Missing Treasure (178 words)
“No no, it was here. I’m sure it was here.”
The pirate crew exchanged uneasy glances. Mr. Steamroller held up the map for another scientific study, the latitudes, longitudes, significant markings and conclusive X. Yes, the treasure should have been here. It wasn’t, and that was final, too.
“Someone must’ve got here before us,” said the old salt. “We’re too late.”
Goblin Summer Song (69 Words)
God is singing in the summer
Rolling out the leaves of green
Straightening the little weedlings
And spreading every songbird’s wing.
A Dream of Light (99 words)
He lit the candle and the golden glow, even half-shadowed, was immediate. It overwhelmed the light from the Aasfresser’s lamp.
“I’ve seen candles,” said the girl.
Story Time (99 Words)
“Were you ’fraid, Tilly?” Noel sounded as tiny as he was, looking up into Mr. Caddy’s face with the wide open eyes of a six-year-old.
“Wisht, no,” said Mr. Caddy. He challenged his audience with mischievous eyes. “D’ye know why I wasn’t afraid? Well I’ll tell you. I knew, sure I knew, that Hattie would save me.”
Sniffkins and Sandwiches (360 words)
—Do you know what those stones are? Why, they could be anything. Sentinels over a sacred place, forgotten long before the world remembers to forget you. They could be the guardians of some terrible or great secret. Or perhaps—they are the standing graves of the chieftains who have gone before us, kings and queens rotting under the earth—
“Now you’re being morbid,” said Molls wearily. She sat down next to one of the stones, letting her back rest. “We’re never going to find my sister or the others, not in this mist.”
The Singing (99 Words)
She liked to listen to them sing. The myyr always sang when the moon first showed its pale silver light over the Sleepless Sea. The little girl would sit on the pier, swinging her bare feet, and look out over the still black water.
Inith (1000 Words)
She stepped into the water. He rose to her, lifting from the deep, his long black hair clinging to his bare neck and shoulders. In the shallow water where she stood he turned on his back, unable to balance himself with the weight and length of his tail. His playfulness made Pat laugh. She knelt down and felt the warm water gather up to her chest. She reached out as Inith turned to go, and caught his hand.
The merman’s free arm braced in the sand. The fin at the back of his tail only just cleared the water. His eyes went to hers.
“Well, chi-uiris,” he said. “What are you going to do with me, now that you’ve caught me?”
