Marie McLaughlin

“A Tail of Two Cats” by Marie McLaughlin

The cardboard box Penguin and Timber rode out the creek in gently shook as the creek’s currents carried it to a nearby bank. Once the container came to a stop, the bigger orange Cat pushed it over by pouncing on the side. The smaller black and white Kitten timidly crawled to the box’s rim. “Where is this place?” asked the Kitten. “How will we survive?” Timber looked up and saw a park sign that said “Beaver Dam Park and Campgrounds”. Reassured, the orange Tabby turned to look at his younger charge and said “Listen up, Penguin,  we’re at ...

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“Wolf's Judgment” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #205

Madadh hid inside a hollowed log, waiting for the soldiers to run the other way. Madadh refused to breathe out of fear of being heard from his hiding spot. Once the soldiers were out of sight, the man silently crawled out of the log and ran away, escaping something. “Why did I have to kill that Wolf? Why couldn’t I have just tried to scare it off, or just let it have that sheep??” Madadh thought to himself. Madadh was a wealthy Shepherd in a small but prosperous kingdom. He had a loving family, a loyal hound, and a highly successful Sheep ...

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“Brogan's Red Lion ” by Marie McLaughlin

James "Jim" Brogan wiped down a drinking glass behind the counter of his Irish Pub, 'Brogan's Red Lion Pub and Grill', waiting for the impending after-work rush. How many times has Jim turned on the tap, given food orders to his wife, Wanda, who worked in the kitchen, wiped down a glass, and half-listened to his drunk patron rant about how their boss, or something or other else in their lives is screwing them over? He honestly couldn't tell anymore, he'd ran this establishment for so long.James Brogan looked at the Irish shield with the brog...

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“A tale of two Sarahs” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #105

My name is Sarah Swanson and I'm Eleven and a half years old. I'm laying in my bed, laptop in my hands. My mom and dad are downstairs having an argument over something probably not worth arguing about anyway. "Do you think I make a million dollars at my desk job!?!? I don't make enough to afford that museum field trip for Sarah!!" That's my dad, Mike. He's always complaining about his job at the office, and he talks about how everything my mom and me want to spend money on means "one more day that he has to work a job he hates", but he thi...

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“All Rock-Starred Out” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #104

Trent Brody had just played a set of songs at his most recent gig at Charley's Bar. He was shredding his electric guitar with a dizzying array of power chords. Trent was enjoying making music, he was getting paid fairly decent money, and on top of that, he loved doing gigs at bars because he would get free drinks.  Trent was getting ready to leave the stage at the bar when a man in an expensive-looking business suit walked up on to the stage, too. The man clapped his hands slowly."That was an excellent performance, sir. My name is ...

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“Jerry and Melissa” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #104

Jerry had asked Melissa, that cute girl from the convenience store that he had a crush on on a date. Jerry mustered up the courage to ask Melissa to go out to dinner with him, and Melissa agreed to have dinner with him at the greasy-spoon diner on the street corner that was near the convenience store where she worked. Jerry gave Melissa his phone number and Melissa gave Jerry her phone number, and Jerry friended Melissa on FaceSpace, and Melissa friended Jerry on FaceSpace.The night of the dinner date, he was working on a car at the body sho...

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“City of the Gods” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #103

Calpillo and his little sister Xochil harvested corn from their parent's corn field for dinner for the night while his mother Xochimilco harvested beans. Xochimilco cooked the Rabbit, corn and beans, and the family ate supper for the evening in peace. Their father Texcoco came back with a Rabbit. Texcoco and his family lived happily and peacefully with their tribe in the land of Aztlan. The Tribe took good care of their land and got along well with the neighboring tribes. Later that night, the tribe was gathered around a large bonfire when a...

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“Ronald Grump” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #102

Jay-Bob Jenkins was a petty farmer in rural Kansas just barely getting by. One night, he turned on TV, and on the evening news, he saw that billionaire Ronald Grump was making a big announcement at grump tower."I'M RONALD GRUMP, and I'm RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT!!!!" Ronald declared.Jay-Bob Jenkins loved watching Ronald Grumps' reality show, 'The Disciple', and thought that Grump was a self-made man with a strong work ethic. (Even though Ronald inherited everything from his rich parents.)Jay-Bob thought that Ronald Grump could be a trustworthy p...

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“My Childhood” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #102

I was born in 1991, the year where society was transitioning from 80s pop culture to 90s pop culture. According to my mother, the morning I was born was "unusually sunny, bright and warm" for the time of the year. Without Dad to help out, my mom moved us to a small town so that the cost of living could be cheap enough for us to get by on only one income. The town I used to live in is a so-so place at best: they got a swimming pool, a Bowling Alley, and a cheap Movie Theatre, but not a lot else, and this is where my story actually begins...

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“Vanitas” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #101

It was a beautiful day in the kingdom of Vanitas. The king of Vanitas had 3 daughters, his oldest, Nora, believed herself more beautiful than any woman in the world. As Nora walked down the streets of her kingdom, a beggar crawled to her on all fours. "Please, your majesty...could you spare a few coins for a meal? I'm so very hungry..." said the beggar. "Sorry, but I only help people as beautiful as I am, which is nobody! If you want coins, maybe you can bathe in the river and shave that beard off!" Nora said with a scorn. She then walked aw...

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“Eagle Eye ” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #101

A little boy no older than 10 and his mother stood with the boy's father as the boy's father lay wasting away on his deathbed. "Son...Everything happens for a reason. Remember that" were his father's last words. A young man no older than fifteen years old watched as his family's bakery was consumed by flames. A lightning bolt struck the thatch roof, igniting the wood and straw. "Everything happens for a reason" the young man whispered to himself. By the time the thunderstorm had subsided, the bakery was completely destroyed by the lightni...

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“Curry” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #100

Shumesh woke up one morning in his family's farm. Uneasy, he stared at the sky, longing for an answer to an unasked question. Shumesh's home nation of Torsina was in a disagreement with Medara, a country to the east, and Shumesh wished there was a way to prevent the disagreement between nations from escalating into a full blown war. Shumesh's Grandmother told him stories along time ago of a land across the southern sea where a Goddess who could grant any wish lived, but no one had ever found the Goddess, as the land was inhabited by monsters...

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“Fox Udon” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #100

Mari woke up at dawn that morning, had a fast breakfast of dry toast and water, and walked around town, looking for windows with “Help Wanted” signs up. Months ago, Mari’s father, Zenni, got laid off from his job, and since then, Zenni and Mari’s older brother, Koji worked part-time, but things were just barely going well for the family, and Mari was thinking about a Summer Job to help keep the family’s heads above water until Zenni got a job. The last place she looked was the laundry house bordering with the eastern forest, when the Lau...

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“Skid Row ” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #100

It was early in the morning. The sun shined down on the city of Green Fields. Jody Dyson woke up for the morning in her cot at the Green Fields Homeless Shelter. "What day is it? Tuesday. Another typical day, where I'm still at rock bottom..." Jody thought to herself. At the Homeless Shelter, four other adults and a small child occupied the place. One tenant was Helena, a woman in her early twenties who had been kicked out of her house by her parents for getting pregnant out of wedlock and her three year old son, Simon. Another tenant was Bi...

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“Rina” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #99

It was a muggy summer evening, a few purple clouds dotted the orange-red sky. A girl stood at the edge of a lake, taking in the reflection of the setting sun on the surface of the water. She walked towards the far end of the lake and sat on a rock. She was at the border of her home province, so she decided to take one last look at her native land before she proceeded to a foreign province towards freedom. The day before... The girl sat down on a fence post when she saw a horse drawn carriage drive by. The homely nobleman inside the caravan...

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