Week 475 of #ThursThreads had many fantastic tales. What an amazing feat we’ve pulled off. Nine years! If you’ve been doing it a while, thank you for coming back each week. If you’ve just found us, welcome! You’re in good company. May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to Mary Decker for judging this week. Check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc.
Entries:
- Miya Kressin | @miya_kressin
- Louisa Bacio | @Lousiabacio
- Silver James | @SilverJames_
- Mark A. Morris
- Joe Hesch | @JAHesch
- Siobhan Muir | @SiobhanMuir
- Bill Engleson | @billmelaterplea
- Sheilagh Lee | @SweetSheil
- David A. Ludwig | @DavidALudwig
- Kelly Heinen | @Aightball
Mary says: Thank you all for a memorable evening of stories well told, and the honor of judging them! Special thanks to Siobhan for giving us a place to hang out on Thursday nights and share our stories with each other!
Honorable Mentions
Mark A. Morris
Mary says: I love your take on the point of transition between stages and how they seem suspended in time – the story is bitter-sweet and very well done.
Joe Hesch | @JAHesch
Mary says: This story was short and sweet and – yes there is no telling where our minds may go— and what stays with us. When one sense fails, another takes it’s place- and that sense draws the reader in.
winner announcement
Week 475 Winner
Mary says: You captured my attention with the first line. There is a sense of completion with the promise of so much more within your story and so much depth that draws the reader in, and gives them an answer to the unasked question. Well done!
The voice of the Norns sat before him, the tools of her trade set between them on the oak plank. “You have a question?”
He closed his eyes, the only way he could swallow down his fear. The moment he could breathe, he whispered the words he had practiced for weeks—ever since he’d received the news they were going to war. “Will I survive the upcoming battles?”
She smiled at him, old eyes crinkling at the corners as she tugged on the white and grey braid flopped over her shoulder. “Is that what you’re really asking, warrior? What is the question in your heart?”
Feeling the blood drain from his face, he glanced over his shoulder at the doorway where an apprentice kept others organized in the line with their “gifts” for the priestess.
“How do you know?” he asked her, laughing softly as she touched the drop spindle and carved bones before her. “If I survive, will she be waiting?”
Faster than he thought a person of the elder’s age could move, she snatched a strand of his strawberry blond hair and worked it into the fiber she drafted on the drop spindle. The whorl spun almost invisibly fast as her fingers slid up and down the wool. She broke off a length of yarn and held it over the fire, burning the thread to ash before touching the piles it left upon the wood.
“If you wed before you leave, she will wait until there’s no hope.”
~~~~~~~
Congratulations Three Time Winner Miya, and Honorable Mentions Mark and Joe! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it!
Pass on the great news on Twitter, Facebook, MeWe, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂
