Day 299 Writing Short Stories

Still

The key to befriending a dragon is to stay really still and not make any sudden noises. Dragons as big as they are, they are easily spooked, and once spooked, they will disappear. Poof.

You should treat dragons like any anxious person or a prairie dog; their whole essence is to be alert for danger, even if it might sound strange to you. You might also want to ask what in the world could threaten a dragon.

And the simple answer is nothing. Nothing at all. They are too big and deadly to be threatened by anything that exists in the known universe. But the dragons don’t seem to know that. They think that they can be harmed by the simple, strong gust of wind. And they find a mere, tiny, feeble human being the scariest thing there is.

It is almost impossible to befriend a dragon for all the above reasons. If you suddenly find a dragon that is in a rare mood of curiosity and cooperation, I still advise you to stay away. In such a mood, they think of them as soft, little kittens, and thus they can jump, launch, and play with you, showing you their cute, vulnerable side, in a manner that reminds you of being inside a dryer filled with rocks. They have a very poor understanding of their power and size.

But if you still want to befriend a dragon, you should carry a big box of chocolate cookies with you and a barrel of tea. They cannot resist a chat over cookies and tea about the holistic nature of the universe.

Dream

The forest grew around her like waves rippling away from her. What was darkness a second ago now has a tree there. Every step she took caused a ripple, altering the space around her, changing the trees into ancient temples, temples into lagoons, and then back to trees. The only thing constant was her and her breathing, which came out as gasps for reality.

She knew that what was, should be, that things weren’t made of things that changed. But here and now, change was the only constant there was. The trees weren’t solid. Her hand went through them, and occasionally she could brush the stones that suddenly were there. The path she walked kept turning from a rooted trail into a highway made of stones. Those stones changed into roots and vice versa.

She searched for an exit, where the forest turned back into that initial darkness, but there was no way out. She would have to dream a door for her to leave. But how do you dream of something that changes instantly the second you obtain it? Potential is where things exist.

“Door,” she tested. There should have been a sound, but there was only the rumble inside her. And no door either.

She pushed her hand through the tree, seizing the darkness behind it, the background that composed everything. She pulled her hand back and opened her fingers. There on her palm was a star. A bright little gem that pulsed with her heartbeat. She took the gem into her mouth and swallowed it, and the forest, the temples, the lagoons, and the paths vanished. There was only the darkness and her. It was a good place to be.

Miracle

A woman who believes in nothing witnesses a miracle. I skipped this one.

The prompts are from the book A Year of Creative Writing Prompts.

I wrote the ad for my friend. I did it straight away as I woke up and got to my computer. It was the right call. If I had written my book or the prompts, I would have been depleted of stamina to finish the ad, and it wouldn’t have come out as it did. I’m happy with how it turned out and what motive I created around the product. I’m happy even if they don’t like it, because I managed to make it the way I wanted and give it the right mood that I thought suited the product and its target audience.

Now I will head outside to roam in the woods. Have a great Sunday! Thank you for reading ❤