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Title: Jack O'Lantern
Prompt: pumpkin
Character: Rose Smith, Michelle
Words: 394
Finished: October 2017
:::
„What's that,“ Rose asked and pointed at the big, glaring orange fruit in the middle of the table.
Michelle smiled. „A pumpkin. It's almost Halloween; I thought it might be fun if we would make a Jack O'Lantern.“
Curious, Rose bent forward when the young woman grabbed the knife and carefully started to cut out the stipe.
„Now it's your turn,“ Michelle said, holding the spoon out to the little girl. „You can hollow out the pumpkin. We will use the pulp for soup later; that's delicious. But the most fun is to crave the face.“
„A face,“ Rose asked, and her eyes sparkled.
„Yeah. A spooky face. Later, we can put a candle in the pumpkin, and the light shining through the eyes and the mouth will cast out ghosts.“
„What kind of ghosts?“
„Every kind of spooky creatures you can imagine in your fantasy.“
Rose smiled and clapped her hands. „That's cool.“
„Yes, it is,“ Michelle agreed. She watched Rose working at the pumpkin lantern, entirely concentrated, strands of her long brown hair falling into her face; now and then, she wet her lips with her tongue.
As she had done ages ago, she had been sitting at the old wooden table in their grandmother's kitchen. A fire was burning in the oven, and her grandma made hot cacao and told her stories. Old stories of long forgotten times. Back then, she thought it would always be like that.
But the Big Death had changed everything. Her grandmother died during the first days of the outbreak. Her parents about two weeks later. Like all adults. Only the children did survive. Fifteen years were gone already. First, she had tried not to think about the past too often. Then, she realized that it was her mission to keep it alive.
Even if the memories sometimes hurt, it was important that the past didn't vanish into the void. Otherwise, children like Rose would never learn about it.
„Michelle? Did I do it right?"
She looked up and smiled about the more funny than spooky face Rose had craved into the pumpkin. "It's perfect, “she reassured her.
Rose beamed at her. „Will you tell me a story?“
„Yeah, sure. What do you think about the story of Jack O'Lantern?“
Prompt: pumpkin
Character: Rose Smith, Michelle
Words: 394
Finished: October 2017
:::
„What's that,“ Rose asked and pointed at the big, glaring orange fruit in the middle of the table.
Michelle smiled. „A pumpkin. It's almost Halloween; I thought it might be fun if we would make a Jack O'Lantern.“
Curious, Rose bent forward when the young woman grabbed the knife and carefully started to cut out the stipe.
„Now it's your turn,“ Michelle said, holding the spoon out to the little girl. „You can hollow out the pumpkin. We will use the pulp for soup later; that's delicious. But the most fun is to crave the face.“
„A face,“ Rose asked, and her eyes sparkled.
„Yeah. A spooky face. Later, we can put a candle in the pumpkin, and the light shining through the eyes and the mouth will cast out ghosts.“
„What kind of ghosts?“
„Every kind of spooky creatures you can imagine in your fantasy.“
Rose smiled and clapped her hands. „That's cool.“
„Yes, it is,“ Michelle agreed. She watched Rose working at the pumpkin lantern, entirely concentrated, strands of her long brown hair falling into her face; now and then, she wet her lips with her tongue.
As she had done ages ago, she had been sitting at the old wooden table in their grandmother's kitchen. A fire was burning in the oven, and her grandma made hot cacao and told her stories. Old stories of long forgotten times. Back then, she thought it would always be like that.
But the Big Death had changed everything. Her grandmother died during the first days of the outbreak. Her parents about two weeks later. Like all adults. Only the children did survive. Fifteen years were gone already. First, she had tried not to think about the past too often. Then, she realized that it was her mission to keep it alive.
Even if the memories sometimes hurt, it was important that the past didn't vanish into the void. Otherwise, children like Rose would never learn about it.
„Michelle? Did I do it right?"
She looked up and smiled about the more funny than spooky face Rose had craved into the pumpkin. "It's perfect, “she reassured her.
Rose beamed at her. „Will you tell me a story?“
„Yeah, sure. What do you think about the story of Jack O'Lantern?“