dancing

Fingertips touching, never leaving, they dance.

Round the circle ringed with stones, embers glowing, wind blowing, they move.

Hair whipping, voices crackling, they sing.

Calling for the flames to grow, fire curling, stars fading, they twirl.

Towering bonfire casting shadows…shifting…

Faces alight, flickering rust and gold…features rearranging…

They are ancient. Forgotten. Lifeless.

They are born. Pulsing. Alive.

On the damp beach, atop the cliff, in the forest, the desert, the mountains, marshes, plains, valleys…

They are everywhere and nowhere. They are here.

Summoned.

To this place. Our home.

Beasts.

Fingertips touching. Dancing on our bones. Frolicking through the ruins.

Flash Fiction Challenge over at Carrot Ranch

November 17, 2016 prompt: Fire – In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story that is told around a campfire. It can be a bonfire, burning trash can, a fire pit, something flaming outdoors. Who is gathered and listening?

She tiptoed around his moods like a drunken ballerina.

Her choreographed steps danced in and out of debris. Delicate footfalls amid the shattered remains of their relationship.

She knew when to pirouette so as not to get cut.

Practiced in the art, she executed jumps and leaps knowing exactly where her feet would land—between scattered bits of betrayal and contempt.

Home was a minefield. In those rare performances when her foot slipped, she set off explosions, creating more rubble, and learning new dance moves.

Faith worked hard, living each day with the beauty of her intricate steps unnoticed.

Flash Fiction Challenge over at Carrot Ranch

November 18, 2015 prompt: Dance – In 99 words (no more, no less) write dance into your story. Twirl your characters round and round or stomp your plot onto the page. Use dance in any way that comes to mind. Be specific or free, tango or disco.