Author's Note:
Judging by the title of this novel, 'Stalking Hams', you might think at first that it is a story about live baloney (yes, the ones we eat in picnics and in between a sandwich), stalked by hungry humans. WRONG. To view a summary, scroll down the sidebar and search for the 'about' section. Each chapter is divided into several(or more)parts to suit my schedule (basically, whenever I feel like writing). I would try my best to update the novel regularly, and announce updates on this site under the 'New! on Stalking Hams' section on the sidebar. Please comment on the tagboard or under a chapter, or mark an option of your opinion that comes with each post. In addition, this novel would be typed out all in BLACK for easier reading! Enjoy!
"So yer looking fer a pet that doesn't get in the way of yer work and doesn't require much maintenance and hassle..." The shop owner said, more to himself than to his first customer of the first day of his store opening.
The customer drummed his fingers on his crossed arms impatiently, "Yes. Any of that to offer in here?"
"Why, of course! My store has everything yer ever need. Now follow me, good lad!"
He followed the store owner with that weird, rough accent through to the back of the store ("Reminds me of that Hagrid from the 'Harry Potter' movies," he thought), trying to conceal his glee of getting his very first pet in all his 30 something odd years.
"Here they are," the shop owner gesticulated towards a small plastic box.
The customer surveyed the box. In it covered an inch of crumpled cloth-like paper.
"That's the bedding," the owner burst out, as if reading his mind."It helps absorb their pee, it does."
Atop the mount of bedding, a ceramic food bowl stood in a corner, filled with sunflower seeds and a variety of nuts. A tiny piece of cucumber had even found its place there, in the bowl. An exercise wheel was placed in the middle, and on the wheel, a hamster slept, its tiny size heaving as it breathed. Several more of the same kind huddled in another corner- some white, some with just a tint of gray.
"Hamsters?" The customer stared questioningly at the one on the wheel.
"Yep," the owner swelled with pride. "These are Winter Whites. Average lifespan of 2 years. Don't sell 'em elsewhere no more!"
"What's more, they're easy to take care of, just require two meals a day yer see. Won't affect yer work at all!" He rambled on.
The customer nodded slowly, "I'll take two of them, I suppose. Females."
"They're all females in here, except those last two near the food bowl. Take yer pick."
He pointed at the one on the wheel first. Then after a few moments, he pointed at a lone, petite hamster with a grey line running through its spine.
"Ah, good choice, lad," the shop owner lifted the lid of the box. "Those are both just 3 months old."
He grabbed a bucket by a stool and placed both hamsters in. The purely white hamster on the wheel looked irritated to be woken up so abruptly. The owner then placed the bucket by the counter and went around the store with the customer, recommending a cage, chew toys, premium nutritious food, bedding and sand baths.
Then, the customer caught sight of a tiny package next to grooming brushes for rabbits. Protected by plastic, was some form of string made of pink cloth - but thicker. It formed a loop.
"What is this for?" The customer held up the package for the shop owner to see.
"Aye, that's a leash fer small animals that is."
"How about hamsters?"
"That'd work too. Just don't tie that 'round their necks. It'd choke 'em yer see."
The customer placed two of the packages on the counter, with the rest of his purchases, which included sufficient food, sand and bedding to last at least a year, as well as a couple of wood chewables in the form of different fruit. He finally chose a cage of a bright orange colour, with a second and third storey (He personally called the third an attic).
"That'd be all for now," the customer whipped out his wallet.
After payment, the shop owner helped the customer load the cage, the huge bag of hamster neccessities and the bucket of the two baby hamsters into his car.
"Thanks fer choosing 'Pawfully Yours'!" The owner waved as he watched the customer drive away.
***
End of Chapter One - Part One
Chapter One: A Good Start- Part Two
The customer from the store went by the alias: Mr. Ray. But no one in his neighbourhood really knew he was born Reiner Abernathy. In fact, nobody really knew him at all, and nobody liked to go even closer than a metre's radius of him!
He was a rather plump man in his late thirties (but people still referred to him as a dotty old man anyway), and he lived alone. It was rumored he once had a wife, but she disappeared just a week after they joined hands in matrimony. Most thought she probably ran away from the marriage.
"The people here in this town are all a bunch of blabbing gossipers," Mr. Ray thought to himself, as flashes of his past and present whipped through his mind with godspeed.
"Well, I won't be alone anymore now,"he said aloud, turned his head abruptly from the driver's seat, and sneaked a peek at his new hamsters. He turned a corner to his street on *Gonzo Avenue (remarkably coincidental that he lives on that street).
Pulling his black 1960 Chevrolet Corvette in reverse, he parked neatly in the usual lot right in front of his house. Yes, he's pretty well off to be able to afford a Chevy Corvy (that's his nickname for the car - he's a rather particular vehicle enthusiast), and everything on him screams filthy rich, which of course gave his neighbors more cause to further distance themselves away from him.
He struggled with his new baggage up the steps, and into the sterile, white house he calls home. Nobody has visited since his wife took off. Back when she was all 'round present, their home nearly always was abuzz with partygoers, realtors, construction workers, neighbors, neighbors from another street... His wife was outgoing as one could get, and perked up everyone living on Gonzo Avenue - even Mr. Ray, at times! Now, his house was as still as a frightened cat. The sole occupier of the place laid down the cage and other hamster necessities on the dining table, hung his keys by a small hook at the brim of a coat rack, stepped out of his *Wellies and lined them neatly against the front door, then took in the room and its sterilized upholstery.
There's no doubt about it. Mr. Ray was obsessive-compulsive, and liked keeping his quarters germ-free. He wondered. "Could that be one reason Mrs. Ray left him?"
He shook his head, composing himself. No amount of bad luck he had in the past could get to him - he wouldn't let it get to him. He's got his two new babies. And what are the chances a small rodent could upset one in the way his ex-wife had to him?
With two brisk paces, he crossed to the side of the cage. As he hunched forwards to get a closer look at the now sleeping hamsters, the aching joints in his back produced a deafening crack. Perhaps he'd better pull up a chair.
Comfortably seated, Mr. Ray peered into the cage and observed the two Winter Whites, trying to decide a name for each of them.
The first one he had chosen back in the pet store had snow white fur, and was pretty plump for a 3-month old hamster. Her mouth was wide open as she snored (though he couldn't hear it, of course) in her sleep, huddled in her favorite spot in the cage - the exercise wheel.
Mr. Ray slowly took in the hamster. Perhaps he could name her 'Pudding'. He loves pudding, and her plump size reminded him of just that.
And that's what he decided.
Then, the second hamster. Back at the shop, she was distanced from all the other hamsters in her cage. Even now, she took a spot at the far end from Pudding. Lined in grey fur across the center of her back, she was much smaller in build compared to her new ham-mate. She even looked a little too fragile to be handled with. Still, she was just as adorable to watch as Pudding.
Possible names for this hamster weaved through his head. Finally, he came down to choosing between 'Nano' and 'Mochi'.
'Nano' because of her tiny size, and 'Mochi'... Well, it would be a perfect complement with 'Pudding'. Pudding and Mochi, Mochi and Pudding. It rolls off the tongue easily. Plus, mochi had been Mrs. Ray's favorite snack.
He still remembered the time before they had married, where they had vacationed for a week in Japan. Before that, he'd barely ever left the country. Or his doorstep, for that matter.
His wife had been immediately smitten with the soft, round puffs called mochi in a Japanese department store at Ginza. They were made of glutinous rice, stuffed with various fillings, like red bean paste. It kneads and grinds comfortably in your mouth as you savor it slowly.
She bought boxes after boxes of those mochi after that. That was how much she loved them.
"'Mochi' she shall be, then," he decided.
Tapping his finger lightly on the glass of the cage so as not to rouse the two, he whispered, "Welcome to the family, Pudding and Mochi."
***
End of Chapter One - Part Two
*gonzo = meaning crazy, to put it simply!
*Wellies = Wellingtons
He was a rather plump man in his late thirties (but people still referred to him as a dotty old man anyway), and he lived alone. It was rumored he once had a wife, but she disappeared just a week after they joined hands in matrimony. Most thought she probably ran away from the marriage.
"The people here in this town are all a bunch of blabbing gossipers," Mr. Ray thought to himself, as flashes of his past and present whipped through his mind with godspeed.
"Well, I won't be alone anymore now,"he said aloud, turned his head abruptly from the driver's seat, and sneaked a peek at his new hamsters. He turned a corner to his street on *Gonzo Avenue (remarkably coincidental that he lives on that street).
Pulling his black 1960 Chevrolet Corvette in reverse, he parked neatly in the usual lot right in front of his house. Yes, he's pretty well off to be able to afford a Chevy Corvy (that's his nickname for the car - he's a rather particular vehicle enthusiast), and everything on him screams filthy rich, which of course gave his neighbors more cause to further distance themselves away from him.
He struggled with his new baggage up the steps, and into the sterile, white house he calls home. Nobody has visited since his wife took off. Back when she was all 'round present, their home nearly always was abuzz with partygoers, realtors, construction workers, neighbors, neighbors from another street... His wife was outgoing as one could get, and perked up everyone living on Gonzo Avenue - even Mr. Ray, at times! Now, his house was as still as a frightened cat. The sole occupier of the place laid down the cage and other hamster necessities on the dining table, hung his keys by a small hook at the brim of a coat rack, stepped out of his *Wellies and lined them neatly against the front door, then took in the room and its sterilized upholstery.
There's no doubt about it. Mr. Ray was obsessive-compulsive, and liked keeping his quarters germ-free. He wondered. "Could that be one reason Mrs. Ray left him?"
He shook his head, composing himself. No amount of bad luck he had in the past could get to him - he wouldn't let it get to him. He's got his two new babies. And what are the chances a small rodent could upset one in the way his ex-wife had to him?
With two brisk paces, he crossed to the side of the cage. As he hunched forwards to get a closer look at the now sleeping hamsters, the aching joints in his back produced a deafening crack. Perhaps he'd better pull up a chair.
Comfortably seated, Mr. Ray peered into the cage and observed the two Winter Whites, trying to decide a name for each of them.
The first one he had chosen back in the pet store had snow white fur, and was pretty plump for a 3-month old hamster. Her mouth was wide open as she snored (though he couldn't hear it, of course) in her sleep, huddled in her favorite spot in the cage - the exercise wheel.
Mr. Ray slowly took in the hamster. Perhaps he could name her 'Pudding'. He loves pudding, and her plump size reminded him of just that.
And that's what he decided.
Then, the second hamster. Back at the shop, she was distanced from all the other hamsters in her cage. Even now, she took a spot at the far end from Pudding. Lined in grey fur across the center of her back, she was much smaller in build compared to her new ham-mate. She even looked a little too fragile to be handled with. Still, she was just as adorable to watch as Pudding.
Possible names for this hamster weaved through his head. Finally, he came down to choosing between 'Nano' and 'Mochi'.
'Nano' because of her tiny size, and 'Mochi'... Well, it would be a perfect complement with 'Pudding'. Pudding and Mochi, Mochi and Pudding. It rolls off the tongue easily. Plus, mochi had been Mrs. Ray's favorite snack.
He still remembered the time before they had married, where they had vacationed for a week in Japan. Before that, he'd barely ever left the country. Or his doorstep, for that matter.
His wife had been immediately smitten with the soft, round puffs called mochi in a Japanese department store at Ginza. They were made of glutinous rice, stuffed with various fillings, like red bean paste. It kneads and grinds comfortably in your mouth as you savor it slowly.
She bought boxes after boxes of those mochi after that. That was how much she loved them.
"'Mochi' she shall be, then," he decided.
Tapping his finger lightly on the glass of the cage so as not to rouse the two, he whispered, "Welcome to the family, Pudding and Mochi."
***
End of Chapter One - Part Two
*gonzo = meaning crazy, to put it simply!
*Wellies = Wellingtons
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
