Batch the sixth, and I think that's all for this year. I have not been feeling very writey for the past few months. :/
All prompts drawn from the 2022 iteration of the
Three Sentence Ficathon (
post one and
post two), hosted by the wonderful
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rthstewart!
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( 31. ) For
undeadrobins, in response to the prompt:
Any, Any, I am ready for the fight, written 2/9/22
Queen to Pawn (155 words)
Fandom = Chronicles of Narnia-----
In England, Susan is no queen: she cannot make or dissolve laws, dispense justice or grant mercy, collect or remit taxes, declare war or make peace, sign treaties or raise tariffs; no trappings of power are hers, and instead this world consigns her to play a silly schoolgirl who will grow to be a decorative nonentity, of note only for the children she may have or the background support she may give an enterprise organized and directed by and for the benefit of men.
She refuses to dwell on the loss.
Susan will take the rules England sets down and play by them to win, play so well that no one will outflank her or stand in her path; and once she triumphs she will be a queen once more in truth (though perhaps not in law), and can at last overturn this stifling, tilted board to build something better, truer, deeper in its place.
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( 32. ) For
syrena_of_the_lake, in response to the prompt:
Any fandom, any character, funny meeting you here, written 2/9/22
A Long-Expected Meeting (135 words)
Fandom = Greenwing & Dart-----
"How unexpected to meet you here," a terribly familiar voice said from the doorway of Elderflower Books, and I looked up from stacking the latest edition of the
New Salon to see Lark silhouetted by the midday sun, idly twirling her ivory pipe between her fingers.
I still felt that conditioned pull toward her, but this time it was countered by the bright clarity of immediate danger and I heard myself say, dryly, "Given that I have been employed here since autumn, and further that I am quite sure you have been aware of that fact for nearly the total period of that employment, I find your choice of words somewhat astonishing -- indeed, one might almost call them unexpected."
"Ah Jemis, I
have missed you," Lark said, and smiled like a razor caressing a throat.
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( 33. ) For
ruthchinn, in response to the prompt
Daredevil, Matt's mom (Maggie), any, written 2/10/22.
Cut Clean (145 words)
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When Jack dies, Maggie thinks long and hard about whether to renounce her vows a second time and step back into the secular world as Matthew's mother, but while that sounds virtuous in theory (aren't children owed a mother's love and care?), on a practical level there are nearly insurmountable obstacles. She has no guarantee of finding a well-paying job or suitable housing, no guarantee that she and Matthew would have compatible personalities, no guarantee that such a drastic change in her life wouldn't trigger a new mental health crisis, no guarantee she could navigate the maze of special needs education without the support of the Church behind her, and on and on and on.
Perhaps she could have introduced herself as Matthew's mother while still holding to her vows, but she's never been good with in-betweens; in the end, she keeps the break clean.
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( 34. ) For
anonymous, in response to the prompt
Any, any, honey, green tea, lavender, written 2/10/22.
From Tiny Seeds (185 words)
Fandom = Greenwing & Dart-----
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( 35. ) For
syrena_of_the_lake, in response to the prompt:
Narnia, Uncle Andrew/Jadis, she stays in London, written 6/1/22
Family Planning (155 words)
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She will need an heir eventually, and given how sluggishly magic flows in this new world, the best she can do is tweak biology rather than bypass its demands entire -- and while the man is a deluded fool with a weak body and a displeasing face, he
does have magic in his veins; he will do for seed (carefully winnowed and sieved) until she finds something better, or his nephew grows old enough to be useful.
Such a pity, Jadis reflects, that his sisters had not been born male; either of them, even the softer one fading on her deathbed, would have made a vastly preferable consort -- perhaps even one she might tolerate to stand by her side in battle rather than lock in a well-furnished chamber to await her reluctant attentions.
Ah well. Lilith started with less when she came to Charn, and Jadis will outdo her ancestor in this as in all else.
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( 36. ) For
ruanchunxian, in response to the prompt:
any, any, family traditions, written 6/1/22
A Metonymy for Love (880 words)
Fandom = Greenwing & Dart-----
"Mother had to leave her bees at the dower house when she married Mr. Buchance," Jemis said as he and Jack ambled through the coppice wood of Arguty Manor, his words puncturing one of the slightly awkward silences that still fell between them more often than Jack wished. They were on the far side of the grounds from the house in question, so the statement fell groundward even more abruptly than it might have done in another location.
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It did feel nice to write something again yesterday. Perhaps I'll poke at some of my WIPs while I'm on vacation next week and see if anything speaks to me...
