7. Flash Fiction: Rest
Emily Barnett hosts a flash fiction challenge on Instagram every Friday. (Flash fiction, for those of you who don’t know, is a type of fiction that is very short, usually no more than a few hundred words.) I’m sharing my contributions on my blog for those who don’t follow me on Insta. Use the button at the bottom of this post to sign up and get any new blog posts straight to your inbox.
Lamplight flickered through the trees ahead. The need for sleep fogged his brain, but shadows here moved strangely in the dark, and he stared at the golden gleam as if it would keep him awake—and alive.
The old man’s words echoed in his ears: “These woods will try to take ye, boy. Nah, the curse don’t need no beasts—not if you sleep or step off the path.” He’d cackled once and twisted to glance at the glowering trees beyond his home. “They say there’s safety in the heart. Warm fires and good drink. Make it there and ye’ll have help the rest o’ the way.” He rolled his shoulders in a shrug. “Ain’t none here found it, though.”
The boy rolled his own shoulders now in the dark, ignoring the weariness that weighted his limbs. His eyes blurred. When had he last slept? Uncurling a hand from his belt, he rubbed the heel of his palm into one eye and then the other, trying desperately to keep the flickering lamp in view. An earthy scent of moss and leaves drifted round him, bringing dreams of curling up in a soft cocoon until dawn broke outside—
Light flared dead ahead, blazing through the woods as if through an opened door. Startled, he froze at the edge of the path, the clatter of crockery teasing his ears.
He blinked.
The light held steady.
Ignoring the shadows closing in, he leaped forward, boots pounding leaves to dust. Rustling trees fell back as he burst into a clearing and staggered into a stone wall, his golden beacon flickering through it in a square of mullioned glass. A woman held a door open nearby, her hair gleaming pale in the light.
She smiled. “Welcome and well met. Not many make it this far. Will you join us tonight?”
He rubbed his eyes again. “Will I find the path in the morning?”
Firelight danced across the swoop of her pointed ears as she nodded. “The curse holds no power here, and all who enter will find aid after.”
“What will I find until then?”
“Food and rest.” Her eyes twinkled. “Though…perhaps not in that order.”
Rest.
The boy nodded, yawned, and stumbled past her into the light.