She forced her eyes to it, watching the flame flutter. She pushed everything else away, her tiredness, the hard chair, the chilly room, everything but the flame. She felt the shift and began to speak. “He will awaken. He is awakening.” In the vision Soshay saw a man with a spear. #VSSFantasy

Before Julia had left, there had been a lot of debate in the coven about the ebbing of magic. They all felt it – every turn of the wheel saw fewer witches being born and their otherworldly allies dwindled, becoming slower to answering their calls. Some had disappeared entirely. #WIPSnips

“Join me here, upon my cold hillside,” I said, my words not strong, but full of elf-struck madness. I had no idea if adding a second fey conquest could cure me of the first. But if it could not, at least I may die satiated. “Join me and spend a night in my arms.” #VSS365

“Go, but do not run,” he growled, “They will get the wrong idea if you run.” Tanaquil stumbled when he released her. But she held her head up and took slow, measured steps. The fire warmed her skin, but it was the burning heat from the animal eyes of the priests that made her skin flush. #WIPSnips

These were so finely crafted that the stone was a transparent smokey blue. The narrow vessels resembled ancient terran amphora, yet the spouts on these were finely carved into swooping curves and loops, designed to allow the user to see the tea travel through the vessel. #VSS365

The lightning flashed overhead again, and the smell of ozone filled the air. She stepped into a puddle, the icy water seeping into her jeans. Her feet were cold, and the sopping fabric of her jeans banging into her ankles. But Vanessa never stopped watching the sky crashing down. #HorrorPrompt

She wondered if the package had been delivered by mistake. The stuffed bear was about 4 feet tall and seemed like the kind of gift a child would love, but the address label had her name on it. When she pulled the bear from the box, she knew that it wasn’t a toy for a child. #WIPSnips

Sliding her hands in her pockets, she felt a scrap of paper, the letter he’d left in the jacket. She thought about him, and remembered the summer night she'd danced in the rain and had been promised immortality but had walked away. #VSS365

She stepped cautiously into the clearing, looking for any marks of magic, hexes, or paranormal activity. There was nothing obvious, and she couldn’t see any evidence that anyone had been in the field. More evidence that Volos wasn’t pranking anyone about his family’s history with the land. #InkMine

She picked up her suitcase. Before she opened the front door, she hung the aubergine silk robe from the door knob with a note that read: this is the last skin of mine you will keep. Sigli stepped out the front door, and even miles from the shore, she could once again smell the sea. #WildWalkPrompt

Instead, as the sun filled the small glade, Julia felt the air shift. The morning fog had burned off, but the change was more than that. It was the tingling heaviness she always felt when she reached for her gods. Blinking open her eyes, she saw the golden new sunlight. #VSSFantasy

She turned on one of the lanterns, knowing that the long hours of darkness and the prohibition on fire would consume the batteries - and that was assuming the lanterns would work. High Strange phenomena had a way of disrupting electrical devices of all kinds and in unexpected ways. #WIPSnips

She knelt in the ocean feeling the chill bite her flesh. The sand chewed at her knees as she splashed handfuls of water of her body. Her dress soaked, cold and clinging to her skin. Here she could smell the sting of the sea, while the salt burned her eyes and the water numbed her fingers. #VSS365

O’Shaughnessy stepped into the Martian storm, just as Viv had predicted. The red sand swirled around her ankles, and she sealed her coat raising the rebreather. The philandering husband photos would pay the rent, leaving her free to visit the Dream Reader for a real case. #SundaySnips #SFF

Amanda glanced at Noah seated across from them. “Aren’t you afraid of being recognized?” Dinah shook her head producing two leather masks. Dinah’s looked like a cat, while Amanda's was covered in aquatic motifs. “Noah has taken to calling you his mermaid,” she said with a giggle. #BraveWrite

The first flash of lightning told her she wasn't going to reach the Dream Readers or the Smoke Shop. In the flash of light, she could see the dome inching open, the artificial atmosphere giving way to the black void of stars. The scent of ozone filled her rebreather. #Vss365 #SFF

Stone block facades in varying shades of beige, with Spanish tile accents, and all the restaurants and cafes had awnings for outdoor seating. Unlike the mismatched trees that lined the streets of the old downtown, the trees here were all carefully trimmed to keep them looking identical #VssDaily

“Please tell me there's another Oevrumine family?” The Oevrumine family had ruled the Lambda Tauris empire for centuries. “You’re the heir apparent of the fucking empire?!” She pushed her hair back, “Fuck me,” she blew out a breath, “I am screwed.” #WipSnips

The feeling lingered, and the silence of the field felt oppressive. Eve forced herself to take deep breaths, reminding herself that this was just another investigation - the stories were just that, stories. When she started walking again, she wasn’t running, but she was moving a lot faster. #InkMine

I watched the beautiful young man standing with his arms pulled above his head. My shoulders ached just looking at him. He had the kind of face that Renaissance painters would have swooned over. I sat on the leather couch, only a few feet away. #WipSnips

The tools of my trade were portable, which was fortunate for me, because I was trying to outrun the family business. I'd spent years honing my skills, building my client base, and I was at the top of my game, at least, until the family curse returned reminding me there was escape. #VssMystery

Leaving the candle, she walked into the fog toward the water. Her boots were somewhere at the start of the beach and the water was cold as it brushed her toes. She let the jacket slide from her shoulders and land in the sucking wet sand. The water swirled around her ankles. #WIPSnips

She knelt in the water feeling the sand chewed at her knees as she splashed handfuls of water over herself until her dress was cold and clinging to her skin. She could smell the sting of the sea, while the salt burned her eyes and the water numbed her fingers. #WildWalkPrompt

He spoke in some ancient tongue, Dacian or perhaps Thracian. Julia listened, and recognized the cadence of an invocation. As he spoke, Julia felt the power in his words. The earth under her feet seemed to warm, to breathe. She watched and listened as he poured some libation into a bowl. #VssMagic

She is touched by two gods, and so am I. He sighed and felt his lips twist into a sardonic smile. My mother would be so pleased to know that I have finally begun to consider my destiny. He shook off the smile and pushed the thoughts away as he entered Keron’s chamber. #VssFantasy

O’Shaughnessy had hired Viv after starting the business. It had been a bad time, and if she was honest with herself, and she rarely was, she’d been barely holding it together, subsisting on Smoke and Terran whiskey when she could afford them, and forget-it-pills when she couldn’t. #BraveWrite

He offered a crooked smile. “I don’t want this to come across as weird or inappropriate, but if you need anything feel free to call me. I’ve lost family too, and it can be rough.” I could see the concern in his eyes, and the crooked smile only made him look more genuine. #InkMine

“Is this a ghost?” My voice squeaked. If I hadn’t built the device myself, I’d be convinced someone was just messing with me. But I had built it, and I knew that it was supposed to be connecting to the æther, whatever that meant; I just hadn’t thought the æther was a real thing. #WIPSnips

She knew that Cali didn’t really understand her frustration, as Cali was perfectly happy to learn as much about the beliefs and practices of the community as time allowed. And Helen was just as content to study the clockwork machines everyone in the city seemed to be obsessed with. #Vss365

Kit glanced into the bedroom, finding the demon cat, lounging inside its circle - once again in human form. It was harder to deal with him when he looked human, especially since he’d recently chosen to look like her ancestor. It was harder to remember what he was when he looked human. #VssFantasy

Kit stared at the creature in the circle. "Fuck yeah!" She muttered, "It worked. I've summoned a demon." Pursan with his cat-head lifted its mouth from the bowl of blood. "You doubted your abilities young Marlowe. Your ancestor would be disappointed." #BookishTuesday

A song from the last album I listened to #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/zjfp7eSrZNc?...

A song with an emotion in the title #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/Iuc1bKMCVLU?...

She bit her lip, her eyes drifting back to Professor Crane. Of course, the scarecrow would have his face, as imperfect as Priapus's, but so lovely to her. Her eyes followed his slow pacing in front of the class, lingering on his hands as he pushed a stray lock of hair out of his face. #VssMystery

A song with a shape in the title #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/g1BQcH4x2wg?...

A song I know all the words to #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/DKZf9QXhjhU?...

A song referencing being young or growing old #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/YHRvDo8rUoQ?...

she was heartened to know that even in the lowest-rent neighborhoods, someone was still pushing back against the rising Terran Supremacy Movement. She adjusted her scarf, pulled it over her hair, and left her rebreather on as she scanned the bar. A little anonymity never hurt. #WipSnips #SFF

It's raining here and I'm sitting enjoying the last of my morning coffee. I found myself humming this, so I guess I don't need to think about today's song. A song for a rainy day. #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/ean57t19_a4?...

The furs were beautifully worked. The furriers back in her native New York would kill to know how these furs had been worked to be so supple and lush. Her attention moved to the carvings in the rock walls, something that someone had attempted to chip away. #WildWalkPrompt

But getting Madam Lillian for her party was a major coup, as her séances were notorious for not only their otherworldly connections but their erotic components. Rumors abounded that Madam Lillian specialized in calling forth the ghosts of the world's greatest lovers. #BraveWrite

A driving song #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/TKE_AmZZT98?...

A love song... I wanted to post "Oh Sink Down" from Kneehigh Theater's amazing production of Tristan & Yseult, but none of their music is online... So I went with this #DavidsMonthOfMusic youtu.be/OGeck7JGvyo?...

She lowered her head to mine, and I raised my lips to meet hers. It was like I couldn’t help myself. Her kiss was soft and tasted of honey. When she pulled away, I licked my lips, wanting to keep tasting her sweetness. Her laugh rang through the graveyard #Vss365

The graffiti read, "In this darkness, time ceases; there is only being." She'd thought the candles they'd left would be enough, but while they returned together, no one saw him again. And a few short weeks after he vanished, her photographs from that room made her fortune. #Thingstowriteabout

She cringed at the memory, suddenly only able to smell cooking flesh. The bright taste of the oranges turned bitter in her mouth. “I didn’t do that to him. I swear to you, even if I had that power, I don’t think I could use it on a person, even Neldo. That truly was the work of Tez.” #RetroArtPrompt

The scarlet roses, in Lady Charlotte’s opinion, weren't particularly creative. Of course, red roses signified love and passion. However, as she shifted the fragrant blooms, she jerked her fingers back after being stabbed by a thorn. Hmm, this is an interesting flower after all. #Penstricken

The day’s hike was beautiful, but a few times, Cali had felt the hairs on her neck prickling, as if she was being watched, but there was no place in the canyon for someone or something to hide, at least nowhere she could see. Their second night in the canyon was quiet. #PennedReveries

Derrick laughed and turned toward the Coral Café. The diner was their tether. The neon sign was Pepto-Bismol pink and had a painted cowboy under the words. They had discussed the meaning of the cowboy since Casey first took Derrick there, and both agreed it was a glaring neon typo. #Firewords280

“You will meet your future husband at Lady Ward’s ball,” he said. His finger burned across her palm, “this line,” he nodded at her palm, but never dropped his gaze from hers, “tells me that you have deep, hidden passions.” #BraveWrite