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Round Robin/Story Chain
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Round Robin/Story Chain
Round Robin/Story Chain
So this is how it works: I start, you keep going. Please watch out for continuity problems (if someone has already posted, please don't post). Please also make sure that your part of the story connects to the person's above. Please keep it simple, with no confusing... er... stuff. Write as much as you want to!
"Finn?" I yell, crying "Finn, please! Come back!" I know he doesn't hear me. He's too far away by now. The fields, woods, and scraggly bushes surrounding my home suddenly are shadows, turning on me, snatching at me. Steam issues from the chimney of our red-brick house, and I can smell the scent of supper. Why did he leave? Perhaps it was the dreams. Every night he dreamed of a golden magic found in the heart of Red Leaf woods. He told me so, last night, before he left. Then today, when I woke up, his bed was empty. I had searched for him, but he was gone. My little brother is gone.
"It's no use crying," Mother's tired face peers out from the scraped, chipped, wooden door. Her face betrays that she has been crying too.
submitted by Rose bud, age RoundRobin, wheretheredferngrows
(July 31, 2015 - 3:57 pm)
(July 31, 2015 - 3:57 pm)
"I know," I murmer back. "I can't believe he would leave now, of all times-"
"I know, dear," Mother says, wrapping her arms around me.
"Can I ... ?"
"No. I'm sorry, Arilye, but you simply cannot. The Iniigeem Castei rarely accepts anyone as an apprentice for their travels, and as mixbreed, we cannot afford to decline."
"Gwendethe! Don't call her that! She is not a ... a mixbreed."
Mother turned to my dad. "Oh, come on, Tony. She is half human, half nymph; we cannot hide what she is."
"Papa, must I go with the Iniigeem Castei? Surely, now with Finn gone-"
"Arilye. Your mother is right. You need to learn to control your powers, and get a proper education. Mother and I can only teach you so much. Now go pack."
I nod, and trudge inside, wiping away my tears.
(July 31, 2015 - 4:30 pm)
Nymphs are shape-shifters. But as a half-nymph, I can only alter some parts of myself. I cannot turn into a deer and run away from it all as I would like to, but I can change how my body looks while still resembling a human. My parents do not know that I have harnessed this power.
As I pack, I think about my brother. I wonder if he has been taken by the warewolves. If he had, nobody could get him back. I try not to think of that, though. I need a plan.
It is our last night in this house, and my last chance of finding my brother. I grab a walking stick, my travelling cloak, and father's spare dagger. Then I stealthily climb out of my window and run into the forest, changing my features to resemble an old woman as I go.
(July 31, 2015 - 7:57 pm)
I glance up. Past the leafy branches, I can see the stars. I orient myself and figure out that north must be to my right. The Red Woods are westward. North, West... I turn around and start tramping through the thick forest towards the Red Woods. After maybe half an hour of brisk walking, I come to the bridge that crosses the big river. The bridge is made of a log that is anchored so it crosses the river. The roots of the log grasp the muddy shore near where I stand. In the wet mud I can see the small footprints of Finn. Finn had not inherented the nymph ability to shape shift and so I have learned what his footprints look like.
I start across the bridge. In some places the branches weave together into sections of railing, or arch up to provide cover from the sun and soft drizzling rain that we always get in the afternoons.I hurry faster, knowing that the summer night is short.
On the other side of the river, is the Red Woods. The trees are shorter, squatter here, with red leaves. Huge nuts grow on the trees and fall, plump and inviting to the ground. When I was younger I used to sneak away many nights to play in the forests, cracking the huge nuts and filling the caps and shells with nut milk. I would sip the sweet milk as I longued on one of the highest branches. But now I have no time to spare.
I bend over the ground, noting the small footprints going on deeper into the woods. The footprints are very soft, and disappear for long stretches, but I note the other things- crushed grass near a empty shell recently scraped clean of meat, a scrap of his flannel shirt caught on a thorny rose bush.
(August 1, 2015 - 11:50 am)
Snap. I whirl around, holding out the dagger. Nothing around me has changed. Not a leaf rustles, not a brush moves. I turn again and...
Snap.
What is that? Who is doing that? Unconsciously I whirled back around. Still, nothing has changed. What is happening?
This time, I walk backwards, so I can see what is behind me. The noise cannot plague me if I see where it is coming from.
Snap. This time, it comes from the direction I am moving! I whirl around. Nothing is there. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and perspiration drips into my eyes.
"Who are you?" I shout. "What do you want?"
(August 2, 2015 - 12:43 pm)
Wait. Everytime I move....
Snap! I look down, realizing i am standing on an anfeogre's nest. I quickly jump off and walk hurriedly away, relieved I didn't wake up the dreadful creature. I keep my dagger handy, still slightly frightened.
Anfeogre: a fully, head-sized creature with a beak. But don't let its fluffiness fool you, this creature packs a mean punch, with its body.
(August 2, 2015 - 1:22 pm)
I go back to examining the piece of Finn's shirt caught on a thorn. Red Leaf Woods (more commonly known as Red Woods), is suddenly a dark, shadowy place. Should I go back? I suddenly doubt that I will ever find Finn. More likely, I will get lost myself, or worse. No. It is either here or the Iniigeem Castei. I must go on.
I continue, thrashing around in the underbrush, until I see a faint, swinging light ahead of me. I blink, but it is still there. Do I run towards it or away?
(August 6, 2015 - 5:23 pm)
(July 31, 2015 - 4:31 pm)
Top!
(July 31, 2015 - 4:39 pm)
With Cheese!
(July 31, 2015 - 4:39 pm)
Top!
(July 31, 2015 - 6:10 pm)
I'm confused.
(August 2, 2015 - 10:36 pm)
TOP!
(August 6, 2015 - 5:23 pm)
Top! Please! Top!
(August 11, 2015 - 4:14 pm)