Drabble Club: March 21st

Today’s drabble brought to you by an actual incident that happened in the last D&D session I played

Killer Bees (These Are Not)

I’ve never been one for deception. I’ve never really needed to be. It’s easy to be yourself when you’re alone in the forest.

I couldn’t thrive in the big city, even if I wanted to. Today was just one more proof of that. I was already nervous arriving in Hanamoto – even Scout noticed the way I tensed as I stepped onto the docks.

Aphra getting arrested didn’t help. Elias blending into the crowds didn’t help. The man I was supposed to be tailing noticing me within seconds? Didn’t help. My head started buzzing, like it was full of killer bees.

Drabble Club: March 20th

Brave

It’s funny, how sometimes it feels like you’ve achieved so little, but then you look back – really look – and see that so much has happened in your life. It may not have felt like much when you were living through it, but looking back? Those little things add up to something big.

That time you went drinking with your ex in the rain? Or those nights spent rolling dice with your friends? It might have felt like nothing at the time, but it taught you something, didn’t it?

If nothing else, I hope it taught you how to be brave.

Drabble Club: March 19th

Burn

The flames crackle, shooting red and yellow sparks into the air. I sit beside the fire, relishing the warmth that seeps into my bones. Admiring the contrast of the bright light against the inky sky. In my lap is a pile of papers, remnants of the life I thought we were building together.

I can’t help it. As I take each sheet from the pile, I carefully scan every line. I search for memories of you, and when you were mine.

I should rip off the bandaid, throw out the whole pile and be done with it, but I can’t.

Drabble Club: March 18th

The Water is Fine

The heat today is oppressive. Walking into the open air is like walking into an oven. It feels as though my blood is boiling in my veins. Blood is thicker than water, and it is water I need right now to cool my blood.

I wade out beyond the silt and stones, until only smooth sand caresses my feet. The difference is startling. The water so cold that I reel in shock as it hits my skin.

Small fish flit away as I pass, seeking deeper water. As I finally immerse myself fully, the temperature equalises. The water is fine.

Drabble Club: March 17th (Oops… I got behind)

<sighs>

I’m behind. Again. And yes, I have skipped another day. The song for March 16th was another challenge I wasn’t able to meet. The song was… interesting. Not something I’d usually listen to – not even close. I couldn’t think of anything to do with it. And then I spent the next two days buried in a library book, trying to get it finished before it was due back. After that… well I don’t even know what happened to the last few days. Now I’m playing catch-up.

Man in Black

He passes like a shadow in the night, but in daylight he stands out like a sore thumb. Amidst the sea of colour, his black clothes mark him out as different. He is well known in the town, although I think there are few who know his name, or anything about him.

He is just “the man in black”.

I sometimes wonder why that is. Why this man who is so recognisable is nevertheless so apart? I wish I had the courage to ask him, but it feels like an invasion of his privacy. I wonder who he really is?

Drabble Club: March 15th

Finally… a drabble about my D&D character that isn’t full of spoilers!

Heathens

I have trust issues. That will come as no surprise to anyone who has ever met me. I only trust… well, he’s not a person. He’s my wolf.

I have had Scout since he was a few weeks old. I might have been the one who killed his mother – I suppose neither of us will ever know. But the pack was starving, and they were attacking people. It was a hard choice, but a necessary one.

Scout has trust issues too. Neither of us deal with outsiders very well, so if you want to approach us, please take it slow.

Drabble Club: March 14th

To Build A Home

I don’t think home is necessarily a place. “Home” is not just about stone walls, or wooden floors and window frames. People talk about a place to call home, but to build a home takes so much more than bricks and mortar.

It’s about memories. It’s about people (and it’s about pets). Home is a place that’s full of love and laughter. Home is not simply four walls and a roof, full of objects gathering dust. It’s about the smell of cooking favourite dishes, it’s about scuff marks on the walls (and it’s the stories behind how they got there).

Drabble Club: March 13th (and a Confession)

No… you didn’t miss a day. I did. I listened to the song chosen for yesterday’s challenge several times, and it was a good song. It just wasn’t for me. It’s not the kind of music I usually listen to, and the lyrics didn’t have very much in common with any of the characters I’ve been writing about. Even attempting to think outside the box didn’t give me much to work with, so I cut my losses, and instead of writing a drabble I spent some time last night on an old novel draft – visiting with some characters I haven’t looked at in a while and renaming some locations that, trust me, really needed new names.

Today’s song was much less of a challenge, as I once again wrote a secret drabble about my D&D character, and this one for sharing with y’all.

Little Roots Little Shoots

Dark things lurk in the forest. Witches, werewolves, vampires, sprites. All those things lurk in the dark forest, and if you look, you’ll find that so do I.

I’m waiting for you there too, but you might not recognise me. I’m wearing a disguise, and you can’t see through my mask.

Can you brave the dark things in the forest? Do you dare come searching for me? Tell me I’m worth it. Make me believe I’m worth facing the monsters. We could put down little roots together, and spend the rest of our lives tending the little shoots they grow.

Drabble Club: March 11th

Willow

I don’t know why you have this effect on me. You make me so dizzy I feel like I’m losing my mind. When you speak to me, I forget everything I’ve ever known.

It just feels like you see me, you see past my rough exterior. That day we walked by the lake, both of us admiring the willow trees leaning towards the water. Do you remember? Ever since that day I have wanted you to be mine.

I could beg if you want. If you would only take my hand, I would change all my plans.

Be my man.

Drabble Club: March 10th

I’m a bit late with today’s post… I really struggled to find an angle for this song. I had never heard it before, and it was really not at all what I was expecting from the title.

If We Were Vampires

My fragile heart tells me that this can’t go on forever. Someday you’ll be gone. I want to believe that day is a long time off, but my mind is traitorous – on a good day it will believe that this will last the rest of our lives. On a bad day it tells me that you’re already tired of me, of us, and that you’ll be gone tomorrow.

We are still young. We could have 40 more years together. Or not. All I know is, the thought of living a single day without you terrifies me. Please don’t be gone.