#fff164

[enchanted-lightning-aes]

Feeble Diversion

A/N: a short that’s slightly based on Leverage bc I’ve been watching it, lmao. just a team member, who’s struggling to be a grifter, lmao, for @flashfictionfridayofficial​.

Word Count: 708

TW: None

***

"That's right. . . I stole the art piece!" someone yells, standing behind a podium.

It results in gasps from a crowd at the room as they regard the woman with wide eyes. She stands tall, her chin up, and dabs her eyes with tissue. Someone overfills a glass of wine, letting it spill across a table. A guest drops their plate onto a table, their jaw slacking.

"Is this true?" a guest asks, raising their brows. "What do you. . . what do you mean by that?"

"As in, I'm the person behind the theft of Van Gogh's starry night," Merianne answers with a flourish. "It is I, who's responsible for a heinous crime such as that!"

Never once in her life did she commit a crime. Well, maybe she had stolen a free sample twice that one time. . . Other than that, she's mostly a decent citizen without any record of thievery. She's more of a skilled hitter than a grifter. She can punch someone on the air than lie to them.

"Pfft, you? Steal?" Another guest clicks their tongue, evidently dubious. "Now everyone, please, calm down. I'm sure this woman must have drank a lot of bubbly champagne. Nothing to fear, anyone, there's no thieves in this exhibition. We've got top security that's unbreakable."

Not really, Merianne thinks, keeping her hands behind her back. Her accomplice, Liena, managed to sneak into their storage. She intercepted their systems and deactivated them. However, she's taking a bit too longer than she'd like.

That's the problem with Liena: she couldn't resist an opportunity to work on her skills.

So, she taps into her ear piece to check on her.

"Faster! I don't think I can keep lying for too long," Merianne mutters.

"Just stall a little longer," Liena replies, getting the envelope from a container. "It's not easy breaking into a secured room, ya know?"

"Ugh!" Merianne sighs, sounding like she's probably shaking her head. "You should have signed someone else up for this!"

"Well, it's not as if I had anyone else willing to play the part. Besides. . . they're distracted by your drama, it's what's more important."

"Hey, I don't want to land in prison for a false confession."

"And you won't, don't worry."

With an inward grumble, she turns her ear piece off. Fine, she can probably wait for this to be over. However, Liena should have known better than to assign her as a grifter. She can barely swindle anyone into sharing their financial information with her. She's only good with taking them out. Or hiding the body.

Not with the talking and all those words, and bleh. It's more of a former teammate's thing, who had to take a break for secretive reasons.

Just give her a baseball bat and she'd whack everyone in this room unconscious within ten minutes.

"But I stole it," Merianne insists again.

"Can you please shut up?" another guest asks, glaring at her. "Some of us don't wanna deal with your issues."

"If you stole it, do you have proof you did?"

"Pfft, you're just talking utter non-sense."

"That's the wine talking, probably."

Merianne furrows her brows. Hey, she had to work hard on planning this deception. She's supposed to play a part of a businesswoman then felt she couldn't pull it off. She's only a random guest, who somehow got access to this exhibition.

With pricey paintings and valuable statues galore.

She had to fail her part of the heist this badly, huh? Still, her babbling managed to serve as a distraction, so. . . not a total failure, at least.

It doesn't mean that she's not sour about this, though.

Merianne slumps into her seat, fuming.

Once the exhibition's over, the museum curator informs them to go. Merianne clutches on her small wallet, stomping out. She makes it to a parking lot, where she spots a beloved van parked.

When she opens a door, Liena shows up with a case in hand.

Liena snorts. "See? Told you that you can pull this grifting thing off."

Merianne crosses her arms and pouts. "Next time, you try doing this grifting stuff. I'm not gonna do this again."

"Deal," Liena replies, hopping onto a seat. "On your next job, you get to be my getaway driver instead."

***

[renee-writer]

Family Is

Family is

Those that show up

Those that are there

Blood or not

They are

Those that make time

It isn’t

A false confession

A claim of blood

That makes deeds unnecessary

For

Those that are in need

In trouble

Sick and injured

It doesn’t matter

If you share their name

If you show up

If you are there

Your family

A friend bringing a smile

A partner brushing out matted hair

A roommate walking

In pain

To be by your side

That is family

It is who you can count on

When your world is

In chaos

That is what family is.

[on-noon]

Betrayal & Loyalty

words: 286

inspired by @flashfictionfridayofficial prompt "false confession"

I make my way to the dungeon. The guests let me through the portal, with no questions. In the prison, I ask the head guard if I can talk to the assassins. 

“I need to find out how they made a portal into the palace,” I say. 

“They haven’t revealed anything yet.” She leads me to a cell, then leaves. 

I take a breath. “Next time someone interrogates you, tell them I was in charge. I, Rakad, Sorcerer of the King made the portal, and hired you.”

“Why?”

“Surely they’ve promised you something, if you say who was in charge. They won’t punish your family, they’ll let you live. I’ll confess.”

I say the same thing to the other assassin, then I leave the prison and go to the advisor who’s investigating. 

“Rakad. Do you have any leads? I haven’t found anything.”

“I did it. It was my plan. I wanted Larath assassinated,” I say. 

“Guards!” he shouts. “I’ll have to take you to the prison now. That would fit, wouldn’t it. The portal, you didn’t kill any assassins.”

The guards lead me to the prison, eventually they get a sorcerer to join. I don’t try to escape. They lock me into the most secure cell, almost impossible to melt. 

Larath runs to my cell, guards behind him. “What do they mean you confessed?”

“I did. I organized the assignation attempt”

“Everyone leave!” Larath says. 

“Your Highness, he tried to kill you.”

Larath waved his hand, and just us remain. 

“Why would you say that? Everyone knows you wouldn’t ever kill me.” Larath says. 

“Zadaf said now that I learned time magic only one of us could live. And I swore an oath to protect you.”

[junypr-camus]

Traitor

The truth... and then a lie (a little backwards, isn't it?)

I've been meaning to write this scene for a while. It takes place before the events of Seranid, during Ethan's Resistance. Thanks to @flashfictionfridayofficial for the prompt! It fit perfectly.

Ethan tiptoed home, his heart in his throat.

Today was the day. Today he’d come clean.

And she’d be ok with it, wouldn’t she? Surely after everything, after the years together, after the child that would soon be born — surely she’d understand. 

So what if Camus didn’t agree? That old man couldn’t read his wife’s heart better than he could, could he?

Vivienne was in the kitchen, tasting the chicken soup. Ethan wrapped his arms around her waist, feeling the bump that held new life. Terry, they had agreed. The child would be Terry Silver.

Vivienne giggled, dropping the spoon on the counter and smiling up at him. He met those deep chocolate eyes with the warmest smile he could muster. Camus had warned him that they might not be the same after, and he found himself trying to memorize the love that look held.

“Sweetheart, there’s something you should know.”

“Something I didn’t know already? That’s new.”

“Yes, something big. I’m part of a Resistance. We’re planning to build our own government.”

“You want to overthrow Seranid’s government and install your own?”

“Yes.”

She threw her head back and let her laughter roll out. “Oh that’s a good one. I almost believed you for a second.

“I’m not joking.”

She freed herself from his embrace, facing him straight-on. Only the hum of the kitchen fan interrupted the silence. 

“You’re… you’re one of them. A rebel. A traitor.”

“I guess I am.”

“No. I can’t. I refuse — how long have you been doing this?”

“Years.”

“And you’re only telling me now.”

“I… I didn’t think you’d agree.”

“Why? Why would you try to overthrow the government? They save millions. That’s what they’ve said.”

“Do you trust them? They kill millions.”

“I trust them. And because I trust them, I’m going to report you.” She reached for the phone. “I’m sorry, but it’s for your own good. For their good.” She placed a hand on her belly. “I want them to be able to grow up in a world where things are stable and predictable. Not in the middle of chaos.”

Ethan held out his hands. “What if I promised to stop? What if I ended this right here and now?”

Her hand hovered over the phone. “Just the three of us?”

“Just the three of us.”

She fell into his arms. “Thank you.” 

Ethan stroked her midnight hair. It was just like Camus said: the propaganda was stronger than she was. He’d never be able to convince her. She was an endangerment to their plan.

He reached behind his ear, removing the silver device — an EMD — and pressing it against her temple. Her eyes fogged for a moment, then cleared, warm and full of love, the past few minutes forgotten. 

“There was something you wanted to tell me?” she asked.

“Yes.” Camus had insisted he rehearse these words, but it still hurt him to say them. Even if he could never see her the same way, he still loved her. “Yes. I want you to know that I was never yours. That I don’t love you and I never have. You’re nobody to me.”

He pushed her off his chest and ran out of the room, afraid that if he so much as glanced at her eyes he would shatter.

[starlightswitch]

Writer’s Month 2022 Masterpost

I finished @writersmonth again!

Everything is G rated except maybe Dancing on the Edge which gets just a smidge sexy. I surprisingly have a longish list of non-contemporary fics this year: Kindly to a Stowaway, Sister's Soulmate, A Reason to Fight, Don't Look Away, When Everything Was Possible, Kid Hero's Kid Sister, To Learn From the Past, Sometimes You Meet Your Heroes, Not So Easy, and On His Own.

#1 – promise + beach setting – Almost a Dream Come True (standalone)

#2 – chance + dancer AU – Dancing on the Edge (AU for my WIP Real Love)

#3 – actors AU – A Little Too Real (partially based on my WIP For the Love of Christmas)

#4 – melody – A Melody, A Memory (standalone)

#5 – heart x ff162 The Letter – Another Lonely Heart (standalone)

#6 – popular + married life - Something Important (sequel for my WIP Close for Comfort)

#7 – flag + castle – Kings of the Castle (standalone)

#8 – heat + enemies to lovers – All For Show (standalone)

#9 – echo + post-canon – Over Again (sequel for my WIP Fifth Wheel)

#10 – kiss + crossover – If You're Interested (crossover for my WIPs For the Love of Christmas and Close for Comfort)

#11 – swim + hospital – With Cody (prequel for my WIP Snowbound)

#12 – leak + roommates x FFF163 Splash of Waves – Just What She Needed (standalone)

#13 – knot – Fact or Fiction (standalone)

#14 – on a ship – Kindly to a Stowaway (standalone)

#15 – comfort + soulmate AU – Sister's Soulmate (standalone)

#16 – shadows – Not the Police (standalone)

#17 – ice + a story told through generations – Seventh Grade and the Dry Ice (prequel for my WIP The Transfers)

#18 – bridge + secret garden – Grew Up Together (standalone)

#19 – single parent x FFF164 A False Confession – Takes One to Stop One (standalone)

#20 – jealous – Loving a Local Legend (standalone)

#21 – pain + lost heir – A Reason to Fight (standalone)

#22 – forest + horror AU – Don't Look Away (AU for my WIP The Transfers)

#23 – lodge + it's all a dream – Before Sonya (AU for my WIP Close for Comfort)

#24 – bow + fantasy AU – When Everything Was Possible (AU for my The Eagle Has Wings universe)

#25 – lips – Kid Hero's Kid Sister (standalone)

#26 – time travel x FFF165 A Mere Relic – To Learn from the Past (companion to my FFF fic To Change the Past)

#27 – silk + car shop – Useful Useless Facts (standalone)

#28 – going into a book – Sometimes You Meet Your Heroes (standalone)

#29 – bond – Not So Easy (companion to my FFF fics Another Apprentice and Looking For You)

#30 – loud + prison – On His Own (standalone)

#31 – rainbow + artist and model – Good At Asking Questions (standalone)

My favorite AU: Dancing on the Edge and When Everything Was Possible

My favorite prequel/sequel/interquel: With Cody, Seventh Grade and the Dry Ice, and Not So Easy

My favorite standalone: A Reason to Fight, Kid Hero's Kid Sister, and Sometimes You Meet Your Heroes

My favorite Writer’s Month x Flash Fiction Friday fic: Takes One to Stop One

My favorite title: Dancing on the Edge, Grew Up Together, Don't Look Away, Useful Useless Facts, and Not So Easy

Reader’s Choice (based on reblogs): Another Lonely Heart and Takes One to Stop One