Once again, I had a couple short stories next to one another. SO I decided to go ahead and give y'all both of them.
You're welcome. XP
The Prompt
This was the eighth day of Inktober. The prompt was toad. And since I enjoy fairy tales... well, here we are. XD
The Story
This is hands down the most annoying thing known to mankind. I would have snorted, but my new vocal chords didn’t allow for that kind of sound. Instead, a harsh croak erupted from my mouth. I winced at the sound and squished forward a few hops.
I’d been a toad for a grand total of 3 minutes, and I was already going insane. Who knew being so short could be so annoying?
It wasn’t just that I was short, either. It was that I was now bumpy, and dirty, and I didn’t have teeth - which felt weird - and that my primary mode of transportation was bouncing.
My used-to-be-primary mode of transportation hovered beside the racetrack a mere step to my right. Well, a man’s step to my right. It would take me a few hops to get there, and even then there was no way I could make it inside.
Man, Gramps, you really messed up on this one.
I had been told all my life that I’d probably turn into a frog sometime when I was sixteen. It ran in the family, passed down from my grandfather to my father and now to me, ever since Gramps had been turned into a frog when he was a youngster. He said Grams had saved him by kissing him - which always disgusted me - but the effects still lingered.
Dad had been a frog for three years. I couldn’t even imagine.
But I had been expecting to be turned into an elegant, colorful amphibian that could breathe underwater and princesses were just waiting to kiss after Gramps’ story became famous.
Not a toad.
Another disdainful croak grated through my throat. I sighed and turned towards home, imagining the long trek back through the swamp and across the bridge and through the city. I’d probably be squashed before I even made it to the swamp’s edge.
My cousins were at my house. They found it amusing to catch small animals and poke them to make them move or do funny things.
I gulped. Maybe home wasn’t the best idea right now. Though, by the time I managed to get there, they’d probably be gone.
Annoyed to the fullest, I began my slow, hopping progress eastward. And that was when I ran into The Girl.
The Girl, that is, who screamed bloody murder and tried to turn me into toad jelly with her foot.
The Prompt
This was from the ninth day of Inktober. The prompt was bounce. This one is much heavier than the last one. Sorry. XD
The Story
Piper jerked awake, sweat soaking her sheets. She stared wide-eyed into the dark, trying to calm her racing heart, reminding herself that it was only a dream.
Two ponytails so blonde they were almost white. A little girl bouncing through a field. And never coming back.
Dreams like that shouldn’t torture her this much. It was just a girl she’d never met leaving. There wasn’t any death or terror. Just aching pain.
But did you meet her?
Piper swallowed, shoving the thought away, and swung her feet over her bed. The glass on her nightstand was empty. I should walk around anyway.
The dream wasn’t always a field, lit with dying sunshine and filled with dried heads of wheat - both as full of potential as the girl but never put to any use. Potential lost.
Just like the girl.
She was always in Piper’s nightmares. Sometimes happy and laughing and playing, like her dream tonight - but sometimes screaming in terror and running to Piper for protection.
She never made it. Ever.
Shivering a little as her sweat cooled, Piper found herself at her kitchen sink. The full moon filtered through her gauzy curtains, illuminating the kitchen with a silvery light thick with shadows.
The little girl’s laugh drifted through Piper’s mind. She clutched her glass tighter and filled it with freezing water, downing the whole thing once it was full. Ice cold sliced through the rest of the ribbons of her dream, bringing her all the way back to reality.
She refilled the glass and turned back to her room.
It’s just a dream, Pipes. That little girl never existed.
But did she?
That nagging voice just wouldn’t leave her alone. Piper shook her head.
What if she did?
What if you’re the only person who ever met her?
What if you were the monster she’s running from in the nightmares?
You could have been her playmate. Her protection. Her provider and comforter. You could have watched her grow up into a woman and have her own kids. You could have laughed with her and cried with her and made cookies with her.
Could have, could have, could have…
Can’t.
Piper set the glass down on her nightstand and sank onto her bed. The covers were blissfully warm now - comforting, like a mother’s embrace.
Her hand drifted to her stomach.
Oh, dear God. What have I done?
Which story did you prefer? Do you prefer more comedic stories or more serious ones? Are you a fan of modern (or post-modern) fairy tales?
Until next time,
Take courage, pursue God, and smile while you still have teeth!! ^_^
The Toad curse being carried over generations is such a neat way to avoid it being, well, a curse, and to surprise the main character all the same! ✨
(1) I love that lighthearted modern fairy tale twist! So funny!
(2) I want that second story turned into a whole novel, just so I can have a happy ending. 😢 That was...so captivating. Disturbing at first, then heartbreaking. Ugh!