How can you possibly match the stunning entries from last week's challenge, ultimately won by Steven Chapman with his gorgeous blood-lust experiment Picasso? I have no doubt your brilliant pens will slice into the Feardom with a dark magic. Congratulations go to Steven, as well as runners-up Aidan Fritz's lapping Seduction and John Xero's disturbing future Witness.
So - quickly. This week's words are:
- Dress
- Illuminate
- Strap
Rules
The rules are: 100 words max flash fiction or poetry using all of the words above. Please add your entries in the Comments box below. You have all week until 9pm UK time on Thursday 19th May to enter.
Winner will be announced next Thursday or Friday - if Blogger behaves. If you can, please tweet about your entry, using the #fridayflash hashtag, and blog if you feel like it.
Will you find the light? I bloody hope not...
Winner will be announced next Thursday or Friday - if Blogger behaves. If you can, please tweet about your entry, using the #fridayflash hashtag, and blog if you feel like it.
Will you find the light? I bloody hope not...
_________________________________________
Sorry Lily, I just had to... You know I can´t stand the voting so I ended up writing this... Thanks for the company tonight, I had a blast =)
ReplyDeleteLady Moldova
The truth?
Gods! I´ll illuminate you:
We built her from bricks, dressed her in silver straps and sent her off. She was only going to ride that wooden roller coaster, you see. That was it!
But then she made such an impression and people started calling. I knew it had gotten out of hand when she landed herself a boyfriend from Romania.
And here she is; riding a unicycle, wings on her back and cone hat on her head!
Who´s to say where this´ll end?
I´ll try to take her apart if I can, but I can´t make any promises.
China Girl
ReplyDeleteSliding his hands over her naked body he began to breathe more heavily.
My God, she was beautiful, a slice of heaven.
He slipped the dress over her head, his hand resting on her shoulder as he untangled one of the straps. The perfect little black dress – hard to find, but worth the effort; it fit her like a glove.
Stepping back he scanned her from head to toe.
He adjusted the lighting in order to illuminate her properly.
His little china girl, perfect in every way – forever youthful, forever dead.
Asuqi, intriguing, very very intriguing, where what how and the images, oh the images!
ReplyDeleteSteven, going for another win??? superb piece, with a crushing last line and more than that, last words.
Asuqi - I watched the Eurovision too and what were they doing and wearing. Great story to come from that.
ReplyDeleteSteven - What can I say? That was great. Super imagery throughout and a great last line. Nice job!
Apologies for the above, I'd used a wrong tense. Here's the correct version.
ReplyDeleteThe Touch
She made her way up the aisle of the bus and stopped in front of me, eyeing me playfully before turning away.
The light above us illuminated her long, black hair that spiralled down her back.
She wore the same dress as the last time I’d seen her, a figure hugging navy blue number.
Inching closer, my breath danced over her flawless skin. I heard her let out a sigh.
I went to touch the strap of her dress but my fingers touched nothing.
I’d not touched her since the explosion years before.
God, I miss her so much.
~End~
David, this is sadness and illusion and horror all wrapped into one. Superb.
ReplyDeletehere goes ...
ReplyDeleteNight Walker
The dress swirls round her legs. The heels sound sophisticated. The bag is expensive, the strap is looped over her wrist but it holds nothing of value. The cloak envelops and conceals her from lights which would illuminate what she is.
A night walker.
One with a difference.
This one walks with a concealed knife but does not kill. She graces the arm of those who have money but do not know that by the end of the night they will be minus that which they cherish.
Her trophy chest is full to bursting with shrivelled balls.
Her revenge.
Antonia, I've just had the most horrific twinge between my legs. Thanks!! Her revenge, I'm of the thinking that she maybe used to be a he?? Great job.
ReplyDeleteCasualties
ReplyDeleteCorporal Richards' fingers twitched along his sternum. Incandescents illuminate his eyes, unfocused, blue like a bottle of Skyy vodka, cold as if he'd just finished. “My dress–”
“I'm sorry, son. You won't wear a uniform.”
“I must. They need me.”
“Soldier, you can't help them any longer.”
“Little Jones, Jagger, the others. I saved their fuckin' lives.”
“You're a hero. Here, drink this.” The chaplain extended a narrow glass.
The liquid sizzled on the corporal's lips. “What the hell is that?”
“Holy water.” The chaplain straps the ex-soldier's arms to the bedframe. Welts mar Richards' arm where he was bitten.
Here goes another one =) YES! I know I borrowed the title!
ReplyDelete^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Everything is Illuminated
He´s wrapped himself in cling film and if I squint my eyes it looks smashing.
”Hey, Mark! Look at my dress!” he laughs, and under him I imagine a red carpet unfolding itself.
”Lady Gaga,” I bow, ”allow me to escort you to your seat.”
”I´m princess Kate, you twat!” he giggles, and his hair, so black and long - such shiny curls - rests like intricate straps on those angelic shoulders. I bend, suddenly lost, to kiss them.
His breath hitches and becomes a sob, to be swallowed when I find his lips.
And everything is illuminated.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Apologies for previous deletion - author tinkering!
ReplyDeleteFamous
Flashbulbs started to illuminate the forecourt as the paparazzi surged forward en masse; eager for a glimpse of the statuesque beauty and her escort as they arrived.
The pack shouted for her attention, each one of them wanting THE front page headline.
Everyone wanted to know about the dress. That dress. That tiny, blood stained dress.
“I’ll strap you to the chair myself lassie, I promise you that,” her escort whispered in her ear, “You’ll fry for what you did to that little girl.”
“But if you do that officer, how will you ever find her body?”
Asuqi: Lady, I blame you for getting me to watch ZDOB ȘI ZDUB. I saw pointed hats, but no brick built ladies. I think I like your version better ;) Does she also come with a ukelele? (Wait... my internet connection in the apartment here is beyond slow... just got to the unicycle). Everything, really nice; the turn at the end is poignant with their self-discovery.
ReplyDeleteSteven: the opening with him sliding his hand while breathing heavily sets the perfect expectations for the ending. Nice setup and delivery.
David: superb effort, this creates such a sense of longing for this ghost girl.
Antonia: when you mentioned concealed knifes it reminded me of a knifing in Sergel's square where I'd been this weekend, however the ending makes me squirm much more than that news story.
Phil: this captures our paparazzi-world so well. Nice menace in the dialogue.
Daisy Doll
ReplyDeleteA lamp on a makeshift table illuminates the tent. Outside, raucous laughter fades as revellers totter home.
‘Hold still,’ he orders, pulling the final strap tight, grunting. ‘There, there Daisy.’ He admires his handiwork. Sprigs of hair peep out from the neckline of the dress.
‘Daisy? You know I’m a dude, right?’ His new friend jumps from the crate, his hands on his hips. ‘This is just for laughs. I jump out of the box, we get tips. Fifty-fifty.’
He nods, lifting the lid so his friend can climb in.
‘Lovely Daisy doll,’ he croons as he hammers it shut.
Asuqi - interesting images in the first and sweet poignancy in the second!
ReplyDeleteSteven - Creepy and chilling. Loved the last line, forever dead!
David - Lovely and wistful, I like the feel of this piece. Very intriguing. I want to know more.
Antonia - She most certainly is one with a difference. Great piece with a fantastically freaky end!
Aidan - I enjoyed this. Great dialogue and another piece with a good twist at the end!
Phil - Interesting twist, all is not as it first seems! It pulled me in and left me wanting more.
Aiden - Great dialogue in this piece with a great twisty ending. BTW, on my piece, what makes you think that the woman is the ghost?? ;-)
ReplyDeleteAsuqi - Am I wrong in that it made me laugh out loud? "I´m princess Kate, you twat!" he giggled. Great!!
Phil - Hello! (Get that out of the way first) Yes, that is a great piece. 15 minutes of fame, even for murderers, and all aided by the parasites...sorry, paparazzi!! Nice work!
Susan - I wore a dress once, only for fancy dress mind, but I'm glad I didn't have a friend wanting to nail me into a box! Bizarre and fantastic!!
@David, I think I associated the protagonist with being in my frame (i.e. not a ghost) which then made me think the woman was a ghost. There is an ambiguity I like in this flash. With her the ghost, a part of me wondered if he was responsible for the explosion.
ReplyDeleteLittle Madam
ReplyDeleteShe wore her shortest dress, so people could see where he’d taken the strap to her.
Men pretended they weren’t looking, but she heard their gasps as she passed and they saw the stripes of wicked, purpling bruises. They were hoping for a flash of exotic panties, not that mottled ladder leading only to white, cotton naivety.
All the more outrageous to have sullied such innocence.
Later, under the actinic illumination of the bathroom strip light, he would kneel before her and tenderly sponge the make-up from her legs. And she would laugh softly at his shame.
Asuqi - I didn't see Eurovision this year, but this story has all the hallmarks of a creation getting out of hand, growing unruly, ridiculous and unpredictable... kinda like Eurovision, then... ;) I like it.
ReplyDeleteSteven - I'd say it was a killer final line but it looks like someone got there first... ;) People always get so touchy about necrophilia...
David - Wow, I was wondering what the twist was going to be and you blew me away, turned to such heartbreak in so few words. Great piece.
Antonia - yikes! That is one grizzly hobby...
Aidan - harsh, being a hero isn't easy. Is this a full on vampire war or just an unlucky encounter?
Asuqi - that's gorgeous, definitely has the feeling of real moment, something pivotal.
Phil - nicely played twist, some people will do anything for a moment in the limelight...
Susan - I don't think 'Daisy''s new friend is quite right in the head... I fear for what awaits him when the box is opened... if it ever gets opened again...
Lesion
ReplyDeleteFingers against skin; a gliding path that stretched from naval to bosom and illuminated a warm trail across her supple flesh.
Low light found the contours of her crumpled dress lying in the corner of the room; puckered like skin, wilted in the heat.
Hot breath. Fingers curled tight around the leather strap. The thwack of his power snatched the silence and she jolted, rocked in the chair. Then again, the sound of the strap snapping across arms and thighs.
Streaks of pain rose beneath the dermis. Lesions wriggled.
She would learn to respect her new husband and his religion.
asuqi - this is so much fun - like the making of the tin woodsman on psylocibin // EiI - I read that book - and if you continue on with this one - you'll do the name no shame. So much understated emotion. Wonderful.
ReplyDeleteSteven - methinks I smell a recurring character - the artist who appreciates life by creating death... great imagery
David - you caught me off guard with the sombre beauty of this one. I love the description - I miss her too!
Antonia - gotta say ... she's got balls. "The cloak envelops and conceals her from lights which would illuminate what she is." - great line
Aidan - great mix of the supernatural and the gritty patina of the war story - I want to read more of this.
Phil - fantastic flash, and utterly chilling - is this the mother or the dreaded "stranger danger"? Great writing.
Susan - you wicked, wicked woman. What an ending! Wonderful details.
John - "Actinic" - that's a new one to me - great word though! (Light that affects - awesome) I love this tale of a bastard brought low, and the strength she must have had to go through with it!
AJ - you've found another of mankind's rotten keyholes here. Horrifying, to say the least. (I love what I've been hearing from the lawmakers in India btw.)
Afternoons with Edgar
ReplyDeleteWhen I was eight, my favourite outing was the Art Gallery. Other kids thought I was weird. It got worse in high school, then better in university - where I found out that... holy shit... I am weird.
I didn't see frames. Every work was a window - a destination for my heart.
And every time I went, I would always save Degas for the end. It was the faces. Degas' softly illuminated women, sometimes en pointe, once adjusting the silken strap on a flowing pink dress. Their subtle, knowing smiles always made me cry.
They still do. Weird.
Steven: mmm, exquisite! I like ”slice of heaven”.
ReplyDeleteDavid: so sad, but lovely image!
Antonia: strong character. I love revenges!
Aidan: great piece! Lots of story in 100 words. Great dialogue. (Oh, and I hope you enjoyed the cone-hat experience!)
Phil: ooo, nice! Perfect twist!
Susan: so crazy! Wild horror, I love it =)
John: such a twisted relationship! Wonderfully bizarre!
AJ: horrifying! I love the image of her dress!
Chris: oh! I love Degas! Lovely, lovely piece!
AJ - damn... great religion she married into there... =|
ReplyDeleteChris - very elegant. Adore the second paragraph. You manage to shift through a life, and tell a story, within so few words without it seeming stilted or staggered, excellent.
I am a Mistress of Neglect. How wonderful that you are all commenting and supporting each other in my absence. I wish I could say it is because I'm doing something devilishly exciting - but it's the complete opposite.
ReplyDeleteI dare not let this be the one week in the first year of The Prediction that I don't enter, so hope I will have something in the morning, but comments will - like last week - be combined with the summary tomorrow night.
Thanks for understanding.
Lily/x
The Dogs Bollocks
ReplyDeleteHe stole something precious from her. Now she had stolen something precious from him, perfect for creating her masterpiece.
The scalpel peeled the skin from the penis in strips. Meredith plaited the strips, creating a strap to attach to the balls. A rather unique ballbag.
Creating her masterpiece wasn't enough. People had to see it. She placed it on the pedestal in the window of the gallery and turned on the back light to illuminate her 'sculpture'. That would teach her boss to rape her, she thought, smoothing her dress and hair as she admired her creation.
Asuqi - loved the imagery! I didnt watch the Eurovision but still...
ReplyDeleteSteven - Another fab entry - creepy!
David - so sad, very moving
Antonia - have men upset both of us this week?!
Aidan - nice little twist at the end.
Asuqi - the princess kate/lady gaga made me laugh.
Philambler - Nice twist - made me think it was a red carpet event initially!
Susan - made me glad I dont have friends like that - or at least I dont think I do!
John Xero - liked this, turning the tables - everything is not as it seems.
AJ - not my religion thankfully!
Chris - loved the phrase 'destination for my heart'
Unsolved: Disappearance of Miss Sarah Allingham 1882, – excerpt from letter to Sir William Spivett, Archaeologist.
ReplyDelete“Sir, I did not mean to cause damage. My foot became trapped in a rabbit hole and as I attempted to unstrap my boot the ground opened beneath me and I slipped into that mighty orifice. I should have caught my death, Sir had the skirts of my dress not caught upon the tower of bones.
I hung, suspended for a day and a night until you found me – illuminated by the lady Moon. You thought me a demon. Not so, but my eyes were opened and I dream of returning to worship at the phallic totem of the Gods.”
Ttofee - I just. I don't. I felt that. Agh, why can't I get that image out of my head? out. out. out. OUCH.
ReplyDeleteLily - very Lovecraft in its delivery, playful and intriguing in its promise of dark gods.
ttofee - love it, we are both thinking the same... what is it those words which conjured the same type of storyline, I wonder ...
ReplyDeleteLily, very graphic! very image laden to linger in the mind.
Forgive brevity, whiplash has been diagnosed and I am very very aware of it ...
John - Each to their own, as they say. Bizarre and twisted. Great!
ReplyDeleteAJ - You do "real" so well. Excellent as usual!
Chris - Weird? Far from it. Great writing, buddy. "Each frame was a window", how true!
ttoffee - Another horrific twinge between my legs, thanks! Great work and I would back her up all the way. Plaited penis skin is a new one for me. Ouch!!!!!!
Lily - Dark, creepy and eerie. You do that soooo well. Loved it. When are you going to award yourself with a win? It's way overdue!
A bit of a trot this week and not the mutilation I was working on, I'll have to save that one over. Apologies for the rough edges but I've run out of time and Sandpaper
ReplyDeleteThe winter of Eternity
She lay there like Septembers rose, her Dress frayed. She used to be full and pert; nature’s richest colours to illuminate her cheeks. Now with the passage of eternity, her edges were beginning to droop and die. It was time for her to move on, and for me to find my next dalliance. I discarded my Arab strap and stepped into the night for new flesh.
A boy this time would serve me well, O negative preferred.
“Dress me how you want” he said
So I dressed his neck with ruby red, and now he’s dead
William - Dark and nasty. "I dressed his neck ruby reb." Great imagery!
ReplyDeleteOK. The doors to Lily Childs' Prediction Challenge are now closed.
ReplyDeleteOn with the Judge's hat. Winner later. (Excited...)