Laura's Fables
Little thing I've been working on for my poetry and fiction class:
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The Swallow and His Lover
A certain swallow once made a nest for its mate. The nest was quite unsteady, threatening to fall, and the mate wanted to fix it with him. “But its fine the way it is. Don’t you love me?” “Well, yes.” And so the mate moved in, trying to love the house. Months went by and there was no peace in the nest. The fights grew worse and worse until the mate could no longer contain himself. “Alright, fine,” he screamed. “Everybody else is wrong and you were born perfect. Fine. Be ‘yourself,’ be fucking Peter Pan. I don’t care. I’m leaving.” He slammed the door. The house shook apart and fell to the ground.
A stitch in time saves nine.
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The Very Ugly Duckling
There was once a very ugly duckling. He was awkward and most of the other ducklings thought he was a total dork. He had one good friend and she thought he was fun. They played together constantly. One summer, while they were at different camps, the ugly duckling became a swan. When everyone came back to the pond that fall, the swan only wanted to hang out with other swans. He pretending he didn’t know his duckling friend when she tried to say hello. A couple years went by and the swan wanted to hook up with the duck. She told him he was an asshole. So he raped her.
Know your place.
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A Long Fall
One morning a pigeon hatched from his egg and found the world to be quite bright and bold and unexpected. In his shock, he fell from the nest. Down, down, down went the little bird, with nothing but wet, new feathers to slow the fall. He smashed down on the pavement, breaking hollow bone and soft tissue. But the pigeon did not die. Outside the window of the diner, children gathered to laugh and screech in mock horror. Pointing, with wide eyes and half repressed grins, they dared one another. Finally, a child stepped forward and kicked it. The pigeon died. The children dispersed. The people in the diner ate their breakfasts. The pedestrians outside stepped carefully around the body.
Be prepared.
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Birth of a Chimera
At school one day, a praying mantis and a cat fell in love. The tryst became a mad passion, full of hurried lovemaking in computer labs and unused bathrooms. Still, the cat worried about the outcome of their little experiments. When a child began to grow in the her womb, the cat flew into a rage and killed the mantis. But when the baby finally did come, it was a beautiful crazy thing with soft fur and crystal wings and no one in the world loved it as she did. Last week my uncle shot it and stuffed it and mounted it on our wall. I think it is most beautiful in the morning when its wings glow in the clear blue light.
To every thing there is a season.
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The Bobcat
A bobcat glanced at me today. We waited for the train in the close air, a child moaning a little ditty, the patter of foreign voices. I thought about smiling (he was a stunning creature), but I looked away. He attacked, gracefully clenching his teeth around my left arm. The red gloss spilled out and I touched his face, feeling the warm, pale skin. After a moment he let go and the train arrived.
Leave an empty seat between strangers whenever possible.
------------------------------------------
The Swallow and His Lover
A certain swallow once made a nest for its mate. The nest was quite unsteady, threatening to fall, and the mate wanted to fix it with him. “But its fine the way it is. Don’t you love me?” “Well, yes.” And so the mate moved in, trying to love the house. Months went by and there was no peace in the nest. The fights grew worse and worse until the mate could no longer contain himself. “Alright, fine,” he screamed. “Everybody else is wrong and you were born perfect. Fine. Be ‘yourself,’ be fucking Peter Pan. I don’t care. I’m leaving.” He slammed the door. The house shook apart and fell to the ground.
A stitch in time saves nine.
-----------------------------------------
The Very Ugly Duckling
There was once a very ugly duckling. He was awkward and most of the other ducklings thought he was a total dork. He had one good friend and she thought he was fun. They played together constantly. One summer, while they were at different camps, the ugly duckling became a swan. When everyone came back to the pond that fall, the swan only wanted to hang out with other swans. He pretending he didn’t know his duckling friend when she tried to say hello. A couple years went by and the swan wanted to hook up with the duck. She told him he was an asshole. So he raped her.
Know your place.
------------------------------------------
A Long Fall
One morning a pigeon hatched from his egg and found the world to be quite bright and bold and unexpected. In his shock, he fell from the nest. Down, down, down went the little bird, with nothing but wet, new feathers to slow the fall. He smashed down on the pavement, breaking hollow bone and soft tissue. But the pigeon did not die. Outside the window of the diner, children gathered to laugh and screech in mock horror. Pointing, with wide eyes and half repressed grins, they dared one another. Finally, a child stepped forward and kicked it. The pigeon died. The children dispersed. The people in the diner ate their breakfasts. The pedestrians outside stepped carefully around the body.
Be prepared.
-----------------------------------------
Birth of a Chimera
At school one day, a praying mantis and a cat fell in love. The tryst became a mad passion, full of hurried lovemaking in computer labs and unused bathrooms. Still, the cat worried about the outcome of their little experiments. When a child began to grow in the her womb, the cat flew into a rage and killed the mantis. But when the baby finally did come, it was a beautiful crazy thing with soft fur and crystal wings and no one in the world loved it as she did. Last week my uncle shot it and stuffed it and mounted it on our wall. I think it is most beautiful in the morning when its wings glow in the clear blue light.
To every thing there is a season.
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The Bobcat
A bobcat glanced at me today. We waited for the train in the close air, a child moaning a little ditty, the patter of foreign voices. I thought about smiling (he was a stunning creature), but I looked away. He attacked, gracefully clenching his teeth around my left arm. The red gloss spilled out and I touched his face, feeling the warm, pale skin. After a moment he let go and the train arrived.
Leave an empty seat between strangers whenever possible.