I'll take the other thing.

[in_the_blue]

I miss the days when I used to host writing challenges right here in this very journal.

So. Now that the seventh Harry Potter book has been written... I think it's time for a different kind of writing challenge. I used to host the short-short ficlets, 300 words or less, open fandom.

Today, I'm going OC. And that doesn't stand for Orange County: it stands for original character.

Ready? 3, 2, 1, let's... get inspired to write original fiction, folks. The theme for the challenge is change: take 500 words to introduce an original character and demonstrate some measure of change for him, for her, for it.

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Rules:

• Fandom: original only


• Word count: 500 or less


• Main theme: change


• Ratings: No restrictions.


• Duration: Challenge opens now (August 30) and closes at 11:59 p.m. in whatever time zone you inhabit on Wednesday, September 5.

Post your ficlets as comments to this entry. Feel free to do as few or as many as you want, and if you see one you really like, be sure to leave a review or a comment. Remember, original fic only. I'll crack my knuckles and get going as soon as I get a few hours' sleep.

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NOTE: All ficlets in comments here are the property of their respective writers. Consider them copywritten with all rights reserved. If you want to quote, copy, or redistribute, please get the author's permission first. Otherwise, I'll have to lock this down. Thanks.

Comments

[arasnaem.livejournal.com]

Jeremiah didn't know what he had expected, but this certainly wasn't it. I guess evil intentions don't necessarily translate to villain's lair after all, he thought wryly as the henchmen shoved him roughly forward. The room, far from looking overtly sinister, in fact looked more like a country kitchen (though there was no stove in sight). It was warm and inviting, but Jeremiah dreaded the confrontation that was to come.



She appeared before him, and suddenly, inexplicably, he was reminded of June Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver. Surely this couldn't be a woman intent on taking over the world. But she is, he reminded himself, looking up for strength. You have to stay firm, stick to the plan.



A laugh filled his ears, and his eyes were drawn back to her. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a braid, and her deep blue eyes seemed like bottomless pools. She laughed again. "I can tell what you're thinking, Jeremiah, and it won't work."



He panicked. "You…can read minds?" he asked warily, trying to think of anything but the plan.



A third laugh. "No, you silly boy, but I can read people. You have come here today," she said slowly, looking into his eyes as she spoke, "to try to…shall we say, persuade me to give up."



He shook his head. "No, you're wrong. I don't just want to persuade you. I want to change your mind. To help you see that what you're doing is all wrong, and it's just going to hurt people!"



The fourth laugh washed over him, and he felt fear course through him like a bolt of lighting.



***



"Change?" she asked, her calm smooth voice belying the fire that flashed in her eyes. "My dear, dear girl, that simply is not possible."



"But why not?" Abby asked defiantly. "You've seen, you know! Nothing is truly impossible."



The woman strode around her desk and grabbed Abby before her movement even registered. If she had thought the woman's eyes were fiery before, Abby had been wrong. Now they were an inferno.



"You don't know the meaning of the words possible and impossible," she said, hissing practically spitting out the last word. She took Abby's face in her hand, her long, red fingernails feeling sharp against Abby's cheek. "You are nothing but an impertinent child. If you knew what I have been through, if you had faced the same situation, you would understand why I am doing what I do." She dragged her index finger down Abby's cheek before pushing the girl's face aside. "But of course, you are one of them, so you're here trying to change me." Abby was nursing her cheek, but the sneer was evident in her voice. "Don't talk to me of change, for I have already changed more than you could ever know."



Abby dared to look up, and was stricken by what she saw. Underneath the enraged, calculating exterior, Abby could have sworn there was a glimmer of a wounded child, but then it was gone. Perhaps she had just imagined it, and perhaps she hadn't. Either way, the woman was right. Asking her to change her mind had been a futile attempt, the hope of a child. Asking wouldn't change anything. It was up to her, to her and to Jeremiah, to find a way out of this situation.

[in-the-blue.livejournal.com]

Wow. Talk about intriguing. This is like looking in through a hole in the fence and only getting to see the little overt bits and pieces. It makes me wonder what's going on here, who's who, what's what. And I have to say that the long red fingernail imagery is so classically bad-girl that it works really well in a short piece. Now I'd like to see more, get the scenario spelled out or illustrated, and try to sort out the various relationships these three people have.

(Also, I miss writing with you.)

[arasnaem.livejournal.com]

Well, if I ever write the companion story to this, this won't take place until toward the end, but when I read your prompt, it just appeared in my head.

I debated the red fingernails for a while, but came to the same conclusion--so classically bad-girl, that how can you go wrong (in ~500 words)?

Thanks for the nice comments, I appreciate it!

(I miss writing with you too...but i still haven't found anyone I feel confident playing...)

[proudofthefish.livejournal.com]

Dude I am totally channeling some save the world thing here and it makes me smile. I love when you write big sis

[arasnaem.livejournal.com]

Haha, yes, well, Abby and Jeremiah are two do-gooders, lol!

Thanks, little sis!

[kit-the-brave.livejournal.com]

Woah, this is intense! I defintely know that a lot is at stake, and the villian's argument really ratchets up the suspense. I want to know what's going on!

[arasnaem.livejournal.com]

Hee! Glad you could feel the tension, and that you enjoyed the (as yet unnamed) woman's response back. I had lots of fun writing this little snippet, and hopefully will have just as much fun writing the beginning part of it!

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

Strap me down and inject some more please.

It is sexy and has my head spinning waiting for the next scene GOOD STUFF!

Keep it comin!

[arasnaem.livejournal.com]

Strap me down and inject some more please.
Lol! Glad you liked it.

Unfortunately, the next scene is to go back and write the beginning scenes. This is from the middle/late part of a story idea I have...now I just have to find the time to work on the beginning!

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

Work it where ya feel it I say! I'll read it from anywhere. Good stuff!

[erised1810.livejournal.com]

Wow. Is this part of something longer? Or will this be? It's a bit confusing, it reads a bit like a fragment to me.

[arasnaem.livejournal.com]

It's a lot longer in my head, yes. It was purposefully written to be a little confusing. Even with all the backstory in place (which it's not), I wanted to leave a little deliberately vague.

Thanks for reading!