Short and sweet, here are Days 2 thru 4 of my micro fiction pieces written for the Writober challenge.
Midnight Harvest
Jesse wandered among the rows of corn, passed dusk, well
into the evening time and the minimal light of her torch barely reached her
bare feet. The feet that slapped the ground with each footstep. She could see
there wasn’t much left of the harvest. She had come late before and still got
something from the harvest.
The night birds sang quietly but trilled in ominous song as
she walked past each of the markers. Each of the markers indicated which
landowner owned that crop. So, she was hopeful there would be one or two ears
of corn that she could take home for dinner. Her and Matthias hadn’t eaten
anything today, and at this rate they wouldn’t eat tomorrow either.
Jesse threw up her torch light towards the sky, startling
two large dusk moths as they dance in the very pale light of dawn. It wasn’t
much light to see anything, but Jesse kept walking. She kept pulling at the
leaves, checking to see if there really was an ear of corn left.
The moths fluttered down to her head, lowering her torch so
not to scare them. They seemed to glow. And she kicked at the dirt, throwing a
few small rocks forward, making the moths dart high, though they glowed
brighter.
Almost at the end of this row, Jesse decided to turn back,
her stomach aching with an empty stomach. When the moths glowed brighter still
and rushed at Jesse’s face. Her hand batted at the creatures and felt cool
metal against her palm. Pulling her hands away she saw thew two moths bobbing
in front of her, holding two small lanterns. They quickly turned at raced
further down the row. Jesse leapt forward and gave chase to the little inserts.
She didn’t really think, but just ran for a long time, until
the moths suddenly disappeared. Jesse quit her pursuit, standing now in
darkness, until quietly crested the small rise in the row. There in front of
her were rows and rows and glowing vegetables. Jesse saw corn the colour of the
morning sun, carrots like that of the late afternoon, and a deep purple looking
thing that reminded her of the night. She blinked, crossing slowly down into
the fields. Her hands grabbing at the corn and carrot, even pulling up the
purple looking thing.
The moths returned to in front of Jesse’s face. Their
iridescent eyes shining in the light from the vegetables. They fluttered their
wings and darted away. Jesse turned quickly and took off toward home, she
didn’t want to dare to catch a glance and the glowing field because she could
get home. Tears at the corner of her eyes, she whispered thanks to the moths.
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Visitors
Lily sat on her porch, her head in her hands. She didn’t
want to look up. She didn’t want to see the evidence of her crime. Of course it
wouldn’t be long now, Mom was due home any minute now.
She lifted her head, checking every time a car drove around
the curve in the road, but there was nothing. Letting her head dangle as she
stared at the ground, she heard a noise. It sounded like an animal crunching on
the partially dried grass in the yard. Lily lifted her head again to see two
foxes sitting in her yard. One was orange, the other a pale white.
The foxes sat there, watching her. The orange tilted its
head, while the pale fox looked quickly away. Lily had never seen foxes so
close, and she wanted to pet them, even give them a hug. Her troubles
temporally forgotten.
Neither fox moved, nor did Lily. There didn’t seem to be any
movement from the road. The orange fox sat still, blinked twice. While the pale
fox got up and started to walk away. It was walking toward the road, which Lily
thought was strange, but she felt compelled to stand and start walking towards
the pale fox.
The orange fox blinked twice and let out a slow, but audible
growl, but Lily did not turn back to the orange fox, she kept walking toward
the pale fox. It was silent as it turned towards Lily, and she suddenly heard
the orange one howl, but it was too late as the white car whipped around the
bend in the road and right into Lily. The only sound that was heard was the
screeching of tires.
The driver exited the car to see the young girl lying in
front of his car. There were two foxes sitting in the distance watching the
scene play out as the driver knelt to get a pulse from the child’s neck.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Letter
Mya’s hand shook as she wrote the letter. Inked letters
spilling from the cheap motel, “I hope you are okay…” her hand shook, and she
stopped, staring about the back of a paper menu. The words of the Rising Moon Café
were bleeding through her letter. She looked again, reading the words out loud,
“I hope you are okay, shrimp manicotti. Please come to Hot and Sour Soup.”
She shook her hand, trying to rid herself of some offending
thoughts.
“You want another cup of coffee, Miss,” a voice said above
her. Mya glanced upwards to see a smiling face of Juan. “Or maybe a piece of
pie?”
Mya shook her head with much less force, No. Just the coffee
please.” She didn’t want to tell Juan that all she could afford was the unlimited
coffee and al the jelly and ketchup packet she could squirrel away.
“Alright,” said Juan, “but if you need anything please let
me know.”
“Thank you,” said Mya, turning back to her menu letter. Her hands
cupped around the chipped, cheap porcelain cup. The coffee tasted bitter, even
with six sugar packets to flavour it. Mya picked up her pen and started writing
again. “I don’t know what to tell you,” Mya scribbled. “I miss you.” She
stopped and crumpled up the menu, looked towards Juan who was chatting with the
cook. She shook her head, reached into her pocket and pulled out several
quarters and dimes. Laying them on the table, she grabbed another paper menu and
scribbled a quick note, rushed out of the café. Juan following her path out of
the café.
He wandered over to the booth where Mya had been sitting. He
saw the change. A quick count showed a tip of one dollar and fifty-five cents
and a hastily scratched note. “I’m sorry, Juan. I hope you are okay, please come
home. We miss you. Mya.”
Juan blinked and looked up. Mya stood outside, looking into
then café. Juan rushed out to the meet Mya, but the second he left the café he
found he was standing in a field, next to a grave. It was covered over in weeds
and wildflowers. The grave was writing in faded etched letter Mya, beloved of
Juan, 2024.
