Prompt: The map (app) doesn’t show what’s right here

Carrie had her hands tucked in her coat pockets, fingers still feeling the sharp bite of winter wind. She walked quickly on the broad sidewalk, eyes scanning the ground for dark icy patches at the same time she kept track of the pedestrians moving around her. Minneapolis wasn’t New York, but she still practiced her Big City habits.

She noted the young man approaching, head down, looking at his phone. Idiot. She stepped clear of his path, closer to the building. Without looking up, he suddenly veered in front of her and walked right into her. She fell back on her butt and her backpack, trying to pull her hands out of her pockets.

“Oh shit! You’re real!” she thought she heard him say, as she shook her head and took a deep breath. She wanted to cry, or scream at him.

He was pulling her up by both hands. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Are you okay? Jeez, we’ve got to move. They’re looking…”

He tugged on her hands, and she was dazed enough to let him pull her to the side of the building, and around the corner. She realized they were in an alley and started to pull away. He pushed her against the wall and leaned close to her ear, hiding her face from the street.

“Please! I’m not going to hurt you. They’re passing us now. Just hold on for one more…”

She pulled her hands free and shoved against his chest. He stumbled back and she darted out of the alley.  She turned left and ran, her heart thundering in her ears. Would he follow? Grab her?

She gasped in the freezing air and slowed her pace to a fast walk. No one paid her any attention. She was afraid to look back. When she reached the corner, she turned and dared a glance. She almost stumbled. He was following her. She leaned against the building, trembling. No. What had she seen? He was walking behind three business men, pointing to them with his phone. He’d seen her. Mouthed something. Help me…

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Author note: Are you playing Ingress? If you’d like an invite, email me. I opened the app on my way home tonight, and though it showed the streets and buildings, it never resolved to show XM lights or portals along the way. I had a sudden vision of the world as I saw it superimposed on this dark, lifeless world. What about cars moving on the roads? I didn’t actually see any people out – it was dark and cold.

Anyway, I was playing with this idea, when all of the sudden, I thought, “Oh FFS, it’s the Matrix! :(”

So what do you do when you have an idea, but you’re not sure it’s original, or original *enough*…

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And so, with a loving heart, I offer you

Namaste

I’ve heard many translations. Here’s my favorite:
The light of the universe that shines within me recognizes
the light of the universe that shines within you.

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Prompt: You invite 3 of your friends who’ve never met, but you don’t show up

Hat/tip to WritingPrompt.com

It’s been far too long! Come and join me for a girls’ weekend. July 17-19, 2017 Iberostar Grand Bavaro Hotel Playa Bavaro, Bavaro, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic Reservations on my account

Cheri waited for the driver to open her door and hold out his gloved hand for her. She tucked the card back in her purse, the words long memorized, and let him draw her from the limousine. Ever since she’d landed in the Punta Cana airport, she’d had the increasing feeling she was caught in a dream.

She’d spied the driver holding her name on a placard as she descended the escalator toward the baggage claim area. He’d already pulled her bags – how had he known? – and gestured toward the long row of glass doors. She wished she’d picked up a few more Spanish phrases on the way down, but once he had her settled in the limousine, he was content to listen to salsa music as the drove through the beautiful countryside.

By the time they reached the hotel, Cheri was feeling used to the heat and the beauty, but not the grandeur of the Iberostar. She hadn’t stayed any place like this since the last time she saw her parents. Clutching her purse, she waited as the driver snapped his fingers for a valet to pick up her bags. Another valet bowed, greeting her in impeccable French. “Welcome, Mademoiselle. Please follow me. Your rooms are ready for you now.”

Rooms? Oh my…

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Stephanie sat on a shaded chaise lounge by the pool, paging through the medical journal she’d optimistically brought to read on the plane. The young man who’d brought her two drinks already walked over with a third in his hand, his walk more like a dance to music she couldn’t hear. He leaned over and set the drink on her table, flashing a bright smile. “That’s not the kind of thing people usually bring to read here. There’s not a conference this weekend. Are you here for work or play?”

Stephanie arched a brow and told herself he was not flirting with her. “I’m here for play. I’m always working,” she said with a straight face. He laughed, throwing his head back, and she ducked her attention away from his dark hair and brown skin to the dry text she couldn’t concentrate enough to finish.

Standing and wrapping a sheer scarf around her waist, she nodded to the young man and picked up the fresh drink. Carrying it toward the hotel lobby, she spied a newcomer and changed course to cross her path.

Holding out the drink, she smiled. “I’m guessing you’re one of Margaret’s friends. I’m Steph.”

The other woman stopped short and looked around in surprise. With a skeptical expression, she accepted the drink. “I’m Cheri. Have you seen Margaret yet?”

“No. I arrived late last night. Breakfast in bed and a trip to the pool is all I’ve managed so far. Have you seen your rooms yet?”

Cheri laughed and sipped her drink. “Oh, yes.”

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The two women chatted as they walked around the hotel grounds. Returning to the lobby, they decided on a poolside lunch. Steph’s flirtatious young host seated them where they could see the broad staircase from the lobby, as they kept an eye out for their mutual friend.

As they finished their flan and sipped coffee, they saw a petite woman with waist-length hair pause at the top of the stairs before descending. She walked in a diagonal down the steps until she reached the left  bannister, then turned and continued down on her diagonal path.

“That must be one of Margaret’s friends,” Steph and Cheri said at the same time. When they burst out laughing, the woman looked up, tripping on the bottom step and recovering with a spin onto the patio.

“Definitely!” Cheri said. They waved her over…

Note: Too slow? On a second pass, I’d like to present the mystery sooner. But if the three women arrive separately and don’t know each other, how best to handle their introductions – to the reader and to each other? Or can even more description of the beautiful environment be sufficient to keep the reader engaged for a long slow opening? What do you think?

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And so, with a loving heart, I offer you

Namaste

I’ve heard many translations. Here’s my favorite:
The light of the universe that shines within me recognizes
the light of the universe that shines within you.

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Prompt: Your Soul Mate Colors Your World

I never believed I’d find my soul mate. I mean, not everyone is that lucky. My parents saw the world in black and white till the day they died, even though they were obviously in love. Actually, I was kind of glad my dad didn’t have to suffer losing all the color in the world when Mom died. Although he may as well have, the way he sunk in and didn’t care about anything after that.

Soul mate. What does that even really mean, anyway? If it’s not the person you truly love? I remember there was a couple in high school who found each other. No one believed them at first. High school? How rare is that? But suddenly they were both describing colors and walking around with these stunned expressions. There were a few faculty who knew they were telling the truth. Soon they ruled the school social scene, even though you wouldn’t have thought twice about them if you saw them in the hallway.

When I went off to college, there were four faculty couples who were soul mates. I had Bronsen for Psych and his partner Cowell for art history. They invited students over for cookouts once a month, and I would nurse a beer and watch them together. No, not in a stalkerish way. Just wondering what it would be like. I mean, I had a couple of girlfriends along the way, and one or two guys that might have tempted me, and one pair of twins that…oh my…but I never saw the barest hint of color.

Seeing Bronsen and Cowell made me think about what real love, real partnership might be like. And would it be enough, to have that and still see the world in black and white like my parents? Or should I keep searching? Holding out? And what if I never found my soul mate? Is there someone for everyone?

To be continued?

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And so, with a loving heart, I offer you

Namaste

I’ve heard many translations. Here’s one I love:
The light of the universe that shines within me recognizes
the light of the universe that shines within you.

Dogs in House	Houdini, Brindle
Music Playing	U2, Songs of Innocence
Time writing	~20 minutes
September word count	6,604

Prompt: Dragons stalk the streets, puffing out smoke and clattering their mechanical wings

Quote credit: Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall

Photo credit: Robert Dalton, “MojaveDesert Sand Dragon” (cc 2.0)

Prompt Credit: Unknown origin, found on Pinterest

At the first tremor, Jakov dropped the fabric bolt he had been considering and looked around for Clara. Another tremor, and people began to clear the market square, shouting and running in alarm. Where was the brat! Mother would kill him!

As the square emptied, Jakov ran into the center, turning slowly with sharp eyes focused at knee level, searching for Clara’s white-blond curls. He spotted her gazing up at sparkly suncatchers, and beyond her, the dragon’s head appeared around the corner.

Jakov froze. What could he do? No use to call out – the dragon would hear him, not Clara. He couldn’t run to her, or the dragon might attack them both. He couldn’t move at all, in fact, without the dragon’s metallic eyes latching onto him. No one wanted to attract the notice of a dragon.

Fear warred with anger. Why had the clockwork mages built the dragons and animated them to roam the city? Great metal-scaled beasts, they blew smoke when calm and roared fire when disturbed, leaving terror and destruction in their wake. The mages were long gone, but the dragons ruled in their stead.

The dragon’s head lolled left and right, searching for….what? Movement? Scent? Jakov knew the moment it saw Clara, and his heart stopped. The dragon lowered its head and stretched out its long, thick neck, moving closer and closer to Clara, who remained oblivious to the danger behind her. She lifted her arms and waved in a happy dance with the spinning suncatchers.

She spun around and stopped short when she came nose to snout with the dragon. A thin curl of steam wrapped around her. They stared at each other, unmoving. Clara reached out a hand and laid her palm flat on the dragon’s nose, then slid it up, leaning forward…closer and closer to those terrible long fangs.

Jakov wanted to turn away, before he saw his sister snapped up by the great beast. Instead, he watched with horrified fascination as she fearlessly stroked the dragon’s nose and along its cheek. The dragon’s eyes blinked shut, and it blew a gentle puff of steam around her. Clara’s fingers moved against the dragon’s scales, and Jakov knew she was signing. He wanted to tell her somehow, the dragon would never understand.

Clara leaned even closer and pressed her lips on the dragon’s snout. He fingers traced signs across its scales once more, then she wrapped her chubby arms around its nose and hugged it. Jakov felt hysterical laughter bubbling up inside. Before it burst free, the dragon pulled away, turned around, and returned through the street beyond, with a single flick of its tail as it disappeared.

Jakov raced to Clara and dropped to his knees, gathering her in a tight hug. She wriggled free and reached up to trace signs on his cheek, as their mother had taught them for as long as Jakov could remember. Dragon! Did you see?

Did he see? He wasn’t sure his heart had started beating again. Yes, I saw. Are you crazy? How could you let it get so close?

Clara cocked her head, curls bobbing in the sunlight. She tapped her fingers against his cheek, thinking. He waited. There was no rushing her. Dragon friend.

No, Clara! Not friend! Danger!

Clara pulled away, then grabbed his hand and signed once more. Friend. You’ll see.

She marched across the still-empty square, and Jakov watched her for a long moment before he jumped to his feet and ran after her. Ghods help him if she got home first and told Mother she had made friends with a dragon. Mother would kill him. Maybe he should go after the dragon instead.

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And so, with a loving heart, I offer you

Namaste

I’ve heard many translations. Here’s one I love:
The light of the universe that shines within me recognizes
the light of the universe that shines within you.

Dogs in House	Houdini, Brindle
Music Playing	Sinners & Saints: The Ultimate Medieval & Renaissance Music Collection
Time writing	~70 minutes, including image/quote research
September word count	1,766