U stumped me. I thought by now I would have something--anything--to share with a word that starts with the letter U. But no, nada. I don't have a fancy schmancy U word to feature...until I saw this picture and realized, Hey! I know what to do. I'll share a short story that takes place Underwater.

*nods happily*

So here ya go, and I hope you'll enjoy this.

Image from http://membres.multimania.fr/mandragores/melusine.html

If you've been following my blog for sometime now, you would know that I'd won Michelle Simkins' contest with my short story entry "Beware the Bunny". The lovely prize was Ryan the Zombunny, who arrived on my doorstep one stormy night.

This is a story of how our first three days went....

Warning: There may or may not be truth in this story, but all I know is that it's NOT for the faint of heart.

*******

Lightning whipped across the darkening sky, a silver lasso cackling with electricity. Black clouds had gathered unexpectedly this summer evening, and somewhere across the state, some unfortunate weatherman was getting fired for missing the signs of the impending storm. Thunder bellowed its presence and announced the onslaught of rain, which came hard and fast. Like tiny furious daggers going for the kill.

The doorbell rang. I wiped my hands on a dishtowel before pressing the start button on the dishwasher. Before I could get to the door, I heard the sound of tires screeching on the slick pavement, as if someone couldn't get out of here fast enough.

"Yes?" I said, opening the door a crack. There was no one. A chill shot up my spine, but I ignored the feeling and flung the door wide. This was what I saw:

It was Ryan the Zombunny! Yes, I saw the suspiciously lone shoe on the welcome mat, but Ryan was here, and I'd been waiting for his arrival.

"Hey there, little guy. You're an absolute cutie! I can't believe the Postal worker opened your box. I'll have to remember to report this to the Post Office tomorrow." I picked him up. "After all, it IS a crime to open other people's mail."

Ryan looked at me with eyes full of understanding. Well, with ONE eye since the other one was hanging off its socket and was gazing at the floor.

"Are you hungry?" I carried him to the kitchen. On the counter were the vegetables we had scored at the Farmer's Market the day before. "Oh crap!" I slapped my forehead. "I forgot to get you some cauliflower. Oh well, we have plenty of other things. What do you think? Would you like to try a tomato?"
Ryan turned his nose at my food offering. I sighed. "Guess what, first thing on Monday, I'll take you to the grocery store and we'll get you some cauliflower, okay?" He merely hopped off the table in reply. I should have known then that he wasn't hungry and the shoe still lying on my doormat was a clue.

But I wasn't playing detective. I was glad to welcome him into our family. Still, it was obvious we weren't off to a good start, and I wanted desperately to amend this.

So I showed him his bedroom.

And I intoduced him to some friends.

Strangely enough, no one has seen Mr. Octopus since then.

I taught him how to operate the TV remote so he could watch his favorite shows.

Needless to say, he quickly changed the show I was watching (TLC's What Not to Wear) to The Walking Dead.

"Okay," I said. "You can watch that but only when the kids are not home." He didn't answer.

The storm was finally dying down. Rain softly pitter-pattered on the rooftop. The children came home from visiting their Grampa and Nana, and there were ecstatic cries of joys at the sight of our newest "family member". Ryan had to endure cuddly hugs and tea parties with Tinkerbell, Buzz Lightyear, and the Elephant family. But he didn't complain. Not a word.

Later, I found out why.

May the Force be with you, Obi Wan...NOT!

Alas, the Force was not strong enough to save Obi Wan.


That night, I tossed and turned in my bed and dreamt of being chased by zombies.

******
Six a.m. came fast enough, and I staggered down the stairs with bleary eyes and hair to rival my friend Bethany's afro. A little bird chirped happily just outside the window, singing Gisele's Happy Working Song (from the movie Enchanted), when suddenly there was a whoosh followed by complete silence.

"Get that...that dead thing out of my house," I cried, but Ryan just stood there. I hurriedly swept the thing away before the children could see it. "Okay, buddy, let's have a new rule. No bringing dead animals inside."

His eye widened. Goosebumps prickled my arms. I had the strangest feeling that somehow he didn't break the rule at all.

Shaking off the chill, I ran back upstairs to get showered. Ryan followed behind me. "No, buddy, I have to get ready. Why don't you go and play?"

He stared at me from the bottom of the stairs.
After I was done getting ready, I went to the basement to look for Ryan and spied him taking a girl bunny for a ride. Imagine the smile on my face to see him finally having fun.

Unfortunately, fiive minutes later, girl bunny unwisely stopped to chat with a friend.

Uh-oh!

R.I.P. Mr. Gorilla. Rest in Pieces.

Unnerved, I took Ryan outside to enjoy the summer's lovely (and rather scorching) sun.
The Boy was helping me water the flowers in the backyard, and Ryan got up to get a closer look. Sweet bonding moment...or was he only gearing up for the pounce?
Luckily, no ghastly incidents occurred.

Evening came and we had survived with hardly any injuries or more beheadings. (Mr. Gorilla underwent extensive sewing surgeries and though he'd have to live the rest of his life as a vegetable--he chose a rutabaga--he is thankful to have his head still attached to his body. Headless toys don't get second chances. *coughtrashbincough*)

The tension in the house had considerably lightened, and Ryan even conceded to try a tomato. After I read him and the children a bedtime story, Ryan asked to borrow my sparkly tiara.

When he gave it back to me, he pressed his soft face to my cheek. I grimaced, expecting pain. But what I got was a kiss.

Yikes! My lips are NOT that red in real life. Silly iPhone camera app.

Welcome home, Ryan.

Hello Monday!

We are going to have a very exciting week! My friend and writer extraordinaire, T.S. Welti, is being featured here for the whole entire week. She is an amazingly talented woman and I'm very proud to present her awesomeness to you. Her debut novel, The Fifth Specter: Book One of the Parker Chance series is OUT and ready for your reading pleasure! I had the good fortune of snagging a signed copy from Ms. Welti herself, so I'll be sharing my review soon.

So! Let's get this started.

To start off, we have a BOOK GIVEAWAY, courtesy of Ms. Welti. All you need to do is answer this simple question:

If you could have a SUPERPOWER, what would it be?

Leave your answer in the comment section below. The contest runs for a week and will end on Monday, August 15th. After the contest ends, the winner will be randomly selected and announced on Tuesday, August 16th.

The prize? A COPY OF THE FIFTH SPECTER BY T.S. WELTI! So go wrack your brain for superpower ideas!

On Wednesday, I'll be posting my review of The Fifth Specter.

On Friday, Ms. Welti answers my prodding questions in an interview (ala Barbara Walters, or...possibly Rita Skeeter-style.)

So stay tuned and show some love!

Bio:


Check out her blog The Smoking Quill. You can also follow her on Twitter: @TS_Welti.

Not a Twitterer? Check out her FB Author Page: http://www.facebook.com/tswelti.author

Also, her FB Book Page: http://www.facebook.com/TheFifthSpecter

**************

Chapter 10 of the Skeleton Key Round Robin Blogvel is now up by Laura of Laura's Universe.


Have a great day, everyone!

As promised, here is the next installment of the Short Story Feature. If you had tuned in to Wednesday's post, you'd have seen and enjoyed my friend A.M. Supinger's short story "Savages", created from the same image prompt posted below.

Now I am glad to have my dear friend Suzanne Payne show us her own interpretation of this picture:

Source

Enjoy!


Three days. It’s been three days since it happened. Kortney’s mind still swirled with the same memories plaguing her mind. The phone call, the disbelief, his body washing up on the shore kept replaying over and over and she felt powerless to stop them. How could this have happened? Why did this happen? He was so young and an excellent swimmer. We were going to get married in the fall. She glanced down at her engagement ring knowing she’d never see him at the altar waiting for her.

Leaving the house for a while became a necessity. There were too many phone calls from well-meaning friends who were worried about her and what she might do. What do they think I’m going to do? Kill myself? With little sleep and a sore throat and pounding head from crying, she pushed open the screen door. “I’m going down to the beach, Mom. I need some quiet.”

“Todd’ll go with you,” her mom insisted. Sending her brother as a bodyguard didn’t sound appealing. Her family being in her house had been a comfort, but now it felt more like an invasion.

“No, I need to be by myself for a while,” Kortney said, hoping to keep her mom from worrying.

“Take your cell phone,” her mom suggested. The circles under her mom’s eyes showed she was tired from fielding all the phone calls Kortney didn’t want to take and from watching her daughter suffer. With the cell phone shoved into the air for her mother to see, Kortney walked out. Even after celebrating her twenty-fifth birthday, Kortney’s mother still treated her like a kid most of the time.

As she walked through the neighborhood down to the beach, the wind caressed her skin. Today’s sky was cloudy and it would probably rain later, but Kortney didn’t care if she was wet from rain or from the ocean. In this moment she didn’t care about anything. Sitting on the edge of an overturned boat she wrapped her arms around her middle and rested her head on her knee. “I don’t understand this. We were planning a life together.” She was surprised when her sandpapery eyes produced more tears. The salty mist off the ocean burned them because they were so irritated. While she used the hem of her old t-shirt and wiped her eyes out, she suddenly felt like she wasn’t alone. When she raised her head off her knee, she saw a boy walking up the rise of the sand. Clad in a long-sleeved swim shirt and longer swim pants, the navy blue suit made his blond hair look even more shocking. He carried his surfboard under his arm and approached her.

“DJ?” she said. Was this him? This guy looked like him, but she wasn’t sure. Days of mourning had muddled her brain.

“I’m Cole. Mind if I sit with you? You look like you could use some company,” he said, and his gaze held a touch of empathy. “You’re Kortney, right?” A small tentative smile played around his mouth as he shoved the end of his board in the soft sand and sat next to her.

He looked a lot like DJ. Tanned skin, muscular build, blond hair from the sun. She nodded, turning her eyes downward not wanting to hear another apology for her loss.

“I know you don’t know me and this is going to sound really weird, but I had a dream about your boyfriend last night.” Kortney stared at him as rage boiled up inside her. His eyes widened and his words rushed out, “Before you get mad, you need to listen first.” Kortney knew the glare she was giving him wasn’t helping his courage, but she didn’t care. Cole waited before he spoke, looking as if he might jump up and run away at any moment. She turned away from him again, but didn’t move off the sand. His body seemed to relax, but he chewed on his bottom lip. “He came to me and told me to find you. He said he wanted to tell you some things he never got to say.”

“Why are you telling me this? It’s not funny!” Kortney stood up and brushed the sand off her legs. She thought about slapping him, but decided to just walk away. Cole stood up to follow her.

“Look, I know this sounds crazy! But this is what I dreamed and I thought it was important enough to tell you.” Cole paused again, “Please, just listen and then I’ll leave you alone.” Kortney turned to face him with her arms across her chest.

“You’ve got one minute,” she said, still glaring at him. Cole swallowed and gave her a short nod. Taking a few steps toward her, he stopped just out of her reach.

“He told me to tell you he loves you and it was his fault he died.” Cole looked up as if he were trying to remember everything. “He said he knew the rips were up, and he said he was stupid to go in the water and he should’ve waited, but he was too arrogant. He lost respect for the waves and it cost him his life.” Kortney’s stare softened as she listened. This guy didn’t know DJ, but she knew DJ’s arrogance when it came to surfing.

“He never thought there was a wave he couldn’t ride,” Kortney said, gazing out into the ocean and rubbing her arms against the misty wind off the surf.

“It wasn’t the wave that got him—it was the rip,” Cole said, as if the details of DJ’s death were public, which they weren’t. “He also knew if I didn’t find you, that you would try to join him. He said he couldn’t deal with it if you killed yourself. He told me to stop you.” Taking a few more steps, Cole timidly stood next to her now.

Kortney knew contemplating suicide crossed her mind more than once since DJ’s death, but she’d pushed the thought down, until today. Today she had decided she would do it. Just walk into the water and take a big gulp and it would all be over. No more hurt, no more pain, no more feeling lonely.

“He thought I was going to kill myself?” Kortney tried to sound as if it were the furthest thing from her mind.

“He knew you were. He told me to stay on the beach today because he thought today would be the day, since his funeral’s tomorrow,” Cole stood by her without touching her. She could feel the warmth off his body when the breeze didn’t carry it away.

“I don’t believe you.” He sounds legit, but there’s just no way. She argued with herself because she wanted to believe him, but her fear stood between them. “Why did you do this for a stranger? You don’t know me and you didn’t know him…why?” Kortney didn’t mean to sound angry, but the thought of DJ, her fiancé coming to a stranger instead of her, made her a little jealous.

“Look, I didn’t ask for this. I asked him the same thing and he said you were too clouded and upset. You’d just think it was a dream instead of reality and you might still do it.” Kortney stood still looking at the ocean. The rhythm of the waves had always given her comfort. Now they seemed dangerous.

“I think I know why he chose me,” Cole said, not looking at her but out into the gray horizon. His voice had turned softer. Kortney turned around to face him to hear his theory. “Because, a year ago, I was you.” His eyes dropped to focus on her. “My fiancé died in a car wreck. She was hit by a drunk driver…and all I wanted to do was die.” Kortney’s chest tightened and for the first time since losing DJ, she thought of someone else’s pain.

Her eyes widened at his words. “I am so sorry.”

Cole nodded. “Thanks.”

They stood in silence for a minute, listening to the waves crashing against the sand. “That’s why he picked me, I think.” Cole’s voice rose over the sound of the waves rolling into the shore. “I’ve been down this road already.”

Kortney nodded. “I want to believe you, but how do I know you’re not just making all this up?” It all seemed too convenient for him to show up on the beach when she was readying herself to end her life.

“Your choice.” He shrugged. “Whether you believe it is entirely up to you. I did what he wanted. I told you everything he said.” Cole should’ve been offended at her suspicions, but he seemed unfazed by them. He turned away from her and walked over to his board yanking it out of the sand and heading back down the beach.

Kortney’s chest tightened with the thought of him leaving. “Cole, wait!” She called, craving his steadying presence. When he turned around, it was DJ’s face she saw. He waved and blew her a kiss.

“I love you, Kort.” DJ’s voice moved over her as soft as the breeze. “But if you choose me, you choose death. Stay with Cole and choose life. I promise I’ll watch over you, but you have to let me go, Kort—please.” Kortney couldn’t believe it. DJ’s face returned to Cole’s when she blinked again.

“Cole!” Kortney called again. Warmth shot through her as if she’d been hit with a wave of warm Gulf water. This time it was Cole’s face she saw. He smiled, one hand leaning against his board. Fear tore through her as she glanced down at her engagement ring with her hand in a fist.

“Baby steps,” she heard him say. She nodded, taking in a huge breath of ocean air. It felt like the first time she’d actually breathed since receiving the phone call that stopped her world from spinning.

She breathed in and out again. Tasting the salty air in her mouth and feeling it travel down her throat reminded her she was still alive. She worked her ring off her hand and examined how it sparkled even under the cloudy sky. Cole stood in the same spot watching and encouraging her with his smile, but he never made a move toward her. She bit her lip and kissed the diamond before throwing it as hard as she could into the waves. “I love you,” she whispered to the churning ocean. Regret seeped into her gut as she second-guessed her decision to throw away her engagement ring.

Cole smiled at her and nodded. “That was brave.”

“I feel like I’ve betrayed him already,” Kortney said, shaking her head. Tears were flowing down her cheeks again, burning her eyes and tightening her throat.

Cole shook his head at her. “No, you haven’t. I’m not sure you can feel it, but I can feel…” He stopped and began waving his hands upward in circles searching for words. “His light…um…like a lightness…like a peaceful feeling.” He smiled, nodding his head. “I think you made him happy just now.” His smile held a great deal of comfort for her. More than she realized until this moment. Maybe Cole’s right, she thought. All she could feel was pain and loss. There was no peace in her heart. The process would take a long time, but she felt like DJ sent Cole to help her move through it.

“Walk with me?” Cole asked. Kortney nodded and took a step toward Cole and then another. Baby steps.

“Choosing life will be a choice you have to make every day,” he said as they started down the beach. “But I did it and I know you can too.” As they continued down the beach and their sets of footprints were beside each other, a third set walked behind them.

**********

Suzanne Payne writes YA Paranormal/Fantasy when she's not teaching Elementary Music. She blogs at Suzanne Payne and tweets: @suzannefpayne. She's a lady with heart and soul and I've truly enjoyed her friendship.

Thanks, Suzanne, for sharing your story with us. <3

Hello Monday! {I know this is late, but it's still technically Monday, so there you go.}

I am sorry I don't have a funny for you today, but I have better news: My short story "The Stone House" is now up at Hogglepot.com! And it's going to stay up there for a whole ENTIRE week (July 24th-July 30th). SQUEE!!!

Hogglepot is a weekly fantasy journal that features short fiction with magical or fantastical elements. The best thing about Hogglepot is the fact that they will donate all proceeds from purchases of their quarterly issues to Reading is Fundamental, a literacy charity that supplies books to underprivileged children in the US. How awesome is that!

You can follow Hogglepot on Twitter: @thehogglepotpig
Like them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/HogglepotJournal

I'm always all for supporting anyone who is an advocate of literacy and providing books for children to foster their love of reading.

On a different note, Chapter 8 of the Skeleton Key blogvel is up at Jennifer Merritt's The Demeter Diaries. Check it out!

Photo by Michelle Simkins

Today I'm shaking things up. I don't normally blog on Sundays but I needed to post my entry for Michelle Simkins' Give Me Your Cute Evil Longing to Eat Brains contest. The prize: a rather scary but adorable zombunny named Ryan that she knitted herself.

The competition is VERY fierce, and I know a few participants who would be more than willing to bonk me and others in the head just to win the yarn zombunny. *coughJustincough* I wasn't going to participate, but alas, the brain had a lightbulb moment last Saturday, and I spent the afternoon sketching and concocting a short story to go with the drawings. So here ya go, and if you like it enough (and if I get to be a finalist), don't forget to vote for me. ;)

Warning: Something cute and evil is afoot. Proceed with caution.

********
She was the girl who used to laugh. Nose crinkling, eyes squinting, the laughter bubbling inside her throat. He loved the sound of her voice, even back then when they would play tag, running around long grass and rocky stones, their feet bare and filthy. He remembered her hair, black as midnight and cropped short like a boy, catching sunlight and sticky burrs in the field behind his house. He remembered because there is nothing left of the friend he once knew, but her shell. Alabaster skin, the curves of a sixteen-year-old, and the face of a stranger. Her hair had gone silver in places, as if it was a dye job gone awry.



He watched her from his bedroom window, his fingers gripping the folds of the curtain, afraid she would look up and see him. He'd known what to expect; it was clockwork this unusual habit of hers, wandering down the street until she'd reach the bench near the cemetery. There she would sit as if waiting for someone. Her back rigid against the chapel wall, her fingers would touch the scarf on her neck intermittently. Once or twice, he'd thought of coming down the stairs and out the door to...do what? Sit with her out in the evening cold? Talk as if years of silence had never separated them?

The moon came out of hiding, illuminating her face. He caught his breath.

A creature stirred from the shadows, its coat of snowy fur glistening in the moonlight. He squinted through the glass pane, trying to get a better look. The thing hopped into the girl's arms and nestled its head against her neck.

Ache and longing twisted in his gut. He wanted to reach her, touch her. He craved the smell of her skin, the scent of childhood and innocent love. To bring back what they had before.

The stairway seemed endless, and the halls were quiet except for the gentle snores of his father who had fallen asleep in the living room couch. The door did not creak as he pulled it open. He crossed the street in hurried strides.

The creature started at his approach. It jumped down from her lap and onto the muddy ground, peering at him with large, soft eyes. A bunny. He stifled a laugh at his silliness, at his envy.


"You must leave us," she whispered, her voice brittle with fear. Her eyes widened, and now that he was near her, he could see how red and puffy they were, as if she'd spent hours crying. "Go now."

"Selene, I...I'm sorry. I just wanted to see you."

The bunny wiggled its nose and hopped an inch closer toward his feet. He smiled and crouched down, reaching out a hand to pet the animal. "Hey, little guy. You're cute. Whatcha up to? Are you hungry?"

"No! Stay away from him," she yelled, though she didn't move from the bench.

"I won't hurt him. Look, I'm harmless. Really. Do you remember when we used to feed the goats at the petting zoo? We used to have so much fun together."

She pressed her palm to the side of her neck, as if making sure her woolen scarf was staying put. "The past is gone, Ryan. You don't understand. You must leave now."

He stood up, hurt coursing through his veins. "Okay, I get the message." She turned her head away and sighed. A drop of blood slithered down her shoulder.

"What--" he began to say, but the bunny hopped around his legs, begging for attention. "Not now, little guy." He gave it a gentle kick.

"You shouldn't have done that. You shouldn't have--" Selene stopped, her trembling hand covering her mouth. Behind her, a shadow grew and loomed, stretching, taking shape.



"The hell," he said, his legs frozen in place.

"I was keeping you safe, Ryan. You and everyone else." Tears trailed down her pale cheeks. "You should have listened to me. When I first saw it, I thought it was adorable and I couldn't stay away. I had to come see it, night after night, to gaze upon its beauty.  But it's a monster, a demon, and I was letting it feed off me so it wouldn't hurt anyone...especially the people I love."

Her last words barely registered in his mind, though he did remember the word love. As cruel, sharp nails slashed his skin, he lay on the ground with eyes turned to the girl. Her face glowed in the night. Such beauty and sadness and pain.


"Selene," he whispered, as the monster clamped its jaws over the wound on his neck and began to suck. "Help me."

The girl bit her lips until blood oozed from the tear her teeth made. She pulled a short, silver dagger from her pocket. "I was going to end it tonight...but I couldn't...couldn't hurt it."

"Selene..." Drop by drop, he was wasting away. "You can...do it."

Her eyes widened--dark beautiful eyes--and with a swipe of the dagger, warm sticky blood spurted out, the fountain of life. He exhaled, feeling the monster loosen its bite on him. He gasped. "You did it."

There was no answer. He turned his head an inch, slowly, slowly, toward the sight of the limp body lying prone on the bench, an ugly red gash smiling over where the throat should have been. The monster, lured by this fresh offering, left him. When it had its fill, it shrank back and resumed its former appearance.

His fingers clawed the dirt until he found the dagger. The bunny sniffed the air, and with timid steps approached him. It stood on its hind legs and regarded him through round, soft eyes. He raised the dagger and dropped it.

"Come here, little guy. It's okay. I'll take care of you."

**********