Tori Routsong

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2019

Stories (31)

31 Stories

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“Sisterly Quarrel” by Tori Routsong

“Did you just come here to mock me?” “I came here to see you. There’s nothing wrong with that.” “Don’t lie to me.” “I never lie.” “You do nothing but lie.” “Whatever else you are, my dear, you are my sister.”  “Half sister.” “Is it so wrong I’d want to see you? We group up together. I taught you to read.” “And then you allied yourself with our enemies and left me he...

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“Lovers' Reunion” by Tori Routsong

Carmen stared down at the faintly glowing body in disbelief, her ragged breath the only thing preventing her from appearing as a statue, completely still.  “Ta da!” The Mystic beside her brandished a shaky, liverspotted hand at the young girl on the floor. “One lover, locked and loaded!” “Are… are you…” “Always this amazing? Yes, yes, I–” “Freaking kidding me?” Carmen finally snapped, tur...

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“When She's Older” by Tori Routsong

Later, when she’s older and her bones pop when she bends down, she’ll remember this. It makes sense. It smells the same-- Nebraska isn’t so different from Missouri in the rain, and it’s the same muddy scent, even though she’s on the driveway and not in the grass right now. The smell remains the same, and it’s the smell that’ll make her remember, when she’s older, this day in the rain.  She’ll remember how the ra...

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“The Stenographer” by Tori Routsong

She looks young. Twenty-three, maybe? I’m biased, of course-- she reminds me of my youngest sister a bit. It’s the hair, I think, or maybe the clothes-- nice enough, but a little poorly fitting, like she’d gone out with her mother before starting the job and bought anything that seemed business casual enough to wear in a government building.  “Marianne, right?” She shrugs, as if she isn’t sure. She’s sti...

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“Generational Conflict” by Tori Routsong

Blech. The coffee’d grown cold and whoever’d made it that morning had somehow managed to screw up the most basic of processes, leaving a muddy floor of silty coffee grounds in the paper cup. Louise grimaced. Seriously, it wasn’t like it was hard to make a pot of coffee decently. There were exactly two ingredients.  She almost spilled said bad cup o f coffee as she sat down, but it’s not l8ike it could’ve made th...

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“The Last Nine Minutes” by Tori Routsong

The last second of Cassie Maclay’s life was cold, but filled with wonder. The sky was gorgeous, painted in the hues of the residual sunset that hadn’t heard the news that the sun had already imploded, or vanished, or whatever had happened, and she held her baby brother’s forearm with a sort of anxious delight. It was inevitable, as inevitable as the movements of the stars. What was there to be done? She barely understood...

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“A Battle of Wits” by Tori Routsong

Charis leaned over Cleopatra to grab her cup. “So, are you worried about going home?” Cleopatra sipped her wine, and grimaced. The farther they got from Italy, the more bitter and watered down the wine became. “Worried?” “Anxious. You haven’t been home since your dad got exiled. Are you worried that things have changed?” “Of course they’ve changed. I wouldn’t be going home if they hadn’t.” <...

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“The Legacy of the Second Daughter” by Tori Routsong

Cleopatra tapped her earpiece awkwardly and fidgeted with the microphone in her collar. “And you’re sure that this will translate the… English, you said?” She looked at the markings in the pod nervously. None of the six languages she spoke came in handy here.Maline looked down at her tablet. “It should. English is a bit… strange, so I can’t be quite sure, but you’re understanding me just fine with your translator on and I’m speaking modern Greek now, so it should work for English. I wish I had more time to test it out, but I was ju...

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“A New Face in the Embassy” by Tori Routsong

“Ma’am? It’s almost time to meet the ambassador.” Delaney Cohen cracked her neck and buttoned the last button on her top. She puffed out her cheeks and examined her lipstick for any smudges—it’d been a while since she spoke French. Maybe the ambassador would speak English and she wouldn’t have to fake her way through a terrible accent. She grabbed her lucky pebble and slipped it into her skirt pocket. <...

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“The Quest for Ibuprofen” by Tori Routsong

The snow sticks to my pyjama pants—I knew I should’ve put on jeans, but my bones just ache so much. I fumble with the car keys, which feel unduly clumsy between my fingers. I should’ve just stuck out the fever at home. The parking lot is bare, with only my car and a small pickup truck, but there are lights on in the grocery store so I suppose they’re still open. The employees must park in the back, I g...

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“The Fate of the Second Daughter” by Tori Routsong

“Eldest sister?” Bernice looked down at her little sister, whose big brown eyes were, as always, brimming with unbridled curiosity. “Yes?” “Do you know where Father is?” The eight-year-old scrambled up onto a chair next to her sister, peering hungrily at the figs that Bernice had halved for herself. Bernice sighed, and pushed the plate towards her sister. “Go nuts.” “Thanks!” Wi...

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“Love's Letter” by Tori Routsong

The coffee has grown cold in the time since you started the Keurig and proceeded to forget about the coffee entirely. You look down in disgust—nothing worse than cold coffee. You take a sip anyway, grimacing as it pours down your throat. If Jules were still here, she’d tell you to put a little milk, ice and vanilla in there and give it a swirl and it’d be good as new.Jules isn’t here anymore though. You take another sip of bitter, cold coffee.The walk from the kitchen to your computer seems even longer now that you can hear ...

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“You've Got Time” by Tori Routsong

Marcellus looked up at Mt. Vesuvius, looming over the city like a gentle giant, protecting their city. He tightened his grip around his younger brother and wished he could fill his brother with the mountain’s strength. “It’ll be good again,” he said. His dog, Dorcea, whined, and put her chin on Crispus’s foot. Crispus sniffed and rubbed his eyes. “I know, but… I can’t believe that she’s gone.” “Crispus… Kiddo, she left two months ago. I thought you were doing better.” Marcellus bit his lip. Crispus had always been...

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“Into the Crawlspace” by Tori Routsong

“You—what?”Quentin sighed and readjusted his grip on the tree branch. “For the last time, I found a giant stone fox statue in the crawlspace behind my closet and I don’t know how to get it out on my own and I can’t fall asleep with it there because there’s a hole in my closet from that time that we locked Quade in there back in seventh grade.”“So? There’s still a door for the crawlspace, right? Ergo, no problem,” Alexander slurred. He rubbed his eyes and looked up to where the stars would be if it wasn’t for all the light po...

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“Sisterly Love” by Tori Routsong

“Beth, please! Don’t do this! Magic shouldn’t be used like this, you can’t bring her back, you—” “Can’t I?” Beth casts a snide grin at me before looking back at her computer. “No, you can’t! I asked Mal, and he—” “Mal is a child. He never knew the whole of what this power could do.” I squirm. I have to crane my neck at such a severe angle to see Beth from my vantage point of strapped to the floor that it hurts my neck and eyes both. “Only one person has ever succeeded, and they only—” “They only brough...

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Author bio

Hello! I like to write sci-fi and fiction. I would love feedback!

Shortlisted 3 stories ⭐️

Contest #25
An Uncertain Future – read story
Contest #24
Lylia, Malou, and the Intangible Impossibility of Imperceivable Physics – read story
Contest #20
The Sound of Peter – read story