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I have a a story idea. More then idea actually... a few chapters ready and a plan where to take it as well. Now the story has its POD before 1900, but its 1895 and the all chapters except first take place after 1900... Placing it here is a bit of nonsense, but as they use to say "rules are rules" :rolleyes:

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If an advisor says to me "My liege, he is but one man. What can one man possibly do?", I will reply "This." and kill the advisor.
Evil Overlord List by Peter Anspach. Rule #46.

Imagine yourself a cat.
Not a fluffy puff of joy. No.
A lean and mangy one, full of sharp teeth and claws, soaked in meanness. As full of flees as of dirty tricks. A true cat lord of the street.
As you all know cats are something more than common animals. They are gods of probability, of things too tiny to grasp and too elusive to measure. Fortunately for us, mortals, they don't have any idea how to control their powers.
Now imagine yourself a city fit for this creature. A city bustling with activity, yet stinking of the sewer, coated in grime spewed by thousand chimneys, and with streets covered in horse shit. A city that is multicultural, yet ridden by racism and bigotry.
Ah... New York, New York.
Little Italy of late 1895.

The said cat is on a hunt. A bad day. He searches dumpster after a dumpster finding little to eat. Suddenly he spots a pigeon. He knows that they taste foul and have little meat, but hunger makes hunter's instincts to take over. He lowers himself and crawls forward. The bird sees him early, so the cat launches himself in wild attack in hope of getting the bird before it gets high enough. You see, in other worlds, the cat may ignore the bird. In yet another he would have tried a different, more successful hunting technique, or different approach. In this world this pesky pigeon flew away, but by doing this, this dumb bird grazed with the head of a horse pulling a cart full of potatoes. A horse had a close call with an automobile just two blocks away, so it was already nervous. The sudden feathery bump in a head caused it to neigh in panic, and suddenly jolt forward blindly. His charge never went far as the cart brushed nearby streetlamp, breaking apart and strewing potatoes all around.
The cat seemed mildly amused by the destruction he took part in, and walked off, with head and tail proudly high.

***

An émigré from Italian Benevento, Carlo Bencivenga looked at the scene. Coachmen and cartmen swore at unlucky driver, while he was cursing his luck, and whipping the horse to punish it for the disaster. Somebody confronted the driver, telling him to stop.
- "Yea, don't let him beat this poor animal. He is mad cause the horse has more reason than him!" - Carlo shouted, and much of the crowd that filled the street and paid attention to accident, burst into laughter.
-"It is the first time I see a horse driven by an ass"- again the public responded well. Carlo liked a good joke now and then. He watched the scene for a few minutes. A good citizen plucked out whip from hands of a driver, and cracked it. Driver was fuming with anger, but since the street was now full of onlookers focused on him, there was little he could do. Some boy fed the horse with carrot raised from the paved road. Then Carlo was back on his way. He had to be on time for a train to get back home. Since he lost a few minutes, his schedule had become tense. Therefore he paid no attention on vendors on his way to a train station.

Meanwhile Paolo Firavanti had a plenty of time. He wasn't in a hurry to get back home. In truth, his wife lately proved that she could be a real harpy. Not caring about children! Him! Outrageous! He should have know better then marry this Galseni girl. He looked around and spotted a salesman standing by the wall. His shop was simply a blanket with dozen or so items to sell. A pair of small leather shoes catch his eye. He takes them and looks closely. The price is surprisingly cheap... almost too good to be true. They look and feel sturdy. Many questions fill Paolo's head. Are those wares "hot" and the man tries to get rid of them? Was this salesman a some kind of crook? Paolo didn't want to be another sucker. Yet Firavanti's uncle was a shoemaker, and he had spent long hours helping in his workshop when he was a child, so nobody would cheat him about this. He regards the trader and his wares once more, and the realisation hit him. This man was almost disinterested in whatever he would make the sale or not. His wares were mostly child's clothes and toys. Grief after losing a child? That was something that Paolo could understand. If the same disaster had hit him, he would likely go insane. Still thanks to the grief of this man Paolo's daughter could have decent shoes for school. They looked sturdy enough, so perhaps his younger daughter could use them afterwards. Because of his wife constant bickering, and some degree of guilt he also relieved the sad salesman of rocking horse, despite it was priced less favourably. Surely that would show his wife what kind of a man he is.

It is astonishing how fragile history could be. It seems to have one set course, but change one thing and the whole house of cards would come crashing down. In some of the worlds, Carlo would stop by the man trying to get rid of his late son toys and clothes, and he would buy the shoes. In others he would still get on that train home. In this he would do neither. He would miss the train by seconds, and would have to pay for hotel to stay in the city overnight. He would also have one hell of an argument with his wife after he would be back. Next day in the evening, he would go to the bar, where in whiskey and beer fumes his "friends" would advise him to show his wife "who is the man". Carlo would do this, once he goes back home. Nothing life threatening but his daughter would witness the fight. Thanks to this, she would ignore the man with particular look twelve years later in the church. In different world they would fall in love and become a parents of a war hero. Here the girl would marry another man and her children would never achieve notoriety. On the other hand, they would live a long and happy lives which by some accounts is far better.


Paolo would return to his home with shoes and toy. His wife would be rather pleased and forgot about earlier quarrels. Later that evening she would remind her husband that her fiery temper have some upsides as well. The result of a night full of passion arrive nine months later and would be given a name of Giovanni.
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