Dusty and the Seven Shudder Sisters - Part 8

This is the seventh in Dusty's stories - as you may have noticed, I came up with a numerical theme for the stories and this is number 7.

What else but the Seven Deadly Sins - and the opposing Seven Heavenly Graces - for this story.

As before, I hope you enjoy the story.

pictures from Google free to use search

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

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Dusty gathered her supplies and Ben delivered her close to the demolition site. He helped her get everything together, in her arms or in her backpack and off she went, back to the abandoned houses.

She didn’t bother to hide her approach – in fact she hoped that someone was watching. She also hoped that the rest of the Shudder Sisters had arrived too.

Dusty left the spinning wheel, spindles and basket of raw, unspun wool in a prominent spot outside, a few feet from the back door, and she went inside.

The guard had been removed and she could hear voices coming from the cellar.

Again she went into the room at the front of the house. The Shudder Sisters were waiting for her. It almost seemed as though they knew she was coming back.

Before they had a chance to call out, Dusty took one of the apples from the bag.

Dusty concentrated and projected a poem into the room without giving voice to it in physical form.

Bright Iduna, Maid Immortal.
Standing at Valhalla’s portal.
In her casket has rich store.
Of rare apples gilded o’er;
Those rare apples, not of Earth,
Ageing Aesir give fresh birth.

She held the apple in front of her face and studied it for a moment before taking a bite.

The apple was fresh and succulent.

It made a loud crunch as her teeth bit into the firm, red-gold-green skin and into the luscious white flesh.

Juice ran down her chin and she wiped it away with her other hand.

The Shudder Sisters stood in shocked silence.

“Now ladies, I have a few questions for you. I’d appreciate the answers but I have plenty of apples if you don’t want to tell me what I need to know.”

She waited for a moment to give them time to think about the implication that the apples gave her knowledge.

“Why are you here?” Dusty asked.

“For you,” the eldest one said.

“Yes, I understand who you are here for, that’s been made obvious. I asked why.”

The elder Shudder Sister looked to her companions. “We have woven spells for seven years to find you...” she said but Dusty interrupted her.

“Yes, very good. Why?”

“We are...” Dusty held up her hand and shook her head in a feigned ‘patient but disappointed’ manner.

“Why?”

“Because,” she began. “Because...”

“Because you were bored,” Dusty said.

The Shudder Sisters were aghast at the bluntness of the statement.

“You will show us respect and reverence, we are ancient...” the elder Shudder Sister was again interrupted by Dusty.

“Respect is earned. You cannot demand it, it doesn’t work that way. You have not given me cause to respect you, save that you’re all really old and decrepit. That reason doesn’t command instant respect and neither does fear.” Dusty looked at all the Shudder Sisters in turn and few of them could meet her gaze.

“I know what you are,” Dusty said in a low voice. “You are lesser Norns. I think you have become old and wizened artificially by interference; perhaps from Loki?”

Dusty paused for a moment so the women could understand and comprehend that she was not just making wild guesses, she had actually done her homework and she knew what she was talking about.

The women waited in silence for her next observation.

“You were once Norns, created to minister to the fate of individual humans. I believe that you meddled and schemed with the lives of your humans and became dissatisfied. At the end of the life span of the human in your charge, you were still not satisfied and wove some kind of magic in order to remain on earth. I also believe that the coincidence of meeting up with each other is more than fate. I believe someone had a hand in it and as before, I think that someone’s name is Loki. I think he has watched you and enjoyed your meddling because that’s what he is all about, isn’t it?”

The elder lifted her stick again, but as before, Dusty held up her hand to give her pause.

“I’m right, aren’t I?”

The sisters were confused at the amount of knowledge Dusty was in possession of.

She saw the bemusement and reached into her bag again to bring out another apple. It was difficult to hold the slippery half-eaten apple as well as the new one but she managed it.

The half eaten one was bitten again and as Dusty made a meal of showing the old women how delicious the apple was, she passed that into her other hand and held the new apple aloft between forefinger and thumb so they could all see it.