{"id":2750,"date":"2025-01-25T17:25:07","date_gmt":"2025-01-26T00:25:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/?p=2750"},"modified":"2025-01-25T17:25:07","modified_gmt":"2025-01-26T00:25:07","slug":"ritual","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/2025\/01\/25\/ritual\/","title":{"rendered":"Ritual"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

prompt: Start or end your story with a character making a cup of tea for themself or someone else.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

available at Reedsy<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ornate porcelain teapot was out of place on the scratched metallic countertop. Strong, scarred hands the color of worn khaki filled the center strainer of the pot with leaves from an airtight metal canister. Those same hands lifted the electric kettle and poured the boiling water over the strainer in the teapot before putting the lid on and setting it on the cheap, plastic table. \u201cThere\u2019s something calming in the ritual of it, I find.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhich ritual? The hunt, the capture or\u2026the kill?\u201d The woman that sat at the table was slight of build, with charcoal-black skin including her lips and tongue, striking violet eyes that angled up at the outsides, and ears topped by long points that stuck out of her shock-white hair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The owner of the teapot, kettle, table, and scarred hands sat across from the dark elf. His height and build would best be described as average. Medium brown hair nearly matched his medium brown eyes. He was of indeterminate age, possibly as young as twenty or as old as fifty. His clean-shaven face was marred by only one scar that began just below the right side of his nose and ran down his lips to his chin. If he chose to grow a beard and mustache, he would have no visible defining features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was speaking of the ritual of making tea,\u201d he said. \u201cAre you that eager to get to business?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The elf shook her head. \u201cNo, I\u2014sorry. This is a strange situation for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStrange how?\u201d He checked the clock over the door and folded his hands on the table to wait out the last minute of the tea steeping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t even know what to call you or what you are. Bounty hunter? Assassin? Spy?\u201d She sighed. \u201cAll I know is that you are protected by the Crown even when you do some things that are\u2026distasteful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy name is Senior Agent John McCall, and yours is Detective Brianna Havelock. Why not start there?\u201d He poured the tea into the matching cups. \u201cI\u2019d offer you milk, but since I don\u2019t use it, I don\u2019t keep it on hand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDo you have any honey?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He turned to the cabinets behind him and opened one of the metal doors with a squeak. He set a bear-shaped plastic squeeze bottle of honey on the table and sat back down. \u201cTell me, detective, what do find distasteful about my job performance?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She stirred her tea, watching the honey dissolve before speaking. \u201cYou act as judge, jury, and executioner,\u201d she said, \u201cwith no repercussions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat makes you think that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFallon Straz. I get that your work is meant to be secret, but even when it became public, the official word from the Crown was that quote, \u2018These things happen, but the world is safer for it.\u2019 If the police did something like that\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDetective Havelock, you\u2019re here because the Crown Secret Service wants you on board. I assure you that I can explain Straz and other cases to your satisfaction, but not without reading you in.\u201d He opened the satchel that sat beside the table and placed a small pile of stapled pages in front of her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRead this thoroughly,\u201d he said, \u201cand understand that everything in it is literal, before you make your decision. I\u2019d recommend focusing solely on absorbing all of it before you make up your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLiteral, huh?\u201d She scanned through the pages and stopped. \u201cEven this? \u2018\u2026executed and soul trapped until such time as all known operations are no longer classified.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEspecially that. I suggest you take the time to read it all properly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brianna sipped at her tea as she read through the sheaf of papers twice. \u201cWhy me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve proven yourself as a natural in undercover work, and The Service can teach you everything you need to be a top-notch agent.\u201d John cleared up the table and cleaned out the teapot. \u201cBesides that, you have no attachments outside work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI would\u2019ve thought that my involvement in the Release the Innocent Project would turn you sour on me as a candidate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John smiled. \u201cThat was the deciding factor for me. You care more about real justice than your departmental stats.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat about Straz? Was it justice when you shot him at point blank range?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The smile never wavered. \u201cI can\u2019t talk about it, until and unless you sign that document.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The elf closed her eyes and massaged the pointed tip of her right ear. She let out a low growl, then said, \u201cOkay. I\u2019m in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John watched her sign the documents, then whisked them away into his satchel. \u201cWelcome to the Crown Secret Service, Trainee Agent Havelock,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow you can tell me about Straz, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI could, but I think I\u2019ll let him tell you the story when we visit his cell tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWait, he\u2019s alive?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe is. And he\u2019ll no doubt live to a ripe old age without ever leaving the confines of SuperMax.\u201d John rose and started the kettle again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut all the reports, the news, the Crown spokesperson\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTold exactly the story we needed them to tell.\u201d He measured out the tea for the strainer and refilled it. \u201cYou know what The Service\u2019s main mission is, Trainee?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cProtect the Crown, Parliament, judges, and so on,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s our secondary mission. Our primary mission is to protect and preserve the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat makes sense, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd do you know what the best tool we have to do that is?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIntelligence?\u201d she answered in a questioning tone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cImage.\u201d John paused as he poured the water over the strainer and checked the clock above the door. \u201cThe CSS creates an image, a look. You, and everyone else in the world, has an image of John \u2018The Rogue\u2019 McCall as a shoot first, ask questions later, torture-as-a-hobby strong-arm who will do anything in pursuit of a goal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brianna looked down at the table. \u201cYeah, I guess so.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s because that image opens more doors and closes more cases than standard fieldwork alone.\u201d John set the teapot on the table and sat down with a smile. \u201cIf I was just another agent, the people I have in my custody would be more likely to stonewall me or try to bullshit their way out. When they realize that The Rogue is their captor, though, they\u2019re much more likely to be as helpful as possible in order to save their own skin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnless they have their own image to maintain,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTrue. But if they\u2019re at that level, they understand the difference between rumor and reality.\u201d John poured out a second round of tea in fresh cups. \u201cIn those cases, there are specially trained agents that handle the interrogations. Before you ask about torture, no, the Service doesn\u2019t do that\u2026at least not physical torture. Considering the number of psychiatrists the Service hires for that role, though, just being in a room with one of them might be considered torture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSince everything I know about you is rumor, how about telling me something real. Have you ever shot anyone?\u201d Brianna sipped her tea, her demeanor much more relaxed than it had been.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA few times.\u201d John chuckled and said, \u201cI even shot Straz. In the calf, from twenty meters or so, not point-blank in the head. I\u2019d just broken my ankle jumping over a wall and landing on a bottle, and he was getting away. Thought I\u2019d even up the odds.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brianna took on a questioning look. \u201cSo, the tea,\u201d she asked, \u201cis this just image as well?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhy do you ask that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI noticed you barely drank any of your first cup, but you\u2019ve gone and made a second pot for us.\u201d She waved a hand. \u201cNot that I\u2019m complaining, it\u2019s very good tea \u2014 Assam black if I were to guess.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGood guess, and no, it\u2019s not about image. I meant what I said about the whole ritual of it being calming.\u201d He smiled at the elf again. \u201cNot as Senior Agent to Trainee, but person to person, I recommend you find something that does the same for you. Something simple that calms, centers, and grounds Brianna the person so Brianna the agent can be focused and alert.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

prompt: Start or end your story with a character making a cup of tea for themself or someone else. available at Reedsy The ornate porcelain teapot was out of place on the scratched metallic countertop. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[208],"tags":[216,210,209,220],"class_list":["post-2750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-trunk-stories","tag-fantasy","tag-fiction","tag-short-story","tag-urban-fantasy"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/sxT7i-ritual","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2750","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2750"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2750\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2751,"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2750\/revisions\/2751"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}