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Prompt: 023. bees

1. It was a spur of the moment decision to take up beekeeping as a hobby.

A. It was a spur of the moment decision to take up beekeeping as a hobby, but one that ultimately brought the kind of personal fulfillment she’d only dreamed of as a child. It felt as though she’d finally found something she was good at.

2. There had to be a million bees inside the rotten tree trunk. The sound of buzzing was growing louder and louder as they noticed the interloper.

A. There had to be a million bees inside the rotten tree trunk. The sound of buzzing was growing louder and louder as they noticed the interloper.

“Buster, get over here!” Brian called, trying to keep the panic out of his voice.

The white German shepherd glanced at him, then took a single step forward and stuck his muzzle into a hole in the tree. There was curiosity in every line of the young dog’s body–curiosity that quickly turned into yelping pain as he rolled on the ground and rubbed at his face.

3. The honey bees reacted to the smoker by becoming lethargic. There was no reaction as the beekeeper began gathering the full honeycombs into a large square bucket.

A. The honey bees reacted to the smoker by becoming lethargic. There was no reaction as the beekeeper began gathering the full honeycombs into a large square bucket. The small child watching him stayed close to his side and even dared to poke a finger into the honey for a quick taste.

4. As the bees died, the crops began to wither and people starved. It seemed like it was going to be the end of the world.

A. As the bees died, the crops began to wither and people starved. It seemed like it was going to be the end of the world.

Farmers hired men and women to manually pollinate their crops with small paintbrushes, which worked on the small scale, but did nothing for the other plants and trees that ceased to produce. The clovers, the dandelions, the carnations, and the roses; all were gone.

It was a whole new world: one without bees, wasps, hornets, or ants.

5. They were hiking one of the easier trails when Ginger put her foot through the beehive hidden in the underbrush.

A. They were hiking one of the easier trails when Ginger put her foot through the beehive hidden in the underbrush. The first warning was the sound of angry buzzing. Then Ginger was screaming as the stinging began.

“They’re in her pants!”

The nearest teacher quickly grabbed her up, ignoring the stings against his arms and neck, and got her away from the nest. Then he pulled her pants down her thin legs and threw them as far away as he could, the trail of bees following after it.

Ginger’s terrified screams turned to pained whimpers as she was doused in water and wrapped in a blanket.

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Prompt: 022. pirates

1. Their yacht was overtaken by pirates in international waters and they quickly found themselves captured. Fearful for their lives, the prisoners did whatever they had to do to survive the ordeal.

A. Their yacht was overtaken by pirates in international waters and they quickly found themselves captured. Fearful for their lives, the prisoners did whatever they had to do to survive the ordeal.

Some of them didn’t make it. Friends they had known for years, tortured and killed before their eyes. The rest were ransomed back to their families for a ridiculous amount of money. Nobody was left unscathed.

Haunted by nightmares and tired of feeling hopeless and afraid, a group of the survivors worked with their government to form an anti-pirate task force. Led by Admiral Nigel T. Guster, they were tasked with eradicating the pirate threat. There was to be no mercy and no leniency for anyone involved with piracy.

2. Escaping the bower to enjoy life as the first female pirates was the adventure of a lifetime.

A. Escaping the bower to enjoy life as the first female pirates was the adventure of a lifetime, though it wasn’t the adventure they’d planned on.

They were supposed to make it to the Island of Navarre where their love for each other wasn’t considered an abomination, but shipwreck and misfortune forced them to stop at Port Marchison in hopes of booking passage on another ship. Instead they were press-ganged aboard a naval ship, where hiding their femininity became paramount. Surrounded by both superstitious sailors and borderline sex offenders, they pretended to be orphaned brothers and kept close to each other.

3. The pirates hit the colony world in the early morning hours. Their attack shuttles landed and prisoners were rounded up while the spaceships continued the orbital bombardment that destroyed their infrastructure.

A. The pirates hit the colony world in the early morning hours. Their attack shuttles landed and prisoners were rounded up while the spaceships continued the orbital bombardment that destroyed their infrastructure.

After the pirates left, it was a struggle for the colonists to pick up the pieces. Their emergency beacon had been destroyed in the raid. They couldn’t call for help. They would have to survive with what they had for three months until the first trade ships of the season began arriving.

B. The pirates hit the colony world in the early morning hours. Their attack shuttles landed and prisoners were rounded up while the spaceships continued the orbital bombardment that destroyed their infrastructure.

Pulled out of bed by her panicked mother, she hadn’t even realized what was happening before her mother was dead and she was being force-marched aboard a shuttle. From there, she was drugged and stacked in the hold with the other new slaves.

She was sold for the first time with a group of other girls and boys she knew. Then they were separated and sold again, each to a different owner on a different world. She would never see any of them again, though she would wonder sometimes whether they were still alive.

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Prompt: 021. pillow

1. There was nothing like the bliss of a brand new pillow. It felt like resting on a cloud.

A. There was nothing like the bliss of a brand new pillow. It felt like resting her head on a cloud. Almost before her eyes were closed, she was asleep.

Nine hours later she reluctantly pulled herself out of bed to face the music. They were all waiting for her in the living room. She felt judged before she even walked through the door. It made her draw in on herself, put her on the defensive before she could even be glad to see them.

They looked the same. It was the first thing she noticed. Even after her years away, with all the changes she’d lived through and made in herself, they hadn’t changed in all that time. It even looked as though they were wearing clothes she recognized, which reminded her of years of being poor.

It wasn’t until after she left this house that she had new clothes. Always before she’d had to make do with hand-me-downs and the castoffs of her wealthier cousins.

2. Blood had splashed across the pillow and wall and there were finger streaks on the bedside table. It was a horrifying sight with no apparent source.

A. Blood had splashed across the pillow and wall and there were finger streaks on the bedside table. It was a horrifying sight with no apparent source.

There were signs of at least three victims, but the bodies were gone along with the comforter and sheets from the bed in the guest room across the hall. There was a broken window in the utility room, and a kitchen junk drawer that had been dug through. And there were two children that had somehow slept through whatever happened to their parents and mystery guest.

3. He humped against the pillow with growling grunts of effort.

A. He humped against the pillow with growling grunts of effort. He couldn’t get any leverage and there was no way he was going to be able to untie himself before his kidnapper came back.

As a Royal Prince of the Realm, Henry had faced the dangerous kiss of assassins’ blades and pitted his sword skills against the bravos of the Western Empire. He’d learned to push away fear and find his courage in times of adversity and war.

He’d charged into the guns without a hint of hesitation. Knowing–KNOWING–that he was going to die. It was only fate and luck that had spared his life, because in the moment he’d been fearless.

Yet here he was, tied to a bed in a strange room, terrified of what was going to happen next.

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Prompt: 020. Beauty and the Beast

1. The horror of the curse that changed the Young Master into a beast was that it had affected everyone in the palace. Transformed against their will, they were forced to suffer while their employer failed to break the curse.

A. The horror of the curse that changed the Young Master into a beast was that it had affected everyone in the palace. Transformed against their will, they were forced to suffer while their employer failed to break the curse.

Invisible and voiceless, anchored to the property with no ability to leave, they could only watch and wait as the Young Master began to lose his grasp on his humanity. The longer he remained in his changed form, the more he lost himself to the instincts of a beast.

2. She’d been turned into a hairy monster with fangs, claws, and an inability to control herself. Cursed by a traveling wizard, she’d been living in the guest house behind a large empty house.

A. She’d been turned into a hairy monster with fangs, claws, and an inability to control herself. Cursed by a traveling wizard, she’d been living in the guest house behind a large empty house. Far away from family and friends, she’d survived as best she could without working thumbs.

The first time she caught a rabbit and killed it with her claws, she’d wept. Now it was an everyday occurrence to feast on rabbit, mice, squirrels, and whatever else she could catch. Fruits and vegetables had lost all appeal, and hazel nuts had made her retch. She missed the person she used to be.

Her left ear swiveled before she was consciously aware of hearing anything. There was a clatter of feet and the slamming of a door. Slinking through the underbrush, she peered toward the main house and saw lights and movement through the windows.

3. Beauty and the Beast is his favorite picture book. Every night he holds the book up and makes pleading eyes until whoever’s tucking him in agrees to read it.

A. Beauty and the Beast is his favorite picture book. Every night he holds the book up and makes pleading eyes until whoever’s tucking him in agrees to read it.

“You’re really going to have to start reading this for yourself,” his lover said.

“Not when I’ve got one of you to read it to me,” he said with his most charming smile. It earned him a slanted glance, but cuddled up in the blankets he didn’t care as his book was read to him in a low-voice that sent shivers of delight up and down his spine.

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