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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#96: Xenia

In Ancient Greece, it was believed that gods in disguise walked the Earth. While this might sound like fun, there’s a tiny catch: a blunder (like turning away a stranger in need of shelter) could get you into a deity’s bad books.

 

So what did the Greeks do? They lived by the principle of xenia: extending their hospitality to anyone and everyone without exception — in case a god was among their visitors. I make it sound like a life hack, but the Greeks approached xenia with real reverence, and the custom features in many works of the time — most notably Homer’s timeless classic, The Odyssey. 

 

Ever since Odysseus made the journey home to Ithaca (where his unlucky wife was duty bound to entertain 108 unwanted suitors due to the sanctity of xenia), the delicate, shifting balance between stranger, guest, and friend has been a fertile source of conflict in stories. With that in mind, this week’s prompts invite you to explore the relationship between guest and host, or negotiate the path from strangers to friends. You can choose to embrace the concept of xenia, or not — I’ve left it up to you. Happy writing!

This week's prompts

Write a story about strangers becoming friends, or friends becoming strangers.

Fluff – 262 stories

Start your story with the arrival of a strange visitor in a small town.

Horror – 188 stories

Write about someone welcoming a stranger into their home.

Thriller and Suspense – 164 stories

Start your story in an empty guest room.

Horror – 151 stories

Write about a character who has to rely on the hospitality of strangers.

Fluff – 98 stories

Stories

“Sandrita” by Jubilee Forbess

Submitted to Contest #96

The smell of homemade fried chicken and small, microwaved okra wafted in through Sandrita’s window. She sat behind her curtain and watched her neighbors run from their apartment to the car. They were helping their mom get the groceries, and even though Sandrita knew it was a small thing in their day, she wished she could help someone carry food into the kitchen. She wished she could put on her mother’s big high...

5 comments 5
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“petunia” by Batool Hussain

Submitted to Contest #96

Psychopath. Psychopath. Psychopath. You’re sitting in a small room with paint peeling out from the walls. The only thing talking back to your physic talks is your echo. You look around for water and get up to fetch some, only to realize there is nothing around. They call you a psychopath. Your shirt is always torn and the pants you wear are too baggy for you. There are dar...

26 comments 26
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“My Jules” by Elaine Price

Submitted to Contest #96

He’s looking straight at me. Straight through me. It has been three months, and still I can’t get used to the feeling of being invisible. The only thing keeping me grounded to reality is Jules. My Jules. Jules with the round cheeks and big blue eyes. Jules who always has something to tell me, something to feed me, something to remind me that I do exist. Jules is my very best friend. Jules is my only friend. Jules is the only one who can see me. “Jules, honey,” he says. This man is her father. H...

11 comments 11
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“Snowy Memories” by Henry Vinicio Valerio-Madriz

Submitted to Contest #96

Tom’s digital alarm clock radio went off due to a this-early-morning car accident that he didn’t know about. Tom was working late at home last night (he couldn’t finish some documentation at work); consequently, he went to bed feeling extremely exhausted. A fearless driver stupidly challenged Nature and ended up crashing his car against a utility pole; as a result, its power transformer simply...

3 comments 3
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“One Stop Until We Run Away” by Amany Sayed

Submitted to Contest #96

*Experiencing England Part Two* The back cover of my book was completely sogged in dirt, and as it landed facedown, multiple pages had been bled through with mud and rendered unreadable. Nonetheless, I closed it and hugged it to my side, the wetness making it weigh more than usual.  Books are expensive, you know. Holden stretched, frowning at the sky.  “I don’t know why

25 comments 25
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“That One Midnight” by Aiden Otaktay

Submitted to Contest #96

Ryan laid on the bed in the empty guest room. It had nothing in it except for a wall clock and the bed. He was lost in the book he was reading, but the doorbell pulled him out of the endless depth of the engaging story.   "Who could that be?" he thought as he walked up to the front door. He proceeded to unlock the door and was frozen when he saw a girl standing in front of him. She looked scared, and her ...

150 comments 150
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“No. 37” by Allie Mae Sakry

Submitted to Contest #96

December 15th, 1987. Sherry and I met again today. We discussed the road trip across the country we are planning for in January. The heat will be quite intense this year, according to the weather scientists. Sherry asked me if it was okay for me to be missing work in the lab most of the month. I had to laugh at her naïveté. Regardless, we would be departing Perth on the 5th. She’s already be...

8 comments 8
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“Sweet Shopped” by PJ Aitken

Submitted to Contest #96

The last 18 months had been a whole new level of stress for Terry with lockdown after lockdown causing his little corner shop to be on the verge of closing permanently. After months of only scraping by with his loyal customers popping in when it was safe, today was the day when lockdown six would be lifted and Terry would see his finances finally turn a corner. He’d woken up early to stock the shelves with his big seller...

8 comments 8
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“Hello and goodbye” by Angie Fitzpatrick

Submitted to Contest #96

She was the only person in the train station at 3:30 pm and all of that seemed so weird to me. That was the busiest train station in the country how could it be so empty at this hour?  The train to Aviemore would leave at 3:55 pm on line two, and I was so happy to see my family and friends again that I could not stop smiling and gasping. I was at St. Andrews University, but most of my time was spent in Edinburgh, ...

9 comments 9
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“The Torrid Travels of Teleporting Todd: A Todd Story” by Christopher Rothschild

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #96

Todd blinked into existence and tumbled into dirt. He rolled onto his back and breathed as hard as he could, exhausted. He had never blinked this far before, and now his insides hurt. He looked to his side and saw a lizard scurry under some sagebrush. He was in the desert. It was hot, even though it was nine in the morning. He sat up with effort and looked at his barren surroundings. Besides the sagebrush and cacti, the...

11 comments 11
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“Elpis” by Katie Evans

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #96

Maybury was a quiet place. Five and a half thousand people lived in it, but it wound a long way out into Nevada desert. Less a town, more a collection of villages scattered through the prickly-pear cacti and low scrubland.  Prometheus arrived in the mid-afternoon when the sun was patiently cracking open the sidewalk. Even the weeds between the cracks were limp with heat. The few people out kept their head...

11 comments 11
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“Blue Bates' Bed and Breakfast” by Ruth Porritt

Submitted to Contest #96

The pain was intense. As my driver pulled into the gravel driveway, I adjusted my position and winced. "Is everything alright, Miss Daniels?" said my driver, Weston. "Yes," I said. "I'm fine." Weston sighed. "Very good, miss. What time shall I pick you up tomorrow?" "I'll call you," I said, as I slammed the car door with my good arm. As I carefully made my way up the dri...

14 comments 14
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“SIR WIGGLESWORTH IN GREEN TOWN” by Josephine Samuel

Submitted to Contest #96

1716  When Sir Wigglesworth Battlesby stepped foot in Green Town, he immediately sensed something was off. He had paraded one street lined with yellow wattles and half-timbered apothecaries, wondering at his own dismay. He stomped his cane to the ground, to and fro as he went, until finally settling against a hickory.  One boy came by and greeted him, his chest held so high that Sir Wigglesworth wondered if he maintained a decent breathing.  "Drop your chest." ...

13 comments 13
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“Stranger Danger” by ☠️฿ⱤɆ₵₭ł₦ ₦ØⱤ₮ⱧⱤɄ₱😎

Submitted to Contest #96

“Can I have a double cheeseburger, animal style?” I said to the waiter. “Sure thing.” the waiter said back to me.“Give some extra ketchup on there too, will ya?” I said.By that time Henry the waiter was gone in the diner kitchen. Twenty minutes later, Henry came back with my food and I quickly scarfed it down. I looked at my watch and realized I was late for middle school. I sprinted out the door, only leaving a few dollars on the table, when the burger actually cost nine dollars. I w...

3 comments 3
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“Unexpected” by Trina Ann Pion 🍀🌹🍀

Submitted to Contest #96

A ruckus in the hallway startled Cate Carter awake from a fitful sleep full of bloodshed and heartbreak. The ten-year-old’s compact frame stiffened as she strained to hear the strange voices squabbling from outside the guest bedroom door. Two distinct voices clashed and attacked each other, but Cate failed to decipher what the dispute was over. When a third voice joined in the chaotic commotion, her heart clung to her ribcage, holding on for dear life. It was only once Cate identified the three voices as ...

15 comments 15
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$50

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Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 04, 2021 EST

Won by R E 🏆

Title: unoccupied

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

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