Monday, October 31, 2011

Halloween Treat. Or Trick.

I figured since it's Halloween I'd share a little treat. Or maybe you'll think it's a trick. Whatever. Sometimes I get ideas that I lose interest in fast. I don't know why, but I'll pound out a few hundred words, and then my excitement fizzles in the realization that if I were to keep going I'd have to, like, WORK. This is one of those ideas. But who knows? Maybe it'll go somewhere eventually:

If I weren’t already dead, I’d be dying of boredom right now. The old woman “sleeps” in the hospital bed, her face pinched in discomfort. This has been her expression for the last four days. Her family members think she’s exhausted from the disease, but the truth is she just doesn’t want to look at me, her angel of death.


Reaper, technically. Death gets so worked up when his minions are confused for him. I figure it’s his own fault for not doing the dirty work, not that I’d say that to his face.


“Erline…” I say softly, trying not the rock the chair I’ve inhabited for too long. Don’t want a passing nurse to notice. “It’s not so bad. I promise.”


Her lips scrunch together.


“I’m telling you, you’ll like the Underworld. Once you get past the three-headed dog, it’s quite pretty.”


She raises an eyebrow.

I prop my feet up on the bed. “Okay, there’s not really a dog, but I wasn’t lying about the pretty. My favorite are the lavender fields, always in bloom and the most intense purple.”

Still no answer. I hate when they’re stubborn like this—it only makes it worse. “Look, do you want me to level with you? You have two choices in this: take my help or not. If you do, passing is a breeze, like walking from one room to another. If you don’t, it hurts, a kind of agony I cannot describe but promise I know all too well. And if you decide to haunt relatives, I’ll be forced to drag you there the hard way. You really won’t like the hard way. It involves chains and tiny, uncomfortable urns and…punishment.”

Like being stuck as a hospital Reaper.

22 comments:

  1. I like it :)

    You should, like, work on it some more!

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  2. I like this, Natalie! You shouldn't abandon it.

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  3. Intriguing! One of my very favorite tv shows (short-lived though it was) was about reapers -- Dead Like Me. It's a great theme, especially for today.

    Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Very nice! Hope your character gives you more -

    Cyndi

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  5. This is awesome. I'm lurking on your blog and I think your idea is awesome. Don't give it up.

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  6. I've always liked the Reaper idea. :) Thanks for posting it!

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  7. Lol cute. And very apt for the holiday. Thanks for sharing! :)

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  8. Oooohh... so creepy! I love it.

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  9. Ooh, perfect for Halloween! Love it. :)

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  10. I like it too!

    I hear you, though. I get quick flares that burn themselves out, too.

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  11. I like this. I think it can stand on its own quite well.

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  12. Ooooh, I do love this. Great voice, and rhythm, and character. Don't pursue it if you don't feel it - but if you do, let me know, pretty please, because I want to read it. :) :) :)

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  13. There used to be a show, but I don't recall the name. Mandy Pitankin was the boss of a group of reapers. That job would be misery.

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  14. I really enjoyed that! Have you read the Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent? There is a reaper character that you might enjoy reading about.

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  15. Awesomely intriguing. I like the hints of story here. I think it could be something wonderful if you decide to develop it :)

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  16. I love this. I agree with Jeff that it works as a stand-alone short story, but I'd love to read a novel based on this.

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  17. You know, I really like that. I've seen some angel writing involving paranormal romance, which doesn't work (it feels too much like a rip off of Twilight). This on the other hand, has a very different feel.

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  18. It's really good! I like this a lot.

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  19. This is strikingly similar to an episode of the show "Supernatural".

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