Chapter 14

Chapter 13

Chapter 12

Chapter 11

It must have been a demon who dreamed up a life regarded with male presumption. From the prescribed stoicism placed on a first born son, to the stifling collar of the school uniform, every moment was one of irritation. Yet I followed the path of least resistance, for no other reason than to lessen the blow. To conform was to evade conflict until such time as it was necessary.

Chapter 9

There wasn't a mad rush to the food tables, more of a casual shift of attention that gathered steam as people started loading up their plates. When we meandered our way there, we had to wait in a queue. Tracy made a show of publically giving me a card from Martha. I guess I had my invitation.

Chapter 8

Chapter 4

“NO Way. Your face, your nose. I don't like saying this, but Laurence had a really ugly nose, it sort of dominated his face. You do have the same eyes though.” She leaned forwards and sort of squinted, really examining me closely. My green eyes are relatively unique, but I was beginning to get a bit worried. I didn't know her that well. I couldn't tell her stories from a shared past or talk about a weirdly shaped birthmark that she would have no knowledge of. Maybe my disguise was a bit too good. At least I could explain what happened to my nose.

The town, lake, national reserve and the people in this story are all fictional.

Be warned, this is not a pretty story. It has several instances of physical abuse and actual violence.

The story is set in the near future, starting from early November 2017. Much of it takes place the next spring.

**********

Imagine being on vacation, except there’s nobody around, and you’re stuck in a single room. Such was life on the sofa, nursing the aftermath of the accident. There were only so many chat shows and soap operas I could endure before going insane, and after three days I was at my limit.

The Dark Queen
by
Snarfles

The Valley

This little piece was something that came out of nowhere while I was trying to sleep early today. I got up, intending to jot down basic info for it, but ended up spending about two hours doing other things on the computer before returning to get the sleep I still needed.

The interesting part is that this resurfaced a few hours ago as I was trying to go back to sleep.

The caution is primarily aimed at the brief kill scene near the end, but also due to the storyteller's description of the job.

**********

Shadowsblade a Whateley Tale: Written by Shadowsblade

Created for war and forged in pain, dealing with demons within and without.

In The Face of It All
(c) 2017
Haylee V

Even though something inside is grieving
Laugh, clown, laugh! - Abbey Lincoln

The clock on the wall silently ticked away as Francis sat on his bed, thinking. Just where, exactly, had things began to go wrong? When had his life began to horribly unravel?

Was it when he first realized, at four, that he was different from the other little boys in his play group?

Crews Ship

by

Rodford Edmiston

"A curse?" said Dot, after Daryl insisted on being private before revealing any secrets.

Dot might have been foolish complying, but curiosity can sometimes override even survival instincts. Besides, Daryl had been a fun and mannerly companion so far. Hopefully, being female wouldn't change that.

"Well, yeah," sighed the uncomfortably female Daryl. "I've been working at the Frique place..."

"Well, that explains things!" humphed Dot.