Welcome to this week’s installment of many micro stories, ranging in length from 100 words to 500 words.
With each story we hope to deliver a little whimsy into the lives of our readers.
THE LAST JAR OF THE NAME KEEPER
Every time somebody died, I put their name in an empty jar. Keeping the names of all who pass has always been my burden, as endless as time.
For so long it was just I. My world knew only death and jars; then you arrived, and I learned life.
The names I’ve kept are more than paper and glass — they are identities, all grown from the dust of stars long ago exploded.
From dawn to dusk, we took each jar down, uncurled the paper like a spell and read the written names out loud so that everyone knew it was still loved, even if only by our tongues once a day. You and I were butterflies, dancing down the corridors of our mausoleum – once, only mine.
You are my favourite creature to have ever died.
I will put your whole body in a jar, along with everything you ever loved. Including me.
Lily Bastock daylights as an editor, twilights as a writer, and moonlights as a book goblin. Her writing often walks somewhere between eighteenth century piracy and an enchanted wood. Putting her bachelors and masters degrees to use, she’s grateful to have been a Finalist for the Fabuly Writing Challenge and the Runner-Up for The Plentitudes Prize, and to have been shortlisted for the Bridport Prize for Short Fiction and the Elegant Literature Award. Her unpublished novel Unnatural Tides is currently a Finalist for Ready Chapter One’s Survivor Stories Challenge. Publications include Elegant Literature, Vellichor, and the Fabuly App.
If you enjoyed this story you can find it and more in the Hawthorn & Ash anthology.
Iron Faerie Publishing 