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Remember when we used to post stories in here? Here's one. :)
sunfrog
Member, Founder, Kickstarter
I think Snodgrass would be a great name for a character in a children's book so I wrote one. Heh. Sorry Trystan. 
It was a typical Saturday morning in Paradise Cove and Tad and his friends were out and about fooling around as they always did. Today however, they made the mistake of rough housing on Mr. Snodgrass’ lawn.
“You better get off there!” Called Mr. Livermore the next door neighbor. “Mr. Snodgrass will have you alive!”
As if on cue Mr. Snodgrass burst forth from his front door and hollered. “Get off my lawn!” He bent down quicker than the boys could see and picked up a clod of dirt the size of a grapefruit and chucked it at the boys striking Tad square in the head and knocking him to his knees.
The rest of the boys burst into laughter as Tad and Bernie scarpered off Mr. Snodgrass’ lawn. Tad barely managing to stay on his feet.
“Get off my lawn!” Bellowed Mr. Snodgrass again.
“Pegged him right in the head he did! Right in the head!” Exclaimed the neighbor Mr. Livermore in his British accent. No one was really sure if Mr. Livermore was British or what all. They just knew he had an accent and loved to water his front garden in his robe and slippers every morning. It was Mr. Livermore that would keep the legend of Tad alive for generations by telling all the kids in the neighborhood what had happened today. “Got him right in the head! Right in the head he did!”
Bernie, Tad’s friend whom he had been wrestling just a moment before put his arm around Tad’s neck and pulled him down the sidewalk as easily as he pulled defensive linemen around on the football field in school.
“Come on champ. Let’s get you home,” he said.
Tad didn’t know where home was, or if he even had one. Heck, at the moment he didn’t even know who he was. He had been clobbered pretty good.
When the boys deposited Tad at home Tad stumbled in and looked around. Nothing looked familiar. It was a nice house. Clean and cozy. A pretty lady walked in from the kitchen and he guessed it was probably his mom. She was pretty, but slightly past her prime. She was probably 35. Tad was 13.
“What happened to you?” She asked and dusted dirt from his head. She touched his head in that tender way that moms do when they don’t want to hurt you. She checked his head for cuts and bruises but he was okay. She said something about upstairs that he didn’t quite catch so he walked up the small staircase and entered the first room he came to without thinking.
Posters hung on the walls and there were a few toys scattered here and there. A black computer glowed and hummed in the corner of a small desk. It was probably his room. He flopped down on the bed and looked up.
Ugh, he was dizzy. He closed his eyes to make the dizziness go away, but it made things worse. Now he felt like he was falling. Falling into darkness.
When he could see again it was light and he was riding on a hippogryph. Half horse and half eagle. He had read about them in the school library.
“Dreaming.” He thought. “I’m dreaming.” But he still had that sick feeling of falling in the pit of his stomach and felt nauseous. After a while the hippogryph began to glide and slow down and he felt better. Down below him was a city, or something. It looked like a medieval village. He landed on the roof of a small building. The hippogryph disappeared, as things in dreams often do, and he went inside.
The inside of the building was beautiful, and surprisingly large. There wasn’t much furniture but the furniture that did exist was fancy and expensive. It looked like a rich person lived there and had been robbed. Or maybe it was just a rich person that didn’t like furniture. It was odd. There was no TV or carpeting but in one corner there was something that looked like a treasure chest.
Tad looked at it puzzled. Was he supposed to open it? He knelt down and examined it. It had a lock but wasn’t locked. When he opened it random things sprung out onto the floor. Glowing things. Surprised he picked up a sword. It felt real. He turned it over in his hands then stood up and swung it around.
“Ha! Cool!” He put it down and picked up the ax. Too heavy. Next he picked up a long poled weapon he thought was a halberd. “How do you use this?” He thought. It was like an ax on a stick. “What the heck?“
Before he could put it down a man came running through the door and began beating him.
“What the heck’s your problem!?” He yelled, and tried to get away from the man.
“I wasn’t going to steal it. I was just looking at it!” He yelled. The man persisted. He was trying to kill him.
Tad had no choice but to defend himself. He stuck out the halberd and pointed it at the man. “Stay away from me!” He yelled. “Leave me alone!”
But the man continued to attack him and struck Tad across the face. He felt the jolt but it didn’t really hurt. It was then that Tad realized that he was wearing light armor. The man struck him again, this time in the stomach.
Tad poked him with the halberd. “I told you.” He said menacingly. The man continued to attack and Tad ran downstairs. The man followed. There was no choice but to fight and so Tad fought back. After a while Tad realized they weren’t really hurting each other. It felt like they were in a big pillow fight. It was actually kind of fun.
“Ha ha!” Laughed Tad when the man fell on all fours. He had won. “That’s how we do in the hood!” Gloated Tad. Tad wasn’t from the hood though. Unless you think suburbia with clean streets and well manicured lawns is the hood.
The first floor was just as weird as the second floor. Well furnished but sparse. Maybe they had just had an estate sale.
Tad walked outside. It was a beautiful morning. Birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and people were fighting all over the place. What the heck? A purple fireball flew past him and crashed into another person knocking him off his feet.
“Whoa! Magic? There’s magic?” He said aloud. “How do I do magic?”
“Abracadabera! Hadouken! Expeliarmus!” He tried everything but it didn’t work. “Dang it.” He said, and ran off to fight.
Tad vanquished several foes, but just as he was about to die he woke up.
“That was the best dream ever.” He said aloud.
“Oh, was it?” Asked his mom who was standing at the foot of his bed. “Supper is ready.” She said with a smile.
“’Kay,” he said and went to the bathroom to clean up. After he had cleaned the dirt from his hair and washed his face he went downstairs to eat.
He could hear Mr. Livermore outside talking to a small girl on a bicycle.
“Pegged him right in the head! Right in the head he did!”
It was a typical Saturday morning in Paradise Cove and Tad and his friends were out and about fooling around as they always did. Today however, they made the mistake of rough housing on Mr. Snodgrass’ lawn.
“You better get off there!” Called Mr. Livermore the next door neighbor. “Mr. Snodgrass will have you alive!”
As if on cue Mr. Snodgrass burst forth from his front door and hollered. “Get off my lawn!” He bent down quicker than the boys could see and picked up a clod of dirt the size of a grapefruit and chucked it at the boys striking Tad square in the head and knocking him to his knees.
The rest of the boys burst into laughter as Tad and Bernie scarpered off Mr. Snodgrass’ lawn. Tad barely managing to stay on his feet.
“Get off my lawn!” Bellowed Mr. Snodgrass again.
“Pegged him right in the head he did! Right in the head!” Exclaimed the neighbor Mr. Livermore in his British accent. No one was really sure if Mr. Livermore was British or what all. They just knew he had an accent and loved to water his front garden in his robe and slippers every morning. It was Mr. Livermore that would keep the legend of Tad alive for generations by telling all the kids in the neighborhood what had happened today. “Got him right in the head! Right in the head he did!”
Bernie, Tad’s friend whom he had been wrestling just a moment before put his arm around Tad’s neck and pulled him down the sidewalk as easily as he pulled defensive linemen around on the football field in school.
“Come on champ. Let’s get you home,” he said.
Tad didn’t know where home was, or if he even had one. Heck, at the moment he didn’t even know who he was. He had been clobbered pretty good.
When the boys deposited Tad at home Tad stumbled in and looked around. Nothing looked familiar. It was a nice house. Clean and cozy. A pretty lady walked in from the kitchen and he guessed it was probably his mom. She was pretty, but slightly past her prime. She was probably 35. Tad was 13.
“What happened to you?” She asked and dusted dirt from his head. She touched his head in that tender way that moms do when they don’t want to hurt you. She checked his head for cuts and bruises but he was okay. She said something about upstairs that he didn’t quite catch so he walked up the small staircase and entered the first room he came to without thinking.
Posters hung on the walls and there were a few toys scattered here and there. A black computer glowed and hummed in the corner of a small desk. It was probably his room. He flopped down on the bed and looked up.
Ugh, he was dizzy. He closed his eyes to make the dizziness go away, but it made things worse. Now he felt like he was falling. Falling into darkness.
When he could see again it was light and he was riding on a hippogryph. Half horse and half eagle. He had read about them in the school library.
“Dreaming.” He thought. “I’m dreaming.” But he still had that sick feeling of falling in the pit of his stomach and felt nauseous. After a while the hippogryph began to glide and slow down and he felt better. Down below him was a city, or something. It looked like a medieval village. He landed on the roof of a small building. The hippogryph disappeared, as things in dreams often do, and he went inside.
The inside of the building was beautiful, and surprisingly large. There wasn’t much furniture but the furniture that did exist was fancy and expensive. It looked like a rich person lived there and had been robbed. Or maybe it was just a rich person that didn’t like furniture. It was odd. There was no TV or carpeting but in one corner there was something that looked like a treasure chest.
Tad looked at it puzzled. Was he supposed to open it? He knelt down and examined it. It had a lock but wasn’t locked. When he opened it random things sprung out onto the floor. Glowing things. Surprised he picked up a sword. It felt real. He turned it over in his hands then stood up and swung it around.
“Ha! Cool!” He put it down and picked up the ax. Too heavy. Next he picked up a long poled weapon he thought was a halberd. “How do you use this?” He thought. It was like an ax on a stick. “What the heck?“
Before he could put it down a man came running through the door and began beating him.
“What the heck’s your problem!?” He yelled, and tried to get away from the man.
“I wasn’t going to steal it. I was just looking at it!” He yelled. The man persisted. He was trying to kill him.
Tad had no choice but to defend himself. He stuck out the halberd and pointed it at the man. “Stay away from me!” He yelled. “Leave me alone!”
But the man continued to attack him and struck Tad across the face. He felt the jolt but it didn’t really hurt. It was then that Tad realized that he was wearing light armor. The man struck him again, this time in the stomach.
Tad poked him with the halberd. “I told you.” He said menacingly. The man continued to attack and Tad ran downstairs. The man followed. There was no choice but to fight and so Tad fought back. After a while Tad realized they weren’t really hurting each other. It felt like they were in a big pillow fight. It was actually kind of fun.
“Ha ha!” Laughed Tad when the man fell on all fours. He had won. “That’s how we do in the hood!” Gloated Tad. Tad wasn’t from the hood though. Unless you think suburbia with clean streets and well manicured lawns is the hood.
The first floor was just as weird as the second floor. Well furnished but sparse. Maybe they had just had an estate sale.
Tad walked outside. It was a beautiful morning. Birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and people were fighting all over the place. What the heck? A purple fireball flew past him and crashed into another person knocking him off his feet.
“Whoa! Magic? There’s magic?” He said aloud. “How do I do magic?”
“Abracadabera! Hadouken! Expeliarmus!” He tried everything but it didn’t work. “Dang it.” He said, and ran off to fight.
Tad vanquished several foes, but just as he was about to die he woke up.
“That was the best dream ever.” He said aloud.
“Oh, was it?” Asked his mom who was standing at the foot of his bed. “Supper is ready.” She said with a smile.
“’Kay,” he said and went to the bathroom to clean up. After he had cleaned the dirt from his hair and washed his face he went downstairs to eat.
He could hear Mr. Livermore outside talking to a small girl on a bicycle.
“Pegged him right in the head! Right in the head he did!”
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