"Mistress, we caught a runaway."
The guards threw me to the floor before her. "You may leave us," she said softly. I looked up and saw her there, in the act of dressing, her two handmaidens pulling at her corset, their eyes somehow accusing. "Now, pet, what were you running from?"
I couldn't tell her. I used the lie my mother taught me. "Your beauty was too much for me, mistress. I couldn't breathe."
"All is forgiven," she said, magnanimously yet dismissively, turning away, touching her ring... and suddenly I was alone and in agony, yet with no marks on my body. Nothing must mar the flesh of her handmaidens, but they are punished all the same. My screams are silent but they never stop.
And with that cheerful bit of fiction, we close this week. I couldn't get the accusing stare out of my head whenever I looked at the picture. It's so Rococo and yet intensely dark at the core. Not an easy piece to deal with.
The picture reminded me of a scene in the movie MirrorMask, actually. The dressing and suddenly becoming someone else, the contrast between the sweetness and light of the song and the creepiness... yeah, you might need to see the whole movie to get where I'm coming from, but maybe not. It's a connection I thought I'd share for the benefit of certain people who know who they are.
Or maybe I'm just reading too much into it. Whatever. Flash Fiction Friday is a mirror; when a turkey stares in, no bodhisattva stares out. No, wait, that's Zen. Flash Fiction Friday is more pornographic than Zen is, and that's saying something. I'm not sure what, but something.
17 comments:
Ooooooooooooooh...
Yeah. I liked your take. I liked it a lot.
~Soren
Good lord, you and I must be sharing a brain or something. MirrorMask is one of my favorite films. Neil and Dave are geniuses. That scene always sends chills down my back.
Anyhow, thanks for joining us this week! Always love seeing what you come up with. I can be sure it'll be carefully constructed and rife with meanings. :)
-- PB
Love this picture!!!
"My screams are silent but they never stop." -- Beautiful!
But I'm wondering why you'd ever want to run away. ;) I like your reflection at the end. It is always illuminating each week to see how different people see the same picture.
@Soren: Thanks, but on reading yours, I can't compete.
@PB: I know a lot of people thought that scene stuck out like a sore thumb, but I thought it was delightfully creepy. Any excuse to pimp out MM is a good excuse.
@Kara and Jess: It's a great picture, but give credit to PB for his selection of it; I just follow the crowd.
@Dioneo: Some of us aren't pain sluts, remember? ;) I had a devil of a time working that last line, actually, but I'm pleased with the end result.
I like how you put the fiction in FFF, not just the sexual tension, but a thought that makes us thing twice to understand.
(I finally got my FFF posted, drop by if you'd like.)
Nicely done!
@Advizor: I'm glad I dropped over to your blog because yours was quite nice. And I'm glad that so many people enjoyed my non-sexual take on this one. I admit that having read everyone else's, I'm filled with a real desire to sex things up next time.
@Southern Sage: Thanks! I try.
I always read your stories at least twice, because it seems that they have layers... Little by little the meaning rise to the surface...
Excellent!
A Question:
Is there a sex act you haven't done yet but would like to?
@R: You give me too much credit. I writes what I writes, and you call can sort it out. But I'm glad I inspire, even unintentionally.
@Anon: This post inspired that question? Okay, I can deal. I'll work on an answer and post it at some point soon.
Very enjoyable reading, as usual. ;-)
~CP
Perfectly dark and yet ever so enticing... wonderful as always my dear!
always,
Bilinda
@Myself: "You call can sort it out?" Really? I think you should remove that first C and repent.
@Chocolate Puss: Glad I've lived up to your expectations. "As usual." Gives me a little tingle in my ego ;)
@Bilinda: Somehow I figured you of all readers might enjoy this one. I'm thrilled to be right.
Oh I did love that! my cup of tea!
Writing something a bit harsh is fun, stress release almost as good as sex if you catch it just right. I've got evil stories written that I never share with anyone.
@Fantasia: Always nice to make a cup of tea that people enjoy :)
@Laura: I think this one may have been more of a result of stress than a release from it. If I'm writing evil stories, I tend not to write them with the victim in the first person. And I've frequently found that combining stress-release and sex is the best way to go.
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