Archives

We Meet Again (Strangers in the Stream)

Apr14

For my birthday weekend, I challenge(d) people to leave me prompts that would be fun for me to write and also that the prompted would enjoy reading enough to give me fun feedback on. 

Tall order, right? 🙂

🎂

“Shit, Dorian.”  Gianne eyed the bank of the overflowing river and then stumble-skipped down it, holding on to every branch and rock study enough to be a handhold; Dorian, an oversized golden retriever, stood at the top of the bank and barked helpfully.  “Shhh.”

The river was flowing fat and high, clearly over its normal banks, full of detritus, but none of that was what had caught her attention. The black hair with the single streak of white and the ashen face under it, barely held out of the water by the fork of a branch; it could be a corpse.  She was hoping it was still alive enough to save. Continue reading →

Haunted House 45: Plans and Present

Apr13

First: A story featuring a male keeper and a female Kept.
🌳

“Listen.”  Jasper leaned forward towards Kearney. “In about a week, I’m going to have a job.  It might be tricky and it might be dangerous, but I’ll be watching your back, and I’ll pay well. I can’t tell you more right now – but can I find you if I come around here?” 

The kid shifted a little from foot to foot.  “Old barn, about a mile out of town that way,” they gestured.

“Okay.  I won’t show up unless I have some work for you and I won’t invade your space, but I might have something I need help with.  One thief to another, as it were.” Continue reading →

Running in the Bear Empire 41: Discovery

Apr12

First: Running in the Bear Empire
Previous: 40: Spies
Next: 42: Home
🐻

Carrone was staring at Deline.  She didn’t care; she had a whole pack to go through. “Seriously,” he complained,  “why are we looking for a pebble in our packs? Do you know how long I’ve been carrying this pack?”

“Possibly as long as I’ve been carrying mine?”

“Probably longer!  What are you looking for?”

“Something larger than a pebble that isn’t something you packed,” she reiterated.  “Carrone, I will go through your whole pack myself if I have to.” Continue reading →

Ladies Who Garden

Apr11
Ladies who Garden

🌱

It was Whitney’s second spring working on the Crossroads park, so she had gotten used to some of the more surprising help – not just the fae and ghosts, the strange-people and the occasional mysterious work done between when she left one night and when she returned the next, but vagrants and rebellious kids, cops and neighbors of the area and, once, the entire local chapter of the Pagans motorcycle club.

She was, still, a little bit confused when seven women – all wearing pastel straw hats over their well-coiffed grey hair, sporting gloves with flowers on them that nevertheless looked as if they had seen use at some point, and carrying brightly-coloured caddies full of gardening tools – walked up to her while she was taking a water break.

“Gwendolyn Marcus.”  The lead woman – yellow hat, yellow gloves, pink caddy – held out a gloved hand. Continue reading →

Camp NaNoWriMo – Autumn Lightning

Apr11

As I described last week, my Camp Nano project is a continuation/hopeful finishing of the Autumn Lightning project, a story about (three-people-in-one-body) following Leo around, sometimes accidentally, throughout the years after the apocalypse.

While one of the appeals of this story was being able to bounce around – it’s actually something like 40 connected short stories – I’m still on Cabin in the Woods.  This is part III – where Leo and Nathan (At this point being steered by The Other, the protector-face who uses They pronouns) go to get Leo’s weapons back from the slavers who’d captured Leo – and to deal with said slavers, too.

 

A man fell with a thump at the Other’s feet. They looked down at the man and then back up at Leo, twice, before deciding that Leo was done with this one.

They’d reached the third floor of the place and left it christened in death. Leo moved like a panther; three times the Social One had needed to remind the Other that they were not there just to watch, because Leo seemed to move like he required an audience, like the world itself said he should be watched.

You’re not normally this poetic. Are we killing this one?

The Other looked down at the man at his feet, back up at Leo, who was toying with a woman who didn’t realize she was being played with, and down at the man. “Slaver?” they snarled, quietly enough that it shouldn’t interrupt Leo.

The woman yelped as Leo caught her by surprise. The Other smiled broadly.

The man gulped and tried to scoot backwards, although he seemed dazed, one of his legs broken. “N-no, No, of course not. I’m – I’m-”

Lying, Social offered, as if the Other couldn’t figure that out for themselves.

Words so far this month: 7690

Goal thru yesterday: 7400

Hidden Mall 63: Vapors and Myths

Apr8

After the mom dig, Abby was half tempted to let ‘Via go do her own thing, but it wasn’t like it was the first time Liv – or someone like her – had called Abby mom after all, and it probably wouldn’t be the last (if they survived this mall).  She held firmly to the hands she had, images of Liv and that awful candy coming back to her. Continue reading →

Haunted House 44: Money

Apr6

First: A story featuring a male keeper and a female Kept.
Previous:  Buying and Selling

🌳

The second customer left having actually paid – traded – for their goods, just as a third one stopped to finger the silk blouse Jasper’d wanted Mélanie to keep.

“You have a knack for finding the prettiest things, Jasper Fox,” the man told him.  He was an older guy, his beard long and braided into several pretty braids on the sides and his hair almost completely gone.  “I don’t know how you do it – and no, I don’t want to know, either. Some secrets are better kept, hmmm?”

“Indeed, my old friend, indeed.  Mélanie, this is Doug Carter. He’s a good customer – and if you ever need to buy something from him, count your change when you leave, but he’ll have the right stuff, mm, Douggie?”

“I always have the right stuff, my man, but you’re never buying.  No worries, Tonya down the lane was buying so I have this honey here, and, let’s see, oh, no, you don’t need eggs, do you, but how about some very nice cured sausage?  You know Jake makes the best stuff…” Continue reading →

Running in the Bear Empire 40: Spies

Apr5

First: Running in the Bear Empire
Previous:39: Prices and Paranoia
Next: 41: Discovery
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Deline shifted, not quite meeting Carrone’s gaze.  “How do you think you know anything about this?” she snarled, the first thing that came to mind. What was she doing, anyway?

“I’m a hunter, Deline, I think I know about being hunted just a little bit.  For starters, let’s get back to the – the place before we finish this argument, shall we?  In case our friend gets loose or someone else is looking for you.”

Deline set her jaw and nodded.  “Back,” she agreed. She stalked towards the cabin, barely minding things like cleaning up her trail.  What did it matter, when the Haloran spy was probably going to tell the Talon exactly where she’d been, anyway?  And then the Talon would put two and two together and- Continue reading →