This story was inspired by a wiki commons picture.
This school field trip would be the very definition of tedium but for one thing. He scanned the ground, fingers clenched around his sister’s precious elephant bone ring. Poor thing. So sick, she couldn’t come down to view this planet’s marvelous flora.
The teacher droned on ahead of them. “Look. The fel flower devours flesh and bones.”
Enclosed by meter of wide mesh wiring, there was a bright red plant. It looked like his sister’s red-lipsticked mouth. He smiled at the memory of it.
“The gale here – ”
He ignored the teacher. Instead he slipped the ring through the exhibit’s mesh cage. It fell directly inside flower’s mouth. He watched it digest the ring.
The last trace of his sister. Gone.
He followed his class to the next exhibit with a spring in his step. Marvelous flora indeed.
The name you chose for the plant is perfect. Fel. I wonder, did you pick it on purpose?
Still wondering about the sister and her species origins. Gtreat story.
Aloha,
Doug
http://ironwoodwind.wordpress.com/2012/07/19/sweet-wine-and-the-fullness-of-time/
Glad that’s not my brother! The story worked perfectly with the picture as that plant definitely lends itself to sci-fi.
Oh wicked! not what I was expecting at all – really good, nice twist in the tale!
I think I found a small typo “It looked his sister’s red-lipsticked mouth” Shouldn’t that be it looked like?
That is the creepiest little plant, looks like a hungry mouth. And it does seem to have had a bit of an appetite.
Sinister indeed and I guess the sister is well and truly dead and buried
http://womanontheedgeofreality.com/2012/07/20/friday-fictioneers-the-grapevine/
Very ominous, very dark. Nicely done.
http://castelsarrasin.wordpress.com/2012/07/19/triple-exposure-friday-fictioneers-july-2012/
Very dark, very ominous. Very, very well done! http://theforgottenwife.com/2012/07/19/friday-fictioneers-july-20-2012/
This is sad and chilling, all at once. I’m left wondering if the boy helped his sister along to her oblivion.
I guess that “poor thing” he drops early on isn’t exactly sincere. Nice imaginative work with the fel. I like it.
http://pinionpost.com/2012/07/20/terroir/
Creepy!
That was seriously creepy. (in the best way possible)
Great flash.
I guess the term “family ties” doesn’t mean much to this guy then?
Excellent sci-fi ambiance. Made me think he fed his sister to the plant and had told the teacher she was too sick to make it to the field trip, like he had it all planned out.
http://ebooksscifi.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/pre-fall-by-ilyan-kei-lavanway-for-madison-woods-friday-fictioneers-100-word-flash-fiction/
Brothers are such mean and nasty things
Adam B @revhappiness
Eerie and creepy indeed, wonderful inspiration from the image, like the brother it looks so innocent from the outside.
say it with flowers!
Wow that took a weird twist. Wasn’t expecting that ending at all!
Wondering about this sister, and the boy’s origin and story setting. On one hand sounds like he loves his sister, and on the other hand… well. Great flash fiction
Deliciously creepy with a dastardly twist.
Yes, timvansant said it best. This was a perfectly rendered little chill of a tale.
Flowers and plants are more powerful than we think. Devious little tale, it really gets the mind turning.
Intriguing! I’d love to hear more about the role this guy played in his sister’s demise.