The grand fisher

What's a library?" Gertrude asked

After hearing that I could only think of one response.

It was a response contained within the centre of my soul. A response woven into the timeless nature of the laws that govern our reality.

And that response was…..

"This is BULL SHIT!" I bellowed into the air.

My words caused gertrude to lean back in intimidation at my words.

"Why are you so angry?" She asked me

I could only wheeze in her direction. My face was beet red with rage.

"Ugh. Okay." She said with a roll of her old eyes.

I gave her a commanding glare.

~This place is filled with people that have no skills and no resources. What am I going to do? There has to be some way I can squeeze water out of stone here.~

I put my hand around the bag at my side. Luckily sarha and gertrude were kind people. As they haven't touched my bag.

"Tell me. Do merchants ever come here?" I asked her.

She furrowed her brows.

"Are those the people with frilly purple shirts?" Asked gertrude

I nodded my head vigorously.

"Exactly. Fancy clothes. Big boats."

She nodded her head.

"Those people do show up sometimes. Usually they'll impudently coerce us to give up our fish and try to give us something we can't even eat as a consolation prize. I don't like e'm" Said Gertrude bitterly

I grinned.

~This island must be along a trade route. That means we should be able to get in contact with merchants.~

"Okay. I think I know what to do. So tell me. Who's the leader of this place?"

Gertrude didn't even hesitate in her answer.

"It's the grand fisher." She said

I took in a deep breath.

"Okay! TAKE ME TO HIM!" I screamed.

In response I got a slap in the face

She looked at with her face curled in a scowl filled with extreme rage.

"Don't yell at me you fucking cripple! I've show you great kindness by allowing you into my home. Don't expect me to risk my spot to get you an audience with someone like the grand fisher!" She screamed.

I couldn't abide by this. I couldn't waste any time.

"Wait. Please. Take me to him."

In response she grabbed me and tried to pick me up.

"Hnnnnnng!" She strained but as she was old and weak she was unable to lift me.

So she did the next thing she could.

She dragged me off the table.

*Thunk* I hit my head

My vision went black

🐖🐐🐖🐐🐖🐐

I awoke to the smell of the sea and the sound of shuffling feet.

A group of women walked by with woven baskets of clothes on their heads. One woman looked at me only to immediately avert her gaze.

I was like a beggar on the street.

I looked down at my clothes. They were sea soaked and ripped all over. That combined with my seemingly paralysed slump. There was no like about it.

I was a beggar on the streets.

I sighed.

My charm wasn't working. I had always worked but now people weren't willing to help me as much as I'm used to.

Did the void somehow take it away? No. Let's not assume the worst. One of the main limits of my charm was that it can only make people do things within the limits of their personality. Could it be that people here have some kind of trait which makes it very unlikely for them to help me?

Then all I would have to work with is small acts of kindness.

…..

I laid there at the doorstep for the next couple hours. Until finally help arrived.

Stomping back to the house with a significantly less red face than before was Sarah.

She paused in her irate stomp. And turned to look at me

"Did she kick you out?"

I nodded.

"Why?" She asked. Her lips curled into a cringing smile and her nose crinkled up.

"I asked if she could take me to the Grand fisher."

Her brows furrowed.

"Oh." She stomped into the house while carefully stepping over my body. Then she slammed the door behind her.

I could only watch on in disappointment as she did this.

~Did I lose my charm?~

It didn't make any sense.

And so. Like some kind of dog. I slept on the porch.

I am a true embodiment of the pig and goat. So it isn't too far off for me.

🐖🐐🐖🐐🐖🐐

The next day came without announcement. No alarms. No pots and pans banging. Not any of the announcements I had gotten used to since living in this world.

Instead the sun just rose and people's eyes opened.

I simply laid there for about ten minutes. Unable to move whatsoever.

Until the sound of stomping echoed. Sarha was coming.

The straw door to their straw house opened.

There stood Sarah she had a hint of hate on her face.

"I'll take you to the grand fisher." She said,

I was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

So I just agreed.

"Great. Take me."

~I wonder if this is a rebellious teenager thing? Either that or my charm is working again. It's probably my charm. It had to be my charm. Right?~ I thought

Regardless, she began to pick me up and carry me.

🐖🐐🐖🐐🐖🐐

"Oh yeah baby! Yeah baby just like that! OHHH!"

I was brought to a white tent that emanated moaning sounds.

"He's in there." Said Sarah, she held me with one arm while pointing towards the tent.

I couldn't help but ask.

"Umm Sarah. Is that tent a brothel?" I asked her

She just scowled in response.

I took that as a yes.

After waiting for about fifteen minutes a man left the tent.

He was a corpulent man with a belly so large that I swear it was on the verge of breaking the small white shirt he was wearing. It's clear this town was more one size fits all with its clothing.

His hairy belly spilled out of the bottom of the shirt.

He had a long salt and pepper beard on his chin and a moustache that curled in such a way that it made his face look like it was trapped in a perpetual grin.

He didn't look like a leader at all