Mid-Week Flash Challenge - Week 300

This week's picture prompt was created by Hungarian artist Sarolta Bán. She has some incredible art, and in fact I have used one of her pictures before back on Week 24 - in the early days of me running this challenge. And I have another one due to be used in the coming weeks, and there will be more in the future. They are just so thought provoking. 

Another Tricky tale, maybe I'll use it in her books, maybe I won't. But I do love developing the stories. The last one was on Week 297. 

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How to create a clickable link in Blogger comments can be found on lasts week's post here. 

There is also a Facebook group for Mid-Week Flash, if you fancy getting the prompt there.

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Tricky heard afluttering and watched two birds land on the beach behind her. They weren’t thecorvids from Lucien’s flock, so who were they? They eyed her and she wonderedif Douglas Bottle had them in his employ. Had he sent them to spy on her? Shefelt uncomfortable now as she adjusted the easel, turning the canvas towardsher.

One of them cooed. They were doves, whiteones. They seemed far too pretty and delicate to be handled by an oversizedclown like Bottle. They circled each other as though putting on a display,while moving towards her at the same time.

“I don’t trust you,” she said out loud. “Howhave you found me?”

They kept on coming, ignoring her words. Apart of her had expected some kind of reaction, maybe they were just birds thatlived here. But Tricky didn’t think so.

An entire empty beach and they land by her?She didn’t buy it. There was something crafty and sneaky about them. Then oneof them flew up and perched on top of the canvas. It cooed again lookingstraight at her. It was definitely here for her. Did it have a message of somekind? She looked at it’s feet but there was nothing attached to them, or theone on the ground.

“What are you trying to tell me, deary?What is it you want me to know?”

It scratched the top of the blank canvas.

“You want me to start painting? I can dothat – but this isn’t any normal paint, you know that, right? This is paintingwith energy, to see something that isn’t here in this time.”

It cooed at her again as though agreeing.It bobbed its head up and down. Okay, that was definitely a nod. Tricky rolledher shoulders to quell a shudder that had run up her back. These birds werehere for her, but who had sent them? The only person she knew who could do thatwas Safa, who had to be working with Annie – but it could also be one ofGandalf’s lackeys. She wouldn’t put it past him to have tracked her here. Shekept trying to remain undetected but he kept finding her. He was definitely hermatch with this time jumping lark.

So how could she be sure this bird was onher side? She tried to think of things only Safa would know that could beanswered simply.

Tricky picked up the painting palette andheld it close to the bird. Using the paint brush, she pointed to the circle ofcolours.

“What is the colour of my mother’sprotection stone?”

The bird looked at her. Safa knew theanswer because she’d been there when Tricky had used it. It turned its head tothe side and eyed the palette. It looked at her again, then it sprung onto thepalette. Tricky steadied it with both hands. It circled the colours, eyeingeach one, then it dipped a claw into the green and swiped it across a blankpiece of palette. It eyed her again as if asking if it was the right one.

Tricky felt the hairs on her arms rise.Yep, this was Safa’s bird alright.

“Good. So what is it you want me to know?”

It jumped back onto the top of the canvasand again tapped its claw on it.

“Something you want me to see?”

It bobbed its head down and cooed.

“Okay, I’ll get started.”

Tricky dabbed the paintbrush into theyellow and smeared it across the canvas. It began to glow. Then she dipped itinto the green and painted round the edges of the canvas for protection. Theglow covered the dove and it fluttered its wings before settling again.

Now for the tricky bit.

Tricky swirled all the colours on thepalette together, while taking long breaths, drawing up as much energy as shecould from the ocean. Then she blew over it and it glistened. As she swept thebrush across the canvas another picture appeared. The back of a man walkingaway from her. But not just any man, one she knew, (you couldn’t help spot himwith that ridiculous top hat and silly old-world costume), one she’d love tosee the back of – although not like this; she wanted him dead and gone.

“Tell me, deary, what do I need to knowabout Dimitri Stanislav?”

The second dove joined the first on the topof the canvas and they both started cooing and bobbing in unison. A whiteenergy began to form around them and they simultaneously swooped down in frontof the canvas onto the ground, spreading the energy across the painting.

This time the man was joined by a group offive others, one of them dressed in garish, clashing colours: Gandalf, akaDouglas Bottle.

“They’re in cahoots. I know that already,deary.”

But the group huddled, and then steppedback and what Tricky saw made her gasp.

“No! Oh no. Oh shit. I need to move – now!”

Tricky scrambled in her pockets for theobsidian, germwort and creasy, and immediately activated a rent in time. Itopened in the middle of the canvas. She pushed it open making sure it was thedestination she sought, and climbed through. As she turned to seal it, she sawthe two doves sitting on the sand watching her.

“Thank you so much, dearies. Tell yourmistress I’m on my way. I’m not having this!”

And with that she sealed it with a pop. Sheonly hoped she would be in time to get Nathan out of her cabin.