Wizard Sniffle - Chapter 1 - Work in Progress

I started writing and illustrating this story a couple weeks ago. I'd love to get feedback on it. It's for kids, so keep that in mind. I can post more that I've written if people are interested.

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Part 1: Awakening

A small pile of hay lay fallen on a path in the woods. It had fallen out of a cart that was on its way to the castle nearby. The hay had been walked on all day and felt tired of being stepped on. “That’s interesting,” the hay thought. “That’s the first feeling I have felt. What a peculiar feeling. Maybe I should get off this path. Oh no, here comes a horse and a cart. Don’t step on me!”

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The driver of the cart heard a small voice say, “Don’t step on me,” and he stopped his cart. He looked ahead and didn’t see anything except a small pile of hay. “I must be hearin’ things,” he mumbled to himself. To his surprise, the pile seemed to blow off the path and bounce a couple times, but there was no wind on the wooded path. When he looked again he thought the bottom of the blowing hay looked more like legs. He closed his eyes and shook his head, “Must be seein’ things too.”

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The hay was surprised as well as he looked down and saw that he did indeed have something that looked like legs. They bounced his light body of hay away from the cart into the forest. “I have another peculiar feeling,” thought the hay man, “that this direction feels right to me. I think I’ll try using these new legs and walk a bit.” He walked around trees and ferns, mushrooms and rocks, bushes and moss until he came upon a smaller path. Hayman heard something to his right. His little hay head turned and his tiny hay ear opened up to hear better. “Sniff” it sounded. “I wonder what that might be,” thought Hayman. “I’ll follow it and see.”

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The Wandering Wizard walked down the winding path through the woods. He wiped his wet nose with his wand hand. “What a wicked cold. I wish my well-spell had worked, but alas it wouldn’t,” he said. He sniffed, “Oh no, here comes another one. Ah, ah, aahhhh CHOOOOOOO!” He sneezed into his hands while holding his wand. “What a mess!” he said as he wiped his hands on a rock. “I must get home and try my well-spell again, or I will never get well.” He walked on. The Wandering Wizard walked down the winding path through the woods. He wiped his wet nose with his wand hand. “What a wicked cold. I wish my well-spell had worked, but alas it wouldn’t,” he said. He sniffed, “Oh no, here comes another one. Ah, ah, aahhhh CHOOOOOOO!” He sneezed into his hands while holding his wand. “What a mess!” he said as he wiped his hands on a rock. “I must get home and try my well-spell again, or I will never get well.” He walked on.

Hayman heard an exploding noise far off ahead and ran toward it. When he came to where he thought the noise might have come from he didn’t see anything except a big rock with some slime on the top of it. “I wonder what this slime is,” Hayman said out loud.
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“Who you calling slime?” said a grinding voice. Hayman jumped back in surprise. It seemed as if the rock had split sideways down the middle. Then it fixed itself as if it had never split in the first place. And then two holes opened up in the rock and blinked at him. “I asked you a question,” the scratchy voice said again. This time there was no doubt in Hayman’s hay-filled mind, the rock was talking to him. “No offense, Mr. Rockman. I was just wondering what the slime on your head was. I wasn’t thinking that you were slime,” said Hayman, surprised at the dry sound of his own voice.
“Humm. Wait a second. I have a head?” said Rockman. “Huh, that’s odd. Never had a head before.“That’s what I was thinking,” said Hayman. “I never had legs or arms or a nose or a head before. I seemed to have woken up from a long sleep somehow.”Rockman grumbled, “Maybe I have legs too. Let me check. Oh look, I do. They’re right down here, and they’re made of rocks.” Rockman stood up for the first time and tried out his legs. He moved slowly. “I’m going to give these legs a try. Seems I should walk this way.”“I’ll walk with you if you don’t mind,” said Hayman. “I’ve never minded anything before,” said Rockman, “and I don’t mind now. Bum dum de dum.” And they walked off together down the path.

The Wandering Wizard fell forward over a fern in front of him. The fog filled the forest and his feet fell in puddles as he tried to find his way. “Oh fedi-finkles fly-outicus,” exclaimed the wizard as he waved his wand in front of him. A flow of clean air flew from the wand through the fog to reveal the path he was following. “Hurry hurry, fast and quick,” he mumbled to himself. As he rounded a bend in the forest a new blanket of fog met his face. He scrunched down his bushy eyebrows over his watering eyes. He raised his wand again and said, “Fedi-finkles fly… ah… fly … ah, ahhh, CHOOOO!” His face flew forward with such force to make the fog fly back a few inches. The Wandering Wizard lowered his shoulders in defeat. He wiped his nose on his brown sleeve of his cloak and forced his head into the fog, where he disappeared.

Hayman and Rockman were having a delightful time making their way through the forest. “I think Hayman is a great name,” Rockman said in his bumpy voice. “You are made of hay after all.” Hayman nodded his head, but then look confused, “But do you think I’m a man? I don’t feel like a man. I feel more wavey than that. Men seem to be made of squishy stuff.”Rockman bounced on his feet, “Bum de I don’t know much of anything about men. I’m going to call you Hayman though. I’ll make the ‘man’ in your name sound more like, ‘mun’ when I say it. Haymun”“That would be lovely,” nodded Hayman.Rockman walked behind Hayman for a bit. “Hey what’s that slime on your back Hayman?” (pronounced hay-mun)“What slime?,” Hayman craned his neck around to see what was on his back. But he stopped midway when and something caught his little hay filled eyes. The two friends were coming upon a misty part of the forest. To the right of them the fog was quite thick. The fog swirled and moved. One part of it moved back and forth quickly. “Hey Rockman, would you look at that? That fog is shaking. Wagging even. Woe now, it’s rushing over to me. My face! It’s all soggy. It’s like I’ve been licked.”Rockman said, “I saw the whole thing. I do believe that fog is a dog. I can see it wagging its tail and licking you on the face.” Rockman raised up his rocky hand and the dog made of most came over and sniffed it.

“Ha ha. Your nose is wet. What a good dog. I think I’ll call you Fogdog.” Rockman tried to pet the dog, but his hand went right through the top of his head and down through the bottom. Fogdog didn’t seem to mind. It swirled around Rockman’s round body leaving dew everywhere he touched. “Humba dum, hee hoom. You look like a friend. Would you like to come with us? We’re walking this way.” A soggy-faced Hayman said, “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. He doesn’t seem that friendly to me.”“Bum dum on you Hayman. Of course she’s friendly. Aren’t you girl? Come on.” Rockman bumbled along and Fogdog swirled above and around him. Hayman followed while keeping his distance to avoid another lick from Fogdog. He looked down and noticed a few puddles. He didn’t want to get more soggy so he jumped carefully between them. On the fourth puddle a breeze caught him and pushed him right in the middle of a large one. The water came up to Hayman’s knees, which was no more than just a bend in the hay that made up his legs. “Do you mind?” voice spoke out.Hayman looked around for the voice. “Mind? I have a mind. I do have thoughts, so I must have a mind.” Hayman looked down and saw what looked like a reflection of a face in the water. But it wasn’t his face, it was a beautiful face. An angry face. And its mouth opened.“No not that kind of mind. Would you mind getting off my dress? I very much would like to get out of your way. Or you to get out of my way. I don’t know. I just can’t stand you standing in me. Please!”“Yes mam. I’ve jumped out. I apologize, a breeze pushed me in. I didn’t meant to disturb your puddle.”“Puddle? What puddle?” the woman in the puddle said. Then a geyser shot up from the middle of the puddle and a ball of water appeared with what looked like a small waterfall spilling down the back. It formed into a larger bunch of water and then further down it gracefully fell back into the puddle. To Hayman it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. A woman made of water. The puddle looked like a long flowing dress laid out on the ground. Long liquid arms whipped around, brushing her hair from her transparent and delicate face. “Oh now that’s better. Let me see. Wow I have a body like a women. I’ve seen women all over the world, but never I imagined I would be one. You are a peculiar fellow. Are you made of hay? How is it that we have awoken? What is this place?”

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Hayman was overwhelmed. “I’m sure I don’t know mam.” He stared up and and down at the watery woman before him. “What do you mean you’ve been all over the world?”“I’m not quite sure, but it seems that some of me was a cloud that floated over cities and mountains. That’s right I was a cloud. I started in the ocean then worked my way across country. I remember a castle, a lot of nice people in a village, a nasty bunch of men in a field throwing things at each other, then I remember moving up the mountains and raining down right here. But I feel some of me were in other parts of the world. It’s hard to piece all together. Shouldn’t we be moving on? I have a feeling that we are meant to be somewhere.” “Yes mam. I’ve been having that same thought. Will you be needing any help?” Hayman bowed offering a hand. “I think I can manage,” said the water woman. It was difficult for Hayman to see how the water woman moved. It looked as if her puddle dress dragged behind her but also splashed out in front at the same time. The ground was damp behind her. As she moved through a new puddle she dipped down to her waist, even though the puddle should have only been ankle deep for her. She seemed to kick and shoot up back to her normal height. Hayman silently walked behind her, keeping clear of the puddles and trying to see through the fog. He suddenly remembered, “Rockman and Fogdog!” “I beg your pardon?” the water woman spoke splashing her hair as she looked back over her shoulder. “I forgot about my new friends. You need to meet them. They are up ahead, I hope. Rockman! Fogdog!” Hayman called out as loud as his hay filled voice would carry through the mist. The fog suddenly thickened in front of them as Fogdog swirled around Hayman’s head. “No, no licks. Bad dog,” Hayman said in a soggy voice. Fogdog lowered her head and tail.
“What is this remarkable creature. Is this Fogdog?” the water woman said brightly. Fogdog’s tail shot up and she flew up and around to lick the water woman. “Oh dear, you’ve gone right through my body. In fact you’ve raised me up inside you.” Hayman saw the watery woman disappear inside Fogdog. They both moved together for a few seconds up in the air above the path then Waterwoman rained out the bottom of Fogdog and landed in a splash. Hayman gasped in shock. “What a delightful feeling. Just like raining down from a cloud. What a good girl you are Fogdog. Might we try that again?”Fogdog flew through the water woman again and this time they shot up together above the fog and out of Hayman’s sight. “Oh dear, where are they going. They’ve left me.” Hayman hurried along, trying to keep up, but his waterlogged face and legs were weighing him down.