pressure points

October 2083 - Stephanie Day is 23, Willow is 1. (Jeremy Nova is 68, Riley Hathe is 34, Justin Kim is 23, Corbin Gray is 33.)

She feels looked after like a child. Her father drives back and forth from the city. He says he's just prepping for the move, but he never seems to be moving anything. Justin calls her almost every day after work, and he and Lily come over when they can. Her Aunt Sophie comes by from across the street. "Oh, honey," she says, frowning at Stephanie's scorched attempt at pork chops. "You should have let me bring you something."

And then there's the real, actual child. Willow. Aunt Sophie scoops her up in her arms. "Oh, isn't she just precious?" she says. "What a doll."

one day, an earthly goddess is born...

October 2083 - Fiona McCullough is 16.

One day, Fiona McCullough, our (not-so) friendly neighborhood Wiccan, finally feels ready to try her hand at some of these things she's been studying. She's been waiting for the moment to feel right. She's a very careful and calculating girl, and she wanted all the pieces in their right places. After all, when one is plotting world domination, laying a perfect groundwork is essential!

bad karma

October 2083 - Chad and Riley Hathe are 34, Liza is 14, Shaun is 6. (Fiona McCullough is 16, Robbie is 13.)

Chad found this one morning, a ratty old vest he used to wear in high school. Yes, high school was fifteen years ago, but it still fits, and it helps him to relive all those long-forgotten days, before children, before marriage. He can hardly remember those days as it is. But his wife is not nearly as amused.

"Oh hell," Riley says, twisting up a scowl at him.

"What," he says. "It still fits. You remember this? I wore it all through high school. It was rad."

"It was not rad, even in high school. You look like a fool."

Behind them, Liza is laughing.

a poem about a freckle

October 2083 - Amelia Bradshaw is 28, Drew Bruty is 27.

* Warnings: NSFW/kids - and unabashed poetics! Soundtrack: "Colorblind," by the Counting Crows. *

She smells like organic lemongrass and ginseng, which leaves her skin soft and milky smooth. Did he know that natural soap is gentler on the skin than even the most moisturizing body washes? No, he didn't know that. But he does now.

She eats zucchini. He ate french fries before he met her, and now he knows that red bell peppers contain more antioxidants than green ones, green tea more flavanoids than bottled beer. She buys fresh fish for its omega-3. Now he knows what omega-3 is - he never knew he needed it, but she insists that he does. He doesn't need to know why, but she'll tell him anyway.

It's not about ideals or glamour. It's science, she tells him. "Because it'll make you live forever," she says. "Or at least a really long time. I want you to live a really long time."

prequel stories #8: reconstructing the founders, part 2

In April of 2006, a group of young college graduates decided to start their brand new lives by settling in a once-quiet little town called Lakeside Heights. Until now, there has been little record of who these people were, apart from a few aged photos and the basic public record of their family tree. This effort is to reconstruct their lives as best we can, through their family who might remember them.

family trees and photoshoots

*the family photoshoots are a work in progress*

The Brant/Harris Family:
(gen 0, 1, 2, 3, 4: includes Fortney, Bradshaw)

The Bradshaw/Riley Family:
(gen 1, 2, 3, 4: includes Gibson, Buchanan, and Kim)

The Nova/Phoenix Family:
(gen 1, 2, 3, 4: includes Collins, Hathe, and Day)

The Ramirez/Shaw Family:
(gen 1, 2, 3, 4:)

idle chatter: a hole in the head

Guess who? Couples edition!

Wouldn't that be a fun game? I'd show you couples, in different clothes and with their faces obscured and you'd have to guess who they were, just from their surroundings and mannerisms.

You all shout, "Yes!"

Well, maybe I'll put one together some day ;) LOL!

No, I'm not that mean. But I do need to finish out this chapter of stories first, so maybe we'll do that in the next chapter break.

You can try to guess who this couple is though. They've both had recent makeovers, so it might be a little tricky. I'll reveal them at the end of this post.

I'm kind of itching to finish this round by the end of September (I know, longest round ever, right?), which I'm aiming to coincide with the completion of my novel, because I'm itching to play FFXIII in my intermission. And you all should know that when I play FF games, I disappear from the conscious world for a solid two months! FFXIII is going to be my prize to myself for finishing the first solid draft of my novel - what more incentive does a girl need than that?

Of course, when I actually sell the damn thing, my prize will be a supercool new gaming computer! :)

prequel stories #8: reconstructing the founders, part 1

In April of 2006, a group of young college graduates decided to start their brand new lives by settling in a once-quiet little town called Lakeside Heights. Until now, there has been little record of who these people were, apart from a few aged photos and the basic public record of their family tree. This effort is to reconstruct their lives as best we can, through their family who might remember them.