains of smoke curling from his pipe.
"It's going to be good fun, no doubt," Gale said, lying back in a chair next to Aberforth.
The two talked for a bit, the small window in the corner providing the room with some light. Gale had cleaned up the thing a few days ago, and it had taken more time than one would expect. Some unpleasant surprises lay in that hive of dust and grime….
Gale and Aberforth had formed a friendship of sorts, with the two of them chatting about random stuff a bunch and having many relatable experiences. It was a relaxing experience no doubt, with the occasional clacking of knives and forks and the gruff laughter.
The two customers kept to themselves, not saying anything. While this palace was the home to many shady deals, sometimes, it was just a haven for people to sit back and just think. Most people kept to themselves, creating a withdrawn atmosphere.
"So, young Gale. I need some more thyme. We are running low. Could you get some? I'll point it to you on the map." Aberforth took an old crumpled sheet of parchment and unrolled it on the wooden table. "First, you go through here… Past the bracken, and take a left down that path. Avoid this tree. Got some angry birds about. Over the stream, and it should be there. The basket is upstairs."
Nodding, Gale grabbed the map and parted with Aberforth. Walking back up the rickety wooden stairs, he found a woven straw basket sitting on the couch. Shrugging, he inspected the interior of it. Reaching inside, it probably had an extension charm on it, as Gale could reach his entire arm inside with no difficulty.
The whole thing smelled of herbs and was actually in pretty good shape, no… Stange substances or dirt.
Picking it up, he felt the light straw rest against his arm as he opened the second-floor window, letting in that fresh breeze.
Few Minutes Later….
Gale's feet crunched against the rough dirt path, his sandals and feet constantly brushing against weeds. Above him, the idyllic trees rustled in the wind leaves falling at a constant rate. As he passed under a willow tree, a beautiful orange leaf landed in his hair, which he promptly threw out.
Hearing a stream nearby, Gale was sure that he was almost there. Aberforth had mentioned that he was to pass over two streams to reach the destination.
He would know he was there when the "angry stone fist of an ogre, covered in flowers" was spotted. A strange description, but Gale didn't really give it much thought.
Waving aside a long-growing shrub, his feet crunched on a pile of crisp crackling leaves. It was a satisfying sensation, to say the least, this whole journey was. At times like this, he was indeed an outdoor person.
Over a small stream, he went. Stepping across a small boulder jammed in between, he watched as the water rushed down, passing over old sedimented rocks, and sweeping away fallen branches and leaves.
If he were ever to describe Hogsmeade's nature to anyone else, it would be: "A lot of streams". Though not in a derogatory way. Gale was a fan of the many streams. Made for a nice experience actually.
Passing under some willowy dark bracken, he spat a leaf out of his mouth, taking a right as he stepped onto an even crunchier pebble road. To the side, a few old crooked signs stood, nailed to the trunk of a poor tree by a rusty old nail. The words seemed to be pretty much faded, as Gale couldn't see anything.
Smudges of charcoal decorated the sides of the sign, and it was painted an also fading red. Scratching his head, Gale shrugged, continuing on. He was sure it wasn't a danger sign of any sort, as Aberforth had assured him that the only creatures in these parts, we're mostly harmless. Mostly. The old man had emphasized the most part quite a bit.
Birds chirping in the air, and bushes rustling, Gale watched in enjoyment as he watched two bushy-tailed squirrels run about, skittering up a tree and into a hole. Above, a crow fluttered its wings on a branch, letting out a long caw.
Stepping through a puddle, Gale felt the cold soak his feet but didn't think much of it. He had prior experience with the cold that gave him much resistance. Legs dripping, he parted a pair of branches in his way, causing a pair of thin trees to sway.
Finally, after another few minutes, he passed over the last stream, this one darker and muddier. Going over the muddy stream, filled with dirt and leaves, Gale found his destination. Before him, was the "angry stone fist of an ogre, covered in flowers".
It was a surprising geographical landmark, but Aberforth was indeed right about it. The rock did look like someone had sculpted it to look like a representation of an ogre's fist. Sticking out of the ground, an oddly lumped stone shape could be seen.
It was strange, the base sort of like a bulky and scaly arm, while the top were five chubby fingers, reaching into the sky. But that wasn't all. Across the whole face of the strange stone phenomenon, brilliant bluebells the shade of the Summer sky and blooming lush heather, covering the "ogre's" fingers.
Below, a small pond had seemed to form around the stone fist, crystal clear, the water rippled at times, and below, one could see many multicolored stones almost glowing in the faint sun's brilliance. Green-red reeds swayed about, and cattails constantly battered each other, occasionally letting out a stream of fluff.
Watching as the white fluff drifted into the sky was really relaxing actually. Gale turned his head slowly, watching it make its way out into the deep woods behind. The ogre's fist was located in a small clearing, letting natural light illuminate the area with a beautiful orange glow.
Walking closer, Gale was met with the strong scent of thyme. This was the place. He carefully jumped on top of a small rock that breached the surface of the pond, and steadied himself carefully. Crouching down, his eyes peered at small tufts of grass that seemed to stick out of the sides of the stone base. Picking one, at closer inspection, he could tell they were indeed not grass. Sniffing it, the plant smelled like thyme, so Gale supposed it was thyme.
Small and thin, the herb had a fiber-like spine of sorts with small leaves poking out, all a dark shade of turquoise green. Taking the map out, he stared at an image of the thyme that Aberforth had doodled. This was it. A rare form of thyme only found in these parts of Scotland!
Gale was told to pick just a few bundles, which he did, but as he softly yanked the tufts of thyme and placed them into the basket on the other side of the pond. He didn't want to risk accidentally dunking the basket into the water.
As he harvested, a strange noise assaulted his ears…
*Ribbit.*
*Ribbit.*
*Croak.*
Looking down, Gale watched in fascination as seven previously unknown frogs (or toads?) popped out of a small hole in the side of the fist, swimming through the water. The creatures varied in size and shape, with one being bulky and red-eyed, while another was skinny, and the color of dying algae. And as they swam, Gale noticed other, even smaller creatures within the pond that he hadn't seen before.
Tadpoles. Their jelly-like forms swam about, small heads darting about. The creatures swam in packs, weaving through the pebbles and rocks, occasionally stopping to swim around small aquatic plants that Gale had never seen before. It really was just nature at its finest.
Curiosity got the best of him, and Gale got down even lower, positioning his eyes by the hole, his hair almost touching the water. And he got his wish. Staring into the hole, Gale gaped in surprise, as possibly tens of hundreds of toads and frogs made their home within. They jumped over each other haphazardly, swimming about in a small inner pond within, and chewing on small weeds. Small rays of light partially illuminated the small area, but he couldn't really see the surroundings in much detail. All he could see were small beady blinking eyes and a sea of slimy stubbed feet and forms.
"Huh. Thought they only ate insects." Gale shrugged, coming to the conclusion that he had not paid enough attention to biology.
*Swack!*
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a green blur leaped out of the hole, smacking Gale in the face. It was wet and slimy, and the animal's sticky webbed fingers stuck to his face. Widening his eyes, Gale was face to face with a giant frog. In a surprise, he stumbled back, cursing as he jumped directly back, narrowly missing the pond, and rolling across the verdant green grass.
"Ah, crap!" Ripping the frog off his face, he stared at it for a moment, and it stared back, the creature's beady speckled eyes looking straight back. Now that he looked closer, the frog's eyes were actually quite beautiful. With lots of color and depth, they seemed to flicker and reflect the sun's rays….
*Lick.*
Now, as Gale inspected the frog, the creature had many different ideas as its wet pink tongue lashed out, licking his nose.
The young teen dropped the amphibian, cursing. He yelled at it as the green blur hopped away, disappearing into the long grass.
Wiping his whole face with a cloth, Gale grumbled. It sure was a…. Novel experience. He'd never seen frogs so close up, or even touched one for over three seconds.
Rubbing his sore back, he cursed again. To avoid falling into the pond, Gale had bent his back and jumped in a strange way, and the impact did not help him either.
Grabbing the basket, Gale sat back on a fallen log nearby, watching as a stream of ants trailed off into the near distance. Sitting there, he swept aside his gold-tipped hair, smiling. While it was sort of disgusting, Gale also…. Sort of liked it? This hands-on experience with nature was something few would ever have exposure to….
After taking a breather, he stood back up, wet sandals squishing against the grass. Looking about, Gale turned to face the "stone ogre's angry fist". Something about it, was really satisfying. He honestly didn't know why. Maybe the contrast in colors? The beauty of nature? Gale suddenly had an impulse to climb the thing.
*Thump.*
Placing the basket on the ground, Gale ran forth, arms and legs flashing as he took a leap, landing on the side of the fist. The rock face itself was short enough for a teen to get to the top of in a few seconds.
Grabbing hold of a finger, Gale hoisted himself up, quickly scrambling into the fist, not wanting to risk falling down and crushing his skull.
Sitting inside, he sat in a pile of grass and flowers. It was nice in there actually, and pretty comfortable. Parting a few flowers, he soon found some space that was cushioning enough, and wouldn't hurt his back. Looking out, Gale made himself comfortable, laying back and staring into the sky.
Aberforth wouldn't mind if he took a bit of time to just sit back and enjoy this, right? Shrugging, Gale sighed, yawning. Shifting, he closed his eyes, taking in the sound and smell of nature. Leaves rustling, animals shuffling and crying, water rippling and streams burbling, and…. A faint hum?
Sitting up, Gale surveyed the area, before he found the source of the hum, which happened to be right next to him. Staring into a deep green glow, Gale literally rocketed up, jumping away from the hue as if it were a bomb.
"Holy sh*t!"
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How did this chapter turn out? Was it decent? As usual, please tell me of any spelling or grammatical errors. That would be appreciated... Thank you for reading~
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