I wrote this a few years ago and rediscovered it the other day; feel free to sit back for a few minutes and read it, and add any comments or criticisms afterwards. It's about 3 pages long in Word, so I hope I'm not breaking some unwritten rule by posting it in its entirety, although, considering how rarely I activate this account, I suppose I can live with whatever infraction it might incur-- there's probably a more efficient way to do this, but I am computer illiterate.
A few necessary details: The story is set in my home province of Newfoundland, so there's a good chance you won't get any geographical references. Also, it is a little on the vulgar side, although certainly not "adult" in the traditional sense. If you can handle that, then enjoy.
“Burn and turn, man, burn and turn.”
Seven of spades, nine of diamonds, six of diamonds. Glen felt a surge of excitement and casually looked at his cards again. Jack and two?! What the fuck happened to the five and eight? He looked again, but the cards didn’t change. He put them back on the table, confused, but realized that the eight and five had been his cards last round.
>“Fuck” he muttered to himself and took another long swig of beer.
“I guess you’re folding again?” Steve asked gloatingly from behind his little mountain of chips.
“Yes, I’m fuckin folding, and sitting the next round out. I gotta take a shit.” Glen stood up from the table and headed for his sneakers. Lizzy’s ears perked up and in a second, she had leapt from the couch and was excitingly running towards the door.
“Well let’s just take a break after this round anyway” Mike suggested. “I’m gonna roll another joint. Check up on Ron while you’re out there, hey? I haven’t heard him puke in a while now.”
Glen gave a thumbs up as he wandered into one of the bedrooms. Steve could hear him rummaging through his duffle bag. “There’s already toilet paper up there, man.”
“Yeah, I know, I’m looking for my belt.”
Steve shot Mike a loud grin and rolled his eyes. “Man, you ARE fuckin drunk if you think you’re gonna need that.”
“Better safe than sorry” Glen began to say as he fell out of the room onto the floor, wearing his belt. Lizzy yipped and ran over to him, biting down on his shirt sleeve and pulling as hard as she could. She growled playfully as Mike and Steve began to roar. Glen chuckled and picked himself up off the floor, holding Lizzy in his arm. “C’mon, you little shit, we’re goin outside.”
“Hurry back, man. We’re not gonna wait forever.”
He put Lizzy down as he stepped out of the cabin and into the cold April air. She ran across the deck to Ron, sniffed him for a few seconds, and then ran down the steps onto the lawn. Ron’s body was laid out flat along the rotting boards, his mouth angled just over the edge, just in case. His hand was weakly gripping a tall glass of water.
“Guess you won’t be up for another joint, eh?” Ron groaned, but didn’t make any effort to shape it into words.“Alright man, see you in a bit.”
Glen hopped off the deck and onto the wet ground two feet below it. He
glanced around for Lizzy. She had run down to the pond again, but shot
across the lawn when she noticed him walking up the driveway. It was a
dark night, all overcast, and he began to question his ability to find the outhouse without a flashlight. Too late now. Lizzy had already passed him and ran up into the driveway of the neighboring cabin.
The outhouse didn’t belong to Mike’s family, or the next cabin over, but the one after that. They were never there, though, and never locked it up, so it had never been much of an issue. The trees began to encroach on him as the driveway tightened up into a path. Soon he couldn’t see a damn thing. He heard the little creek on either side of him and attempted to jump across the wet patch. He lost his balance again and landed ass first in the mud. “FUCK!”
Lizzy ran back grinning and yapping. “Yeah yeah, you think it’s fuckin hilarious.” He crawled onto his feet and felt his wet pants, laughed it off, and continued on his way. It was smooth sailing thereafter, and he soon saw the clearing where the next cabin over stood. It was white with a green deck and roof, and the windows were boarded over with ping pong table tops. He watched Lizzy dashing around the lawn for a second before stepping into the outhouse and conducting his business.
After about two minutes, he noticed that he couldn’t hear her yapping anymore. Lizzy was pretty loud when she was out and about, especially up here. Unless she had found something. He quickly wrapped up in the outhouse and then quietly stepped outside.
He caught the scent of what might have been gasoline as he glanced around for Lizzy. No sign of her. He resisted calling out to her and just stood in silence for a minute. Sure enough, Lizzy poked her head out from around the back of the white cabin, starring at him expectantly. Slowly, he began to march towards her.
She led him back behind the building and up a path into the woods. He was still drunk, and moved very slowly, watching as carefully as he could where he placed each foot. They marched together for about fifteen feet into the brush before Lizzy stopped short. Still holding one little orange paw in the air, she glanced quickly toward the southeast. Soon, he was trailing her back to the little white cabin and around the other side of it. As she rounded the corner, he could hear her begin to growl. He followed her eyes
to the centre of the lawn. His breath caught in his throat.
Its white fur made the cabin next to them appear a dark gray. Even in this black night, its fur seemed to glow. It was a good size, over three and a half feet tall, easy. It made no motion to run. Instead, it stared directly at him with its piercing, yellow eyes. The black fur of its face seemed to fade into the background, and he could see only those yellow eyes, surrounded by a sea of white. Absol.
He had never heard of one this far east. They were indigenous to the Rock, but it was suspected to be a small community, living entirely in the mountains of Grose Morne. He remembered hearing stories about them from his pop, how they used to appear when a storm approached. He’d never seen one in real life before. What a fucking find!
He groped for a ball on his belt; he had splurged on a couple of Ultras for the approaching summer. He nearly swore out loud when he gripped nothing but air. Both of them were missing. Must’ve fallen off when I slipped, he thought to himself. He felt for the rest of them, and was relieved to discover two Greats and a Norm. Gonna have to weakin it for sure now.
“Lizzy” he said, almost whispering. “Will-o-wisp.” Lizzy’s seven tails fanned out as the cool, quiet air began to crackle. Smoke emerged from her still tightly closed mouth as her dark, marbly eyes
lit up with an eerie, blue light. The absol paid no attention to her, still starring directly into Glen’s eyes as she finally opened her mouth and fired off the small, hazy flame. It danced through the air between them, zipping left and right like a spin top winding down. The absol stood motionless as it drifted just too far to the left and faded into the background. Suddenly, that magnificent white fur began to blow in an absent wind. Leaves and pebbles lifted up off the ground, spinning furiously. Glen could hear the cyclone raging just a few feet ahead of him.
“Lizzy, Confuse Ray!”
The fading blue in the little vulpix’s eyes shifted hues and lit up once again as a glaring yellow. Little speckles of epileptic light emerged from the ether before her and spun dizzily toward the dark type like comets.
For the first time, the absol was forced to interrupt its gaze, blinking as the little beacons danced around its head. For a moment, it appeared to loose its balance, but it opened its eyes with a renewed, burning fury.
Glen noticed his reflection on the smooth, blade like surface of its single horn. He knew the razor wind wasn’t going to miss. Desperate, he threw his single great ball towards the creature. He was too drunk to grasp everything that happened next.
There was a flash of light when the ball connected. Before he knew it, he was being carried backward through the air. Lizzy yelped. The wind howled about him. And above it all, he could hear a sickening crack. Then, everything went black.
He came to coughing, smoke burning his nostrils. He began to sit up, felt nauseated, and lied back down. Lizzy was tugging on his sleeve. The smoke was thick. He made a second attempt and managed to get on his feet without hurling. It was hot.
He looked behind him at the raging fire. “Holy shit!” A short path through the trees was all that separated this lot from the one currently ablaze, the fourth over from Mike’s cabin. He cut across to get a better look, shielding his face from the heat as best he could.
The whole cabin was in flames. He could see a few gas cans melting a few feet away from the blaze. Jesus, was this arson?
“HELLLO?” He was thankful not to get a reply. Lizzy was yapping in panic, and he decided to head back and tell the others. He dashed back to the neighboring cabin, and then remembered the absol. Quickly, he shot his eyes across the lawn, searching for the great ball. He soon spotted the blue half, a split shot right through the centre of it. He looked around.
No sign of the absol.
Disappointed, he started back along the path. A shiver ran down his spine as his drunken mind began to recall that absol was supposedly a harbinger. He stopped and turned back towards the fire again. Standing where it had stood before, the absol returned his gaze. They watched each other for another moment, until the smoke forced Glen to blink. He never saw it again.
A few necessary details: The story is set in my home province of Newfoundland, so there's a good chance you won't get any geographical references. Also, it is a little on the vulgar side, although certainly not "adult" in the traditional sense. If you can handle that, then enjoy.
“Burn and turn, man, burn and turn.”
Seven of spades, nine of diamonds, six of diamonds. Glen felt a surge of excitement and casually looked at his cards again. Jack and two?! What the fuck happened to the five and eight? He looked again, but the cards didn’t change. He put them back on the table, confused, but realized that the eight and five had been his cards last round.
>“Fuck” he muttered to himself and took another long swig of beer.
“I guess you’re folding again?” Steve asked gloatingly from behind his little mountain of chips.
“Yes, I’m fuckin folding, and sitting the next round out. I gotta take a shit.” Glen stood up from the table and headed for his sneakers. Lizzy’s ears perked up and in a second, she had leapt from the couch and was excitingly running towards the door.
“Well let’s just take a break after this round anyway” Mike suggested. “I’m gonna roll another joint. Check up on Ron while you’re out there, hey? I haven’t heard him puke in a while now.”
Glen gave a thumbs up as he wandered into one of the bedrooms. Steve could hear him rummaging through his duffle bag. “There’s already toilet paper up there, man.”
“Yeah, I know, I’m looking for my belt.”
Steve shot Mike a loud grin and rolled his eyes. “Man, you ARE fuckin drunk if you think you’re gonna need that.”
“Better safe than sorry” Glen began to say as he fell out of the room onto the floor, wearing his belt. Lizzy yipped and ran over to him, biting down on his shirt sleeve and pulling as hard as she could. She growled playfully as Mike and Steve began to roar. Glen chuckled and picked himself up off the floor, holding Lizzy in his arm. “C’mon, you little shit, we’re goin outside.”
“Hurry back, man. We’re not gonna wait forever.”
He put Lizzy down as he stepped out of the cabin and into the cold April air. She ran across the deck to Ron, sniffed him for a few seconds, and then ran down the steps onto the lawn. Ron’s body was laid out flat along the rotting boards, his mouth angled just over the edge, just in case. His hand was weakly gripping a tall glass of water.
“Guess you won’t be up for another joint, eh?” Ron groaned, but didn’t make any effort to shape it into words.“Alright man, see you in a bit.”
Glen hopped off the deck and onto the wet ground two feet below it. He
glanced around for Lizzy. She had run down to the pond again, but shot
across the lawn when she noticed him walking up the driveway. It was a
dark night, all overcast, and he began to question his ability to find the outhouse without a flashlight. Too late now. Lizzy had already passed him and ran up into the driveway of the neighboring cabin.
The outhouse didn’t belong to Mike’s family, or the next cabin over, but the one after that. They were never there, though, and never locked it up, so it had never been much of an issue. The trees began to encroach on him as the driveway tightened up into a path. Soon he couldn’t see a damn thing. He heard the little creek on either side of him and attempted to jump across the wet patch. He lost his balance again and landed ass first in the mud. “FUCK!”
Lizzy ran back grinning and yapping. “Yeah yeah, you think it’s fuckin hilarious.” He crawled onto his feet and felt his wet pants, laughed it off, and continued on his way. It was smooth sailing thereafter, and he soon saw the clearing where the next cabin over stood. It was white with a green deck and roof, and the windows were boarded over with ping pong table tops. He watched Lizzy dashing around the lawn for a second before stepping into the outhouse and conducting his business.
After about two minutes, he noticed that he couldn’t hear her yapping anymore. Lizzy was pretty loud when she was out and about, especially up here. Unless she had found something. He quickly wrapped up in the outhouse and then quietly stepped outside.
He caught the scent of what might have been gasoline as he glanced around for Lizzy. No sign of her. He resisted calling out to her and just stood in silence for a minute. Sure enough, Lizzy poked her head out from around the back of the white cabin, starring at him expectantly. Slowly, he began to march towards her.
She led him back behind the building and up a path into the woods. He was still drunk, and moved very slowly, watching as carefully as he could where he placed each foot. They marched together for about fifteen feet into the brush before Lizzy stopped short. Still holding one little orange paw in the air, she glanced quickly toward the southeast. Soon, he was trailing her back to the little white cabin and around the other side of it. As she rounded the corner, he could hear her begin to growl. He followed her eyes
to the centre of the lawn. His breath caught in his throat.
Its white fur made the cabin next to them appear a dark gray. Even in this black night, its fur seemed to glow. It was a good size, over three and a half feet tall, easy. It made no motion to run. Instead, it stared directly at him with its piercing, yellow eyes. The black fur of its face seemed to fade into the background, and he could see only those yellow eyes, surrounded by a sea of white. Absol.
He had never heard of one this far east. They were indigenous to the Rock, but it was suspected to be a small community, living entirely in the mountains of Grose Morne. He remembered hearing stories about them from his pop, how they used to appear when a storm approached. He’d never seen one in real life before. What a fucking find!
He groped for a ball on his belt; he had splurged on a couple of Ultras for the approaching summer. He nearly swore out loud when he gripped nothing but air. Both of them were missing. Must’ve fallen off when I slipped, he thought to himself. He felt for the rest of them, and was relieved to discover two Greats and a Norm. Gonna have to weakin it for sure now.
“Lizzy” he said, almost whispering. “Will-o-wisp.” Lizzy’s seven tails fanned out as the cool, quiet air began to crackle. Smoke emerged from her still tightly closed mouth as her dark, marbly eyes
lit up with an eerie, blue light. The absol paid no attention to her, still starring directly into Glen’s eyes as she finally opened her mouth and fired off the small, hazy flame. It danced through the air between them, zipping left and right like a spin top winding down. The absol stood motionless as it drifted just too far to the left and faded into the background. Suddenly, that magnificent white fur began to blow in an absent wind. Leaves and pebbles lifted up off the ground, spinning furiously. Glen could hear the cyclone raging just a few feet ahead of him.
“Lizzy, Confuse Ray!”
The fading blue in the little vulpix’s eyes shifted hues and lit up once again as a glaring yellow. Little speckles of epileptic light emerged from the ether before her and spun dizzily toward the dark type like comets.
For the first time, the absol was forced to interrupt its gaze, blinking as the little beacons danced around its head. For a moment, it appeared to loose its balance, but it opened its eyes with a renewed, burning fury.
Glen noticed his reflection on the smooth, blade like surface of its single horn. He knew the razor wind wasn’t going to miss. Desperate, he threw his single great ball towards the creature. He was too drunk to grasp everything that happened next.
There was a flash of light when the ball connected. Before he knew it, he was being carried backward through the air. Lizzy yelped. The wind howled about him. And above it all, he could hear a sickening crack. Then, everything went black.
He came to coughing, smoke burning his nostrils. He began to sit up, felt nauseated, and lied back down. Lizzy was tugging on his sleeve. The smoke was thick. He made a second attempt and managed to get on his feet without hurling. It was hot.
He looked behind him at the raging fire. “Holy shit!” A short path through the trees was all that separated this lot from the one currently ablaze, the fourth over from Mike’s cabin. He cut across to get a better look, shielding his face from the heat as best he could.
The whole cabin was in flames. He could see a few gas cans melting a few feet away from the blaze. Jesus, was this arson?
“HELLLO?” He was thankful not to get a reply. Lizzy was yapping in panic, and he decided to head back and tell the others. He dashed back to the neighboring cabin, and then remembered the absol. Quickly, he shot his eyes across the lawn, searching for the great ball. He soon spotted the blue half, a split shot right through the centre of it. He looked around.
No sign of the absol.
Disappointed, he started back along the path. A shiver ran down his spine as his drunken mind began to recall that absol was supposedly a harbinger. He stopped and turned back towards the fire again. Standing where it had stood before, the absol returned his gaze. They watched each other for another moment, until the smoke forced Glen to blink. He never saw it again.
