The Fairy Door

[DocRick]

Even though Ms. Criton is usually the only bean in the house, for safety and tradition, borrowing is almost always done at night. This would account for some of the "things that go bump in the night" that we all have heard.

[DocRick]

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Chatham Manor is 7 kilometers away from it's closest neighbor so the Coin's rarely venture far from the manor. Even without the threat of beans around, birds of prey as well as other predatory animals would make short work of a borrower caught in the open. But Henry does enjoy spending time in the gardens around the manor. She just tries to stay under the cover of the larger shrubbery to conceal herself from hungry eyes.

[DocRick]

Henry's mother will not let her wear her burlap outfits around their home. She has to wear the tailored doll clothes or something her mother made for her. As you can see from the kitchen table, borrower furnishings are quite spartan. The table, chairs and bureau were all handmade by one of her ancestors decades ago.
Even the plates are carved from wood as even doll dishes are too large for everyday use. The fancy butter knife has been there for ages. No one remembers where it came from or who "borrowed" it. One day it will be a good item to leave behind when borrowing another.

[Prof Sai]

That last one is particularly nice.

Tech tip: To make scenes look like night, find the levels or curves command, and use it to darken the midtones, not the highlights. If possible, use fuzzy selections to isolate areas that can become beams of light! Here I separated the subject and isolated a fuzzy oval behind her. Then I applied the darkening to the background, and separately darkened her feet and gear.

[DocRick]

That last one is particularly nice.

Tech tip: To make scenes look like night, find the levels or curves command, and use it to darken the midtones, not the highlights. If possible, use fuzzy selections to isolate areas that can become beams of light! Here I separated the subject and isolated a fuzzy oval behind her. Then I applied the darkening to the background, and separately darkened her feet and gear.

Looks nice, but I was going for really dark for a reason that will come out later.

[DocRick]

Ms. Criton is gone for the day so a dip in the pond seems to be the order of the day..................

[DocRick]

That last one is particularly nice.

Tech tip: To make scenes look like night, find the levels or curves command, and use it to darken the midtones, not the highlights. If possible, use fuzzy selections to isolate areas that can become beams of light! Here I separated the subject and isolated a fuzzy oval behind her. Then I applied the darkening to the background, and separately darkened her feet and gear.

Looks nice, but I was going for really dark for a reason that will come out later. And my system wouldn't do advanced stuff like you're using. On occasion, I'll separate a single figure into separate parts, darken and lighten each piece as desired, then reassemble them into one picture again.

And that last one was particularly difficult for some reason. Just couldn't get the colors and shading to work without distortions. White seems to be the hardest to get right without distortions but I liked the figure so I just carried on until I thought it looked okay.

[DocRick]

After a swim, nothing liking finding a warm rock in the middle of the pond.

[DocRick]

Now a little privacy please so a lady can get a suntan, thank you.

[DocRick]

"Crap. A car's pulling in. Ms. C must be home early. Time to go !!!"

[DocRick]

One night, Henry needed to "borrow" some thread to complete a new jacket she had been making. She ventured out into the house, knowing Ms. C was fast asleep. Tossing her hook to the top of a table in the sitting room, she climbed up and found a spool of thread the color she needed. She dropped the spool off the table and went back to check for anything else she may need, when the door opened and the light turned on. Ms. C had woken up and was coming into the room. Henry ran back to her rope and began climbing down as fast as she could. At about the equivalent of fifteen feet to a bean, she lost her grip and fell to the floor.

[DocRick]

Henry landed hard on her right ankle but she managed to stifle a howl of pain. She tried to stand up and run, but her ankle wouldn't support her and she fell back to the floor. Ms. C was walking right towards her but her gaze was straight forward and she couldn't see the tiny girl lying on the floor in her path. Her giant slippered feet were getting closer and closer to Henry.

[DocRick]

When Ms. C was about two steps from squishing Henry, with her good leg, Henry kicked the spool of thread as hard as she could, sending it skittering across the floor. Ms. C stopped in her tracks, scanning around her for who may have tossed that spool, then looked down and saw Henry lying on the floor at her feet, looking up fearfully. Ms. C just looked down at her for a few moments, then slowly reached downward to her and curled her finger around and beneath Henry, gently lifting her off the floor. Henry, still paralyzed by fear, flashed back to the horror stories she heard about what beans do to captured borrowers and she began to have second thoughts about her desperate act of kicking the spool.

[DocRick]

Ms. Criton lifted Henry into the air to about the height of her chest. Henry, still terrified, realized Ms. C was holding her in a firm, snug but gentle grip, kind of like the full body hug she used to get from her mother when she was a toddler. Somehow, it was almost pleasurable, comforting. Ms. Criton slowed tilted her hand backwards while opening her fingers. She smiled as she carried her over to a Tiffany lamp where she could see her better and said "I always knew you were real. And you're such a pretty little thing." Henry reached down and rubbed her injured ankle. Ms. Criton's smile turned concerned and said "Oh, dear. You're hurt."

[DocRick]

Ms. Criton had worked as a nurse's assistant as a young woman during the time her country was at war over some islands off the coast of South America. She learned how to bandage wounds and wrap injured limbs and joints on the wounded and injured soldiers who had been evacuated back to a hospital at home. She carried her to the bathroom and took some cloth tape from the closet and carefully wrapped her ankle. After wrapping her ankle, gently cradling her in both hands, Ms. Criton began to walk towards the hallway near the front door.

[DocRick]

Ms. Criton carried Henry into the hallway where the main fairy door was. She gently set her down by the steps and said "You can feel free to wander the house any time no one else is here. And I have my tea at 2 every afternoon."

[DocRick]

Henry didn't go back out borrowing for a few days until her ankle felt better. She was still confused about what happened with Ms.C the other night. All her life she had been told to avoid the beans, that they were cruel monsters that would do terrible things to a borrower if they caught one....but Ms. C was very nice that night she found her. So maybe other beans are nice too? Or is Ms. C the only exception? Or was she tricking her into complacency? Henry just sat on the bottom step pondering this notion and what her next step would be..............

[DocRick]

Henry never told her parents about the incident with Ms. Criton. She was afraid they would forbid her from visiting with her, even though she seemed so nice, although a bit lonely. She just sits in the back patio room, drinking her tea and staring out into the garden. "Fuck it". Henry put on her nicest summer dress which she had made herself and a pair of handmade leather shoes and snuck out the fairy door. She found Ms. C just as she said, 2:00, having a cup of tea. Henry called up to her and when Ms. C looked down, she smiled. Henry motioned her to lower her hand to the ground. When she did, Henry gingerly stepped onto her middle finger and walked, waddled really, and onto the palm of her hand. Ms. Criton slowly tilted her hand up so Henry could sit in her palm and raised her up to the top of the table.

[DocRick]

Henry and Ms. C developed a deep friendship. Henry would sneak out into the house, wearing "normal" clothes now, at Ms. C's insistence. She would carry Henry outside and would wander the garden with her sitting in the palm of her hand, pointing out the different heirloom flowers developed by her ancestors over the centuries. The two would still have tea every afternoon. For a "royal", Ms. C was a phenomenal cook and she and Henry would share exotic meals Henry had never even heard of. At Henry's request, they would always end their days with Ms. C giving Henry a "body hug", before setting her down around the corner from the fairy door. Henry felt like she was with her grandmother again. She never told her parents about these visits. She figured she should just leave well enough alone.

[DocRick]

On Sundays, when Ms. Criton returned from church, she insisted 2 o'clock tea be more formal than the other days. She found some antique Victorian era doll clothes and she and Henry sipped their tea in style. Well, at least it was in style at one time in history.

[DocRick]

After Mr. Criton passed, Ms. Criton spent some time traveling and visited New Orleans where she fell in love with crawfish. She learned to cook them and though in her land, it's very uncommon, she still cooks them for herself and acquaintances who really liked them. Henry......not a fan of trying to eat something as big as you.

[AB23]

The Daisy Dukes!

[DocRick]

The Daisy Dukes!

Way too long for Daisy Dukes.

[jeffrey-dallas]

Henry is certainly "all girl" -- gorgeous model!

[DocRick]

One morning Ms. Criton went out for the morning, returning just in time to meet Henry for afternoon tea. Making casual conversation, Henry asked her where she had gone that morning, but Ms. Crition skirted around the subject. After they finished with their tea, Ms. C reached over and picked Henry up and carried her up to the "sewing room". She pulled some very luxurious silk material from a bag and draped it over her head. She said, "Henry, you're such a pretty little girl, you need something pretty to wear." The material felt so good on her skin, Henry didn't want to give it up !!