Friday 23 June 2017

Innocent of skulduggery ...

And in a week that, in the southern part of the UK at least, was hotter than it’s been for forty years, we’ve had some equally high temperature writing which produced three honorary mentions: Scott for an inventive use of incumbent in ‘Opaque’ (no need to be timid), Patricia for her ‘Without Recourse’ (after claiming not to do poetry)  and Jeffrey for the clever final line of ‘I wake in a dream’.

The  winner, for writing which seemed even more breathtaking than ever, is Zaiure, for  ‘Dragon Fire’.

Words for next week:  bat purge velvet

Entries by midnight Thursday 29th June, words and winners  posted on Friday 30th

Usual rules: 100 words maximum (excluding title) of flash fiction or poetry using all of the three words above in the genres of horror, fantasy, science fiction or noir. Serialised fiction is, as always, welcome. All variants and use of the words and stems are fine. Feel free to post links to your stories on Twitter or Facebook or whichever social media you prefer.

102 comments:

  1. What a wonderful surprise! Thank you so much. :) And congrats to Scott, Patricia, and Jeffrey. Always such beautiful and vibrant writing for our challenge.

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  2. Very worthy congratulations to Zaiure. I was rather amazed to find myself among the "honorary mentions," to be honest. Especially with my feeble attempt at a poem. However, I am in excellent company with Scott and Jeffrey (who, I'm sure, will be over the moon to make it into the top tier after undergoing so much improvement. Well done, buddy!)

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    1. Thanks Patricia! Loved your poem. :)

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    2. I tend to work backwards through the blog, so here I am saying congrats to you all - you're providing wonderful reading in the shortest form imaginable. It's great!
      Zaiure, many congrats on being the outright winner. It isn't an easy choice for Sandra, which shows how good the winners are each week.

      No stand alone again, brain too tired, migraines too heavy, too much mental financial juggling and another horrendous comma loaded book to edit...

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  3. Mors Vincit Omnia

    In a belfry where even bats were loath to roost, he lay dying in the same manner he had lived. Shunned. Detested. Alone.

    Before his abominable carcass was purged from the presence of the righteous, he'd known one glorious moment when he rescued a Romany girl, perfumed hair and velvet eyes, from certain peril. The mob had cheered him then. He believed she was with him now to carry him to sanctuary as he had once carried her.

    And perched high upon the ramparts of Notre Dame, the gaunt and ever-vigilant gargoyles mourned the passing of one of their own.

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    1. Well done, Patricia. You did the classic proud. Loved your description of the Romany girl. I went through the story again because I thought you forgot velvet, but there it was, reflected in her eyes. This one will be hard to beat. Next week, you should have to type with just your left hand.

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    2. Ignorant of the classic until the end (when I hazarded a guess) I was absorbed by this beautifully-created vignette.

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    3. I'm a big fan of the homage. I like when stories that took more space initially are whittled down to their essentials, or when a feeling or incident is isolated. This is really cool.

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    4. Lovely title to go with a tight, enjoyable story. A not so simple take on the original.

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    5. Beautifully written, with a powerful opening line, and equally strong close. I really loved this.

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    6. clever retelling of a very old story, nice one!

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    7. The imagery conveyed through "velvet eyes" alone is enough to hook me on this story. Super strong writing that kept my attention from start to finish. Nicely done.

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  4. Exorcism

    My throat was wildfire—a rampage of claws and white-hot bile. My finger slithered toward the back of my mouth to help purge whatever was trying to escape my stomach. A foreign object was mechanically making its ascent from the recesses below my esophagus. The mirror before me displayed an exorcism, a dance of retching performed by the husk of a human. I violently spat into my hand. Fur, like crushed velvet, clung to my skin. I stroked the trembling creature with my eyes closed before looking down to see a baby bat smiling up at me. I smiled back.

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    1. Vivid and provocative. Nicely done. It appears you are no stranger to horror writing. Loved it.

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    2. Welcome Emily - and what a strong and, as John says, vivid use you've made of the prompts. I do hope you'll stay around and give us more in the coming weeks.

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    3. Your happy ending made me shudder a little bit. This is 360 degrees of strange and unsettling. I love it.

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    4. Ah, the bonding of a newborn with their parent. Welcome Emily, non-blood horror, well done an dnice use of prompts.

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    5. This was so very different and an intriguingly innovative take on the prompts. Although this is certainly in the horror genre, for some reason, I find the idea of a smiling baby bat as cute as a button. Not sure I'd like to regurgitate one though. Nicely done.

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    6. Oh...seems you're new here so I'd like to add my welcome to that of Sandra. Given your debut, I certainly hope you'll stick around and entertain us with more.

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    7. Horrible yet somehow beautiful with the emergence of a smiling baby bat. :) Strong descriptions and a fascinating idea of 'birth'.

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    8. welcome, what a great way to enter the fray! I love horror like this.

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  5. Thanks everyone for the warm welcome last week, it's great to be in such good company!

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  6. Congrats Zaiure. Well-deserved accolades. Way to go Jeffrey, Patricia and Scott for getting in there too. I hesitate to post after reading excellent stories by Emily and Patricia. But here it is.

    Aftermath

    I call it the velvet purge. Wine, women and song have their downfalls. Especially the wine. Johnny Cash said it best: “I woke up Sunday morning with no way to hold my head that didn’t hurt. Or was it Chris Kristofferson?

    Someone must’ve hit me with a ball bat - or maybe it was the vodka. The tequila probably didn’t help. She stirs under the sheets, matted hair splayed on the pillow. I shudder to discover who she is. I wobble to the bathroom to stick my fingers down my throat. I’ll need a beer after this.

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    1. And there was me thinking this week's words might generate something nice! What a wonderful use of velvet! and as vivid a morning after as anyone could wish to avoid.

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    2. Admittedly some of this story had me remeniscing on my college years. I won't say which parts. I like this piece very much, John. blended prompts and good writing.

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    3. Now you've certainly got me guessing. WHO is she? Seems not someone our protagonist wants to acknowledge. Some lovely phrasing here and I think I must go with Sandra in a "velvet purge" being the best.

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    4. Loved the imagery of 'velvet purge'. The confusion and regret comes through strongly.

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    5. Johnny Cash singing a Kris Kristofferson song... nice tie in there!
      Velvet purge is just brilliant.

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  7. I would have posted sooner but there was a slow cow in front of me on my way over.
    Congrats to Zaiure for her piece, which I only read earlier today. Scott and Patricia fir their unique contributions as well. Seeing is believing but can't happen without understanding. My thanks to all for your support, patience and comments.

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    1. Thanks Jeffrey! This is a fabulous group. :)

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  8. Kursaal (Episode Seventy Six) -- "Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes"

    Nellie Hubbard, witch-like proprietress of the less-than-successful "Playpen" (intended as a safe creche for toddlers whose caregivers went thrill-seeking), desired to purge her image as one who was batty, daft, loopy (and all other applicable synonyms inbetween). Hopefully, such catharsis would stimulate business.

    She redecorated crawl tubes and Wendy houses in pastels, painted roundabouts and see-saws in primary colours and dished out small replicas of plush Velveteen Rabbits to tots who stayed longer than six hours.

    One in fifty of the miniature bunnies (randomly distributed) possessed the same potential magical possibilities as the original. It was an unexpected bonus.

    ---------------------------------------------------------
    To read the earlier installments (a suggestion only) which led to this point in the tale, please visit:
    http://www.novareinna.com/kursaal.html
    A link to return to "The Prediction" can be found on the site. Thank you.
    ---------------------------------------------------------

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    1. So rich and inventive, with your trademark niceness until the final line.

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    2. Patricia, I do so enjoy your descriptions. The stories are pretty good as well.

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    3. Inventive indeed! Love where my imagination went with the final line about the bunnies. This is such a fascinating world & I'm happy you've continued!

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    4. I read The Velveteen Rabbit umpteen times to my daughter, before she could read and was glad when she could! Like the mystic atmosphere of this instalment and love the last line.

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  9. Detour

    “Spare a coppa?” the vagabond reeked of soot.

    I batted my eyelids and rolled my eyes, hoping to convey utter disgust. I sped my step, heels echoing on the cobblestones.

    “Just one coin?” he followed.

    I turned, clutched his outstretched forearm, and tilted my cane up to meet his midsection. My blade extended into his gut, slipping through his flesh like a velvet coverlet suffocating between a flea-ridden mattress and the nightgown of some oft-used harlot.

    “I would sooner purge the world of you.”

    My dagger retracted and he dropped. Nearby eyes were averted.
    I had done my duty.

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    1. To me, this reeked of Victorian, Jack the Ripper streets, shadowed and gaslit. And bloody.

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    2. Victorian, in a Penny Dreadful way, which I enjoy. The setting is very well done, good way of sneaking the prompts in.

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    3. Most certainly shades of "Saucy Jack" here, that's for sure. However, if I'm reading this correctly is our righteous killer of the female variety? Perhaps, in this case, the correct designation should be "Saucy Jill"? In any event, the created atmosphere cannot be denied. I think it's the "batted my eyelids" that led me along the alternative garden path...intended or not.

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    4. Excellent Victorian atmosphere. I also got a sense it was a woman, though it could go either way. Great imagery with the phrase 'slipping through his flesh like a velvet coverlet'.

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    5. clever storytelling to make us wonder which gender the killer is, that takes skill. Liked this a lot.

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    6. You write this tiny, quick scene of violence beautifully, and I think you make great use of the prompt words here. The murder is tucked so quietly into the story that it almost took me off guard to read, but I enjoyed it all the same. Great work.

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  10. Cripplegate Junction/Part 102-Trainspotting

    Clive Bailey's memory of life before Cripplegate was gradually being purged. Childhood recollections remained most vivid.

    The front room -- velvet cushions, lace curtains -- watching "Andy Pandy." Playing cricket with his W.G. Grace replicated bat. (He was rather good at the game and made the school eleven one year.) The bank holiday rail trip with George and Constance, maternal cousins. He hadn't seen them in ages now. Not since Mother...but he wouldn't dwell on that!

    His sixpenny "I-Spy On A Train Journey" accompanied him during that outing, when he'd finally recorded the engine number of the elusive Cripplegate Express.

    --------------------------------------------------------
    To read the earlier installments (a suggestion only) which led to this point in the tale please visit:
    http://www.novareinna.com/cripplegate.html
    A link to return to "The Prediction" can be found on the site. Thank you.
    ---------------------------------------------------------

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    1. Why do the pieces with Clive, make me think of a coffee flavoring? This is just as sweet.

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    2. And back to the faded innocence of the Ladybird world with a vengeance and some skilfully-inserted prompts.

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    3. Thus far, the names of the maternal cousins don't appear to have struck any chord (insert evil chuckle).

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    4. Oh, I noted them alright, Patricia! Parked them silently at the back of my expectation.

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    5. If the next few weeks' prompts are favourable, I believe I may have found a logical (and somewhat believable) manner in which to close this serialization down...and begin a couple of new ones which may (I hope) include The Further Adventures Of A Certain Marmalade Tabby.

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    6. lots of good nostalgic stuff here. I would be most disappointed if Marmalade disappeared from my weekly read!

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  11. Kandar 16:Inside Looking Out

    It was a rainy night; the clouds purging rain started just after sunset. Many wouldn’t like that, rain makes climbing harder, you leave tracks, and the windows are closed. That’s why I’m better than all of them. I had Pain and Suffering with me, my velvet muskrat foot wraps, my bat fur cloak, and two vials of perfume, Lord Galiel’s wife’s favorite. From the tower base, I’ll have ten minutes before the patrol returned. The vines would never support me but will help with camouflage. My target, a third floor window. The room at the end of the hallway.

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    1. It would take a lot of bats to make a cloak. This was good. I could feel the excitement in the air and you had lots of cool little tidbits in there to make it fun to read, my favorite being the velvet muskrat foot wraps.

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    2. Somehow this gives the impression of an inevitably clattering climb, hung about with vials etc. But perhaps the bsat fur cloak had inner pockets, like a poacher ...

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    3. Nice descriptions which left vivid images. It would appear that "Pain" and "Suffering" are actual personages? I like such designations. Another good one.

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    4. nice instalment building up to the real meat of the story.

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  12. Misconceptions

    Purge your fears, control your anxiety.
    Wings of the night, devils messengers in flight.
    Full moon above full belly soon to be had.
    Beehive hair cut especially attractive,
    Virgin’s blood is fun, if you can find one.
    You can’t run, you can’t hide
    Your screams are a lighthouse,
    Your whimpers are a foghorn.
    Velvet brown fur, black leather wings,
    We actually like fruit, nectar and other things.
    Imagine that.
    They have us in baseball, cricket and single wicket.
    Can you guess our crowning achievement?
    I doubt that you’d believe it.
    We’re closer to primates than rodents.
    After all, we’re bats.

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    1. I enjoyed this. Nice use of the required words. I never knew they preferred virgin's blood, but it makes sense. Nicely done.

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    2. Very interesting with a good rhythm to the lines. The references were (as always) entertaining and enjoyable.

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  13. Nonsensical in 100 words

    She promenaded in and slid onto a stool. “Black Velvet, if you please.”

    The barkeep polished a rocks glass and rolled his eyes. “You know, you just ripped off a song.”

    “Hey batter batter batter, swing!”

    “Should I be impressed or something?” he said.

    “Purge the negativity, Sam.”

    “It’s Charlie.”

    “In that case, make it a double.”

    He filled a glass to the brim and skated it across the bar. She slapped a twenty down and poured the whiskey into her purse before sashaying out the door.

    A man walked in and sat. “What’s happening, Charlie.”

    “Just the usual, Mitch.”

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    1. I do like 'Purge the negativity' Less sure about batter ... :-)

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    2. I did like this and enjoyed the ambiguity. I am left wondering if the liquid in her purse left a dripping trail as she "sashayed" (I adore that word) out the door. Reminiscent, of course, of "Casablanca," which I'm not sure wasn't, at least in part, intentional.

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  14. An FYI, the company that owns Black Velvet is about 30 miles from me.Now, based on the title, There is a song, Blue Velvet but this is an enjoyable and nonsensical story, good propmt use and the setting is well created.

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    1. Black Velvet was a hit in 1990 by Alannah Myyles. Not sure if this link will go through, but here it is:
      https://www.bing.com/search?q=black+velvet+song&form=PRHPCM&pc=CMDTDF&mkt=en-us&httpsmsn=1&refig=03a9469b835342b3a258cb17767200a8&sp=1&qs=LS&pq=black+velvet&sc=8-12&cvid=03a9469b835342b3a258cb17767200a8

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    2. The link didn't go through. Rats.

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    3. and The Dubliners with their 'black velvet band' - there's a lot out there. This is just outright funny, liked it a lot.

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  15. Emergence of a diplomat? [Threshold 168]

    Raven was no more impotent than I a nulligravida. For reasons I could not fathom his grandmother’s death had propelled him, bat-like from his hell of self-imposed abstinence and since the monthly purging of my womb was yet two weeks away it was not impossible, by virtue of both quantity and quality, I’d already conceived.

    Both men rose together. Raven’s voice caressed, soft as black velvet, ‘Law Man, you have been misinformed. This woman’s mine and none but I shall have her.’

    For a long time it was all I ever wanted but I would’ve like to have been asked.

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    1. I love it when I have to look up words. "Nulligravida" was one of those and I shall hang on to it for future reference. Anticipation in spades here...is she or is she not enciente? That last line speaks volumes. As always, this serial is totally engrossing.

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    2. New to me too - you can imagine the relief when I found a single word to take the place of 'had not already born a child'.

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  16. Thank God nulligravida wasn't a prompt word, though you had no problem with it. This was great, Sandra. You could feel the mood. Nice one.

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  17. All naration, very well done, and I learned a new word, nuligravida. The prompts are well placed and used. Very well done.

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    1. clever use of new-to-me word to replace others, that's the fun of writing to 100 word limits.

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  18. Of the two, Dom had the silver tongue. His glib stories and meandering songs cheered the people rushing by on their ways to jobs or home.
    Anton on the other hand was the loathsome claw in the velvet glove, preferring to earn his silver by way of a metal bat.
    When the city was cut off, these two rogues were all that survived the purge...

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    1. A tiny claustrophobic tale opened up to embrace something much larger. I really enjoyed this, especially 'the loathsome claw in the velvet glove'.

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    2. Nicely done, good, short descriptions leaving more for the reader to ponder than know.

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    3. The bloody adventures of Dom and Anton. If this were a trailer for a full story, I'd definitely read it!

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    4. The jewel of this little tale is that it could be in just about any setting and/or location. Past, future, historical, etc. Any one of them would fit the pattern. Creation of two so very different characters in such a short limitation of words shows true talent. Bravo...!!!

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    5. like this for its brevity and intrigue, and a lesson in how to open a story.

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    6. thank you all. I do my best :)

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  19. Change of focus [241]

    Aleks, considered to be a noisy, unmissable child, had long ago learnt the value of concealment. Of walking velvet silent and, if caught, of lying without batting an eyelid.
    Heavy eyes might give him away: Bekim’s late-night murmurings with men unseen; misheard words – purge or perjury, kill or skill? – taxed sleep, but it was inexperience which slowed his recognition of an extra light in Valdeta’s eyes; two days before he heard his father’s voice in grown-up conversation behind her bedroom door.
    Not fully comprehending context, his heart leapt. He paused to add two and two – and failed to answer four.

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    1. As Jeffrey mentioned, Aleks' point of view here is engaging and informational. "Purge or perjury"...how delightful is that pairing? I like Aleks very much. He is wise beyond his years while still retaining the charm of every Artful Dodger who was ever born. I have no doubt he'll figure it all out.

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    2. how good is 'velvet silence?' superb.

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  20. I enjoyed reading about it from Alek's POV. beautiful prompt use and good expository writing.

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  21. Godfather

    He preferred her face soap-scrubbed. Hair tied back with velvet ribbons; mouth unsmiling, eyes lowered in imitation of a purged and penitent Benedictine nun.

    The first time he asked, and every time thereafter, he quoted Tennyson’s hackneyed invitation. Obtained parental permission to stroll with her to where there were trees enough to render the fleeing of the poet’s ‘black bat ‘ of night unnecessary. Distant enough for cries of passion to go unheard.

    She had long ceased wondering if he’d had this in mind when, twelve years ago, he held her at the baptismal font and named her Maud.

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    1. oh oh, this paints a very sinister picture!

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    2. Yikes. This makes me extremely uncomfortable, but often my favorite types of stories do. I thought that first line was an excellent way to start the tale. "Soap-scrubbed." The writing throughout is strong, succinct and incredibly interesting. I liked this a lot.

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    3. Unfortunately I don't know nor could find Tennyson's invitation so I'm most likely missing something important. Doesn't change the good writing and almost predestination feeling of her situation.

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    4. There is a atmosphere of debauched innocence about this, if such a thing were possible. Tennyson's "Maud" ("Come into the garden") counts among my favourite poems. How lovely that you took Lord Alfred's bat as one of the prompt words and incorporated it into this tale. Magnificence at its finest.

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  22. The Adventures of Rosebud, Pirate Princess #83
    Today I Write Letters


    Dear Georgiana,
    How go the assassinations? I understand that you have become a bat in recent times, how goes the diurnal life of the Lords? I presume by this point their number has been decreased. I hope all will continue to go well. Is this the beginning of a purge-i.e. should Mother be worried for her courtiers? Oh, I’ve ordered a new midnight velvet cloak, could you pick it up at the usual shop?
    I’ll be where I’m expected to be.
    -Rosebud

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    1. I'm not meaning to insult you, but this, its disconnectedness, reminded me so much of the letters I sued to be forced to write to grown-ups - you have hit the note exactly. And this, as ever is delightful

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    2. Sandra, absolutely! I wrote those letters too... Rosie, that's one hell of a skilful piece of writing.

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    3. Nonchalant just oozing from your words, withan air of contempt. A most excellent piece, similar to the Screwtape Letters.

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    4. And yet another facet to the fascinating Rosebud -- her skill at composing correspondence. I like that she will be where she's expected to be. Here's hoping Georgina understands the hint. Personally, I would not want to confront a Pirate Princess who did not have her new cloak delivered promptly.

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  23. Meeting the Countess

    Growling incoherently, the disfigured man plunged his hands into the writhing tangle of bats covering the velvet settee. His hand closed on a pale arm. As if unaware of the constant scratch of wings and claws, he heaved backwards in a smooth, forceful motion, and impossibly, a woman fell free onto the floor.

    The bats disappeared, purged from existence at the woman’s appearance, drawing forth gasps from myself and the other horrified guests.

    Naked, but apparently unharmed, the woman stood. “Forgive me. I’ve been somewhat batty of late.”

    I laughed, hysterically, into the shocked silence.

    The Countess grinned in reply.

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    1. Lovely lunacy in this, beneath the crawling of flesh.

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    2. Any time a "writhing tangle of bats" is included in a piece of writing, you can count me in. The first graph starts off with such strong imagery, it immediately grabbed my attention. A growling disfigured man reaching into a tangle of bats and pulling out a naked woman... just fascinating. I love it. There's so much going on, but you pull it off beautifully.

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    3. Count Vlad Draculesti, was married, his wife would be a Countess. Who is the disfigured man? A very enjoyable vignette. Nice prompt use and some humor.

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    4. This was absolutely precious. These prompts inspired quite a few literary references this week. This was one of the best...and with a soupçon of humour to boot. It don't get much better than that!

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  24. The Mad Italian 11
    Another week has passed by and again it is time to purge myself of ongoing troublesome thoughts. If I can wrap them in velvet, I will, for it has been a bad time for those caught in the horrendous fire and its aftermath. They skimped on construction materials for the base desire of more profit. We share the sorrow of the living.
    Meantime, the victory for others in the long quest for justice has laid to rest the notion that they all had bats in their individual belfries. We can rejoice with them even as we share their sorrow, too.

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    1. Purging one's thoughts - would that it were that easy! Such a melancholy contemplation.

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    2. I love how the contemplations draw from current happenings. What a gorgeous image are "bats in their individual belfries." This is such a different serialization to anything else offered in this forum.

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  25. Whst I'm enjoying most is how the definition of 'mad' changes, just enough to be noticed, each week. Rejoicing that we share their sorrow, is a most thoughtful line.

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