Otherworld Part 2: A Lady of Shadow

The darkness was what haunted Sera the most. The darkness of the witch’s castle and the horrid hissing voices of the wraiths she kept as her servants and pets. They whispered and taunted. “You’ll never see the sun again.” “No one will remember you.”  “You can never go home.” 

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Otherworld Part 1: The Queen of the Flowers

The white climbing rose that stood on the east side of Keep Meridian’s garden had many names. To rose fanciers, (who came from miles around to view her splendor) she was the Scimitar Rose. To the bards, she was the noble Queen of the Flowers. But to the Elves of Meridian, she was Akasma, or at least the only part of her that remained in this world.

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St. John’s Bonfire

“Filomena, Filomena! Mama says make it quick. Mama, Papa, Francisco and I are already ready!” blurted ten-year-old Fatima. 
“I know; I’ll be out in a minute!” Filomena called back in exasperation.

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Falling into the Black

The hell hole was vanishing. Suddenly, a black, hairy arm thrust out of the darkness and grabbed me by the vest, yanking me into the hole.
“WALTER!” Conrad cried as I fell into the darkness.

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The Mermaid of St. Eulalia

He raised his flashlight and finally caught whoever it was. It was a girl, with long brown hair that fell down her back and across her chest, and almost translucent white skin. But she was no human, she had a purple and green tail where her legs should be. The scales ran all the way up her body, ending just below her collarbone.

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Aunt Nancy’s Angels

“Gather around girls, gather around! It’s story time!” Aunt Nancy, the headmistress of the orphanage, sat down in her usual chair, the rocking chair set in the corner next to the fireplace.

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Daily Bread

“I want to fully partake in the experience that is being a Christian,” Nicanor 112 said.
“I thought you were already doing that. You’ve got your own Robo Church and everything.”
“I need the Lord’s Supper, Alexander.”

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The Mangled Tree

She comes back almost every morning to pray aloud and silently beneath the tree. Sometimes, I hear a few words of The Lord’s Prayer carried by the wind to my ears. This must be her sacred space.

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One Dog Night

“A man was found dead this morning, and…” the sheriff trailed off.
“We think it was a large canine,” said Julia.
“And you think I had something to do with it?” asked Walter. 
“Well, there are some folks who are concerned, you being a werewolf and all,” said Sheriff Donne.

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Greg’s All Night Diner

From the diary of Katherine Craig.
Dear Diary,
Today began about 6:30 AM, when my ears were assaulted by the unmistakable racket of my Pa playing bagpipes on the front lawn.

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Changeling

“Another hell-hole opened up on my mail route!” the mailman said excitedly.
“Great. Another one” said Conrad with exasperation. We were all the time having to close them things.

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Don’t Push Me Away

The old man scoffed. Great. The Christians were knocking at his door again. Years and years they had been knocking and he would refuse but he could not shut the door on a kid.

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Robin Goodfellow and the Ring of Doom

“You want me to get your magic ring from one of the most heavily guarded places in the universe?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, I do.”
The task was a daunting one. Annwyn was a place of powerful, wicked gods, and hideous monsters. It was a place of terror beyond all comprehension.

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Morgana and the Well of the Wyrd

“What if I told you that you could be one of the greatest magicians in the history of Britain?” queried the madman.
“I’d say you were mad,” said Morgana, chuckled.
“I’ve seen it. You will go down in legend.”

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The Dark Valley

“Who will take us to the City of Pearls?” the little boy asked the little girl. “There is no one out here and we are much too small to defend ourselves.”
“The giant will take us.” The little girl said pointing to him.

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Ginny’s Cookie Jar Part 2: At No Time

“Coffee with Bob!” I muttered under my breath. “What was I thinking?” Bob isn’t just any guy. His bakery was my biggest competitor in town before I had to take the bakery gluten free, and also a person I’d known since I was five years old.

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Tradition Tours

“Hello, welcome to Tradition Tours!” the stewardess said brightly. “Thank you for choosing to travel the world with us. We have a few special guests with us today, natives of the countries we’re going to visit. Our first stop is Germany, and I’ll let our German guest take over from here.”

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Ginny’s Cookie Jar Part 1: The Country Christmas Cookie Bakeoff

I inherited the bakery about 5 years ago when my aunt passed away. I’d worked with Aunt Ginny since I was a kid. Aunt Ginny’s passion for baking fostered my love for the baking business. We have always been a family run business therefore family pride was on the line at this bake-off.

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Robin Goodfellow & the Apples of Inspiration

“I want you to steal the Apples of Inspiration.”
Robin nearly choked on his pipe smoke. “Do you realize that that tree only blooms once every seven hundred years? And the gods guard it jealously!”

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The Beanstalk & the Shoes

…the king sent out a proclamation, decreeing that whosoever discovered the secret of the holes in the princesses’ shoes would be rewarded greatly. One day, not long after the king sent out his proclamation, Jack and his mother decided to see if the king could help them with their financial problems by selling him their cow….

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