Bridgette, by the very talented British Muffin. 

Prompt 17- Fade

A shiver ran up her spine as the evening air began to chill.  She sat at the end of the dock, resting her chin on her knees. She was watching the sun make its descent behind the ocean horizon, the sun making the water look like it was ablaze.  She loved this time of night, watching the transition from day to night. The riot of colour in the sky before it all faded to black and then slowly the stars would appear like twinkling diamonds. 

She laid back on the dock, watching as the constellations began to emerge. As she gazed upon the Bole, she offered up a prayer of protection for her friend Nobu.  He had been gone for several months now and no contact from him.  “May the Matron and Keeper guide you and keep you safe.”

Prompt 16 - Lubrication

The air was hot and dusty, the slight breeze doing nothing to cool down the refugee camp outside Ul’dah. She was hoping to glean some information from a former garlean slave. She had found the woman easily enough, but getting her to talk was another matter.  The woman seemed haunted by her past.  

Bridgette invited the woman to join her down at the nearby stream to enjoy some homemade food. It seemed the combination of a good meal and some apple cider had loosened the woman’s tongue. The woman began to talk about her past before being captured by the garleans. 

Bridgette listened as she plied the woman with more cider, tentative with her questions until she felt the woman would be inclined to tell her just about anything.  She had been patient, but she was running out of cider so she needed to ask her about it now. Bridgette laid a gentle hand on the other woman’s knee, “Now, this is important, I need you to tell me everything you know about Black Rose.”

Prompt 15 - Ache

It was a beautiful sunny day in the Mist.  Bridgette and her son Mika were her day off at the beach to enjoy the waters.  They had swum out to one of the diving rocks and had been having fun doing cannonball dives.  They were joined by another group of swimmers, a rowdy group of teens who were pushing each other off the rocks. 

“Come Mika, let’s head back to the shore for now and have some lunch,”  she didn’t want Mika or herself to get hurt by the carelessness of the others. As they were swimming back to shore, Bridgette heard screaming from the rock and looked back.  One of the boys had pushed the other so hard he hit his head off the rock and rolled into the water.  She could see the blood staining the water.  

“Go back to the shore and wait for me,” she told her son. She swam back to the rock and looked for the boy but he hadn’t surfaced.  “Where’s your friend?” she asked the others, but they were either too busy screaming or arguing with each other.  None of the boys had gone in to save him. 

Taking a deep breath Bridgette dived below the surface and began scanning the waters. The injured boy had sunk to the bottom, several yalms below.  Bridgette surfaced briefly to take another large breath before swimming down to the boy’s limp body. She wrapped an arm around his waist and held him to her as she began to swim back to the surface.  Her lungs were aching as they breached the surface.

She felt for a pulse at his neck as she took in some deep breaths, it was thin and thready, but it was there.  She pulled him to the rock and laid him down so she could start breathing into his lungs.  She had never done it before, but she had read about people giving the “breath of life.”  She had given him a few breaths when he started to cough, she rolled him onto his side coaxing  him to take in some deep breaths.  

“You… you saved him,” one of the youth cried out.  “No thanks to you lot,” she replied. “If I hadn’t have been here he would have died.  “What’s his name?” she asked.  “Tommy, it’s Tommy Smith. “I’m going to swim him back to shore, you lot be useful and let his parents or guardian know.”

“Okay Tommy, I’m going to swim us back to shore.  I need you to be calm okay?” The boy nodded in reply.  She pulled him back into the water with her, her left arm hugging his body to hers as she slowly made her way back to the shore. She could see Mika waiting for her on the shoreline, a familiar figure standing next to him.  “I called for help,” he said, explaining the presence of the company physician who shrugged his shoulders, “I was already at the pier.”

Prompt 14 - Part

Bridgette was working in her office when she heard the explosion down at the warehouse. She grabbed her medical bag which she always kept packed and ready to go in case of emergencies. When she arrived at the warehouse, she saw smoke and fiery debris scattered across the yard.  The foreman was busy yelling at his crew to put out the small fires before the wind blew any of it closer to the building. 

Approaching the foremand, Bridgette inquired as to the nature of the explosion. “Damn new kid, I warned the crew not to smoke near any of the goods, but did he listen?  There goes the gunpowder the Lieutenant ordered for the armoury.”  Bridgette looked up at the foreman, “The kid?”  Shaking his head he replied, “You’ll find bits and pieces of him wherever you see the debris. “Anyone else hurt?” she asked.  “Thankfully  no one was standing close enough to get seriously hurt.  A few have shrapnel injuries, but they were well enough to help with containing the fires.  You can use my office for now to see to their injuries till the doc gets here. He’s still out at sea and isn’t due back for a quarter bell yet.”  

Bridgette unpacked her bag on the foreman’s desk and began to treat the injured.  One of the workers was able to read and write so she tasked him with making notes of the injured, noting the injuries and treatments applied. She’d hand these off to the company physician when he arrived so he would know who would require further follow up.

Prompt 12 - Tooth and Nail

The storm crept up on them during the night.  Bridgette remembered the bells ringing to all hands on deck. She quickly dressed and headed up to the deck. Though not an experienced sailor, she had been on enough ships during her lifetime to know the basics.   The ship pitched to the starboard side as the captain struggled to maintain control of the helm. 

Bridgette clung to the ship on the leeward side as she made her way to the stern.  She approached the captain as she fought tooth and nail to steer the ship into the waves.  “Need some help?” Bridgette asked. The captain nodded in reply as she yelled out an order to the crew. “Get that storm jib up and reef that mainsail!”  Bridgette watched as the crew climbed up the rigging to work the sails as she took hold of one side of the helm.  “Right, we need to aim the bow into the storm, if those waves hit us from the sides they could roll the ship.  Understood?” Bridgette replied, “Aye captain.”

Prompt 11 - Ultracrepidarian

Bridgette attempted to probe the lecturer on more in depth knowledge about the subject, but the man tried to explain in simpler terms when she was requesting deeper knowledge.  People in the audience could see he didn’t know his subject very well and began to complain, requesting their money back.  Which is when the lecturer ran into the guild hall and shut the doors behind him.

Bridette had been interested in a lecture on apothecary being held outside the guild in Ul’dah.  The speaker was a Sharlayan man who was touted to be an expert on the flora and fauna native to that land.  As the man spoke though, it became apparent that his knowledge on the subject was rudimental at best.  A first year apothecarist apprentice could rattle off the same.  He was basically quoting the Sharlayan Field Guide to Local Plants.  

Prompt 10 - Avail

Bridgette threw her hands up, cursing  in frustration, “For Twelves sake! Where in the world is it?.”  She had been scouring for the last bell looking for her earring to no avail. She had put them on this morning before having breakfast in the crew dining room before heading to her workshop.  She had retraced her steps five times already and searched the workshop from top to bottom at least twice. 

She sat on the floor, knees to her chest, rubbing her temples.  The earrings were special to her because her son had given them to her for her name day. She sat there for some time, the sun’s light shifting in the room when suddenly there was a glint that caught her eye.  She moved to the small crevice between the workbench and the wall and there she found it.  She shook her head, an ironic laugh escaping her lips, as she picked up the earring.

Prompt 9 - Lush

Bridgette wiped the sweat off her brown as she finished planting the last row of geraniums in her apothecary workshop.  She had spent a lot of time and money setting up her workshop, with the greenhouse section at the back.  She had taken her time in selecting the healthiest looking plants, examining each one before making her selection. 

As she stepped back to admire her work, she was in awe of the lush garden in her greenhouse. From anise, basil, chamomile and dill to violet, witch hazel, and yarrow. The smells changed depending on where you stood and if there was a breeze through the windows, it was a delight to her senses. She watched the shadows dance across the room as the sun moved behind the tall plants at the back of the garden. 

She felt a swell of pride at her accomplishment.  It was a long journey to get to this point, to save up the money for the plants and equipment, let alone the changes that had to be made to the space to make the back of it into a greenhouse. She just wished Michael was here to see this. 

Prompt 8 - Clamour

Bridgette was in Ul’dah visiting Eshtaime’s Aesthetics the day Mountain Crusher lost a fight to Lula Fanula in the Coliseum.  No one expected the hulking Roegadyn to lose a match to the tiny Lalafell but he did. Lula was so fast on her feet that she was able to easily dodge Mountain Crusher’s attacks, often running between his legs and slashing at his calves and ankles as she did so. He took so much damage to his calves that the tall Roe came crashing down, his legs giving out beneath him. Once he was imobile, Lula was able to hop onto his back, grab his head by his hair and hold her dagger to his throat, thus winning the match. 

The crowd went wild, hissing and booing at the tiny Lalafell, calling it an unfair match, but Dour Meadow declared her the victor. Upset with the ruling, spectators spilled out of the Coliseum their clamour announcing their approach as they made their way across the city looting and rioting. Bridgette hid in a locked storeroom along with the shopkeepers as they waited for the crowd to move on. 

It wasn’t until a few hours later that the Brass Blades were able to get things under control. It took a few weeks for the visible damage to be repaired and a few months to recover from the financial damage. Bridgette often thinks back to that day with a wry smile, it’s a good thing she decided to bet a few gil on the underdog that day.  

Prompt 7 - Nonagenarian

Growing up, Bridgette would often go down to the docks with her father and brother in the evenings to fish.  There was an elderly buccaneer who used to sit near them and regale them with the stories of his youth.  He would tell them tales of his voyages, the different lands he had visited and their customs at the time. His favourite tales to tell were about the fish he would see in the waters of those distant lands. He could spend hours telling you about the different variations of carp, trout, perch and bream and which bait worked best for each different kind of fish. 

One evening when they went down to fish, Bridgette brought a drawing she had coloured for the old man.  It was the crude drawing of a man with a long gray beard sitting on a stool with his fishing rod out, ready to catch some fish. “Mister Cooke, I made this for you for sharing your stories with us,” as Bridge held out the drawing she so proudly made for him. The old man gingerly took the drawing and smiled.  Patting the top of her head, “My sweet girl, this is the nicest gift anyone has given me in all my ninety odd years.” 

Prompt 5 - Matter of Fact

Bridgette sat by herself at the Bismark, it would have been her sixth anniversary with Michael if fate hadn’t been so cruel.  She ordered her food and a glass of wine with her meal when the couple at the next table began to get into a heated discussion.  For some reason they decided that dinner out was a great time to bring up his gambling. Bridge sat with her elbow resting on the table, her head in her hand with her eyes closed trying to ignore them.  

“Look at her, I can’t believe she’s got her elbow on the table at such a nice restaurant,” the wife said to her husband. It took a moment for Bridgette to realize, they must have been talking about her as she was the only other guest in the restaurant this late in the evening. 

Bridgette looked at them and shook her head, “As a matter of fact, you are the ones being rude arguing about his gambling so loudly that all of Limsa can hear you.” Bridgette shook her head and looked away.  The wife sat there gobsmacked for a few moments before the waiter came out and presented them with their bill.  Unfortunately, the husband had gambled away the money for the dinner earlier and the wife didn’t have two gil to rub together.  The wife started to frett and the husband looked at the waiter with a worried look. 

Bridge called the waiter over and asked him how much they owed him.  Thankfully they hadn’t gone overboard with their meals.  “I’ll cover their meal tonight if it gets them out of here sooner.”  The waiter gave Bridge a knowing grin, “Very good Miss.  I’ll add it on to your bill at the end of the evening.”  The couple at the next table thanked her with very uncomfortable looks on their faces, leaving quickly and quietly. 

Prompt 4 - Clinch

Promt 4 - Clinch

Bridgette was worried, it had been several months since Nobu had left to go be married off to the Garlean.  She hadn’t heard a word from him, she had left letters for him at the house as he had instructed. Apparently someone was to come around and pick up any mail and deliver it to him.  While the letters were never there when she returned to the house the following week, there were never any letters left for her in return.

Bridgette clinched the pendant she wore around her neck tightly, it had been a gift from Nobu before he left.  Whenever she thought about him or worried about him, she held the pendant tight.  It was her only connection to him, her closest friend. 

Prompt 3 - Muster

Bridgette was studying in her room when she heard the crash from the other room. Instantly she was overwhelmed by a feeling of dread.  Her brother must have knocked something over.  It didn’t matter if he owned up to it or not, her mother would take it out on her as she always did. Bridgette waited in her room, mustering up the courage to endure another beating.  She clenched her palms so tight, trying to calm her breathing as her mother stomped up the stairs from the shop below. 

She could hear her brother Billy speaking to her mother, apologizing to her for breaking one of the glass vials in the apothecary workshop. “Stop trying to cover for your sister. She needs to take responsibility for her own mistakes,” she could hear her mother respond, her voice getting closer to the door with each word. She could hear the door knob start to turn, but then she heard her Father’s voice call up from below, “Beth? I’m home. Where are the kids?  I have something to show you all.”  

Bridgette could hear her mother run downstairs to greet her Father. She sent up a silent prayer to the Twelve for the very timely return of her Father from Ul’dah.  A couple minutes later her brother poked his head in the door, “I think it’s safe to come out now. I’ve cleaned up the mess and mother will be distracted now with all of the new goods Dad brought back.” 

Promt 2 - Sway

Bridgette watched from the decks as the ship approached the shore, taking in the beautiful colours of the city and the unique architecture of the buildings.  It was even more beautiful than she could have imagined, her father’s sketches did not do it justice.There were huge towers built right at the start of the docks, they didn’t look like any lighthouses she had ever seen before. 

She felt the impact of the starboard side of the ship as it connected with the dock and watched as the crew threw lines down to the dock workers to be secured to the moorings. It would be a few minutes still before they got the gangway in place and the passengers would be able to disembark.  She headed down to her quarters scanning them once again to make sure she wasn’t forgetting anything. 

Nearly all of her sea-sickness remedies had been used up by some of her fellow passengers who were not able to handle even the gentle waves of the sea.  Most of them had spent the entire journey in the infirmary of the ship and were still there when she came to tell them they had finally docked.  She encouraged them to make their way up to the top of the ship to get some fresh air while they waited to disembark. 

After months at sea on the voyage from Limsa to Kugane, Bridgette’s feet stood on solid ground.  Though she had travelled by ship in the past, it had been some time and this was the longest voyage she had ever been on.  As she stood on the docks, she felt like the ground was swaying beneath her, as though she was still on the ship.  She closed her eyes, willing the swaying to stop, but to no avail. Thankfully Xah and Nobu stood on either side of her and leant her their arms to help her keep her balance. The irony of the situation was not lost on her. 

It was a few hours later, she had been able to lay down for a bit and freshen up when her land legs finally returned.  

Prompt 1 - Crux

Bridgette sat on the edge of the dock her feet dangling in the water.  She was lost in thought, her mind weighing on a most peculiar problem. She had recently started at the trading company and was in the middle of a review of the books. Usually if there was an issue with the accounts, it was that there was a shortage of gil or a shortage of inventory indicating a theft of some sorts.  But instead, the books balanced with the orders of goods, but there were more goods than there should have been.

 As she wiggled her toes in the water, a thought occurred to her. What if someone was using the company ships to bring in goods for their own side business. But why leave them in the warehouse to be included in the company’s inventory, unless they didn’t know that someone was now taking a keener interest in the inventory.

 Did she wait and keep an eye on the books and inventory to see if there were any more oddities to arise?  Or did she notify the Lieutenant right away?  She sighed as she stood up, shaking the water off her feet before slipping on her sandals.  She took a deep breath as she headed in the direction of the company estate, she made up her mind she would inform the Lieutenant and see if he had any insight into the crux of the matter.