Tag: books

Hawthorn & Ash #124

~ ironfaerie ~ Leave a comment

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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.

FREEDOM FOR FAIRIES

Buzzing bees, rushing water, and the sweet fragrance of wildflowers. Another perfect sunny day in the Forest of Fairies.

As Kaya flew around, a loud boom startled her. She watched a dark shadow approach. A human.

“I know you’re in here, little fairies,” he said. “My device picked up your signatures. Come out—I have a task for you!”

Caught by humans. Kaya feared this day would come. She turned toward the forest, yelling, “Run!”

Using tweezers, the human caught Kaya between them before she could fly away. “Got you!”

She wiggled and squirmed, but the tweezers wouldn’t let her go. She watched, wide-eyed in horror as the human caught all the fairies, then took them back to his lair. An abandoned castle that resembled a science lab.

“You will be my servants now,” he explained. “You will cook, clean, and entertain me while I invent something great for humanity. The council of scientists said my experiments were too violent and rejected me, but I’ll show them. Then everyone will know the name Christopher Carver!”

“And if we refuse?” Kaya squeaked.

“You won’t.” He tied each fairy with string, ensuring they could move around the castle but not escape. “The string is too strong for your tiny hands to break. You’re here forever.”

As the days passed, Kaya believed it. Fairies kept the castle spotless while Dr. Carver worked. Sometimes, his experiments would even include the fairies themselves. He turned to Kaya with a wide grin.

“You—come here. I want to see what happens if I pluck those wings of yours.”

“No!” Kaya cried. “Stay away from me!”

Dr. Carver growled, grabbing the string she was attached to a little too hard. It snapped, leaving her with one thought. I’m free.

She flew out of the castle, faster than Dr. Carver. The forest greeted her back. But as she relaxed on a branch, there was no one there.

“It’d be safer to stay here where I’m free,” she murmured, “but what’s freedom if I’m alone?”

And so Kaya armed herself with weapons from the forest—pine needles, wasp stingers, and flowers. She flew back to the castle and squirted the flower’s nectar into Dr. Carver’s eye when he opened the door. He cried in pain as she used the pine needles to break the strings holding each fairy.

“Kaya!” one cried. “You came back!”

“Of course,” she said. “No one can be free until everyone’s free. Now, come on!”

As Dr. Carver chased them, Kaya fired off the wasp stingers at him. His hands and face swelled like balloons. “No…I’m allergic!”

“That’ll teach you not to take what isn’t yours!” Kaya yelled back. “Fairies, follow me!”

When they’d made it back to the forest, they threw a party in Kaya’s name to celebrate her courage. The mad scientist never bothered them again. But just in case, Kaya laid out a trap of sticky honey to slow him down.

 

Dana Gricken is a multi-genre author from Ottawa, Canada, published by Melange Books, Evernight Teen, Oliver-Heber Books, and Bella Books, as well as different anthologies. In 2019, she was given a writing scholarship by actor and director Kevin Smith. Connect with her on social media @DanaGricken or on her website, danagricken.com, where she shares her writing and spreads mental health awareness.

 

If you enjoyed this story you can find it and more in the Hawthorn & Ash 2023 anthology.

AVAILABLE HERE!

 

Hawthorn & Ash #120

~ ironfaerie ~ Leave a comment

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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.

NINE TIMES ROUND

There are several things I could blame, I suppose, but the main culprit was an advert from my childhood. The tagline was: “What’s the worst that can happen?” Turns out, using it as a life motto is not a great idea.

I could also blame binge drinking, my friends, or my inability to say no to a dare.

I grew up in Macclesfield, in the northwest of England, where we heard stories about Toot Hill.

Some said it was once a Roman fort. It wasn’t—but that didn’t stop people from adding their own myths.

My parents told me farmers used to leave food out for the fairies before working the land. That sort of thing really sticks in a kid’s head.

When I was nearly eight, I pestered my parents into taking me there. I wanted to leave some jam sandwiches—my favourite at the time—for the fairy folk. I suspect Mum and Dad took me just to shut me up. They later regretted it when I started having nightmares about being kidnapped by fairies.

Over time, I forgot the nightmares—but not the fairies. Even in my cynical teenage years, they stuck around. When anybody mentioned them, I would laugh – if anyone noticed the tic in my eye, they never said anything. Just as well—I’d have been forced to fight to defend my honour, and I was the dictionary definition of a weakling nerd.

It was Alex who suggested the camping trip to celebrate my 18th. We bought the essentials: cheap booze and snacks. Richard suggested proper food. Alex just looked at him.

Dave’s parents provided the camping gear. Our first mistake was drinking before pitching the tents—a much harder task when you’re drunk.

Alex had found a mystery bottle in his parents’ kitchen. The label was in a language none of us could read, but we knew it was 65% ABV. We figured blindness was a risk—but hey, “What’s the worst that can happen?”

After much stumbling and swearing, we got everything set up—though not before setting fire to Richard’s coat. Dave claimed it was an accident.

Richard passed out early. We debated drawing on his face or shaving his eyebrows. We chose the former, mostly because we didn’t have any shaving gear.

Halfway down the bottle, the dares began.

Alex dared Dave to jump the fire. Soon, we were all doing it. Except Richard, of course.

Then Alex dared me to run around the fairy ring nine times.

Legend says if you do, the fairies take you. My eye twitched, but it was too dark for anyone to notice. And I couldn’t back down from a dare.

 

I don’t know how long ago that was. Time, like a lot of things here, is… different. In your world, it might’ve been yesterday—or a century ago.

I often wonder what my friends thought when I disappeared. What did my parents say?

This is how legends begin—and how they trap you.

 

Keith R. Burdon was born and raised in North Staffordshire, England, before making a daring escape across the border to Wales, where he now resides with his better half, an imaginary pet hamster, and an overactive imagination.

A writer for as long as he can remember, Keith has had numerous stories published both online and in print in recent years.

When he’s not lost in the world of words, he can be found indulging in music, binge-watching documentaries, and plotting his next road trip—perhaps to somewhere truly exotic… like Belgium.

If you enjoyed this story you can find it and more in the Hawthorn & Ash 2023 anthology.

AVAILABLE HERE!