Fresh Start

The Boy Who Never Was Part 1 of 3

Robert looked at the beautiful young girl in the mirror. She was wearing a sleek red silk dress with Asian emblems on it, held on her slender form by spaghetti straps. Her modest breasts barely registered to the casual eye but the vivid red lipstick enhanced her mouth and the smoky eye makeup she had expertly applied gave her face a striking beauty and her long black hair that descended over her shoulders framed her beautifully, The dress ended mid thigh and then her slim legs showed down to the bright red 4 inch heeled shoes she balanced casually on.

Buyer's Remorse - Chapters 3 - 4


The Man in Red

Buyer’s Remorse Chapters 3 - 4

by Maeryn Lamonte
Copyright © 2023

The new life isn't quite what he anticipated. He'd asked to be similar age, similar intelligence, same culture, not unattractive, and he'd been given all those things, after a fashion. What he hadn't counted on was being married to a fat, lazy and abusive husband with a couple of troubled pre-teen sons.

It wasn't the life she'd wanted, but was better than nothing?

The Faerie Blade: Chapter 21

Faerie Blade.png

 

Chapter 21: Kaelyn in the Catacombs

Kaelyn was just trying to fill her belly, but she got a lot more than she bargained for when she decided to save the life of a Faerie.

 

“The sister of spirit and steel,” I gasped; the words so quiet that it seemed Vesha had not heard them, even in the current eerie silence of the catacombs.

Voyager Chapter 1

IMG-20240212-WA0000.jpg

This story is set in the world of The First Mother and relies on that story for context. If you haven't, please read that one first. Click here.

It was quarter to three in the afternoon and my worst fears had just come true. I was sitting outside the pharmacy where Mr. Benson had just given me the bad news.

Binding Resolutions Chapter 4.5 Interlude 1: Casting Call

**Trigger Warning: Explicit Content**

Dear reader, if you've followed us through the journey of this series, please be aware that just like its previous parts, this vignette unfolds with vivid and explicit storytelling. Your boundaries are valued and respected. Therefore I warmly encourage you to listen to your feelings and prioritize your well-being when choosing to engage with this content.

For those who find solace and excitement within my work, you are all invited to this casting call.

Change of Fate 2 (Selection)

Author's note. I have rewritten my previous chapters. This is the second chapter after the prelude, then it moves on to daily routine. hope you enjoy the story.

In the heart of the city-state of Carolina, the selection station loomed as a beacon of both hope and trepidation for those who entered its gates. On a fateful day, Alex, accompanied by his younger sister Lily, embarked on a journey that would alter the course of their lives. The air crackled with uncertainty as they approached the entrance, the color of their jumpsuits determining their societal roles.

The Faerie Blade: Chapter 20

Faerie Blade.png

 

Chapter 20: Kaelyn and the Ruins

Kaelyn was just trying to fill her belly, but she got a lot more than she bargained for when she decided to save the life of a Faerie.

 

“Torr’s hairy balls!” she cursed in response, a frown darkening her face. “It looks like we’re not going to get through this trial without some sort of fight. Can you tell how close and how many?”

Freedom of Naethari: Chapter 18

Naethari2.png

 

Chapter 18: Enemy or Ally?

Naiya and her fellow Naethari have killed Edward Pierce and gained their freedom, but there are others who want the Naethari for their own ends. Can they keep their hard-won freedom?

 

For a long moment, she stood there frozen, as if her mind was trying to process what she had just seen. When her voice finally returned with a squeak, her reply was more of a question. “Danica Holmes?”

The Voyage of the Visund -85-

As the camp at Hamalbek settles down Ursula finds her time being taken by the two men still with fever. One has begun recovery but what ails the other may not be what the healers have assumed.

grakh on parchment

The Voyage of the Visund

A tale of Anmar by Penny Lane

85 - Camp Hamalbek

Arctic Fox Book 3: Pursuit of the Dream - Chapter 32

The Arctic Fox 3.jpg

Cover photo by Jonatan Pie. Downloaded from Unsplash

Marcia is seventeen, and along with Darryl, has moved south in Alaska to attend the Anchorage campus of the Alaska State University. She wants to pursue her dream, but will it pursue her instead?

Mike, Gloria, and Heater were once again on the patio. They’d just had some breakfast, and the three were watching the airplanes as they took off and landed on the lake.

Suddenly, Mike’s phone rang and he answered it.

Hi, Mike,” came the voice of Ron Fraser.

Mike excused himself and went into his office and shut the door. Ron’s voice hadn’t been as upbeat as it usually was.

What’s up, Ron?” Mike asked.

The Long Route Home

For Madison Sander, the path home is not a straight one, nor is it always a happy one, but there's always room for friendship, family, love and hope.
Note: The CW is related to the first scene only.

The Long Route Home
By Marissa Lynn

Prologue

"You ready, Emily?"

"Yeah. I've been slowly having Cecily take a few things while he's been out. Everything else is in the trunk."

"Great. Get in. She should be waiting for us."

Snow Angel: Chapter 45

snow angel.png

 

Chapter 45: New Blood

Snow's whole life changes when the winter solstice arrives.

 

“You Angels really made an impression in yesterday’s battle,” Desra offered conversationally as she led us once again through the large and confusing city.

One Last Hail Mary

Author's Note: My muse took me to a heavier place here, but it's a story of survival and, ultimately, hope.

One Last Hail Mary
By Marissa Lynn

Even with nobody sitting next to him, it was impossible for Mark Tyler to twist his body into a position to sleep.

Snookered

This is a story about a trans snooker player.

snook.jpg

As I bent over, lining my cue with the white ball, my mind was in turmoil. What should I do? The cue felt like an extension of my arm. It was a Peradon. I remember back to the hell my mother kicked up when my father brought it home. He showed me and we stared in awe at it. It was as if he had shown me Excaliber itself.

Arctic Fox Book 3: Pursuit of the Dream - Chapter 31

The Arctic Fox 3.jpg

Cover photo by Jonatan Pie. Downloaded from Unsplash

Marcia is seventeen, and along with Darryl, has moved south in Alaska to attend the Anchorage campus of the Alaska State University. She wants to pursue her dream, but will it pursue her instead?

Marcia woke with a start. She'd heard something in her sleep which didn't come from the engines or the gentle rocking of the “Blue Canoe.”

It came from the other bed in the room. She lay quietly again for a few moments until she heard another sniff. It didn't seem like the product of a cold or allergies. This sounded like someone hurting. She debated for a few minutes, wondering if she should just let Heather cry it out. When she heard the multiple exhalations of a weep, however, her compassion took over.

Cookie's Resolve

bailey-alexander-UsIH5HIHvbE-unsplash.jpg https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-people-on-horses-herding-cattle-i...

Thanks to Malady for going through this after I spent a sleepless night writing this one.


I’m really not sure why I did it, but I was young at the time.

I rode into town after being paid. We all did. Anyone who spent so much time on the trail had a tendency to want some time in the company of the opposite sex.

And, while you were waiting for said company, you might as well loosen up a bit. Most of the brothels were upstairs of a saloon, so it was only natural to spend some time in both areas.

I was generally known as Cookie, which was not a problem as I did the cooking for our boys.

I’m a little older than most of them, except the trail boss who’s known only as Stumpy. It’s kinda strange, him being the boss, as somewhere in the past he’d lost his right leg. The legend is he had a run-in with a rattlesnake at some point. Nobody seems to know the true story but him and one other person, and Stumpy isn’t telling anyone who that is.

Stupid me, I’m not great at telling stories. I kinda get things out of order in the way I tell them.

Let’s go back to that time back when Austin was Boss.

What is truth?

tingey-injury-law-firm-L4YGuSg0fxs-unsplash.jpg


As is usual in my stories, I'd like to thank Malady for his help in editing and ideas.

I'd also like to thank Melanie in helping me get this posted!


Verity sat on her recliner, her feet up slightly. She lived alone ever since her parents had died two years before. She had a brother. Well, a half-brother, but she had neither seen nor spoken to him since her parents died.

As was usual, she was lonely, especially on this day, as it was Christmas Eve. She got up and went to the kitchen, poured herself a cup of coffee, and instead of creamer, she poured a bit of eggnog in with the brew. She considered something stronger, but even though only she would know, she wasn’t yet of the legal drinking age, and it wasn’t like she had any alcohol on hand.

She put the nog back in her fridge, then returned to her recliner.

She lived in an apartment that wasn’t lavish by any means. She needed to save as much money as she could, so whatever was left each month after basic necessities was put into a savings account. Once it was large enough, it would fund her needed surgery.

As she sipped the coffee, she thought about the events that had brought her to the present. Her mother had played around a lot in high school and she kept it up as she went to college. She had been the stereotypical proud cheerleader, who felt no one but the football team was worth her time.

Usually.

The Christmas Wish

Spencer walks around the mall with his friends. Only Jason and Greg knew his secret: He wished he was a girl instead of a boy. They caught him one day wearing a pair of panties and pantyhose to school. His parents didn’t even know he wished he was born a girl. They just thought he liked dressing up as a girl. For Halloween, he dressed up as a sexy anime girl from one of his favorite anime shows.

Love Never Dies

Love Never Dies by Jenny Walker


ONE

31 December 2023

The moment Becky Stirling heard the voices in the distance, there were two things she instantly knew. Firstly, that she recognized the voices, which may have seemed strange as she had never actually heard them before. Secondly, she realized she had to leave. Immediately.

The Faerie Blade: Chapter 19

Faerie Blade.png

 

Chapter 19: Kaelyn at the Crossroads

Kaelyn was just trying to fill her belly, but she got a lot more than she bargained for when she decided to save the life of a Faerie.

 

She shrugged my arm off as she looked vacantly down at her meal. “Then how come I’m not ready for the second dance?”

Freedom of Naethari: Chapter 17

Naethari2.png

 

Chapter 17: Uninvited Guest

Naiya and her fellow Naethari have killed Edward Pierce and gained their freedom, but there are others who want the Naethari for their own ends. Can they keep their hard-won freedom?

 

“Everyone, get armed and prepared to defend yourselves. One of us will go check it out in case there’s a strike team out there,” Dad ordered as he quickly took charge.

With Every Heartbeat

I was the kid who had one job on the team: kick the field goals. Through two seasons of football, I had a record of 12/1 and missed breaking the state record for longest field goal on the one I missed by inches. The one I missed, the kick had the leg; it just veered right. Neither the miss nor the loss that night came as a surprise to anyone.

My nickname of ‘Mr. Automatic’ died that night last year, which was bound to happen at some point, so it wasn’t heartbreaking or anything like that—yet.

Zuleika

“.”

“?”

“!”

“What am I?”

“You are a full stop I have just typed on this piece of paper.”

“Is that all I am?”

“For the moment, until I decide what you will be.”

“I think you will be an eighteen year old girl.”

“I still feel like a dot on your piece of paper although my experience is limited to being a dot, I suppose.”

“Yes, you are, but you are so much more in my head.”

“So am I also in your head?”

“Yes. How am I speaking to you?”

Image Resolution

Image Resolution
By Daring Diane

Rene Auclair stared at the card.

The last two years were difficult. The pandemic triggered a new business model for the company. Working from home, there is little work related human interaction. Some enjoy these changes. For me, having replaced Darren Rogers as Networking Director in the middle of the pandemic has been hard. I’ve never met in person with some of my subordinates.

Living Your Life

Constance listens to the music as she dances across the room. She loved old disco music and music from the seventies. Sure, she had her favorites of today’s modern-day music, but she also liked the old-style music. She dances in time to the music as it plays.

When the current selection of music stops playing, she stops and wipes her face. She takes a sip from her water bottle and replays the recording of her dancing. She watches herself as she dances to the music. A smile appears as she edits it and posts it to her YouTube channel.

Lost and Found

Lost and Found

“At your age how do you avoid the social services and the schools people?”

“Mostly by hanging with adults, like you. If they see me with a grown up they go to bother someone else. That woman over there is one of them. That’s why I decided to talk to you.”

“How did you know I was safe? I could have been a child molester or anything.”

“Naw. I’m good at weighing people up. You’re a veteran with PTSD. I’ve met hundreds like you on the streets. Nice men who gave everything they had to the government and then got threwn away on the garbage heap.”

The Simple Life

Simple.jpg

Photo by Mikhail Nilov: https://www.pexels.

Remember back in middle school, when you had to take English? Maybe you don't, having mercifully forgotten the torture of middle school. Even though middle school was not something I really wanted to enshrine in my book of memories, I do remember Mrs Gore's English Class. A very appropriate name, Gore, as most of us felt we had been slashed to bloody ribbons by the end of the class.

A New Year's Transformation

IMG-20240104-WA0001.jpg

"I can't believe we struck out again" Ezra said while keeping his eyes on the road.

"Speak for yourself dude, I wasn't searching" I replied before turning to look out the window.

It was dark out now so I couldn't see very far but there was nothing to see anyway. It would just be more empty fields on either side of the road. It had been empty fields for the past 20 minutes and so it would remain for the next half hour.

Pretend Princess - Chapter 8

IMG-20231212-WA0000.jpg

The worst part? Sophia didn't actually tell me what she wanted me to to do for the money.

"When the time comes, you'll know"

That was what she had said. What the hell did that mean? Would it be today? Tomorrow? Next week? I wished I could just get it over with, claim the money and sign out today.

Wet Weather Companion Part 2

Wet Weather Companion Part 2

This is the second part of my story and deals with my usual niche rainwear fetish. If this is not to your taste, read no further.

Lily holds James to his offer to help sell Dorothy's raincoats in an unusual way which may or may not delight James. Then unexpected visitors arrive ....

Macked!

Lily decided to try her wiles with James' inhibitions lowered by being unused to alcohol.

Pages

Subscribe to Fresh Start