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Author on Reedsy Prompts since Feb, 2020
"Quinn? Can I borrow you for a moment?" a soft voice at my elbow asked.I looked around and saw that Bailey, Esterloch's Master Vampire, was standing close by. Around us, many a chattering conversation was being held by our fellow townsfolk as the harvest feast continued. Flames licked at the night sky while the scents of spit-roasted meat, flame-cooked potatoes still in their skins and roasted chestnuts filled the air. I turned away from the heat of the fire, just as Jay rejoined us; my mate held a couple of turkey legs in one...
I stared at the view displayed on the forward screen from my position at Captain Greenwood's side. Greenwood herself was seated on the captain's chair, also staring at the same view. We were as silent as the rest of the crew present; I could detect a sense of anticipation on the Bridge as the Revenant finally drew near to Earth. The planet itself looked tiny when viewed from afar and I couldn't help but marvel at the sheer sight of it; there was so much water for a start, far more than I, as a Drakkar, required. The sheer volume of water ...
"Goddamnit all," Karl muttered to himself as the door to Hensen House slammed shut behind him. His phone still was held in one hand from where he'd snatched it up from the passenger seat of his Buick. In the other, he held a paper sack filled to the brim with emergency baking essentials that he and his husband had needed for their baking-from-home business."Chris! I got all that shit you wanted," Karl called as he stalked through to the kitchen.He stopped in the doorway when he saw that his husband was not in the kitc...
I strode through Esterloch's marketplace and nodded politely to the townsfolk I passed. I occasionally exchanged pleasantries but I did not stop long with anyone; I was fearful of being late for work. All around me, traders hawked their wares, decrying the freshness of their fruit and vegetables, the quality of their leather and cloth-of-gold and the reliability of their weapons and household items. The air was filled with the scents of too many people, spices, baking food and a miasma of other aromas. It was as I was nearing the F...
27th September-monthJay sat on his lute today while he was in his dragon form. I had told him earlier in the afternoon that he shouldn't have left it out on the lawn yet he still hadn't bothered picking the thing up. He ended up with splinters in his behind and a completely ruined instrument. I promised I'd buy him a new lute for his birthing-day considering it's only a couple of days away; this was despite the fact I'd already both bought and made some gifts for him. He seemed pleased by the offer though; that squashed lute had me...
Richard and I moved between the trees as the sun peeked through the gaps between the branches. The trees themselves were just coming into bloom; the beginnings of impossibly green leaves could be seen poking their way out of their bud prisons. The air was charged with the promise of spring and seemed electrified, expectant somehow. I shivered pleasurably as my boots crunched through the last of the freakishly late snow we'd experienced a couple of days before; a snowstorm had blanketed the south of England in a drapery of white throughout...
"What do you think, Jay?" I asked.Once I had my mate's attention, I held a black tunic up against my bare torso, before I exchanged it for a dusky red one. Both Jay and I had been invited to a feast and attendant late-night dance that night to celebrate the beginning of spring. "Yes, very nice," Jay said as he nodded at my choices of clothing. I saw the apricot of his laughter blasting over the link we shared and the faintest impressions of dimples appeared in his cheeks. I sighed even as his laughter made its way ful...
"Karly-bear? How do you feel about slide-out larders?" Chris asked idly one night.The two vampires were relaxing in their living room after a busy night baking; the sound of rain hammering against the windows was a calming sussuration. Chris was stretched out on the sofa, with his laptop balanced precariously on his slim abdomen and the light from the monitor illuminated his face. Karl had long since installed himself on the nearby armchair and had busied himself with reading a book. Karl glanced up and over at the other vampire be...
I stared out at the passing scenery as the Alpha Bloodlines tour bus made its way through snow-clogged Austrian roads. We were headed towards Kapfenberg, where a three-day metal festival was scheduled to take place in one of the fields just outside the town itself. Of course, our band numbered amongst many others performing over the weekend. Alpha Bloodlines was only one of three symphonic metal bands booked, however; the rest was a melting pot of hard rock, industrial, heavy metal, grunge and many others. We were also scheduled to sit in...
(author's note: During the Middle Ages, a barber served double duties as a dentist. My DoFaI series is loosely based on that era.)The sun shone down to warm our backs as Jay and I coasted above the hills and valleys that separated Esterloch from Sunderloch. Jay was slightly behind me as was his habit at times; he still hadn't quite broken out of the ingrained flight-borne rules that a Beta should always follow his Alpha. This was despite the fact that I had long since given him autonomy that he was as good as an Alpha in...
I shivered my way into the Esterloch Stables' stableyard as the snow continued to whirl down in fat white flakes. I was glad for the heavy covering of my cloak, yet even that was not quite enough to stop the chill of the day from nipping at my face; the snow-driven wind also turned my hair into tangled waves. I was surprised to find a whole procession of travellers arriving in the stableyard at the same time as I did; they had with them a whole retinue of carts and attendant ponies and horses of all descriptions. I nodded at a few ...
"We have to make pretzels for what time now?" Karl barked as he looked at his latest order printout. "How's that?" Chris asked a little distractedly as he perused one of Karl's cookbooks."Goddamnit, darlin', we have to make a batch of soft pretzels for midday tomorrow. For a business lunch of all things. How the devil are we supposed to do that with no actual time to do it in?" Karl growled.He indicated the couple of orders they'd already received for their home baking business. Each order involved complicated party s...
"Where were those crossbows again? In here?" Jay asked as he stopped outside a weapon-laden room."I don't think so, love," I said distractedly. "Weren't they further down the corridor?"Jay just grunted, nodded and walked past the room with his oil lamp held high. We were in one of the corridors that lay beneath Esterloch Keep; we had been tasked to check the weapons stock-piled there to ensure their continued safe usage. It had been a while since the last safety check and more of our fellow Esterloch townsfolk were still sea...
LGBTQ+ (ace) They/Them Bibliophile Herpetophile Germanophile Metal-head Animal-lover Pagan Ⓥ
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