The Moon Spawn #1 (Waverly Stump and The 7 Realms)

Chapter One

Waverly kicked a pebble and watched it skitter across the blue lake. It dropped into the depths with a loud plop, and the sound brought a stupid yet satisfied grin to her face. She kicked another pebble, and another, watched as both skittered across the lake, and plopped in with the same jolly sound.

On the other side of the lake stood an interesting living structure, its reflection gleaming in the water like a large gingerbread house; the walls and roof were brown covered from end to end with dying leaves, the scratchy windows had been left open to allow the sunlight in. A long ragged rope mounted between two huge poles stood nearest the lower window, and from this rope several washed clothes and linen hung swinging in the afternoon breeze.

It was dry season in Bremeton, but that did not hinder numerous plant life from growing in wild forms and shapes around the house. A particular plant grew from the doorstep and weaved itself into a long walkway connecting to the trunk of the tree house beside it.

As Waverly skipped across the large colored stones lined over the surface of the lake, which was used as a bridge, the door to the house opened wide and a man's face peeked out. He snarled unhappily and stepped out. His lanky form was almost as long as the doorframe itself.

"Can ye cease making that foul noise, Waverly? Come here over into the house. Lessons be about to begin."

"Coming, Pa!" Waverly grumbled and jogged from stone to stone until she was on the ground again. She followed the man, who had already gone into the house all the way up the stairs, and into the special room she used for lessons.

"Ye pend all ye free time jumping down and around in wet earth, making a frizzle. Sit there over and get out ye books." The man complained.

Waverly reluctantly moved over to the untidy stack of books in an earthen shelf on the wall and plucked out a large green book, a small blue vial, and a single feathery quill. She walked over to the man's table and sat down in a sloppy manner spilling half the contents of the vial across the wooden desk.

"Oops!" She grinned with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

The man - who was, in actuality, an Elven Dwarf - was named HalfHyde. He was unusually taller than an average Dwarf, but also three heads shorter for an Elf. His face was stern and broad, and he always wore a peevish look about him. His eyes were obsidian, almost like real volcanic rocks, and although he was half Elf, his eyeballs lacked the typical delicate roundishness that distinguished Elves from every other species. He wore a brown tunic with a leather belt around his waist and brown scraggly sandals.

He frowned at Waverly, his bushy eyebrows knitting into a perfect V. "I do care not how much ink ye spills today, child. We go through with the lesson no matter what not."

Waverly blew a strand of hair out of her eyes in frustration. "I hate lessons."

"They help ye later on in these times out there. Ye must make certain attention is full that ye gives. I am clear, not I?"

"Yes, Pa!" Waverly whispered in a tone of yielding.

She placed her book on the desk staining the paper with more blue ink, but the hardened back cover of the book prevented the pages from getting soaked all through.

Waverly hated these lessons. They took up her play time and were incredibly boring. She silently prayed that something would distract HalfHyde from the day's lesson because if not, she would have to sit for three hours learning about faraway realms, and boy gods, and girl gods, and stupid ugly creatures that were either non-existent, or irrelevant, or both.

Waverly became so lost in her own frustration that she did not realize HalfHyde had questioned her.

"Waverly?" HalfHyde growled and dropped a larger book on the desk, rattling the table and spilling the remaining contents of the vial.