Flash Fiction Writer’s Tag

Hey everyone! I was tagged by Hannah over at Faith, Fiction, & Fairytales to do this tag, which I’m excited to do! Hannah has some great posts over at Faith, Fiction, & Fairytales, so I totally recommend you check her out–you won’t be sorry!

Hannah provided some super fun prompts to pick from, so after deliberating over them for a bit, I decided on one in particular that actually fits with one of my WIP concepts (currently titled Thirteen)! So here we go, my attempt at writing Flash Fiction XD

Rules

1. Link back to the creator of the tag and thank the blogger who tagged you.
2. Write a short story, poem, or flash fiction inspired from one (or more) of the prompts of the person who tagged you.
3. Make 5-10 of your own prompts. They can be anything: phrases, single words, quotes, pictures, music–get creative.
4. Have fun! (and let me know if you do this so I can read yours).
5. Tag 4-8 other bloggers

The Prompt:

Twelve red roses… twelve people I loved.

My Flash Fiction Attempt: “Twelve”

Twelve red roses… twelve people I loved. Twelve attempts at vengeance… twelve failures. Twelve clock chimes… twelve lives lived.

Within my ethereal chamber, I reset time once again for the thirteenth and final time. After all–there was no thirteen o’clock, and therefore was out of my–Guardian Timekeeper’s–jurisdiction. If Grendali failed this time–he would die.

I sat on the floor of my chamber, a simple rotunda which held everything necessary for me–my bed, table, a bookshelf, several clocks of which I used to set and reset time, and, in the center of the room, a silvery… resting place. Not a casket, but not a bed.

And within it, lie my brother, the mortal prince Grendali, the one for whom I’d broken the Rules of Guardianship for, in order to help him achieve his vengeance. He slept again–once more for a hundred years–then he’d be thrust into his thirteenth and final chance at the vengeance. Unless he used his Imperial Wish ability again, I could not manipulate time to give him more chances.

But part of me wondered if Grendali really wanted this. As an ethereal being, I found it hard to understand mortals. I only aged from eight to twelve in twelve-hundred years, but every time Grendali’s newest life began a hundred years after his last, he seemed so shocked by the change in culture. He struggled to adapt to his new life and family, confused things from his old lives, and sometimes acted as if he didn’t remember who he was. Why he was here. He didn’t act like Grendali, but someone different. Someone foreign. And then he’d yell at me, asking me how I could stand suffering eleven–no, now twelve–times over.

I walked to the vase holding the twelve roses, remembering each person they signified. The nurse who took care of me–her little daughter who played with me. Grendali’s fiancée, the sweetest older sister who always brought me candy. The two guards tasked with my protection, the victims of many of my practical jokes, who only laughed along with me. The esquire who taught me swordplay, his little brother, the page who followed me around asking about ethereal beings. The tutor who taught me diligently about the present empire, helping me to read and write and learn how best to communicate with mortals. And Grendali’s family–my family. The father, mother, brother, and sister who accepted me as one of their own, despite my status as an ethereal being–a guardian. The ones who loved me unconditionally.

All destroyed by one man’s greed.

And I–the powerful Guardian Timekeeper, could only save Grendali and promise a chance of vengeance to repay their kindness.

I fingered the roses. Twelve red roses… twelve people I loved. Twelve people Grendali would avenge. Twelve people I would avenge.

Prompts to Choose From:

Concept Prompt: I’ve always wanted to see someone take the typical fairy tale genre of having a prince and villain fight over the princess and then at the end, realize neither of them are interested in the princess, but just wanted to become friends with each other and she was their point of contact or something and they run off and have adventures together.

Writing Prompt (not my own): You’re the town’s superhero. Your greatest enemy is the town’s supervillain. However, secretly, you’re both brothers. This isn’t anything tragic, though, as your whole destructive rivalry is actually just a massive prank on your third brother, the mayor.

Dialogue Prompt: “Well, this is the most intense family reunion I’ve ever been to.”

Phrase Prompt: For some people, a victory might be slaying a giant. For others, it might be waking up in the morning. 

Song Prompt: As We Sail by Fox Sailor (it’s on Youtube).

The Tag-ees!*

*participation is entirely voluntary!

Jaidie Phillips @ https://sisters-three.com

Sara Ann @ https://sparklegirlblogspot.wordpress.com

Kayti Phillips @ https://sisters-three.com

Cally May @ https://callymaywrites.wordpress.com

Marisa Phillips @ https://sisters-three.com

And any of you who are reading this and want to be tagged! (Or you can just write your response in the comments!)

Thanks for reading! ~ Kay Adelin