Flash Fiction Friday, 2 in 1, Saturday style

Every Monday Dottie over at Tink's Place posts a picture and then on Friday (Flash Fiction Friday) we post a story to go along with the picture. The story has to be about 350 words, give or take. 


(pic has been removed: stairway)

Mortals and Gods

by Blodeuedd

She knew she was pretty, she was not blind. Her mother had always told her not to be so pretty; it was never good to get too much attention so she tried her best. Some saw through it, the nice village boys, but the most important was that those who could hurt her did not. The Lord of the Castle, visiting men who could take any woman they wanted. She was a product of that herself. Her mother had been a beauty, her father had seen something he liked and took it. Now she was just another village bastard.




(woman in a forest)

But one can hide to a certain point and then it does not work anymore. Her mother was pressuring her to marry the butcher’s son, Angus but she did not know and as she turned 17 her life changed. As she was running to the beach in the clothes the Lord’s son had forced upon her she came upon a stairwell and never looked back. She did not want to be a man’s mistress for 1 month and then be cast aside, broken, bruised and with child. So she had run and she tumbled out in a wondrous world. She soon found a house with clothes, she found food and water to drink, but she never saw a living soul. As days went by she grew scared and no longer ventured outside the house. She cursed those damn stairs that put her in this world. She should just have stayed with him, even if her mother suspected him to be her half-brother. No, no that could not be. The days grew long and one day she did nothing else than shout from the rooftop. But no one came.

As spring came around again she did go out. She looked at the funny mushrooms and she searched for signs. But nothing. So she sat down and cried.

“Why do you cry?”

She looked up and saw a man. A funny man dressed in leather and weird green hair.

“I am alone and want to go home,” she whispered and dared not look him in the eye.

“But you asked to be saved, so you are here. In a pocket of my kingdom. Left alone as you asked for.”

Now she looked up and saw those sparkling violet eyes that showed genuine concern and she knew who he was. The God of the Underworld and gods did not understand mortals and he had done everything she had asked for.

“Why?”

He raised an eyebrow

“I do not understand.”

“Why did you save me?”

He just shrugged and smiled. “Because you asked.” He held out a hand and touched her forehead. “There, now no one will touch you. I marked you as mine. They will think we had a dalliance and when you choose to, then take your own man and if you is the one he will take a chance on my wrath.” He winked and she shook her heads. Mortals were not meant to understand gods. The next thing she knew she stood in her mother’s kitchen where her mother was cooking for her little sister. Home at last.

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I wrote about last week's pic too. And what is up with this story? no blood, nothing