Challenge 1: Red: ronpansy

terrayn in ronpansy_ldws

Challenge 1: Red

Jul 10, 2010 09:29

Prompt: “He liked to observe emotions; they were like red lanterns strung along the dark unknown of another's personality, marking vulnerable points.” - Ayn Rand

Word Count: 150-399 words

Rules:
1. All drabbles must adhere to the WORD LENGTH REQUIREMENTS.
2. Follow the picture or quote prompt or both. They're open to interpretation. :)
3. Do not show your drabbles until the results have been posted. A beta is fine.

Submit drabbles via comment to THIS post by WEDNESDAY before MIDNIGHT (EST). I'll cross off names as I receive them. Please use this header:

(<<keep code but delete these instructions)<br /><b>Author:</b> <br /><b>Title:</b> <br /><b>Rating:</b> <br /><b>Warnings:</b> <br /><br /> PASTE DRABBLE HERE <br /><br /> < /textarea> (remove space between < and / then delete this) <br /><br /> All you need to do is copy/paste this HTML into the comment box. You don't have to do anything differently than you normally would when coding and formatting your drabble. After you hit "submit," your drabble will be in a textbox. <br /><br /> Your comment will ultimately look like this (with the textbox): <br /><br /> <b>Author:</b> <lj user=terrayn><br /><b>Title:</b> Watching<br /><b>Rating:</b> PG-13<br /><b>Warnings:</b> none <br /><br /> You remember the first time you see her. Really see her, not just the facsimile of a sneer and the too-hard stomp of a bully whose voice is a wavering whine and breaks, ever so slightly, every time she calls you Weasel and mars you with words - truths you would give a limb not to be true. They Mark you, not the same way she might be, but smear you with taint she chips off herself and claws into you with <i>Weasel poor blood traitor worthless</i>. And how can you help but answer her? <br /><br /> You let her fester like a sore that you scratch with dirt-encrusted nails-<i>disgusting</i>, she says, lips curled in scorn-and stings and aches and throbs when you don’t. And she is a cold fever, chills that sear and which no amount of smothering, wet warmth from other flower girls who taste wrong can cure, and you’d rather rip out your own spine than admit that it is only for her that you seethe and burn and see. <br /><br /> For her, you are alive with it, unsteady heart pumping vitriol and rage and so much fear, until you forget what <i>it</i> even is. You want to bruise that pale, fragile surface and laugh as you kiss her into the same worm-infested dirt that she’s kicked in your face to besmirch your every triumph, your every accomplishment, your every single solitary thought. And then she will know you are <i>not</i> worthless. <br /><br /> Hate is too trivial a word, too tame for the fear that pistons through you. Because she’s not a liar, not about the important things, and she doesn’t have to be. Not when there are brothers, older and more gallant and better, and friends, smarter and more famous and braver. Never good enough, not even in Gryffindor, <i>bloody stupid House where prancing about half-cocked and ignorant is a virtue</i>, she tells you with scornful eyes. And how can you argue? <br /><br /> But there’s no jutting chin, tenor bravado now. You’ve been waiting for her for hours-Harry’s willing to ignore her, but you want to grind her to dust-and she finally emerges from that slab of stone wall hiding the Room of Requirement, the last refuge for the desperate. She glances furtively left then right and freezes as she catches sight of you, wide-eyed, disbelieving, breathless. <br /><br /> “Thought you could give Harry up then run away like nothing was wrong, did you?” you say, a roar of <i>now finally yes</i> in your ears. “Thought you could send my best friend to die, to make me lose another brother, and there’d be no consequences?” <br /><br /> “What do you want?” she whispers, eyes darting beside you, behind you, afraid. <br /><br /> Your chest caves in with thwarted rage, something crumbling, when you see that you’re too damned late. Where are the taunts and that sneer and familiar spitting disdain? Someone got there first, gouged out all the swagger and condescending bluster, and you want to find them and throttle them, because this-<i>she</i> is meant for <i>you</i>. <br /><br /> “Watch your back,” you say instead and walk away. <br /><br /> But you know and she knows that what you mean is: I’ll be watching you. <br /><br /> 1. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/akashathekitty">akashathekitty</a></strong><br />2. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/bendleshnitz1">bendleshnitz1</a></strong><br />3. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/cassie_black12">cassie_black12</a></strong><br />4. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/kate0404">kate0404</a></strong><br />5. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/leigh_adams">leigh_adams</a></strong><br />6. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/persephone33">persephone33</a></strong><br />7. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/roses_at_sunset">roses_at_sunset</a></strong><br />8. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/scarysnapey">scarysnapey</a></strong><br />9. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/siriusisbest">siriusisbest</a></strong><br />10. <strong class="lj-user"><a href="/read/user/swimnsail">swimnsail</a></strong>
        </div>
    
    
        <p class="item-tags">
            
                <a href="http://m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/tag/prompt">prompt</a>, 
            
                <a href="http://m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/tag/challenge 1">challenge 1</a>, 
            
                <a href="http://m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/tag/round 1">round 1</a>
            
        </p>
    
</div>
            <div
  class=
    "
    ljsale
    ljsale--empty
    
    "

lj0sale="adfox_mobile_content_1"

></div>
            <div class="b-more-button">
                <a class="b-more-button-inner" href="/login?back_uri=http://m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/2750/comments/reply#comments">Leave a comment</a></p>
            </div>
        
    </div>
    
</div>
<div class="paging">
    <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
        <tbody>
            <tr>
                <td class="paging-prev">
                    
                    <a href="http://m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/2389">Previous post</a>
                    
                </td>
                <td class="paging-next">
                    
                    <a href="http://m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/3004">Next post</a>
                    
                </td>
            </tr>
        </tbody>
    </table>
</div>

<div class="to-top">
    <a href="#to-top">
        Up
    </a>
</div>
<div class="footer">
	<div
  class=
    "
    ljsale
    ljsale--empty
    
    "

lj0sale="adfox_mobile_footer"

></div>
	<div class="footer-content">

<table class="footer-layout">
    <tr>
        
            <td>
                <a class="footer-menu-item footer-menu-index" href="//m.livejournal.com/">
                    <span class="footer-menu-item-title">Homepage</span>
                </a>
            </td>
        
        <td>
            <a class="footer-menu-item footer-menu-read" href="//m.livejournal.com/read">
                <span class="footer-menu-item-title">Read journal...</span>
            </a>
        </td>
        <td>
            <a class="footer-menu-item footer-menu-full" href="https://ronpansy_ldws.livejournal.com/2750.html?fullversion=yes">
                <span class="footer-menu-item-title">Full version</span>
            </a>
        </td>
        <td>
            <a class="footer-menu-item footer-menu-help" href="//m.livejournal.com/help">
                <span class="footer-menu-item-title">Help</span>
            </a>
        </td>
        <td>
            
                <a class="footer-menu-item footer-menu-eng" href="//www.livejournal.com/tools/setlang.bml?lang=ru&returnto=//m.livejournal.com/read/user/ronpansy_ldws/2750">
                    <span class="footer-menu-item-title">Русская версия</span>
                </a>
            
        </td>
    </tr>
</table>

<div class="footer-counters">
			
                
                <script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript">
                    (new Image()).src = '//www.tns-counter.ru/V13a***R>' + document.referrer.replace(/\*/g,'%2a') + '*sup_ru/ru/CP1251/tmsec=lj_mob/553068';
                </script>
                <noscript>
                    <img src="//www.tns-counter.ru/V13a****sup_ru/ru/CP1251/tmsec=lj_mob/553068" width="1" height="1" alt="" />
                </noscript>

(function (d, w, c) {

(w[c] = w[c] || []).push(function() {

try {

w.yaCounter27737346 = new Ya.Metrika({id:27737346,

clickmap:true,

trackLinks:true,

accurateTrackBounce:true});

} catch(e) { }

});

var n = d.getElementsByTagName("script")[0],

s = d.createElement("script"),

f = function () { n.parentNode.insertBefore(s, n); };

s.type = "text/javascript";

s.async = true;

s.src = (d.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https:" : "http:") + "//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/yandex-metrica-watch/tag.js";

if (w.opera == "[object Opera]") {

d.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", f, false);

} else { f(); }

})(document, window, "yandex_metrika_callbacks");

</script>

</div>
	</div>
	<div class="footer-copy b-strip">© 1999-2025 LiveJournal, Inc.</div>
</div>

		</div>
	</body>
</html>