March 3, 2011
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Default Decision (a short fairy tale)
She surprised him one day on a walk, saying the way she did, "Ahm my own woman, I aint 'fraida no ghosts."
As they strolled he thought about what she'd said and decided he believed her. In the dappled sun he felt certain that if they held fast and fought together, they would defeat the unseen foe; that the very exposure of the wild thing would return it to the dust from whence it came. And then they could sneeze and laugh and walk home together.
But the sun disappeared behind a cloud, that day. And a strange stirring beset around them just as the breeze vanished. He held her then, and sang a song to calm her, but he felt her heart flutter and knew.
In one hand she'd held their love; in the other, the world. Weighty, and when she placed them at opposite ends, the scale itself had broken.
She kissed him desperately one last time, then ran into the wood where she was eaten by the monster.
The wind returned but not the sun and he walked home alone, not laughing.
The End
Comments (64)
Boo.
@k8tthelate - you like that, huh? YEAH I KNOW ALREADY.
Running into the woods and being eaten by monsters... story of my life, right there.
@CleteusMaximus - stupid monsters, bein' all monstery and stuff...
Is it safe?
@godfatherofgreenbay - apparently not for everyone.
Thanks! And I second the boo. I wanted a happy ending.
scary scary scary monster. don't let no monster get *you, cause you're strong like that, with love and against the world. can't no monster get you, bear. <333 ... yes you know i loved this.
the bear in your pic looks so sad. i don't know why he is, cause it's coming on spring and stuff. i'm such a sucker for sad-eyed bears and stories with a heartbreak at the end.
yep, the world sometimes can be a monster... but not always. thankfully.
@be_the_rain - ,#
@Peridot21 - having the courage to face it down helps.
@complicatedlight - it does indeed.
wait. is the 'default decision' the fact he decided he believed her? i just read this again, after a short winter's nap. i could still be asleep. i have something to tell you and it is very and a message is headed your way soon.
I laughed outright. Excellent. The best, actually. A+
@dirtbubble - i'm glad someone other than myself caught the humor there, black though it was. thank you.
"goldfish in the sea"
are you channeling Hendrix? (in a physics sort of way of course)
Bad Monster!
Thank you
This reads like a Kiyoshi Shigematzu short story, (translation by Jay Rubin).
sorry can't catch the humor. especially I don't like anything defaulted.
@be_the_rain - no message yet. but apparently it's very so i'm kinda surprised
@storyslut - yeah. well. maybe she shouldn't have chickened out.
@complicatedlight - i was just about. anyway, here i. btw, i read the default decision to r last night and he was laughing so he caught humor. it's contagious, you know, so i was laughing too.
LOL "yeah, well, she shouldn't have chickened out"
anyway.
p
s
:
love the profile pic. it still says 'texas' to me, not oklahoma.
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@be_the_rain - hi lea.
@complicatedlight - hi phil : )
you seen aaron lately? he's just...gone. like an unwonted disappearance of comments.
Short, straight to the point and well written. Held my interest all of the way through.
TY for stopping by my site and commenting on my two cats post.
hehe... i'm not sure what is better the comments or the fairy tale... didnt' think you were going to be a spoon with this didja?
thank you.
lol your story.
well, nothing like a quick ending for her! I was gonna ask, "So, she is a southern belle?" but I guess it doesn't matter anymore.
anyway, this is great!
@Diva_Jyoti_3 - thanks, deej!
I actually liked this story believe it or not......the setup and the ending.
Maybe I'm truly messed up?
He should hook up with the monster based on the philosophy of "you are what you eat".
On the other hand, there's no indication that she was digested/killed by the monster. She might just be like Job resident in his belly. Time for this would-be hero to get a belly-cutting blade, a monster GPS, and go a'slicing.
@notforprophet - not a bad plan, in this particular case, however, it's best for her to figure out how to get out of this one on her own.
So, at first read, "eaten" seems to suggest devoured. But what if the monster just sexually ate her and she fell addicted to the enthrallment of being 'eaten' by him? Is she now the monster's sex slave? The art of fully feigning indulgence of the master monster while sexually poisoning his libido in order to break the woodland bond. That must become her quest!
@notforprophet - i think we're watching the same porn. i mean reading the same book.
Who does that??? Silly woman. Great story
@Writing_the_Tides - i know, right? and thank you.
But, did he find any coins on the way home?
@bloodbreath - no. in fact, he stepped in dog poo. sad story, really.
O dear. Interesting read. short and sweet. cheers
"ain't 'fraid of no ghosts"; just 'fraid of becoming one. Worse, afraid of Her becoming one.
Well said.
@albondogas - one can always hope this place will be haunted someday.
Thanks!
Well the monsters can be beaten. Why didn't she have a lazer gun or something?
@StrawberrySunrises - it's quite possible that she was working for the monster all along.
"In one hand she'd held their love; in the other, the world. Weighty, and when she placed them at opposite ends, the scale itself had broken."
You know how sensitive them wimmin' be when it come to scales an' such.
@insomniologist - THERE you are. i was wondering if i'd ever see you again. you ok? big wave, huh? message me.
Happy birthday to my fav one-armed, bicycling, studly genius guy
We were on the edge of starvation. Then she found our woods. She was a gift of the world and love.
screw lefty
@throughthinking - if there's anything left...even if it's just bits and bones, could you send it to me? i miss her.
Liked!
nice...
I guess you have to know which fears to face and which to respect with distance. Poor chump. She faced when she should have respected. Very cool read.
ahahahahahahaha...sometimes it's better to be eaten by the monster. HA!
@ordinarybutloud - :
I liked this! I thought it was a sad ending though.
@boricua_chic_2008 - i agree. maybe she should have stuck by him.
@complicatedlight - Yeah, I think so too. Hugs!
well written.