The Cappy Chronicle

 The light morning mist trickled gently down the windowpane, making soft calming noises as it hit the glass and slid down like a child on a big slide. It was the day after the painting had frightened her and Asha once again found herself contemplating the man on the canvas. Who was he? Why did he seem so very familiar to her, why did she care so much about a detail so very unimportant in the whole scheme of things?

She stood looking through the window, she might as well have been standing in front of a door for all the attention she seemed to be giving the view. She was so deeply in thought that she failed to register the sound of the door opening. Soft little footsteps made their way to her side. When a small hand came up and tugged at her skirt, she visibly started. In looking downward she was amused to find a pair of wee eyes, earnestly appraising and assessing her. “Cookie?” queried the child.

The child in question was a tiny little girl of approximate age 2; her little frame was in fact more tiny then it should have been. Her name was Teeka and she was the cook’s child. The cook was always trying to get her to eat and had recently come upon an old fashioned recipe that seemed to be a hit. Teeka was now constantly asking for a cookie. The cookie, was in fact a potato product deep fried and served hot. No one was sure just why she called it a cookie, but her delighted mother said she could call it anything she liked so long as she ate a lot of it.

Teeka was such a sweet tempered child that she was watched and fussed over by practically every member of Asha’s staff. Her black hair and vivid blues eyes, always held a spark of amusement and quiet joy. She was Asha’s favorite subject when she did her art, showing up in many of the scenes that portrayed a child. Many a person found themselves losing their heart to her wee grins and cheerful mannerisms.

“You want a cookie, Teeks?” Asha found herself using her pet name for Teeka, mostly because it sounded like cheeks, and Teeka’s were the plumpest thing about her. “Cookie” repeated Teeka in agreement “Wan a Cookie!” Asha knelt before Teeka and gave her an affectionate hug. She had always longed for a child of her own. It had just never seemed to happen for her. Men found her…somewhat standoffish; she didn’t know why she always reverted to that when meeting a man, but it seemed to happen everytime she got nervous. She smiled back at Teeka and held out her hand as she stood. “Let’s go find us 2 cookies, one for you and one for me” Asha grasped her little friends wee hand in hers and started off into the hall leading to her kitchen.

The house had been built to resemble an extremely more comfortable, but otherwise authentic looking castle from an old Irish manuscript Asha has found many years ago. The walls were the hardest thing to come by, considering the cost of any kind of land in her world. Where trees were plentiful, space and land were not. With the protection of so many parks and woodland areas it was extremely difficult to find raw earth material that wasn’t highly priced. Many had succumbed to the allure of less home maintenance and exciting city living and moved to the more popular high-sky homes. All stacked neatly upward and resembled, to Asha’s mind, the lego buildings kids use to make in the 20th century.

Making their way to the kitchen, Asha hummed a merry tune and gazed with happiness on the various pieces of her work she had hung along the corridor. They were all originals, despite the fact that she had been told they should be copies to discourage stealing. Her stern and pinched faced accountant had been adamant that she do so, she had been just as adamant in defense of her staff with whom she had forged long and lasting bonds with over the years.

Asha expected a lot from people, but she also expected a lot from herself. Anyone who couldn’t hack it had long since faded into the cosmos protesting Asha’s “rigid need to be in control of all the details”. Those who stayed, had come to see her inner soul and slowly, over time, knew her to be more than what she appeared. The loyalty of her staff was the rock of support Asha leaned on every day and she returned their loyalty with good pay, comfortable living quarters, and firm, though slightly distracted, friendship. The accountant had quickly been dismissed and replaced.

Teeka gave a cry of happiness when she spotted her mother, a plump and cheery faced woman with shiny black hair that trailed down her back in a plait. Her hands were in constant motion as she stirred, flipped and arranged items on the huge black topped stove. The stove was a complete fraud of course. There was no way to burn anything on a mega-wink 2000, but Corina insisted on it appearing like a proper cooking area of an old medieval kitchen. She seemed to enjoy the romantic idea of working in an old castle. Asha was glad to provide her with something that made her cook so very happy.

Letting go of her hand Teeka rushed to her mother and flung her tiny arms around a convenient leg. Her mother, obviously accustomed to many such shows of affection, barely even paused in her graceful dance in front of the cookstove. Asha always privately thought Corina looked like a plump dancing biscuit as she moved about the room. It gave her great joy to see her there each morning. Asha wondered what she would do without so many wonderful people in her life. “Probably get old and crotchety all alone”, the voice in her head whispered.

The voice in her head always seemed to say the things she would never say out loud. It was always alarming and amusing at the same time, the things her mind came up with. Sometimes she wondered who she really was, with thoughts so wild and slightly cheeky all the time. Sniffing the air, Asha made her way further into the room and leaned against the counter. “You’ve made some cinnas haven’t you?” She grinned. Corina always seemed to know when she was distracted, sad and in need of a sweet treat. Corina nudged her with her arm “You have been staring out that window so long you could easily paint it with your eyes closed.”

“I know Corina, I just…” Asha sighed “I have a lot on my mind.” She wondered if she should mention her thoughts to Corina; perhaps she would be able to help. Corina leaned her forearms against the counter. “What is it girl? You know you can tell me anything.” Asha opened her mouth to speak, then suddenly the voice in her head came to violent life; before she had even heard the words in her head her hands were somehow obeying; a knife off the nearby table seemed to leap into hands and without saying a word she pivoted and flung it. It landed 2 feet from Corina’s leg, the leg her daughter now held like a vise, her face frozen in stark fear as she stared at the now dead black snake that had been poised seconds before to strike her down.