ShirleyCarlton

Missing you guys all loads already.

Flash Fic 2

So today, at our European Fic Writers' Retreat (@europeanficwritersretreat), we did two super-fun flash fic sessions. For the second one, we used the writing prompt cards from The Story Oracle, thus creating the following prompts:

moving on up guardian great depths secret revealed

Another bit of inspiration was The Mystery of the Yellow Cucumbers we found in the garden, which some people used in the first flash fic and some in their second.

The rules were: try to use at least 3 of the prompts. You have 20 minutes.

Here's what I came up with:

* * * *

"Sherlock?"

"Yes?"

John looked around the garden, baffled. "What are these cucumbers doing out here on the lawn?"

"I don't know."

John, however, could tell by Sherlock's tone that he was lying. "It was an experiment, wasn't it?"

There was a beat of silence.

"No." It sounded like a question.

"Sherlock? Where are the cats?"

"They ran away."

John pinched the bridge of his nose, willing himself to stay calm, and failing. "We were supposed to look after them, you absolute pillock! Mrs Hudson's sister entrusted them to us! How did they even get out of the fence?"

"I thought this was just a holiday," Sherlock pouted.

"It was both!" John yelled. "We look after her cats and get to live in her cottage for a week. It wasn't meant to be complicated!"

Sherlock looked sad and defeated, and John realised he should maybe let him explain what he was even trying to do. Maybe it wasn't as nefarious as usual. "What was the experiment?" he asked, aiming for a mild tone.

"I saw some funny Youtube videos," Sherlock confessed reluctantly. "You told me to relax. Do something fun."

"That's true. And were they relaxing?"

Sherlock seemed to suppress a giggle. "They were extremely amusing."

"Show me."

After Sherlock pulled up his phone, John watched in amazement at the collection of short videos showing cats getting jumpscared by… cucumbers. Each and every one of them seemed to contract all muscles at the same time, thereby launching themselves into the air and into the other direction, away from the cucumbers: moving as high and as far away from them as possible. It seemed as if the cucumbers somehow appealed to a deep-seated fear of the poor creatures.

John knew he should feel sorry for them, but he couldn't help sniggering himself. "That's… actually hilarious."

Then he sobered. "Is this what you did to Mrs Hudsons's sister's cats?"

Sherlock's only answer was to look guilty and not deny it.

"And did it work?" John couldn't resist asking.

"Beautifully," Sherlock smirked.

Flash Fic session 1, Belgium Fic Writers' Retreat

So today, at our European Fic Writers' Retreat (@europeanficwritersretreat), we did two flash fic sessions. And it was so much fun!!

For the first one, we rolled 4 storytelling dice, thus creating the following prompts:

ice cream duck glasses smile

The rules were: try to use at least 3 of the prompts. You have 20 minutes.

Here is my result. :)

* * * *

Sherlock looked at the duck wearily.

John had set him a challenge in order to prevent him from shooting at the walls again.

First, he had dragged him out into Regent's Park and then pointed at the duck in question. "That one," he'd simply said.

"I can't deduce ducks, John."

"You won't know until you try," had been his simple reply.

"I'd rather have an ice cream, now that we're here," Sherlock said, trying not to pout, while wistfully looking over to the ice cream van parked a little further down. Its owner looked possibly even more bored than he himself felt. Sherlock instantly deduced she'd forgotten to charge her phone and therefore had to sit there all day without access to fanfiction. That certainly explained her sour face.

"Know what, I'll buy you an ice cream after you've deduced the personal life and history of that duck," John said, with an eerily amused smile.

"The duck is nearsighted and needs glasses, but can't afford them," Sherlock said primly, just after it clearly startled at another bird's approach.

If John wanted to be an annoying git, so could he.

John, however, burst out into giggles. "God I love you," he said on an amused exhale.

They both froze.

Sherlock wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. Or if he did, whether he should interpret it the way he was now thinking.

Maybe John just meant that they were really good friends?

But then why had John frozen like that? And why was he now staring miserably at his own hands?

Then all the puzzle pieces fell into place.

Sherlock quickly deduced that the best solution to get out of this awkward situation was to turn to John and kiss him.

So he did.

John briefly gasped, but then immediately participated enthusiastically in the exercise.