Saturday, December 1, 2018

WEP/IWSG December Challenge-Ribbons and Candles


Is it December already? I honestly don't know where the year has gone. It's already time for another WEP/IWSG challenge! The theme for this month is Ribbons and Candles. There's so much room for interpretation with this one.

I intended to write a happier story than the one I ended up writing. I don't know why my mind tends to go dark with these prompts. Maybe that's just the kind of person that I am.

Now on to the story!



Tied With a Bow

Terra’s mother spent an hour meticulously brushing her long black hair and weaving silky red ribbons into her braids. Those patient hands finished the task by patting them gently into place and resting there for a long moment.

The dress Terra wore was the same shade of red as her ribbons and shone softly in the dim light of her bedroom. The candles on her bedside table cast flickering shadows on the walls. When she was little, she used to imagine those shadows were monsters creeping in the night. At age fifteen, she was too old for that kind of nonsense. There were monsters in the world, but they didn’t lurk in the shadows. They looked you right in the eye and told you how they intended to take your life away.

Now that the preparations were done, Terra’s mother sat in a chair in the corner of the room. Her face was entirely bathed in shadow, but her eyes reflected just enough of the light to remain visible. They remained fixed on her, gaze unwavering. Terra imagined her mother was trying to burn these last moments with her into her mind so she could remember every detail. Or perhaps her mother would end her life soon after the carriage left, and she wanted to have these last moments to reflect on her decision. She wouldn’t be the first parent to have taken this escape route from her grief, after all.

A soft sob came from the other end of the room. The twins Gabby and Danielle huddled together on the bottom bunk of the bed they shared. They too were wearing fine dresses, Gabby in emerald green and Danielle in powder blue. Their blond hair, however, showed a distinct lack of care, the ribbons not so painstakingly done. They were orphaned when they were five, so a woman named Dahlia had to do it for them. Unfortunately, there was much work to be done, so Dahlia didn’t have time to strive for perfection.

Terra lost her own father at the same time the twins lost their parents, and the memories of him grew fainter with each passing year. She sat on the edge of her bed, gathering her threadbare blanket in her hands for the final time, and wondered what he would think of all this. Would he have been horrified? Would he have understood the necessity of it all? Terra didn’t dare ask her mother. Even now, a decade after losing him, the very mention of her deceased husband brought her to tears. Terra preferred to fantasize that he’d have stepped in to stop it, that maybe he’d have gathered his family and led them to safety under the cover of night.

It was a silly fantasy, though. Disappearing into the night without a large group or weapons was far too dangerous. Only a crazy few attempted to go outside the bounds of established communities.

When the graves spilled forth their dead ten years prior, it seemed the entire world had ended. Death was an inescapable fact, and all would turn. Unlike fiction that existed prior to the apocalypse, destroying the brain wasn’t enough. Bodies had to be burned to ash to prevent the unholy resurrections from taking place. This made ridding the countryside of the lurching dead particularly difficult.

Safety and survival became the ultimate goal, and many were willing to pay any price to achieve that for themselves. The most violent of the survivors banded together and offered other communities their protection, but at a high cost. Of course, those in charge were never left to pick up the tab for that security. They fancied themselves too important for that. Terra imagined one of those creepy old decision-makers being forced to weave ribbons in their hair and be presented as gifts to their violent overlords. It would never happen, of course, but it made for a more pleasing fantasy than most.

A soft knock on the door interrupted Terra’s troubled thoughts. A moment later, Dahlia leaned inside and spoke. “The caravan has arrived. You need to come downstairs now.”

Terra’s mother let out a choked sob. She longed to comfort her, but she feared if she wrapped her arms around her mother’s frail frame, she’d never let go. Terra stepped forward, her chin held high. Gabby and Danielle fell into step behind her, though their tears continued to fall. Terra felt the urge to cry bubbling beneath the surface, but she forced it down. She refused to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing her break down.


Word Count: 974
FCA

44 comments:

  1. Very interesting. This is my kind of story.

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  2. Life is always harder and stranger than fiction. A truly evocative entry! :-)

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  3. I really like this kind of dark :-) A rather disturbing but fascinating flash.

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  4. So many of you skilled wordsmiths have turned to the dark this time. I am so very grateful that it is light here, and will be for some hours.
    And mourn the sacrifice of innocents. A common thread in too many cultures, including our own.

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    1. It definitely is a common thread. That might be why this story called to me. These kinds of horrors do exist in the world, and it's an awful thing.

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  5. Now that was an uplifting little Christmas story, L.G. Not! Loved it. Why do our minds turn to dystopia so easily? Must be something in the water, eh?
    Your story was beautifully told with the little homey details like the braiding of hair with such care and the color of the dresses...all added to the emotional element and momentarily took away the horror of what was happening. So you've moved on from brainwashing to the next step...fantastic flash and so thought provoking!

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    1. Thank you! I'm so glad to hear that the homey details worked.

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  6. Yipes! Whatever made me think the entries this time around would be like warm and fuzzy fodder for Hallmark specials? NOT!!! This is a lot darker than I expected, but it's reeeeally good. Your attention to detail made it more realistic and memorable. Delightfully creepy.

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    1. Yeah, I started out thinking I'd write something lighter, then this came out. At least I'm in good company with some of the other entries. I'm glad you liked it, though!

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  7. This reminded me of feeding virgins to dragons - same difference. Scary but crafted so the hopelessness builds - and the sadness.

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    1. It really is similar, isn't it? Virgins always seem to be the ones sacrificed. There's nothing fair about it.

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  8. Entertaining and creepifying all at once. Dixie Jo Jarchow

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  9. It took me to the plight of those immigrants that walked so far looking for salvation, only to find men with guns and tear gas. Our world is a cruel place and no matter our imaginations, truth if worse than fiction. Great work, Laura!


    Wishing you and your a Merry Christmas, and a bright New Year!

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    1. The world really is cruel, and that cruelty is probably what inspired me to write something dark.

      Merry Christmas!

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  10. Powerful! You've woven a strong and thought-provoking tale. Nicely done!

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  11. I like how you pulled me right into her world. So sad and all I could think of was how that mom could get her daughter out of that situation. Loved the story.

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    1. Thank you! While writing this, I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to be in her mother's shoes. It would be an awful situation.

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  12. So many ways it could go after, not necessarily all bad. I keep coming up with good scenarios of what would happen next. Maybe Terra's fears would prove unfounded. Maybe there is salvation coming for all. But then, my own stories always end on a positive note.

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    1. I purposely wanted to leave the ending open so the reader could think about all the good and bad ways things could turn out. It would be satisfying for Terra to find a happy ending for herself, wouldn't it?

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  13. I think I'm sensing a unofficial theme here- a bit of sacrifice maybe?. This is dark, but it's good. I like it.

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  14. Horrifying but so well written! I loved it. I hope that somehow she can find a way to escape, or get revenge. (It's probably terribly that I went there, but yeah, that's where my mind goes with what I consider to be a human trafficking story set in a dystopian world). Great entry!!!

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    1. I think revenge would definitely make sense in this context. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

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  15. Mmmm! A perfect flash fiction - so much said, and so much implied or just left to the reader to fill in for herself. Loved it, well done.

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  16. Bravery in the face of death is always a compelling story, and you've given your special twist to this one. I wanted to follow the characters, hoping that at the last moment they would be spared. Heck, I like happy endings. Shoot me.

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    1. I like happy endings, too, though I don't always write them. I'm glad this story worked for you!

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  17. To offer up your life for the good of others is a difficult task. It's a strange sacrifice because even today, it is the poor that pay the price.
    Very intriguing story.
    Shalopm aleichem,
    Pat G

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  18. I like the way your piece unfolded... a reminder of innocent children, unaware of what lies ahead, who are about to be led like lambs to the slaughter? But I could be wrong.
    Happy Holidays!

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  19. Sadly so many are offered up even in this day. Those living large always seem above it all while the poor suffer. Wonderfully written indeed.

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  20. Wait. Where are they going? I seem to have missed something here?

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  21. Sad but with such a ring of truth, your beautifully crafted story of the tragic coming to adulthood had something of the Hunger Games about it and that story itself is set in a cruel world where people try to impose restrictions on others. Dystopian and disturbing. A good read.

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  22. Really strong story. Yes, dark, but it’s so clearly evocative and visual. Not to mention bitter. I don’t know the details about the girl’s fate, but it’s clearly not going to be good.

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  23. A dark tragic tale where the stakes go beyond life and death. The imagery manages to amplify that sense of survival in a splendid fashion. Well done.

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  24. Dark has its place too, as it keeps us on our toes. Survival instinct is strong in some and weak in others. I'm curious about the setting and would love to read more. There will always be dark corners where evil lurks.

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