The glow of the television bathed the living room in a soft, blue light that danced across the walls as the movie played. The volume was set low, just loud enough to hear, to avoid disturbing those who

Note: Another long post today! I wanted to use two prompts in this one and then found myself writing more and more. I enjoyed writing this little snippet of mystery and hope you all enjoy it as well! :-)

Note: I didn't bother with a timer today, so this post is a bit longer than usual. After being away from Steemit (and writing) for so long, I just wanted to write and I'm quite happy with the resulting

Rau crept to the edge of the entryway and peered through into the dimly lit room. The floor appeared to be made of flat, grey stone and the walls were covered in dozens of tapestries of various sizes,

Carolyn stared at the fluffy, pink-hued sweater lying on her bedspread. The sweater had been a gift, from whom she could no longer remember, and had lived at the back of her closet for just over a decade.

"The name's Vincent, by the way," the man said, leading the couple to one of the tunnels on the opposite side of the room. "I'm one 'o the ones who started this little slice of paradise."

"One of the Dark Ones led us this way from the alley," Justin said, eyeing the man carefully. "We've been trying to find shelter and had hoped to be allowed into the old church." The

Serenity and Justin followed the water, stepping carefully to avoid slipping on the wet stone walkway. The tunnel sloped gently downward and curved to the left, making it impossible to see where the canal

Serenity zipped up her rucksack and slipped it onto her back. The vitamins were a lucky find and would, no doubt, prove invaluable in the coming months. She and Justin were living off of what little they

Serenity wasn't certain how far down they had gone, but it was pitch black when they finally reached the bottom of the stone steps. The delicious smell of fried food was much more intense, now, and her

As Justin cautiously led them toward the doorway, Serenity could feel her pulse quicken. She had never seen one of the Dark Ones interact with humans before. They ambled aimlessly through the world each

The cool night air helped to ease the tension in Serenity's muscles. She and Justin had been traveling for weeks, now, and she was nearing her limits. The close calls, the terror, and the lack of food

Serenity crouched in the corner of the old kitchen, her muscles tense as she tightly gripped the razor-sharp cleaver and watched for intruders. Her husband crouched nearby, a knife in each hand, and kept

Emily unlocked the door to her tiny studio apartment, then swung the door open and was greeted by an excited meow. She smiled and crouched, giving the bobtailed cat a scratch before setting down her tote

"My mother was doing that thing she did. That thing with the rag in the sink." "What thing?" Christie finally looked up from her phone and frowned in confusion. So she had been listening.

"Ms. Grey, this town was established here because there aren't any magical spills left over from The Collapse. So unless you plan on importing rodents that have been tainted by magic, I'll stick to

"Ms. Grey, it was never my intention to imply you weren't human," he said, his tone a little softer. "But history doesn't lie, either. I've seen a lot of suffering, we all have, and we're

Alexandra watched as the crowd of potential customers quickly dispersed. It seemed the sheriff's presence was enough to halt any potential business in this town. "Mr. Clayton, your council independently

The sheriff was clearly unhappy with her response and it showed. Alexandra did her best not to wilt under his hard glare. She kept a pleasant smile in place and maintained eye contact, waiting for him

Alexandra smiled as she watched the crowd of people picking through the tables of items for sale. She hadn't been sure that there would be much of a turnout, given how the community had reacted to her