We received quite a few wonderful entries by our very talented members through the Creativity Competition that ended Friday. Below are two selected short stories submitted that we'd like to share with you all!
I. Harlequin by Georgia
II. Summer's End by RavenWho

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Harlequin by Georgia
The city of Harlequin stands on top of a high hill, surrounded by vast woods and fields- all green. The tall trees, the lush grass, the countryside; all green. The city is named Harlequin, because all the citizens who live within the city gates have the same shade of eye colour: harlequin green. In this beautiful, towering city, the population live normal lives- apart from the fact that nobody ages. Nobody can reproduce. Nobody dies; unless a murder or crime is committed. Today, the sky is pure blue and not a single cloud is in sight. The sun is shining down on the bright green city. This is a normal day for the people of Harlequin, apart from Adelya- tomorrow is her wedding day.

 

~

Adelya had straight, long, brown hair that tumbled down her back and finished at her hips. Her green eyes, flecked with gold and dashed with light blue, stood out against her tanned complexion. Even though her eye colour was the same as everyone else's in Harlequin, hers seemed to stand out just a little bit more. She had high cheekbones and a dazzling smile that showed off her crystal white teeth. Adelya had the voice of an angel. If she sang, everything noisy in the world would stop and listen to her. Not just people, but songbirds were jealous of her perfect voice. Adelya wanted to be somebody. To be known all around Elvesden for her voice. She wanted to be a star. And she knew, right from birth, that she would be one.

Forced marriages were very common in Harlequin. Every bride would marry a suitable husband, usually of the same 'age'. After the wedding ceremony, the new bride would be confined to a life of serving her new husband. No hobbies. No jobs. Just cooking, cleaning and fulfilling their husband's wishes. Adelya knew that if she was to become the wife of Sir Ralph Maslovick she'd have to give up the dream she'd always wanted to pursue. She wouldn't be the star she'd always longed to be.

~

On the morning of her wedding, Adelya woke up just as the sun streamed through her windows and into her bedroom. The birds were chirping and singing as the girl silently collected her belongings and a bag packed with survival necessities, including food, a tent, a torch, matches, water and a sleeping bag. She tied her hair back into a single braid, completed with a silver ribbon that complimented her long brown hair. She put on her quilted, waterproof jacket and leather boots and slipped quietly out of her room.

An hour later, Adelya was sat on a log on the outskirts of the Harlequin woods, raking through her bag. “I forgot the rope,” she whispered, sighing. Adelya stood up, slung her rucksack over her shoulder and made her way into the woods. Every now and then Adelya would stop to take a drink from the river she was following. “Freedom...” she sighed. “Isn't it... sweet?” She laughed, asking a bird that sat on her dainty shoulder. The bird flew away, stopped in mid-flight, and flashed Adelya a smile. “A smile!” Adelya gasped, laughing, staring at the bird in awe. “A bird... smiling! Extraordinary!”

The trees swayed majestically in the summer breeze as Adelya skipped along the path. 'I could just live here!' She thought, pausing to look in the river at her reflection. She smoothed down her fringe and smiled to herself, turning around to continue skipping. Wild edible mushrooms were sprouting at the side of the path as she skipped along and a small, beautiful butterfly perched on her shoulder as Adelya sat down on a large rock. “Well hello there!” Adelya turned her head slightly so she could get a good look at the butterfly. “I shall call you...” Adelya raised her eyebrows, thinking. “...Candy!” She laughed. The butterfly had bright pink wings dotted with elaborate, black swirls. The butterfly flew away as Adelya stood up and began to walk again.

After stopping for a lunch of fresh berries and bread, Adelya decided to pick some flowers. She picked a small, lilac daisy from the patch and held the flower closer to her face, gazing at the elaborate details on the dainty petals. The sweet aroma wandered up Adelya's nostrils as she took one last whiff, and then threw the flower into the river opposite, watching as it sailed away downstream.

~

The hours seemed to pass like minutes, and with each hour, the sky started to darken. Before she knew it, Adelya was surrounded by darkness which wrapped around her shoulders like a dark cloak. The wind battered against her flustered face. The chilling air caught in her throat with every breath she took. An owl could be heard coo-ing loudly in the distance. The moon and stars shone brightly above Adelya's head and grey clouds streaked across the dark sky. Adelya shivered and pulled her jacket tighter around her bare shoulders. Suddenly the woods, that she had walked in quite happily a few hours ago, had become a very scary place. Adelya had never heard any stories of what happened in the woods after dark. 

 

Mainly because nobody had been alive long enough to tell the stories.

...The stories of disappearance and death.

~

In the distance, Adelya could hear a twig snapping. She turned around, scared and curious at the same time, to see nothing but trees and nature. Adelya rubbed her cold hands together. 'Maybe I should light a fire...' she thought. Grabbing large handfuls of sticks and dry leaves, Adelya sat the firewood on the path and fumbled for a match in her pocket. With numb hands, Adelya pulled the packet out of her pocket and spilled the contents onto the ground. She shivered and bent over to pick up the matches. The last sound Adelya could hear before being knocked unconscious was her own scream.

~

All that Adelya could mutter when she regained consciousness was an inaudible scream. “Who or what are you?” She stuttered, her voice sluggish and hoarse. The person- or thing- that was towering over her uttered a single, nasty grunt. “Please...” Adelya whispered as a lump formed in her throat. “I'll do anything... Just please,” she paused to wipe away tears. “Let me go!” she choked out, her lip quivering. The demonic figure stared down at her helpless body and snarled. Adelya let out a deafening scream as the rock hit against her forehead repeatedly.

~

Two Decades Later

The boy and girl sat on the sandy river bank, surrounded by peaceful darkness, looking up at the stars. “Ralph, look!” The girl squealed, pointing up at a large, beautiful, shining star. It shone far brighter than the rest surrounding it. “It's beautiful!” She gasped, pointing with one hand and squeezing her partner's hand with the other.

“It's almost,” the boy said, pausing to tuck a strand of curly blonde hair behind the girl's ear. “...as beautiful as you.” He smiled.

“We should name it!” She laughed, gazing up at the twinkling stars.

Ralph's smile faded. He stared out at the river, looking away from her.

“Ralph, are you okay? Did I say something?” She sounded worried.

“Yes,” Ralph said, quickly composing himself. He looked back at the girl, flashing her a dazzling smile. “I know what we should call the star,” He answered, looking up.

“What?” She asked, smiling back at him, tracing his laugh lines with her finger, delicately.

“Adelya,” Ralph paused to wipe away a tear. “She reminds me of a girl I used to know.”

“...She was always destined to become a star.”

---

Summer's End by RavenWho

The pond water was warm at David Tanner's feet. He sat down on the smooth, warm rock underneath him and looked around the forest. The sky looked green-gold through the leaves of the forest. The golden light shown through from the sunset, through the green of the leaves, basking everything with a magic-like glow. The forest was filled with glorious life, crickets chirping and bees buzzing, birds singing out wonderful tunes and more. The place felt alive, and it gave a certain aurora of happiness and magic.

 

David looked up at the sky. It was a bright blue that was slowly turning dark. David knew that if he walked to the end of the forest and looked out from between the trees the sun would be slowly lowering over the mountains. It was one of those days that you don't think twice about, but you know in the future it will forever be embedded in your memory as something pleasant- or so David had hoped.

 

The pond, which was decent sized and filled with life, was fairly deep and had a small stream running to a rather large lake, which led to a small ocean bay. He could climb there tonight, but he'd promised his mother and father he was just going to the pond- for some reason, they always made him promise to never go near the bay alone, ever. He agreed, completely oblivious to what his parents were protecting him from.

 

David watched the water, bugs and tadpoles creating smooth ripples in the water. He yawned and ran a hand through his dirty blond hair. He watched with green eyes, eyes the colour of the last oak leaves in the summer. David was rather good looking, with a strong jaw and a sculpted face. His shoulders were broad and he had a washboard stomach. He only wore orange swim trunks, his towel and sandals thrown lazily on the rock next to his. His name was written in hearts in more than one girl's journal, and he adored it. David was what you'd call a jerk and a player. Not the best guy to have a relationship with, and maybe that was why this summer night had a sudden twist of events, or maybe it was bad luck and being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

 

Something purple flew quickly past David's face. He yelped in surprise, scaring off a few birds. He frowned and the thing buzzed by him again...giggling?

 

"What the...?" he muttered. He shook his head and shrugged; he was probably just hearing things- or so he hoped. The thing flew by him again, but this time it slowed, stopping in front of him. He stared wide eyed at a... fairy? He got to his feet, rubbing his eyes. No, his eyes were playing tricks on him. But when he opened his eyes, the fairy was still there, giggling.

 

It was a girl, with a curvy body and purple skin, with pale, translucent wings and small green eyes. Her hair was silvery, tinted lavender. It wore a small dress made of leaves and flower petals. It smiled at David warmly. David gaped at it- he had heard more than one tale of mysterious fairies in the forest, but most of them came from his little sister and she was five, so David had shrugged them off.

 

"Uhh... hi?" David said, frowning. The fairy giggled, flying across the pond. "Hey, where are you going?" David called, wading further into the pond, feet sticking in the muddy bottom. The fairy giggled again, a high pitched sound like bells, and beckoned for David to follow. It flew off towards the stream. David, mildly confused but curious, waded after it, splashing through it and stirring up the mud at the bottom.

 

The fairy paused every few yards and waited for him to catch up, but he never did quite catch up to it before it buzzed off for a few more yards. David came to the stream, where he could walk better on the stones. He ran after the fairy, which was zipping skillfully down the stream, calling for it to wait.

 

Finally, he came to the bay. The fairy was nowhere to be seen, and panic filled David. Not only was he disobeying his parents, he was following a fairy.

 

"I'm going insane," he muttered to himself. And then he heard the singing. The singing was glorious, like a thousand angels singing in union, like the song of the sea and the call of the wind. David forgot about the fairy instantly, only concentrating on the singing. Forgetting his parents warning, he started down a rocky ridge towards the ocean. The ocean was beautiful, a nice blue colour, with a gentle current eroding the shore gently away. The sand before the ocean was soft and white, soft and comfy. The smell of the ocean wafted in a warm, gentle breeze and David found himself smiling goofily. He didn't notice the fact he seemed to have no control over his limbs and he remember nothing. He just wanted to get to the lovely person behind the alluring voice.

 

But it wasn't a person at the end of the voice, not really. David walked over to a small boulder on the beach, where the voice was coming from. He looked behind the boulder happily, not thinking about the possible consequences of his actions. And then he froze, because behind the boulder was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen.

 

The mermaid's tail flicked against the shallow water of a small pond behind the boulder that led to the ocean. The tail was scaly and a pale blue colour, shimmering in the setting sun. Eventually the tail came to the waist of the mermaid where skin and scale met and faded into each other. The top half of the mermaid was a pale white, like snowflakes, and soft. The mermaid wore seashells over its breasts, much like Ariel did in a little mermaid, but they were ivory. Long blonde hair tumbled over the breasts and shoulders of the mermaid in a cascade of lush curls. The mermaid had prominent collar bones, a nice angular chin and prominent cheekbones. Its lips were full and lush, its eyes a stormy sea colour framed by long, thick lashes. The mermaid stopped singing and blinked flirtatiously at David.

 

David fumbled for words but his mouth was not working. He stood there in awe of the magnificent creature in his wake.

 

"Hello there," the mermaid said, smiling. "Are you the boy my little fairy friend whispered to me about? You're quite handsome."

 

"I-I-I," David stuttered. He shook his head, his thoughts foggy. "Thank you! You are... well there are no words."

 

The mermaid threw her hair back and laughed, a sound like merry music. "Why thank you kind stranger. Am I given the honor of learning your name?" It raised an eyebrow.

 

"Uh, yes! I'm David, David Tanner."

 

"I'm Celia," the mermaid said. "Would you do me the pleasure of taking me back to the ocean? I have to effort to take myself back there. I'll sing for you."

 

David nodded, almost like a droid taking orders. He walked towards Celia, who twisted a strand of hair around his finger. David picked her up carefully and began to walk back to the ocean. His mind was foggy and he was confused, and he just kept walking. Celia was singing beautifully in his ear and it wasn't until the water reached his chest that something occurred to him. Some small part of his brain was calling out an instinctual warning to run. And in the small part of his brain, the twisted mermaid stories he used to read where coming back, about sirens and mermaids leading unlucky sailors to their fates. Celia noticed the frown on David's face and stopped singing.

 

"It's okay, David, I won't hurt you," she said. David shook his head, panic and fear spreading through him. He let go of Celia, who fell into the ocean with an "oof!" She resurfaced again, an angry look on her face. The skies began to cloud over the ocean waves grew bigger.

 

"Stay away from me!" David cried, scrambling to find footing on the slippery rocks beneath his feet.

 

"I just wanted a friend, David! Possibly a lover! We could spend eternity together! I could make you like me!" Celia cried. "Do you know how long I've been waiting for you to come here alone?! David!" she screamed. There was a splash behind David as he scrambled towards shore, and then a cold hand grasped his ankle. He screamed and fell forward in the water. He gasped in surprise and took in a mouthful of water as the hand dragged him back into the ocean.

 

And he was never heard from again... or at least not from anyone human.

 

• First British women prime minister Lady Margaret Thatcher, and to date still the only women prime minister, was found dead April 8, 2013 at The Ritz Hotel in London due to a stroke. Lady Thatcher was 87 years old.

• On Monday, April 8th, North Korea announced it would pull out its 53,000 workers in a jointly run factory with South Korea, ending all economic activity with South Korea. 

• British Vogue became the first magazine to sign the 10 point code written by the Model's Committee of Equity, a union. The codes state a model may work a maximum of 10 hours a day, have suitable food provided, no nude or semi-nude shoots unless approved in advance, breaks, transport, and suitable temperatures (no more bikini shoots in Antarctica! :-)) for all models shooting for British Vogue.