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curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Over eight hundred authors, over eleven thousand stories, over eleven and half MILLION words! (Some of them were even good!)

THIS IS THUNDERDOME!



:siren: CLICK HERE FOR THE CURRENT PROMPT :siren:

What’s going on here???
Thunderdome is Something Awful’s first, only, and best flash fiction writing contest. Every week there will be a prompt posted, goons will write stories, and one will emerge victorious to post a writing prompt anew.

What makes this different from any other online writing group?
The focus of Thunderdome has always been honest critique and self-improvement. This isn’t where you go to get compliments just because you shat a story out, or to post memes about #writing while never actually producing any words; this is where you go to become a better writer. We will help you face your writerly weaknesses, and with luck overcome them.

What happens if I win?
You decide the next prompt. You judge the entries. You give critiques. You continue the cycle of blood. Click here for help!

What happens if I lose?
Not all judges will choose to give out a loss (whether or not to give negative mentions is up to the head judge, and they'll usually state whether they are going to assign a loss in the prompt post), but if they do, good news! You get a fancy avatar to commemorate the blood you spilled on the sands of the ‘dome (plus some honest words on how to improve):


(gif courtesy of AHYCAH on giphy)

Note to head judges: if you want to assign someone the losertar, please make sure to contact our benevolent Blood Mod Sitting Here or brutal Blood Admin sebmojo to do so, either by PM or on Discord.

Neat! How do I join?
Click the link above. Say “In.” Then post a story before the deadline (this is the crucial bit).

Should I know anything important before I join?
Yes!

First and foremost, read the prompt post. Then read it again. Then read it a third time. Seriously, read it. The prompt post is going to give you a lot of critical information, such as:
  • The word count. This is a maximum. Don't write a story with more words than the word count. You'll be disqualified.
  • The deadlines. There will be two deadlines. One is for signing up for the week. The other is for submitting. If you sign up after the first deadline, you'll be disqualified. If you submit after the second, you'll be disqualified.
  • The prompt itself. This varies from week to week. You might be writing in a specific genre. You might be dueling another writer. You might be submitting for publication. Who knows? You will, if you read the prompt post! Sometimes additional flash rules will be assigned after sign-up, or are available upon request. Again, this varies.
There are, of course, additional things to keep in mind:
  • Do not edit your story after you've posted. Once a story is submitted, that's it, you're done. If you edit your post, you’ll be disqualified.
  • Do not post your story in a weird way. Just put in the thread. Spoiler tags, quotes, or off-site links are no good here. You may be disqualified.
  • Do not respond to crits in thread. You can say thanks if you have to say something but that's it. Take your judgement on the chin and move on. You won’t be disqualified (because judgement will have already been posted), but you will be yelled at. If you want to ask questions about your crits (NOT to argue about them), or request additional feedback, do it in the Discord or Thunderlounge.
  • If you fail to submit, :toxx: the next time you enter. The only thing worse than failing is failing twice. And, honestly, you're only failing yourself. Put your account on the line.
  • No erotica.
  • No fanfiction.
  • No shitposting.
  • If you are disqualified, you can't win but you can still lose.

I keep seeing people with cool TD gangtags, how do I get one of those?
Yes, it is cool, isn’t it? Here’s what that looks like if you’re curious:



There are three ways to earn a TD gangtag, with varying degrees of difficulty:
  • Method 1: Enter ten times. No further requirements, doesn’t matter if you lose or DM, you just have to enter and successfully submit a story. They don’t have to be successive weeks, either! Just whenever you get around to it.
  • Method 2: Receive three Honorable Mentions. If you submit three stories and they all HM, congratulations on your gangtag!
  • Method 3: Win Thunderdome once. Easy!

BUT BE WARNED! If you sign up for a week and fail, your count towards gaining a gangtag will be reset, and if you already have a gangtag and fail to submit, it gets taken away. You have to start over from zero. Them’s the breaks!

Okay, I'm sold. How can I enter this thing again?
:siren: CLICK HERE FOR THE CURRENT PROMPT :siren:

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curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Resources

Discord

PM me (curlingiron) or post in the thread for a link. This is the general Discord server for TD and other CC writers. You don’t have to sign up for TD join the Discord, but you do have to be a goon, so please post your forums name when you join.

Fiction Writing Advice and Discussion

If you want to talk writing in general, this is SA's home for it.

The Thunderlounge: A Thunderdome Sidebar

Don’t feel like doing Discord but still want to talk TD? Check out the Thunderlounge! You can ask for feedback on your stories and chat about the thread to your heart’s content without getting yelled at! This is a kayfabe-free zone, so leave your beefs at the door.

Previous threads:

Thunderdome 2012: FYI, I do take big dumps, holla.
Thunderdome 2013: If this were any other thread we'd all be banned by now
Thunderdome 2014teen: Stories from the Abonend Bunker
Thunderdome 2015teen: Weekly Stories with Positive People
Thunderdome 2016teen: Fast Writing, Bad Writing
Thunderdome 2017teen: Prose and Cons
Thunderdome 2018teen: Abonen Hope, All Ye Who Enter Here
Thunderdome 2019teen: Writing Our Wrongs
Thunderdome 2020ty: This Dumb Joke Will Continue Until the Words Improve.
Thunderdome 2021ne: Out of the Dumpster and Into the Fire
Thunderdome 2022wo: The Stakes Have Never Been Lower
Thunderdome 2023ee: Flash, Fiction, and other Choice Words Starting with F

On Judging

The number of judges should be three. Since a normal week will only have one winner, that means other people have to step up. On any week where you don't have it in you to write a story, consider signing up as a cojudge. You sign up to judge by announcing your intention to do so in the thread, or by volunteering in Discord.

Qualifications

This is up to the head judge, but typically this means someone who has done a few rounds of the ‘dome and doesn't have a backlog of missing crits. You don't need to have won, HMed, or even no-mentioned to judge. You can learn a lot from judging, especially as a newer member of the 'dome.

Expectations

Read all the stories. Communicate your opinions with the head judge. Usually this happens in Discord but other methods happen, especially if there's a big timezone difference. Post crits to the thread.

Crits

The soul of thunderdome. Crits can be anything from two or three quick notes to a detailed line-by-line analysis. What's most important is that they get posted and that they be honest; no sugar coating here. If you do like the words you read, of course say so, but don't feel obligated to wrap up your opinions in half-hearted compliments. The point of crits is to help people get better, not stroke their egos.

If you still feel like you have no idea where to start, you can also check out this handy crit sheet template, courtesy of beloved TD veteran Obliterati.

Glossary
by Sitting Here
    Failure - Neglecting to submit a story at all. More shameful than losing. See also: Toxx
    HM - Honorable mention; a story that was in consideration for the win, or had some notable positive quality.
    DM - Dishonorable mention; a story that was in consideration for the loss, or had some notable negative quality.
    DQ - Disqualification; a disqualified story. Stories that were submitted before judgment, but after submissions close. Also includes stories that went over word count and stories that were edited after posting, as well as cases where the judge feels a prompt was ignored in a particularly egregious manner, or when, due to some shenanigans or other, the author was also a judge. Disqualified stories can’t win, but they can lose, which is better than failure. See also: Redemption.
    Flashrule - A sub-prompt given by the judges as part of the main weekly prompt, often serving as an additional challenge or piece of inspiration.
    Hellrule - A particularly unfair flashrule, requested at one’s own risk. Not every judge will issue hellrules.
    Redemption - A disqualified story submitted after judgment has been posted. Better than failure.
    :toxx: - Adding to your signup post indicates that you will forfeit your forums account if you fail to submit. Banned accounts may be unbanned at the owner’s expense.
    FJGJ - Fast Judging, Good Judging. A thing impatient morons begin shouting the moment submissions close.
    Brawl - A duel between two or more writers. Brawls are separate from the weekly prompt. See On Brawling by Sebmojo for a detailed explanation.
    The Archive - A repository of all Thunderdome stories, created by crabrock and Kaishai and now maintained by a small crew of excellent volunteers
    Losertar - Another name for the free avatar given to losers of the weekly contest
    Kayfabe - It is the showmanship that makes Thunderdome different from other, similar contests. Kayfabe gives participants the opportunity to show a little swagger, or act out grudges and rivalries within the arena of words. Kayfabe is optional, and it’s meant to be fun, not abusive. Come find out what you’re made of, you unblooded weenies.

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Thunderdome Archive

by crabrock

We've done a lot of weeks of Thunderdome, which can be a little overwhelming to keep track of. Enter the archive, which makes a robot keep track of everything so you don't have to. His name is TdBot, he is a creep, and we hate him. The archive is a repository of the thread's weekly entries, brawls, and even interprompts. In addition we track judges and has done their obligatory and extra story crits.

There are statistics for all sorts of interesting things like author wordcounts, entries and more! If you're thinking "I wonder how many..." then it's probably already there somewhere. Even I forget how to find things.

The Archive is by INVITE ONLY, and the only way to earn an invitation is by spilling blood in the dome. Do not ask for an account if you have not participated in at least one week. 

Overall Records: 
 

Your Profile

Each Thunderdome contestant gets their own author summary page (e.g. here's mine). On your own profile you can change the privacy of your stories (set them to hidden) and mark your favorites. You can also use the archive exporter to build a fancy PDF to send to your mom. 



TdBot

TdBot not only looks after the archive, but he can pull information from it at will, which he uses to serve as the oracle of Thunderdome in his discord channel. Pop in and have a conversation with him, where he'll use your own bad words to make you regret speaking to him!

Team Archive

None of this would be possible without the help of Team Archivean ever rotating cast of trusted volunteers who have given their time to trawling the thread and checking for accuracy. Thanks, Team Archive!

Patreon

In addition, several people give REAL LIFE DOLLARS to keep the archive up and running and enable us to do things like the weekly recap podcast, so a huge shoutout and thanks to these fine domers! All the levels have the same rewards because of space socialism. Any donation gives you this cool wizard hat on the archives:

Errors & Feature Request

PM crabrock on discord or SA and we'll get it fixed or see if it's possible to do. No we will not archive crits. Do it yourself.

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

On Brawling, by Sebmojo:



brawling what so someone said something mean and your bottom lip is doing that quivery thing and you feel like you can't go a single second more without punching a motherfucker? thunderdome has just the thing.

you can't fight here it's the Thunderdome when two people hate each other very much, and one of them is you, you get to slap down a challenge. make it big, make it brassy; you're slapping your sex bits down on the bar, try and make 'em bounce a little.

help someone's slapped me with something help accepting brawl challenges isn't required, but if you like to sling the poo poo around (and you should) then failing to back up your bad words with good ones will be remembered. brawl stories are good, being able to beat someone you're mad at is better.

how does it work? once you've thrown down a challenge, and had it accepted, a brawl judge will step up just like that weird bartender in The Shining. they'll give you a prompt, a word count and a deadline. they'll also, and this is real important, state the :toxx: this means if you fail to submit by the deadline then you get banned. the judge doesn't need to give you an extension.

what do you mean banned brawl toxxes are obligatory. if you're actually a literal secret agent and you've just discovered you're parachuting into Syria in two hours time then get on Discord, snivel at your judge and maybe they'll remove the :toxx: from the prompt, but expect that to be a one-time mercy if you gently caress it up.

anything else? don't challenge anyone until you've done a few rounds, good grudges take time to fester, don't step up to judge a brawl unless you've at least got an HM or the participants have asked you to, and declining a random drive-by brawl is more acceptable than one with a grudge behind it. this place runs on words, and hatred, and you gotta fuel the fire.

brawl judges, don't grab brawls if you don't have a prompt ready and don't be dicks; what matters is whose story is best, don't gently caress around.

is that it yes, fight well you horrible monsters

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Toaster Beef posted:

Sign-ups end in about 12.5 hours!

Also: In search of two other judges. Anybody wanna volunteer?

I will judge. Also :toxx: to get my crits for week 590 done before submissions close.

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Crits for Week #590 that I did not edit or read through a second time so I'm sorry if they're incoherent


beep-beep car is go - I Doctor Think, therefore I am:

So the biggest problem with this story is that it's a lot of description of things, and almost none of them actually matter, which I think Thrang said already, but I'm just reiterating here as kind of a preamble for what I'm about to say next. I think I've probably said this before in crits (although maybe not to you specifically), but for me personally, the easiest way to figure out how to structure a short story (that is, to figure out what is actually going to matter in your story) is to figure out what changes over the course of your story. In this case, your story does have something that changes over the course of your story, namely that Doctor Think is given autonomy, but the problem is that we don't actually see any ramifications of that change, so it's very hard to care about it as a reader. We don't even really know that much about Celia by the end of the story, so it's difficult to really engage with her on the journey she takes, especially given that it's written as a very routine trip for her; it can be okay to have description for the sake of description, but it's hard to make your reader interested in something (even if it's legitimately interesting!) when your character isn't that interested. I think with the ending of the story you tried to do some foreshadowing, but since you had to leave DT's continued benevolence once given full autonomy sufficiently plausible that Celia would still be willing to go through with it, it's just not really clear what's actually going to happen, which is dissatisfying. I know you mentioned that you were trying to balance the placement of the change in this against another crit you got that said the reveal happened too early in a previous story, but since this wasn't so much a "reveal" as the sole dynamic element of the story (and the whole point of it, really), this feels like a different case. I do think that ultimately relying on a reveal or twist in a story, while something that can be well-done on occasion, is not a great tool to rely on as a general rule. Ultimately, if your story is only interesting because of some wild information (or, god help you, joke) that you're concealing from your reader until the reveal, the chances are it's not that great. I mean, sure, The Sixth Sense exists, but so do all of Shyamalan's other films. Anyway, I do think that your short stories are continuing to improve, but I know that it can be frustrating as you find the right balance of elements (and learn how to choose which criticism you feel works with the kinds of stories you're trying to tell). BUT I BELIEVE IN YOU!!! GO GO GO GO GO!!!!!!


Chernobyl Princess - Reclamation:

I actually had this more or less tied with Jib's story, just because I liked what you were trying to do a little bit more, but this mainly suffered from a lack of going anywhere. It was a fun maybe-meet-cute, and I enjoyed what I saw of Claudia and Tyson's changing relationship, but it left me wanting more, whether that was out of the setting or the (maybe) romance that was happening. Maybe you left this intentionally ambiguous, as to reflect the uncertain nature of continuing to live on the planet, but I think that if that was the case, you needed to make that theme more explicit. As it was it just felt like you ran out of steam, which left me feeling more than a bit let down. Still, I would read more of this, if you wanted to write it, so it wasn't a total let down by any means.


The Cut of Your Jib - Paris in the Twenty-Second Century:

This, to me, was probably your most comprehensible story that I can recall off the top of my head, and I liked it quite a bit. I think I got the gist of what the pod was (or maybe I just pasted in a relevant-sounding idea from a book I just read, who knows), but it could maybe have used one extra sentence to clarify. I don't think I would have minded maybe a sentence or two about the tower as well, but that felt more understandable than the pod for some reason. Still, really lovely language, and you had a recognizable and emotionally satisfying ending, so a pretty easy win. If you ever wanted to do more with it, I think you could add a tiny bit of exposition, as mentioned, and then do more to flesh out characterization of both Tariq and Vanessa, the latter of whom felt particularly flat to me. Not a major sin for such a short word count, but something to think about if you want to do more with it in the future.

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Crits for Week #598
Crits done started in judgemode


Thirteen Things:
drat, we’re starting strong this week. Fantastic story, I really loved this one. Some minor typos: you’re missing a word in #8, and while I assume the number is at least three, it was mildly annoying not to know how many times the mayor has murdered people. I also agree that it would have been nice to have all the pieces tie together a bit more, either with their connection to the town, or even to the tree itself. Still, this was a very strong piece and I enjoyed it a lot.


Bitter Water:
Some really great description in your opening. I do wish that I could get the archives to put the flashrules in spoilers consistently, since I think this could have been better without knowing what was going on, but I still liked it a lot. I don’t think this resonated as much for me as the other two HM stories this week, but I think that may just be my own preferences. This is a well-done mystery, and I dug the characters and their relationships, which you did well for such a short word count.


Becoming Ahab:
So on the one hand you have a story of a man forgetting his anniversary and finding his relationship suddenly in question, which I think you’d have to work very hard to make not-boring at this point, and on the other hand you have some cataclysmic event looming, the details of which are not clear from the description, and then the story ends with an inexplicable dick joke. It’s not to say that I don’t appreciate silly stories or dick jokes (god knows I love dick jokes), it’s just that the supports you needed to make this one work just weren’t there. I even think if you’d put in some foreshadowing to the dickrain, this could have worked a little bit, although again, I think you were always going to be at a disadvantage if your starting place was “man forgets his anniversary.” I guess my point is that jokes require some setup, and at least some forethought to how you lead the reader to expect the punchline before it comes, or at least to have some expectations that can then be subverted ironically. Admittedly, I had not read the first dickrain story before I read this one, and perhaps it would have worked better as a callback. Still, I’m hopeful that you can find some points to take away from this, even though I know it was likely disappointing.


Vinegar and Honey:
This is neat, and I like the vibes a lot. Third omniscient usually bothers me, but you handled it well enough here that I didn’t have any problems. I’m not sure your ending line works, though; it felt a little too trite, and I’m not sure you made the ‘vinegar’ clear enough in the rest of the piece. Still, it was an enjoyable read. Good Granny Weatherwax vibes.


Falling Richards:
So this at least didn’t have the issue of the tedious A-plot, which made it somewhat more palatable. I think there were still setup issues with your joke, and of course the issue of it rather belaboring the point. And of course, as toaster beef mentioned, I don’t think this really qualifies as a “town secret” at all.


No Glove No Love:
I don’t feel that I am adequately able to critique this piece, because I don’t fully understand what it was about, or what you as the author were trying to convey. If you would like to discuss this further and/or ask for specific feedback, I would be happy to do so in PMs or on Discord.


Smiling Henry’s Antique Mall:
This was in serious need of a proofing pass, and was difficult for me to parse at times due to the typos and stilted language. As for the story itself, it feels like you set up a lot of questions about Henry Westcott and al-Hazred that you never answer. Our protagonist starts out (apparently) looking for al-Hazred’s gold, and then ends up trying to resurrect his younger brother. Did he know he was down there? What was Westcott’s business? It all left me very confused. I might have suggested this as a DM candidate in a different week, although I’m not sure the other judges would agree.


The what in my cave?:
This wasn’t bad, for a half-to-a-quarter of a story. I liked the character details about the kids, although I was more than a little curious about how old they were, because you seem to be writing them like they were high schoolers, but (ime) high schoolers cautious enough to get spelunking equipment to explore caves are usually ones whose parents are involved enough to know they’re going spelunking ahead of time. Oh well. I’d be interested to see where you were planning to go with this, and the offer to read the rest if you end up finishing it stands.


Epiphaneia:
Okay, this is actually funny and silly. Good job. Maybe dickrain broke me, but I found this charming. The folksy voice worked for me, and I didn’t mind the ride that it took me on to get to the punchline. If you were genuinely going for the pun on sangria it was completely lost on me, but trying to make it clearer would have undermined what worked about this, so I guess there’s no real change to be made there. I do agree with beef that you could have done with maybe a touch more left unsaid with the ending (especially re: the apocalypse), but at the end of the day I can appreciate a good “outlandish thing happens, even more outlandish things are the reason, everyone just agrees to not talk about it because dealing with the implications is too much of a hassle” story. It wasn’t quite enough to push it into the upper echelons of the week, but again, I had fun, and I do see continued improvement in your short stories. Keep it up!


Eat Dirt:
Hell yeah. I love this kind of weird. A couple of typos tripped you up, but this was probably my favorite of the week, and something I could easily see getting published with another editing pass (and as UP mentioned, maybe clearer motivation on the teachers’ parts).


PILF:
I really enjoyed the details in this piece, and if you had made your ending a little clearer I could have seen it HMing. I really would have liked to see a little more of what happened to Ixl in the end, or even have it intimated in a way that leant closure; all you really needed was one more sentence to sew it up. I will also say that I don’t care for your title at all, even knowing your reason for choosing it; it not only undercuts the ending reveal (or the intended one; I’ll admit that I did not pick up on the fact that the ants were breeding with the wasp), but also takes away from the intended horror by turning it into a jokey acronym.


Old Badger’s Sons:
This could have done with a little more explanation, but it’s pretty solid. I think it’s a little odd that no one noticed that the deaths all made a perfect circle around the exact same point in town – that really seems like something someone would have noticed already, maybe at the actual police station, but perhaps that’s giving truly small town detective work more credit than is really warranted. I do agree that your words would probably have been better spent showing us other parts of this story, as there’s not a lot of interest in reading about a writer having trouble writing. It could be good to show us more about the victims, or about your MC and his character and why he’s unable to leave the case alone. If he was always the intended 18th victim of the stones, perhaps there’s something more to be said there as well.

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Saying in so I actually post the thing I already wrote (but not tonight).

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Welcome to the Omniveritas Museum of Extant Realism!
247 words
Apex Magazine / Strange Locations

We hope that you enjoy your visit, and look forward to sharing our collections with you. For your safety, we ask that you please adhere to all posted rules and regulations throughout your time in our halls. Be advised that failure to abide by said rules and regulations may result in fines, criminal liability, catatonia, psychosis, partial or total loss of limbic function, retroactive nonexistence, or, in extreme cases, ejection from museum premises. Patrons who fail to follow museum rules are NOT entitled to compensation or refund.

Please keep your existential anchor on your person at all times. Visitors who did not bring their own anchor can pick up a pre-fabricated one from Guest Services. Please note that we ensure only that these anchors are from the same reality as the local Guest Services desk, and thus cannot guarantee the same efficacy as one specific to you. If you are visiting from another reality and have lost your original anchor, please inform museum staff as soon as possible.

Before you enter our halls, there are a few final things to keep in mind:
-All exhibits are real and/or factual. Disbelieve at your own risk.
-Art is subjective. You may be subject to the art.
-Guests whose birthday it is today are advised to leave. Immediately.
-Always remember to maintain your own corporeality. The Omniveritas Museum is not responsible for lost belongings or body parts.
-ABSOLUTELY NO OUTSIDE FOOD OR DRINK!!!

Thank you, and enjoy your stay!

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Okay, in I guess

curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

Smoke and Cinders
1214 words


It is midnight, and the moon is full, but the shadows are deep and still, and I am going to visit the new queen, the one who captured the heart of the prince and was crowned this very day, for I am her fairy godmother, the very best fairy godmother there is.

There are many who might say that I am undersized for a dragon, but I am just right for a fairy godmother. My scales are black as shadow, and my wings are graceful and swift; my talons may be small, but they are still sharp enough to slice a man’s throat, and I can burn a house to the ground with my flame if I choose to. Not that I ever do, because that is not what a fairy godmother does.

I am, of course, beautiful and elegant in every way, as any fairy godmother should be, but my goddaughter is even lovelier still. Her hair is as black as my scales, and her skin is the same color as the sun when it shines through my wings, all lovely and tawny and dark. Like me, she is small for a human, but she is oh so clever, sharp of wit and deft of hand. And she is kind, kinder than anyone in her position has any right to be; even though I have offered many times to make those who have been cruel to her pay, she always asks that I stay my claw and my flame, that I try to forgive them as she does, and as a fairy godmother should. And I do as she asks, as best I can, which is to say that I do not slice open their throats or burn their houses, but nor do I forgive them, for though I am a fairy godmother, I am also still a dragon.

The palace now is still, and my footpads make no sound as I creep through the shadows of the courtyards and gardens. I am careful to be seen by neither sentry nor servant, nor also to be scented by the palace hounds, for though I could spit fire at them to scare them off, it would make it harder for me to come and see my goddaughter again on nights like this when the moon is full and to fly would be to risk the arrows of the castle guards, who do not know that I am fairy godmother to their new queen and therefore am not to be shot at. Perhaps some day when she is more secure in her position, my goddaughter will ask her new husband to make me known to the guards, that I may come and go as I please, but for now it is too hard for most humans to understand the complexities of our fairy godmother and goddaughter relationship. Besides, I do enjoy slinking about and fooling the humans who think they know all there is to know in this world.

My goddaughter, as I have said, has had a very hard life, with a stepmother and stepsisters who were very cruel to her after her father passed. I did not care particular for my goddaughter’s father, but I loved her mother very much, and it was she who asked me to be her daughter’s fairy godmother before she died. I would have loved my goddaughter regardless, of course, because as I have said she is kind and clever and lovely, but her mother’s memory is as dear to me as any crown or jewel in my hoard, and it was for her that I originally made my vows. It was for her sake as well that I did not kill her husband for allowing his new wife to treat my goddaughter so awfully, even before he died, although she hid the worst of it from him. I would have told him what his new wife did behind his back, but he was a superstitious man and did not like that his first wife was a friend to dragons, and chased me off whenever he saw me. But I would come back anyway, every midnight when he was asleep to see my lovely goddaughter.

It was my goddaughter’s stepsisters who told her of the royal ball – taunted her with it, really, for what could she possibly wear? And they were right, for her stepmother had not given her a new dress in a long time, and the ones she had were tattered and dirty from the chores they made her do. But of course I am the very best fairy godmother there is, and from my hoard I brought her silks and jewels and a pair of slippers that fit just right on her dainty feet, and on the night of the ball I flew her to the palace myself, for although I am small, she is too, and it was not so hard a task that I would not do it for my beloved goddaughter.

The rest, of course, was unsurprising to anyone with eyes; my goddaughter was the loveliest at the ball, and although she had to leave at midnight to come and meet me again, as we always do, the prince was so smitten that he sought her and found her in her stepmother’s house. Her stepfamily tried to hide her, of course, but in the end love prevailed – assisted of course by a stealthy fairy godmother and her skills. And now the two are wed, and all shall be well at last.

And here! A balcony in the courtyard, where I can see my beautiful goddaughter standing in the moonlight and waiting for me. I am quick to climb the ivy, and at last I am there with her, and I see the bright tracks of tears on her face in the moonlight, and the mottling of a bruise on her lovely cheek–

I go completely still, and I can see the mixed fear and relief on my goddaughter’s face as we gaze at each other in the palace that is now hers, where no one should dare lift a hand to her, for she is above all of them, except for–

My goddaughter’s eyes dart to the balcony door, the one that leads to her new bedroom, where even now I can hear the faint snoring of a man who sleeps in the assurance that nothing in the world is above him. She looks at me, and I can see her pleading look, the same one that she has given me so many times, asking me to forgive.

I turn and spread my wings, looking over my shoulder in invitation, and she climbs on my back. I am small, but so is she, and there is no task so hard that I would not do it for my beloved goddaughter.

But.

Some night soon, when the moon is dark and there will be no light for guards to see a shape in flight, I will come back to this balcony, and I will enter the door, with my talons sharp enough to slice a man’s throat, and fire enough to burn a castle down. For although I am a fairy godmother, I am still a dragon, and I do not forgive.

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curlingiron
Dec 15, 2006

b l o o p

shwinnebego posted:

In uh, flash
I’ve never done this before nor do I have any relevant experience apologies in advance


edit: ok i wrote my story, should i just post it or do i wait for your signal or what

You can post whenever you want before deadline, but I would at least sleep on it before submitting. It’s always good to give yourself time to polish. :)

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