Almost a Fairy Tale

Once there was a demonic king who had enormous power. He was cruel but his manners were seemly. Thus he could order a regular beheading of five people and they all were almost pleased at the turn of events. On the global scale he was not the worst of course but this knowledge didn't help the people of his kingdom. There were many rebel groups that made plots to overturn him. There were various attempts but none of them was successful. It almost seemed that it was impossible to hurt him. Therefore everyone was surprised when the king was killed by a small peasant boy. He had brought with him a tiny, slimy frog which appeared to be poisonous. Living by the river had made peasants immune to the poison of the frog so noone had any idea that it might kill the king. Oddly enough that was the key to their success because the king had the ring that changed colour when someone nearby had a plan to kill him. The boy had innocently showed the frog to the king, the king had patted it and few moments later had dropped dead. I could say that further on they all lived happily ever after but that would be a lie. They had a horrible  uncertain period  full of riots where one family turned against another while they found a new suitable king. After that the situation improved a bit but even that didn't last long as they were soon conquered by a fierce king from far away and his rule was worse than ever.

Modern Courtship

In this world of emojis and gifs, she was starving for real conversations. She could not understand this weird form of communication when you receive several messages a day and they all are empty. Well, yes, there are emojis, gifs, songs even in them. On especially important occasions you get "sup" or "morning darling, have a great day" or "I miss you". However, there are never real questions or real emotions. Just an impersonal dose of attention that ticks all the boxes in romantic message manual. She never knew what to answer to this rubbish so she decide to ignore it. 

Memory Tricks

She stared at the bloody knife on the kitchen counter and couldn't move. Thoughts run through her mind like rats with Rabies. Horrified she had to confess yet again that she couldn't remember what she was doing the last two hours. It had happened before but usually it was just some minutes, maybe half an hour. She didn't drive anymore because she was afraid that she might hurt someone if she again experienced this blackout. She had notice that during the blackouts she did things that in normal circumstances would just cross her mind. Like, suddenly leaving a place, slapping loudly on the table or just singing out loud a song. She was now looking at the knife and was convinced that it was blood on it. She had no idea where it came from, though she remembered the rage she had in her when she last talked with her husband. A sudden beeping noise startled her and she mechanically opened the oven. There was meat and she exhaled in relief. 

Desperation

She stood there motionless and stared at the black water. One lonely teardrop rolled down her left cheek. She paid no attention to that. She had a decision to make but she felt almost numb. There was fog in her brain and only one thought turned in a loop, reminding and tearing her apart. This thought reminded her that she had no tribe, no husband, no place to be long. There was absolutely nothing worth living in her life. She put her right foot in the cold water and then left. She could feel cold seeping into her knees and thighs up to her belly. She moved forward, and soon she was fully submerged. She made few strokes that brought her closer to the center of the lake. She knew that she would not have enough strength to swim back. 

Escapade

From distance it looked so sirreal, like my eyes didn't have enough focuss. These fluffy blossoms of the smoketree seemed almost edible. I imagined they could taste like cottoncandy. I stopped there in awe and just looked at it bevildered. My dog was not so patient. He had sniffed everything around the tree and was no more interested in it. So, he made a sudden movement and I lost grip of the leash. He continued in slow trot through the park. I called out his name, wistled, and made many more beconing sounds and gestures, but he just looked at me like I was mad as March hare and continued his explorations of trees and bushes. I hurried after him but he never alowed me to come close enough. It took me an hour to stop chasing him, give up and go home. I knew he would come back when he will be hungry so I left my garden gate open. It was late evening when he arrived all wet and muddy but beamimg from happiness. I scolded at him but it was clear that he didn't feel sorry at all. So I stopped and bent down to fill his bowl. He licked my cheek and was instantly forgiven.

The River

The world went dark. The fierce wind blew from North. Thomas was determined to get to the land safe in his little shaky canoe. He paddled hard and fast but the wind was very strong and it took all his willpower to continue. Suddenly, lightning discharged in the dark sky, almost immediatelly followed by wrathful thunder. Thomass felt uneasy. The river was wide and the bank was still far. Big raindrops whipped him painfully and his strength was depleating, but it didn't stop him. Somewhere in the distance he heard a cry. Bewildered he stopped padling and looked around there was no one. Yet again - the cry, this time closer. Thomass was convinced that it was a child. He started frantically looking around, but the rain was heavy and he could not see too far ahead. Another cry to his left. It felt like this crier was circling around him. The thought about a child was instantly dropped and Thomass returned to padling, he had heard too many horrifying storries about this river to sit and wait for his death to come. 

Milestone

Six years, it was a milestone. That's what Susie thought awyway. She had been in this position at work for six years and was sure that she either deserved a promotion or she should leave. To be honest she was not the best employee, not even close. She usually arrived late and left early. She pretended that she knew less than she actually did just to avoid some extra work or question. Sometimes she even went so far that half of the working day she pretended to be doing someting, while she actually watched some TV series. She had this amazing skill to hide what she was doing with subtlety of a spy. Nevertheless she was wholeheartedly convinced that she should get a promotion. 

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