SWC ↵ July 2022

|| word count ▸ 32,000/25,000 words | 128.0% ↵

Hello all! Or to anyone who might be reading this. Welcome to Bakie's Scrapbook <3 I'll be, attempting, to organize all of my writings for this swc session. Feel free to read anything ahahah, constructive critique is always welcome :) We shall see how often this formatting changes, but here's what I'll stick to for now.

If you are looking for word wars, the latest one that I write will be at the very bottom. I apologize in advance for the scrolling that you might have to do to reach it ahaha.

Uhh also I have placed the warning at the very top, read any and all of this at your own risk! Hope you survive the journey of reading my writing ;)

|| please enjoy! ↵



⤥ Sat, July 2nd
» 422 words

“Is this a dystopian world?” It is decidedly so. “Will I get stuck in a refridgerator?” You may rely on it. “Is the fridge going to get raided?” My reply is no. “Am I with my blind sister?” Cannot predict now.

Fight or flight. I’ve always asked myself what I would do in ones of these life-threatening situations they always throw at the main character in action motive. Yet, as I stand here facing the single double doors to the stainless-steel refrigerator, I know I have two options. Boiled down as they were, it is simply a fight or flight choice.

My heart is telling me go help those who cries out, but my head is telling me to pull open these doors and hide.

I am met with the rush of cool air as I stuff myself into the crammed space. My body curls into itself, and the walls press into my back. It’s cool surface lingers far after I have shifted away from it. The cool air creeps up my spine and my breath slows. I must remain calm.

Down the hall are I hear people. They are throwing themselves upon each other in a whirl of chaos. The bitter clang of weapons call out for the coup. One after another, regardless of intent, whether murder or protection, unleash violent actions upon each other.

The air becomes brittle. Each intake of air is more stale than the previous. There’s a small beating, following the paces of my pulse, and they pulse in the back of my head. I hear the thudding, increasing in amplitude like a dial being spun around and around. The colors begin to fade, they blur together in a whirl of hazy clouds. I am about to succumb to the overhanging feeling of sleep when a rush of heat smacks me across the face.

I want to look. I want to peer at the creature curiously staring at me. I want to curse them. I want to thank them. I want to. What do I want to do with them? Why are they important to me? The thin lines of my vision slowly merge outwards.

A small hand wave up at me. Their fingers are hesitant and curled into themselves, but up in a cautious wave. The corners of a tiny mouth purse together in a quaint upwards tug. While I know she can’t see me, I peer back at my sister, wondering how she knew it was me.

“Terrence? Renn? Is that you?” Her hand reaches forwards towards the broccoli and breath out a smile. The hand follows the sound and finds my face. She feels around my features to make sure, and her face lights up. “I knew it! C’mon, we’ve got to drown to survive.”

⤥ Sun, July 3rd
» 317 words

Compliment Your Mirror Day! We all have good things we’ve done in our lives that we should be proud of, and acts of kindness are one of them.

The most often way that I help people is listening. I always try my best to be available for friends, whether it’s at 2 am in the morning, or on the ski lift, I always want to be there for them to vent. I enjoy listening to others and being a shoulder for them to cry on. But yesterday my friends and I did this really sweet thing for our friend’s sweet 16 birthday!

If we’re talking about a specific even of a good deed, one recent one that I can recall was origami notes that I did with my friends. We each wrote kind notes on square pieces of paper and gave them to the people that we thought could use a smile. I folded mine into little butterflies. We then continued this project for my friend’s birthday, and we went to the dollar store and found this adorable jar that had a pattern resembling the outside of a pineapple. Being inspired by this, we searched for a small, fake plant that we could use as a topper. We found this plant, which I think is supposed to be a fake succulent and cut it off of the fake dirt! I took it home and hot glued the succulent to the lid of the jar so that it looked like a pineapple. And now we have a Positive Pineapple jar! We are each making five origami notes, and then we’ll fill the jar with these notes. I think it’s such a cute thing, and if you ever want a homemade gift for your friends- this is such a sweet thing! This friend is currently out camping, so we couldn’t give it to her yesterday, but as soon as she gets back- that is the first thing that we are going to do. Maybe throw a picnic with boba and ramen! Oh that would be so fun!!

⤥ Mon, July 4th
» 531 words

Have you ever seen a sentence that could be interpreted in two or more ways? That’s ambiguity.

Character being vague:

“Ma! We’ve got to go. We are going to be late. You know what you’re always saying about being late: ‘If you’re late, you think that your time is worth more than the other’s person. And that isn’t right’” Ryan rocked on his toes, anxious to get to the band concert on time.

“Oh yes, just one second honey. Let me grab my phone. Do you know where I put my phone?” She scrambled around the house, and finally found her phone that had managed to have dug itself in the crevasse of one of the couches.

“Mom, don’t forget that we’ve got to pick up my friend by 6:30 in order to make it there on time at 6:45.”

“Yes, yes of course. We will be there in time. Traffic is quite good at this time.”

“I think that you have her address, but do you want me to text it to you?” Ryan asked while he wrung his hands around the drawstrings of his hoodie.

“No, that’s okay. I already have it in the gps. Our eta says that we shall be there at 6:28.”

Ryan began to text Kaylee that he would be there in 13 minutes. “Okay, thanks mom!”

They had pulled around the corner to three familiar hedges lining the street and Ryan tilted his head. “Hey, we are going to pick up Kaylee right?”

His mom’s eyes shot up to the mirror and she caught his gaze in an instant. “Uh- I put Rina’s address in our gps. I thought we were going to pick up Rina, not Kaylee!”

265 words

Character being ambiguous:

Tayler touched the roses with such delicacy, as one would a precious item. Her leaping gestures began to flit around the garden and Anni struggled to keep up with her enthusiasm.

“Tayler! I told you,” Anni paused to huff. She bent over, back bent, nose passing over the petunias, eyes fluttering, and began again. “I told you! We must be fine ladies. We cannot be flouncing around the garden in such ways!”

“Oh posh, posh. Who even cares about such things?” Tayler hitched her skirts up and trotted over to the red oak tree. She began to clamber over branches, and soon she was seated upon a sturdy branch overlooking the bountiful and vibrant colors. “Isn’t it simply lovely?” Tayler breathed.

Anni seated herself at the base of the tree and peered up to Tayler. “Ah, yes, the garden is pretty grand. I must admit to taking frequent visits here.”

Tayler danced her feet in the air, swishing them to and fro. “I love how the natural light just brings out the inner colors. It’s as if it just glows when out in the daylight.” Lost in her own thoughts, Tayler began to hum to herself and fiddle with her hands.

“I do suppose the flowers are beautiful in the daylight, but have you seen it during the full moon? That is always my favorite time to venture out here.”

“Anni!” Tayler hopped down from the branch and nearly toppled upon Anni. She stuck her hand out to her, showing off the golden ring perched on her ring finger. “I still can’t believe it. It’s stunning.”

266 words

⤥ Tuseday, July 5th
» 512 words

“Enough is better than too much.” – A Dutch proverb

Time is the only thing that comes to him consistently. Seconds are never late. Every day, he gets the same hours regardless of how little food lays before him. Even dealing out the cards, his table never has consistent players. They’ve always managed to lose a couple of dollars from their winning pot. Yet, it wasn’t this fact that caused Milo’s table to remain empty. It was Milo’s knack to turn everyone against each other.

The smallest offhand remarks from Milo were the best kindle for disputes. They never pinned it on Milo himself, but regardless, the regulars avoided the table. One only ever got to walk away from that table with their pride untouched. However, on his good days Milo was able to get that number down to zero.

The down sung open with a jingle, and the bustling chatter began to grow. This newcomer scanned the area for an open game to join. Everyone’s eyes were entranced in their own game. Cards slid upwards for a small peak to recall what they had. Every seat had someone hoping that they were going to walk away with more money than they started.

A chair was pulled out, and he sat before Milo. “Name’s Daniel.”

Milo nodded, “Milo.”

“Why is it, that you’ve got no company here?”

Milo shrugged. “Game just ended; the winner treated everyone to wings. They’re munching on them over there.” He tossed his thumb over his shoulder, not looking to where it was pointed. It was in the general direction of the bar. Milo hoped there was actually a group of people eating over there.

“Mkay, how long does it take for a table to fill over here?”

“Give it 5 minutes. These guys like fresh meat. They’ll venture over here to check you out soon enough.”

Surely, the one guy at Milo’s take attracted more than enough attention. Menacing, yet curious glares wanted to cheat this newcomer out of his winnings. The newest ones always came in with easy-to-get money. Before long, the table was roaring with life and Milo delt out several hands.

Chips began to gather in his sleeve, and Milo could already feel his dinner before him. Today would be a treat.

Daniel tossed in his chips. He paused and looked at Milo, grinning he placed in 8 extra blue chips. “These are for the dealer.”

These were worth far more than the meager reds and whites Milo had stashed in his sleeve. The game ensued, and Milo had forgotten to sling in a couple of silver words.

“Royal flush.” Daniel winked at Milo. “Take your fair share.”

Before him, his hand reached out and grasped the 8 blue chips. One yellow was placed between his forefinger and palm and he slid it up his sleeve. As his hand drew back, Daniel grasped his wrist. It was twisted back in a single snap, and his slender fingers drew out the chips, one by one. Milo shrunk back from the glowering stares, and for once he had wished that the seconds would not come consistently.

⤥ Wednesday, July 6th
» 515 words

“Offer advice and then leave the situation. You aren’t responsible for other’s actions.”

My hands shook, they cupped the red liquid, trying their very best to keep the fingers interlocked and prevent any from spilling. Cautiously, my wrists lowered to his jawline, offering the last drops and he drank it hungrily. Lapsing up the little remaining drops, the wine stained his lips. His eyes tore around the room, greedy for more, but the place was already torn apart. Buckets were overturned and thrown across the room. The beaten rags were no longer hanging on the tight railing. The pipes hissed with the little pressure from the gas left over all while the rainbows dancing along the trails of oil spilling before us. It puddled like rain, and the slick grease ran between my toes, smearing itself like paint on a canvas.

“Let me help. I can persuade them for you. I can fight.”

My face was whipped before his, cheeks smushed between his fingers. The grime crawled from his slender fingers and dug itself into my flushed complexion. I shied away from his breath that stunk of tomatoes lentil soup.

“You’re going to end up dead.”

“So, what! I can help you, and we don’t need to stand down. I can die for a cause.”

“Or you could walk away unscathed. Save our little boy.” His gaze left hers and dropped to the reflection hidden behind the aura of colors swirling in the oil. “These are my mistakes. I wanted a life grander than this. And I see now that I won’t get it. But you still can. He, still can. Please. Just give me the scroll. You know this isn’t your fight.”

The sky exploded outside their window. It erupted with the motion of color. Like the sea was expanding into a clear flurry of fuchsia and tangerine. His glance lifted back at me. “We both know what that signal was. It’s time.”

I tore the hem of my shirt once more and handed it to him. “Take care, will you?” He took the fabric in his hands and let it slide through his fingers. As it felt to the ground in a grace, taking it’s sweet time, the explosion went off and this held all the haste in the world.

He pulled out a handful of trinkets. Gears, a deck of cards, a China sugar spoon and a handful of assorted pills. They shuffled themselves in his hand as he tossed them between his fingers. Scooping the fabric back up, he embedded each one within the threads. I watch with a blurred vision, brain whirling with information that jumbled itself in tangles, and he tied the cloth around a red stain of my own. My forearm no longer held drops of blood. They were crusted and the wound had finally clotted over.

He finally, took a breath and said, “You’re the one who should take care. And take care of both of ya.” With a half-smile he pushed himself upwards and guided us to the window. “Oh, and one more piece of advice?”

“Save it. I don’t want your advice. I’ll see you later?”

“No promises.”

⤥ Fri, July 8th
» 404 words

Somewhere in Ann Arbor by Anson Seabra

Somewhere in Ann Arbor there’s an empty parking lot
Where he likes to go and look up at the moon
Ask himself where things went wrong and why he feels so caught
And hopes that things start changing someday soon

translated:

I swear by my demeanor.
My heart is always from my heart.
Where is the bathroom
And if you take this night to do it, it is very sweet.
I'm very much in the past.

There streets were empty once more. It took a while, but nearly four hours after the sun has set, the hum of the night sky sung to Milo. The wires ran down to the ground, cutting across his line of vision. Leaning ever so slightly to his left, he was able to get a clear view once again. His legs swung with the soft breeze, and his mind whispered to him luring songs making his head dip.

This peace was soothing. He didn’t have anyone looking for him for answers. There was no pressure from others for him to complete the task. Here, the winter skies tasted sweet. The dew crawling across the pole rolled like melted sugar. The gumdrops of lights flickered through peaking windows. The hills spread through the horizon like muffin tops.

There was an ache in his stomach, and Milo’s hands drew to his core. His shoulders crept inwards, and he felt a low rumble crossing him. Searching among the streets, he yearned to find an open shop. Some place he could forged some warm food. His fingertips began to tingle. Moving them required thought, and he could only tell that they were moving because he saw them.

Milo launched himself forwards and tucked to roll through the grass, absorbing most of the impact. His thoughts lingered back in the sky, but he knew that it was nearly a day since he’s eaten. Walking through the alley, strange hands reached out to him, pleading, for anything. If only they knew he was just as bad as they. He pulled his hood tight, and it nearly covered his eyes. The dark shadow fell across his face, and the hands were cut out of his vision.

Traversing across the darkened streets, he pulled his shoulders back when he reached the end of the alley and came across a corner shop. The open sign was dark. He continued for wads and found a small mom and pops shop that sold soup.

He rung the door open and waved. A young girl peered at him from behind the counter and smiled. She dashed behind the drapes and came back holding the hand of an older women. Her hair was pulled back in a neat bun, wrapped in a navy bandana.

“I don’t have much to offer.” Milo raised his palms up and stared at them. “But could I exchange my services for some food?”

⤥ Sun, July 10th
» 427 words

Wordle! After you complete the game, incorporate all the words that you guessed into a writing piece.

I tapped my fingers along the rim. The wood engravings followed my fingertips, and I traced the paths of the berth, letting my mind wander. The ship rocked, and I felt myself tossing and turning. It was a challenge to be comfortable, and I could hear my heart beating in the back of my brain. Charlie came crashing into my room.

“Oh my god Liz! We think that we see land! Come up, come up- you’re going to love seeing this.” He graced the floors, skipping across the tiny room and placing himself along the edge of the bed. His hand reached out to hold mine, and it fell to my stomach, where I was 6 months pregnant. “C’mon, I’ll help you out.”

He pulled my gently by the arm, guiding me up to the edge of the bed. From there, he placed his forearm along my back and hooking his arms around mine, pulling upwards. I waddled up and bit my bit we clambered to the top of the boat.

The fresh air nearly stole my breath, and I took in the sights. The great oceanside was only broken up by the single piece of beige that caught my eye. I briefly pointed up at the land and looked over at Charlie.

“Is that it?”

He nodded, “Yeah,” Charlie pulled a piece of bread out of his pocket and offered it to me. “We think that’s the port that we can dock at.”

I greedily snatched the bread and gobbled it down. As his eyes watched me proficiently, he continued, “We can raise him there if you like. We don’t need to stay with this life at sea. When he’s older, we can definitely come back. I’ve already talked to Rue about it. He’s promised us enough to get us started there.”

“Can the ship afford that? We’re barely living here, how can the rest of the mates survive?”

He dodged my gaze and shook his head. “How are they going to survive with the money needed to raise a child on board? Children require a lot of hands, attention, and there are many needs that we would need to accommodate for. They’d have no break. Our mates understand. Either way, it is up to you.”

The beige began to grow, and I could see my future. The two options laid before me and I shook my head. “We should stay. I want him to experience the life we know and love.”

“Of course, my dear. Come, sit on the bench and let’s enjoy the view.”

⤥ Mon, July 11th
» 560 words

It's an emotional narrative with neither dialogue nor inner thoughts!

He grabbed her. Her wrists were tugged from the side of the road, and her steps faltered. Her left foot caught on the back of her heel, and it took a couple of seconds for her to regain her balance. There wasn’t a moments hesitation from where she snatched her wrists back pulling into herself. She stared at him in disbelief, but when she saw his look of desperation and loss, she let her hands drop to her side.

Kate took a small step back, and looked at the man, starting at his unkept hair that knotted itself into an underbrush. Her gaze dropped to his hands, shaking with anticipation, twitching in bursts of uncontrolled ways and Kate tipped her head to the side. She took a deep breath, her eyes closed and let her shoulders fall back, her spine straightened.

The man was muttering under his breath, things that she couldn’t identify. The occasional familiar word sprung itself at her, but other than that, his head dipped back and forth, the sound of words tumbling out of him.

She pulled her bag forwards to the side of her hip, and she stuck her hand in. Without taking her eyes off the man, which she was now pointedly looking at a small dog wrapped in the arms of one twitching hand, her lips pursed together, eyebrows creasing with pity. The pup was quivering, however metallically grey eyes stuck out to her. It glistened with a film of puppy eagerness, however his ears were pulled into a tight hug around his face. This tiny dog had matted fur, and experience had beaten him up, far too much than any should experience at his age especially.

Kate had tugged a handkerchief out of her pocket and gave it a nice shake, letting the crumbs of her morning scone tumble out onto the street.

A hard melon candy was also pulled out, along with hand sanitizer. She carefully wrapped the objects in the cloth. It’s cheerful banana-print enveloped the objects, and she gathered the fabrics together, twisting them into a loose slip knot. Letting the objects weigh in her palm for a couple of seconds, she grabbed the top with her other hand and offered it out towards the man.

He was now rocking on the curbside, patting the head of the dog. His eyes fluttered like wings trying to gain a grasp on flight.

Kate stood for a good moment, and hesitantly reached out her other hand. The man was two paces away from her, and her fingertips just brushed air. Taking a few tentative steps forwards, she tapped the man twice on the shoulder.

He whipped around to face Kate again, and this time she smiled at him. Her eyes softened, and she gestured towards the gift she left on the curbside a small bit from him. He tilted his head at her and then his eyes opened with understanding. Both his hands pressed together, and he lifted it towards her, tipping his chin inwards. He placed the dog on the side and grabbed the sack with such delicacy and care.

It only took moments before he poured himself over the contents of the package. He lifted his gaze once again, his hands clasped and shaking together, but as he looked around the crossroad, she was no where to be seen.

⤥ Thurs, July 14th
» 312 words

sleep scheduales!!

Charlie actually enjoys sleeping and listens to Tayler Swift when she’s about to go to sleep. This has been occurring for the past couple of years, through the middle of seventh grade when she was given a Google Home for her birthday. Ever since then, the Google Home sat in her room and she would tell it to play Tayler Swift for an hour and then turn off. Because of this, she doesn’t mind sleeping and goes to bed anywhere from 10 pm to midnight. She then sleeps in until 7:00 for school, however on the weekends she tends to give herself an extra hour or two and sleeps in until 8 am to 9 am. She has a lot of energy, and yet she still loves to drink coffee. People can’t tell if that’s because she sleeps quite a bit or because she drinks coffee. It could very well be a mixture of both of them.

Milo tries to sleep, and his mom tends to call him upstairs by 11 pm. But like any teenager, he would hide under his covers and read books throughout the night. It only happened once every other week, but you can definitely tell which day he stayed up reading because he is very lazy the next day, and becomes lost in his own mind. He tries to continue the story because he doesn’t want the experience to be over, and this tends to lead him to falling asleep in the car, even if it’s just a five minute drive somewhere. Other than these late night readings, Milo has an average of 7 hours of sleep. It tends to be from 11 pm to 6 am. He tends to get up early in the morning because he is tasked with taking his pup out in the morning, and after that he can never fall back asleep.

⤥ Fri, July 15th
» 555 words

The little key turned in my hands. It weighed down like a paperweight, and I gave it a little toss in the air. Sparks dispersed from the key, cracking with kinetic energy. I watched with great anticipation as the key dropped, and it settled back into my palm. The brass was aged, and the key held an air of mystery to it. I turned it over and observed the engravings lining the handle. My finger traced these lines and I smiled. This key holds history.


“Milo!?” I spun around and nearly dropped the key, but I lifted my hand again and slipped it into the pocket of my dress pants. Letting the key fall into the folds of my pants, I lifted my hand in a gestured greeting.

“Hey Grace, what do you want?”

She held her hand across the doorframe and slid it down, allowing her head to rest on wall. A yawn came from her, and she pattered across the room, plopping herself on my bed. The pillows gave out and settled around her in an array of shapes. Grace turned to her side and tucked her hands beneath her head, pulling herself into a tight ball.

“Grams won’t listen to reason. I don’t want to go to that stupid overrated school. It’s not worth the debt it’s going to put us in! Plus, we could use that money for so many better things.” She tossed herself onto her back and threw her hands up in the air. Her petite fingers floated in the air, dancing delicately, and tracing patterns in the empty space. She pressed one hand across her face and rolled her eyes. With her other hand, she lowered her pointer finger at me. “You. You could use the money to start up that treehouse café you always wanted.”

I pressed my back against the wall and slid down until I was on the floor. My eyes traced her and then followed her fingers that were now making a variety of triangles framing various spots along our ceiling. “Hey, I know you don’t want to go, but look- if you went, you could go far! Not many people get in to Brown University. That’ll be great to add to your resume.”

“I’m going to hate it there. I already know. Why can’t I just go to the community college across the street with River?”

I begin to tug on the skin around my nails, feeling a tug of temptation to gnaw on them until they become raw. To give my hands something to do, I pull out the key and toss it back into the air.

“Hey, what’s that?” Grace rolls to the edge of the bed to watch as the key tumbles back to the ground. She reaches out, but the key slips between her fingers and she lets her hand drop, dangling limply across the edge of the bed.

I pick up the key and place it on the comforters of my bed. “I dunno, Gram gave it to me, said that it might help.”

This caught Grace’s attention and she propped herself on her elbows and stared at the key. “How will it do that?” She touched the edge of the key and traced it’s curves.

“I’m not sure, she mentioned something about it holding our parent’s energy.”

⤥ Sat, July 16th
» 382 words

vital two-and-a-half minutes

Milo wiped the same spot on the counter once more, and when the sticky syrup glistened back up at him, he furiously threw the cloth to hit the glass panels in front of him. He pulled up the collars of his sleeves, rolling them back just sightly above his forearm, and reached to grab the cloth again. This time, when he swiped at the counter, it wasn’t with care. It was with particular craze and ambition to get the stain off.

The door jingled open and he stopped with his task of scrubbing the syrup off to greet the customer. Her face was flushed red, blotched from running or some other physically challenging activity. Her hands were planted on her knees and she tossed her head back, letting her hair fall out of her messy top bun. “Can I just- vent? I know I probably won’t see you again, which I suppose I’m counting on, but I want to scream.”

Milo’s chin that was normally jutted outwards tilted to the side and he set the cloth aside. He turned back to make sure his manager was not watching him and slid over the counter. Pulling out a chair, he sat across from her and prepped himself on his fists. “Ohh, spill the tea girl.” He leaned back in the chair and grabbed the napkin container pushed it to her.

She took one and folded it in half, creasing with determination. “Betrayal only happens from your friends, or those you trust at least.” She unfurls the paper and begins to tear it down the middle. “I don’t want to deal with it again. And yet, I know that I need to. Or at least I can’t push them all away. It isn’t fair to those who didn’t do anything. But I’m so afraid. Why am I so afraid? It was one trash bag anyways. I shouldn’t care this much, though, I do, and a little part of me is willing to push everyone away just to not have to deal with it. What is wrong with me?”

Milo was no longer sitting in his seat. He was besides her, crouched on his knees so that they were eyelevel and he opened his arms. “Sob hug party? I’ve got a shoulder to cry on.”

⤥ Sun, July 17th
» 745 words

How do your characters’ and the reader’s interpretations of the sentence change?

“I failed my test!!” Running over to Milo’s desk, I waved the paper over my head and threw it down upon the desk. “Oh my goodness, look at this!” The physics test consisted of a multiple choice section as well as an essay on the expansion of the universe. Placed upon the top of this paper was a big red D that was circled and stuck out of the page like a sore thumb.

Milo looked up at me in shock and shook his head in disbelief. “I didn’t think you would take our bet that seriously!! How in the world did you fail this test?” He took up the test in both hands and shook it in front of my face.

I threw my head back and left, then reached out to snatch the papers back, but he pulled it back and flipped through the test. “What did you do wrong?”

Leaning over his shoulder, I pointed at the back of the first page to the section labeled astrophysics conversions. “Look, I didn’t have any time to memorize the conversations last night. It just didn’t work out. Plus I got too distracted reading Percy Jackson, and then watching some Lesbian Tik Toks. You can’t possibly blame me.”

Milo had turned the test over to the last page and tossed the papers in my chest. “You are insane. We studied together on this! Were you even paying attention to my lessons?”

“Of course I was! It just didn’t make any sense when you were saying it, so I kind of got lost in my own thoughts. The sessions were helpful to a point. I mean, I didn’t get an F. I got 44% right! I think that is definitely an accomplishment.”

I could spot the disappointment cross Milo’s face and it crumbled when he realized that the study sessions were not as helpful as I claimed them to be. “So you lied. You could have told me it wasn’t working out for you and we could have tried another approach!”

“Oh just give it up. Physics and I simply just don’t click. You should know this already. I am a lost cause.”

“That’s only because your motto is ‘Fake it til you make it.’”

A grin spreads across my face and I start jumping up with glee. “Oh yes! That is my motto isn’t it? Confidence is key.”

“Not when you don’t actually know the subject content!”

“That’s fine, there’s retakes to gain 50% of what you got wrong. I can bring this up to a C.”

“Are you sure that your parents are going to be fine with this?”

I stop short, and slide the papers back on the desk. “Oh. Can you uh, hold on to these for me? Just for a couple of days, I mean years, or possibly for ever?”

Milo chuckles and places them back into my hands. “No can do. There’s a such thing as a paper shredder. You will be fine.”

“That’s what they all say.” I mutter before stalking off.

-

“Hey mom!” I call, even before throwing the front door open. I can already spot that the kitchen window is open, so I know that she can hear me. “Today went swell! I’m just going to head upstairs and work on homework. Gosh darn AP Calc assigned too much homework. Okayyyy goodbye! Nice to see you.”

I dashed up the stairs and didn’t look back when she called me back with a greeting. “Karis! Get back down here, I want to hear more about your day. Plus you can help me with this dinner.”

I shut my door, and pretend to not have heard me. Tossing my bag to the edge of the room, I rummage through my papers and pull out the test. I thread it between my fingers and toss it in the air. Feeling my heart plummet, I pull open my door and walk down the stairs.

My mom is humming in the kitchen, tossing the sautéed shrimps in the pan. She places the pan down and turns to look at me. “Care to tell me about your day?”

Placing the test face down on the table, I feel my breaths start to falter and I pull out a chair to sit upon. “Hey mom. You love me right?”

“Of course sweetie, what is this about?”

Before I can give it any second thoughts, I whip out the words, “I failed my test.”

⤥ Mon, July 18th
» 609 words

classic fairy tales in swc! My fairy tale is Rapunzel

Rapunzel rocked back on her yoga ball, bouncing up and down as she stared at her calendar. It was two days before July 1st would roll around, and she needed to go to camp. This was the year that she would convince her mother to let her go.

Gathering up her hair, she tossed her hair over her left shoulder and ran over to the closet. She pulled on a lavender gown, specifically choosing this one because it didn’t have that many noticeable oil stains on it. With the exception of the one below her right wrist. As long as she kept her hands folded together in front of her, this stain would not be noticeable.

She flounced over to the cabinets and pulled open draws, scouring for anything that she could put in her hair, so it didn’t seem as unkept as it was. Rapunzel took a comb and just pulled out the knots along the top of her hair but didn’t bother untangling below her shoulder. She pulled out a dried peony and tucked it behind her ear.

“Rapunzel! Rapunzel! Let down your hair!” Mother Gothel called from below.

Little butterflies erupted, and her stomach sizzled with excitement. “Coming mother!” Rapunzel called as she gathered up her hair and tossed it over her arm, carrying it to the window. Letting it unfurl out the window, Rapunzel pulled her mother up and into the tower.

Before Mother Gothel could clamber over the edge of the window into the small room, Rapunzel kicked the yoga ball out of sight and it rolled over to the corner besides her wardrobe.

“Ohhh, my sweet sweet Rapunzel.” Mother Gothel took Rapunzel’s face into both of her hands and she brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes. “Have you eaten yet?” Mother Gothel smiled knowingly as she untucked a basket from beneath her cloak. “I have a little treat for you!”

Rapunzel’s eyes widen and she stole the basket away to find fresh red huckleberries brimming with glee mounded in the basket. “Oh mother! You are too kind.” Trying to stall for time, Rapunzel stuffed her face with the berries, letting the juices dribble down the corner of her mouth.

“Rapunzel! That’s not very lady-like of you to do.” Mother Gothel pulled a napkin from the counter and dabbed at Rapunzel’s chin, further smearing the juices.

“OH mother, I had something that I wanted to ask you actually.” Rapunzel set aside the basket and started to twirl with her hair.

Mother Gothel pulled the hair from her hands and began to finger comb it. “What is it, darling?”

“Could I possibly head to camp?”

Her eyebrows furled together and she stared at Rapunzel in disbelief. “Go where?”

“To this writing camp! It’s called SWC, and I’ve recently been chatting with a bunch of people there online.”

Mother Gothel dropped her hair and began to search the rooms. “You have had outside contact and you didn’t tell me?!”

“Mother! It isn’t like that, they know nothing about me, I’ve been going under the alibi of Bakie, they don’t know where I live, what I look like, or anything personal.”

She sighed a relief and pressed her fingers up to the bridge of her nose. “Rapunzel, no. You are safe here, and I am not going to risk over a decade’s worth of time of keeping you safe so that you may tell silly stories at some camp!”

“But mother!”

“Don’t you dare mother me. Give me your electronics. I’m taking you off the wifi.”

Rapunzel scoffed and threw her laptop at her a little too harshly. “Fine.” She would be going anyways.

⤥ Tuse, July 19th
» 451 words

classic fairy tales in swc! My fairy tale is Rapunzel

Coconut stared a large family, all crowded around each other. Little boys were crawling over each other’s shoulders, while the mother tried to furiously scrub off a mud stain splattered across one of the boy’s cheeks. She huffed with frustration and extended her arm with the handkerchief to hand it off to her wife. Her wife, who was holding a dog, struggled to shift the weight of this dog to one hand to be able to grab the handkerchief with the other hand.

Intrigued by this lively family, Coconut approached a little girl who was straggling behind. She prodded up to her stout legs and bonked her with her head. The little girl continued to flounce around, not noticing Coconut, so this time Coconut took out her paw and batted her. This caught her attention and the little girl peered down, her eyes widening with excitement when spotting her. Her cheeks flushed a crimson color, complimenting her olive complexion. In one swift scoop, Coconut was hefted up into the little girl’s arms and she dashed over to her mother.

“Mom! Mom! Look it’s a kitty!” Coconut was thrust up in the air over, the girl’s head and the mother took her into her own arms.

“What’s this? Where did you find them Melody?”

The little girl, turned around to face where she was loitering behind the family and pointed at the spot she was standing. “Right about over there. Can we keep them? Pleaseeeeeee?”

The mother shook her head, “I’m sorry, but they might already have their own owner. We must erspect that and find their appropriate family. Plus, look at how big our family is!” She gestured around, pointing at the chaos ensuing around them, finally she paused to point at the puppy who was sleeping in her wife’s arms. “Does she have a collar? Or any sort of identification?”

Melody stood on her tip toes and peered at Coconut. “Mmm I don’t see anything. Oh!! If she doesn’t have a family, does that mean we can keep her?”

“Perhaps, but for now we can take her home and give her something to eat, but if we find her family, we must give her back. Understood?”

“Yes mom.”

__

A single salmon was laid before Coconut, and she wrinkled her nose in disgust. ‘Me? That’s what they’re serving me? Not even gourmet! I am vegan.” Coconut huffed and stalked off.

She pattered around, trying to find something that was appropriate for her to eat. Looking up, she found a bowl of fruits, containing oranges, strawberries and grapes.

‘Now this is more like it.’ She leaped up to the bowl and began eating her very first meal apart of Melody’s family.

⤥ Sun, July 24th
» 100 words

In life, our perception of the world comes from the five senses

It crumbles in my mouth,
Melting into flower dust
And digging its way into the dips
Of my teeth

The chocolate peers out,
Waving
Smiling
Winking.
Then it’s gone
Disappeared into my mouth.

The timer belts a beep
A single flash and
No more.
The sound of a new batch
Of treats.

The instant my tastebuds
Come into contact,
My sweet tooth beams at me.
The sugar is decadent
The chocolate is rich
They swirl together like a blizzard.

The flurry of flavors got me
Scoffing with delight
It’s too good.

The cookie jar stares back at me
You’re mine.

⤥ Mon, July 25th
» 128 words

come up with a theme for any SWC cabin

A hallway appears before you. The doors line up, one against another framing both sides. Each door is decorated differently from the one before. There are engravings above each door. Looking at the one to your right, it reads “Arcane”. The next door reads “Harry Potter”. Following down the doors, you spot different fandoms. You find a door that reads “The Owl House” and pull it open. Demonic screeching greet your ears and King comes prodding over to the door, curious.

“Who are you??”

Surprised, you slam the door shut and continue down the hallway. Reaching the last door at the hallway that reads “Fanfi Cabin” you decide to pull it open.

A girl with pink hair waves at you and beams. “Hello! Welcome to the Fan-Fi Cabin!!”

⤥ Tuse, July 26nd
» 330 words

The only place left in the world is an isolated mass of ice floating on the endless ocean. People live in the shacks powered by the oil rigs that have wired this ice island like webs. Every year, the island appears to get smaller and smaller, and no matter what the inhabitants do, there is no way to stop this ice sheet from melting.

My Intro
It’s an underground city. Each tree is a tunnel pathway to a new building in the city, and every time that a tree is planted, the construction begins for a new a new building and the residents care for the building until the tree is able to support it on it’s own when it’s fully grown. Where there is no trees, in the underground world it tends to be fields of crops or just hills and swamps. When a tree is cut down, the building crumbles to dust and this dust is extremely toxic if you inhale it for a long period of time.

Cont. of Zai's
There are no more masses of land as they have all melted due to global warming. There are only a handful of people left, and they know that they will not stay alive for much longer, but they continue to try and keeping generations going. They no longer live on the mass of ice, but on floating iron blocks that they have moved the shacks to. Without any resources, they have to reuse nearly everything. The trash that they used to throw into the endless oceans, they are now fishing out of the oceans to try and use to “renovate” their shacks.

Nothing is ever new, and most things are covered in water. On the bright side, people have stopped dying from hypothermia because those who have survived have some sort of immunity now and the cold no longer affects them as they used to three generations ago. They have used up all of their oil rigs, so their piece of iron that holds them afloat is not moving, and they have to hand paddle to dig up new old trash in the oceans. Occasionally they can use their few solar panels that they have managed to keep dry from the water. But most of them were destroyed by the waters, and these solar panels are being saved for more “dire” situations.So they have basically been storing up energy for decades and have been paying the price.

They don’t know it now, because everyone who used to know anything about the technology had died, but they now have enough energy to set off an atomic bomb. Although since it has been generations, and since all the paper have been used as either toilet paper or kindling for fire, none of the records of how the technology has survived. So they just continue to leave the solar panels out above them, collecting whatever sun it can and providing little shade, and they don’t really know what else to do with it.

⤥ Thurs, July 28th
» 335 words

argumentative on best cabin that isn't your own!

The best cabin in scratch writing camp is myth (Also known as Mythology). This is because of it’s creative and diverse theme, which is not the cliché greek gods theme normally taken for the path of the myth cabin. It seems as thought they have created their own storyline with their own myths surrounding the Tree of Heavens. This is such a great and thought-out theme that they employ throughout their cabin and use as a motivating system.

Not only this, but they also have amazing and motivating leaders who promote self care and the camper’s well beings. And a lot of the time, the campers reflect the energy that the leaders generate, and this is definitely shown through the campers of myth! They have such spirited and interactive campers, who are so sweet, writing thank you notes to their leaders and doing so many daily and weekly activities! Like that one day before the 3rd weekly was due and myth had 5 weeklies unadded (if I am remembering currently). But man was that impressive.

There is a reason it’s the current top cabin, and no one can deny that they don’t deserve this along with their recognition that they are receiving. Plus, is it bad if I say that I have a lot of friends in that cabin who are amazing, and while I am definitely biased, this would improve a cabin’s rating. The leaders Moss, Robin and Re have poured themselves into this cabin, making it an enjoyable experience for everyone. They have worked tirelessly to encourage all their campers and include them in all of their cabin activities.

Plus I have to admit that the matching profile pictures are so cute! They just add so much to the cabin’s atmosphere and proves how much their leaders have put into the cabin. Each profile picture is so different that you can identify everyone from each other, but they have a unifying theme that you can tell that they come from the myth cabin!

⤥ Fri, July 29th
» 571 words

Beginning: You have poison all over your hands
conflict- you get captured by a bunch of evil aliens who want to know how to grow mangoes on their planet
setting: a small town library
Climax: You destroy a turtle monster to go home
Ending: you brother accidentally turns himself into a rubber ducky

My hands were covered, like they held nothing but the liquid that was dripping between my fingers. It was sticky. It was nasty. I didn’t know where to put my hands, and I pondered if I should wipe it down the sides of my skirt. It wasn’t even my own skirt; it was my mother’s and I was nearly positive that this would stain the skirt. My mother would not be too happy about that.

I had just about come to the conclusion to drag my hands across the leaves on my neighbor’s butterfly bush, when a halo of light dropped form above me. It enclosed my surroundings, and was as if I made me the main character of my own story.

The world seemed to spin from around me and I became woozy with confusion. As I was being pulled up to this unidentified flying object, the trap doors opened, and these crazy looking creatures peered out from the hanger. They eagerly waved with enthusiasm, beckoning me into, what I suppose I’ll call a spaceship.

They grabbed my arms and pulled me into the room, which had books upon books framing every wall. It was a such a huge library, and yet it seemed tiny due to the homeyness that the room held. Approaching the walls, my fingers reached out tenderly to feel the spines of the book, which was a comfort to me, but then I felt my wrists be grabbed and pulled together. These unfamiliar creatures bound me to the comfiest chair in the world and I didn’t even feel the need to struggle out of my restraints. It was extremely comfortable where I was.

“Tell us. Right now. How to grow mangoes.”

I had an urge to raise both my hands and protest, but being reminded of the ropes that kept my hands behind my back, I just raised my eyebrows.

“I don’t know.”

They pulled out a ray shooter. “Tell us. Our planet depends on it.” They pointed it closer at me and I shrunk back, rubbing at my bonds furiously, hoping that they might just fall apart. Of course, they didn’t and I signed heavily into the chair.

“Seriously dudes! I don’t know!” Jumping up in the air like how Natasha did in the movies, I slammed the chair down and it broke along with my bonds. Such a shame to lose that amazing chair.

From their frozen shock, I grabbed the ray shooter out of their hands and turned it on them. With a whistle, doors were unlocked and a rabid turtle monster was released. I turned towards the stink and took aim.

A single shot rang through the library and where my biggest threat once stood was now a rubber ducky staring innocently back at me.

I turned the ray shooter back at me. “Release me or else.”

Within moments I was back in front of my home with the unknown goo on my hands. By this time, I wouldn’t even be surprised if this was poison.

My little brother dashed out of the double doors and took one look at the shooter in my hands and his eyes gleamed. He snatched the device out of my hands and turned it on himself.

“OH my goodness! Is this what I think it is?” He pressed the trigger before I had any chance to warn him. Another rubber ducky stared innocently back at me.

⤥ Sun, July 30th
» 342 words

Don't beat around the bush!

“Okay, so the other night I was going around the halls, and you’ll never guess what.”

Millie peered over at me and raised her eyebrows. “What happened?”

“Well, so that morning I had gotten coffee to sooth my nerves, because you know about that whole big thing and everything.” I tilted my head and thought for a moment, losing my track of thought and Millie rolled her eyes, motioning with her hands for me to pick up the story again.

“So once I had drank that coffee, well you know how I get when I drink coffee… All tipsy and shaking, but also very energetic.”

Millie scoffed and huffed, “Yes, Yes I know! Please, continue. There is no need for you to describe it.”

“I got into the car and then on the radio, they were playing Em! And you know that’s my favorite artist, so I just had to-”

With her hand up in the air, halting me in my track, Millie asked, “How in the world does this relate to your original ‘Guess what?’ I don’t understand where this is going!”

“Just wait, just wait! It gets better, I promise you.”

Hesitantly, Millie began to nod and she motioned for me to begin again, but just about as I was going to continue, Millie shook her head and hopped up the stairs to my porch. She pulled open the door, calling, “I’ve got to head to the bathroom, but when I get back, you have got to stop beating around the bush!”

I wrinkled my eyebrows, confused. Looking down at my hands, there was an iron bat and I dropped it on the floor. Peering at the hedge, I found no indentations showing that I was beating the bush. And I sure don’t remember beating the bush. Maybe I did and couldn’t even remember it because it’s such a habit. My hands fluttered around the bush to take care of it’s pretty little leaves.

“Did I hurt you bush?? OH my goodness, if I did, I am so so sorry.”

⤥ Week #1 | Fanfiction
» 2,988/2,300 words

Part I
» 427/400 words

Character Reference Sheet

Character reference sheet for Caitlyn from Arcane
Series continuing or ended?: continuing

Pronouns: she/her
Sexuality: queer (could be lesbian?, bi?, pan?)
Species: human

Strengths: deductive, resourceful, excellent shot, communication, diligent, responsible, great sense of duty, observant
Weaknesses: stubborn, grew up sheltered, bad at close range battle, sometimes too idealistic

General view of life: She likes to see the world for herself and knows that it has got to change. She otherwise has a pretty hopeful look for life

Relationships:
- romantic interest: Vi <3
- friends: Ekko, Jayce, other friends from the academy
- family: Tobias Kiramman (father), Cassandra Kiramman (mother), no siblings

Tendencies:
- She tries to explore the world on her own
- Although because she has been sheltered, she walks into it unprepared, having not previously been exposed to the “real world”
- She walks into things with an idealistic viewpoint, and even when things go wrong, she refuses to give up
- Once she begins to go down a spiral, she will obsess over it and go into almost every single detail that she can get
- She has the heart that wants to help everyone that she can, even though she can’t reach everyone
- Tends to judge people at the first instant, but gives them the benefit of the doubt and lets their true nature reveal themselves

Situations:
Loss of a friend:
- tends to comfort those around her
- cries in the shower
- replays memories in her head and rethinks everything over
- tries to make up for it, find some sort of redemption

Romantic struggles:
- tends to get close to them and form a “platonic” relationship first
- she is protective and cares for them
- not outright and forthcoming with her feelings, but she will make advances with the small actions <3
- probably keeps her romantic relationships on the down low except for a handful of trusted people

Helping others:
- she takes it upon herself to change the world
- feels the need to take the blame for whatever is wrong with the world, and takes initiative to do something about it, even if it means going behind someone else’s back
- she feels rewarded, even with a simple thanks and a gracious smile
- she likes to see that final outcome of doing good, and helping others, like how Ekko had his tree built, she loved seeing that thrive

Scenario
your character is running late but they can't find matching socks/shoes

The draws of her closet were all pulled open. Caitlyn furiously tore through the piles of clothing, attempting to find at least one pair of matching socks. Arrays of various socks tumbled over her shoulders and sat themselves upon the foot of her bed. The hills of clothing continued to rise, making the climb up the mountains harder and harder.

After pulling out a striped blue sock, her eyes lit up and she threw herself across the room to a similar blue sock, nearly identical to the one hanging in her left hand.

“Oh my god! I think…” She turned the sock over and found a hole staring back at her right where the heel would be. Instinctively, her eyes rolled backwards, and she scoffed at herself. Her fore fingers rubbed the temple of her forehead while her other hand tossed the sock back over her left shoulder and she continued her search for a matching sock.

The doors swung open and Cait’s mom froze in the doorstep. Her face slackened and eyes shone with absolute shock. “What in heavens name is this?” She cried, stepping over a pile of proclaimed unsuitable shirts for Caitlyn. “I never took you for one to be nearly this,” She paused and gestured around the overturned room, “obsessive over clothing.”

“I.” Caitlyn rolled on her back, her hair draping across her vision, and she blew it out of the way. “Must.” She pulled herself back, car mechanic style, and slid underneath her grand bed. “Find.” Her voice was muffled, and her mom stepped forwards to possibly get a clearer sound. “A.” Cait’s teeth gritted, and a dust coated scroll was tossed out from beneath the bed. “Matching.” This time her feet kicked upwards, struggling to right herself under the bed again. “Sock!”

“Caitlyn!”

Cait’s instinct had her sit upright in a flash and her head clunked against the base of her bed. She emerged rubbing a tomatoey color splotch upon her forehead. “What?”

“Didn’t you say you were meeting Vi at noon?”

“Mhm.” Cait agreed and moved onto to rummaging around the pockets of her jacket. Maybe she had stuffed a sock into the pockets of her uniform. “And…?”

“And it’s a quarter past noon!”

That caught her attention and Caitlyn bounded to the door within an instant. “You said what now? Oh my god! I’m late! How long do you think she’s been waiting on me? Oh goodness, I have to get going!”

Caitlyn shoved her two bare feet into the navy tennis shoes and dashed into the crowded roads.

Part II
» 876/800 words

Caitlyn: She’s diligent and stubborn, quite optimistic and hopeful that she can change things for the better. She is not afraid to fight for what she believes in for and is very protective over those that she loves. Caitlyn will engage in friendly banter, but she will speak her opinion and thoughts if she disagrees with you, and that will not be so friendly of banter. Caitlyn is willing to put in the work, and she is quite soft and kindly spoken, unless she disagrees with you. She won’t lose her temper with you, however her voice might raise and she will spit facts at you.

105 words

Vi: She is more forwards than Caitlyn and is not afraid of confrontation. If something goes wrong, she will blame herself and to express her disappointment with herself, she physically exerts herself. She is not as cautious as Caitlyn about other’s feelings, and she has a sarcastic and direct tone when speaking to others. Vi has a protective nature, but she is not afraid of a little harsh word when expressing how she feels about you. When others are concerned about her physical or mental health, she will wave them off and dismiss the, saying that she is “fine” and that she doesn’t need help.

104 words

Caitlyn’s Point of View:

I couldn’t believe my eyes when the glass crashed upon the bartender’s back and he shrugged it off like nothing had happened. My eyes catch his gaze, and I nodded my chin towards him, asking if he was okay. My offer was disregarded, and I think I could have caught a slight roll of eyes.

A cup slid into my view and I turned to face Vi who was tracing the edge of the cup with her finger. “Hey, Cupcake, don’t worry about it. Happens all the time. Plus, it’s what makes our skulls so thick.” She smirked at me with an endearing grin.

Against my will, I chuckled, and I shook my head ever so slightly. “And I suppose that I find that soooo attractive about you guys.”

I could already hear Vi’s snide remark when the bartender was slammed into the counter facing us. A smoke bomb went off. It was a pale blue color, clouding my vision. Oddly fascinating and beautiful, and as it climbed around us. I could hear our bartender crumple and my heart sunk.

Within seconds, my crosshair was whipped out and I furiously searched for the target. My chair had tipped over and I was standing back to back with Vi. We were pressed up against each other, a sort of comfort to me. I knew that I could feel something if someone happened to her. Outrageous uproars rose from around us, and it took me a moment to realize they were chants.

The smoke began to clear and before I saw her distinctive hair, I could hear her hums. She emerged with her shoulders hunched forwards, but after chuckling and cocking her head to her left, she stood with an air of arrogance. Her crazed eyes longed for more. I could tell there was lust for some explosions and I ducked.

309 words

Vi’s Point of View:

Watching Caitlyn take in the sights of The Last Drop was intruiging to say the least. One could easily tell what she was instantly drawn to, or what rubbed her the wrong way. She was observing the current most interesting thing happening in the bar, which happened to be a customer who had a bit too much to drink expressing his displeasure to the bartender. I could already spot her hands clutching the rims of her jacket, her arms were tensed as she watched it all unfurled.

He had raised his bottle in fury, and I turned to Caitlyn, knowing that she wouldn’t enjoy watching this spectacle anymore. When it came down, her eyes shut for a moment and she shook it away, as if she was shaking her own thoughts and opinions on the matter away. Her drink was empty, and I was dissatisfied with my own. I pushed it the cup in her direction, and spun my finger around the rim, offering her the drink. She didn’t seem to notice, still fixated on the bartender, so I continued, “Hey, Cupcake, don’t worry about it. Happens all the time. Plus, it’s what makes our skulls so thick.” I shrugged and then offered her a small grin.

“And I suppose that I find that soooo attractive about you guys.” She says with a small shake of her head and a chuckle.

I found myself slightly taken aback but was stopped short when this time the action came closer to us. The table nearly broke when the bartender crashed into it and then my vision was clouded with a light blue smoke. Powder.

I stood. She was here, and I could feel her. My back pressed up against Caitlyn. We had each other’s back. There were chants, encouraging the fight. Of course, that’s all they wanted. Just another spectacle.

When the hums came, it struck me hard. The invisible blow caught my breath and if there was any doubt about it previously, it was for certain that there were no more.

340 words

Part III
» 705/700 words

Fluff Fic
Established Relationship
Crack Fic

Vi racked the shelves, running her fingers across the engrained numbers of the bowling balls. “10, uhhh 13, 11 mmm oh 15! That doesn’t seem to bad.” She picked up the ball and bounced it up in the air a couple of times.

“Woah there. Be careful with that. You might take out someone’s toes if you drop that.” Caitlyn pointed to the ground with a warning smile. “And by a someone, it’s either going to be me or you. Either way, I can already see the ending isn’t going to be a happy one.”

A hearty chuckle came from Vi. “Ayee, cupcake, don’t worry about me. I am extremely careful and good at these types of things. Do not doubt my abilities.”

Caitlyn raised her hands in defeat, “I’m not doubting anyone’s abilities. I’m just looking out for the little guys. I really think we’re running out of bandages at home. Your constant use of them across your wrists are running a hole through my wallet.”

“Hey!! Is that some shade I’m hearing from you?” Vi dropped her ball on the dispenser and walked behind Cait, pushing her from behind. “C’mon you’ve got to pick your own ball. How about this 5?”

Caitlyn scoffed. “How dare you!” She began to circle the cart, looking for an appropriate weighted ball.

“There’s nothing wrong with small things!” Vi protested through broken laughter. “We do not discriminate here.”

“Mind yourself, I am taller than you.” Caitlyn walked back to stand besides Vi. She looked her up and down and finally settled at staring directly in front of her, eyes plastered right at Vi’s forehead.

Vi’s posture instantly shot upwards, and her shoulders fell backwards. She craned her neck, and joined popped as she rolled it side to side. “Don’t you dare-”

“I dared, now what are you going to do about it?” Caitlyn went back to rummaging through the balls. She pulled out a 13 pounder and rolled it back and rolled it back and forth between her palms. “Ahh, this feels good.”

Vi let out a small laugh and caught her eye. “What was that Cupcake?” She smirked knowingly at Caitlyn and watched as Caitlyn flushed. She pulled a blue lock of hair back and tucked it into her ponytail.

“In your dreams.” Caitlyn muttered and Vi’s eyes darted from the scoreboard, which was showing Caitlyn in the lead, instantly to Caitlyn’s gaze.

“Yours as well!” Vi pulled her ball from the rack and tucked her fingers into the respective holes. She leveled it with her nose and pulled it back, in a swift arc, she let it go and it hit the ground with a hearty clunk. It bounded across the ground with two hard bounces, and then continued forwards in a relatively straight line. Then it spun and started heading off course.

Vis hands were clasped in front of her face as she muttered to herself. “Oh please, please, please.”

Caitlyn grinned at Vi. “You seem scared that I’m going to beat you again. Especially with that roll. It seems this is going to be easy!”

Vi spluttered with protests as the ball hit the two pins on the far right, and Caitlyn clucked her tongue. “Oh man, best of luck next time.”

“Don’t worry, I will redeem myself.” Vi pulled out her ball from the rack again. She pressed this one against her nose before releasing it when her eyes were pulled closed. It went soaring and tumbled into the remaining pins. Only one pin was left standing. She smirked at Caitlyn. “How was that for redemption?”

Caitlyn scoffed, “Oh you’re improving. I see. No worries. I can still beat you.” She took her ball and pulled it back. With a soft inhale, she closed her right eye and imagined the targets she would set up in the forest. She could see her imaginary crosshairs and released the ball right below where her target was. This was released perfectly centered, however it turned into the gutters midway through.

Vi doubled over in laughter, grabbing Caitlyn’s shoulders and she chuckled into her shoulders while patter her on the back. “Oh! My! God! What was that? Especially after the whole pep talk you gave yourself.”

Part IV
» 503/400 words

Bakie crawled across the campus floor, she was nearly covered in dust from head to toe. Her hands flitted around the room, searching for something. Her fingers danced across the tables filled with the printed spreadsheets, shoving them from side to side.

Sawyer tossed a yellow rubber duck in the air and caught it in their left hand. As soon as it landed in their hand, it left it once again and this time nearly hit the ceiling. “Bakie! What are you even looking for?”

Her hands froze for a split second, pondering. What was she even searching for? “Uhm, I had it. I had a purpose for this. I came into this room with a purpose! Kat? Do you happen to recall what I’m looking for?”

Birdi was observing the curtains. They were newly installed and hung from the slightly crooked rod. She pinched the fabrics between her fingers and lifted it so that the bottom of the curtain no longer sat upon the floor. She let it drop again and glowered when it sunk back to the floor, folding upon itself. “These curtains need to be hemmed.” She looked back at Bakie who was staring at her with anticipation. “Oh, what was that Bakie?”

Bakie shook her head and repeated, “Do you happen to know what I came into the throne room for?”

Robin raised her hand from the golden beanbag. This was originally designated for Birdi, but Robin had claimed it as her own when Birdi chose the rug in the corner as her preferred seating spot. “Oh, Oh! Was it this cassette tape?” She threw a black box in the direction of Bakie.

Bakie had it in her hands, but then her hip bumbled against the desk and their paperwork went flying off of the table. Scrambling to try and prevent these papers from falling, the tape fell out of her hands and tumbled across the floor. The papers were now sprawled themselves across the floor in a 3 foot radius and Bakie groaned as she began to gather them up. Sawyer, who was nearest to the desk scooped up the papers nearest to them and collected up the remaining papers.

Birdi pulled one of the curtains shut and crouched over to pick up the tape. “Why would Bakie need a ‘How to Care for Cacti That Have Nearly Died Four Times Due to Vacationing, Dehydration, Neglect, and Being Eaten by Birdi Respectively’” Her face wrinkled when she read the part about herself. “That seems very oddly specific.”

“Oh! Not exactly what I was looking for, but…” Bakie shoved the papers back onto the desk and plucked the tape out of Kat’s hands. “This is perfect. Thank you!” Bakie sauntered out of the room.

Nearly 30 seconds later, she came back into the room and exclaimed. “OH! I WANTED A PAPERCLIP. Do any of you have?”

Everyone shook their heads, a bit confused, but Robin was doubling over in laughter.

“Ah, well that’s okay. I’ll go bug the gHosts.”

⤥ Week #2 | Newspaper
» 3,129/2,300 words

Part I | SWC News
» 1,523/800 words

As of 7/16/2022 1:04 am, Bakie Cakie Loco has officially announced stepping down from her cohost position in swc.

We have had the honor of a personal and exclusive interview with Bakie, and she expresses that, “It has been good run. Cohosting these past 4 sessions – a year’s worth of swc (!) has been ultimately one of the best years of my life.”

Bakie has been participating in swc since November 2019, when she was a coleader alongside Evi and Piano. It’s been nearly 3 years of swc and she is extremely grateful for all the memories and chaos that swc has provided her. Expressing her gratitude towards Evi, who accepted tiny 13 year old Bakie as a co leader, Bakie reminisces on her previous sessions. While she did take a month off in march of 2022, Bakie wanted one last fabulous session to close off her time in swc.

“Everyone has made such a huge impact on my life, and all these young and enthusiastic writers are so inspiring! Each and every single one of you are going to go far in life, and I can’t wait to see your novels published.”

Throughout her interview, Bakie goes on to thank everyone who has ever talked to her, stating how each interaction always had her grinning behind a screen, grateful to have such a great community she can interact with. There are so many iconic swc memories, jokes, and moments that Bakie shall always cherish in her future. She hopes to be able to check in swc from time to time, and have a hand in gHost activities, partaking in some swc games and dishing out advice wherever she can. Even if she isn’t cohosting, Bakie hopes to still inspire young writers, and encourage them to pursue what they love.

Although the school year may gobble Bakie up and swallow her whole, Bakie hopes to continue having fun interactions with many swcers, and she wishes everyone the best. “I hope to come back to scratch in a couple of years, perhaps I’ll even be in college, and see it thriving.” Possibly over the summer sessions she hopes to be able and participate as a camper, possibly a co leader. While she expresses her love for leading, she admits that leading a cabin in the future is going to be very unlikely, unless she somehow has infinite time on her hands.

“I know that swc is in very good hands. Your hosts Birdi and Robin are going to take very good care of you, and I know that they will keep swc running. I may be gone as a cohost, but I will always be overlooking from above as a gHost, haunting every single cabin.” Bakie says, while grinning and doing some excited jazz hands.

Bakie wished that she could express her thanks to everyone, but sadly- she cannot in her limited late at night writing as sleep is looming above her head. Nevertheless, Bakie, with tears in the corner of her eyes, (oh my god you guys- I actually have tears, I’m trying to keep this as formal as possible so I don’t start crying, but I’m tearing up, swc has meant the world to me, and it’s kept me sane throughout covid, and everyone- oh my god I am going to miss swc) want to thank the co/hosts she led with, and well Sine and Icy as well because they’ve had such a big impact on her.

Here are her final closing notes (and she apologizes that they’re relatively short, she claims that she needs sleep):

Birdi – It seems like forever, and at the same time, not nearly long enough that I have known you. I am awestruck at how much you do for everyone. You are definitely the most selfless and caring person I know. I love how you use your powers to make sure that everyone is living a healthy lifestyle, and you make it your own mission to brighten someone’s day. While I am heartbroken we never got to lead together in swc, that one poem cabin with dwc counts well enough. That cabin will never be forgotten.

Robin – My fellow musical, sapphic, competitive bot games person. OH wow, how we have grown?? Like our talking/texting style. It just evolves with each other, and looking back on some really old comments in our Real Fi March 2020 (!!) I was laughing at how we have changed our style. You are definitely been one of my most supportive friends, and we have written so much together. There are too many inside jokes that I hold with you, I feel like I need a separate memory book to be able and hold them all. Thank you for growing with me and providing me with so many laughs. Please, keep me updated on any new musicals that you find, thank you!!

Honey – You. Are. Crazy. Awesome. Half the things that you do for swc, I cannot comprehend, but I am so so grateful for everything that you have done. I can’t even recall which writing camp that we met in, maybe it was qwc? But I remember thinking that you were one of the most dedicated and hard working people that I have ever met. I love how you just pour yourself into your work, and have so much fun while doing it! Leading with you- twice!! Has been the best sessions ever, and I love how willing you are to try everything. I definitely think some of the most creative ideas for swc has come from collaborating with you. There’s just something that enhances any work to a new level that happens with you contributing.

Kat – I knew from the very first word war, that you were fabulous. It was just that. I don’t think I’ve ever clicked so fast with someone, and I thank you for your epic god powers of spreadsheets. You are extremely diligent and passionate about what you do. And oh my goodness! Thank you so much for getting me into DnD, those sessions are so much fun, and you are an amazing DM. We should definitely word war just for fun to see how we’ve grown from these past years. I haven’t been practicing, but I am so down to try it!! I love all the storylines that we develop together, and I thank you for keeping me sane over quarantine.

Alba – Oh wow, oh wow Alba. You angel. That is definitely the best word to describe you (but I mean, take it with a grain of salt? I have a very limited vocabulary) Boy, do I admire you, like please, I am begging you to make a spotify account and post music there so I can listen to it on repeat and not have multiple scratch tabs open to cycle through. But of course, I am more than willing to do that. I think everything that you do is iconic. The pure amount of classic swc lines that have come from you is insane!!! Oh my goodness, and I’m not sure if I’ve ever told you, but I love your sense of humor. It has me laughing like a manic at times.

Li – Thank you thank you so much for all the conversations that we’ve held at the randomest times. I love the energy that you carry with you, and the very first time that I saw your profile on scratch, I think the first thought that came to me was “Wow. I wish I could be like them.” I can’t even put my finger on what it was about you, but I had this really huge urge to ahahah impress you and be friends with you. Thank you so so much for being so sweet at all times.

Icy – You don’t even know how much I looked up to you while you were hosting. I thought, and well I still think that you are magic, ‘Yur ah wizzard icy!’ I have so much deep respect for you, like if there was a podium for the respect I have, you’re sitting at the tippy top with a gold medal dangling from your neck. Hosting by yourself??? Crazy, and wicked insane. I love your bright and optimistic tone that you bring with you!! Oh and did I ever mention how much I loved your OC design? It’s so, you, like it fits perfectly and it’s so distinctively icy.

Sine – If there was only a single person who could change my mind and convince me to go cliff diving or something. It would be you. There is no doubt about it. Sine, you give the best freaking advice ever, and it doesn’t even need to be about swc or writing. I love how open you are, and gee whiz, how absolutely iconic your presence is! I still remember that time you gave me critique on my writing, and I still cherish what you said to me to this very day. You have definitely shaped me into the cohost that I am today, thank you for guiding me whenever I am in doubt for what to do <3

Part II | Restaurant Review
» 817/800 words

Let me take you to the Tyrant’s Throne Room. This so called cute café, claims to be the best and most prestigious location to eat on the swc campus. I will admit that the service was immaculate. At the door you are greeted by the honoraries, and while it feels like they could be gossiping about you behind your back, they still remain the sweetest people ever. They even handed me three mints of different flavors! The flavors were the classic peppermint, a chocolate mint, and a honey swirl. What could be sweeter than that? (Yes, pun attempted.)

As soon as you enter the area, silver, gold and marble surround you. If you are uncomfortable with locations flaunting their wealth… Well, this is not the place for you. However, if you wish to delve into the decadent lifestyle, the honoraries will guide you to your own personal throne. Just a forewarning that these thrones are made out of glass, so expect that and you will not be disappointed. I may or may not have walked in there, thinking they were made out of diamonds, but the hosts would not spend that kind of money on us. Instead, they use it to fund their personal shrines and mango garden. Oh, but don’t get me wrong- I’m all for funding the mango garden. Personal shrines? Now that’s where my concerns arise.

What I was immediately captivated by, was the chandeliers. They were the most lavish and extra things I have ever seen, sparkling with blinding lights, it was as if I was peering upon a Greek God’s true form. And, if I am not mistaken, I am pretty sure they have a disco ball tucked between the center of the lightbulbs.

Moving on from the interior design of the restaurant, we can discuss food. If you think you are a procrastinator, you should see the backstage of the Tyrant’s Throne Room. I was able to get a sneak peek before I was kicked out of the kitchen by a broom, but from what I saw, Bakie is easily distracted. She will wait until the last minute of the customer’s patience to start making the dish. And just about when you’ve pushed in your chair to leave, the aroma hits you and pulls you back into your seat. I was entranced by the smell of lasagna, and could not leave without the food.

On the bright side, there is entertainment provided by the Daily Team! Each and every one of them were stunning, and I was pleasantly surprised in this aspect of the restaurant. While on the subject of the entertainment, might I mention the stage. It was a full turning round table, with fairy lights lining the edges of the stage. The piano sat in the center of the stage, and black prop boxes were stacked in a pyramid.

Zai had a couple of piano covers, and even took requests from the audience! I was greatly impressed. Robin preformed She Used to Be Mine from Waitress, and Sawyer did some Hot Cross Buns on the recorder. I will give the entertainment a 10/10. A handful of times, Birdi came on stage to give us reminders to breath. Oh and another warning if you decide to come here to eat: One time Birdi even led us on a yoga session, and she had every single person participate. I quite enjoyed it, however a handful of people were upset that their lasagna went cold by the end of the session. They were told to deal with it by one of the gHosts, however Birdi still brought them out another fresh lasagna.

When my own lasagna arrived, I will admit to falling in love with it. The food was outstanding. There is no doubt about it. However, what really took the cake for me, was the mango sorbet. This is complimentary to all who come in and get one meal. If you were allergic to mango, they did have a couple of alternatives like match pressed baguettes. Be sure to keep your voice on the downlow if you’re telling your honorary that you can’t eat mangoes. The entire restaurant will cancel you if you make it publicly know you are not a fan. This might have occurred while I was there, and I may or may not have participated in the canceling of this particular costumer. And most definitely was not the one who initiated it.

It only included some arson of their table cloth and defenestration. No one was seriously injured.

Except for the victim.

The leaders did come and step in to prevent it from spiraling out of control though. I was escorted out of the Tyrants Throne Room, and banned from ever coming again. Which was quite harsh of them, and they were definitely abusing their tyrant powers. So in the end I will give them a rating 0/10.

Part III | Advice
» 555/500 words

@Dark-Ehko - To procrastinate or not procrastinate?

That is the question. Whether tis nobler- Oh, my apologies, did you not want me to preform for you? Well, coming from a professional procrastinator. I will give you my advice on how to procrastinate so that it seems like you are not procrastinating. Step one: make a check list of all the things you would like to procrastinate on. The key to this step is to make sure there is a lot of empty space at the end of the list. Step two: fill in your every day tasks that you need to do, such as brushing your teeth, yawning, scratching your back, and petting your cat. Step three: as you go about your day, doing these activities you normally do- every time that you put a check on your checklist, allow yourself 1 hour scrolling on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, or binge watching a tv show.

Now if feels like you are productive, but in reality you are simply giving yourself excuses to watch 1 hour of YouTube, and you can save the hardest tasks for last!

@Cherrie_Tree - I am convinced there is a fourth wall but I can't break it. Please send help.

Do not fret. I have just contacted 911 and there will be there with you shortly. I did not know your address, so if you don’t mind, I gave them our hangout cabin’s address located on Mars. You may want to get going right now to meet them there.

The threat of a fourth wall in your premises is very seriously, and we will not take this situation lightly. I promise you that I am doing everything in my power to try and break this fourth wall before it gets used against us. We may not make it out of here alive, so if that is the case, I just want to thank you for notifying us of this threat, and giving us at least a chance at survival.

@pitau - i'm interested in this guy, right? only problem is he's a stuffed animal pig. he's really cute and super soft, but he can't talk! i'm interested in him platonically, so i want to have nice conversations with him, but i can't. what should i do?

Host a tea party. Offer him some tea with sugar, however the trick to this is switching the sugar out with another white powder. One that will make him a bit sleepy. And now when he accepts and you pour out the drinks with his special seasoning, right before you drink it, switch the cups. Do not miss this step, as it is very vital to this working. Now that you have taken a sip, your vision might get a little blurry. This is all normal. A little voice will sound like it’s coming from the back of your head, but this is him! You are now able to talk to your stuffed animal pig.

@Kosmos_Kitty - What to do when you caught your kittens eloping with a idiot?

Get yourself a gallon of ice cream. Make sure you have non-waterproof mascara on (it doesn’t matter what gender you are! Mascara works on all). Wrap yourself in a blanket. Put on your favorite tv show. Start crying while watching tv and gobble up that ice cream.

Part IV | Obituary
» 210/200 words

Name: Bakie Cakie Loco.
Status: Deceased
Time of Death: 2:17 am

We have lost a bright shining light. Officials have yet to find concrete evidence to support their claim of Bakie’s death, however they have their theories. Goose had spotted Bakie writing her weekly at 2:06 am, and claims that she was in perfectly good health. So many are asking: What happened in those 11 minutes to cause a perfectly healthy Bakie to die?

It has recently been confirmed that Bakie’s body was found in the one and only Birdi’s Boom-Boom-Broom closet. Robin speculates that Bakie has always been in the closet, specifying that she has yet to come out to her family despite leaving many obvious clues.

However, Sawyer begs to differ, claiming that Bakie would not hide in the broom closet when she was making a cake in her kitchen. They express that Bakie would never leave a cake unmade. Evidence supports Sawyer’s claim, as a burnt strawberry lemonade cake was found in the ashes of what used to be Bakie’s kitchen.

When we approached Birdi, she expressed dissatisfaction towards Bakie’s inability to not burn down the second floor. Birdi is currently scrambling to get a hold of the insurance company and cannot presently speak on the matter.

⤥ Week #3 | Fantasy
» 2,882/2,300words

Part I | High Fantasy and Worldbuilding
» 203/200 words

Brainstorming:

1. Rainforest
2. Air city, possibly floating lands
3. Tiny hole in the wall of a house
4. Hot and Humid climate with limited fresh food supply
5. The buildings are in the air, the ground level is restricted to the rainforest only
6. Traveling organization that goes down to the ground level
7. Assassin monarchy organization
8. Beloved organization that helps everyone
9. People are split between adventurers vs city life
10. “Go die in the forest” as a common phrase
11. A sprout represents regrowth
12. Lotus represents monarchy
13. Arts are holographic, painting in 3D
14. Main entertainment includes community games in the center square
15. Hard magic system, where you only get gifted it once you have committed an act of selflessness
16. This magic is used for personal gain, but is supposedly gifted to only those who deserve it
17. Magic is used for building the city, and continue expanding it upwards
18. The magic is like manipulation of the air to do your bidding
19. There are no laws surrounding magic because only a couple of people have it at a given time
20. The owner has 50 years to live after they received their magic

Connections
The city is built upon the air, from a single magic wielder, Nette Whistler. The way in which she obtained this magic is unknow, but she found that everyone was struggling in the rainforest and thought it would be easier to start life above the rainforest. Using her powers, she built a city in the air, and this city has been growing since. There are two types of people in the world, those who are willing to go down to the rainforest, and those who are not. The ones who go down into the rainforest is called the “Adventurers” and those who live their lives up in the city without ever going down in the rainforest is called the “Lad.” They thrive up in the air but need to send people down to obtain food and resources to continue building the city above. They are very limited in their mages since it’s been 48 years since someone has become a mage, so they are running out of magic and their one mage is burnt out. Many adventure’s goals is to become a mage, but not only do you need to have a near death experience, the council needs to unanimously deem you worthy.

Part I Cont. | High Fantasy and Worldbuilding
» 439/400 words

Narrative

Rhen took her walkie talkie and held it up to her mouth. “Rhen. Rhen here. Does anyone copy?” The rope dug into the side of her hips. Annoyed, Rhen stuck the device in her mouth and held it clasped between her teeth. She then tried to shift in her harness to bring the strap above her hipbone.

By the time the static came through again, she had managed to shift the rope just further up her hip, yet it remained dug into her side.

A husky voice cut through the static, “-Tksss- Hello? Rhen? Is that you?”

Rhen grappled with her fanny pack to pull out the walkie talkie again, only to realize it was in her mouth. Rolling her eyes, she took the walkie talkie out of her hand and pressed the button to talk again. “Yes! I believe the coast is clear. I only spot leaves. Lots of lush greenery. It’s quite nice down here. No artificial air generators. And who would have thought that causes a lot less noise? C’mon Nate, you’ve got to get down here and check it out.”

“m’ coming. Hold tight for a couple min, and I’ll be there in the blink of an eye.”

“Nate! I don’t think you know how much time blink-” The walkie talkie signaled at Rhen that Nate hat shut off his walkie talkie with a red light flashing. Rhen groaned and stuffed her walkie talkie back in her fanny pack.

She swung back and forth in her harness, humming a lullaby to herself, finding that the Drop had very nice acoustics.

“What are you doing down there?! Are you putting on an entire concert? If that’s the case, I’ll just hurl myself back up and over the side.”

“Nateeee, get back here. Don’t you hear that?”

“I hear your annoying voice!”

“I meant the absence of the vibrations. It’s gone down here. They don’t have it here. It’s stunning! The silence is eerily comforting. Like you no longer have anyone breathing down your backs.” Rhen starting undoing her carabiner and lowered her rope a bit further down when she heard the rocks falling from above her.

“Rhen! You’ve got to wait up for me.” Nate called from above. Trying desperately to not lose sight of Rhen, he let go of his rope, letting it drop him a couple of meters. A scream burst from Nate, and when he grabbed the rope to stop him from hurling down again, he was gasping for breath.

Rhen burst out laughing. “AHAHAH the commander is so going to deck you for that.”

“Not if he doesn’t find out.” Nate retorted.

Part II | Magical Realism
» 1,066/800 words

What kind of magic is used in your world?

Air magic is used in this world, and it’s the manipulation of the air molecules. If I’m remembering my chemistry well enough, they are essentially shifting the neutrons and electrons around. This makes some of the molecules denser than others. So if someone was to lift something heavy upwards, they would manipulate the air molecules to lose their electrons and neutrons to make the molecules below more dense. This would support the weight of the object, and they can manipulate this to move the object in whatever way that they would like.

92 words

How is the magic in the world used in the character’s everyday lives? What are the different abilities?

The mages specialize in all different sorts of ways that they manipulate the molecules. While they all only have 50 years to live, there has not been such huge advancements to the abilities. So there is also not many mages, so there isn’t that many resources for the mages to learn from and they learn on their own. Some people focus on the building aspects, while others use it to manipulate the plants life, and others might do weather. The main use for it is to keep the society going in the floating city.

94 words

What are the laws of your world, specifically about magic? Punishments?

There are no official laws in place because there would be no one to enforce this against the mages. People just expect the mages to use it for the general good, and no one will stop them if they use it to make their own life a little easier. Everyone thinks that the mages are perfect and they deserver whatever they do with the magic. While it has never been explicitly stated, and it has never happened before, yet, if a mage was to murder someone, the council has a general agreement that they would banish the mage to the rainforest.

101 words

What is an important symbol of your world?

An important symbol of my world is the raven as that was Nette’s only pet. People believe that those who can afford a raven, and be able to keep it alive for so long has a higher probability of getting the right occasion to nearly sacrifice their life for something good and escape from it. However if your raven does not live over 50 years, it is considered to be a taboo, and you are destined for a brutal death. This is why only the risky and rich ones have ravens as pets.

93 words

What is the origin of your magic?

They believe that the origin of the magic is from the ravens, however this is not proven and is mostly just a superstition or rumor. Nette was born with the magic and it didn’t show up until she ventured out of the cavern and thew herself in the toxic waters to retrieve their last reserves of food when it was stolen by a Wheite and taken to the pool. Ever since then, mages have been retrieving magic when they do a good service, however it cannot be released unless they get the approval of the council.

96 words

How common is magic, and are all characters aware they possess it?

The magic is not common at all, and at any given time there was only a max of 4 mages alive at the same time. There are people out there who don’t know what the magic feels like, so even though they earned it through nearly sacrificing themselves, they don’t know it and never get it approved by the council so it is never released. They may live their entire lives without knowing, and the magic just dies with them.

80 words

What are the limitations of your world’s magic?

There are not many limitations of my world’s magic. They are still developing what they can do with it, and since they don’t know what they can do with it, they don’t know the limitations. They just know that it hasn’t been master quite yet. The main limitation is just getting the magic in the first place, but other than that, people are still figuring it out. I mean I suppose that bring people back from the dead over 24 hours from when they died, isn’t possible.

87 words

How is magic viewed in your world (ie. as a boring normal, as a fascinating element of their life, or as a curse on society etc.)?

Magic is viewed as a fascinating element, and that the people who wield the magic are all powerful and gods in their own sense. They are praised, however the mages never know if it’s because they are truly apricated, or because they are being sucked up to by the people just so that they would help that person with their problems. The mages are really busy people, but they get to chose who they help and who they don’t. Some mages have systems, while others just do whoever they like.

90 words

How is the education system in your world? What do your characters learn (or hypothetically would learn)?

The education in the system does not include magic, since it is so rare. However the mages do often come to the school system to speak about their adventures and how they obtained their magic. I mean it depends on the mage and their style, but most do. Otherwise the education system is much like our own and it depends on the area that you live in. The kids learn the common core classes that they do, including math, language, history, and science.

83 words

What happens when magic gets out of control in your world?

When magic gets out of control, the world panics and never knows what to do. It has never happened before, and no one expects it to happen; therefore no one is ever prepared for when it comes around. They claim that they will banish mages if they use their magic for malicious purposed, but everyone knows that the mages will probably be able to get away with everything that they do, and if anyone gets in their way, they don’t stand a chance. That is why everyone so dearly holds onto the thought that all mages are good and will never betray them.

103 words

Part III | Joint Workshop
» 949/900 words

Dystopian Fantasy

Venice crawled through the sewers and wrinkled her nose. “What exactly am I doing in here?” She plucked her way through some soaked newspapers which crumbled and fell apart from her touch when she tried to shuffle it away from herself.

“I don’t know, I’m asking myself the very same thing here. Why are we doing this?” Wryln scoffed from behind her and shoved her legs forwards. “Keep it moving! I cannot stand this stench, and I don’t want this smell to infuse into my clothing more than it already has.”

Venice snickered, “I bet it’s too late for that, but alright, alright I am trying to hurry up. I don’t want to be here any more than you do.” She continued to crawl forwards and came across the opening of the sewer. She pulled out her map that was now covered in grime and followed the path she believed she had taken.

“I think that we’ve arrived at our destination.” Venice whispered and pointed upwards. Her finger graced the top of the sewer and she stuck both of her hands up and pushed. The sewer opened up to a room enveloped in darkness.

“What’s there? I can’t see anything” Wryln called.

“Shhh, I don’t know, do you have a flashlight?”

Wryln patted down his pockets and groaned when his pockets appeared to be empty except for a single gum wrapper. “It’s not here.”

“Don’t tell me you’re already lost it!” Venice groaned and hoisted herself up into the room. Her eyes instantly adjusted to the darkness and she scanned the room for any signs of a living creature. Her senses also came up negative. “I don’t sense anything. Do you?”

No response came.

“Wryln?”

Still nothing.

A hand snatched out and grabber her wrist and Venice stifled a scream, nearly about to smack her captor, when she realized that Wryln’s eyes were large as he nodded a yes.

319 words

Urban Fantasy

“Have you ever gone to the underworld?”

Julia peered up at her mother who was washing the dishes in the sink, scrubbing at the spaghetti sauce that just wouldn’t seem to get off the plate.

“Whose idea was it to have spaghetti and meat sauce today?” Julia’s mom muttered.

“Mom?” Julia inquired again. “Mom, did you hear me?”

“Oh, sorry, no sweetie- I didn’t catch that. What did you ask?”

“Have you ever gone to the underworld?”

Julia’s mom took a sharp inhale and set the half scrubbed place back into the soapy water. After a good moment, she lifter her hands from the warm water and wiped it across her pink knitted sweater. She crossed the room and scooped Julia up into her arms. “Oh wouldn’t you like to know that?”

“Yes! I do! That is exactly why I am asking you about it. I want to know everything there is about the underworld.”

Julia’s mom clicked her tongue disapprovingly and tutted at her daughter. “Ahh, yes of course. The mind of a curious child. Well, the underworld is quite entertaining to say the least.”

Julia stared up at her mother and grabbed a strand of her mother’s hair to start braiding. “Go on.”

“You always have to remain on your toes, and not to make eye contact with anyone there. They can easily possess your mind if you get lost in their eyes, so you must always be cautious. But not everyone is all that bad. There are good underworldies as well as bad ones. You cannot judge everyone down there before you gave met them, but you cannot let your guard down.”

Julia’s eyes glossed over, but she pretended to be paying attention as she nodded her head eagerly.

“Out of everything, your safety is the number 1 priority. Right sweetie?”

“Right mom!”

306 words

Hidden Worlds

Charlie opened her window and took a deep breath. The cherry blossoms were in bloom this season. She sneezed. Golly. Charlie groaned. Today she was supposed to go out with her friends! She didn’t want the cherry blossoms to bloom quite yet! She would have to be isolated in her room once they come in bloom. Maybe she could push it one day further and she wouldn’t have to skip on today.

Pulling on her red trench coat, Charlie peered over her shoulder to check that no one had noticed her climb out of her bedroom. When she landed on the floor, she darted across the yard without giving her house a second thought.

Trying not to look up at the cherry tree, so that no pollen would begin to affect her, she pulled the drawstrings of her hood tighter around her face. She dashed across the street and didn’t even notice when she took a turn into the woods. Feeling her face start to begin to be runny, she sniffled and took her sleeves to wipe at her eyes.

Pushing further into the woods, she ran through ivy and lush bushes of lavender, until she stumbled across a small pond. Elated to find this pond, she dashed up to the waters edge and cupped some water in her hands.

Pouring the water over her face, she let out a refreshed sigh. Her face felt so much better now. But when she looked up at her surroundings, she was no longer where she was when she first ran up to the pond. She was staring at a small village made of mushrooms. The pathways were cobblestone, and there seemed to be sparkles in the surrounding atmosphere. Taken aback, Charlie let out an awestricken gasp. She watched as the clouds parted to a small pink sun that laid rays upon the tiny village.

312 words

The little pot quivered in her hands. It shook with anticipation, the little swirls of flowers blurring into a fuzz of colors. She whisked these colors away, blowing at them as if they were pollen dusted over the delicate ceramics.

Disha whispered to her pot, small words of reassurance. She rubbed the side of it as her feet began to rock back and forth. Minutes flew by and she waited. She waited like the good little child she was.

Every now and then, she tugged at the frames of her dress. The dress was strained under her tiny fingers, threads threatening to fly apart if she only tugged a big more.

A slam from around the corner, had her head pop up, eyes glistening and hopeful. That was them! It had to be, and she scurried around.

137 words ↵

Dear Diary,

Welcome to my first entry to you. Hi, Dylan is my name, and look you may be asking why that is so significant- Well, my best friend is a sea urchin! And I find it very ironic that his name, is Huggy. Have you ever seen a sea urchin hug people? It’s pines get stuck in my forearms and what’s normally supposed to be comforting, tends to be kind of uncomfortable. I never have the motive to tell him that though, becuase he knows I love hugs. Just today, life was going swell. Walking down mainsea road, it was going really slowly. Traffic was terrible, with our proclaimed diverse population of fishies scrambling about to get to work, I was stopped at every coral light. So of course, this did not make me very happy to begin with.

To try and cheer myself up, I went to hum one of our lapsing lullabies. My beat was in tune with the waves and it’s movement, but this random shark comes along- and of course he thinks he rules the ocean! He spins the water into a flurry of a tornado, catching me in a flurry

196 words ↵

Okay, so i suppose that I'm doing a word war with Birdi! It has been quite a long time since i've done a long word war, so let's start with writing this up like a journal entry. My friend has wanted met o start bullet journaling, and I feel like it would be a lot of fun to do! But I alos think that I would struggle with being consistent and keeping my journal the same length every day? I mean like some days I will have spurts of motivation to do it, while other days I'm probaly just going to write three words like “I don't want” Okay that was not three words, maybe four words of “I don't want this.” I also feel like I would spend too much time planning out the spreads of each page and spend hours upon hours on that. Oh I don't have that much free time to do that, but that's okay, I might get into it later if I ever happen to have enough free time. I'm starting to get a little bit stressed with summer being over halfway over and my friends and I have not started our big project. We've had a couple of meetings to discuss what we want to do, and what product we are going to write out paper on. But other than that we haven't done any research or writting up any of the paper itself. We did send that one email to Google asking for whatnot, but they haven't responded, so maye we can reach out to more people and see if those emails are ones that they'll actually correspond with us? or not and we might just go into this blindly without any guidneance. Today we got to see the minons movie, and it was pretty good! I think the plot was a bit cheesey and that

314words ↵

Critique

▸@GraceOBrien13 's Writing Comp Entry || A Siren Calls ↵

When a siren nears the rocks that border the coast, tossed around by the waves; that is when a simple song becomes dangerous.

i'm not sure the use of the first semi colon is correct? A semi colon connects two complete sentences together because they build off of each other. But i'm not sure your first clause “When a siren nears the rocks that border the coast, tossed around by the waves.” can be an independent sentence. A comma might work, but that's getting close to becoming a run on sentence.

You could try rephrasing it to something like:

“Simple enough, a siren's song is innocent in itself. Yet, when a siren nears the rocks bordering the coast and tossed around by the waves, that is when this simple song becomes dangerous.”

You don't even need that beginning part, however adding it creates juxaposition to pull out the contrast and emphasize the danger. And it also allows you to use a transition word like “yet”, “nevertheless” “however” that will contribute to the flow of the piece.

Danger is satisfying, a certain siren ponders as it glides up to a rock, outstretching up to sling his arm over it. Danger is a thrill that stampedes through his body. It is pure adrenaline.

Is the siren pondering “Danger is satisfying”? If so, perhaps put that in ‘ - whatever those are called, half quotations? pfft idk I’m making that up. Or is the siren pondering just anything and everything all at once? That distiction might be good to make :)

I'm not a fan of “oustretching up”, just reading it outloud doesn't quite roll of the toungue like I might want it to. This is personal opinion of course, but you could do

"outstretching his arm to sling it up and over the slick surface"

He observes as a person walks along the beach, kicking rocks out of the way. She exhibits traditional attire, in the form of a checkered black-and-white shirt and a black hat positioned at a tilt on her head. The skull on the hat does not ward him off any more than the appearance of a land-borne human does.

When the person reaches the ocean’s swash, she cups her hands around her mouth and hollers; “Stop singing, your song isn’t pretty.”

There is no previous establishment that she even notices the siren or his singing, thus this transition becomes abrupt, and sudden- like woAhh is she talking to him? oh yeah, she is

An indication that she was listening to him signing before would help the transition.

Also “when the person reaches” is very vauge and distant. You could describe her meandering down to the ocean's shores, maybe walking with a sway in her step. This can add a lot more indirect characterization. I am also not a fan of just “the person” as well. There are so many ways you can describe the person! “The person” is a lot of telling with no depth in it, you want to show and describe this character!

I do like “hollers” tho!! That's a fun word-

Oh, and also replace that semicolon with a comma ;) I think it's technically could be correct, but a comma is more appropriate in this situation.

“I’m glad that an esteemed critic has took it upon herself to tell me the ins and outs of music.”

AHAHAHAHA NAHH NAHH I LOVE THIS <3 It brought a smile to my face when I read it

“A pirate.” He notes, offering her a hand. She declines it, though not without a sparkle in her eye.

So in my mind, I imagined her standing on the beach shore, and him out in the ocean sitting on a rock Little Mermaid style. I didn't realize that they were this near to each other, and so this gesture was a bit abrupt and I had a small little “huh?!” moment. Especially since she hollered at him, I thought they were quite far away from each other.

You could take two approaches to this:
1. Either establish that they are close together in descriptive writing previously
2. Have her walk towards him, maybe even wade out in the water during their dialouge- describing how her trousers get wet or something might be fun!

Now, he is a siren singing to the waves, and the waves are not happy.

Ohhh i like the personification!! You could even take it a step further and describe an unhappy feeling. Maybe dissapointment? or jealousy? how about dissaproval. All of these are more interesting than the word “happy”

You can even describe the action of the wave to estalish that they arn't happy instead of simply stating it.

Once again, he sang to the waves, but this time the waves roared over his melody.

Not only is that rich language and personification, but it connects to your second line of

The sea is only so eager to listen to gentility.

That comparison pulls the reader back to this statement, and the constrast exploits the shift in mood.

A ship has set sail on a gold-painted sea. The crew exchange jovial greetings and tend to the helm, sail and anchor. A captain struts around watching and assisting them, and that captain hesitates beside the starboard side of the ship, where a lilting melody is being orchestrated down below.

Ohhhhh I like the gold painted sea! Can you take that another step forward? Describe the sea in full detail- IN ALL THE POSSIBLE GLORY OF THE SEA!!! Give some enriching atmosphereic words towards the sea.

Another thing to note is look at how all your sentences start with an article. Either it's “a” or “the”, and the sentence structure remains relatively the same. Except for that last sentence (which might be a tad bit long. I find if you use more than one conjunction without the intension of polysyneton, the sentence is too long. Esepcailly if you say “and' & ”and" so close together like this) Maybe start with a verb somewhere!

Exchanging jovial greetings, the crew tended to the helm, moving on to the sail, and finally the anchor.

It adds up some spice!! And you now have variation in your sentence structure :)))

From afar, it looks cherubic and innocent, with dark eternally-wet hair falling into his eyes and deep irises that follow you. It is a face to be displayed as a bust in a museum, a side-attraction which would gather plenty of stolen glances. She doesn’t look directly at him as she knows that a siren has multiple ways to allure and beguile a passing ship’s crew, and looks are one of them.

OHHH I LOVE THIS!!! DESCRIPTION!!! LOVELY, STUNNING AND RICH <3

“Your instincts think otherwise.” floats back the eventual answer.

Either change the period to a comma, or change “floats back the eventual answer.” to a complete sentence.

After a moment, the eventual answer floats back, “Your instincts think otherwise.”

“My instincts would like to punch you in your face.”
“What can you do that compares in any way to my talent?”

TOO GOOD AHAHAH YOU'RE TOO GOOD I am sooo here for the playful banter

The sea comes before anything else. That is the one truth that is true to both the captain and the siren. It is the bittersweet truth.

A siren, a myth to those who don’t seek them out actively, belongs to the sea. They are willing prisoners.

A captain, a strong force in a world of revolving good and evil, chooses the sea over land every minute of life. They are the chosen dwellers of the seven seas.

When a pirate captain is trudging along the shore, kicking rocks into the ocean, there is no cause to worry. She doesn’t want to harm.

When a siren is seen gliding seamlessly through the foam of the waves, crooning a song dedicated to his home, there is cause to worry. He is looking for his prey.

Oh man, I can't even express how much i love how you used multiple rhetorical devices here. Like that paralleism and juxaposition!! whooop whoop!! go gooooseeeee. This part just makes me so happy, and I love the beautiful descriptions and detailed words.

heheh and going to end on that good note!!! I like the change of pacing that you put in the end! That was so much fun to read <333 i adore your writing goose!!! Thank you for letting me critiqueeee
______

▸@sunsetskies- 's Writing Comp Entry || Connected ↵

Her hair was brown, oily and matted, and her eyes were a deep blue.

Ohhh i like these descriptions! They add to the characterization, however placing it as the second sentence isn't unique- you could incorperate these later in the story, because currently these physical traits don't add anything to the story. Unless of course, oily and matted hair or deep blue eyes play an important part of the story later on and you need it here. You can have her interact with her oily hair, that way these descriptions don't seem to be added on just because you want to establish the character's appearance. Like perhaps she runs her hand through her hair and it gets caught on the mats and the oils from her hands contribute to the already oily hair.

She had nothing but the contents of a faded yellow bag, and the semi-mangled clothes on her back.

You use a lot of color words to describe objects. like “yellow” “brown” and “deep blue”. Find other ways to descibe an objects appearance! Perhaps the texture, or the shape, how it holds itself? Is the bag sagging limply, or is it stuffed full and standing uptight? Or if you are really attached to using colors to descibe object, find some more specific colors. Perhaps like a mahogany color for the eyes, or a butterscotch/bumble bee/pineapple/sunflower yellow. Look at how those more specific types of yellow adds so much depth to the word “yellow”

I'm not sure i quite like “Semi-mangled” as it begins to paint a picture, yet i get stopped short and get a bit confused. I imagine something with mangled- but only semi mangled? that seems to degrade all the connotations I had with the word mangled. You could describe the fabrics to be twisted together, or how the clothes are wrinkled and unkept.

The sky was as heavy as the weight of her worries, raindrop after raindrop after raindrop plummeted down from the clouds, they rolled off her hair, then down her back, then down to the ground, each one slowly contributed to the many large, cloudy puddles around her.

OHHH BEAUTIFUL DESCRIPTION!! I LOVE IT! just be cautious of those run on sentences ;)))

The girl pulled out a beautiful red leather diary with the name ‘Rosemary’ on the cover in sparkly silver cursive, an emerald green pen and a slightly stale slice of white bread from her bag.

Haha another example of your commonly used colors to describe appearances of objects. If you over use a type of describing tactic, it no longer becomes as effective

I have almost run out of the money that kind lady at the bakery gave me, and I miss Mother more than ever before.

The diary entry holds a lot of “telling” and not much showing, or description. You could describe the embarassment she felt when she had to rummage through her coin purse in order to pay for a new comb. Maybe how she felt regret that she went through the money so fast.

She was only in her thirties, but her tired eyes and wrinkles made it easy for anyone think she was at least sixty. She hadn’t seen her husband or daughter in two years, when the family house burnt down.

Here you have two sentences one after another that starts with “she” This isn't all bad, but if you want to add up some variety, try switching up to passive voice instead of active, or add some transition words.

It's been two years from when the family house burnt down, and she hadn't seen her husband or daughter since.

From a hand-knitted bag, she pulled out a peacock blue pen, and a diary identical to her daughter’s, except for the name on the cover, ‘Beatrice’. She opened the book to a blank page and gasped, for on that very page was a diary entry written by someone called Rosemary. She screamed, causing everyone around her to stare. Then five minutes later, she screamed again, the sentence ‘Mother, I miss you’ was writing itself. “Are… are you a ghost?” She whispered to the page.

The paragraph that this comes from, can definately be split up into multiple ones. When together like that, it becomes harder to read, and the main subject changes. I suggest sticking a new paragraph when you start “Then, five minutes later” because that's a shift in time, and a new paragraph is often needed when there is a time jump. Also a new paragrpah when you say “she screamed,” might also work- since that is a shift in action, from the dairy entry to the scream. Therefore the ideas are different- but you don't need to do it for that one. I just reccomend at least putting it for the “the, five minutes later”

“Are… are you a ghost?” She whispered to the page. An eerie silence followed by ‘Mother, please, where are you… I miss you’. Once again, the sentence wrote itself. She read the diary entry again. Hmm, Rosemary… that was the name of her daughter! Could this be her very own daughter writing these messages? Or maybe she was hallucinating, two years of not speaking to anyone had changed her. Beatrice put down her pen and wrote ‘Who are you? Her fingers trembled so badly that all the letters went crooked.

Okay and this, treat this as if it's dialouge. Whenever a new person speaks, or has their own thought- it is a seperate idea, and therefore you need new paragraphs for each one. So I reccomend placing new paragraphs here:

“Are… are you a ghost?” She whispered to the page.

An eerie silence followed by ‘Mother, please, where are you… I miss you’. Once again, the sentence wrote itself.

She read the diary entry again. Hmm, Rosemary… that was the name of her daughter! Could this be her very own daughter writing these messages? Or maybe she was hallucinating, two years of not speaking to anyone had changed her.

Beatrice put down her pen and wrote ‘Who are you? Her fingers trembled so badly that all the letters went crooked.

ANYWAYS THAT WAS SUCH A FUN READ!! I love the concept of it ahahaha reminds me of Tom Riddle's Diary in Harrry Potter <33 Beautiful writing and I wish you the best in the writing comp entry :333

▸@Sunclaw68 's Writing Comp Entry || for the sake of your hands warm in mine ↵

{Redacted} flips the words between their teeth when nobody's looking, weighs the sentence against the heaviness in their heart.

Ohhh I quite like this, the way you expressed them mulling over that thought, without directly telling it! The sentence in itself is beautiful <33 It's such a nice description that gets a nice atmosphere across.

They made a promise nobody could be expected to keep and now they are paying the price;

This is a slightly cliche sentence? I haven't read through the entire thing yet, so it could work out and the sentence may not be a bad cliche, but making promises and paying the price are often paired together. There could be another way to phrase that to make it :sparkles: unique, but my too tired brain can't think of anything at the moment.

Lining up one by one to march single-file is all well and good for those who are savvy enough to socialize with the teacher, but others have less initiative.

I do like the description here, but reading it outloud is a bit of a mouthful. Actually saying it a couple of times makes it better, but the first time I read it I was like “HUH? OHHHh” It took a good moment to actually comprehend what it was saying. Which could be a stylistic choice! And it's a nice sentence, but just takes a bit to understand, for me at least!

Yes, classes are not necessarily a respite for everyone else either, perhaps some would prefer the chaos and joy of recess outside; but to the two kids who always sit at the back, classes are everything that their homes aren't: peaceful and straightforward and safe. An actual place to learn, to grow up.

This is beautiful <3 I really like the contrast and parallism you're using- along with some juxaposition. This really makes these characters stick out, and is quite moving. The implications that you have added just by saying “An actual place to learn, to grow up.” really allows the audience to take guesses at what their home situation might be.

231 words

▸@ArtisticOne111 's Writing Comp Entry || The Ghost of Poetry Cabin ↵

Everybody was acting normal

I'm not sure, but this seems like such an unnatraul line that i can't imagine anyone actually saying outloud. Something along the lines of “No one was acting unusual or anything.” and this will also change up your word variation since you use normal in the sentnece before unless you want that repeitition for a specific reason: stylisitic choice perhaps?

As that was what the Journal Entry said.

this is also a very abrupt sentence that sort of messes with the flow of things. Saying it out loud has me slightly tripping over my own words ahaha. It's quite indirect and has a lot of unecessary fluff? I do reccomend reading your writing outloud! It's very useful to help with the flow of things

I touched it and my finger came out all dirty and disgusting.

this is such a good opportunity to use figuerative language! Or some sort of fun descriptive writing <33 You can descirbe how the dirt looked on the finger. Was it grease? Or was it dust? What if it was someone's hair (ewwww, think of all the detailed things you can give the audience instead of just “dirty” and “disgusting”) Think of the source, and what it's coming from!

I was concerned because the pages were also turning… red

IS IT JUST ME OR ARE YOU STICKING A LOT OF ALLUSIONS IN HERE SMIRK-

It was dustier than everything else and it seemed a bit darker red.

you've said the word “red” a lot. There are so many types of red, and I bet you can be more specific than just “darker” Was it a deep blood red? How about a crimson, or a mahogany? There are so many beautiful words out there you can use in place of “darker red”
We have never heard of those stories so we looked at each other in confusion. Nobody knew these legends and got pretty paranoid. They started to look around our cabin because apparently someone died here. Which Arli never told us about. Isabella was hugging her pillow by now and didn’t know what to do.

I think a new paragraph could be placed at “they started” or “isabella was hugging” since it's a new idea or thought, and that one paragrpah is getting a tad bit lengthy

“WHAT THE HECK?!” Zack said loudly. “This is nonsense.” They walked over to their bunk and sat down hesitantly. “Wouldn’t we know about this?” Zack asks quietly. They have creeps going up their spine. “Shouldn’t we go to sleep guys?” Isabella asked. “It’s quite late.” She says as she looks at the clock. We all jumped into bed but all were still awake. We couldn’t stop thinking of what happened in the poetry cabin. How was the murder commited? When? Where? We all stayed up late that night. We were scared about what would happen to us.

Just correcting some grammar for dialouge each time that a new person speaks, make it a new line. So you would add new paragraphs like:

“WHAT THE HECK?!” Zack said loudly. “This is nonsense.”

(this is a new idea, walking over to the bunk especial since zach isn't the only person doing this action) They walked over to their bunk and sat down hesitantly. “Wouldn’t we know about this?” Zack asks quietly. They have creeps going up their spine.

“Shouldn’t we go to sleep guys?” Isabella asked. “It’s quite late.” She says as she looks at the clock.

We all jumped into bed but all were still awake. We couldn’t stop thinking of what happened in the poetry cabin. How was the murder commited? When? Where? We all stayed up late that night. We were scared about what would happen to us.

“Hi!” Arli said excitedly. “Ready for Cabin Wars?” I yawned and replied, “Yes.” I truly wasn’t that ready. I wanted to scavenge the cabin. Was there any evidence that this was true?

this as well add new lines

“My name is Bakie. I was an old camper.” The human said. “Now if you don’t mind, I’ll be a part of your cabin.” The person walked out of the door.

GASPPPP I AM HONORED!

It's a lovely story <333 I loved reading it, and you have some really fun writing!

|| A Brew of Criminals ↵

My hand quivered as it slid the cup with warm liquid dancing on the edges off counter. The chestnut aroma twisted through the air, mingling with the lingering burnt caramel.

The man before me eyed the cup, his one good eyebrow raised. He snatched the cup and tossed his head back, and as he drank, let nearly half the drink fall from his mouth. He slammed his fist and the cup shattered against my tile. It embedded itself amongst the rainbow of other shards, sliding right into place.

“Another,” he hissed, venom seeping into the atmosphere. The counter seemed to shrink when he bent over it and seized a ten-dollar bill from the tip jar. His nose flared as he pressed the bill into my palm.

My fingers enclosed around the monney and I slid the bill back into the jar. Pulling a warm peach cup from the shelves, I brought it over to our Keurig machine. This time the lukewarm liquid only grazed the edges of the cup.

“You like double sugar in that, sir?” I called to the man who was snickering with my manager. They were pouring over the daily news, saturated with our city’s crimes.

“Triple,” he snapped.

Scoffing with disbelief, I caught the sheriff’s eye and tilted my head at him. He was shirtless. He was shoeless. He stood next to the sign that indicated: No Shirt. No Shoes. No Service. His toes wiggled out in the open and I stifled a laugh.

My hand rummaged around in a cabinet until it found the tall container filled with opaque crystals. I took a spoon from the counter and dug up the sugar. The little grains streamed from the spoon into the beverage. Three mounds drippled into the cup.

Without warning, the man gruffly tugged the cup out of my clutch. The liquid that hugged the walls tumbled out of the cup and eased its way into the fabrics of his shirt. I shrunk back.

There were no signs from him that he noticed, and he gulped the drink in one swift motion. His face crumpled. This time when the cup fractured into daggers, it wasn’t intentional.

“Scamp! You ox-headed peasant! Did ya spike me drink? What dung beetle did you murder to make this!?” he seethed.

My eyes flicked to the sheriff who was reclining in his chair, sipping at his cold brew. He made no movement indicating that he would help, only winking instead.

The bell rung, warning of a new customer. I briefly glanced her way. She cautiously made her way to the front of the store, weaving between the maze of stools.

“Well? Answer me!” The man’s eyes narrowed, and he began to reach towards the holster on his hip.

“It was only…” I began, interrupted when the lady limped over to the cashier and paused. She smirked at me and leaned against her cane.

Considering the menu, she tapped the man’s shoulder. “Do you mind? I don’t hear you making your order and I’m in bit of a hurry.”

His fury pooled in his eyes, and he whipped around to the woman.

Roaring at her, “Of course I mind! I’m dealing with my own problems and couldn’t care less about your time!” His hands tore at her cane, and her bones cracked when she crumbled.

Pity throbbed in my skull as I leaped over the counter and crouched next to her. She tried to pull away from me, a warning beneath her breath. Her shoves were full of malice.

Yet my hands eased behind her back and supported her. The man wasn’t the only one standing over me anymore. He was joined by the officer who had his barrel pointed at me.

“You are under arrest, having violated code of conduct 8-024: Helping an elder out of kindness or pity. Come willingly, or we will not hesitate to use force.”

I started pleading, I pleaded like a sorry peasant, thinking of anything to reclaim my dignity. “But I put salt- I put salt- Salt! Instead of sugar, I put salt! Officer- I’m not innocent. I swear on my life!”

688 words

Ahah so I don't really have that much time to write an authors note, so I'll try and keep this short and sweet <3 I hope you enjoyed this story which was my attempt at a bit of comedy. I enjoyed writing that bit of Shakespearean insults! Thank you so much judges for taking the time to read all these entries!! Y'all are so amazing.

SWC ↵ July 2022 || Suswc Weekly

» 4,485 words

PATHS TAKEN: 1-3, 2-2, 3-1, 4-1, 5-2, 6-4, 7-3, 82-1, 9-3, 101-1 | SABOTAGE RESULTS: 1- S;3- S;7- S;6- S;9- S;8- S;2- F, 4- S;5- S | ENDING: good



Intro: write 100 starting words

“Hand it here!” Sage called down to Linx.

It only took a moment before the rope was tossed over the edge of the rocks and tumbled downwards. Within a couple of silencing seconds, the rope became taught the instant after there was a thunk followed by a piercing yelp.

“You hit me!” Sage pouted.

Asher, who was hanging freefall style bounced on his toes and leaned back into his harness, laughing. “Besides the swollen egg that’s beginning to form on your forehead, you’re fine.”

Frantically, Sage threw her hands to feel around her forehead. “What swollen egg?! Oh my god. There better not be a swollen egg there. I swear by the mist, you best be joking. Not only for my own well-being, but for yours as well.”

128/100

Dining Hall: dystopian, sci-fi, thriller

The wind blew from underneath them, and Sage and Asher swayed with the wind like a dance. With the movements, Asher snagged the rope out of Sage’s hands and clipped it onto the extra harness that was on his back. Taking an extra carbineer, he clipped that onto a pick that wrapped around their wrists.

Sage took the opportunity of open hands to cup her hands and holler up to Linx. “You coming Linx? We haven’t got all day. Please, please, I don’t want to swing here all day.”

Asher chuckled and crept his way up the wall slightly. “OH, but I think I would love to swing here all day. But seriously linx, get your butt down here and join us.”

Without hesitation, Linx wrapped his excess rope over his shoulder and lept off the cliff as if he was diving into a pool. Asher chuckled at Linx and as his rope stopped his fall, he chucked the harness at Linx. “You’ll need that bud,” Asher smirked and began to lower his own harness to be in line with Sage.

They crept down towards the rainforest and was greeted with a fresh stench. Together, they lowered themselves onto the padded flooring.

The trees were unkept, and they have taken over everything. Actually, what had invaded nearly every square inch of the place was the ivy. It intertwined around all living things, and seemed to be trying to suffocate the tree. Nevertheless, these huge redwoods seemed to be thriving. Linx gaped at the sight, unsure where to go next.

“I didn’t think..” Sage began and Linx nodded.

“They sold this short.” Asher agreed. “Why would anyone not want to see this? It can’t possibly be dangerous here.”

Five minutes

Sabotage: Relax for 15 minutes (fjdskafjksdfkj relax, who me? How does one simply just relax!)

Throne Room: Ghost Shrine

It faded into a crimson sunset. Linx looked down at their hands that were covered in fresh scars. They were no longer faded. One scar that dragged its way across their ring finger was open and a purplish hue began to form around it.

Their hands began to shake, and they closed their fingers around an imaginary knife. One that glinted, but it didn’t take much to make it dull with rose blossoming blood.

Their breaths came hard, and Linx struggled to find their bearings again. What was their motive again? What were they even doing down here? There was no more sudden adrenaline burst that would give them the motivation to keep going. This was going to be the end.

Maybe, just maybe they could walk for ages and find an oasis. That’s unlikely. There was no chance of that happening. The running had ceased, and Linx just trudged forwards, placing one foot in front of the other, nearly tripping over themselves.

The only thing that they were grateful for was that they had lost all their supplies earlier in the chase. There would be no need to drag their tent around. As much as a comfort it was at night, it just slowed their pace down tenfold.

It took a bit, but finally Linx found themselves facing a familiar boulder. It was not meant to be climbed. There were no foot holds. But it didn’t seem as impossible as it did a few weeks ago. Linx shrugged and decided to give it a try. Pulling themselves up onto the side of the rock, Linx looked skyward once, and decided that it was best to just climb looking straight ahead. That was how they learned, climbing was just like walking. There was no difference, and Linx had learned them both at the same time.

If Lix had it their way, they would climb more than walk. However in the Plainte, their highways could not afford to have boulders to climb to get from location to location.

337/300

Sabotage: Eat/drink for 5 minutes

Bulletin Board: Rankings – Prompt of getting revenge

Sage waved a hand in front of Linx’s face. “Helloooooo?”

With a huff, Asher crossed over a couple of logs and gave a knock to the side of Linx’s skull. “Is anyone home in there? We want to talk to the master of the house. Are they in there?”

There was a hesitation, and a pause as conscience began to form in Linx’s face once again. A couple of confused blinks later, and Linx was back to the present, the only indication of their mishappen lostness, was the disheveled look under their eyes and their still trembling hands. When they have finally balanced themselves on the uneven flooring, Sage threw herself upon Linx, crushing him in a warm embrace.

“Are you alright dude?” Asher called to him. “I seriously thought we were going to have to lug you back over that boulder again. And I was not looking forwards to that.”

Linx had shrugged Sage off and prodded the ground with their foot before plopping themselves down on the ground, sitting criss-cross. They pulled out a ration of beef jerky and tore a single piece off the edge. Sage sat down across from Linx and grinned as they rose their ration right before their mouth to swallow it whole. Right before it was about to entire their mouth, Asher swept down and grasped the jerky out of Linx’s hand.

“Hahaha! This is mine now!” Asher cackled and shoved the ration into his mouth.

There was a protest that came from Sage as she scrambled to her feet flopping her hands up in the air. “Hey! That was uncool Asher. Give it back to them.”

With his face still stuffed with the jerky Asher mumbled “Give it back? Linx, would you like it back?” Asher made a point of opening his mouth wide open, showing off the chewed bits of the remainments of the jerky.

A scoff followed by a roll of their eyes indicated that Linx did not, in fact, want the jerky back. They puled open their satchel again and tore off another piece. This time when Asher swept down to grab the jerky, Linx was ready and tossed their head back, throwing it up in the air and catching it in their mouth.

Asher grumbled and practically hissed at Linx. “No fair, I had lost the element of surprise at that point. I wasn’t going to get it for me.”

“Ha, somehow I don’t believe that” Retorted Sage, and she pulled open her own bag and dug out a zip lock bag of freeze dried apple slices.

“Okay fine! Fine! I just wanted revenge from that one-time Linx had stolen my beef stew. They knew how much I loved that beef stew! One does not simply steal beef stew from me and get absolutely no consequences in the future. They should have seen this coming.”

10 minutes

Sabotage: 10 nice things written about Finley <3

Boring Rooms: Theatre

The fire was being set up, and it only took a moment for them to settle around it and warm up all of their fingers and toes. Sighing, Sage had been tugging at the drawstrings of her hoodie, her anxious habits being released through this repetitive pattern of pulling it through one side, and tugging it back through the other side.

“I have something to admit.” Sage finally let out. Her eyes widen, surprising herself that she had actually said something. Well, there was definitely no going back anymore. There was a chance of covering it up, but it didn’t matter. She needed to say it anyways, at some point or another.

Both Linx and Asher looked up curiously and Linx lifted their hands up in the air, indicating that they wanted Sage to continue what she was saying.

“I have a scroll from the council. They said that it was imperative that we read it out loud together and that we take it very seriously.

“Yah-dee yah. I get it.” Asher called impatiently. He patted the back of Linx. “Sorry dude, I know you love these formal announcements, but this time I want to call the fast forward button. Just show us the so called important scroll already.”

Opening up the palms of her hands, Sage carefully handed the scroll over to Asher. “I can’t, uh, I never learned-” Right when Asher’s fingers graced the papers, Sage lost her patience and shoved it into his hands. “Just read it already.”

Unfurling the scroll, Asher began to read. “Linx. You must protect them, and if it means only they come back up. So be it.”

275/200 words

Sabotage: Art!! I’m listening to music while going to bed <3

Save Code: 4;1;1;3;/1-3/2-2/3-1/4-1/;1376;0;1;24589;6;101001000;

Other Rooms: Library

Sage tucked her head down into her hands and she struggled to breath. She turned towards Linx who was pouring themselves their own cup of liquid that dribbled down the edge of the cup. They seemed unphased by the note.

“Linx! You're spilling our resources. Be more careful, because we don't know when we're going to reach another food source. Or drink source for that matter.” Asher nagged to Linx.

Asher tried to grab the pail from Linx to pour it himself, but they pulled away from him and turned their back towards him so that he couldn't reach it.

“Ahahaha you'll never be able to grab it from him.” Sage said as she grinned through gritted teeth from the edge of the other log.

Asher shook his head and began to walk back over to the rock that he was originally sitting on. "Argh, that's fine anyways. I'll just go over here and not look in their direction then. You okay?”

“Erm, yeah.. I think.” Sage sighs and starts to pluck at the grass around her feet.

With a gulp, Linx swallowed the remanent of their drink and raises an inquisitive eyebrow at her.

“Alright fine! I’m not fine. I keep telling myself that I’m going on this trip to help the greater good of Azailia, but deep down I know that I have ulterior motives, more selfish motives. Perhaps eternal glory is what I want? Oh I don’t know. I just want to prove myself, but now I’m being told that no one gives a second thought if I come out of this mission dear or alive!” Sage begins to pant and she closes her eyes. When she opens them again, a single tear drops down the side of her face.

Linx and Asher glance at each other, and Linx stands up and embraces Sage, patting her on her back, slow and comforting.

315/200

Sabotage: Read for 10 minutes. I read the Queen of Nothing

Host Room: Kitchen

Awkwardly, Asher stands by the side of Linx and Sage, trying to decide whether he should join them or not, and after a moment of hesitation, he goes to give them both a pat on the back. The darkness that enveloped all of them began to fade away and they were met with a glorifying sunrise.

This mist of color brough a sense of warm and embraced them all, hugging the fabrics stretched across Linx’s shoulders. Sage’s sniffles began to slow, and the embrace started to melt away. They were all flushed red, unsure of what to do next, and it was Asher who spoke first.

“Sage, I suppose it’s in our normal nature to want glory and recognition for what we do, and it’s not unreasonable for you to want that! I wouldn’t call that a necessary evil motive of yours, and by no means does that make you a bad person.”

A confused glance flushed over Sage’s face. “That was, uncharacteristically nice of you. How sweet.” But her suspicion had her quickly turn to Linx who she caught red handed. They were signing to Asher, who was just repeating what Linx said. “Oh my goodness! You stole Linx’s words!”

Asher chuckled, “Awe dude. That was close though.” He fist pumped Linx and winked at them. “I almost got away with it.”

Five minutes

Sabotage: Thanked Robin, Zai, and Honey (were the first three, there are more in my end of session thank you notes)

Booths: Bakie (>:))

Laughing, Linx shuffled back to his patch of moss that he was sitting on and laid back onto the grass. Sage had fallen silent, pulling out another strip of beef jerky to chew on and she precariously tore off bit by bit. Asher on the other hand became to walk around the clearing, exploring about a five feet radius out from where they were located.

His hands were course from all the handywork he had done in the marketplace. Selling his services as a fixer of objects and a heavy lifter if he felt up to the task, his hands had scars of his work and told the stories of all the tasks he had taken on.

Asher ran his hand up the trunk of one especially lush tree and he peered up into the canopy of the leaves. It reminded him of inside his home. His parents had loved the wilderness, however up Azailia there was rarely any natural plants. Most of them were fake, just for sanities sake. They would not be wasting precious resources of water on plants. Only those who were very well off could afford any plants.

Nevertheless, his parents would paint the walls of their home different ecosystems. Asher’s particular favorite was a little cove that was enclosed by hanging vines and palm trees. He would jump along the wall, pretending to be able to hop from palm tree to palm tree, calling out to the birds, trying to join them in their flight.

Asher’s taunting charm had come from his father. And all the stories of the witty yet humorous main character that his father would tell Asher, were always his favorites. When he would hear these stories as sa young child, he would always aspire to be like them. Thus, the evolution of his endless fun taughts came into play. Sometimes Asher could not tell when he was taking it a bit too far, but for the most part, it was all in good humor and his retorts brough about smiles, if not laughs.

There was a berry bush that Asher came across, and he plucked a handful of them and placed them into his broad palm. Careful to collect more, while not crushing the berries, Asher had finished filling both of his hands cupped with the berries. He did not know if they were edible or not, but he was sure that Linx would know the answer to that.

Bringing the berries over to linx who had their eyes closed, Asher took his foot and proded Linx’s side with it.

Linx bolted up with a jolt and his hands flew up to protect their face. Across their face was scrawled the expression of confusion and annoyed. This commotion had caught the gaze of Sage and she inquired for Linx, even though Linx had gotten their point across well enough. “What did you do that for?”

Linx nodded in agreement, rubbing their eyes with the back of their hand, and Asher displayed the berries in his cupped hands.

“Chill out, I just wanted their attention. Linx, are these edible or not?”

Sage mocked jealousy as she dramatically flourished her hands in the air. “Oh and you don’t think I’m qualified enough to tell you that?”

“No. I do not. Last I checked, I had a better biology score than you did, and to my knowledge my biology score was pretty trash already.” Asher snickered and turned back to Linx. “Well? What do you think?”

Linx had picked up one of the berries and turned it over, rolling it between their two fingers before making a decision. They tossed into Ashers face, and it hit him right under his left eye.

Taken aback, Asher bounced back, fumbling to keep the berries in his palm. “Hey!! What in the world was that for? Unnecessary dude, just give me a yes or a no.”

Linx smirked and raised their eyebrows as they shrugged.

Sage laughed. “Oh they’re good at feigning innocence.” She plucked up one of the berries and began to draw it up to her mouth, slowly at first.

15 minutes

Sabotage: List 5 achievements

Workshops: Magic Realism

Linx jumped up and furiously signed no. Sage rolled her eyes. “Oh I knew it. Yeah, sorry bud, but you can toss those berries out now.” She said as she turned back to Asher.

He grumbled something about being utterly useless, and how no one appreciated what he did for them and Linx laughed at Asher, taking three berries out of his palm and they began to try tossing them as far as they could into the trees.

As one of the berries went flying, the last one seemed to get caught in mid flight sequence. It simply just stopped short, and Linx had their eyes closed and eyebrows furrowed. They didn’t see the berry, but Asher and Sage did. Sage pushed herself up to try and take a closer look at the berry, but as she approached the floating object, it dropped. Confused, she looked back at Asher who seemed to be nearly the same amount baffled as she was. He pointed at Linx who looked like they were passed out on the moss, sprawled out across the moss.

“What was that?” Sage whispered. “That wasn’t just me right? I didn’t think I was that dehydrated to begin to hallucinate things.”

Asher’s eyes were just as wide, and he murmured back, “No, otherwise I would be just as dehydrated and it would also mean that we’re both hallucinating the same things. Unless the rainforest is playing tricks on us. But I never heard about that. Have you?”

Sage rubbed the side of her forehead, trying to recall her lessons back at the academy. “No, only about the creatures that were down here. But even, you know, those creatures don’t have those powers.”

With a nod of agreement, Asher crawled over to Linx to check on them. “Heyyyy. Bro, are you alright? Common, now is not a time to be sleeping. I thought we were supposed to be working. This was just a simple snack and rest break. Not a full-on sleeping break. The sun is coming up!!” With a huff, Asher had pushed Linx so that they were now turned over with their face smushed into the ground.

360/300

Sabotage: work on something creative for 15 minutes: I worked on alyelle’s dtiys

Rooftop: Candyland

Linx rubbed their eyes, confused why they could see the smashed flesh of their check in one of their eyes. Within moments, they had pushed themselves up and onto their knees. They brushed the grass stains that had spread across their cargo pants, and when the stains seemed to be going nowhere, huffed with annoyance. It took a further moment for them to notice that Asher and Sage were booth looking confused at them. Sage’s arms were cross and she was looking at a particular spot at Linx’s 9’o-clock. Asher on the other hand, hand his fingers running through his tousled hair, eyebrows furrowed as if he was just pondering the meaning of life.

Trying to catch their attention, and ask they what was up, Linx waved their hands around and turned their palms up in the air as a question.

Sage breathed out, “What did you just do?”

Even more confused at this point, Linx’s next just extended forwards and their chin was jutted out, questioning everything.

This time, Asher huffed. “Dude, what is going on? First you are called out to be so important, and now you don’t remember doing some fancy trick to the berries you tossed?”

Linx scratched their head, they couldn’t remember any berries at all. The last thing that they remember happening was hugging Sage. They only responded with a shrug and prompted them to continue.

“What in the world? This better not be you feigning innocence again. What even is up?” Asher began to walk over the Linx and he placed his hands on Linx’s knee. “Don’t you remember?”

Shaking their head, no, Linx only shrugged again.

Sage had her head in her hands again and she proclaimed, “They don’t remember. They don’t remember manipulating the berry. Linx you had stopped the berry in mid flight, and then we think you passed out on us? Do you think…” She trailed off.

Nevertheless, the other two had no problem picking up on her unfinished thought.

8 minutes

Sabotage: ST Thank you <3 did @JumpingRabbits

Basement: Printing Press

Linx had the sudden feeling of realization dawn over their face. After everything that they have done, this was amazing wasn’t it? They could finally be able to successfully help others. They could be that perfect person that they have always strived to be.

Asher and Sage were both still staring back at them, still confused, and Asher urged Linx. “Can you try doing it again? Manipulate the air! I want to see more of it!”

Linx shrugged and tried to express to them not to get too hyped up, because they might be wrong, but that went across with no avail. Pressing their eyes together, they shut their face, and pursed their lips as they tried to imagine one of the moss patches to lift into the air. They felt around the air, to try and pick out any of the individual particles, but there was nothing.

Asher and Sage watched with anticipation, curious to see if anything was happening, but to their disappointment the only thing that they saw moving was the perspiration sprouting from Linx’s forehead.

With a grunt of frustration, Linx threw themselves down into the grass and fell onto their back, shaking their head. It must have just been caught in a web or a part of the forest’s strange mysteries. It was not Linx. They could not be the perfect person they wishes they could be.

Sage crept over to Linx and pulled a piece of grass out of their hair and tossed it aside. She gave them an encouraging smile. “I still believe you’ve got it in you. And if therye’s anyone who deserves it, it would be you. But even if you can’t do it now. That’s okay! You’re still the brilliant mastermind that you are.”

Plastering a grateful smile of their face, Linx looked up at Sage and rubbed their cheek. It was going to be okay.

316/250

101;6;1;8;/1-3/2-2/3-1/4-1/5-2/6-4/7-3/82-1/9-3/101-1/;137698245;0;0;;5;111111011;

Ending: Nicely tie up loose ends, and end happily

Going down into the forest, Asher had tucked his arms into Sage and Linx;s linking them into a line and they ventured out into the dreaded rainforest for now.

“As soon as we reach their base camp, we’ll be fine.” Sage encouraged, as they came across a swamp and crept over the muddy surface. Linx’s foot got stuck into one mud puddle and Asher struggled to pull them out, but with the help of Sage they managed to keep foraging forwards.

“Do we even know where we are going?” Inquired Asher, as he huffed over a toppled down tree. It seemed to have been stuck with lighting. This was something they were familiar with. Lightning has been extremely common in Azailia, and they had their resources to keep them from being targets of the extremely painstaking bolts.

Linx had only shrugged in response to Asher and paused to take in their surroundings. There wasn’t much to see, and it looked the exact same in all directions, but after taking their time of surveilling the atmosphere, Linx pointed to their right and nodded their head towards it.

“I suppose we don’t have much to lose if we take that way.” Sage suggested, and turned their linked arms to face the direction that Linx was pointing.

Asher rolled his eyes, “Of course we’re going to trust Linx’s direction and not my own.”

“Well, we have been following you! But we haven’t gotten anywhere, so I say that we should follow Linx. Give them a chance to see what to do.”

Pouting, Asher gave into Sage and followed her who let Linx lead the way.

“Common Linx, you got this.” Sage urged. “You are going to take us to the appropriate place, I know it.”

“Yeah! Use those special powers of yours.” Asher poked Linx, and Linx batted him away.

“Oye,” Scolded Sage as she swatted Asher’s arm.

Faking a look of hurt, Asher placed both of his arms in the air, “Ahh my bad dude.” And Linx just scoffed as they continued to brush away the leave that hung in the air. They moved the branch aside for Sage, but let it fall into Asher’s face when he approached the area.

When noticing what Linx had done, Sage just laughed with appeasement and winked at Asher. “You totally deserved that.”

Rolling his eyes, Asher pouted furiously tore at the branch, snapping it off the tree.

Linx stared at him in disbelief and shock. They motioned at him bringing their hands back and forth.

“What was that for?” Sage asked for Linx, trying to imitate their tone of disbelief. Linx nodded and crossed their arms, and they pinched the bridge of their nose. “The poor tree did nothing to you.”

“Uhmmm yeah it did! It just smacked me in the head! It totally deserved that.” Asher retorted and kicked aside the branch that was now laying on the floor, dejected.

Linx just pushed forwards, and Sage followed them. “I hope you get kicked in the shins by another plant.” She mumbled before leaving Asher.

“Heyy!! Get back here.” Asher ran forwards, only to run into the back of Sage who nearly toppled into Linx who was staring at the new clearing.

However, this clearing was not completely clear. It held tents and extended outwards with camp fires and clothespins hanging rags and rumpled shirts. Asher caught sight of the base camp and gaped at it.

“Don’t be seriously. Beginningers luck.” He smirked at Linx and gave him a playful shove.

587/500

daily - 7/5/21

GUESS WHO DID THE DAILY WRONG AND WROTE THE NOTE AS THE DYING CHARACTER TO ANOTHER CHARACTER! Anyways if you want to read that, here’s that part:

Kayla,

I’m sorry. I don’t know what else I can say in these 3 minutes. I’m just sorry for everything I did. I’m sorry we don’t get to spend the rest of our time together, living until we’re 100 years old- or even longer than that. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to battle this out. I don’t want to die… I’m scared of dying.

No. I mustn’t spend my last thoughts thinking like that. I hope you are able to find someone else <33 I don’t want you to be alone. Find someone good for you- won’t you? No one will be able to replace you in my heart, but I want you to be able to live a full happy life. Please don’t miss me too much. Even as the darkness closes over my eyes, I know one day I’ll be able to see you again.

Is this letter too cheesy? Gosh I’m really starting to sound like our little Ray. Please take good care of Ray, he needs someone to rely on. Make sure to give him my love, oh and a small positive note in his lunch every day. (make sure to include a smiley face in those- he loves those… I think) I’ll miss you so much. Enjoy life. I only have a few seconds left, and I hope you’ll be able to find this letter and read it. I want you to-

(insert fading out scribbles of Taylor’s signature)

244 words

But here’s my actual daily-

Dear Taylor,

hA! I’m killing you off as a character. I hope you don’t mind too much <33 You have played your role quite well, but I have officially decided that your time has come to an end. I’m kind of sorry? I think I’m more sorry for myself, having to write the next scenes for Kayla. Poor Kayla is going to suffer because of your death. But that’s ok. I know what I’m doing as an author. I.. think. I hope so.

Anyways <33 you have proven yourself as a great character, and I hope I did you justice when writing you. Now that you’re dying, let me tell you a secret. I had never planned on you ending up with Kayla. I really mint you to have the enemies to lover trope with Piane. But that didn’t work out, plus I had a dream with you and Kayla and just though that would work out better. I’m running out of time. Or- you’re running out of time. One last thing, my deepest apologies for killing you off in such a terrible way. I sure hope

Your creator,
Bakie

190 words

This whole thing is 434 words.

daily - 7/6/21

I love my author; she’s so great at using me correctly. I think, I mean she wrote a whole section about me in her workshop, so I do hope that she knows how to correctly use me. It hurts me feelings, seeing how so many people either neglect me or just use me incorrectly. I don’t know which hurts me more: the fact that people don’t take the time to learn how to use me, or the fact that people think it’s so cool to use me, but then they us me wrong. I know I’m not the most important guy out there; like look at Period! He’s being used in almost every single sentence. I feel greatly ignored around him. Why use a semicolon if you have access to a period? Technically a semicolon is a period combining two sentences relating to each other. Many people believe that it’s not unproper to use a period instead of a semicolon, and I mean they’re not wrong, but it still hurts; knowing that you could have been used.

Maybe one day, I will get a full lesson in elementary schools. Teachers will no longer be afraid to teach me in their classes. I will be just as important as the Exclamation marks! No one will ever fear to use me again! I know that my author didn’t learn me until high school; which is truly and utterly disappointing. I hope one day I will be able to prove my worth; but until then, I will continue to rest by the side, forever ignored, except by those great writers- one in a million- should I say. Well, here is where I close out and say thank you; you have been a great reader, thanks for taking the time to read the rants of a puny semicolon.

304 words


daily - 7/8/21

Wringing her hands together, Taylor could not focus on the present. Her mind kept racing to the future, all the possible outcomes of what might happen. Of course, the ones that repetitively crossed her mind was the worst-case scenarios. What if it was only platonic? She might not want to be anything more than friends; and what’s worse, Taylor might ruin everything by bringing this up.

“Three months should be enough time, right?” Muttering to herself, Taylor musters up enough courage to get her feet moving. All those times, Kayla’s cerise dusted cheeks poked out of the lavish green leaves, just to give Taylor freak out for two seconds, and then burst out laughing. “No, no, that was definitely not platonic, or is it?” Her face squished into an unattractive frown. “I don’t believe this, I have never actually overthought something like this.”

Taylor shrugged and finally got to her window. With a tug she was able to lurch herself, leaning her head far out into the crisp wind. Within minutes, and right on time Kayla arrived in her usual spot.

Perched on top of a mailbox, Kayla swung her legs back and forth. Taylor smiled to herself; it was nice how Kayla was always punctual. That way Taylor would know if something was wrong. It would worry her if Kayla was late, but so far- that has only happened once; and that was because she fell off her bike, riding over a pothole. That time had got Taylor panicked to death, but at least she was able to get her uncle to send out someone to search for her. Normally Taylor would hate to see Kayla interact with her uncle, but it was unnessacry.

With a wave of her hand, Taylor caught Kayla’s attention instantly. She smiled a sweet, bubbly smile- the one that got her every time, and Taylor started their conversation in sign language. It may not have been the best means of communication, but at least it was better than the risk of her uncle overhearing everything they said.

‘Good morning!’

‘But it’s almost afternoon.’ Kayla stuck her tongue out, ‘I have to tell you this almost every single day. It’s noon, Tay, please- don’t say good morning once it becomes noon.’

Taylor flushed and covered part of her face with the palm of her hand. Sucking in, trying not to make it too obvious how much she enjoyed seeing Kayla annoyed. She always got a bit flustered when annoyed, and it was adorable.

418 words

daily 7/9/21

He gripped his wrist, the letter tightly grasped between his hand. Her mother had died, and it was his fault. His fault for it, but he couldn’t possibly tell her that. She would never forgive him for what he did. There would be no way in the seven seas that he would tell her the truth. If she ever found out what happened, he was sure that the cliff at the end of the world would be a swift way to end it.

-

“Ray! Hey, wait up! I know you want to talk to me; you’ve been staring so intensely at me the whole day I swear a hole was going to burn through my shirt. But I’m standing here, or” Kayla pauses to catch her breath. “R-RAY GOSH DARN IT, YOU NEED TO SLOW DOWN.”

Ray kept his eyes on his feet, moving swiftly. Now he was not ready to face her. Now was not the time, he was on the verge of breaking. It’s been two days, but that was not enough time to burry the guilt. He needed more time to burn what’s left of the little conscience inside of him.

Knowing that something was up, Kayla refused to let him continue ignoring her. She couldn’t bare his silence any longer. Whatever was up with him, she was going to find out. Ray had stopped at a crosswalk. His feet shuffled together impatiently, and Kayla snagged this moment to catch up to him.

“Spill the beans, and don’t even think about leaving something out. I need to know what’s going on with you.”

“I- Kayla. I killed your plant.” Ray knew this lie was close enough to the truth, maybe she might buy it.

“My plant? Oh my god. That better not have been Caspian. Ray! You knew how much I loved him. I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU.”

“Sure. Just do that- later, okay? I’m sorry Kayla. I need to go.” The crosswalk changed to a go sign, and he left her standing there, confused. She didn’t mean it of course, but why did he seem so hurt?

353 words

-

Kayla felt guilty. Today’s the day. ‘I’m going to tell him.’ She knew he wanted to talk to her, and she hoped that she could spill what she wanted to say before he got around to his news himself. All day he’s been avoiding her, but she didn’t really care about that. She knew that he was thinking about her, she could tell him, and even though he’s not in the best mood, today’s the day and she can no longer postpone it.

The hard gravel was filled with feet, but even though Ray was too short for his head to be spotted above everyone else, Kayla could spot him from his shoes. The shoelaces were always untied. Most people got annoyed whenever their shoes were untied, but Ray felt secure with his shoes untied. He preferred to go barefoot, but he’s been to too many detentions because of his love of being barefoot, so he kept his shoes on for the day. The rest of the time, he liked his shoelaces untied so he could easily slip out of his shoes.

Kayla followed him and started running, finally she called out. “Ray! Hey, wait up! I know you want to talk to me” She hesitated. ‘Oh come on, you shouldn’t have started it like that, but now you need to continue it.’ “You’ve been staring so intensely at me the whole day I swear a hole was going to burn through my shirt. But I’m standing here, or-” Kayla could have smacked herself. ‘You’re not taking this in the right direction, you better stop stalling.’ She warned herself.

“R-RAY GOSH DARN IT, YOU NEED TO SLOW DOWN.” By this time in her rambling, Ray had already reached the stoplight, but at least the crosswalk had him stopping, and she was able to catch up to him.

She couldn’t stop now with her direction of getting him to tell her what was on his mind first. “Spill the beans, and don’t even think about leaving something out. I need to know what’s going on with you.”

“I- Kayla. I killed your plant.”

Kayla didn’t mind too much, but she needed something to tease him about because he seemed so on edge. “My plant? Oh my god. That better not have been Caspian. Ray! You knew how much I loved him. I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU.” She saw the expression on his face, and knew she said something she shouldn’t have.

“Sure. Just do that- later, okay? I’m sorry Kayla. I need to go.” As soon as the crosswalk changed, Ray had bolted out of there.

“And- I needed to tell you something.” Kayla buried her face in her hands. She didn’t do it. After a moment of hesitation, she whispered, “I found her Ray, I found her Taylor.”

469 words

Total of 822 words

weekly #1

Characters

First character: Based off the Artichoke plant

1. Bold – they are not one afraid of confrontation “a bold plant”
2. Precise – this person does not leave a job half done, they are going to get everything perfect “finely cut and divided”
3. Extroverted – people enjoy being around this person, and this person is outgoing “prized by gourmands”
4. Grew up a bit spoiled – they never had a problem with money, and this makes them a bit selfish “expensive vegetable”
5. A hard outside, but soft inside – at first they seem unemotional, but if you are able to hit the soft spot of this person, you will forever see them as a softy “fleshy inner layer”
6. Claustrophobic – they don’t do so well in tight spaces “grows well in large containers”
7. Determined – they are one not to give up on a project “treated as a long-season annual”
8. Fight – this person is not going to flee in a fight or flight situation “is relatively deer resistant”
9. Mostly optimistic – this person needs optimism in their lives, their natural response is to resort to the best possible outcomes “growing conditions: lots of sun”
10. Relies on others – whenever faced with the choice: group or individual work, this person will always choose group work. They rely on other to build on their ideas and help them grow “help keep soil-moisture levels consistent”

Zoe Winchester is always going to stand up for not only healed but also her friends. She’s a protective friend and will not be one to stand by and watch any of her friends get hurt. And even if she cannot do anything about it, that won’t step her from trying. At first glance Zoe seems to be a hard faced, stern person, she has one of the softest hearts and if you are able to hit her soft spot she will open up to you and you will get to know her better than most people. But she does have a hard outside and rarely lets anyone got her soft spot. Zoe works best in groups, relying on other people to help her out. She needs direct criticism to do her best.

133 words

Second character: Based off the Calamint plant

1. Petite in figure – she’s small and quick, very nimble “masses of tiny flowers”
2. Warm ‘glow’ around her – you know those people who just has this aura of warmth around them? That’s her. “attract butterflies from midsummer until frost”
3. Nurturer – she’s the caring one in the friend group, the one who would be a great preschool teacher- she could also be the ‘mom’ of the group “substitute for baby’s breath”
4. Patient – still going off of her being a good preschool teacher, she’s patient, not demanding
5. The quiet one – she’s not one to spread rumors, she’ll only talk if you invite her into the conversation “doesn’t spread by runners” (don’t mind me, I read that as rumors, but I’m keeping this trait)
6. Mature – She’s the well behaved child. “usually remains well behaved in the garden”
7. Self-sufficient – Opposed to Cyna, she does not rely on others, in fact, she is better working by herself; most of the time others drag her down “it can self-seed”
8. Observant – It’s always the quiet ones who catch the little things. She’s the one to notice things overlooked “occasionally pops up elsewhere in the landscape” (like she has eyes everywhere, but she’s just observant)
9. Single father – she has a single father, he’s a great man and a great father, but she still constantly looks for that mother figure in her life; but even so she survives “drought-tolerant”
10. Has great life skills – she was needed to help around the house more often, so she has great life skills, and would do very well on her own “low-maintenance”

Caelyn is the natural child caretaker. Ever since her tween age, she was a babysitter, and she has always been told that she’d make a great preschool or elementary teacher. She is easy going, sweet and loveable by many. Although she is often overlooked, those who do notice her immediately senses the warm aura that surrounds her. She’s small, often seen drowning in oversized warmed colored sweaters or turtlenecks. Caelyn has great instincts and life skills. She’s not brutal, but her weapon for surviving is observing. She catches the little things, and with the right motivation, she would make a great spy. (foreshadowing? Who knows..)

105 words

Plot

My fear: Achluophobia, the fear of darkness

My prompt: “So far the deceased has cropped up in five towns”

Zoe has a fear of being alone in the dark. A deadly disease has hit her hometown, and many believe that it was purposely released. The disease has overtaken not only her home, but her surrounding villages. Supplies have been running low and it is estimated that everyone will die in the next 2 months- if not from the disease, from starvation. Caelyn’s dad suspects that the one who started this whole thing is hiding underground, and he was going to send Caelyn by herself to investigate, but Zoe found Caelyn sneaking around, and she decided to tag along. And even though she had a fear of the darkness, Zoe refused to let Caelyn go alone.

116 words

Setting

My ice cream flavor: mocha cookie crumble

This setting is placed in a dystopian world, so I chose the flavor mocha cookie crumble. The villages of which they live in are small; crumbs (HA SEE WHAT I DID THERE) compared to the main, thriving town in the center of the lands. Their cohort is called “Trifectum” They used to only be composed of three villages, but they ran out of land and split into five villages. It’s like a cookie falling apart, they split into more crumbs. The lands are fertile, like the mocha- chocolate dirt. It’s moist and perfect for farming, if the time was right. Also, if the farmers knew how to properly farm and use their lands. The village is built in a circular way, one could say in the shape of a cookie. There is a townhouse in the center where people gather for announcements, and in case of a flood, that is where everyone heads to. Behind the townhouse, is a shack, and that shack has a ladder that leads down to a catacomb. Or a makeshift catacomb, it used to be a storage place where they placed their salted meat, but ever since their cattle died, they long ran out of meat and they were also running out of places to burry people, so they made the underground storage much larger and stored all the dead bodies there. It is suspected that there is a secret hidden hideout that the culprit responsible for releasing the disease is hiding in. Caelyn’s dad thinks the way to get to this hideout is through the underground storage shack.

264 words

Story

His smell was comforting, probably the most comforting thing I’ll be smelling in the next couple of days, or weeks, who knows. I squeeze him one last time before looking at his warm face. His fluffy excitement was gone, and what was left in him was loving concern. “Please, be safe Ilo.” My face pressed into a small smile, remembering the origins of that nickname. I could never pronounce my name Caelyn, I would used to say “Kuh-eye-lo” Pop just took the part I pronounced incorrectly and made it my nickname. Pressing my face into his square shoulders, I felt hiccups. Here came the tears, one of a many, it was time to go.

“Stay safe Pop, won’t you?”

He nodded, “Of course, just for you.” My heel turned and I was out the door. The comfort of the sweet cinnamon aroma was gone. Death was coming, literary. I was going to be smelling death, by myself for the next couple of days. Decaying bodies. Piled high upon one another. Too many to care for, too many for our chocolate land to care for. None of them deserved this, but of course, when was life fair to any of us. I mean- the peasants were disposed of. Constantly, forgotten without a second thought. Only those in our villages who personally knew each other mourned for each other. We weren’t even the ones for the cause of their deaths. And yet we are the ones who pray that we’re sorry. Utter our sorrows, and how we might be able to be better in the future. Not that it mattered. We were never heard. Peasants never were.

One good look at my home and I made my way to the shack. Standing before the shack, I couldn’t even bare thinking about opening the door. Decay was at the bottom. Grimy hands, pulled from their labor, and now left- blackened and wilted like a flower place in an oven and burnt to a crisp. The blooms of the skin were gone. Any sign of what used to be peach flushed flesh- broken from existence. I tried but couldn’t stop myself. I needed to check that place, the sign of my death. The timeline was creeping up my spine. It starts at the small of your back and grows into a hideous carnation. How ironic, or perhaps it was the opposite of irony. We should have seen the foreshadowing. White carnations- flowers, to signify death. A white spark of beauty before the black comes. The darkness overtakes the white, fills it in, and once that is full: the infinity sign is pressed into your skin. The wrist of your dominate hand. Then it creeps to the rest of your arm. Once there, you know you’re out of time.

My eyes find my writs. I look at the two dots. “It would be a beautiful tattoo, a beautiful, and dark tattoo.” Someone mutters beneath my neck.

“Screech!” I flair and as soon as I hear the hideous sound soar out of my mouth, I regret it. Whirling around, Zoe stands. Arms crossed as always, half a piece of bread in her mouth. Smirking. I don’t know why she bothers with me. She always seems to find me amusing, but I don’t know why. I start tugging out curls from beneath my bandana.

“Sorry Lynn.” As soon as that nickname comes out, I smile. No one likes using my name. My mother’s name. I’m glad it’s that way. I don’t need to be reminded of her every time someone calls me out. “Didn’t mean to scare you.” Zoe prances over to me and tosses the rest of the bread my way. “You should eat. I mean you look so pale. You also look like you’re going to do something you’re not supposed to, so count me in. I want 50% of whatever rewards you’re getting out of this.”

“Zoe, I’m not getting any rewards from this.”

“HA! I don’t believe you; no one would hire you to go digging in the shack without offering a pay. I mean maybe they did, but you would never accept that deal without a pay.” She raises an eyebrow at me. “No, you’re too smart for that. Anyways, from the look of your face, I’m going to say, yeah, I was wrong. You weren’t hired. But I still want to tag along. Reg and Ian are being a pain the butt, and I don’t want to be put on babysitter duty anymore. I would offer you the job, but I have nothing to offer you for payment.”

I shrug, “It’s ok, I need to do this anyways.”

Zoe tilts her head, “Ah yes, you must enlighten me. What is ‘this’ thing you speak of anyways? You look sketchy, so I’m assuming you don’t want the elders to know you’re doing this.”

My eyes don’t find Zoe’s and I hesitate before nodding.

“Alright then- Count me in. You’re not going in there, alone.”

My heartbeat speeds up a bit. She won’t offer that, would she? “But I thought you were afraid of the dark!” As soon as the words come out of my mouth, I knew why she was offering. She needed an breather, she needed out of here more than I did. She needed the reassurance that she was doing everything she could to help this.

“Of course, I am! But what is the point of fears if you are not willing to face them. You- could help me overcome my fear.”

I smile at the thought of being able to help Zoe out. “Alright, come help me, and I’ll help you with your fear. I can’t tell you want I’m doing quite yet, but I’ll tell you in the catacombs.” I can spot the ends on Zoe’s mouth curl up.

“That works for me.”

“So we have a deal.”

The shack is dark. Darker than what you would expect. There’s nothing there but pitch-black nothingness. And as we head down, down, down into the depths of nightfall I can already feel the breaths of the decaying bodies.

1018 words

this whole thing is 2,181 words

(im sorry i completely gave up on descriptive writing at the end)

cabin wars thing

(please dont read- i dont like what i wrote here ;w; ) it doesnt even make sense

When someone humors me I growl at them. When they hiss and me I know I’m in trouble, but I just end up hissing back at them. There comes a point in time where I know there are limits and yet I just want to refuse them. I don’t know why I’m like this, but things just happen to end up like this. I would like to blame these on my genes, but we all know how that goes. If you blame it on your genes, you blame it on your parents, and you parents should not be blamed because “they always are doing something for you, you should be more grateful that you have parents” I know that I’m lucky to have parents, but I also know that sometimes you can’t always been the most happy about the parents. They are just as human as wel children are, and even thought they’ve had more time to grow and matures as people they can still make mistakes. Sometimes we need to forgive them. But right now, I’m in that phase and point in time where I am going to refuse to forgive them for 2 or 3 days, but I know that in the end I will end up forgiving them.

Molly says I need more sleep. She says that I need to get the pain out of my head and let my mind rest just as much as the rest of me, but I know that I need to let it go. And I know that sleeping might be

HA FINISHED MY 1K WORDS this was 267 words the rest of it came from my weekly. Anyways my fingers are dead and I’m going to stop writing now.

daily - 7/13/21

“What are you doing with that?!”

“With what?”

“That thing… in your hand! Don’t play innocent with me. That thing you are holding may cause the destruction of this whole world!”

I press the item into the small of my back. Maybe, just maybe, if I press hard enough, the item will disappear in thin air and all my troubles will go away.

But, of course, the item doesn’t budge. Wishes never would come true when you really need it. Disney always seems to lie; you can never get a straight answer out of Disney, and they make fantasies seem true. They pull you into this fake world, and suddenly you find yourself trying, hoping, for things that would never happen to happen.

The item stays right smack in my hands, and I can already feel the stress of the item pulling me down. I need to get rid of this, burn it, create arson, like Alba would.

Though, if I was to truly burn this, hundreds- of campers, leaders, co leaders, hosts, and co hosts will be on my back. They will hunt me down until I give them sometime in return for burning- this… thing. It’s overrated. They give this thing too much power. One item should not hold the whole fate of the world.

“Bakie!” My hands flutter together in a flurry of butterflies, and the item drops to the floor. A sigh escapes from my mouth and I turn to face Birdi.

“I’m sorry,” the breath leaves my mouth, and I can’t take it back. There’s no denying this anymore. I know this was a mistake, but I turn and pick up the item before Birdi can get there before me.

“You know I’m going to have to tell Honey and Kat. They are not going to like this.”

“I- I just wanted to take over the world with Sini… She promised me- she said- that she would help me take over swc.”

I can see the disappointment fill Birdi’s face. “You were planning on betraying me all this time.”

A dip of my head tells Birdi the truth. “I was selfish, I know.” In response, Birdi holds out her hand.

“You know what you must do. Give it here.”

To stall for time, I give Birdi one last pleading look. “You- won’t ever forgive me for this will you? We’ve… been friends for over two years- this is our third year together is it not? I- I’m sorry for ruining it.”

Birdi can’t look me in the eye. She just keeps her hand out, waiting.

Three seconds, that’s all I give myself to fiddle with the precious item before all the power will fade from my hands.

One last breath, and I present Birdi with the Golden Mango.

463 words

edit: this daily was not meant to hurt anyone in any shape or form :D ily birdi, kat, honey, alba <33 you guys are great

“I’m sorry, I'm gay” the breath leaves my mouth, and I can’t take it back. There’s no denying this anymore.

- bookie 7/13/21

HEEHEHH

daily 7/14/21

My ingredients: pineapple, the number 12, crescent moon, and cat

Shink! She flourished her sword and pointed the tip to my neck. I can feel my shoulders sink in defeat. Once again, she has bested me in my own sport. She offers a hand to help me up, and I tug on it and my feet are holding my up again.

“Good game.” Eve pushes a towel towards me and smiles. “You’re improving. Kes will be proud of you.”

“Ha! You say that every time, and yet I can never one up you.”

Eve shrugs. “The day you beat me, will be a special one indeed. But for the time being, keep your head high. I’ll go make breakfast. The 12th demands it’s my time to burn the cohort down.” A laugh escapes my mouth and I offer to help her.

“Nah, it’s okay. If the 12th catches me making breakfast with help, I’m totally going to get dumped. They’re not going to accept anyone who doesn’t hold the basic life skills of cooking. I don’t understand- how do I still not know how to cook?”

“Eve, you just need to be timely. Keep track of the time, and you won’t burn anything this time. I promise.”

Her face lifts up with hope, although I can still spot the doubt in her smile. “Well, if something bad happens, you know how to save me.”

“Oh, oh! And when you’re down and injured form the fire; I’ll get my chance at besting you in a duel!”

With a roll of Eve’s eyes, she marches out of the cave and leaves me to tend to my own wounds. Of course, I don’t mind so much. I deserve these wounds- marks of the trials I endured during my time at the Crescent. For every honorable wound you get, the more badges you get. And with the more badges, you’ll be able to climb the ranks. I’ve been pushing myself to gain the Pineapple badge. Only my mother has gained it so far; and I want to make her proud, for- the time being, she thinks I’m a disappointment. Ha, so much for thinking how great she is. What mother constantly tells her son that he’s a disappointment? In my opinion, no one should. But that’s life and that’s how we live up to our thoughts.

The sunlight glow illuminates the cave and pool of crimson piling up in a puddle. It’s time to heal it; I’m sure enough blood has been let out to leave a mark. As I pull the glinting water from the fountain, it swirls around me and embeds itself in the wound. The translucent cyan mixes with the now burgundy colored blood and reveals the purple sign of health.

After tearing a strap from my hip, I carefully squeeze the life out of my leg to stop any further infection. Though as soon as the strap is in place, the 12th comes dashing in. It’s petite form produces a silhouette form at the mouth. It stands, with it’s arms crossed and waiting. This is never a good sign if the 12th comes out of it’s own cave. What does it need to tell me?

Pulling myself up, I stand and solute the 12th. “Twelfth,” A nod of my head indicates honor. “What brings you here at this hour. It’s before the daily incitation ceremony- you shouldn’t be up.”

The voice hits me as it always does. “You should not be telling me what I should or should not be doing. I can determine that for myself.”

Of course, it does; but only on rare days does it change its daily schedule. My head dips in response, waiting for it to continue. The twelfth pauses, and I bet it did that just to keep me in suspense. “The cat is gone.”

“Which cat?” I already do suspect what cat it’s talking about, but I must be sure. If I am wrong, well I just hope that I’m wrong.

668 words

daily 7/16/21

His coffin sat in the darkest corner of the room. It looked extremely lonely, perched on top the tallest step. It loomed above all else, asserting its dominance. Even in death, Gerund Pap pulled himself, better than everyone else. He constantly pushed to be the best. So, now tell me how does he remain above me. Dead! His remains are thrown into that very box, decaying, and rotting away, and he still appears a single step ahead of me. Every time he scolded me to go higher, to run faster, to finish before everyone else, I would inquire to him how he managed it, and he always replied with, “I extend for the stars Missy. I always have.” And, in response, I roll my eyes and move on to whatever I was doing before hand.

The light continued to shine. Illuminating his one, resting piece of glory. His last accomplishment: getting to the upper step. Of course, many dreamt of reaching that specific step. Me, myself included in that particular group. Longing to finally steal the spotlight, and he snags that before the chance even arrives to me. How in the world is this possible? If it were up to me, I would completely trash everything on how the world operates, and at least attempt to make it fair. In some sort of way, I'm aware, it can seem physically impossible, but who knows? I, for one, do know perceive it as the truth. Glancing at the coffin, one final time, he lingers overhead, and I admit to my defeat.

259 words

daily 7/21/21

descriptive:

Oh, that familiar hum rumbles beneath me, slow and steady like the tortoise. It is everlasting, never ceasing for a break, but I like it that way. It is comforting to a point. The worn-down fabric of the abstract navy seat is warm, tightly scrunched beneath my bottom. It’s too firm, not suited for the slow long hours I’ve had to endure whilst here. The solid sharp edge of a wooden armrest pierces my skin, creating indent after indent. Rows of lines, one after other forms something unfitting on the sheer olive colored flesh. My head tilts, and there’s a suddenly unpleasant aroma coming from a fellow passenger and my nose scrunches together. He’s slumped back, head hung low, with unfocused eyes entranced by the blue light filtering out of a hollow meaningless rectangle. How absurd, if only he cared to glace at the dominating mountains to his left. They’re the alphas, the rulers of the void between the unreachable sky, and the objects shoved down by a force called gravity.

In front of him, tuffs from the crowns of their heads peers at me curiously, swaying, but not in rhythm with each other. How disappointing. A couple rows down, following the neglected aisle a vast shimmer reflects from a disappearing window. I meet a pair of familiar warm brown eyes, placed right below layers of lose creamy fabric, silky as custard. Behind that, rolls of hills are lumped together, speckled with sunlight, and a foliage of greenery frames the view.

251 words

narrative:

A yelp cries out behind me. I swing my vision back, siblings grapple at each other, tugging at hair, pushing and shoving, all to reach that hollow meaningless rectangle. They can’t seem to get enough of the fight with each other. Their parents, with hushed voices, jabbed here and there on a directory; they’re ignoring them, not caring about the ruckus they’re causing. Out the window on my right, a majestic and unknown bird soars smoothly, showing off every single one of its lushes vibrate feathers. How lucky it is to be free. I wish I could be like that.

With a hiss, mist seethes out of a fragile bottle. It dissipates through the air, carrying a thin, but intoxicating smell to those who are unfamiliar to it. Lemons sprout from place to place, and then slowly, it becomes a ghost. Gone, and mixed with the already poisoned air. My foot, crammed against a bulky bag gives me a slow, but despondent look. A numbness creeps upwards, like a knowing feeling as if someone is stalking you. I know it’s there, but I can’t get rid of it, and when it decides to announce itself, you’re more dead inside rather than surprised.

202 words

both:

Glancing upwards, to catch a quick and liberating breath, black spots started to speckle all around the pure white ceiling, like a swarm of angry bees infinitely multiplying. Nevertheless, I pushed forwards. With beads of sweat, I began to inch his feet up the stairs on by one. Pausing, and chest heaved unsteadily, and I quivered while exhaling. I could still spot the black dots, now speckling the wall to my right. The murky mahogany red wallpaper, flourished with golden leaves stuck out like a sore thumb, but I tried to push this thought out of his mind. Continuing to guide my grandmother along the way, her feet tangle and in a flash my face neared the steps inevitably. Panic flooded my body, and I expected the heavy thud sure to come. But my hands pushed outwards, and the feel of my grandmother’s greasy rumpled hand on my arm reassured me. I heaved a sigh of a relief and with a glance to the right, I am reminded of all the ancient furniture, just as old and withered as my fragile grandmother. There’s the leather red seat, tattered from cats ripping at it with their nails, the overcrowded carpet full of discolored flowers, and the Victorian chandelier, once grand, but now covered in cobwebs. I clenched the banister once more, only this time splinters impaled my rough hand. With agony, I shoved my right foot up and over to the next step, guiding my grandmother with me to somewhere safe. Somewhere much safer.

253 words

total of 706 words

hisss i probably went more descriptive than i should have, but sorrry >.< got carried away

daily 7/22/21

The mango sat silently at the top of the world, waiting for the campers to reach him. They were riled up at the bottom of the steps, ready to hop up and on top of the next step to go reach the mango first. Oh it was quite the terrible experience, being fought over. The mango almost never got to make his own decisions of himself. It was disappointing and often, it led to quite the boring life. He had always dreamt of being able to be free. Free from all the expectations of being the perfect mango.

And they were off, they were racing up the steps to be able to reach him first. They were grabbling at each other, trying to push and shove each other off. It was like the elementary school king of the mountains game that the kids would play during recess all the time. It was chaotic, and it was a mess.

First, came the fairy tales, they were a riled up bunch; a bunch of young children, but filled with energy within them. Birdi shouted out, “Seize him! We must gain the power of the mango! You musnt give up hope even though Adventure is making his way up the latter! We will win and prevail overtime!”

Bakie, on the other hand, was much more strategic, analyzing and planning the field, trying to find the best way up the latter. But within just three minutes of thinking, Bakie gave up and joined Birdi in the chaos, shouting and she started screaming, “CHOAS CHOAS- AND YES IT IS SPELLED C-H-O-A-S WE DO NOT QUESTION THIS QUEER’S TERRIBLE SPELLING, WE JUST ACCEPT IT AND MOVE ON!!”

Alyelle was trying to help her campers out, pushing them up the hill, and giving shouts of words of encouragement. But, she didn’t like how her strategy was going so far, so she switched paths. Now, the mango observed that this leader was giving out bribes. She was offering art, she was offering toilet paper, and movie tickets, and everything in between.

The mango shook his head, worried that things were getting too much for him to handle. So he started climbing down the hill and he went to go hide behind in a corner, someplace that no one would be able to find him and bug him. He wanted peace and quite. But of course, the campers would never give him that. And it only took them two days to find him once again.

416 words

Weekly #3

Planning
dont mind this mess, i drew it on moible in the car AHAHAH x'D


Setting:

Start.

You can feel the rock of the ship beneath your feet. It’s lurching you bath and forth, back and forth. There’s no stopping it, and you know you’re going to get sea sick from this. There’s not a single strip of land in sight, it’s just miles and miles of endless ocean. It pulls you in, mockingly. Like it knows you hate the sea, but you have no other option. You must escape the gorgons. They’re after you. Your were one of their prized possessions and now, well you’re just lucky to be on this ship. The floorboards creak under your feet, and you can already tell that this is not going to end well. If the floorboards don’t look stable, your base is not strong. A ship needs a strong base in order to work. A cool breeze flushes past your face, stinging your cheeks a pastel pink color. The saltwater presses into your eyes, making you squint. Picking up a checkered red handkerchief, you tie it around your head to prevent the baby fly-away hairs poking into your eyes.

There’s nothing much to do, the constant lore humming of the ship almost pulls you into a deep sleep, but you keep your head up. This is not a time to be falling asleep. You can’t fall asleep. In order to keep yourself preoccupied, you pull yourself to gather the mop and you start washing the deck. It’s musty and grimy. And after minutes of scrubbing back and forth in the same place, you can tell that it’s not doing anything, so you put away the mop and climb up to the higher floor on the deck. The captain gives you a tilt of her head for acknowledgement, and you wish that you could talk to them, but you don’t know sign language and they’re deaf.

You turn back to the stern side of the ship and notice a collection of smoke starting to rise. This doesn’t look good. Do you-

A. Leave it alone and find something to eat because you’re starving to death
B. Go investigate and see what’s happening, maybe the smoke is a good omen

360 words

Second person

A.

With a quite snap of your heel, you spin on your feet and march straight to the dining area. Or it would best be called a cellar- but below ground. Placed on the bottom of the ship, hidden in a small dark corner of the ship, there’s only a small stash of food. You rummage through the dry packages of airtight packages, trying to determine whether you want a tasteless beef stew, or a pea infested chicken casserole. Deciding that bland beef stew was better than hundreds of peas, you take the beef stew and rip open the package. Air flows into the package and you grab a mini water bottle and pour it into the pouch. It slowly starts to hydrate the beef and you take your fingers and pull out a beef clump. Hmm it’s not the most appetizing, but you stuff it into your mouth anyways.

Suddenly the captain of the ship barges into the room and starts flailing around her arms. They make a wave motion with their arms and sticks her hands in the air pressed together like they’re going to dive. She starts jumping frantically around, and the message gets across to you. They want you to abandon ship. Do you-

A 1. Follow her to jump off the ship, it is quite fun to go diving into the freezing cold water and potentially get hypothermia
A 2. Wait two more minutes to finish up your food; you’re still starving and think whatever the threat is doesn’t want to deal with a hangry you

260 words

Rest of the story

A 1.

You make your way across the room and crawl out of the cramped space. The fresh air meets your face, and a rush of relief fills you. As you follow the captain to the stern of the ship, you spot the smoke still climbing up high, creeping and slowly taking over the ship. Blackened spots have filled where the smoke curled around. The ship was going down. You needed to get off the ship, and the only way to do that is to go overboard with the captain.

She offers you their hand and you hurry over to the side of the boat, and with one glance to the side, you spot the familiar green snakes furling over each other. They’re after you, and they’ve got you. Regret fills your panged chest and you know you need to go over right this second, or the captain is going down with you. You can’t stand the thought of taking her life. They were so kind to offer you refuge on her ship.

And with a leap, you guys were off, and the cold water hit you with a shock. Only the captain had a life vest. You clung on to her for dear life, hoping to survive the frostbite of the water.

Hours past, and you can no longer feel any part of you body. The ship has gone under, and the gorgons have left. They have deemed you dead, but you have survived.

A 2.

They won’t leave you alone, but you know that you have time. Waving her away, you continue to pluck at the beef, trying to enjoy the little things in life. If it’s the smoke, let it burn the ship down. That would be one epic way to die. You shove them out of the room and watch her dive off of the ship in a single graceful leap. Her life vest helps her bobble up and down, and they regretfully turn back and give you a wave. A desponded look crosses her face and she paddles farther away.

Finally, you finish your pouch, and still don’t suspect anything out of the ordinary. There’s no smell of something burning, and you see no immediate threat, so you deem your captain out of her mind.

Just as you turn around to take a look around your ship, you spot someone hissing at you. It’s the snakes. Well that just make so much more sense. Your captain was trying to warn you about the gorgons. You shake your head and crawl behind a barrel to hide behind. Maybe this won’t be such a good way to die. Then, the smoke comes. They curl around the ship, burning it, but without fire. Muttering unapologetic words at the smoke, you try shoving it back. Not that it did anything. The smell of burnt rotten rubber soles of shoes fills your nose and everything turns black.

You are now dead.

B.

A step closer to the smoke, and you smell roses. How pleasant. This is new, something you weren’t excepting. But you must keep your guard up, looks- no, smells, can be deceiving. Roses have thorns don’t they?

The smoke rises, and it seems like it has a personality of it’s own. You can spot it trying to wave hello, and you wave back. It now has your attention, and your curiosity is peaked. You try to speak to it, and while it tilts it’s head in response, you still can’t tell if it understands you or not.

Playfully, you swat it backwards and in response it lunges forwards and tousles your hair, and you smile, trying to bat it back, but your hand passes right through it. You spot the smoke figure bobble up and down like it’s laughing at you, and you shake your head smiling. Maybe this thing- could be your friend? You were quite lonely on the ship, but the smoke seems to be a good friend for you. Do you-

B 1. Embrace the friendship and get to know the smoke – maybe ask their pronouns and see if it’s gay (like you)
B 2. Don’t trust the smoke and tell it to get lost because you have trust issues

B 1.

Trying once again to get to know the smoke, you spread your hands wide. “Ok, I still don’t know if you can understand me or not, but I’m going to try this again. Would you mind telling me your pronouns?” You pause and look at it, the smoke forms into a circle and bobbles it up and down, which you assume is a head nodding okay.

“So, if you can’t talk, how about I offer pronouns and you can nod yes or no.” Another nodding of the circle. “She/her.” A vigorous shake of no. “He/him.” The circle tilts, like it’s unsure, or close. “They/them” Another tilt. “Xe/Xem” A shake no. “Hmmm, Oh- he/they?” There was a certain yes from the smoke and you smile to yourself.

“Good to know! Another question- are. you. gay?” A smirk comes from the corner of your mouth, and you see the smoke make a motion that seems like a scratching of the head. “Oh, that’s okay- I can explain it to you.”

The smoke offers for you to climb on him, and you’re surprised when you can feel your own weight being held up by them. You wave goodbye to the captain as you fly away on the back of the smoke. Just as you start to pass out of sight, you see green snakes emerge from the water and start storming the ship. Well, that was a close call.

B 2.

The thought comes back to you that roses can be dangerous, and suspect starts to fill your chest. You shake your head to clear it of all the thoughts that you and the smoke could be potential friends. Clearly, you indicate that you no longer want anything to do with the smoke and you tell it- in not so kind words, to leave you alone. You need to figure out where your next hideout will be.

A certain smell starts to infiltrate your nose. This one was not as pleasant as the roses, and you turn back in surprise. The smoke is shaking. Like it’s angry- or- is it shaking like it’s crying? No, the crying snaps into anger and the smoke unfurls and starts swirling around as if it’s summoning something.

There’s a spark of light and right there before your eyes stand the gorgons. Arms crosses, and grinning like maniacs. “Well, well, the smoke decided to help us our after all.” The three of them pins your arms to your back, and the smoke covers you and sends you back to the garden.

1,130 words

edit: total of 1767 words

Writing comp Entry - The Shack

did i take my first weekly for this? yes, yes i did

His smell was comforting, probably the most comforting thing I’ll be smelling in the next couple of days, or weeks, who knows. I squeeze him one last time before looking at his warm face. His fluffy excitement was gone, and what was left in him was loving concern. “Please, be safe Ilo.” My face pressed into a small smile, remembering the origins of that nickname. I could never pronounce my name Caelyn, I would used to say “Kuh-eye-lo” Pop just took the part I pronounced incorrectly and made it my nickname. Pressing my face into his square shoulders, I felt hiccups. Here came the tears, one of a many, it was time to go.

“Stay safe Pop, won’t you?”

He nodded, “Of course, just for you.” My heel turned and I was out the door. The comfort of the sweet cinnamon aroma was gone. Death was coming, literary. I was going to be smelling death, by myself for the next couple of days. Decaying bodies. Piled high upon one another. Too many to care for, too many for our chocolate land to care for. None of them deserved this, but of course, when was life fair to any of us. I mean- the peasants were disposed of. Constantly, forgotten without a second thought. Only those in our villages who personally knew each other mourned for each other. We weren’t even the ones for the cause of their deaths. And yet we are the ones who pray that we’re sorry. Utter our sorrows, and how we might be able to be better in the future. Not that it mattered. We were never heard. Peasants never were.

One good look at my home and I made my way to the shack. Standing before the shack, I couldn’t even bare thinking about opening the door. Decay was at the bottom. Grimy hands, pulled from their labor, and now left- blackened and wilted like a flower place in an oven and burnt to a crisp. The blooms of the skin were gone. Any sign of what used to be peach flushed flesh- broken from existence. I tried but couldn’t stop myself. I needed to check that place, the sign of my death. The timeline was creeping up my spine. It starts at the small of your back and grows into a hideous carnation. How ironic, or perhaps it was the opposite of irony. We should have seen the foreshadowing. White carnations- flowers, to signify death. A white spark of beauty before the black comes. The darkness overtakes the white, fills it in, and once that is full: the infinity sign is pressed into your skin. The wrist of your dominate hand. Then it creeps to the rest of your arm. Once there, you know you’re out of time.

My eyes find my writs. I look at the two dots. “It would be a beautiful tattoo, a beautiful, and dark tattoo.” Someone mutters beneath my neck.

“Screech!” I flair and as soon as I hear the hideous sound soar out of my mouth, I regret it. Whirling around, Zoe stands. Arms crossed as always, half a piece of bread in her mouth. Smirking. I don’t know why she bothers with me. She always seems to find me amusing, but I don’t know why. I start tugging out curls from beneath my bandana.

“Sorry Lynn.” As soon as that nickname comes out, I smile. No one likes using my name. My mother’s name. I’m glad it’s that way. I don’t need to be reminded of her every time someone calls me out. “Didn’t mean to scare you.” Zoe prances over to me and tosses the rest of the bread my way. “You should eat. I mean you look so pale. You also look like you’re going to do something you’re not supposed to, so count me in. I want 50% of whatever rewards you’re getting out of this.”

“Zoe, I’m not getting any rewards from this.”

“HA! I don’t believe you; no one would hire you to go digging in the shack without offering a pay. I mean maybe they did, but you would never accept that deal without a pay.” She raises an eyebrow at me. “No, you’re too smart for that. Anyways, from the look of your face, I’m going to say, yeah, I was wrong. You weren’t hired. But I still want to tag along. Reg and Ian are being a pain the butt, and I don’t want to be put on babysitter duty anymore. I would offer you the job, but I have nothing to offer you for payment.”

I shrug, “It’s ok, I need to do this anyways.”

Zoe tilts her head, “Ah yes, you must enlighten me. What is ‘this’ thing you speak of anyways? You look sketchy, so I’m assuming you don’t want the elders to know you’re doing this.”

My eyes don’t find Zoe’s and I hesitate before nodding.

“Alright then- Count me in. You’re not going in there, alone.”

My heartbeat speeds up a bit. She won’t offer that, would she? “But I thought you were afraid of the dark!” As soon as the words come out of my mouth, I knew why she was offering. She needed an breather, she needed out of here more than I did. She needed the reassurance that she was doing everything she could to help this.

“Of course, I am! But what is the point of fears if you are not willing to face them. You- could help me overcome my fear.”

I smile at the thought of being able to help Zoe out. “Alright, come help me, and I’ll help you with your fear. I can’t tell you want I’m doing quite yet, but I’ll tell you in the catacombs.” I can spot the ends on Zoe’s mouth curl up.

“That works for me.”

“So we have a deal.”

The shack is dark. Darker than what you would expect. There’s nothing there but pitch-black nothingness. And as we head down, down, down into the depths of nightfall I can already feel the breaths of the decaying bodies.

1018 words

daily 7/25/21

credit to @flying_eagle46 for their character Holly!

sorry this was kinda rushed so not the best writing ever ;w; but i hope i did your character slight justice

-

There was a hiss at the cavern door and Holly peered behind the barrel of wine. She didn’t know who this mysterious figure was. No one came to her parent’s inn at this time, but a new companion would be nice. She hasn’t been able to talk to anyone in a while. Then again, being alone was nice.

The figure was smaller than she suspected. He was a young boy, teenage years, anywhere from 14-16, but still older than Holly.

Looking around, Holly couldn’t spot her parents anywhere, so she took it upon herself to greet this newcomer.

“Why hello there, welcome to the Pastor’s Safehouse. How may I help you?”

The boy looked at her, and paused before answering. “I want a beer.”

“Yeah, because someone like you is totally old enough to have a beer,” She mutter to herself, then she said to him, “Well aren’t you a bit young to be drinking?”

He shrugged. “So are you, and it looks as if you’ve been drinking all night.”

“Have not!” She coughed, trying to coverup her out burst. “Ahem, I mean, I have not been drinking today.” Holly looked back in the reflection of the window across from her and could see that her cheeks were pink, but that was from the cold air outside. She had nothing to drink… for tonight anyways.

All she got in response was a mere, “Whatever you say. I still want that beer.”

Holly gave him a disapproving tsk, but turned around to carefully poor the beer. Once the golden liquid met the brim of the glass, she slid it across the table to him and then went to mind her own business. He was a rude customer. Not one she wanted to associate with any longer.

He was sipping at the cup, and Holly continued to watch him out of the corner of her eye. She could see that he was a loner. One who tended to defend himself.

-

The time was ticking, and two hours past. The boy was still at the table, slowly sipping the bear. Could anyone drink something so slowly? He hadn’t anything else to keep him occupied other than observing his surroundings, which he did quite often. Out of her back pocket, she pulled out a deck of cards and started to shuffle it. It helped her keep her nerves together. A smooth schhhz of the cards and the cards were shuffled again.

It took her quite the strength not to tell him to get lost. She needed her sleep and didn’t want to leave this guy unattended. Where were her parents anyways?

The boy caught her eye and frowned. Soon he beckoned Holly forwards and on a piece of paper, he had written “It is time to save what has been taken.”

468 words

daily 7/26/21

‘And close your eyes, your soul flies high; I’ll sing you ashen lullabies’ (Symphony by Alba)

“Hey mama?” She looked at me with worried grey eyes. It wasn’t something I was used to, those eyes used to be filled with love and hope. But ever since, well that happened, her youth was now filled with worry and too many complications.

My head bows as I let her tiny hands run down my face trying to find the dark mole on my cheek. She loved to poke at it, pretending it was a little dog growing out of my face. Not that that wasn’t weird or concerning at all. Yet, I still let her do it. It brought her comfort. Something she could find little of lately. “Yes baby?”

“You will be alright?”

“Oh of course I’ll be alright, I am always alright.”

“But mama, I’m going to be the last one to leave you. Tonight’s the night, my soul is going to fly high.” I look out the window and spot the glowing orbs, waiting to collect my baby’s soul. They lurk, waiting for the right moment. The midnight pitch black skies make them stand out. In the daytime, you can barely see them, sometimes you could even forget about them. But in the night, they make sure their presence is known to all.

“Hush, we don’t know that for sure. We might get lucky.” The moaning starts, and it lays a cloud of heavy desperation in the air. “This year is the year we get lucky,” I mutter more to myself instead of to her.

A soft glisten emerges from the corner of her eye and I whisper. “Ohhh, my sweet sweet angel. This is for the best. You don’t deserve this world. Close your eyes, and this will be over in just a matter of minutes.”

“They’ll take me when I’m asleep?”

“Yes, it is the best way for them to take you. Peacefully and without any resistance.”

“Can… you sing to me?”

“Of course, baby, of course. I’ll sing you your favorite lullaby- Ashen.”

331 words

daily 7/27/21

kiss your dreams goodbye, derivakat – given to me by @featherstar800

Warning: This may contain some blood and weapons- and maybe violence

His fist slammed onto the table, and he hissed at me, giving me the dirtiest look that looks could give. “You are going to regret this one day.” My hands grabbed the collar of his shirt, maybe a bit too aggressively and shoved him into the chair. Pushing him down into the hard wood, I could feel his heartbeat going crazy. ‘Dang, he really can pretend to be calm, but his heartbeat gives it away too easily.’

I looked straight into his greedy brown eyes and shrugged. “Sure I might, but I’m living in the morning, and right now? I’ll be enjoying this. Forget the consequences.” I held my knife to his neck and pulled his hair back; his neck was stretched across the back of the chair, and he grimaced.

“Without me, you have nothing.”

Smirking, I shook my head. “You have no idea how cliché and wrong that is. Gee, this whole thing is just cliché. I need you to shut up now. I’m enjoying myself.”

“Your dreams are gone. You better kiss them goodbye.” My hand shifted and adjusted the bade.

“You are in no position to talk. Plus, I gave up on my dreams long ago. I sure as the devil don’t need your sappy help. You have done nothing but hold me back, so stop hanging on to some false belief that I ever needed you.”

He groaned and for once, made a smart choice. He kept his mouth shut and waited for me to make the next move.

“Now, I’m going to need that money and we can get out of here.” I released my grip on his collar and held out my hand for the package of money.

“I- can get out of here alive if I hand the money to you?”

My head nods. All I need is that money to survive. He doesn’t even need it. All he wants with this is to bribe someone for his own enjoyment. How cruel. At least I’ll be using this money to buy a blanket for myself. I swear I’m going to get hypothermia this winter.

“Screw it.” He tosses a bag up in the air and then bolts for it. My hands instinctively reach out for the bag, and I grab a hold of it. However, when I turn back around to finish my business with him. He’s already out of reach. His black pelt is swinging around the corner, and I race after him.

I hiss and mutter some unkind words to myself. I snag the dagger from my back pocket and throw it. My breath is caught inside of me as I go to inspect the damage I had done. I slide the dagger back into my pocket and creep to the blood splatters. ‘Dang. He got away.’ What was left was a puddle of blood with a stained handkerchief still soaking up the wet drink.

485 words

bakie bakie bakie bakie baekie bakie bakie YOU ARE INCREDIBLEEEEE EEEE ILYYSM