༺═─── daily 29 ───═༻

beginning: two women are holding hands
conflict: your character is running away from something
setting: the Eiffel Tower
climax: a duel with the antagonist
ending: “the d!ad person was your character”

༺═── word count; 540 ──═༻

On a bench under the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, two women are staring at each other as if they have been begrudged such pleasure for years. One tickles the other's hand, rubbing her palm against the others palm and then, when it is clear that the action is not prohibited, she runs her fingers over the lines in the first's hand.

“I really like you.” Marie whispers into the ears of her beloved, who flinches. She splutters. “Excuse me?”
“It's not your fault, but I have to go.”
“But?” Marie stands up, pressing Emer against the back of the bench, who meets her gaze with a cold stare.
“There's no ‘but’. I have to go. It's nothing to do with you.”
“Wow, I'm definitely not taking offense.”
Emer pushes Marie away from the bench and stands up, walking forward with the professional air of someone trained to reject.

In the distance, a shadowy figure is striding towards Emer, hands clasped around a pen.

Emer has been running. She has been running for too long and she wishes to cease. She had allowed herself a minute of imagining, of wishful thinking, and he showed up again.

She is tempted to turn and to meet her problem's head-on, but she is too scared. She is too used to running.

It is by chance that he corners her. It is by chance that they both hold forward a weapon, and by chance that they both know how to wield it.

They speak in bitter breaths, wheezing as they hit the daggers against each other with the dull ‘thunk’ of unpolished metal against another.
“I'm disappointed.”
“Oh, so am I. Stalker, are you?”
“Only when it seems necessary.”
“The last four years have been necessary?” Emer's voice is filled with disbelief.
“Depends how you perceive it. Some,” The daggers clash, causing Emer to stumble backwards and Marie, from the sidelines, to pace a couple of steps closer. “Would say that it is necessary, in fact.”

Oh no, Marie. Emer's mind objects, for once acting protective. But it's too late for her to get attached, correct?

“I don't.” She flashes the dagger in front of him, when all of a sudden, she stumbles and falls. Marie watches. Marie doesn't help.

“Please.” Emer whispers, but only the wind hears her.

A little spectre watches from the top of the Eiffel Tower. It is coiled around a metal beam, watching the events unravel from afar.
“Poor girl.” The ghost murmurs, but Emer cannot yet hear them. At least she has their sympathy as Marie turns away, walking with a hard-set expression on her face. The weather is not the perfect type for a ghost to be hovering around the Eiffel Tower, waiting for someone to join them in the afterlife – but, then again, there is not exactly a right time for such an occurrence.

This ghost has seen many deaths in their time in the afterlife. They have grown used to seeing the look of pure weakness in someone's face when cornered. But Emer does not have that look: she looks more determined. As if she can run away from this, somehow. Maybe.

The ghost is waiting. How long do they have to wait?

Weekly
Submission Code :
PATHS TAKEN: 5-3, 1-3, 9-3, 6-4, 4-2, 3-1, 102-1, 2-2, 82-3, 7-4 | SABOTAGE RESULTS: 3- S;9- S;6- S;1- S;5- S;2- S;7- S;4- S;8- S | ENDING: best
2353 words

Once upon a time there was an alien named Zay from planet Zork Zek. He works for an investigating team on his planet and tries to find new things to use and explore. He is in a team of five aliens that work together to investigate. There are seven teams in total so sometimes different teams will work together on projects. At that moment Zay packed up his things and went home. Then he made himself some dinner, put his clothes and stuff he needed for the next day together, got ready for bed and fell fast to sleep ready to do more investigating. The next day Zay got up and set a goal for himself. “I will find and investigate at least 15 things In the next 2 months!” he said happily. That was a lot because it usually takes a while to find things. He got to work and went to the meeting room for a meeting. They went around the table taking turns talking about goals they had for themselves to work on. When it was Zays turn he said the same thing he said to himself that morning. His boss commented and said “That is a very good goal, it might be hard but I think that would be awesome.”. The meeting ended and they all went to lunch. Zay talked to his boss telling him that he would work extra hours and do almost anything to accomplish this goal. His boss said that it would be a good lesson to never give up and keep trying. Zay agreed and said that he was very determined to finish this goal. After lunch Zay and his team went to look at some new inventions they might be able to use that other aliens in his job were making, packed up and went home for the day. The next day Zay's team and two other teams get called to a mission on the Purple Desert. They will be sleeping in cabin bunks for the next week because it is very far away. The teams put all of their bags into two Ships and get sorted into a ship. Each ship has 8 beds to sleep on and a robot flies the ship. They all get in and start to fly. The whole day they were in the ship resting, eating and making sure they had all of the equipment. Then they finally got to the Purple Desert, unpacked,and went straight to bed for the next day. That night Zay fell into a very deep sleep and when morning came no one could wake him up. The aliens in his cabin took him to the doctors room. The doctor checked his body making sure everything was ok. Then finally he woke up and his team members were so happy to see him. “Who are you?” he said and his team members got worried. They asked the doctor if there was anything she could do so he can remember them but she said that I would have to find an orange crystal that is only on the Purple Dessert and is super rare. His team was determined to find it and help Zay be back to normal again. While they went to look for it, Zay stayed in the doctor's office. Then the next day they had great news and they said they found it so the doctor made the mixture and gave it to Zay. He fell asleep but when he woke up he was normal and everyone was happy. Later when Zay finds out what happened to him he gets a little scared and asks if he can take half of the day off. His boss says yes because of what happened and he might want a little time to recover. He lays in his bed and plays a scene over and over of what happened. He thinks of how fun this mission will be, daily, and other things to make him happy. After some time he goes out to work for the rest of the day and is ready to investigate and find different things on the rest of his mission. By the end of the next day he feels perfectly fine and even excited that he found two things. Zay wakes up from his alarm clock and realizes it was all a dream. He was so worried that it actually happened that he was about to not go to his first day at work. He gets everything ready and goes to work.Once he got there he got greeted at the door and followed his boss for a tour. It looked way different than it did in his dream. All of the aliens there were nice and he had a great time. His real job was an engineer and he would make gadgets for the investigators who go out and investigate 3 times a week to investigate and find new and interesting things. After his work ended he went home super happy and excited. “I am so happy and glad that my dream was just a dream” He said to himself while pouring soup into a bowl. Once he finished eating he washed the bowl and then went to tidy up his little house. Then he puts his clothes out for the next day, gets ready for bed, and falls asleep as fast as possible so tomorrow can come even faster. When his alarm rang he got dressed, ate breakfast and went to work super happy. Over the past month Zay had made friends with his boss and some of the investigators. His best at work friend was named Timmy and he was an investigator. Timmy would hang out with him and they would tell each other secrets. One day Zay came in and had important forms to give to his boss but his boss wouldn’t be at work until 10:00 so Timmy said he would put it somewhere safe. Zay watched him do it and he did but when he went to get to his engineer station Timmy grabbed the money out of it without him knowing. When his boss came in, Zay told him about the money and the paperwork that he had to give to him so his boss followed him. When he picked up the paperwork the money was gone! “Oh no! Someone took the money!” he said. His boss was furious. Zay followed his boss right to the security cameras and saw that Timmy took it. So his boss stomped his way to Timmy and said “Hand over the money!” “No!” said Timmy. Then Timmy said “I already spent it on the vending machine.”. His boss said that all of his money he made this month would go to Zay and he would be arrested for at least 30 years and he would have to go to court. Once that night he was going through old pictures and saw one of him with his mom and dad. He had missed them so much ever since they died in a plane crash. He felt happiness and warmness throughout his body. The next day at work he had a meeting with his boss and his boss telling him that Timmy had been arrested and gave the money back to Zay. His boss was very sorry for him. Zay told him about the memory about his parents and him as a kid and told him it brings him happiness. Right before he left for the day he told his boss he will be taking the day off tomorrow and then left for home. The next day he woke up and decided to go to the park that he went to when he was little and have a picnic. Zay had fun watching aliens surf and swim on the beach. After that he went for a walk and looked at some more old pictures. Then he ate dinner, got ready for the next day and for bed and went to sleep. He had a dream that he was a little kid again and was at the park with his parents and when his alarm went off he was very happy and warm in his heart. At work he started working on a weight detector and you set it to any weight and it will beep if it is that weight or higher. That night he had another bad dream. He was coming home from work and Timmy came in right behind him,pinned him to the wall and stole all of his money and valuable things. It was more scary to him because a lot of the valuable things he has are pictures of his parents or things from his parents that he would never want to lose. The next day at work he tried to forget about his dream but he couldn’t so he decided just to keep working and not focus on it. That night he had a dream almost the exact same and Zay was tired of it so this time he decided to work the whole time and not think about it. Then that day he was about to start packing up when he just finished the weight detector. Then the next day investigators took it out to try and it worked perfectly. The next month at work went very well and Zay even got awarded “The Engineer Of The Year” award. Zay also stopped getting bad dreams and started making a lot more inventions. After being at work for a while whenever he was home he was a little lonely so Zay went to the pet store and got a flying dog so he wouldn’t be bored or lonely. Then the next day he went to work and felt bad for leaving his flying dog Zop Zop alone so asked his boss if he and his group could build an area for pets to play while you are working and he said that it would be awesome so one year later it was done and Zay could finally finished. Once the next day ended his dog was super happy. Zay could finally work without feeling bad about Zop Zop and knowing that he is safe. One day Zay had to submit to being a scientist for one week because either they were sick or on a trip so he did and he enjoyed it. Two days later he found out how to make potions and when the scientists came back into office Zay showed them how to make different potions. The next day right when he was walking to the engineer space he got awarded employee of the year for helping in a different job and finding something new. He got a trophy, certificate, and got more money for working. Zay now works for the whole building and will help out with any job if he needs to. That night he had the same dream again but he was not as scared and more used to the dream now. It has now been three months since Zay had been awarded “Employee Of The Year” and Zay has helped out in many places around work. He has helped the investigators in a mission in the Purple Desert and his boss took care of Zop Zop. They were looking for a device that can transport anything to any of its other locations. The investigators looked everywhere but could not find it but then right before they were going to leave They saw something in the distance so they ran to it and found it! Zay had also helped out in the Pet center and Zay really liked that because he could see Zop Zop and he thought it was a very fun job. Zay got to even play with the animals and teach them different tricks. One day Zays boss got really sick and had to leave work. Every day Zay and the aliens at work would go visit him but a few days later he had sadly died. The next day Zay had gotten a letter in the mail informing him about the funeral in two days and being the new manager. So he went to work and became the new manager, still sad about his boss. When the funeral came he dressed up and brought Zop Zop with him everyone at work was there. That day they were all very sad and some had cried. A few weeks later not as many people were talking about it and things got back to normal. Zay still helped out in some jobs from time to time but he had to get to a lot more meetings so he didn’t always have time to help out. Zay still had that dream some nights but he didn’t get as scared as he used to get when he first started having the dream. Once his boss had died everybody brought something that reminded them of him to a table with his picture and anyone could go there at any time to see him. One year later They had made the facility twice as big because of all the people coming for a job. They got some vehicles that you can drive around inside the building to get from place to place faster. The other big update that happened was that the investigators go on at least one short mission every day or they go to a longer mission which usually takes a few days to do. Zay now lives with Blue and they recently got an alien baby girl. Things at the facility started changing really fast and more things had been happening. Zay works from home two days a week to help out Blue with the baby and almost two years later they had another Baby alien. On the Weekends Zay was never bored any more and helped Blue do more things. Blue works part time at the facility now too and they switch off every day of who is home and who is not but at the end they all lived happily ever after.

I kick at the mud puddles with my boots. It's been years since I did that, but for some reason I really want to right now. I smile as Jessica, walking beside me, starts to do the same. Two high school seniors kicking at mud. Must be a strange sight. But we don't care.
Jesica's not wearing boots though, so within minutes her running shoes are soaked through.
Good thing she's laughing about it. Jessica at age eleven would not have done the same.
We approach the local library, lit up on the inside with a golden glow that contrasts the grey gloom of rain we're experiencing currently.
We pull our umbrellas closed and step inside. There's a celebration inside. There's never a celebration inside. I say as much.
“There is when we made it to the finals,” Jessica points out.
She does make a very good point. I nod. “I came here for quiet tough.”
“Says the person dating Felix,” Jessica mutters teasingly.
I roll my eyes. “Shut up.” She is right though, for being a quiet library girl, Felix is not the person anyone would imagine being my boyfriend. But I like him. A lot. Besides, it's fun to mess with people, go against their expectations.
Felix, for one, happens to be here. His head shows up suddenly in between Jessica's and mine. “Hey.”
Jessica and I both jump, stumbling back. Jessica even screams for a split second before dissolving into a fit of giggles. And she isn't the only one laughing. In such a small town, there are only eleven kids in our grade, and we've been friends basically since birth. We all go to school in the next town over, which is significantly larger, but when we're right at home it's just us.
As soon as I recover from laughing, I turn directly to Felix and say, “You have to win.” I don't phrase it like an option. It isn't one, not really. But what I mean, and when he knows I mean, is that we'll forgive him for startling us if he wins. Which is harsh and I know it. But it's a joke and he knows it. As I said, friends since birth.
And here comes one of our other friends since birth, Shelly.
“Iris! Jessica! She calls out to us. I didn't know you were coming!”
“Well we didn't know there was a party,” I retort.
“Um actually I did.” That's Jessica.
I turn on her. “You! You…”
But she's smiling. And she's my best friend. There's no way I can tell her off.
“I'm going home,” I say.
Felix, Shelly, and Jessica all instantly protest.
“Fine. Fifteen minutes.”
I spend the fifteen minutes watching Felix and Jessica play Jenga while Shelly keeps us going with a steady supply of cookies from the snack table.
And of course it's on Jessica when the tower collapses. And it's also been fifteen – seventeen, really – minutes.
“Ah, no!” Jessica calls. “Rematch!”
“Come on, let's go home,” I protest. “It's been fifteen minutes and you're finished!” (511)

Day #29


Part -1
Beginning: Your character commits arson
Conflict: your character is running away from someone/something (literally or figuratively)
Setting: The dusty tunnels underneath an urban metropolises,
Climax: they meet someone they haven't seen in years, only to lose them immediately
Ending: Your character learns how to stop running and face their fears

Part -2
1863 words

Beginning: the character gets accepted under an apprenticeship @-JadeFox-
Conflict: Character sees a supernatural @shes-a-lady
Setting: Ice Caps of Polar Regions @Cherrie_Tree
Climax: Character summons a powerful (and possibly magical/supernatural) force from within @Sandy-Dunes
Ending: bright pink fairies arrive @MoonlitSeas

Icy cold sheets blasted a lone figure stumbling through the snow. They clutched their cloak closer to themselves, stumbling forward. Peering through the whiteout, they could just make out the warm golden glow of the cottage. After heavy step after step, gouging deep footprints on the snow, the lights grew brighter as they neared the house.
They slammed their shoulder against the door, stumbling in as it gave way.
“You’re late!” a voice yelled from inside the cottage, “And shut the door, for Aurora’s sake - you’re bringing half the blizzard in with you!”
“It’s great seeing you too!” they called over the howling wind, shoving the door shut.
The Hermit grumbled as she saw the snow her new apprentice had spilled across the ground. What was their name again? Vane perhaps? Vade? Something beginning with a V, at any rate.
“Your first task,” she said, “Is to clean up this mess,”
“Yes ma’am!” they straightened up and saluted the hermit. They glanced around, looking confused, “Uh… how do I do that exactly?”
The Hermit rolled her eyes and chuckled, three parts annoyed and one amused. She snapped her fingers, sending a broom toppling into her apprentice's hands.
“Can I just say-” the apprentice (she really did have to figure out their name) said, “What an absolute honour it is to work with you, the Hermit! The magic-wielder of the Northlands! The most powerful-”
“Less flattery, more sweeping.” the Hermit ordered.
Her apprentice (really, it was terrible form to select an apprentice without knowing their name) nodded and jumped into work, sweeping away the ice sheets with enthusiastic vigour.
“It’s just a dream come true!” they continued babbling.
“No offence, but I don’t recall your exact name,” she said slowly, “Actually I can’t remember it at all.”
The apprentice seemed unperturbed, “No worries, it’s Vance.”
“Vance,” said the Hermit slowly, testing the name on her tongue “A fine name. You’re going to be a great apprentice. Now get back to sweeping!”

Vance was one of the few people in the Northlands who truly loved their job.
Working with the Hermit herself was everything it was cranked up to be and more. Vance still had a hard time believing that they, out of all the candidates lined up, was the one selected.
Sure, the apprenticeship involved more dusting and sweeping than magic-wielding, but spending time with the Hermit was such a joy. A normal conversation between them would go something like this;
“Have you finished those pots yet? No? Well, move it then - I don’t have all day!”
“These are cauldrons aren’t they? For making potions?”
“Yes. Although not for long if that disgusting mould is growing on them. Wash it off!”
“You actually make potions in these! No way! Can you teach me? What kind of potions?”
“None of your beeswax, kid.”
“That’s so interesting!”
“Less talking, more scrubbing.”
But Vance knew all the scrubbing in the world would be worth it when the real magic began. The Hermit was just busy, and reclusive. She wasn’t used to having people around.
And finally, the day arrived.
“Why are we going outside?” Vance asked, sheltering their face from the wind. As always, there was wind in the Northlands, throwing the snow into patterns in the air.
“Because it’s the perfect condition for you to learn your first spell.” the Hermit said.
“My first spell? Really? You mean it?” Vance bobbed up and down in excitement, “Wait- is a snowstorm really the best condition for a spell?”
“Indeed it is. The spirits of nature are one edge, the world can change with a single push.’ she turned to Vance, almost smiling, except the Hermit never smiled, “I want you to provide that push.”
“Really?” Vance’s eyes were shining stars. The Hermit watched as they danced in excitement, something almost melancholy in their expression.
“Really. But you must do exactly as I say,” she crouched on the ground, sketching out a circle in the snow, “That is a spell circle, the most basic type of magic-wielding.”
Vance peered at it, “Isn’t it… just a circle?”
“It’s not what it looks like, but the intent and the focus that counts,” she pulled Vance down next to her, holding their hand in hers, and traced out another circle.
“Now watch, and concentrate.” she ordered. Slowly, she pressed her palm to the frosty ground, closed her eyes, feeling the wind on her skin and the pull of magic unspooling from the Auroran Sky. The circle lit up and she focused her mind on spring, on bright sunshine and dancing flowers.
There hadn’t been a spring in the Northlands for centuries.
But now, slowly, a yellow flower sprouted up from the rock solid ground, right next to the Hermit’s hand.
Vance gasped, “How did you do that?!”
“It’s all in the intent and the focus, now you try.”
Vance could feel the icy ground pressing against their knees. The wind whipped at their cloak and brushed dark curls of hair into their face whenever they tried to concentrate. They groaned in frustration, ripping their hand away.
“Think!” the Hermit barked, “Visualise! Spring, flowers! It’s not that hard!”
But it was that hard. What would the Hermit say if they couldn’t do it? Vance had been looking forward to this apprenticeship for months, they had wanted to learn magic for as long as they could remember. But what if they couldn’t? What if that made the Hermit hate them, and what if they couldn’t perform even the simplest spells and what if, what if-
“Vance stop!”
Vance realised that they were pouring all their worries and desperation into the spell, warping the circle. Instead of glowing, like the Hermit’s did, it turned a deep shadowy black as the light began to bend away from it. Their hand was stuck to the ground, frozen shut.
Something was forming in the shadows, something bright and glowing.
The glow was captivating, magical. Almost supernatural. And more importantly- alive.
Vance jumped, the spell was working! Something was happening! “Hermit, I’m doing it!”
“NO!” Vance felt a painful jerk at his elbow as the Hermit yanked him back. Muttering an incantation under her breath, she hastily drew her own spell circle.
The shadows and whatever light that was pulsing under Vance’s circle vanished into nothing.
“Why did you do that it was-”
“Silence!” the Hermit ordered, whirling back around to face Vance, “What in the Auroran Skies did you think you were doing?”
“I was just doing the spell circle like you-”
“I said focus and intent, not wild emotion! That was dark magic Vance!”
Vance stumbled. Dark magic. Dark magic didn’t, not anymore. The Hermit had to have been exaggerating.
“I was only casting what I felt,” said Vance, trying to remain calm, “How is that dark?”
“Because emotions are dangerous, you idiot!”
“But it was so easy,” they protested, “Dark magic shoudln’t be easy.”
“No it shouldn’t, that’s the problem isn’t it?” she began pacing up and down, muttering under her breath, “I knew you were different when I saw you. Powerful, not like those other fluff-headed hopeful apprentices. But an afinity for Dark magic, of all things! That’s never been heard of!” she peered at Vance, studying the child up and down, “That spell you were casting might have been the most powerful I have ever-”
A thought sliced accross the Hermit’s mind. This child had only accessed thier reserves of Dark magic because of her. It had been her who had shown them how to make a spell circle. And if such a basic kind of magic turned powerful and dark so easily at their hands… the Hermit shuddered at the thought of what they could do with more complex spells.
She would not risking raising a Dark magic-wielder.
“This apprenticeship is over.” she declared.

Vance had tried to argue, to protest, to talk her out of it. But the Hermit of the Northlands had a fierce temper and an iron will, nothing they said would change her mind.
They sighed, trudging down the path home. The aurora spun it’s multicoloured ribbons across the sky. But even that couldn’t cheer them up.
They had come all this way to learn magic, only to be kicked out for messing up a single spell. It wasn’t fair. Now Vance had to go back down South, to the dull and dreary flat places where nothing ever happened.
They sighed, flopping down on the hard, cold ground. They would miss the Northlands, that’s for sure. They had come to love it, coldness and all.
Almost absently, they drew a spell circle on the ground. They didn’t activate it, the Hermit had expressly forbidden them from doing magic ever again.
Then again, why should they listen to her? Vance was curious about the pulsing glow in his last spell, and it wasn’t like the Hermit was their master anymore. And there was no way it was Dark magic, was there? The Hermit was just ebing paranoid.
Vance could do what they wanted now. No more pots to clean or floors to sweep.
They pressed their palm on the centre of the circle, pouring in their exasperation, sadness and pain.
The light began to pulse again, the rosy pink colour of the aurora above.
Vance smiled as the light took a shape.
A small nimble body, pale fluttery wings, a harsh mischevious smile and sharp eyes.
The rose couloured fairy danced through the air, fluttering around Vance’s face.
“Whoa!” Vance gasped, feeling a spark of energy and triumph. So what if the Hermit could make flowers, they could do this! They could make life itself.
Vance proceeded to draw another circle, then another.
The air was full of magic.
How could this be dark? It was just power. Beautiful, incredible power.

The Hermit had an itching feeling that something was happening.
Her cottage was quiet, too quiet. It had been quiet ever since she’d sent Vance away.
She had too, at least- that’s what she told herself. It was for the greater good, and for their own. But it was quiet without their babbling and working, and the Hermit didn’t like that.
Then she realised that it was quiet for a very different reason.
There was no howl of the glae across the house, the windows didn’t rattle, the roof didn’t creak under the weight of incoming snow.
Oh. Oh no.
The wind had died.
But there had always been wind in the Northlands. Right?
A centuries old memory tugged at her mind. She gasped in realisation, stumbling out of the door into the silent night.
There, on the horizon, a cluster of pink orb rose into the air. Each one was a little winged demon that would destroy the world she knew and loved.
The Hermit was shaking. This was her fault. Vance had done this because hse had failed to teach them, failed to think of a way to keep them safe and had tried to keep herself safe from them.
She was the reason Vance had gone Dark. They didn’t even know what horrors they were creating.
She was the reason, and these were the consequences.

swc weekly 07/29/22

WIP

story beginning :
I could almost sense her presence moments before she'd walked into the room.
She wasn't ordinary.
She was a surprise.
No one had been expecting her, because ordinarily, when one is to arrive at the Council, one would inform of it at least 3 days before. But she hadn't.
Just by that, you could recognize her rebellious spirit.
No one in the Council appreciated rebellion or anything of the sort. They believed in a delicate structuring of society. They had built it in a very careful manner, ensuring that any nuisances or risks that would harm the people would be eliminated.
Of course, they couldn't do anything about the people who had become nuisances and potential risks.
So when this girl walked in, unexpected and a fiery spirit threatening to engulf their intricately crafted world, immediately they dismissed her.
Prepared to eliminate her.
(+143 words)

(throne room) flashback :
Various hues of red, orange and yellow overwhelm my vision, reminding me that time has passed and it is autumn, yet again.
Seasons and time have slipped by in rapid motion that when I awake this morning, I cannot help but be shocked by discovering a year has passed.
When the incident had happened a year ago, I was stuck. Confined in a realm of time in between the present and the past, crying away seconds, then hours, then months. Time was in a race, clearly losing. I thought I would never be able to move on. That, by a year from then I would remain unchanged.
I certainly surprised myself there.
I don't quite remember the transition to the present, but the memories of the fall of 2008, the previous year, are still fresh in my mind.
It was a fresh, crisp autumn day. Bright-colored leaves dancing in the wind. Similar to this day in every way, except, he isn't here.
He was like a dream in my harsh reality. Sometimes I question his existence, because he was just so radiant and magnificent that it felt too good to be true.

But it was. Everything was real, from his perfectly angular jawline and his soft brown and his beautiful black hair to his gentle persona and caring demeanor.
And his death.

It had all started the day we met.
I was running late to work and so was he, and just when the bus we both were running after had abandoned us, we stopped and noticed one another. It was like destiny.
“You running late too?” he had asked, quite shyly.
“I wouldn't be running after that bus otherwise, you?”
“Yeah but you know what? It gives me the perfect excuse to skip work today”
“That's actually brilliant, I might just steal that idea of yours.”
We laughed at our misfortune, our heartbeats gradually increasing every second spent together.
It would have led to love, maybe, if his hadn't stopped beating. If his hadn't died.
(+336 words)

(battleground) motive :
She trembles, trying to veil her shakiness, her fear; but it is so painfully clear and difficult to unsee.
I know she is this way because of me, that I have caused this pain, that however I try to help her, she will refuse. But I can't help it. I can't help but hold out my hand to her, to say to her, “It will all be okay” even though it never will be, and it's all my fault.
“No! No it won't, it won't be okay,” she crumples, folding herself with her arms around her knees, her head buried in her chest. “Don't lie to me. I can't take it, I just can't take it anymore!” she wails, her voice cracking and succumbing to the impending sob.
“You have to understand- I did it for you. I had to betray-”
In broken sentences, but confidently, she exclaims, “YOU HAD TO!? TELL ME, DID I ASK YOU TO DROP A BOMB ON AN INNOCENT VILLAGE?” she gulps her tears, straining her vocals. “I-I never wanted this. I told you, you don't need to protect me.”
“I have to, you know that. It's my duty.”
“It's also your duty to protect the people, is it not? The people who you so mercilessly killed.”
“No, please, I-”
“Face it, brother. You're a monster.”
And with that, she whips out a dagger, bears it in her hands and strikes me in the heart. I never would have seen it coming, my own sister, the one to have my blood in her innocent hands.
But still, I love her. I did it all for her.
And I don't regret it, not a bit.
(+279 words)

(dining hall) horror for 5 min :
The corridor is particularly cold that night, and you can't help but shiver. You wish it was warmer. Your spine tenses, and its's not because of the unreasonably high AC, but because of the impending terror that awaits you.
You can almost sense the danger, yet instead of escaping, you walk towards it, entranced. Your mind has been taken captive and you are slave to the possessor. You continue walking until you reach an oven that has been preheated to 400 degrees, and unwillingly open the latch and step inside.
You suddenly regret wanting warmth, and flames engulf you as you melt in the overwhelming heat. Just as you are about to diminish to wax, you hear a cackle. A voice booms, saying, “Foolish human”
(+126 words)

(boring rooms) realizing it was a dream all along :
the sun generously offers it's rays of light to me, and greedily i seize it. it has been so long since i felt warmth, light. back then, it was almost impossible to…
Wait.
Back when? The light in my eyes vanishes and is replaced by a much dimmer one. The first thing i see is a hospital light hovering over me. then, 5 faces, all having a countenance of shock and sadness. They immediately start speaking and the most i can make out is,
“Rowan! Y-you're awake!”
“You have no idea how long we've waited…”
“Oh we missed you so much!”
“Good to have you back old friend.”
“Rowan? Do you remember us?”
Countless faces surround me all speaking in an exciting motion, but I can't pinpoint who is who, which voice belongs to; everything feels out of grasp.
It's as if something is beckoning me towards it, but it is moving so fast that despite how hard i try, i can't seem to follow it.
I keep expecting an explanation, something to ignite any old flame inside me. Anything to end this confusion.
I wish I were back under the sun, a simple, relaxing life. But that was just a dream, and i have returned to reality, whether i like it or not. and seeing as to how everyone doesn't seem to notice my confusion, i break the flood of voices and speak up.
“Who are you? And…who am I?”
(+241 words)

(rooftop) “wait, you're alive?” :
It was a perfectly normal day. The sun was shining, the birds were tweeting a merry tune; everything was well. Perhaps too perfect.
That should have been the first sign.
But of course, as oblivious as I am, I took no notice of it. Instead of questioning the suspiciously amazing day it was, I took advantage of it.
That was my first mistake.
Because when one is having a jolly good time, the worst, unexpected things happen at that exact moment. So when he appeared in front of me, you can imagine my reaction without any trouble.
“Hello, May.”
In front of me, was my father. The man who I thought was dead my entire life.
“Wait. You're alive?”
“Always have been, you just thought I was dead. I also presume you even wished for it?”
“Well, after all you did how could I not?” I said, seething.
“You have every right to be mad at me, I won't disagree. But I didn't come here to have a debate.”
“Then for what?”
“I…I just wanted to see you. You're my daughter. I'm your father, I can't help it.”
“Well I can. I don't want to see you, so get lost.”
His cheeks sagged, his eyebrows drooped, everything in his figure seemed to weaken. I couldn't take back what I said, because I meant every word of it. But maybe, just this once, for the old mans sake, I'll do it.
“Fine.” I said.
(+244 words)

(bulletin board) writing prompt from opp. cabin :
“your mother has been acting weird since you're 18th birthday” - @puppycutest
It was the moment I'd blown the candles, the flames that stood so powerfully wavered and trembled until diminishing to smoke just by my breath, had she been acting so…odd. She refused me entry outside the house, forbid me to look in the mirrors. She had never acted this way before. The mother I knew was a carefree, passionate woman who encouraged and motivated me my entire life to live my best, confident self. But this woman, the woman who won't let me or anyone look at myself, she is not my mother.
I refuse to believe it.
But everything else about her remained unchanged. It was as if some spirit had possessed her, some other being replaced my mother. But that couldn't be true. Because in our world, our leaders ensured that no otherworldly creature inhabit our domain. They were all gone. Ghosts, werewolves, vampires. They used to be so common, a simple sight you would see every day. But since their exile, no one has seen or heard of them. Almost as if they'd never existed.
Yet, there's this part of me that still sense their presence. A sort of call that lures me. But mother always said to ignore it, so I did.
So when she asked me the question the week after my birthday, I was convinced that she was truly not my mother.
“Do you hear the call to the wild?” she had asked, standing before a mirror, gazing at it intently.
I didn't intend to answer her question but the words slipped out of me uncontrollably. “Yes. I hear it calling for me”
She then removed the cloth covering the mirror, and I felt relief. I hadn't been allowed to check my hair for days, I couldn't imagine how beastly it might be.
But when I had met my reflection, my concern was not the hair on my head, It was the hair all over me.
My concern was not the beast of my hair, but the beast I had become. Or perhaps, the beast I always was but had never known.
(+348 words)

(workshop room) magical realism for 300 words :


(basement) anxiety for 250 words :




82;6;1;6;/2-2/5-2/1-4/4-2/9-1/3-1/82-1/;298673;0;2;145;3;011001111;

Word War 3:88 words

The people cheered as the flagpole went down. finally, after one hundred years of the Old King, then had finally been defeated. Finally, finally!!! After long, torturous uears of evilness and rampage of hunger and war, he has gone, and peace had finally been restored,

Nobody cared wherever he had a life or not, and nobody cared if he was a human with feelings. All they cared about was the fact her was dead.

But there is always more than meets the eye, and so much more

PATHS TAKEN: 1-3, 2-2, 6-1, 4-2, 5-3, 7-3, 9-1, 3-1, 81-1, 102-1 | SABOTAGE RESULTS: 1- F, 8- F, 9- F, 3- F, 7- F, 4- F, 6- F, 5- S;2- S | ENDING: bad

Weekly 4 – Word count: 3,579 words

Begin a story any way you like.

Emma was a young girl of about 13 who lived an ordinary life with her mom. Emma had a happy temperament and nothing seemed to ever bother her. She steered clear of morbid/dark thoughts. She figured if she had morbid thoughts, she would die sooner. Emma was always happy because she thought she would live a long and great life if she was always jolly and if she enjoyed life. However, things can’t stay perfect forever. Emma knew that but she tried to steer clear of the truth. If she steered clear of the truth, she would be happier. Or would she be happier?

Incorporating features of Dystopian into my writing. (Dining Hall)

This is the backstory of Emma’s life. Emma was a girl who lived in the future, in a mysterious society that blocked out electronics. This society that electronics were bad and that they would kill you, or mind control you. This society wants its people to be obedient, so if electronics told them otherwise, The society would destroy electronics. They decided to solve this problem by not allowing society to use electronics at all. They said that it would be better this way. So, because of the society that Emma lives in, she can’t use electronics like normal 13-year-olds, but Emma doesn’t know the difference. She doesn’t know what it is like to use electronics, so it does not bother her.

Sudden flashback (Throne room – gHosts)

Emma was reading a book like they were required to in the community when she had a sudden flashback of her mother reading to her. Emma loved being read to, and she knew that her mom loved reading to her. Emma was about 6 when her mom pulled out one of the only books allowed in the community ‘The Pilgrims Progress.’ Her Mom read it to Emma and explained what the book meant.

“Mom, I like this story!” exclaimed Emma, “But what does it mean?”

“Well for starters it is an allegory sweetheart, an allegory of the Christian life.”

“What’s a Christian?” asked Emma, she had never heard of the term before.

Emma’s mom laughed, “You’ll find out soon enough sweetheart, they teach about ancient religions in year 2, you are only in year 1.”

Emma smiled, “Well I can’t wait, because I love this book to pieces!”

Emma’s Mom patted Emma on the head, “I’m glad you like learning and reading so much, Emma. You’ll be a real example in our community when you grow up.”


Emma’s eyes widened, “You think so?”

Emma’s Mom smiled brightly, “Yes, now let us keep reading.”

Emma’s Mom kept reading, leaving Emma to listen to the story and think about what she said. When Emma’s Mom finished once again, Emma was distraught.

“That’s all?” Emma asked, her eyes started to fill with tears.

“That’s all for now, I will read to you out of this book again tomorrow night.”

“But, I want more now!”

“Emma, be patient, don’t you want to enjoy the book.”

“Yes-“

“Wouldn’t it be more enjoyable if we savored it a bit longer?”

“I guess…”

“Then let us save it for tomorrow night, okay?”

“Okay.”

Recalling this memory, a small dainty tear fell from Emma’s eyes. How she missed her mother! Whenever she read the Pilgrim’s Progress, she was immediately reminded of her mother and her gentle voice while reading.


Something that was safe is suddenly dangerous for the main character (Host room)

As Emma finished reading the Pilgrim’s Progress for the night. She heard a noise downstairs. As she crept down the staircase, she discovered that someone was downstairs eating her snacks! She didn’t know what to do so she ran out of her house in fright and into the field right outside. The only thing that was guaranteed to be safe no longer was. Emma didn’t know what to do. She sat there and gasped out bitter sobs. Her safe house was now being ransacked and was no longer safe. She didn’t know how things would ever be the same again. But she supposed that they had to be. Suddenly, she heard a creak. She jumped up and saw the burglar escape from the house with a huge burlap sack. Emma went to find the window of her house smashed, and a huge mess. No doubt about it, her house was now dangerous. Now anybody or anything could break into it.

Everything up to this point has been a dream (Boring rooms)

Emma tossed to and fro in her bed and then woke up with a start. Had that all just been a dream? Emma was so confused and freaked out. She went downstairs to find her phone sitting on the kitchen counter, and she went to her mother’s bedroom and found her sleeping soundly. Why was her dream so detailed if none of it was real? All of this confused Emma, as she went back upstairs to bed because it was only 4 a.m. She found ‘The Giver’ between her wall and the bed. She figured that it was probably The Giver that made her dream the way she did. She also had an irrational fear of losing her mother so that probably was part of it as well. Emma really did not want to go back to sleep, the whole thing terrified her. What if she went back to that Dystopian world and never woke up? That would be absolutely terrible, Emma would rather die than go back to this world. She took another book from her shelf called “A Dog’s Way Home.” She figured that she would rather dream of being a dog than living in a dystopian world. As she turned the pages, Emma started to drift off. She needed this sleep because she had a big day the next day.

Character’s main motive is attention and their justification for it. (Other SWC Rooms)

Emma is pretty lonely, living alone with her mom and all, so she is always trying to receive attention from anybody that she could possibly get attention from. Emma realizes that people get annoyed with attention seekers, but things are just so lonely because her mom works all the time trying to support her and Emma. Emma understands this but misses her mother and always tries to get attention at school and other places because she is lonely. Because of this, Emma is hated at school because she always tries to satisfy her teachers and talk to anyone. Emma also gets into certain antics just to get attention. It is annoying of Emma to be like this, but the poor girl is just lonely because of how much her mom works and how much she doesn’t get attention from her. If Emma’s mom wasn’t so busy all the time, Emma would be just like everyone else, and everyone would actually like her because Emma has a pretty likable personality. But because her mom is busy all the time, this leaves Emma with no friends because of her irrational need for attention. If Emma didn’t crave attention so much, she would probably actually have friends.

What makes Emma so special. (Daily team room.)

Emma on the outside seems like an ordinary girl, but there are many traits that make Emma super special. Emma loves animals with all her heart, she has a tender heart for animals that need mending. She even takes care of the animals that she discovers injured behind her schoolyard. Usually, they were injured by the younger boys who threw rocks at them. This makes Emma very upset, and she takes care of them until they are better, then she releases them.

Emma also loves anything artistic. If you put her in front of the mountains with a canvas, and some paint. She can paint the mountains to perfection and include every last detail of what makes them so special in her painting. Emma has a special gift when it comes to painting. She can capture almost anything that has beauty and emotions in a painting. She can even capture the beauty and emotions of an injured animal in her paintings, of course, she prefers not to, but it is one of her many gifts.

Emma loves reading and can be absorbed in a book for hours. Reading takes her mind off the many difficult things in the world. Reading can allow Emma to be in any world she wants to be in. Well sometimes that is not so special because she sometimes has nightmares about book worlds, but most of the time it is very special for Emma to read. It gives her an escape.

Emma is not like your average teenager. She only has a phone so she can communicate with her mom. Truth is, Emma hates being online. Being online makes Emma all groggy and cranky. Emma hates being groggy and cranky and can’t find anything she enjoys doing online, so she usually just avoids being online altogether. She goes online sometimes, but hardly at all. Some people tease her that she came from the stone age, but Emma does not care. She prefers to be offline, and that is another thing that makes her unique.

Emma is very mature for her age. She has a job delivering newspapers to help her mom out, while most thirteen-year-olds don’t have jobs or are too lazy to have jobs. Emma takes pleasure in helping her mom out, she takes care of their dog Sheila and enjoys it. She also cooks and cleans for her mom on occasion. Anything to help out her mom, Emma does, and that makes her very mature for her age.

Emma appreciates the beauty in nature and does not constantly stare at her phone. Like was said earlier, Emma can spend hours stargazing, cloud gazing, anything to do with nature really. Emma loves nature that much, and prefers being out in nature instead of being inside and online all the time. Being out in nature makes Emma happy.

Emma loves knitting things for people, and she will do it willingly. Emma learned how to knit at a young age and will use her knitting skills to her advantage.

These are the traits that make Emma unique: she has a tender heart for animals, she is very artistic, she loves reading, she is not your average teenager, she is very mature for her age, she appreciates the beauty in nature, and she likes knitting things for a good cause.

Emma fears hurt things and that gives her motivation in and of itself. Helping people, and nature also gives her motivation. Emma also fears being on the computer too much.


Character the main character thought was dead is actually alive. (Rooftop)

One day, Emma was coming home from school and was skipping up her front step when she found a man on her front steps, who was of average height, had dark brown hair that was slightly balding, and gentle hazel eyes. He looked so much like her father that she froze in her tracks and shook her head making sure that she wasn’t just imagining him, but sure enough, the man that looked like her father was standing right there. She wasn’t imagining him. Then she realized it was her birthday, her fourteenth.

“Are you some kind of impersonator?” Emma asked the man, staring him up and down.

“Emma, sweetie, don’t you recognize me?” The man asked, looking anxious.

With this, Emma gasped, “Are you a ghost?”

“No Emma, I am right here, and right now… I know I left your mother and you all those years ago, but I’m back to make things right. I guess I decided to come on your birthday.”

Emma gasped; she could not get over the fact that her father was actually alive.

“Mom said you died…”

“She said that at the time to make you feel better. I left you and your mom because I had a midlife crisis. It would have been difficult for your mother to explain. That is why she told you that I died. I am so sorry Emma. I know this hurts you, and I would like to make it up to you.”

“Can I have a hug? To make sure that you are real?” asked Emma, who was still bewildered about the whole situation.

Emma’s Dad laughed and he gave her a hug, with that Emma knew that her father was alive and that she hadn’t lost him. She cried tears of joy into his shoulders, and let him hug and squeeze her. How she had missed her father! She was super happy that he was in his right mind now, and that he wasn’t dead like she thought. That was the happiest day of Emma’s life.


Prompt from a person in the cabin opposite ranking of mine (Bulletin Board)

One day, shortly after Emma’s father came home for good, it was a wet and ominous day. Emma was hurrying home because of the steady downpour that was coming down that day. Suddenly, Emma saw a black, mysterious figure watching her. This alarmed Emma quite a bit, she had no idea who this was and why they were following her. As a car zoomed by, the figure disappeared. Emma sighed a breath of relief. Maybe she had just imagined the entire thing.

However, another car zoomed by and the black figure was there, watching Emma once again. When Emma saw this figure, she wanted to scream. She didn’t know why it was watching her or who it was, but she had a feeling that nothing good would come out of this mess. She didn’t want her life to end, so she tried to hurry home even faster than before.

Another car rushed by, and the figure was gone. This relieved Emma a little bit, but not as much as before because she knew now that the figure was real and that alarmed her quite a bit. She continued hurrying on as another car zoomed by. Once again, the figure appeared and seemed closer to her than before. Emma’s feet felt glued to the ground and very heavy as she tried to walk. This whole ordeal scared her quite a bit, and she didn’t know what to do about it.

Eventually, with another passing car, the figure was gone. Emma breathed a breath of relief, but she wouldn’t have this relief long. Emma continued walking and dreaded the sound of another passing car. But, however, another one passed by and the ominous figure was there again. Emma tried to rush home as soon as she could. She noticed a pattern, a car would flash by, the figure would appear, another car would flash by and it would disappear. She hoped that it would disappear before she got home.

Emma walked quickly home now, trying to run at the speed of light as the figure kept appearing and disappearing. She was so close to home now, and she knew that she would be safer the faster she got there. Eventually, she entered her home in a rush. She was safe now. As another car passed by, the ominous black figure was gone for good.


Incorporating a character from my character’s favorite fandom. (Workshop Room)

One day, Emma was walking home from school when she saw a shorter boy with long hair wearing raggedy clothing, and smoking. Emma did not deem smoking appropriate, so she went over to the boy and told him…

“You shouldn’t be smoking!”

The boy turned his head to her, and she realized that he was Ponyboy from The Outsiders! Her favorite book!

“Oh, my goodness!!” Emma squealed, “Is this really happening?!”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re Ponyboy!!”

“Uh, yeah… How do you know me?”

“I read The Outsiders, and I love it. It is my favorite book!”

“There is no book about me… Unless…” Ponyboy sighed as he looked around him, “Somebody’s probably watching me, or my English teacher published my dang essay!”

“Oh, you’re so funny! I know that you wrote the English paper at the end of The Outsiders.”

“Look… I don’t know who you are, but this freaks me out. First of all, I can’t find Sodapop and Darry, and second of all, my essay was published?!”

“Wait… Why are you here?”

“On a field trip…”

“Wait… This is fishy.” The whole thing shocked Emma, it never occurred to her that The Outsiders could be real.

“Look, can you help me find my way home?” Ponyboy asked, looking anxious.

Emma nodded, “Sure, come on, I’m Emma by the way.”

“And I’m Ponyboy, but you probably already knew that.”

They both laughed, and Emma and Ponyboy started the search back to Darry and Sodapop. They went a long way trying to find them, but they had no luck so far.

“I’m sure they are here somewhere…” Ponyboy said, looking worried.

“We’ll find them,” comforted Emma.

And they did. Emma brought Ponyboy back to Sodapop and Darry, and they were so happy to see him. Emma made her way home on the bus. Weirded out by how her day turned out.

Character feels a sudden burst of nostalgia (Basement)

Walking home after making sure Ponyboy was safe and sound, Emma found her old bicycle while walking towards her house. It was in the driveway near the garage. With this, Emma smiled, her old bicycle brought back a flood of memories to her.

She saw her mother pushing her on her bicycle and making sure that she was safe as she made her way around the block. How dependent on her mother was she! Emma missed those days. She felt as if she had gotten old way too fast. She knew that she was only thirteen, but she knew that she didn’t need her mother to help her with simple tasks such as riding a bike anymore.

Emma sighed and walked inside. She liked being able to do things on her own, but she missed the comfort and assurance that her mother provided her by helping her with every single task. Even with how much she missed those days, she knew that she would never be able to get them back, and that made her quite sad.

Emma walked into the kitchen to get a snack, and while rummaging through the cabinet, she found some old crayons of hers, that she used to make simple drawings with. She sighed, the nostalgia taking captive of her. She missed the days when she was innocent and made simple drawings. She missed the days when her mother assisted her with every task. However, Emma knew that she would never be able to get them back, so she tried to bury the feelings of nostalgia deep inside of her, and get on with her everyday tasks.


Protagonist finds themselves alone with nothing. (500 words)

While Emma was reminiscing about old times, she found herself sighing in remorse once again. She wished things could be as they once were, but she knew that they couldn’t be that way. It was not possible, but it made her very sad. Why did the good times have to slip away from her? This made her upset, but little did she realize that things were about to get a lot worse.

Emma was silently thinking to herself. Missing the old days and reminiscing, she then went to bed. Letting the nostalgic thoughts float slowly in her brain as she drifted off. The next day at school was a hard one. Emma didn’t have many friends because of her attention-seeking habits. Well, Emma’s only friend Kate unfriended her because she felt Emma was holding her back.

This stabbed Emma’s heart with pain. Why did Kate unfriend her? It was so unfair. Emma’s heart stung with pain and was very heavy as she walked home. She reminisced about all the times she spent with Kate feeling a rush of nostalgia once again. Why was she so nostalgic about everything? Emma mourned for herself as she walked home with a heavy weight upon her shoulders.

The suffering and pain didn’t stop here much to Emma’s demise, but when she walked inside the door, she discovered her Hamster, who was named Bacon, dead in his cage. The aura of death smoked the room with dread. Emma let the sobs shake her uncontrollably now. Emma had loved Bacon so, she listened to him run on his wheel when she had done her homework. She would miss his warming presence terribly.

Emma went upstairs and found that her favorite comforter, Teddy a stuffed rabbit from her childhood was gone. Emma sobbed uncontrollably now, it seemed like everything good in her life had disappeared, but little did she know that it was about to get a lot worse.

It was later at night; Emma was waiting patiently for her parents to come home. She was extremely worried about them, and extremely depressed because of the events that happened earlier that day. Emma thought about Kate, Bacon, and Teddy. Nostalgia flooded over her again and she burst into tears once again. What had her life become! She needed the comfort of her parents desperately.

Then she got a call, she forced herself over the phone to answer it. The person on the other end of the phone told her that her parents had died and they would get her into custody at social services as soon as they could. With this, Emma sobbed uncontrollably and couldn’t stop. She sobbed when memories of her parents washed over her. Extremely upset that she would never be able to see them ever again, and get those memories back.

Emma was picked up by social services, with only a few of her original belongings, but she was able to retrieve Teddy, so at least she had one of her comfort objects. But Teddy reminded Emma of her Mom and better times. Nostalgia flooded over Emma as she held Teddy, but she realized that he was her only comfort in the foster system. She read books a lot now as well, books were her only escape from her mourning and nostalgia.

My Weekly
I don't know what I wrote here, I did it in a day and it's really low quality ngl. anyway enjoy :P oh yeah it's 3624 words.

Clover tapped her feet on the ground impatiently, kicking up dirt on the forest floor. Was it an impossible thing to be on time to your own secret meeting? Besides, she was a busy person and frankly didn’t have time to waste time waiting. She needed to finish her art piece and make it just more perfect than it was.
“Are you sure- I mean absolutely positive that they’re even going to show up?” she asked, turning to Spade, her childhood best friend who sat beside her.
“Well I sure hope so!” Spade said, rolling his eyes and tearing a hand through his messy black hair. “I did not just wait around here for an hour to not even do anything or not get picked up by some mysterious force!”
“You know that’s not what the note said,” Diamond cut in, using her best know-it-all voice, poking out from behind a tree. “It only said to wait here and that someone- or something will be picking us up when it’s completely dark, which is still not yet!” She pointed to the glimmers of purple which still tinged the darkening sky.
“And that’s not creepy at all,” Spade muttered, casting dark looks at Diamond's turned back. He rolled his eyes at Clover who echoed his thoughts. Diamond was the worst- to say the very least and to be chosen on this ‘mission’ or whatever was going to be torture. Her family was all important which gave her an imposing sense that she was better than everyone else.
Suddenly a flash of dark light surrounds them and a deep and ominous voice booms,
“STAY CALM, FOR NOT ONE BEING CAN TOUCH THE CHOSEN. DO NOT FEAR FROM ME, FOR THE CHOSEN FOR WILL PROTECT- ”
The voice cut off as if thinking for a moment. Fear was actually the least of Clover’s worries. What- the voice- why- what in the world was going on?
“I WAS INFORMED,” the voice thundered with a hint of concern in its voice. “PARDON ME, BUT I THOUGHT THAT THERE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE FOUR CHOSEN ONES.”
“Chosen ones?” Diamond splutters. “What is this, some kind of cliché prophecy? My father-”
“YOUR FATHER WILL BE DEAD IN A MATTER OF HOURS.” the voice interrupts. “NO MATTER WHAT IMPORTANT CONNECTIONS YOU HAVE, I HAVE EXPLICIT INSTRUCTIONS TO BRING FOUR AND I ONLY SEE THREE HERE.”
“Um- is anyone else confused?” Spade asks. “‘Cause I definitely am.”
“EVERYTHING WILL BE EXPLAINED.”
“When?” Clover asked, speaking for the first time in several minutes.
“SOON.” the voice said, and then the light vanishes, along with the voice, leaving us alone, in the dark, with no information regarding our predicament.
Spade groaned softly. “Can you believe that?” he whispered to Clover, avoiding Diamond’s gaze.
Clover shook her head. “What in the world is going on? The Chosen Four? That- that- ”
“That sounded completely ridiculous.” Spade finished for her.
Diamond huffed loudly, and sat herself on a log across from them.
“Do you have something to say?” Clover asked, crossing her arms at Diamond.
“Well if you must know,” Diamond said. “I-”
“No one must know,” Spade snapped. “If you need attention there are better ways to get it.”
“I don’t need attention!” Diamond said. “But if you guys would shut up and listen to me for one measly second-”
“And why would we want to do that?” Spade asks nastily.
Diamond tossed her dyed-red and blonde ponytail over her shoulder. “Come on! Don’t tell me you don’t see it! I know you guys are like dating-”
“We’re friends,” Spade and Clover cut in at the same time.
“Whatever. Anyway, you guys are like, super close and completely leaving me out of whatever secret plans you guys have! Just include me, for once!”
Spade and Clover glanced at each other, sharing the same look.
“Well Diamond,” Clover said. “The reason we- er, haven’t included you-”
“It’s because you don’t like me, isn’t it?” Diamond interrupted, her voice catching for a moment.
“Um, you’re making it extremely hard to like you!” Spade said. “We get it. Your father and family are super important and noble and you’re better than everyone else. Congrats.” He waved his hands in mock enthusiasm.
“You- you just don’t get it, do you?” Diamond asked. It really sounded like she was going to cry now. “You both- the two of you-”
And she turned and ran off into the dark woods around them. Alone.
In an instant the forest around them seemed to get frightening, but Clover didn’t understand why. Everything was the same except that Diamond was gone, which should make it less scary not any more so. The dark shadows of the trees stretched around them and somewhere in the distance a lone wolf howled. In the back of her mind she thought that this might make a neat art piece but the rest of her was completely and totally petrified. Clover shivered and turned to Spade, who looked just as terrified as she did.
“D-do you think that they’ll pick us up soon?” he asked her, shakily.
“Probably not,” Clover said, unable to mask the fear in her voice. “They needed four, and now they’re stuck with two. I can’t imagine that they’ll be okay with that.”
The night had become quite cold at this point and a blanket of fog was starting to cover the ground, making their shoes damp.
Clover heard a faint squishing sound, somewhere to Spade’s right and she called out,
“Diamond? Is that you? Please come, we’re really sorry and-”
“Oh poor, poor Chosen One,” a snide voice said, one that most definitely wasn’t Diamond. It was the type of voice that would give you goosebumps and cause your heart to beat in your ears. “All alone and afraid. Surely you were chosen wrongly. The Cards wouldn’t be so ignorant, would they?” it whispered.
Spade’s hand shook as he grabbed Clover’s arm and whispered just one word in her ear. “Run.”
And Clover did. She sprinted across the dark forest, looking back every few moments to make sure that Spade was still behind her- and to make sure they weren’t being followed. Every sound she heard made her paranoid and the voice still rang in her mind.
She needed to find Diamond and get home. She didn’t care about the ‘Chosen Four’ or the mission or any of that. She just needed to get out of the woods safely, along with Spade and maybe even Diamond, since she was feeling nice.
“Stop!” a voice rang out, somewhere in front of her. It wasn’t the creepy voice from behind them, or even the mysterious booming one. It sounded like- someone who should already be dead. “Stop, you’re safe now!”
“You should be dead!” Clover cried, slowing down her run. “I don’t want to speak to you!”
“Clover?” Spade panted, running up beside her. “Who- who are you talking to?”
Clover didn’t answer. The voice rang out again in the silence. “Clover, stop. I’m trying to help you.”
“You’re trying to help yourself.” Clover spat. “You’re dead. Haunting me probably. I don’t need this right now.”
The voice sounded hurt and a humanoid figure stepped out of the shadows. “Clover.”
“Ace.” Clover whispered.
The older girl had Clover's long brown hair with streaks of jet black in it. They had different eyes, of the same red-brown color, but the eyes told different stories. Clover’s eyes were afraid, but still stubborn and demanding. Ace, who should be dead, her eyes were commanding and fierce. Something that Clover knew her eyes would never look like.
“I don’t understand.” Clover said. “I don’t understand so many things today. How are you alive?”
“I’m not alive- not really,” Ace said, pulling her jacket around herself. The same one she died in. “I’m just visiting and I’m here to help.”
“You’re here to help?” Spade asked. “Who are you?”
“I’m Ace,” Ace replied. “Clover’s ah… deceased sister.”
“You’re dead?!”
“Not tonight, but I will be in the morning. Now hurry up. We don’t have time to waste!” Ace said, scoldingly. “I left my bag a little ways away, so we need to head back there to get weapons.”
Spade wrapped his arms around Clover who felt numb. “Let’s go with her,” he said. “What’s the worst that could happen?”
Clover nodded, still shook by the events today. “How far do we have to walk?” she asked Ace.
Ace laughed. “We’re not walking, Clover. It’s too far and too dangerous.”
“Then how are we going to get there?” Spade asked.
Ace pointed to a grove of pine trees in the distance where two elegant pegasi were munching contently on the grass.
“You have pegasus?” Clover remarked excitedly. She’d seen the magnificent horses from a distance, when they were at the royal palaces, but she’d never seen one up close.
“I stole them,” Ace said. “From some snobby noble family. They had a few hundred of them, and didn't even notice when I took a couple.”
“But, I thought you needed The Hooves of Truth to tame a pegasus.” Spade said.
Ace snorted. “That’s just a stupid myth made up by the nobles to stop anyone from trying to tame their precious winged horses. The Hooves help, sure, but anyone can tame them.”
“Wow,” Clover breathed, staring at the glimmering pegasus. “Can we- can we ride them now?”
“Of course!” Ace said. “A few of my undead friends are watching them right now, but they can meet you guys later if you want. I know how stressful today has been.”
“It’s fine,” Clover said. “We’ll meet them now. I still have so many unanswered questions.”
Ace nodded and led Clover and Spade over to the grove of trees. Clover didn’t see anyone except for the pearlescent winged horses who she ran over to immediately.
“That’s your sister?” a cool voice said behind Clover.
Clover turned to see a young woman with swishy black hair and a turquoise tunic talking beside Ace. She looked somewhat familiar, but not enough for Clover to recognize her.
“Yes,” Ace said, she beckoned for Clover to come. “Clover, this is Juji, deceased pianist from a few decades ago. Are you still into art Clover?”
“That’s where I recognized you!” Spade said suddenly, before Clover could answer. “Your Jujina Moontouch!”
“That’s what I’m called, yes.” Juji said. She seemed to take a transparent quality for a moment, but then looked completely normal just after.
“It’s just a symptom,” yet another new voice said and another figure appeared beside Juji. He had dark skin and piercing brown eyes which stared at Clover with something… judgy. “It’s a symptom of coming back. We only have until the morning before we must go back to… where we belong.”
Clover nodded although she didn’t really understand.
Meanwhile Juji was starting to describe her death to Spade, who was nodding vigorously and petting one of the pegasus at the same time. “I had just finished the concert and I felt a chill haunting me. I brushed it off and went back up to my private quarters to work on my latest piece of writing- I’m a writer too, when I felt the eerie chill again and…”
Ace interrupted, sounding stressed. “Juji, you’re going to have to finish that story later. I can feel the Monster pacing and we need to leave and get the weapons. Now.”
Clover couldn’t tell what happened when Ace said that, but she was suddenly whipped back in time to the day of Ace’s death. She didn’t know what happened to Ace or Spade or Juji or whatever was of Diamond at this point.
”Where are you going?” Clover had asked Ace who was leaving the house abruptly again for no particular reason.
“It doesn’t matter.” Ace had said, using that older-sister voice that Clover had come to know too well.
“Please tell me,” Clover asked. “I promise I won’t tell Mom! Can I come with you?”
“No, shut up!” Ace said and had raced out the door without giving Clover any more context.
Hurt, Clover sat on the couch crying, waiting for Ace to come back or at least someone to tell her what to do. Ace was supposed to be watching her. Her mom was busy working at the Studio all day and Clover’s father had left the family years ago.
Clover remembered her mother rushing in a few hours later, asking, begging to know where Ace was.
“Honey, you have to tell me! It’s dangerous for her to be out right now!” her mother had said, pacing around their small living room.
“But I don’t know!” Clover said, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Mom, I don’t know!”
And then Ace had burst in the door, acting as if she’d been chased. “Hurry.” she had said to Clover, ignoring their mom. “We need to leave.”
Clover had shaken her head and screamed, “NO! I’m not leaving!”
And Ace had said the same words that she had said before, “The Monster is pacing and we need to go. Now.”
Then the door broke off its hinges and hundreds of armed people ran through the hole in the wall, killing Ace in an instant.
Clover woke up two hundred feet above the ground and shivering in Spade’s arms. She sat up immediately only to realize that she was sitting rather uncomfortably on top of one of the pegasus. Ace sat in front of her, steering the pegasus forward and Spade sat behind her.
Oh shoot, Spade.
“You're finally awake!” Spade said. He sounded really worried. “You passed out right before we were about to leave and,” he coughed. “We weren’t able to wake you up. Juji and Zem are on the other pegasus and we’re heading for another grove of trees. To get weapons.”
Clover blinked; she had so many questions she wanted to ask him. “What happened?” she started. “Where are we going? Who’s Zem? Wait- where’s Diamond?”
Spade shrugged. “Slow down! Slow down! We don’t know what happened. You passed out, but we needed to leave so we got you on here. We’re going to get weapons and fight back against whatever forces are against us. We don’t know where Diamond is and nobody really cares. What do you want with her anyway?”
“Well I don’t want her to die!” Clover said, exasperated. “She’s difficult, yeah, but we can’t just leave her here!”
“Yes we can.” Spade said. “It’s easy.”
“Ace?” Clover asked her sister in front of her. “Could we look for Diamond after we get the weapons? She’s one of the other ‘Chosen Four’.”
“Sure thing.” Ace said. Clover still couldn’t get the image of her out of her mind, telling her about the Monster pacing and then getting slaughtered right in front of her.
A few minutes later the three of them landed at a clearing in the woods. The sky was pitch black by now, but Ace had lanterns which she handed out to them. “Juji and Zem are that way.” she pointed to where Clover could barely make out the other glimmering pegasus.
“And Zem is…”
“The other friend of mine.” Ace said. “He’s great, once you get to know him.”
Clover nodded and followed her sister across the clearing.
All of a sudden a light surrounded her and Spade and the booming voice, from much earlier that evening, spoke once again.
“CLOVER AND SPADE, WE MEET AGAIN. the voice thunders. Ace jumps back and stares at the light surrounding them. “I NOTICE THAT YOU LEFT YOUR FRIEND DIAMOND BEHIND.”
“She’s not our friend.” Spade said and Clover elbowed him.
“We were going to look for her after we got the weapons,” she explained.
“WELL THAT’S NOT NEEDED ANYMORE. I HAVE FOUND DIAMOND AND THE FOUR OF YOU WILL BE COMING WITH ME.
“Four of us?” Spade asked.
“YES, DIDN’T I MENTION? I FOUND THE FOURTH CHOSEN ONE AND NOW YOU SHALL ALL COME WITH ME.” the voice booms. And with another flash of light, Clover and Spade whisk off into another realm.

Clover glanced around the empty room they arrived in. There was nothing in it, save for four wooden stools shoved against one of the walls. There were no windows, or even a door. It was like being inside of a wooden crate, except that there was a single lightbulb lighting the room.
Spade sat down on one of the stools and buried his face in his hands. A moment later, Diamond appeared, saw the two of them and sat down as well, facing the wall away from them. Clover copied them. She wanted to cry. After seeing her sister for the first time in years, she was whisked away to sit inside of a dark wooden crate.
After what seemed like hours later, a fourth person appeared. He had dark hawk-ish eyes and salt-and-pepper hair. He was giving the three of them strange looks when the booming voice spoke again.
“I SHALL LEAVE YOU ALL HERE TO GET ACQUAINTED. ENJOY YOURSELVES.”
Clover looked at the new person and asked, “Where do you come from?” She didn’t recognize him, but they might share some interests- art maybe.
He glared at her. “The same place you do. The outskirts.”
Diamond turned around and wrinkled her nose. “The outskirts? That’s gross.”
“It is not gross, it is pleasant,” he replied. “My name is Heart. I am a guitarist and performer there.”
“Oh really?” Diamond asked, sounding genuinely interested. “Okay. Sing something.”
“I do not have my guitar.” Heart responded. As if on cue, a guitar fell from the ceiling and into his hands.
Diamond’s eyes widened. “Huh. I would love a SMOOTHIE RIGHT ABOUT NOW!” Nothing happened. “Ugh, whatever. Just sing something Heart.”
Clover sat down to watch as Heart began to strum. It felt so natural- so real, as he began to sing.
When the river stops flowing
When the trees stop breathing
When the darkness stops following me

When the fire stops pulsing
When the stars stop dreaming
When the shadows stop attacking me

Then, and only then, I will
Fly
Then and only then, I will
Flyyyyyyy
Then and only then, I can
Leave myself and I can fly away
To another place.
I will fly.

Diamond’s eyes widened. “That was- really good.”
Heart bowed his head modestly. “I used to sing to the sirens that lived up there,” he admitted. “They didn’t like to sing anymore. Stop enchanting sailors and fishermen. So I started to sing. It got too silent up there and the sirens were missing their music.”
Clover glanced at Spade, who hadn’t said a word since they’d arrived. He was still sitting with his face in his hands. Clover couldn’t help feeling the same way.
She was afraid, she realized. She was afraid of losing her sister again, after going through the pain of losing her the first time. She wanted the perfect family again. With her mom not having to work late into the night, every day of the week. With her sister, alive and well, hugging her and running around the backyard chasing her. With Spade too, she supposed, living next door to her and bringing his dog outside when it was nice out. But mostly with herself. Clover wanted herself to be the perfect figure that she always dreamed of being. The girl who was pretty and confident and popular. The girl who could tell Diamond off, but was still kind to others, like Heart. The girl who could make a good art piece and show it off and be proud of it without having to point out the flaws. A clever girl who could figure out how to get out of here easily and laugh about it later.
But she didn’t have to be perfect right? That was a silly thing, Spade said it all the time. He would say she didn’t have to be perfect and would be annoying if she was. She was fine just the way she was with all her flaws. And Clover would never- could never agree. Until now. She didn’t have a choice. And she would find a way out of here and escape with everyone, if it was the last thing she did.
“Diamond,” Clover whispered. “Spade. Heart. Clover- Clubs.”
“What are you talking about?” Diamond snapped, looking at her.
“The person, the one who was following me and Spade. He said that ‘the Cards’ chose wrongly. Or something like that. But they didn’t. Because I think that we are the Cards.”
“What does that mean?” Heart asked. Clover saw Spade look up at her.
“It can mean whatever we want it to mean.” Clover said. She pointed to each of them as she spoke. “Diamond, Heart, Spade.” She pointed to herself. “Clover, club. Same thing really. The Cards can be a team. A pact. A friendship. A group of individuals, fighting for what’s right. Or it could be a book club. Or literally anything.” She turned to Diamond again. “Diamond, me and Spade are really, really sorry for making you feel left out.”
Diamond rolled her eyes. “It’s fine, whatever. I’m sorry for… whatever I did to make you upset.”
Spade coughed loudly.
“Are we supposed to… hug it out or something?” Diamond asked awkwardly.
Clover laughed. “Sure, why not?”
The two of them walked toward each other…
And then the roof came crashing down on top of them.


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

Daily
7/29/2022
930 words

Lara plugged in her earplugs and strolled along the winding country street. She looked around at the bright, simple, houses around her, painted in various shades of sunset orange, chartreuse green, baby blue, and so many more. She grinned, tossing her head to the music. School today had been good. Well, as good as it could get, considering it was school. As she wandered down the road away from her school (which was only down the street), she twirled and skipped, deciding to take advantage of the good weather.

Within a few minutes, she came to her own house in the lane, a small but quaint country house painted a light lavender color. Lara unslung her bag off her shoulder and rummaged in it for the key for a few moments until she felt the cool metallic sensation against her fingers. She pulled them out and inserted them in the lock.

She twisted the keys and pulled the door open triumphantly, yanking the keys out, only to suddenly hear the painful screeching sounds of her younger sister crying. Lara sighed. She had been having a good day for once. She hung up her jacket, which had been tied around her waist, closed and locked the door, then tried to stealthily creep toward her room, but her sister must have heard her from her own room, because she yelled, “Lara’s home!”

Lara’s dad opened the door to the hallway. “Hi!” he said cheerfully. “Cynthia needs your help.”

Lara groaned. “What is it? I have homework.”

“I’ll let her tell you. Your mom is still at work, and I need to cook dinner.” her dad said apologetically.

She rolled her eyes but walked into her sister’s room anyway. “What is it?”

Cynthia rubbed her eyes. She was only in first grade, and she loved doing three things: watching TV, taking advantage of her sister, and making things with her friends. “I lost my bracelet!” she sobbed, clutching her head with her hands.

Lara glanced at her dad. “Okay, what am I supposed to do about that?”

“Take her to her school and look for it in her classroom. She said she last remembers having it this morning.”

She was about to groan again (she had just come back from her school — the local elementary school and middle school were combined) but a look from her father stopped her. “Okay. Get up, Cynthia. We’ll go find your bracelet.”

At these words, Cynthia stood up and ran out the door. “Hold up, wait for me!” Lara yelled and ran after her sister. She left the door to the house wide open. She heard her dad yelling thanks after her.

“The things I do for this family…” Lara muttered. She grabbed her coat off the coat rack and tied it around her waist again, closed the door and locked it again, then went running after her sister.

“Cindy, wait up!” Lara huffed, but she caught up soon enough anyway — Cynthia was five years younger, and also a very slow runner.

Surprisingly enough, the running helped them reach the school quicker than Lara thought. Now for the humiliation that was actually talking to the people in the front office and asking them to let Cynthia look for her bracelet. The school was open for a while after it ended due to after-school activities and clubs, so they should be fine, or so Lara hoped.

The two of them entered the building. Lara took a deep breath and entered the office. Cynthia grabbed her sister’s hand, and Lara looked at her with surprise. The office people gave them warm smiles, and she instantly felt more confident. She approached them and said, “My sister lost her bracelet. I was wondering if we could take a look around her classroom before the custodian cleans up for the day.” She leaned over the counter and added in a whisper, “It’s really minor, I know, but she won’t leave it alone.”

“It was a friendship bracelet.” Cynthia added, a stern look on her face.

Perhaps it was the cuteness factor (Cynthia was irritatingly good at making people like her), but the office person agreed to walk them around the school. “You’ll need keys to access the classroom.” she explained.

They ended up finding it hidden in a crack in her cubby. Lara couldn’t help stifling a laugh, remembering the days when cubbies even existed. She would use to stash homework in there and always forget to take it home.

Homework. She had said she had homework, but she didn’t remember taking any home. She had a distinct memory of her science teacher assigning nightly homework for today, but she had no memory of picking it up from the stack. No, what she remembered was chatting with her friends until class ended then following them out without picking up the homework. And she needed to do it. Her grade in Science was…. not great. It needed every boost it could get.

She felt an unnecessary burst of anxiety bubble up to the surface, and just as the office person was in the middle of saying “You’re welcome” to her ecstatic sister, she blurted out, “I forgot my homework, uh, could you also take me to Ms. Mathy’s room? 201.”

The office person nodded. “No problem.”

Cynthia, strangely, didn’t make too much of a fuss about it. She was just stroking her bracelet the whole time. Lara picked up her homework and thanked the office person profusely.

She knelt down to Cynthia. “You've finished. Come on. Let's go home."

And so they did.

Thank you, scripping scraps<3

The majority of this has been written at unruly hours between 12 and 8 in the morning, so excuse my lack of clarity, and long winded rambling (It's currently 4:11am).

Goodness, Script! I don't even know where to start with you, it isn't easy to formulate a string of lexis as to how otherworldly you've all been to me, and that's not even the start. Consistent 6th place! I might have called that, I might have made one of my first comments in the studio a heedless prophecy about how script will never recede from 6th- so I'm assuming this was somewhat coincidence, but also made me extremely warmed, we were in the upper half for all of those cabins, so we were driven! Another otherworldly thing are those profile pictures that Fae had made- I don't think I've said this enough but those were blissfully beautiful, the colour scheme was extremely well matched, their art style was so clean, eccentric, and it really bought the auditorium to some greater light, so thank you so much for such elegance- man. Not to forget the word counting, and our houses! Lio had their hand at counting mine, so I'd like to indirectly apologise for writing literal cascades for the first week in synopsis, I had the highest in this cabin, but that was solely because I knew I'd be away- fatigued and restricted for several days, so I wanted to compensate for all I could- then and there. Otherwise, Lio had been such a kind and hardworking leader, and we as a cabin were so fortunate that they were so active within our discussions, and so helpful to us as a majority, and actually around; some cabins had (co)leaders who happened to not even be there for them at all- who suddenly disappeared with no warning, so those cabins deserve a heck ton of praise, and we, as a cabin, are supposedly effortlessly thankful for all the support we've had from our own leader and co's, which I appreciate highly.

Aside from myself, I'd like to thank you all for your personality. I've had some talks with another cabin (we've passed them now, but when I started writing these monologues- they were still ahead), and they've been telling me how so many of their campers went inactive, and in their word count studios, only 1-2 people need to be managed. Although, coincidentally- this may cause our leaders considerably higher levels of stress, we're not exactly like that, and there are a lot of active, enjoyable, friendly campers around Script. Maybe not as excessive as Mythology or Thriller (those profile pictures are contagious I keep seeing them everywhere- even in my dreams at this rate), but still enough to build what can be a small community of friends, which is quite marvellous, and I'm immensely thankful for the opportunity to converse, to become listened, and to be valued. Validation within Script is such an important part of our conduct and collaboration, so seeing this trait so widely encouraged just revoked that sense of positivity, and it was amazing, really.

Script, at the start of the session, I was slightly bitter, forlorn and ignoble, primarily because one of my favourite individuals, Technoblade, had passed away, but also because I was trying to control myself with the lamest of tones- I kept calling you all “scrip scrap” and kept making offhand- egoistic comments, and even if it didn't seem that way for yourself, I just- I couldn't sit straight and act the way I normally would have, so I'm sorry if I was ever just plain irritating or nonchalant, I tried, and I always wished to apologise for that, so I'm glad I could let it out- I still don't know hoe to feel about the death of someone I never knew- but it hurt all the same. Thank you all for being so kind, unaffected and open.

I honestly just wanted to usher some heartfelt comments on the true meaning of these relations in our cabin towards myself. Last time I was within swc, I had joined, not only due to peer pressure, but also due to an upcoming mock assessment I had to prepare for, so I happened to dissappear for 2 weeks back then, then return- claiming to have written around 12k words (which were able to be accepted, thankfully) as a sign of my efforts, despite not necessarily contributing in cabin wars or any main cabin prompts to any extent; I didn't complete any weeklies, and dailies were simply a delusion I had never wished to even imagine to encounter, to any great of an extent. This session was wholeheartedly different, I completed every daily apart from 6, I completed all the weeklies- I was so active within Script and always willing to talk to another member, which goes to show how much I had grown with SWC as the valiant accompaniment, and with all those at Script (I won't hide this, I miss Contemporary Cafeteria quite a lot and I really wish I could have supported it more than what I truly ended up performing within, but I still appreciate Script members) to unite with and to cherish too. This overarching topic simply defines what I blissfully loved about this session, the support, the overwhelming flood of love after every weekly and daily was written, signed and accepted, all of you would be so bubbly and cheering and it just made me feel so validated and cared for, and that's one of my favourite traits, the inclination towards validation from others, as it is wonderous to witness abundant kindness.

Again, Script, there truly is a lot I wished to say, but overall, I have to conclude with my relentless thanks to Lio, Fae, Piper and Mayhem for developing such a fun, calming environment which I have felt so honoured to participate in, and here's to another few sessions for you all to thrive under, new cabins- and new leaders. Myself? Tentative, I'm primarily unsure whether the November session, or numerous sessions afterwards can really be rewarding, or simply a burden; I truly cannot see myself participating in yet another SWC session, under the burden of exams and growing age, so this may be a thanks, but also a resignation. Thank you so much, all of you, especially Lio (who was in both of my cabins, also the reason I picked Script!) for all you've done to make SWC such a magical fatalistic euphoria.

daily - july 29
words: 756
:shrug:
@legocookie6 : character's first day of high school
@Figurative_Wings : One character is suspicious of another
@RLove10 : Busy city with a lot of buildings
@Sandy-Dunes : Character summons a powerful (and possibly magical/supernatural) force from within
@puppycutest : The characters spends the rest of their days locked up in prison.

I looked up at the large white building, partially intimidated- none of the buildings back in the sky at Kyrel were that size, but it seemed that here in the World Below this was normal. I would have to get used to that, wouldn’t I?
“Hi!” a voice behind me called, and I turned around, trying to not act unsettling.
“Hello,” I said, moving my hand from side to side in the motion that most Below-Dwellers used to greet each other.
“So, it’s your first day, too?” the student asked, and I catalogued that information.
“Yes, it is,” I bent my head up and down- another gesture (nod?) that the Below-Dwellers seemed to use commonly, and I hoped it didn’t look too out of place. The goal was to fit in, not be immediately noted as different.
“What’s your name?” they asked again.
“Maer-len,” I made the same gesture, and they did it back.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Marilyn,” they said, and before I had the opportunity to correct their incorrect pronunciation continued, “I’m Fiona, she/her.”
There was something about the way Fiona said that sentence, head tilted to the side and eyes forced slightly closed, that made me feel slightly unsettled. Like she suspected something… I catalogued that information as well, not wanting to forget something as crucial as that.
“Welcome to Finswell High,” Fiona said with what seemed like a smile, but again something felt off with her. I nodded politely.
“Many thanks,” I said, hoping that the phrase would convey my gratitude for her introducing the building.
Fiona made a noise, bending forward in a reaction that seemed involuntary. “You’re welcome.”
I walked up the layered slabs of concrete that led up to the doors, hoping that I could still get around well without needing to use a gliding spell.
“So, have you heard of the Sky Kingdom?” Fiona asked, and I realized that I had lost a lot of speed in the time between learning spells and now; even though she had started walking later, she seemed to still be able to outpace me.
“Oh, the Sky Kingdom?” I asked, internally wincing at the fact that the name ‘Kyrel’ had been turned into ‘the Sky Kingdom’- though I knew deep inside me that it was fair since we had turned ‘Terris’ into ‘the World Below’. “I heard there’s a lot of clouds up there,” I added, trying to be as vague as possible.
“Hmm,” Fiona hummed, though her deeper tone suggested something else than just what it seemed to be. “So, where are you from?”
“Herane,” I lied- hopefully my research into the history of Herane wouldn’t fail me.
“Herane,” she repeated slowly, as though processing what I had said. I was reminded of myself when I had been younger and still learning about the other cities of the World Below.
“Yes,” I confirmed, and she nodded briefly.
“I suppose I should clarify,” she said with another one of those not-quite-smiles. Not allowing me to say anything else, she pointed her index finger at me. It seemed to be glowing, though I couldn’t quite tell.
“You are from the city which has been the hardest-impacted of all the ones in Terris, and yet clueless about the Sky Kingdom?” she asked, and I felt a flash of panic.
“Yes,” I confirmed again, and the glow intensified.
“Alright, Marilyn,” Fiona said, with what I assumed was a type of calm anger seeping into her voice. “You are under arrest for crimes against Terris.”
I reached out, begging for anything to happen, for the spell-lock to be lifted- anything but this.
Everything that happened next blurred into one over the course of the next few years. All I remember now is that every single energy in Terris suddenly unlocked, my wish granted, and I started running as the world warped around me to help.
But it wasn’t enough, and Fiona caught me. There was a loud noise, and then I opened my eyes in a cell. Another few days, more weeks, and I was there. I’m pretty sure I’ll never end up leaving- the High Council won’t lift a finger. I had assumed they had proper training, proper resources.
This is my plea to you. There is a cube in Kyren that, when shattered, will release every single spell-lock on that floating island. You will need to free them, and the Council will fall. The battles will be over. It will all be solved- just find that cube.
Destroy it.
Free us.

setting: a forest clearing with two houses, one belonging to the main character's family and the other belonging to their friend's family.
beginning: you forgot that you have to go to this humongous important event
conflict: they feel as if they are drifting away from their best friend
climax: your character wakes up again, like it was a dream, on the same day and the same thing happens
ending: they found a safe place and are reunited

The morning air was cool as it rushed in through the window. I’d forgotten to close it the night before, but I didn’t mind. Birdsong wafted through, dancing on the wind and almost playfully batting my curtains, which fluttered in the breeze. I’d fallen asleep reading, and I lay on top of a slightly squished leather volume. “Oops,” I muttered, sitting up and smoothing out the crumpled page. For some reason, with the calm surroundings, the scent of recent rain from outside and the smell of pancakes from downstairs, I wasn’t really groggy, even having just woken up.
I was incredibly hungry, though. Bouncing out of bed, I threw on some clothes and bounded downstairs.
Mom was already there; she was setting the table while Dad made the pancakes.
“Good morning,” she said.
“’Morning!” I chirped, sitting down at the table and unconsciously smoothing down my unbrushed hair.
As my parents sat down to eat, I dug in instantly.
“Ready for Oli’s big day?” Mom asked, taking a sip of her tea.
My fork clattered to my plate. “What?” I yelped.
Looking a little concerned, Dad narrowed his eyes at me. “His race? The one he hasn’t shut up about for the past month?” the words carried his clear amusement and affection, layered on and laced through his tone like the maple syrup on our pancakes.
“Oh, my gosh,” I put a slightly sticky hand to my mouth, my eyes probably bugging out. “That’s TODAY?” My voice reached a high-pitched squeak on the last word.
“Yeah, honey,” Mom sounded confused.
I buried my face in my hands, not even caring my hair was getting syrup in it. “Oh my word, he’s gonna kill me.”
“What?”
“I just—I can’t believe I forgot! I knew it was soon, I guess all his hype about it just made me feel like it was never actually going to happen. When is it?”
“This afternoon.”
I sighed. There went my chances of finishing my book and relaxing all day.
After breakfast, I went upstairs and sat in my room, looking out the window at the world that had greeted me that morning; the world that had lived outside my window for my whole life.
Still, lately, it had felt different. I didn’t know how, or why, but I didn’t like it. Most of it, if I was honest, had to do with Oli. It wasn’t like we weren’t friends anymore, or that we hung out less, but really, things were a little weird between us. I didn’t think either of us had done something wrong, but that’s what had happened. And I hated it. I hated how distant we were getting, how I felt I could hardly understand him anymore. Like I didn’t know who he was, or even scarier—who I was.
“Hey!” a voice called up through the open window.
Jerking out of my rather depressing reverie, I glanced down in surprise. I knew who it was even before I saw the tufts of spiky black hair or the crooked grin.
“Your parents said you were sulking!”
“So not true!” I called back with a smile.
“Glad to hear it!”
“So, what brings you to—just outside my lovely abode?”
“Well, it’s not like there’s anyone else to talk to,” he reasoned.
“Yeah,” I agreed.
“You ready for today?”
“I think so. I can’t believe I forgot that it was today!” I shook my head.
“You . . . you forgot?”
Oh, can’t I just keep my mouth shut for once?
“Oh, yeah, I didn’t remember when I just woke up. But I figured it out pretty quick,” I laughed and hoped it didn’t sound too nervous. At least he couldn’t hear me very well from two stories below.
Oli nodded, his grin coming back a little, but it faded fast. I’d expected him to be mad, but if anything he just seemed hurt.
“So, are you ready?” I asked. Forget about me. Let’s please talk about something, anything else.
“Yeah!” he called, the smile returning and looking more real this time.
“Good luck,” I said genuinely, though mostly I felt sad, and I couldn’t quite match his smile.
With a cheeky wave, Oli darted off.


Five hours later, I stood with my parents in a crowded clearing much like the one our house shared with Oli’s. A racetrack had been marked off and seats were set up around it. The afternoon sun beat down on us, but my dad bought us ice cold waters from a man selling them under the shade of a large evergreen.
Oli had joined the track team a few years ago, but it had taken him a while to really get into it. Around last year he’d become obsessed with getting faster and faster, and apparently it had paid off. I didn’t know much about it. Mostly I tuned him out when he was talking about it, though the thought made me feel a little guilty. But I just didn’t get it. What was so great about running around a racetrack a bunch of times as fast as you could? Still, I was determined to be excited for Oli. It just wasn’t working very well.
A half hour or so after, when my hair felt like it was on fire from sitting in the sun so much, all the racers jogged onto the track as the coach, referee, whatever, called their names. About halfway down the list, he announced “Oliver Aurelio!”
Oli rushed onto the track, grinning, his black hair apparently combed in the last week, a new look for him. He waved cheerily at the crowd, who applauded excitedly. I joined in. My dad whooped loudly, seeming genuinely excited, proud even.
I wondered why, when Dad was so happy about it, all I could think of was how far away Oli was.
As Oli and I made eye contact across the field, my mind went blank and the world outside grew dark.

I awoke to a cool breeze carrying birdsong through my window. The race! my mind yelped at me.
I jumped out of bed and looked around my room.
What just happened?
It was morning again, the sun peeking above the trees on the eastern horizon.
After throwing on my clothes haphazardly, I dashed downstairs, where Mom was setting the table and Dad was flipping pancakes on the griddle.
“Hey—where you off to so fast?” Dad called.
“One sec!” I yelped back.
Running, running, I finally collapsed in the middle of the clearing that had been cordoned off for the race. No one was there.
I lay, knees wet with dew, in the grass, feeling as though my mind and heart would both explode.
Did I just get a chance . . . to start over? I wondered.
Part of me hoped so, though I didn't really know what it would be for. What could I change that would make my life better—or worse? What important things had I done that day?
Footsteps sounded behind me. I whirled around.
“Oli!?” I exclaimed, for some reason surprised to see him. I guess I’d just expected my Dad or Mom, if anyone, to come after me.
“Hey,” he said, smiling a smaller smile than usual. But still, it felt real. “Whatcha doing all the way out here?”
“Oh . . . I guess . . . I was just thinking about the race,” I stumbled over the words.
“Me, too.”
We sat in uncomfortable silence for a few moments.
“I’ve been really excited about this, you know,” he continued, a faraway tone to his voice.
“Yeah. I know.”
Oli glanced at me.
“You’ve been . . . kinda obvious about that,” I laughed a little.
“Yeah? I guess.”
“I’m . . . I’m sorry I haven’t been more excited for you,” I blurted, not sure where the words, the apology, came from.
Oli tilted his head at me as though he was trying to make out what I’d said.
“Yeah. I know you haven’t . . . really . . . understood.”
“I’m sorry.”
He nodded.
“I’ll try to understand,” I promised.
“I will, too,” he agreed.


+1,334 words

July 29th Daily
beginning: your character is excited as a week of camp begins.
Setting - a community garden that hasn't been looked after in years
conflict: your MC can’t decide between two very important things they have to do
climax: what they're looking for is in a cave full of evil crabs :epic crab battle:
end: You wake up and realize it was a dream :D

“Welcome to Camp Chaos!”
Abby was bursting with excitement. She was waiting for Camp Chaos to begin all year, and she was finally here! The garden was a little more unkempt than she thought it would be, but that was alright. It was still beautiful in all the best ways. The roses climbed over walls that stretched so high that you couldn’t see what was over them, and the bushes tickled her legs as she sat on an old stone bench. She couldn’t wait to start helping out and tidying the garden up.
The campers were being left alone to hang out for a bit, and Abby stood up to try and figure out if she could help out in the garden.
“Hey, Abby! Over here!” A girl with thick glasses and a plaid shirt waved her over, and Abby jogged over.
“Hi Myla! What is it?”
“I heard the rumours ‘bout the crab cave, and I wanna check it out. Do you wanna come with?”
Abby considered it. She wanted to get to the garden as soon as possible, but the crab cave sounded really cool too.
“Mmm…” Abby considered her options. The garden would be here all week, and it would be really awesome to be the first ones to face the crab cave…
“Come on, it’ll be fun!” Mylia pleaded.
“…Alright, sure!” Abby eventually agreed.
~
“Whoa…” Abby breathed, staring into the dark abyss that was the crab cave.
“I know! It’s awesome, right?” Mylia said, looking just as awestruck.
“Yeah, let’s go in!”
Mylia nodded, smiling with delight and brandishing her axe that she had borrowed from the camp.
Abby grabbed her crossbow and carefully walked in.
The cave was dark and damp and smelt like salt. Everything seemed to be going fine, until…
“Ow!” Mylia yelped.
Abby heard the sound of crabs running in the sand, and loaded her crossbow. She looked around carefully for the crabs but then felt a pinch on her leg. She whipped around and shot the crab. The other carbs weren’t the happiest about this, and soon it turned into a full-on fight.
Eventually, however, the fight ended, and the two girls were triumphant…
Abby yawned and sat up in bed.
“Wow, that was a weird dream.” She muttered, still groggy from sleep.
“I can’t wait to go to Camp Chaos today though.” She slipped out of bed and prepared for the most chaotic week of her life.

daily hi fi 29


Beginning: “What in the world is that thing on my roof?” https://scratch.mit.edu/users/-WildClan-/

conflict: “it wasn't me who stole it, I swear!”
https://scratch.mit.edu/users/Rey_venclaw/

Setting: your house
https://scratch.mit.edu/users/wolfyhjk/

Climax: Someone sacrifices themselves
https://scratch.mit.edu/users/Sunclaw68/

ending: you hit the antagonist over the head with a dictionary
https://scratch.mit.edu/users/Peach_Drawing/


Winter woke up to the sound of their dog barking furiously at something. They groaned and opened one eye to look at the clock. It was a little past midnight. “Go back to bed, Lucky,” they groaned, covering their ears with their pillow, but Lucky’s barking just got more and more insistent.
Winter decided that it was better to just go and see what Lucky was barking about otherwise he’d never get to sleep and there was even the risk that he might regret ignoring the dog in the morning. What if there really was something?
They were heading to the bedroom door to check what Lucky was barking about, when suddenly they heard a loud thud on the roof. Winter’s husband Levi woke up with a start and sat up. “What was that?”
“I’m going to check it out,” Winter said, suddenly growing kind of nervous. “Whatever it was sounded really big… I mean maybe it’s just a tree branch but…”
“That did not sound like a tree branch. I’m not letting you go out there alone. Come on let’s make sure our dog isn’t in trouble!”
They ran outside and found their black and white dog barking up at something on the roof and it was definitely not a tree branch.
“What the heck is that?” Levi breathed, tightly gripping the shovel he had grabbed on the way out. It had a body that almost reminded Winter of a wingless dragon but it was covered in feathers. Its head was that of some giant insect and it had a crown of spikes.
Not looking away from the creature, Winter grabbed onto Lucky’s collar to make sure he didn’t try and attack the creature or something. They were also highly confused by what the creature was and a little terrified, but they had to make sure their dog was okay.
Winter was trying to figure out what to do when the creature suddenly leaped down landing just a couple feet in front of them and Lucky. Winter was too scared even to gag at the horrible stench of its breath. “Give it back!” it screeched, its breath making their hair fly back just like in some cartoon.
In a stupid, heroic fashion, Levi charged at the collosal creature, but it just batted him away with its tail like he was a ragdoll.
“Whoa, whoa,” Winter said, lifting one hand in a sort of wait a second fashion. They still held onto Lucky’s collar and a crowbar with the other. Lucky was now whimpering in fear. “It’ll be okay boy,” Winter whispered. Louder, they said, “What do you want?”
“I want my treasure that you stole!!!” It shouted.
Winter stumbled backward, but caught themself. “Whoa, hey we don’t have-”
“Liar!!” It threw its head back like it was about to start laughing, but Winter saw something in its transparent throat like acid bubbling up.
With hardly a second to react, they grabbed Lucky and bolted. “RUN!!!” they screamed to Levi who had just sat up a little dazed after being thrown. Luckily he also reacted quickly and he and Winter ran inside and thankfully the acid missed them and the dragon because that’s what Winter had decided to call it in their head was pretty slow.
Levi shut the door as soon as they were through and bolted it, while Winter set Lucky down and grabbed heavy objects to pile in front of the door. “I am so glad we already locked the windows,” they breathed.
Levi nodded a little shaky. “What the heck does that… thing… think we stole?”
Winter put a hand on Levi’s shoulder. “I’m not sure, but uhh… it doesn’t really seem like it’s gonna give up easily.” They heard the dragon start trying to rip the door apart.
“My dad was always obsessed with creatures that don’t exist or… shouldn’t. Do you know where his book collection is?” Levi said. Winter nodded. “Good, go see if you can find anything on this while I keep this thing at bay.”
“Whoa, I’m not leaving you alone with that thing!” They protested.
“Just go! We need to figure out how to defeat this thing!!” Levi shouted, pushing all their weight against the door trying to keep the dragon out.
Winter tugged at their hair in frustration, not wanting to leave their husband but he was right. “Don’t you dare get killed,” they said, quickly k*ssing him on the cheek and running to the bookshelf in the parlor.
They grabbed one of their late father-in-law’s journals and quickly flipped through the pages, but there was nothing about this dragon. They grabbed another journal and near the middle they found a sketch that looked like the dragon and a few scrawled notes. “Very possessive of its treasure, can attack with acid but needs five minutes to recharge, unsure how to defeat but everyone just tells me, ‘well if you have a nice heavy load of knowledge…’ and then they just laugh.
A nice heavy load of knowledge? Was Winter supposed to challenge the dragon to trivial pursuit?? Because that was not their forte either. Looking around the room they spotted something that might work. It was an entirely crazy idea, but they grabbed it. Just then they heard a loud crash as the door fell down.
The next few things happened both in slow motion and way faster than what should have been possible. Winter ran back to the door, the dragon spat acid at Levi, and before any of them could react, Lucky jumped in front of Levi.
“Noooo!!!!!!!” they both screamed just as the acid hit Lucky and turned him into stone.
The dragon licked its lips as Levi stared at their dog in shock and horror. “That will teach you not to steal my treasure.”
Rage bubbled up inside Winter and they completely forgot fear. “This will teach you not to turn my dog to stone!!!” fueled by anger and an intense need for revenge and to make sure Levi didn’t get hurt, they leaped into the air and brought the object they had grabbed off the bookshelf– a leatherbound dictionary– slamming down on the dragon’s head. They expected it would just daze the dragon, but instead the dragon crumbled into ash.

The Last Weekly

Introduction (101w)

My back against the wall, almost out of breath, I peak over to see if the coast is clear. Neither one of the guards appears to be in same area as I, nor the growling beast they own. Feeling relieved I step out of the corridor I was in to see that the area was jam packed with guards in every direction. I must’ve stumbled back and hit my head against a wall because when I woke up I was in a room filled with guards and my legs and arms latched to a chair. This wasn’t going to be good.

Lounge (211)

I rolled up my hoodie and tried to blend in with my surroundings when I was pinned to a wall, nearly creating a dent in it. The person holding my collar as I was pushed back suddenly laughed. I then realized it was none other than the CEO himself. Though before he got any chance to speak, a small voice interrupted. A voice so small you can just barely hear it. It slowly got louder repeating the same words over and over again, “wake up.” What does it mean? I slowly reached over to pinch my self, no pain, then it happened. I flung myself out of my bed.

“How is this? I was just in the creepy hallways of a dangerous organization,” I panicked, then collapsed face first onto my bed. This could not have been some silly dream. I was so close to exposing their plan, but it was all for nothing! Feeling defeated I fumbled out of bed and got myself dressed. Halfway through the staircase mom said we were having pancakes! Now that’s something that could get my mind of my disappointment. I happily skipped to my way to the table to gobble on some yummy pancakes when the doorbell rang. I wonder who it could be.

Library (351w)

I open the door, but I instantly regret it, to my horror it was the CEO. I fully expected him to be as cruel as ever however he acted like he was my best friend. My mom then came up to me and asked who it was, when she looked up she saw him. To my dismay she treated him like he was an old friend! She invited him inside to have breakfast with us while they talked about their old encounters.

“Mom! Why are you being so nice to this strange man,” I asked while dragging her away to talk, I didn’t want the CEO to hear me.

“What ever do you mean love,” she replied,”he’s an old friend of mine, I thought you would’ve remembered him.”

She was right, I do remember him. Just not in the way she’d thought. We both went back to the kitchen seeing the CEO munching happily on my moms pancakes. Then he spotted me.

“I believe I haven’t introduced myself to you young lady, I’m-“ he started before I cut him off.

“I know who you are, don’t play games with me Mr. CEO,” I stated.

Before I could expose him in front of mom, he pulled me into a different room. Then his expression changed into a sinister smile. He knew exactly what I was talking about.

“I’ve got to say,” he started as he slowly clapped his hands,” I’m impressed with you”

“What do you want,” I shouted almost loud enough for mom to hear me, but not enough.

He bent down next to my ear and whispered,“To tear down this town inch by inch starting with your house.”

I almost fell back in shock, I knew it was going to be evil but I didn’t expect this! Without another thought I tried racing to mom, hoping to explain everything to her, hoping for her to be on my side, hoping for any sort of protection, but I had no chance. The CEO pulled me back and threatened my mothers safety if I said anything, so I kept my mouth shut.

Submission boxes (10 min)

I quietly walked back to the kitchen with my head hung low. Mr. CEO said he had to go, finally. My mom waved goodbye with a kind smile on her face, if only i could tell her how evil this man was. I loved her way too much to do that, so for her i put on a picture perfect smile on as i gave her the hugest hug.

“Is everything okay love,” she asked.

I just shrugged and smiled at her. She handed me a box with strawberries for snack as i walked out the door. On my way to school i tried to laugh off the CEO's words of warning, but it was complicated. This situation was not funny.

At school our teacher gave us a STEM project to work on that consisted of tape, a mask, and a button. She told us she'd be awarding a piece of candy for the most creative one. Still stuck on the matters of this morning, i was staring blank at the materials all laid out in front of me as my teammates got to work.

Beginning: you are chosen for some secret high tech organization, dedicated to bringing down all evil in the world.
Conflict: Your friend has a really big secret she cannot share with you
Setting: A city made of ice and sand
Climax: Someone sacrifices themselves
Ending: Tragic, but a hopeful future
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Amber heard it slip under the door. A thing that would determine whether she would live, or die. She didn’t bother to open the door, knowing that whomever left it would be long gone. She picked up the slate, a thick bit of ice with words carved into it. She didn’t dare look at it yet, not wanting to read the life changing news. Finally she glanced at it. ‘You have been recruited. P.S. Burn this message in your fireplace.’ She let out a breath. She had done it. She threw the message into a boiling pot over the fireplace, hearing the ice sizzle. Soon it was water, worthless water. She could not leave one trace of her life here. She grabbed her things, five canteens of water, two weeks worth of food, a pocket knife, a rope, a jacket, a pair of clothings, a matchbox, and most importantly, a map that had come with the slate. She picked up a stick, dipped it in the fireplace, and breathing hard, dropped it on the carpet. The fire spread, and she burst out, eyes watering with sadness and smoke. With one last glance at her cottage, she ran. She could hear the villagers awakening, and coming out of their houses. They cried out with shock, and began to put the fire out. She ran into the forest, away from the village she had called home.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
A couple days had passed. She held a torch to a deep cave. Fake huge pawprints had been placed leading into it, keeping away hikers. But she was going to go in it. Her breath made patterns of steam in the air. She struck a match, and kept it on the singed stick she had been using as a torch. It lightly illuminated the room. She saw a shadow approaching, and kept her hand on her knife. “I see you came.” the figure said, and took off his hood. “Robin?” she said, surprised. “I didn’t know that you..” she trailed off. “Where was I supposed to go? This was the only safe place. Come along.” he said, and disappeared into the shadows. Amber followed, her heart beating faster. Robin had been her childhood friend, before being banished for a reason no one would tell her. She stopped. There was a stone wall in front of her. Robin was nowhere in sight. Breathing hard, she stepped through the wall. It rippled, and she was sucked through, into a room. Well, not really a room. Huge walls curved around in intricate designs, ending with a loop at the top. It was crowded, but she noticed people going in and out of the walls, each leading to a different place. “Impressed?” She hadn’t noticed Robin standing next to her. “Yeah!” she said, looking at the beautiful underground chamber. “We need to get you verified.” he said, and walked through the crowd. Several people smiled at her. ‘Very friendly.’ she thought, and followed him into another wall.
It had started. She was a fully verified agent! Robin allowed her to stay in his apartment (he had a bunk bed) until she got my own. As they made our beds, she asked him the question that had been nagging at her all day. “Why did you get banished?” she said. He inhaled sharply, and didn’t reply. “Robin.” she said, turning to him. He turned away, and climbed up into his bed. She sighed, and layed down, frustration lapping at her. She woke to an alarm. Robin had already jumped down. “We’re under attack!” he said, his eyes wild with panic. He grabbed something from the table, and handed it to her. A gun. “You haven’t been trained for this. Only come if there is a need for serious backup!” he ordered, and ran out of the room. She stood there for a moment, dazed, and then pointed the gun at the door. She heard screams and shouts, and then someone shouted on the alarm “BACKUP! BACKUP!” they said, before screaming, and going silent. Amber ran out of the room without another thought. She was shocked at the sight.
People were streaming in, strange glowing sticks in their hands. She saw them ram it into someone, and they fell, contorting before going still. She pointed the gun at one of them and shot. They tried to dodge it, but it hit their leg. They collapsed, crippled. She shot again, and again. She didn’t notice someone sneaking up to her, and turned around once she heard a scream. Robin had thrown him over her, and taken the hit.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
The fight was over, and Robin was k!lled. Thankfully, all the tech had not been damaged, and not too many people had died. But Robin had. She knew she had a future here though, and she would live it.

july 29th daily (430 words)

beginning: you wake up in a dark room - charliesunset // setting: and an old victorian house - -rosybliss- // conflict: they need to find a key to open a chest - -vanillamochabear- climax: someone tried to help them, but they got separated - zodiacdog // you wake up and realize it was a dream - ka26dhan

don't judge I was watching marvel while writing this so it's awful

My eyes open to a dark room. I look around. I can make out the shapes of furniture and a door. I sit up and try to look for a light. I can see the outline of something light switch shaped by the door. I stumble towards the door and hit the switch. I rub my eyes as the lights flicker on. Once my eyes are accustomed to the light I look around I'm in a house I'm certain I've never been in before. I open the door hoping to get a look at the outside. Hopefully, I would be able to figure out where I was based on what I saw.

I step outside and gasp. I'm standing on the doorframe of a house right by the edge of a cliff. Scratch that, not a cliff. All there is around me is infinite space, literally just space. I rub my eyes, how is this possible? I go back inside since that seems to be the only place I have to go. I look around fully taking in my surroundings. There appear to be no stairs making me assume it's a one-story building. The room is decorated like it's a living room. There is no kitchen making me wonder who lives here. The only thing out of the ordinary in the room is the chest in the corner. I head over to the chest it has a keyhole in the front. I look around for a key, but there doesn't seem to be one in the house.

I step back outside and look around. I take a deep breath in and hang one foot over the edge. Surprisingly my foot hits the ground. I place my other foot down. I'm able to walk! Suddenly someone taps me on the back. I jump and turn around. I don't think I know them, but at the same time, they look familiar. They don't speak, but gesture for me to follow them. Figuring I have nothing to lose I follow them as they walk towards a small light I hadn't noticed before. I'm honestly not quite sure if it even was there before at all. They point to the light and I see that it's a bright key. I pick it up and look back to whoever had helped me, but they're gone. I turn back towards the house, but it's no longer there.

I wake up in a cold sweat. The black abyss and gone and I'm in my bedroom. I breathe a sigh of relief and close my eyes once more.

July 29th Daily

Word Count: 528

Anita lived in a large house on the edge of a lake. The view was amazing, and it was a very nice house, but all the rooms got very lonely since she was the only one living there. Still, it was overall a very peaceful place.
Well, on most days it was.
On this particular day, however, Anita was completely freaking out. She’d just lost something extremely important to her -A pendant given to her by her mom before she’d passed away. She promised that through that pendant, they would always have a connection, and if Anita ever needed anything, somehow, she would help. And now Anita has lost it.

Anita and her best -and only- friend, Evan, were sitting on the shore of the lake right outside of her house. She still didn’t know where he’d come from, but she was forever glad she’d met him. She had just told him she’d lost her pendant and they were discussing where it might be.

“I know where it is,” Anita said suddenly, staring into the distance.
“Where- you mean the crab cave?” Evan asked.
“Yes. The crabs love shiny things. They must have taken it.”
“If that’s somehow the case, then I’m sorry Anita, but it’s gone.”
“No.”
“No?”
“We can get it back if we just-“
“No,” it was Evan’s turn to say. “We’re not going in there.”
“Why not?”
“I’m not risking my life for this!”
“But that pendant is important to me!”
“You need to stop clinging to that pendant!” Evan shouted. “It’s just an object!”
“No, it’s not! It’s my only connection I have left to my mom,” Anita shouted back. “Getting it back is all that matters!”
“Its… all that matters?” Evan repeated, a weird look on his face.
“Well, yes. I mean wait, that’s not what I-“
“No, I see how it is. All that matters to you is some pendant. Forget the person you actually have standing in front of you.”
And then, before Anita could stop him, Evan stalked away.
Well find. If that was how he was going to be, she’d do this herself.

Stealing herself, Anita entered the cave. This couldn’t be too bad. Evan was a big ol’ chicken, was all. There was obviously nothing to…
Oh shoot.
There was definitely something to be afraid of.

The crabs were huge. No, that was an understatement. They were absolutely gargantuan. And they were coming straight for her.
But she was going to make it through. She had to get back the pendant.

One of the crabs knocked her aside with its claw, flinging her against the side of the cave.
Ow. This was a huge mistake.

“Hey! Leave her alone!”
Anita looked up, her vision spinning as she struggled to stay conscious. Could it be? Was she hallucinating?
Evan was standing at the entrance of the cave, waving a huge stick at the crabs, an opalescent pendant dangling from his neck.
Oh.
Anita gasped. Suddenly, she knew. It was Evan. He was, in some impossible way, sent by her mom. What she was looking for had been under her nose all along.
And now it was too late.

daily 7/29
setting - A forest clearing with two houses, one belonging to the main character's family and the other belonging to their friend's family. (SqueakyBird520)
beginning: You forgot that you have to go to this humongous important event (ka26dhan)
conflict: the character's family is acting strange and telling things that your character knows is false (MysticScratcher101)
climax: Someone tried to help them, but they got separated (zodiacdog)
ending: The cast mourns what was lost (Sunclaw68)

my lasagna: https://scratch.mit.edu/studios/31668456/comments#comments-191546964

“*!” I leap out of bed. The clock says 8:30, and I just realized I have my Science Bowl tournament at 9. Me and my family live pretty far out from town, because we live in a forest clearing with my best friend’s family (for some reason, rolls eyes) so it takes a while to get there. I learned about it just yesterday, too, from my mom no less — so why didn’t anyone wake me up? We had to leave 15 minutes ago!
After combing my fingers through my hair and brushing my teeth incredibly quickly, I ran down the stairs, where my mom was cooking a leisurely breakfast. “Mom, what are you doing? We have to go!”
She looked at me weird. “Darling, it’s the weekend. We don’t have any plans. Look at the calendar, the entire day is open for all us. Change out of your pajamas and come back down, and we can eat pancakes, alright?”
I freeze, then go to check the calendar. I’m almost certain that it’s today — so I’m almost relieved when it says “scibowl tournament” in red ink, because it shows that I’m not going crazy. Then I realized that no, that’s not a good thing, because it means I’m late and I’m screwed and I needed to get there 15 minutes ago, and it’s not like I’m even on the main team but they’re going to think I’m a flake, and oh my god oh my god oh my god.
I can’t handle it so I run outside to my bestie’s house (one of the benefits of living in a forest clearing!) and because she’s 9 months older than me, she can drive, so I beg her to please drive me out to town so I can salvage just an ounce of my reputation, please, I know I owe her already, please—
I look at her with pleading eyes. I know this isn’t really a big deal, and I don’t really need to go, but I really really REALLY need to go.
She opens her mouth and the words come out… “Aw, sorry, bestie, I can’t today — I promised I would do something for your mom!”
I am crushed. And I’m pretty sure my face shows it, too, because my best friend immediately looks at me and says “Oh, come on, I’m sure it’s not a big deal! Let’s go talk to my mom and she can tell you something.”
Morosely, I take her hand and go with her to her house, which is pretty much just a second home for me at this point. As I walk through the door, something hits me in the face. It’s a… balloon?
Later, after my surprise birthday party (one, how did I forgot it was my birthday, and two, it turns out my mom lies to me), I lay on my bed, mourning the fifteen-minutes of stress I went through. I guess it was worth it in the end.

502 words!

Daily 29

Beginning: you trip and fall at an inconvenient moment
Conflict: your character is running away from someone/something (literally or figuratively)
Setting: train tracks through a field
Climax: your character summons a powerful (and possibly magical/supernatural) force from within
Ending: you solve the problem in a way that surprises and slightly scares you

I sprawled to the ground, my hands grasping and slipping past weak bristles of grass. My breaths tumbled over each other to shove themselves out, and at the back of my throat I could taste smoke.
No. I struggled to my feet. My foot snagged on a splintered fragment of wood—maybe part of an old railroad tie, maybe flung from a long-ago train. I couldn’t look behind me now, couldn’t stop moving for a second or I’d start quaking all over.
And then the thing behind me would catch up.
I pulled myself back into my sprint across the endless grass. The horizon rippled out in front of me, blue-grey in the twilight. The half-overgrown train tracks beside me were a thin slash of silver. I veered a few more steps away. I couldn’t trip and fall again, not now…
I wished that trains still ran here, that I could latch onto one and let it sweep me away to where my pursuer would never find me. My heart sounded like a piston, and my gasping mind could almost call up the picture: a towering engine, the color of thunder, charging forward, spewing…
Smoke.
My gaze slipped over my shoulder before I could stop it.
The phantom on my trail couldn’t stare back, but it raced in my wake: a lurching bubble of smoke, taller than I was, dark against the evening sky. I shoved my eyes forward again, but it was too late to pretend I hadn’t seen how close it was. The gap had to be only a few strides long. And closing.
I shoved forward. The effort only seemed to slow me down. My legs wavered under me, rubbery from bolting all the way from the city with the smoke thing behind me. Every breath flared in my chest. The ground ahead of me looked clear in the fading light, but I knew that wouldn’t matter. In a few steps, I would fall.
I staggered to a stop. Every reasonable thought in my head had fallen limp and crumbled away, leaving only run, run, run.
But I couldn’t. Which left nothing reasonable to do, so I surrendered to the only other option.
Wisps of feverish warmth brushed the back of my neck. I gasped out a breath and spun to face the smoke.
“Go away.” My voice rasped. I edged a step further along the tracks, almost falling over backward. The smoke bubble jolted to a stop so close I could feel its heat. Pulsing, narrowing, reshaping itself into a succession of nightmare blobs. Like it was staring at me.
“I said go away,” I hissed out. My legs could have been melting. My blood roared too loudly for me to feel anything but the pounding in my head. “Leave me alone.”
The smoke gave a seething hiss and pounced. Engulfing me.
“STOP!” I felt myself screech. My eyes clenched closed as heavy warmth swept over me.
And… faltered.
I squinted out at my attacker and panted a gasp. To one side, train track glinted in early moonlight. I could see them. And my skin surged with chills…
I had to look down now, I knew. I had to see what was happening, and I couldn’t let seeing it break the rhythm of my heart and head.
I turned to look at myself.
Smoke hurricaned around me, from me, driving itself into the remains of my threatening shadow. No burns, no marks: just billowing streams. I clung to the sound of my heartbeat. I couldn’t think now—I couldn’t—
That same smoke was a part of me.
The focused pounding in my head stuttered. My own smoke fizzed and thinned. No—
The last wisps of my creation twisted into the now-haze of my pursuer. Dissolving. Leaving me alone and shaking by shining tracks, dreading the pounding of my head.