Oh, little blog. I missed you. My impending trip to England has been at the forefront of my mind causing me to get very little writing done lately. So I guess that's the first bit of news. I'll be gone for the next two weeks. There will still be posting because I'm going to use the magic of the interwebz to make my stories post at will. However, I won't be around to answer comments. :( I would still be very pleased if you did. I am a feedback whore.
Secondly, I did submit my infestation story to the Writer's Digest Your Story Contest. It did not make the top five. I still love my little gremlins.
So...a little backstory before I go on. I love art...looking and creating. I mostly paint these days, but when I was younger I had somewhat of a mentor that taught me the basics of color pencil. One of her pieces that captivated me and still somewhat haunts me to this day was a piece called "The Chile Fairies." So I'm basing this story off of that concept, plus I kind of felt like doing a cultural piece.
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Myra pushed the latch to the screen door down slowly while Adacelia stood behind her as still as a statue. If she used too much force, a screeching noise would have their father out in the front room to investigate and the entire mission would have to wait for another night. A tiny click signaled success and the screen swung easily out. Though partially hidden by clouds, the moon provided enough light to lead the girls out to the strawberry patch. They gorged themselves on the sticky, sweet fruit, gossiping about the field workers and everything they'd managed to find out during the day. When they were satisfied, they turned to head back to the house. Myra took one last look before reaching the door and spotted a glow hovering over the field. Several spots of light moved in a dancing pattern. Myra pressed her lips together at the strange sight. Her attention was violently brought back to the house with the sound of her father's booming voice. Adacelia had not been successful at slipping back in without a sound. Myra rushed indoors so that her sister wouldn't have to take the brunt of the punishment alone.
The next morning at breakfast, their mother hopped around the kitchen, cleaning up for the day. Their father had already left before the sun touched the horizon.
"Why do you girls do those things? You know how your dad gets."
"All we did was pick a few strawberries. It wasn't a big deal."
"Doesn't matter. You can't be sneaking out of the house like that. Big mistake, girls."
Myra and Adacelia looked down, their appetites slipping away.
"I don't want you eating those strawberries straight from the field anymore either," their mother continued.
"Why not?" they whined in unison.
"Because I said so. Besides, you know what happens to little girls that are being bad and don't ask permission to pick? The fairies come and they curse the field. Stay away."
The girls rolled their eyes at their mother's warning. They finished up their last bites of food before being rushed off to put their shoes on. The rest of the day was spent in the tiny shack where the strawberries were sold to passing motorists or running water over to the field workers.
Later that night, Myra looked out of the window of the girls' shared bedroom and saw the tiny specks of light floating over the field.
"What do you think those are?" Myra asked her sister.
Adacelia propped herself up on the window sill next to Myra. "I don't see what you're seeing."
"Those little lights. They're all over the place. You don't see them?"
"I don't see anything," Adacelia said in an annoyed tone before going back to her own bed.
To Myra, the lights were clear and bright- impossible to miss. She watched them making graceful patterns for a little while longer before her drooping lids forced her to crawl underneath her own covers and drift off to sleep.
In a few weeks, Myra and Adacelia had managed to stay in good graces long enough for a pleasant atmosphere to return back to the house. On a restless night, the sisters sat on the bed by the window, letting the summer breeze cool their faces. The smell of moist earth invited itself in with the wind.
Adacelia sighed, "I'm so bored."
"I know. Me too."
"Let's go out to the field tonight."
"Cely, we're going to get in trouble again. Just stay here."
"No, we won't do it like last time. I have a plan. We'll leave the window open. It's easy to jump through, and we can help each other. We won't even have to go through the front room or anything. If dad wakes up, he'll just come check on us in here but he won't know we left."
Myra thought for a moment, trying to see any flaws in the plan. In need of a little rush, she agreed to risk it. The two climbed out of the window, slowly lowering themselves onto the ground outside, being careful not to kick the side of the house. Looking over their shoulders constantly to be sure they really got away with it, the girls made their way out to the middle of the field before sitting down to indulge. They happily plucked the plumpest berries they could find. Simultaneously, they let their teeth sink in, but instead of the sugary taste of heaven, the bitter heat of peppers filled their mouths. They started to salivate and their eyes teared up. They instantly spit out the mouthful before they even started to chew, but the damage was already done.
Between gags and coughs, Myra took Adacelia by the arm, "We have to get something drink, but you can't make a sound, okay? Don't make a sound."
Adacelia nodded and composed herself. In pain, the sisters creeped back to the house. Miraculously, they both managed to slip into the window. Once in, Myra and Adacelia were still mindful of not waking their parents as they moved stealthily into the kitchen and let big glasses of water cool the agony inside their throats.
"Never again," Adacelia whispered, absolutely traumatized.
"Nuh uh." Myra confirmed, shaking her head.
When the two felt relieved enough to go to bed, Myra looked out of the window from their bedroom. She gasped slightly when she saw the flurry of pinpoint lights blazing over the field.