The first character I am using is Katie, a girl’s who’s life was changed by a simple doctor's appointment. Her dad was an alien.

The second is Mae, a girl who was lost in the wilderness at age 6. It was only her and her horse Dream.

The third character is Mia, a runaway slave who’s mother was slain by slave catchers.
She escaped, and found her dad who led her to freedom.

They all had quite exhausting stories, and they would probably like a quiet, calm place, where they could all relax. When I think of calm and quiet I think of a comfortable place to sit, or lie down, and peaceful sounds like birdsong, or tall grass rustling gently. I’m thinking soft grass to lie down on for comfort, and maybe some moss covered rock down by a bubbling brook that twists into a peaceful river. They can sit on the comfortable moss and stick their feet in the cool water. The soft rushing of the brook is the peaceful sounds as well as a forest behind them, with birdsong and tall grass rustling, and lots of beautiful wildlife. It shades where they are sitting. It will look somewhat like this.

Katie, Mae, and Mia go through the forest to this beautiful sight. Mia rushes to drink from the cool clear water, while the other two rest on the grass. With the forest shading them from behind, it’s the perfect temperature. Birds flit about the trees, singing tunes. A doe and her fawn trot near the edge of the forest. The grass waves gently behind them. A cool wind brushes near them. The grass is perfect, not itchy or rough at all. Once in a while a fish leaps out of the brook into the river. Soon a bird will land near them, perhaps a robin, or a cardinal. The occasional honey bee or butterfly or dragonfly will stop to land on the wildflowers dotting the outer edge of the forest. A rabbit will stop to chew some grass, with a cute cotton ball tail before hopping off. A squirrel will snatch some nuts from a tree before bolting past them to a different tree. All 3 of them will relax for hours and hours on end in the peaceful place, before finally returning to their adventures in my writing and stories.

◇──◆──◇──◆ ◇──◆──◇──◆

Thank you for taking the time to read this,
By your humble author, Zodiac!

When not busy with the epic stories I have planned for them, I like to imagine that my characters have a quiet place to relax and settle down. That's why I created Sunrise Valley, a quiet cluster of cabins in the middle of the woods. The trees around the cabins are tall and bushy, but they still let a respectable amount of summer sunlight in. The cabins are small and cozy, perfect places for the characters to take a day of relaxation. The rooms are perfectly decorated to fit the characters' personalities. For example, Elias's room is decorated simply, but pictures of his friends and drawings by Kayden crowd the walls. Skylar's room is a bit more modern, there's enough room for a large bed and a television. Another character who takes up residence in the Valley is Lila, who takes summer trips with her cousin Gracie. Umm who else?? Maybe all the shadow mage characters have cabins near each other. The original travelling trio sleep in one cabin, which has surprisingly few drawings by Kayden. It seems like he's been making more and more for Elias recently… Though Kel rarely visits, he still has a room of his own. It's small, cozy, has a great view. He comes there once in a while whenever he needs a break. Once promoted to the ‘awesome stories’ category, some short story characters gain second homes here too. Near Lila and Gracie, Hayase, Kiki, and the spirit of Riku have a den. It's pretty barren, but they have each other for company, at least. Crest and his friend from ‘Lost Woods’ don't need a cabin. They much prefer to sleep in the forest, among the trees that they don't have in their own home. They tell me that they can still hear the whispers of those lost while in the woods. The more social characters have opportunities to connect with their friends at the nightly feasts, which are held in the main cabin. A place of joy, this cabin is brightly lit, and there is ample room for the large table that the characters occupy every night. The more introverted characters are always welcome to come and go as they please, knowing that there's always another time to talk. A popular destination in the woods is a glittering lake, which almost always has swimmers cruising through its depths. Sunset Valley is perfect for any character, no matter their personality.

Main cabin weekly #4


Part 1

Card 1: 5 of clubs (age 10-20, introvert)
Card 2: 4 of diamonds (age 10-20, omnivert)
Setting colours: orange and green

600 word biography for the two cards/characters (300 each):

Lyric Castro is an introverted, non-binary 14-year-old, who uses they/she pronouns. They don’t know a lot about their racial origins, but they know that they are multiracial. She has tan-coloured skin, with a wave of freckles on her face from one cheek to the other. Lyric prefers to have one side of their head shaved, and the other a fluffy mass of brown curls that reaches their chin. Their hazel eyes sparkle behind their black, rounded square, thick-framed glasses. The black braces on their teeth have been on for 2 years, and are about to be removed. Her favourite clothes are her Heart hoodie, girl in red t-shirt, the good ol’ black sweatpants, and fluffy Pride flag socks. They don’t care much for fashion, but they’ll definitely go crazy over any t-shirt that shows off one of their favourite fandoms. Speaking of fandoms, Lyric’s favourite fandoms are Heart (their favourite rock band of all time), girl in red, The Owl House (best kid’s queer cartoon ever!), and Gravity Falls. They occasionally watch a little Marvel or Star Wars, but they aren’t crazy about those fandoms. Lyric’s dream job is being a songwriter and a poet. They love writing poetry and songs, but would never, EVER record themself singing their own songs. They would leave that to the singers and bands that they’d sell their songs to. They love shutting themself in their bedroom and writing more poetry and songs while getting inspiration from listening to Heart and girl in red. They love Heart and girl in red because a lot of the early Heart songs were often written by Ann and/or Nancy Wilson, and typically with their friend Sue Ennis, and girl in red writes the majority of her own songs. As introverted as they are, Lyric likes meeting people who share the same interests as them.
(310 words)

Stacy Wong-Winters is an omniverted 15-year-old cisgender female, who uses she/her pronouns. She is biracial, with Chinese heritage on her mama’s side, and British heritage on her (other) mom’s side. Her mothers introduced her to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community from a young age, since they were both gay. At age 9, Stacy came out as panromantic, and 3 years later as asexual. Her auburn hair is fairly wavy, and goes halfway down her back. She prefers to have her hair down, but because it gets knotted and messy easily, she often has it in a ponytail or braids. She has light skin, and brilliant blue eyes. She generally wears pink heart studded earrings, but sometimes she switches them for special occasions. Her favourite clothes are any of her Mabel Pines-inspired handmade knitted sweaters, her light blue leggings that have rainbows on them, and her Amphibia socks. She takes pride in how she looks, but doesn’t care much if other people don’t like it. Stacy’s favourite fandoms are Gravity Falls, The Owl House, Amphibia, and pretty much any other Disney Channel cartoon. She enjoys listening to pop-rock music, but mostly Imagine Dragons, and she loves comics and graphic novels. She is an artist who draws both digitally and traditionally, liking each method equally, and also loves other crafts, like knitting. Stacy loves drawing fanart of her favourite fandoms, but additionally draws original art, usually with themes of fantasy and sci-fi. She knits her own sweaters, which are inspired by Mabel Pines’ sweaters from Gravity Falls. Stacy is omniverted, but to the extremes: she’s either very introverted, or very extroverted. She’s typically extroverted, and enjoys hanging out with her friends, on their own, or at social events like comic conventions. Though, in her introverted times, she often stays in her room doing art, her favourite pastime.
(304 words)

150 word setting:

Lyric Castro’s room was painted a bright lime green, with orange highlights on the framing and baseboards. That was their favourite colours—lime green and orange. They thought those colours went well together. Their double bed had white sheets, covered by a Gravity Falls blanket. To the left of the bed is their desk—covered with notebooks and papers of song lyrics. Beside the white desk lamp, there was a pencil holder with many pencils and multi-coloured pens, and a few erasers sitting in front of it. In front of the bed, was an orange fluffy carpet, with many pillows on it. It was basically a reading corner or a corner for hanging out. To the left of it, there was an old record player. Lyric’s parents had gotten it for them as a birthday present when they were 12. On their bookshelf, there were mostly CDs and vinyls, but also a fair share of books. Finally, to the left of the bookshelf was a regular closet. Nothing special.
(167 words)

400-500 word freewrite of the beginning of story:

One fall afternoon, Lyric Castro was sitting on the bed in their bedroom, browsing the internet on their laptop. Suddenly, something caught their eye. It was an ad for the Toronto Comicon. She’d heard of comic conventions before, but she’s pretty introverted, so they were never interested in social events and never decided to learn more about them. But, the ad’s catch phrase was “Full of fun for all fandom fanatics!” Lyric had never seen anything or anyone use the phrase “fandom fanatic” apart from on Scratch, where one user, Luna-Lovegood-LOL, invented it, because there wasn’t really a gender-neutral term for fangirl/fanboy, and then literally every other Scratch user started using it. Lyric considered themself a fandom fanatic; loving many fandoms, but mostly the rock band Heart, indie singer/artist girl in red, The Owl House and Gravity Falls. They decided to check out the Toronto Comicon website, seeing if any attractions were actually interesting to them. When they saw that the special guest at this year’s Comicon was Alex Hirsch, she knew immediately that they had to go. A chance to meet the creator of Gravity Falls? Who wouldn’t want to go! They started checking out information about ticket sales, photo op prices, and more.

***

Sometime later, Lyric decided to ask their dad if they could go. Their dad was a huge Star Wars and Star Trek fan, so there was a good probability that her dad would take them. Right after opening the door of their bedroom, they suddenly realized that the convention would be packed with people. A setting that Lyric never felt comfortable in. They shut the door, and lay down on their bed. Voices swarmed around in her head. You know how you feel in places packed with people. You feel very uncomfortable. Well, yeah, but I’m such a fandom fanatic that I really want to go! I’ll get to meet other The Owl House fans and, of course, Gravity Falls fans ’cause Alex Hirsch will be there!!!!! Yeah well you’re probably going to feel so uncomfortable when you go to get his autograph that he’ll think you a real weirdo. But I AM a weirdo! The good kind, I mean. Ugh. I think I’m just going to hop onto Scratch and ask Callie what she thinks.
Lyric sat up, grabbed their laptop, and headed to the Scratch website. After going through their messages, they went to their Scratch best friend Callie’s profile. In the comments section, they posted a comment asking her, “Hey Callie so I just found out about the Toronto Comicon and I /really/ want to go but you know like I’ve told you before, I’m very uncomfortable in places with a lot of people. (Maybe you could come so we could meet irl! Even though you live all the way in California. /hj) What do you think? /gen”
(478 words)


Part 2

Activities:
Person (character): make your character’s secret weapon backfire
Star (event): have your character spend a rainy day inside
Pencil (technique): include three similes and a metaphor in what you’ve written so far
Star (event): have a balloon carry a strange message
Person (character): your main character reunites with a long lost friend
Pencil (technique): start a section from a different character or object’s pov

1500 word story (continuing the free write)


Callie was probably going to reply soon, living in a different time zone, because it was 8:30 PM now in London, Ontario, and their mom just called them downstairs for the movie they were going to watch together. Lyric closed their laptop, plugged the charging cord in, and headed downstairs.

***

The next morning, Lyric opened their laptop to see if Callie had responded, right away after they woke up. Sure enough, Lyric saw Callie’s message in their messages. “Hello there, Song! B)” read the first sentence. Song was Lyric’s online nickname. “YES YOU SHOULD GO IF YOU WANT TO!!! It would be a good experience Though, about your “uncomfortability” in social places, I think that because you would be around other fandom fanatics, you’d feel more comfortable. Well, that’s just my theory. But yes, you should go. /gen” They sent a reply back saying, “Ok, ty for the advice! <3”
Lyric took a deep breath, and went to talk to their dad during breakfast.

***

Lyric’s plan was to do the following: 1. Tell their dad about the Toronto Comicon, explaining all the nerdy Star Wars and Star Trek bits. 2. If their dad wants to go, then she would ask if they could go as well, because Alex Hirsch would be there. 3. If their dad said yes, then YAY! 4. If their dad said no (unlikely), then boo-hoo.
But things didn’t go as planned. Their dad already figured out what they were trying to do right from the start. And he told them, “I don’t know how you’re so excited about wanting to go, because don’t you feel really uncomfortable in large social events?”
Lyric stood up and turned around, slumping their shoulders. “I guess you can go meet Alex Hirsch for me then. When you’re not even obsessed with Gravity Falls like I am,” they said quietly.
“No! Vannes—um, Lyric, that’s not how I meant it. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings, I just was curious that you weren’t nervous about going!” He jumped to his feet, reaching out to Lyric.
But Lyric walked upstairs, without even finishing their breakfast, and shut themself in her room.

***

It wasn’t supposed to be like this, Lyric thought, as they lay on her bed, staring out the window as it started to rain. They always thought that the sound of rain was soothing, but now, it didn’t feel that way. Dad wasn’t supposed to be able to tell what I was trying to ask him. If he didn’t realize, he wouldn’t have hurt my feelings. My plan backfired on me. After a few minutes just lying there, staring at the rain, they decided to tell Callie about what had happened.

***

Lyric spent the rest of that rainy day inside, either on Scratch, or working on some of their newest songs. (And sometimes just listen to music while doing nothing else.) The only times that they left their bedroom was to either use the bathroom or eat lunch and dinner. The rain actually inspired Lyric to write a new song, based on what rain was like when it didn’t feel soothing. She spent a lot of time on that, even working out the specific notes for each lyric. By dinner, they had the whole song done.
Late that night, just before they were going to go to bed, someone knocked on the door. Lyric knew it was going to be their dad. “Come in,” they said reluctantly.
The door opened, and their dad walked in. “Hey Lyric. I…” He searched for words while sitting down on the bed. “I just wanted to apologize for, you know, what happened this morning. I didn’t mean to put you down in any way. I was just surprised that you weren’t nervous about going or anything. I’d take you for sure. I know how much you love Gravity Falls.”
“It’s okay, Dad. I’m sorry that I just locked myself in my room.” Lyric showed a small smile, and gave him a hug. He smiled, and patted her on the back. After pulling away, they both said in unison, “I can’t wait for next March!” That made them both laugh.

***

It was finally that anticipated weekend in March. Lyric and their dad were on the road, taking the 2 hour drive from London to downtown Toronto. Lyric wasn’t as tired as they thought she would be. They had left their home at 6:30 AM, so they could get there around 8:30-9:00 AM to have enough time to check in at their hotel, settle in a little, then have a decent amount of time to get their cosplay on. The only reason for the hotel was because they were going to spend the weekend there. (Mostly because Lyric’s dad really wanted to see as much Star Wars and Star Trek stuff as possible.) Lyric’s dad was going to cosplay Han Solo from Star Wars, and Lyric was going as Wendy Corduroy, who was obviously a character from Gravity Falls. But Lyric didn’t have light skin nor red hair. They thought it was fine their skin was tan, but a half shaved head with curly brown hair on one side did not look anything like Wendy. So they had got a red-coloured wig. That fixed the problem.
Once they arrived and checked in at their hotel, they both had a short rest before getting their cosplay on. The Han cosplay was pretty easy: black pants and boots, a prop gun and its holster which Lyric’s dad bought online, a white long sleeve shirt and a black vest. The Wendy cosplay was also fairly easy: brown rain boots, black leggings, a white tank top under a green plaid button-up shirt, a tan and dark brown fluffy lumberjack hat and a prop axe with a sheath.
After they both got their costumes on, Lyric’s dad asked them, “Why don’t we stick together the whole time? It’s going to be hard to meet up, so are you okay with staying with me the whole time? I mean, we’d go to one place and you can check out what you want, then we’d move on to another. But I’ll make sure that you’ll get to Alex Hirsch’s signing early. That sound good?”
“Yup.” Lyric was too excited to say much.

***

The convention was awesome. Really awesome. It was like a whole bee hive of fandom fanatics, full of chaos, energy and excitement! (chaneritement?) Lyric and their dad marveled at all the cool, nerdy, geeky details. Lyric got an autograph from Dana Terrace, creator of The Owl House, that even included a little drawing of Raine Whispers, the first nonbinary character in a Disney Channel series. It was obviously Lyric’s request for the drawing of Raine, and Dana Terrace happily obliged. Their dad, on the other hand, got a picture with Harrison Ford, as well as his autograph.

***

Soon enough, it was 1:15 PM. Alex Hirsch’s panel and signing was going to be at 2, so Lyric told their dad that they should head over to the right location. They checked out other tables nearby while they waited.
Lyric was so excited to finally meet Alex Hirsch, creator of one of their favourite cartoons ever. They were a giant ball of energy, buzzing with excitement. She could hardly contain all their excitement. It was as fun as going to a Pride parade!
Soon enough, the line opened for the signing. Lyric ran like a jaguar, and got the fifth spot in line. Not that bad.
Someone tapped on their shoulder. Turning around, Lyric saw someone dressed as Mabel Pines, complete with a hand knitted sweater that looked /exactly/ how they had imagined it if Mabel was a person in real life. The person even had long wavy auburn hair and light skin.
“Hi there!” the person said, and waved.
“Um. Hi,” Lyric replied awkwardly. They weren’t used to talking to strangers.
“I’m guessing you’re also a huge fandom fanatic of Gravity Falls?” asked the person.
“Yeah, I am!” Lyric said excitedly. This was their chance—to finally befriend another fandom fanatic at the convention!
“Oh yeah, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself.” The person chuckled. “I tend to do that, since I like meeting new people, so I often just jump right into the conversation with an introduction. My name is Stacy, and I use she/her pronouns. And you?”
This was exciting for Lyric. Not many people they met told them their pronouns when introducing themselves. Stacy must be queer or an ally! “I’m Lyric. I use they/she pronouns and I’m nonbinary!” Lyric said proudly.
“Cool!” replied Stacy. “I’m a cis female, but I’m panromantic and asexual. I really love your Wendy cosplay!”
“Thank you!” said Lyric. “Your Mabel cosplay is like Mabel straight out of the show! Did you knit that sweater yourself?”
“Yes I did!” Stacy smiled broadly. “I love knitting, and I have knitted over 50 Mabel sweaters! In fact, it was hard to decide which one to wear, so I brought a few of them. I’ve changed in the bathroom multiple times, and just before I got in the line up, I changed into this one—you know, the classic magenta one with the shooting star!” She gestured to her sweater.
“That’s so cool!!!” exclaimed Lyric. “Hey, let’s take a picture!” They got out her phone and the two Gravity Falls fanatics posed for a selfie.
“Now I’ve got to get one on my phone too!” said Stacy, fumbling through a bag.
“Wouldn’t it just be easier for me to send it to you?” asked Lyric.
“Oh yeah, it would be!” Stacy said, finally finding her phone. “Here—” she handed her phone to Lyric “—add your number in there.”
After Lyric returned the phone, Stacy sent a message to make sure that Lyric got it. They did, and then they sent her the picture.
For the next few minutes, they continued chatting, mostly about Gravity Falls, and their interests.
Suddenly, a random balloon floated down and landed on Lyric’s head.
“Hey—what’s this?” asked Lyric, grabbing the balloon.
“Looks like a completely random yellow balloon to me,” Stacy replied.
“Wait, check this out!” Lyric pointed to a piece of paper inside the balloon. “There’s a secret message here!”
“Please don’t pop the balloon,” said Stacy. “Me and a bunch of people here will be irritated by the sound.”
“I won’t.” Lyric realized that the end wasn’t tied with a knot. Instead, there was an elastic tightly woven around it to seal it closed. Within a few seconds, Lyric untied the elastic. Then Stacy helped them hold open the balloon while they pulled the paper out.
Lyric cleared their throat and read the message out loud. “ ‘Hey Lyric! Yeah I know this is kind of stupid. Dropping a balloon on your head. But I wanted to alert you in a funny way while I walk all the way down the stairs! By the time you’re done reading this, I should be tapping you on the shoulder! From: A Random Girl At This Convention’ ”
Just like the message predicted, someone tapped Lyric on their shoulder not even a millisecond after she finished reading the note.
“Hey Lyric!!!” the “Random Girl At This Convention” exclaimed.
Lyric turned, and literally dropped the message in shock. Stacy caught it, and said, “Hello! Are you one of Lyric’s friends?” But Lyric didn’t even hear that. Everything melted except for themself and that girl—Lyric’s old girlfriend. No, not an ex-girlfriend. Just an old one. It was Kayla, the girl who Lyric dated before Kayla’s mom found out, and moved to Mississauga just to stop her daughter from dating a nonbinary. Kayla’s mom had blocked Lyric on all platforms where they’d contacted each other on, and constantly made sure that Kayla didn’t unblock them. With such strong restrictions, they couldn’t even send mail to each other, since Kayla’s mom checked the mail every time a letter addressed to Kayla arrived. It was very hard, and painful, for the two lovers to live apart, with no contact. And yet, now, by some miracle, they’d reunited.
“Kayla,” Lyric breathed. They stared into Kayla’s eyes for a few moments before pulling her into a big hug.

***

Finally. It happened. Kayla had reunited with Lyric. She had dreamed of this day, and it had happened at last. By some miracle. And her mom would never know. It was the best day of her life.
“I wish I could kiss you now, but you know why I can’t,” Kayla whispered into Lyric’s ear.
After they pulled away, Lyric asked, “Are you here alone?”
“Nah, I’m with my friends. They’re still upstairs. I told them I was going down to Alex Hirsch’s signing, so they stayed up there, ’cause none of them are into Gravity Falls,” replied Kayla. “Oh hello! Yeah, I’m Kayla, Lyric’s old girlfriend,” Kayla added once she remembered that Stacy had asked her a question. “Who are you?”
“I’m Stacy, and I just met Lyric in line here. We’re now besties!” said Stacy, putting her arm around Lyric’s shoulders.
Kayla smiled and nodded. Then, she said, “Well, I love both of your cosplays! Mabel and Wendy are my two of my favourite characters.”
“Thanks,” said Stacy and Lyric. Stacy added, “Your Pacifica cosplay is awesome too!”
“Thank you!” replied Kayla. Pacifica wasn’t her most favourite character, but it was the easiest character to cosplay, since she had blonde hair, likewise Pacifica.
“Hey look!” exclaimed Lyric, pointed at the line in front of them, which had started to inch forward. “The signing has started!”

***

For the rest of the day, Lyric, Kayla and Stacy hung out together at the convention, obsessing over the new Gravity Falls comics, and other stuff. It was the most fun that they’d all had in their life. Despite the fact that Lyric and Kayla wouldn’t be seeing each other again for a long time, both of their spirits were lifted that day.
(2331 words)


I hope that whoever's read this likes it! Thanks for reading! <3

March 29 Daily

Word Count: 1,297
I’m aware I went overboard

I imagine there’s a hotel where all my characters can stay when they’re not busy being put through literal heck taking part in my stories. It’s many floors, and stretches high in to the sky. For the most part, it’s got nice, cozy vibes. Each floor is themed and dedicated to something specific.
The hotel is special in that each character can decide what age and timeline they want to be perceived as at any given moment. For instance, a character could choose to arrive as an adult, then revert to their teenage selves later on, or vise versa.
The first floor is mostly taken up by the reception room/main hall, where the characters check in. Connected to that are the cafe, where breakfast and lunch are served; the larger, fancier dining hall; and the ballroom. There’s also a kitchen, of course, but that’s off limits to the characters. However, some surely sneak in at times.
The basement is also off limits and is full of various plot devices. It’s said that abandoned characters and prototypes of current characters can be found living out their life’s here, out of sight, but no one is sure.
The first floor is dedicated to to recreation. There’s a library, a game room, an exercise room, bowling lanes because why not, a music room, and hangout rooms.
From the second floor on are the various rooms. Each floor is themed and characters are assigned rooms based on things such as personality, character type and age to assure that their room will be in a theme they enjoy. For instance, a happy-go-lucky child might find themselves on a floor dedicated to toys and wonder, while an angsty, borderline emo teenager might find themselves on a floor with a more muted color scheme.
Characters are also assigned roommates based on similar things, in the hope that they’ll gain a friend to help them through the trauma that comes from being a fictional character talk and relate to.
Let’s take a closer look at everything, shall we?
The main hall is large, with a high ceiling adorned with a shimmering chandelier. There’s a long, spiral staircase climbing into the floors above, but most people reasonably opt to use the elevator.
The receptionist, as well as additional staff, are nameless neutral entities with no real personality. If you try to recall what they look like, you’ll always fail. They’re incapable of harming the characters or otherwise interfering in the stories.
The cafe somehow manages to seem cozy, even though it’s also fairly large. After all, there’s many characters to accommodate for.
The floors are wooden, and the walls are a light cream. Large, floor to ceiling windows on one wall let in fresh light, as well as containing a sliding glass door that leads to a porch and from there, a pool.
The remaining walls are covered with pictures, paintings and various curiosities that are all somehow relevant to one story or another.
The tables are scattered about with no apart rhyme or reason and are covered with table cloths in every color imaginable, and some that aren’t. The tables are various shapes and sizes so that whether you’re dining alone, with a date or your whole family there’s a place for you. At any time of day, at least one character can be found here, either eating or just relaxing. Perhaps they’re reading or working on a story of their own.
The dining room is a bit fancier than the cafe. It’s floors are also wooden but they’re a darker, mahogany color. The walls are a deep indigo and the place it lit up by crystal chandeliers. The tables are long, and are almost the same color as the floor. Diner is served at the same time every day, and it’s the best time to see a wide verity of characters come together.
The ballroom looks much the same as the dining room, minus the fact that it’s only tables are pushed against the side of the walls. This is where many parties are hosted, giving the characters a chance to let their hair down and have fun. Most notable of the parties is the Christmas party, where a ship almost always becomes canon while kissing under the mistletoe.
Jo and Annabeth were some of the two to fall under the sweet spell of midnight mistletoe, though the two would-be rivals would never admit it to anyone else. It was honestly very sweet, and if we had time I would tell you all about it, but as it is, we must be moving on.
Up on the first floor, a large cast of characters can always be found. The rooms are open 24/7, and there’s always someone taking part in one of the activities.
The library is large, containing every book that has ever been published, and some that haven’t. It’s truly a bookworm’s dream come true. In the middle of the room there are small tables and plush chairs, perfect for book clubs or group study sessions. Hidden among the shelves are various nooks containing chairs and reading lamps, creating wonderfully private reading corners.
Currently, Milo and Jules are sitting at a table in the middle of the room, animatedly discussing the books they’ve read. Every once in awhile their eyes will lock and they’ll flush, quickly looking away.
Ah, sweet sweet new love.
The exercise room is just as large, providing something for every character that wants to keep in shape. There’s your basic equipment, such as treadmills, bench presses and climbing walls of varying levels of difficulty. There’s also an archery range, and obstacle course, a sparing arena, and more.
Right now, a tall, muscular latino boy can be seen practicing archery, making rather complicated shots and making almost every one.
“Nice shot, Bax!” A red headed girl hanging from the tallest climbing wall calls as one of his arrows hits the bullseye square in the middle.
“Thanks, Alexa!” The boy -Bax- called back. “How are you doing, Logan?” He asked, turning to a boy with messy black hair.
Logan didn’t answer, evidently putting all his energy and focus on to the gymnastic equipment that he was working on, doing multiple flips in mid air.
Moving on to the bowling alley, which normally isn’t very crowded but had to be included. Right now, a single person is practicing, a boy by the name of Wolfgang. Best leave him to it.
In the game room, Gabe and Zeke are locked in an intense virtual race, laughing as they good naturedly bantered.
“I’m so crushing you, Gold!” Gabe said.
“Oh, you wish.” Zeke grinned as his car pulled ahead and crossed the finish line. “And it’s gold for Gold!”
In the music room, practically every instrument in existence can be found, ready to be tried out. Currently, Diana is zoned in on her drums, pounding out a complicated beat with all she has.
Upstairs are the various bedrooms, where some characters have opted to chill.
Connie and Melody are in their room, laughing as they tell each other about things they’ve done with Logan and Gabe.
Arizona is in the room he shares with Bax, polishing a saddle.
Sonya and Vinny are in their room, doing whatever it is villainous couples do. Probably plotting against their daughter, but luckily Annabeth is downstairs with Jo, sitting on one of their beds, leaning close as they talk, glad for the privacy.
Every other character can be found somewhere, going about their day to day lives, all thankful for this downtime from their stories. And here, I suppose, is as good a place as any to end our tour. Thank you for joining us, and feel free to visit sometime! Adios!

29th Daily
Where do your characters go when they're not in their story?
408 words

The place where my characters go when they’re not being the protagonists in my story is a sort of mystical in between place. There’s a series of stairways that leads up to the sky that the characters have to walk up to get away from their own stories; and the stairs end in a sort of large, ornate iron gateway in the clouds that opens to this so-called “in between” place. When walking through the gates, the area can appear a little confusing at first – it’s kind of a jigsaw of all different worlds, with elements from all my character’s worlds and homes in order to keep everyone happy. There are sections of deep forest with rays of sunlight seeping through the trees and covering the ground in golden light, but mid-forest the trees just… stop growing, and the forest cuts off directly next to an open-plan kitchen with no walls and no doors, just a floor and a floating ceiling. This may seem a little strange, but from a bird’s eye view, it makes sense – the world in the clouds is arranged in a sort of quilt format, with each different square containing something from a different character’s world, so they can relax there and feel at home while still getting to experience new things from other worlds that they wouldn’t get back in their own one.

While the characters are relaxing away from their own stories in this sky area, they also have the opportunity to take the route of other stairways into another character’s world if they wish to. That way, they can experience the joyful (and sometimes not so joyous) parts of another character’s world and get to relax and have fun without having to maintain the “main character” responsibility of their own story. It’s important that only one character can go in another person’s world at a time, though, otherwise things can get messy. This is because it’s important not too have too much interaction between characters in different worlds, as this has the potential to alter elaborately planned storylines, possibly resulting in tragedy.

For this reason, many characters choose to just spend their time relaxing in the in between world rather than visiting others. Here, they can trek for kilometres on a relaxing walk, passing by so many different buildings and biomes along the way. Once fully refreshed and rejuvenated, they can safely return back home with their stairway from the sky.

daily 3/28
410 words

My characters live on a large island that floats over all of the worlds. They can jump off at any point into the world below them without risk of dying. All they have to do to get back is whisper, “Until next time.” Then, they are teleported back to the island in the blink of an eye.
There are binoculars at the edge of the island where they can look down to see what's happening. The island has libraries filled with books from all the worlds - which the characters have brought back with them - and this is where most of the characters spend their time. They arrange book clubs sometimes.
There is also a gigantic obstacle course over the island, made of glass slides and rock walls, as well as nets and monkey bars. You can take an elevator to get up to the start - but it's not a normal elevator. It's simply a glass platform that you can step onto and then it will raise you up to the first slide. It can also come to get you if you decide you don't want to finish it part way through. There are several of these around the island which the characters use for transportation.
Most of the island is taken up by meadows and lakes. The obstacle course doesn't go over most of those areas in order to preserve the naturalness and give a clear view of the sky. These are where the characters go if they need a break from being surrounded by everyone. There are so many meadows that they're almost always empty.
There weren't as many lakes at first, but then Teresa was showed up for the first time and needed somewhere to park her ship. Amber and Jasmine arrived not too long after, and they also needed somewhere to live. Now, there are tunnels underneath most of the island filled with water so that they can get around to almost anywhere. There are pools connected to the tunnels all around the islands so that they can poke their heads up and greet the other characters or participate in activities. Some of the slides in the obstacle course are also filled with water.
Next to a few of the meadows, there are mysterious magical forests. The characters usually don't go in because they're hard to reach, so not much is known about them. On the few occasions that they have entered, they haven't gone very far.

It’s a quiet little area; a nice escape from reality. Poor Will goes through so much pain and exhaustion that the quietness of the little clearing in the woods is sweet sweet relief.

The grass is as green as it can be; like those really nice yards that one neighbor in your neighborhood has. Little flowers are always in bloom, and friendly bees bu about, pollinating. Birds chirp cheerful songs above head, and sometimes squirrels will skitter past. Will doesn’t feel the familiar gnaw of hunger here, so he feels no need to shoot the animals.

A creek bubbles nearby, water fresh and cold. It’s wonderful to dangle your feet in. Will would know, he’s done it hundreds of times to dull the nonexistent ache in his feet he’s so used to. Little fish dart and play, and sometimes a big frog can be found croaking to the side.

The shade of the trees offer respite from the sun’s rays. The trees are pleasantly full of leaves that whisper kind words in the breeze. Moss grows at their bases, and it’s so much softer than the grass at home.

Not a soul bothers him, and Will appreciates it. He loves his family, and so desperately wishes they were here with him, but at the same time, there’s no one to hurt him here. Just himself and the grass softer than the softest pillow and the birds with their heavenly songs and the skittering squirrels and playful bees. It’s more than a welcome respite.

Will likes to sleep. He likes to lay right out in the middle of the clearing and close his eyes, and relish in the overpowering sense of safety. He can close his eyes and completely relax, and never does a monster pop out to tear his face off. Never do terrible men come and haul him away to a place of absolute pain and misery. Nobody comes to take his brother or his father. He can just sit here and rest. It’s the most wonderful feeling Will’s ever experienced.

Safe and sound, Jack would say. Will smiles at the memory of him, and for some reason, it isn’t quite as excruciating to think about him here. He’s just a soft, pleasant memory. The quiet allows Will to process the bad memories, the terrible ones, the ones that keep him awake and leave him in tears desperately wishing they didn’t exist at all

Topic: Lemon talks about things (instead of asking for the article through and MW, please ask via my profile
Words: 725
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I’ve already accidentally reloaded so this is a bit briefer than what I had planned.

I’ve mentioned this a couple of times, but my district went on strike. One of my teachers who was there gave us a talk about what happened today, as it’s the first day we were back to school.

The teachers were protesting for:
- Better teacher and ESP wages
- More protection for BIPOC teachers
- Class size caps
- More social workers, nurses, and I forget the other position, but they were fighting for mental health support and more

They got all of those, but it’s not a huge win for three weeks of protesting. The ESPs had a terrible wage before the strike- and it’s not great now, but it better then it was before. The teachers union proposed a 20% wage increase after they looked at inflation (they knew they wouldn’t get it, but that was what it had to be). Before the strike, a .5% increase was proposed. Once the strike began, it was 1.5%, and they settled on 2%. I don’t remember how much the ESPs got.
The class sizes very by grade, but for my grade range it’s like 42. They were fighting for I think 28 for lower income schools. It’s not a win, but there was never a size cap before this anyways. And, a little details teacher told me, was that when the Indigenous teachers spoke up on the truck (yes, the teachers union bought a truck lol) there were only 4 of them which was nuts, because Minnesota is home to the Dakota tribe. There’s this thing where it’s easier to fire teachers in their first 4 years of teaching, and now BIPOC teachers are protected. (Quote my teacher “You guys are more diverse than we are.”)

Now, my teacher said she would picket (type of protest) outside my school starting at like 7:30 for a few hours, then go to larger events like near the capital or the district headquarters.

Now, the teachers couldn’t go in the place for legal reasons or something, but the students can. And my teacher said that some students were in their pajamas, staying there overnight to protest. (She also said that parents sleep in their cars near the headquarters to be there in case their child needed them.)

And from what I’ve heard, the students were amazing. (Sourced from my teacher) Apparently the Superintendent would let them speak with him only 5 at a time, but they refused and demanded all of them or none.
The students were protesting, had signs, and I was not there, but I read an article about a few things they said. They ended up talking to another higher up person in the district and totally put him to shame. Which I would really want to link it, but if you want it, just mw request if you really care, it’s very cool.

Now that we’ve come full circle to nearly the end, I will let you in on something interesting. The same guy who was sent to talk to the students is kinda corrupt (all the students were wearing masks, he wasn’t). But also… he pretty much contacted the head of the teachers union promising that he would help them get what they wanted if they could help him take the superintendent’s place. Sounds like a movie right? Yup, it actually happened, because the head of the teacher union isn’t corrupt as he is and told the superintendent.

Now during all of this, it was a rough time. Teachers weren’t getting payed (including ESPs who don’t have living wages and work multiple jobs typically), the teacher who told us this info has to cancel a HUGE trip she’s been planning for years (two weeks in Hawaii) because school is extended now, and it’s also extended by 42 minutes every day starting April 11th. This week was supposed to be the end of Quarter 3 and we were supposed to have Friday off, so it’s going to be wonky on Friday. And in the two weeks extended, a lot of people have camps and other things planned.

Thank you so much for listening to this matter if you made it this far. It’s taken a very long time to write and I appreciate anyone who listened.

character biography for the weekly (that it's currently wip ;D) because fenn wanted to see it lol :)
(305 words)

Fenn Ville is a 41 years-old extroverted, adventurer, distracted, and humorous man, born on April 27th 2035, son of Marlenne Fence and Charles Ville. He is a bit chubby, but he’s tall. His hair is straight, thick, and brown. He loves helping Jade, whether it’s for an investigation on types of rocks for a school assignment or a really silly project like a potato sticker-making machine. He, like Jade, really enjoys going on trips through nature - he does like forests more than beaches, rivers, or any other thing, like Jade does.
He strongly believes Jade would fit in better in an environment with more girls and boys of her age, instead of living uptown, far from the school she should go to. He knows she does wish to go there, but her aunt and uncle won’t let her. He doesn’t have the courage to enfrent them, though. “You need to stay here and help us out with the house chores.” He had overheard through an open window he had walked next to once.
Fenn is adventurer, like Jade. They are compeers, colleagues and comrades. They first met when Fenn walked into the wrong house, shortly before Jade’s parents disappeared, and she and her family lived downtown, near Fenn's house. He, Jade, and her parents just laughed, and she and Fenn have been friends ever since. He and Jade used to meet everyday - until she moved uptown. For the first six months, she wanted to be alone. She couldn’t assimilate her parents’ disappearance just yet. She spent a lot of time thinking.
Until a thought popped in her mind - what if they are still alive?
She thought Fenn would like and love to help her out. And she was right.
He immediately agreed, though he, on the inside… he isn’t really sure if that’s actually possible.

Can you guess what it is?? :0

Draped over my lap, the object provides a pleasant weight and a smooth cushion to rest my computer on as I write. Its creamy white fabric is adorned with colorful trees and abstract patterns. It soft, fluffy surface is perfect for rubbing your face against—if only it wasn't constantly occupied by sweaty, unbathed dogs. They generally reside on the couch, though are sometimes found wrapped around me like a cape, a futile attempt to escape the cold, rainy summer day. Luckily, my home is full of these amazing, useful objects, and no one is left out of the coziness.

Main cabin daily for March 30th

This object can come in many different colours. Some are round, others are triangular, or some even octagonal. It’s often long, but some are short. Typically, it’s hard and solid, but there’s some types that are softer and bendable. Inside, there’s a dark-coloured material that is used to make marks. As it is used, it gets shorter, and eventually too short to use. That’s why they’re typically sold in packs. Some have a small rubber tip on one side, used to undo made marks. This is an item often associated with many types of art and office supplies. Though, a short version of this item is used for a certain sport.

(111 words)

~March 30th~
Main Cabin Daily
Word count: 108
Main Post: https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/post/6081187/

Pop, pop, pop. Plastic, satisfying. Little plastic bubbles, insulation, are all much too close together than other plastic bubbles would be normally. The transparent quality of it made a great distortion tool for any child wanting to look at their friends or family with just a bit of weirdness. A great toy to play with, this object. Whenever a package came in, BOOM, the kids would fall all over it, and for the next five minutes the house would be full of popping sounds. This shiny piece of plastic, or if better described, a page of bubbles, was the source of endless fun. At least for five minutes.

swc daily - march 30
words: 149

This object is square and, like many three dimensional objects, has six sides. It is square in shape, but wouldn’t qualify as a cube due to it only being around a quarter of an inch tall and three to four inches long and wide. The face that, using logic, would be the one on top has three colors painted onto it: blue, white, and green. The bottom isn’t smooth like the top, has raised rows of material to raise the object slightly off the ground, and has some crumbs on it from the general messiness of the person who uses it (specifically, me). The other four faces on the sides have some paint on them from the inexperience of the painter (again, me). As it is not in use, there aren’t any objects on it. Most of these objects aren’t square and have different patterns (or none at all).

Dystopian for Daily :] 101 dalm- wrong script, WORDS
My particular object is very… yellow. Sometimes it’s a bit on the greener side, though- that’s when it’s not quite ripe. I don’t like when these aren’t ripe- they taste too tangy to me. They often come in bunches. I think the organic ones are the best, but that’s just my opinion. I love eating these, though not too many. My favorite meal to make with these is bread. It’s a treat. As much as I like a series of unfortunate events, I find it unfortunate that the Baudelaire children do not care for it. Oh well. Too bad for them.

3/30 Daily (120 words):
I am long when I am young, short when I am old. When you press and drag on the black pointy side, a line magically appears where you have just dragged on. On the other side, which is rubbery pink, rub it against that line you just created, and it disappears! Kinda like magic, right? People use me every day, from doing homework to drawing to marking places to drill for renovation. I often come in groups, with many siblings that look identical to me. If I get too dull, I must go to Doctor Sharpener’s office – and there are many siblings of Doctor Sharpener – to get my skin peeled off a little. Don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt too bad.

IvyCreations wrote:

Dystopian for Daily :] 101 dalm- wrong script, WORDS
My particular object is very… yellow. Sometimes it’s a bit on the greener side, though- that’s when it’s not quite ripe. I don’t like when these aren’t ripe- they taste too tangy to me. They often come in bunches. I think the organic ones are the best, but that’s just my opinion. I love eating these, though not too many. My favorite meal to make with these is bread. It’s a treat. As much as I like a series of unfortunate events, I find it unfortunate that the Baudelaire children do not care for it. Oh well. Too bad for them.

Bananas?

Main Cabin Daily 3/30
Topic: Describe an object without saying its name
Words: 105
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I am a container of sorts. I’m usually in the shape of a cylinder. I can be picked up, and am usually not large. There are many varieties to me. I hold liquid, normally liquid that is vital to every being on earth. I was created and used by humans, and am still being used today. The most common place you will find me is in a school building or a workout facility. My top can be taken off most of the time. I am entirely customizable. You probably own one of me and use me on week days. What am I??? (easy mode lol)

Weekly 4

Part 1

300 words - Character 1 (6 of spades = age 10-20 extrovert) - Lily is a thirteen year old extrovert. She’s extremely talkative, but at the same time, a decent listener, and she’s always willing to take the time to get to know someone, no matter what their reputation is. She’s an excellent public speaker, and has more charisma than she knows what to do with. She’s been told she should be a politician someday numerous times, and Lily has no real interest in politics. She wants to be a teacher or a doctor. Despite being a “popular girl”, she has a lot of odd interests, and there’s a lot more to her than meets the eye. She enjoys playing chess, doodling in her notebooks during class, scrolling through endless chains of wikipedia articles, and hanging out with the elders at the local nursing home. She finds a lot of joy in helping people, especially young children and the elderly. She’s everyone, the sort of girl that’s everyone’s grandchild. Lily’s biggest obstacle is her pride. She has a lengthy stubborn streak, and has no intention of giving it up anytime soon. She knows exactly who she is, and she’s proud of that person. She can’t stand anyone insulting her, despite her kind nature, and tolerates little to no teasing. In physical appearance, Lily has vivid sky blue eyes, wavy chocolate brown hair, and a handful of freckles dotting her face. She can usually be found wearing a hoodie and solid color leggings, often black but occasionally a shade of blue, and once in a blue moon a different hue. Lily is a little short for her age, but it only adds to her image. She is sweet, smart, caring, and overall pretty lovable, as well as an extremely loyal friend who’s always looking to make new friends and include people in her group.

333 :0 words Character 2 (Queen of clubs = age 40-60 introvert) - Ada is a 60 year old grandma. She’s more or less a stereotypical grandma who spends her time baking cookies and knitting. Ada has five grandkids, two of which are twins. While her own children are a bit of a disappointment to her, her grandchildren are her pride and joy, and possibly the one thing she genuinely thinks her children did a phenomenal job with. Despite her age, Ada is still fairly agile, and her mind remains as sharp as ever. Despite only being sixty years old, her hair is entirely gray. In appearance too is Ada, a stereotypical grandmother. Not only does she have gray hair, often found tied back in a bun, but she has slightly wrinkled skin, kind brown eyes, and isn’t necessarily fat, but is a little wide around the middle. Ada is an introvert, and often prefers solitude to company, but always makes an exception for her grandchildren. She and her children may not get along, but she’s got an enormous heart and is always looking to help others. On to more about her personality, in her youth, Ada was interestingly enough quite the extrovert. She was a performer and somewhere inside her, she still is. She loved to sing, and especially enjoyed acting, but as she grew older, that extroversion slowly faded away. No one is sure exactly what happened, but fortunately, Ada has no regrets, and she is quite happy with her introverted self. These days, Ada occasionally volunteers at soup kitchens, garden projects, and homeless shelters. The one thing she refuses to do is visit hospitals. She lost her eldest daughter to the flu when she was just a tiny child, leaving her with heartbroken memories anytime she visits one. As a result, she generally avoids hospitals at all costs, unless someone else is in grave danger. She could never live with herself if another of her children or especially one of her grandchildren perished whether or not she had a chance to help them.

195 words Setting (red and green) - Red and green, it's Christmas time! The stockings are hung on the chimney with care, in hopes that Saint Nicholas would soon be there… xD On to being more serious (if that’s possible), outside it’s snowing hard, to the point where it's nearly a blizzard, but not quite there yet. It’s around twenty eight degrees outside (HERE), and gusts of wind often send tree branches swaying. Inside, the fire is toasty and warm. Despite it being a modern house, it does still have a fireplace, though it does run on gas. It’s open, so the kids can roast marshmallows. Delicate ornaments decorate an enormous christmas tree, many of them gifts or of a child’s own creation. An enormous golden star tops the tree, catching the light of the multi color lights wrapped around the evergreen. Under the tree lies dozens of presents of every shape, color, and size imaginable, clearly the work of a grandmother spoiling her grandchildren. The air is filled with the comforting scent of cookies in the oven, perhaps for Santa to consume with great joy later at night. Kids are running around, many of them still believers, practically bursting with excitement.

416 words Story beginning -

Lily smiles as she watches her younger cousins run around, laughing and playing together in the way that only children seem to be able to. Their joy is so genuine, so, well, childlike, that she almost wishes she could be one of them again. She may only be thirteen, but alas, maturity has its price, leaving her with little to do aside from enjoy their enthusiasm and encourage them, even as she knew they too would soon grow older, their bubbles of childhood popped. As she watches her grandmother shape another round of cookies in the kitchen, humming to herself, Lily wonders what she must see when she looks at her, or her siblings and cousins. As the oldest of them all, Lily sees herself as less of a child, but she knows her grandma surely still sees her as one of them. Her phone dings, reminding her that she needs to wish her friends a Merry Christmas Eve, even as they make fun of her for it. Sure, most people wouldn’t, instead opting for simply wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, but Lily enjoyed giving the added gesture, hoping that it would be a smile to someone’s face. She set to work on the task of individually messaging each of her friends, whether that was through a social media dm or a simple text, whichever Lily knew them to prefer, taking care to include each of their names.
~
Eyes set on Lily, her oldest, and if she was being completely honest, favorite grandchild, Ada continues rolling out her cookies, trusting her muscle memory to do its work. As she pulls out her phone, Ada sighs, wishing Lily wouldn’t do that so much. Back in the day, people would actually talk face to face and occasionally send each other letters. She was glad for the new ease of communication, but still she wished kids weren’t so quick to whip their phones out and stare at them for hours. Even as the thoughts flooded her mind, she couldn’t help but smile when Lily’s face lit up as she saw something on her phone. More than anything, she loved to see her grandchildren happy. Still, it was Christmas Eve, a time for family, not electronics.

“Lily,” she calls out, “Would you like to help me shape the gingerbread?” She knows she’s not being entirely fair, as Lily would never deny her company.

Still, she smiles when Lily puts her phone back in her pocket and answers, “Of course Grandma.”
~
Part 2 (1143 words) - Write in a dream sequence / A character has a realization / Include three similes and a metaphor in what you've written so far / The weather changes suddenly to darkness / Have a balloon carry a strange message / Add a description of the scene, describing three or more senses
~

While she ordinarily would never push aside a task, Lily always made an exception for her grandmother. Wishing her friends a merry christmas eve could wait until later. Slipping her phone back in her pocket, where it belongs, Lily gracefully rises to her feet and crosses the room to join her grandmother in the kitchen. Her grandma hands her a bowl of dough, and she sets to work, gently pushing and prodding it into a simple evergreen tree. As muscle memory takes over, she slips into a memory, allowing it to drag her away, back to an earlier Christmas, back when the joy was real.

Dressed in elf pajamas, Lily’s five year self is standing on a step stool, too short to properly reach the high table of her own. She reaches into the bowl of cookie dough, enjoying the way it clings to her fingers, like a warm hug that never lets go. She pulls it off her fingers, hastily glancing around before nibbling off the bit that remains. Lily smiles to herself, cherishing the moment of mischief. Proceeding to shape the remaining cookie dough ball into a Santa hat, she looks up.

“Grandma,” she asks, her voice innocent and sweet, “Are Santa and his reindeer going to come soon? Can I see them?”

Her grandma smiles at her and replies, “Of course, dear. But you can’t see them. Santa likes to stay hidden, like he’s got a really good hiding spot in hide and seek.” Lily’s eyes go wide, her little mind’s wheels spinning.”

Lily blinked as she was dragged back to the present by her younger cousin, Maeve, taping her on the arm. The expression on Maeve’s face was unreadable as she whispered, “Santa’s not real, is he?”

Lily glances around, making sure no one is watching them too closely, wondering what to do. Poor Maeve is only six, and she doesn’t want to break her heart. Still, she can’t bring herself to lie, knowing that she would find the truth sooner or later. Finally, she asks, “What do you think?”

It quickly becomes evident that clearly that wasn’t the right thing to say. Maeve’s eyes glisten with tears as she looks away, the answer inscribed in her expression. Lily pulls her in for a hug, and thankfully, she doesn’t make any attempt to squirm away. Her genuine sadness makes Lily’s heart break, wishing she could do something to reform the little girl’s bubble. Still unsure of what to say, she gives her a little squeeze.

Finally, Maeve speaks. “You’ve always known, haven’t you?” She asks, reminding Lily of how much different her younger cousin’s world is, simply because she’s younger. It was true. Lily had realized what was really going on at a young age, something she had begun to regret as she grew older and realized exactly how precious childhood is. Once again glancing around, Lily nodded, seeing no point in hiding this particular truth.
Tears glistened on Maeve’s cheeks like morning dew drops in the sun, giving her the appearance of a shimmering piece of glass hitting the light. Her bubble had just burst, setting free a wave of emotional turmoil. She was a young child who had lost their favorite toy, a puppy just separate from their mother.

Still wondering what to say, Lily looks down at the cookies she had been shaping and picks up a santa hat. “Hey, it’s alright,” she says. “We can still pretend.” Slowly, Maeve takes the unbaked cookie from her hand like it’s an ancient artifact, careful not to damage it, and lays it on the palm of her own hand. She tilts her head, studying the shape as if she’d never seen such a thing before, and eventually wipes her tears away, slowly yet surely beginning to smile.

“Okay,” She says, sounding a little unsure of herself. “We can pretend. Santa and his reindeer are still going to bring us presents tonight.”

“That’s right,” Lily responds, smiling. “He’s going to bring us the toys the elves made in the North Pole. What should the elves’ name be?”
~
Suddenly the room goes dark, snapping Ada out of her daydreaming state. She here’s a voice scream, but she can’t tell who it was. Is it a child? One of her children? A grandchild? Or maybe herself. She doesn’t know anyone. She looks out towards where the window theoretically is, hoping for some remient of light. Instead, she finds yet more eerie darkness. It appears that all power has been knocked out by some sort of unseen storm, leaving them helpless.

In an instant, illumination is restored to the world. Ada instantly shuts her eyes, unprepared for the sudden return of light. Slowly, she reopens them, observing her children and grandchildren do the same around her. To her enormous relief, they all looked untouched aside from a bit of shock. She was ready to smile and call it an odd bit of weather, but that was before she noticed the balloon floating past her window. Consider this your final warning, it read. What could that possibly mean? She’d done absolutely nothing to warrant any message of that sort. Unless…
~
Lily rubs her eyes furiously, ignoring the fact that it would likely only make the sudden pain worse. She looked around, baffled by the phenomena that had just occurred. It was as if all light had been stripped from the world, leaving nothing but bleak, hopeless, shadow-filled silence in its wake. She glances at Maeve still sitting on her lap. She looks alright, eyes a little shocked from the sudden change in illumination, but otherwise fine. Or at least it looked like it, until she realized Maeve was staring intently at her grandmother, who looked like she had just seen a ghost. Tracing her grandmother’s gaze, she realized that she was staring at something just outside the house. It was a balloon. On it lie the words, Consider this your final warning. What was going on? What wasn’t her grandmother telling them?
~
Maeve feels like she’s about to cry. She’s beyond confused, and so lost in the current scene. She looks up at Lily for help, but Lily is busy staring at their grandmother, who is white as a pearl. She looks like she’s just seen a ghost, which, in Maeve’s six year old mind, is entirely possible. Her ears are still ringing from some presumably booming loud noise, but she has no recollection of what it was. No one is talking, leaving the perfect silence, aside from the ringing in her ears, intact. Feeling somewhere on her top lip, she licks it, recoiling at the taste of salt. Pure, moisture absorbing, salt. Disgusting. For the benefit of her family, she refused to spit it out. Maeve forced herself to cope with the taste, still completely unaware of what was really going on.

Story total - 1559 words
Weekly total - 2387 words

Daily 3/30

Guess the object, 101 words total/

It comes in many different materials and types. A polished instrument of wood or plastic, adorned with numerous silver or gold keys. It is tubular at the top, extending into a bell at the bottom. As you play it, a rich, complex sound fills the air. How such a small woodwind instrument can produce such a beautiful melody is unknown. Perhaps it is the mouthpiece, a double reed - two delicately carved pieces of wood that vibrate to release sound. It is smaller than a clarinet but longer than a flute. It can be played in orchestras, symphonic bands, or marching bands.