Win a Corgi Store and more- writing challenge

[Dashie26]

Username: MagicPencil-Chan
Prompt: 1 (Picture)
Title: Swept away by your storm.
Word count: 591


" Izan! Man the wheel!" Captain shouted to the commander, lunging across the deck.

Help.

" Lola? Are you hurt?" The man directed towards me, waves crashing against the sturdy wood of our ship.

Help.

A calloused hand gripped my arm softly from the corner I had been shaking in. I let out a whimper and he pulled me into his chest, stroking my hair as an attempt to calm me from the horror stricken state I presumed.

Help.

" It's okay, we'll get through this. Shh." I buried my head deeper into Luca, our Captain, my best friend.

Help.

" Answer me this question." I spoke shakily reaching for his forearm in a vain attempt to become still. Clearing my throat I looked up at the blonde haired man's sea green eyes, focusing on the gold flecks scattered within. " If I was to die, would you stand strong as you are now? Or cower from life as I'm doing?"

Clearly I had startled the man into silence before placing a soft kiss on his cheek only to pull away with a heart broken smile. " My parents are gone, and so is my will to go on with.." I motioned my hand across the struggling ship. " This."

Silence.

A crackle of lightning struck the water beside our ship causing a loud hissing noise before I concentrated on the beautiful glow of golden light that struck the dark waves in confusion. Just as I was to say something, steam erupted from it blocking my view.

Help.

" What about me? What will I do if you're gone?!" He yelled desperately, tears pricking his gorgeous eyes.

I only stared at him for a moment before turning my head. I slowly stood to my feet, fighting to keep balance on the sliding deck as I made my way to the edge and peered over.

Luca had followed me here, now standing only a few feet from my shivering body.

" Live." I spoke.

Without another word I dived from the side, icy water engulfing my lungs and dragging me down no matter if I had wanted to escape its clench.

A small smile remained on my face as my senses slowly ebbed away.

"Live? You shouldn't say so when you're taking the easy way out." A smooth voice chimed as though I wasn't underwater.

.
.
.

My eyes snapped open to a very familiar ceiling as I panted, sweat dribbling down my face. " W-What?" I mumbled standing to the cold marble floor that sent a shiver down my back.

I hurriedly ran into the halls searching for Luca's room almost knocking the door down when I had found it.

A groan sounded from the pile of covers on his bed before my stance immediately straightened as I walked towards it, belly flopping onto him. " Agh get off you crazy woman!" He squeaked, tumbling onto the floor.

I smiled and began to lightly cry. It was happiness though.

It was a dream..

He looked at my water works with a scared face, snapping quickly. " I'm sorry, I didn't mean it.

With a laugh I latched onto Luca and spoke loud enough for him to hear clearly.

" I had a dream. And I realized something. I shouldn't take things for granted, rather embrace them while I can. So now I'm going to fight for what I want." I looked up at the older boys confused face and laughed, reaching up to bury my face in his neck.

" You caught me in your net."

" So I'm going to fight for you."

Turning my head to make contact I pulled away with one last remark.

" Swept away by your storm."

[Pyra Ilver]

Bump

[pillowa]

mark

[ultimate writer.]

mark

[skye,]

Here we go! I'm gonna type my story here :>

MIRROR
________________________________________

Looking in the mirror, I barley recognise the person staring back.

Ever since my younger sister had died I hadn't recognised the person.
I wear my sisters old clothes that are way to tight and small, but I don't care. I wear my hair the same way as her, in two simple pigtails. I dislike looking into the mirror and seeing this person. This person wasn't me.

I take my school bag and barrel down the stairs. I take a frozen waffle and run out of the front door, leaving it open as I run down the road. I love the thrill of running to school, even though I'm on time. I slow down, letting my breath catch up as I take a bite of the frozen waffle. I tug at my sleeve for a second because it's so small it annoys me. But I have to wear it. For my sister. I arrive at school, and walk slowly into class. I dump my bags down and take a seat. My teacher looks at me funny like she always does and asks if I'm okay. I nod, like I always do and begin to sketch in my notepad.

Time flies when your doing nothing at all in school. The bell rings and I walk outside, holding my notepad and a pencil. I sit down and place my bag beside me, and begin to sketch in my notepad. I draw a heart, a pretty one with nice shading. I nearly smile, but my eyes sadden and I draw a neat crack down the heart, and shade that too. I hear the rattle of my bag and I look up to see a few boys and a girl with huge glasses running with my sisters old teddy bear. I drop my notepad beside me and jump to my feet, running after the kids. "Hey that's my sisters!" I yell, trying to stop them. I come around the corner to find the teddy bear in the tap, wet with the stitches pulled out. I can't find the strength to pick it up and I walk back to my notepad and bag. I pick up my notepad and gaze at the drawing before me.

On the page a messy but well drawn thing was drawn overt my heart. I looked at it from a few angles before realising. It was a bandaid. A simple bandaid to fix a broken heart. I gaze at the picture for a moment and look at all the ordinary people around me, trying to catch whoever did this' eye. I tear out the page and run out of the gate of the school and home, without looking back and leaving everything but the piece of notepad paper with the fixed heart.

I tear my pigtails out and take my sisters clothes off. I throw them in a bin. I brush my hair neat and put on my clothes, the ones I've never worn. I sit on the edge of the bed, gazing in the mirror. My mum opens the door and jumps. "What are you doing home from school?" Mum asked placing something on my bed. "This is me" I whisper into the mirror before smashing my fist into it.

____________________________________________

I hope this is an okay entry! I made it up on the spot and enjoyed it! I'm sorry if it makes no sense and I hope you enjoy :> Have a nice day

[Kandyrock]

mark!
Sorry if this story ends up being super long. Also, I would like criticism, if you would. I'm always looking for ways to improve my stories! Please and thank you.
----------------------------------------------

Username: Kandyrock
Prompt 1
First person
Word Count: 1,724 words, 8,691 characters

Enjoy!
--------------------------------------

I couldn't believe it. My friends and I were caught up in a big storm in the middle of the ocean. There was four of us, all stuffed into a sailboat, trying to catch fish to survive ever since we left home. I told them to wait, I sensed something coming, but they said I was crazy. Look who's crazy now.

"Alice!" someone yelled, "Alice, what do we do?!"

I didn't respond. Even though I was basically the captain, since I was the only one who knew how to sail, they all knew we couldn't get out of this. This would be the end of us, and no one would ever notice because no one else cared about us. I let the wave just come crashing down on us, knowing that no matter what happens, I still made some good friends.

Our bodies washed up on shore the next week. A man that sounded like he was in his thirties, who was helping to clean up around the beach after the storm found us. He called over one of other volunteers, and they called 911. I let out a cough.

"She's alive!" I heard one of the paramedics say. They pulled me up onto a stretcher and put me in the vehicle. I couldn't tell whether they got my friends or not. All I hoped for was that they were alive.

The ride to the hospital felt like forever. All the CPR and pulse checks was a pain. I could breath fine, even though I couldn't really see. Though, several times they said they were losing me, but I didn't believe that. I felt more alive then ever before.

We arrived at the hospital and they rolled me into a room. Once everyone had left, I stood up and took the iv they had put in me out of my arm. I didn't need that. I still couldn't see though, and that was starting to worry me. I knew my eyes were open, so why couldn't I see? A nurse came into the room and screamed. I turned my head to the sound of the voice. She had fainted. I could tell by the fact that there wasn't any footsteps running away from me. I walked out of the room to go find my friends. I needed to see what happened to them. I walked over to the receptionist's desk.

The receptionist looked up at me and gasped. "Excuse me miss, but you need to get back into your room,"

"I'm looking for Andy," I told her. If anyone knew what was happening to me, it would be Andy. He's pretty smart and seems to be able to figure out anything.

I could tell that she was looking at me with a smile, "I'll call the doctor and see if he knows what room he's in."

I nodded and waited as she whispered into the telephone. I wondered why she needed to whisper. The only other person here was me. Then it hit me like a pile of bricks. She was calling security on me. I reached over the desk and slapped the phone out of her hands and grabbed her by her shirt and pulled her in close.

"Please don't hurt me," she squeaked.

I stared at her for a moment then started to whisper. "You will take me to Andy, or I will end your life right here," I could tell she didn't know who Andy was, but she seemed willing to take me to him.

I put her down and she started to walk with me to random rooms to go find Andy. I kept one hand on her at all times, making sure she wouldn't run away. When we were walking down the hallways, I realized that I knew the layout of this hospital, even though I have never been in here before. I could sense we were getting closer to him. "There," I said in monotone. I pointed to a mostly empty room, with only a person and a bed inside of it. Did they think he was dead?

I told the lady to stand outside while I went in. I closed the door behind me and locked it, just in case she decided to call security. I felt a great amount of power coming from him. "Alice," a voice mumbled. I jumped, startled. I went closer to Andy.

"Andy? Are you in there?" I whispered as I came closer to him. His eyes fluttered open. I gasped and backed away from him. I could see him! Except, something was wrong. His eyes were all black, like someone had decided to pour ink over them.

"Alice... what's wrong?" he asked, searching my face to see what I was so terrified.

"Y-yo-your eyes!" I stuttered. His face scrunched up in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"They're black, black as ink," I whispered. Andy stared at him with those cold dead eyes. He grabbed my hand and started to whisper in my ear.

"This is what you made us into." I could feel needles pricking my back, and I started to lose sight of Andy. I didn't understand his words. What did he mean? I thought right before I dropped to the floor and lost conscious.

Earlier that month...

"Alice! Hey, over here!" Andy was waving his hands in the air, motioning for me to come over.

I ran over to the bench he was sitting at. "Hi Andy! What's up?" I smiled and sat down next to him. He looked nervous, but I couldn't tell why.

"Nothing much... I just wanted to tell you something," he looked over at some of his other friends for a moment, then back at me, "will you... go out with me?"

I wasn't sure what I wanted to say. I didn't want to hurt his feelings... but I wasn't sure I liked him in that way. "Sure!" I lied. I felt guilty, but it made him happy.

He wrapped his arms around me and I became stiff as a board. He let go, smiled and ran off to go to talk to some of his friends. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. He might have been happy, but I felt like something just died inside of me.

~~~

I awoke back in Andy's room. I felt guilty, guiltier than that one day I lied to Andy. We were still dating at the time of this tragedy. I wonder if he ever found out about the fact that I was lying. That would explain why he was so mad. Wait- where was Andy anyways? I looked around the room, and saw no evidence of Andy.

"She's in here, sir," I heard a voice coming from outside the door that I had locked earlier. I heard a click and footsteps entering the room.

"Miss, are you okay? We heard screaming but we couldn't unlock the door," a man explained. He had a deep voice, which made me think he was big, but it was also very soothing to listen to. He picked me up when I didn't respond. I needed to find out what happened to Andy, though.

"What happened to the boy in this room?" I asked.

"What boy? Are you okay?" He sounded confused.

I groaned out of frustration and decided to try again, "the boy... you know. He washed up on shore a day ago. He was checked into that room."

"No one has been checked into that room for the past year. Anyone who goes in there dies, or gets severely injured. You're lucky you're okay," but I wasn't okay. He laid me down in my bed and walked out of my room, locking the door behind him.

I tried to get up, but a force seemed to be keeping me in bed. Where could Andy be? Did he die in that room? Why doesn't anyone remember him? I had so many questions. Andy seemed to be fading from my mind... I could barely remember him. The only thing I could remember was when he asked me out. I also felt the guilt. Guilt and regret. If I had only told him that I didn't like him like that. I wish I could fix that.

I heard a knock on the door. I heard the doctor whispering to someone next to him, then he spoke to me, "Hello, Miss, I'm Dr. Scratch. I came here to talk to you. I'll start by asking you your name."

I could tell that was command,"I'm... A-Al." I was starting to consider whether I should actually tell him my name or not.

"Al? Is that your name?" He asked. I could tell he had a pen and paper in his hand. I nodded. "Well, Al, I heard you were on the beach when they found you. Why is that?"

"I don't know," I lied. I tried to seem as clueless as possible, so he wouldn't suspect anything.

"Are you sure about that? Think hard."

I think he saw past my lies, "I'm sorry, but I really don't know." I looked around the room, nervous.

"Do you know who Belle is?" the doctor asked. I tried to hide the excitement in my eyes, but it was too late. I knew Belle. She was another one of my friends. She was the one person I could talk to. "I'll take you to her."

We walked into the hallway. The doctor paused for a moment then ran down the hallway with me. We entered a room that had an eerie feel. I turned around and saw Belle punch the doctor and knock him out.

"Alice! I missed you," she smiled and I came up and hugged her. I looked at her face with joy. She felt cold, though. I pulled away from her. "What's up?" she frowned and looked at me.

"You're freezing. Why?" I questioned. She should feel warm, like any other living human.

"Liar," she hissed. I felt the same feeling I felt when I saw Andy's eyes. Before everything went black, I caught a glimpse of her black eyes.

When Alice was little...

I hated this one girl in my class named Belle. She always talked to me and followed me around. It was super annoying. I glared at her in my free time.

"Hey, Alice! How are you?" she asked, walking up to me.

"I'm doing great," I said with a ton of sarcasm.

"I just got a new board game! Wanna play?" she took out her game from her backpack and showed me. It was a game I was waiting to get for my birthday. I really wanted it.

"Yeah, I'll play," I exclaimed.

"Okay- but you'll have to agree to one thing!" She smiled and gave me part of a necklace, "be my best friend!"

"Sure, whatever," I took the necklace and put it on. We played the game any time we could.

What I didn't know is that in the future, Belle would really become my best friend.

~~~

I awoke in the bed in Belle's room. I felt different... I could see! Well, really, I could only see random blobs of color, but I was getting my vision back. I put my feet on the floor and felt something sticky. It was blood. I could make out the colors of body on the floor and a knife. I felt something too. I felt hatred. Like that day when I first became friends with Belle. Then I felt regret that used her to play the board game. I noticed Belle was gone too. She was starting to fade away from my mind, and my head was spinning.

"There!" I turned to the direction of the voice and saw someone pointing at me. A security man ran towards me and tackled me. I pushed him off me and jumped out a window.

I was free. But there was still someone I had to find. I landed on a balcony on a lower floor. I think I broke my arm from the impact of the fall, but I didn't care. I needed to find Austin. Austin was the toughest guy I've ever met. He was my brother as well. I didn't want to drag him into this mess, but he said wherever I went, he went.

I ran through the hospital, yelling out Austin's name. Multiple people tried to stop me along the way, but I just brushed them off like they were flies. I hated them for preventing me from finding Austin.

"Alice, stop," I was in the middle of attempting to shove someone out of my way when I heard him. "Alice, I need you to stop. You've hurt too many people with your actions."

I turned around in a primal way. I tackled him.

"Stop! Please, Alice! Don't!" He was the only thing I couldn't make out that was around me. His eyes were black. That's the only thing I could tell. My brother was affected by this plague as well as everyone that mattered to me. Now he was gone.

Before they went out to sea...

"Alice, what are you doing?" I turned around to see my brother next to the wooden boat me and my friends were planning to escape with.

"I'm... building a boat."

"Why?" he narrowed his eyes.

"Because... I want to go sailing." I could tell he was very suspicious of me, and he had a right to be.

"That's not true. Now tell me the real reason you're doing this," before I could explain, my friends came running towards me.

"Alice! Mrs. Cadlily is kicking us out! She said she needed to make room in the orphanage, and that we were old enough to be on the streets alone. We need to get out of here," Belle explained.

"You're planning to leave!? And without me!?" Austin yelled out of anger. I shrunk back from him in fear.

"If we got hurt or lost, I didn't want anything to happen to you," I squeaked.

"Well, you're hurting me if I won't see you again."

"Who says you aren't going to see me again!" I yelled.

"I know you won't return! I'm coming with you!" He stomped away. I felt sad. Sad that he could die. Sad that I hurt him.

~~~

I awoke in darkness. There was nothing around me. Everyone I knew was gone. I was upset with myself. I should have never let anyone gone. I was the oldest. I was supposed to protect everyone. So why didn't I? I regret all the decisions I made. If I could, I would start over. I know I would. Now everyone was dead. I couldn't fix that. No one could.

An image was burned into my eyes as let everything slip away from me. If this is what death felt like, then I hated it. The image was me in a hospital gown, with completely red eyes. In a grave. I know I had died in that hospital.

There was no denying it.

[Pyra Ilver]

Bump

[Pyra Ilver]

ONE MONTH LEFT!
I am very excited about this!
If your story is a WIP, or you're still wanting to enter, be quick. There are only thirty days left before I choose my finalists.

[escapalization]

yes hello here is my story
i spent about twenty-four hours altogether on it
i hope you enjoy it

Username: wishiwasadog
Prompt: #2
Word Count: 1610

Beauty

Looking in the mirror, I barely recognize the person staring back.
What have they done to me? My face is an unnatural shade of turquoise to match the gems strung around my neck. My eyebrows have been dyed a vibrant red, making it seem as though my forehead is bleeding. My eyes are violet; my lips spring green. My dress is saturated in colors so bright, they glow under the glaring lights of the dressing room. The rest of my body is a pale blue. It’s a tiny bit of a relief from the sight of my face – but only a tiny bit.
The queen’s stylists have turned me into a garish rainbow. Is this their idea of beauty? Do they think I look better this way, colored and dyed beyond recognition? At least they left my hair alone. Narina, the head stylist, described it as “black silk”. She ordered the other stylists to leave it be, as an element of contrast.
“You look breathtaking,” says Narina. She is also dyed and tattooed, like everyone here, though her colors coordinate a little better than mine. “No one will be able to take their eyes off of you.”
She’s right about one thing. The image of my face in the mirror makes it hard to breathe.
“Thank you, Narina,” I stammer, turning away from the mirror, praying that these changes aren’t permanent.
Narina grins. I shudder when I see her teeth: razor-sharp fangs, alternating blood red and lime green. “Oh, don’t thank me, sweetheart. It’s the least I can do for the princess-to-be,” she says.
Oh, yeah. Princess-to-be. With all the commotion, I almost forgot why I was here.
Five months ago, Crown Prince Amadeus Kweva turned eighteen years old, which is considered to be a marriageable age for men. The search for his wife was begun, based on two qualities: knowledge of our country’s politics, and beauty. Some prayed that they wouldn’t be selected – hoped that they could stay with their families for a little longer, choose their own husbands. When the guards came to inspect them, they played dumb and smeared their faces with mud and stuffed their dresses with pillows to make them look fat.
Others dreamed of being the princess. They’d studied historical texts for months prior to the prince’s birthday. They spent their lives’ savings on makeup and wore their smallest corsets. None of them, however, were selected.
An airplane flight away (my first trip in a motor vehicle), there is a village: New York. Once, it was the largest city in its country. Now, it is easily overlooked. It’s too small and insignificant to be seen on a map. But five months ago in this village, a sixteen-year-old girl recited what she had learned in school and was scrutinized by inspectors looking for a princess.
Somehow, that girl was chosen. Tonight, she would marry her betrothed. She would be given a new title: Princess Catelynn Kweva.
It’s odd to think that I will soon bear the last name of the royal family. All my life, I’ve been Cate Markus, the seamstress’s girl. In the villages, girls keep their own last name when they’re married, and take their husband’s last name as their middle name. In the cities, however, they take the last name of the husband. It seems like a message: “You are not your own person anymore. You belong to this man.” I despise it.
I despise everything about this capital city of Atalanta: the clothes that look like frivolous costumes that people wear once and throw away, the way they damage their bodies with ink and piercings and lights set just under their skin to make them glow in the dark. I am so lost in thoughts of how much I hate this city’s shallowness that I jump when the attendant touches my shoulder.
He smiles at me, then at Narina. “You’ve done a wonderful job, as always. The party will be starting in fifteen minutes. I thought Her Ladyship might like to speak to her mother before the reception.”
Her Ladyship. That’s me, of course. Around the palace, I am known as Lady Catelynn Markus. Tonight, I will become Her Highness, married to a man I’ve never even met.
I hate it. I can’t do this.
But that’s what I’ve been telling myself for five months, and I’ve risen above all the previous challenges. I’ll survive this, too.
“Her Ladyship would enjoy that,” said Narina.
“My . . . mother’s here?” My mind feels slow, clogged with thoughts of the horrendous future ahead.
“Come,” the attendant says. “Your mother has missed you.”
He leads me down the hall. Every servant we pass stares at me as I try to hide my face, perhaps awed by what they probably think is beauty, probably wondering why I am so ashamed of these colors.
My mother is seated in a parlor filled with crystals chandeliers and plush sofas. The attendant hands me a piece of paper – a schedule, he says – and leaves us alone.
“What did they do?” Mother whispers. I practically fall apart. All my life, it’s been me and Mother. A simple life in a small house. No makeup, no fancy clothes. What unnatural being have I become under the hand of the stylists?
I stop myself from crying. I don’t know if the color will wash off when water touches it, and though I wish I could look like me again, I know the stylists will hate me for it.
“It’s . . . still me,” I manage. I don’t believe it one bit.
Mother nods, trying to hold it together. It occurs to me that it’s not just for her own good.
I sit down. “It’ll be okay,” I tell her. “You’ll get to live in the palace with me. You’ll be the mother of the Queen. I think that’s a big honor here.”
“I don’t want honor,” she says, shaking her head. “I want to go home.”

Half an hour later, Mother holds my hand, walking me down the steps. I am glad she is here, glad for her warmth and steadiness. She looks proud and sad. She will be joining a new family today, but losing her daughter at the same time.
The hall is decorated similarly to my dress. Everything is neon green and orange and pink, except for one man at the end of the hall, his skin a natural brown, wearing a suit as black as my hair. His eyes pass over me and latch on my mother, the only other person in the hall who’s not unnaturally colored. Then he looks at me again. He stares at me until we reach the bottom of the stairwell, where I am announced. “Presenting Her Majesty the Queen’s personal guest,” the herald says into a microphone, “Lady Catelynn Markus.”
The man in black hesitates, gaping, then walks quickly across the hall to the herald. I see a crown atop his head and realize that this man, who I expected to be the most brightly colored of them all, is Prince Amadeus.
“This is my fiancé?” he asks the herald. I deflate, disappointed even though I knew this would happen. Did I think this would be happily ever after?
“What did they do to her? She—she’s a village girl!” He sounds agitated, distressed, even. “No human being is supposed to look like this. I told you I didn’t want this! I mean, I bet under all this—these dyes, she’s a beautiful girl! Why did they . . .”
I glance at my mother. She shakes her head, indicating that she wasn’t expecting this either.
The prince turns to my mother and points up the stairs. “Mrs. Markus, please escort your daughter to the stylists. Tell them to clean off the paint on the Crown Prince’s authority. The ceremony can wait.”
I’m so shocked at this, I nearly fall over when I attempt a curtsy. “Thank you,” I whisper, shocked. He smiles and gives me a small bow.
“I refuse to allow them to make you one of them,” he tells me in a low voice.
My mother takes my hand and leads me back to the dressing room. The stylists grumble as they bathe me, complaining about the four hours wasted on paint that would have been removed after the ceremony anyway. I can only imagine the uproar in the main halls, the impatience of those who came for a royal wedding and are getting nothing but a party that is, so far, short by Atalantan standards.
Finally, Narina declares that I am once again ready to be married, and grabs my neon gown from its hanger. “No,” I say. “Is there something . . . white?”

As I descend the steps once again, the herald looks confused as to whether or not he should announce me. He ends up bowing awkwardly and waving me and my mother forward. The schedule that I was given states that we are to make our way to the stage at the other side of the hall, and then the ceremony will begin. Heads begin to turn and eyes lock on to me and my tan skin and my white dress as Mother escorts me to where Prince Amadeus is waiting.
When we reach the stage, he kneels and kisses my hand. “You are beautiful, my lady.”
I blush, which is stupid because I’m about to marry him. He rises and we face each other as my mother moves to the side. As I look into his kind eyes, I realize that maybe the future won’t be so terrible after all.

i hope you enjoyed that little bit of fluffiness
have a great day

[Pyra Ilver]

Bump