Impertinent bird.

After a sunny afternoon of writing and doing what I can only call amassing for this project, I strode over to the University Library to trade in two books and pick up five (my allotment here). Normally, the walk from my flat to the UL is perfectly pleasant but not particularly noteworthy. Today, though, just as I rounded the back corner of the building, I saw it:

A man and a woman came walking along the side of the building, lit up in the late-afternoon sun. And at their side trotted a great big amiable looking raven. They paused, and the raven paused, cocked its head to look up at them, and hopped over to the woman's cream-colored patent leather handbag. He pecked the corner of the handbag. The couple laughed. Then the raven hopped back, walked forward again, and pecked at the woman's foot. They laughed again and started to walk away. The raven followed them, with his jaunty little walk, and nipped at the back of the man's ankle. The couple stopped, and the raven darted at the top of his foot. As they turned to walk away again, the raven followed, flaring its wings up and flapping along a little faster so as not to lose them.

Ravens are the size of small dogs. Yet I've never actually seen a raven acting like a little dog.

When I left the library half an hour later, I looked for the raven. And there he was, still wandering around near that corner, not a little peculiarly.

If I'd had a little leash, I'd have wanted to offer it to him.

Today: 778 words. And suddenly, this evening, I began to be able to feel the approach of a join between the new material I've been crafting and the material in my first version, which makes me feel as though tomorrow might be the day when this thing starts to fly right along. I'm hoping for cut-and-paste soon...