Luna was hunting. She had left the house before twilight and was waiting for her namesake to give her a sign. She had already feasted on a vole and a field mouse. Magic was in the air.
Grandmother’s grimoire had promised freedom from her feline form. The words were indelibly burnt in her memory: When a red moon rides on the humps of the low river hills, stare into its reflection in a running river and the curse will be lifted.
She reached the river at the rising of the moon. Luna stared into its crimson reflection in the fast-flowing river and felt its force in her blood. Her fur and whiskers bristled as Nature’s symphony magnified in her head – and then it stopped. The eyes that stared back at her were still emerald green, but they were jewels set in a human face.
Kim M. Russell, 20th July 2020
My response to dVerse Poets Pub: Jazzing it up on Prosery Monday
Lillian is our host this Prosery Monday, when instead of poetry we take the prompt and insert it word for word into a piece of prose no more than 144 words in length.
The poem Lillian chose is Carl Sandburg’s ‘Jazz Fantasia’; however, she had trouble choosing a line, so she selected two lines, from which we can only pick one, either:
“Moan like an autumn wind high in the lonesome treetops”, or
“a red moon rides on the humps of the low river hills.”
I felt like writing a bit of flash fiction today, so I went with that red moon.
writing in north norfolk 
LOVING this! It reads like mythology or a wonderful theme for a science fantasy. I think you must continue with the story…..set it in a context with more upfront and certainly continuation….I want more! 🙂 Love that it’s Luna and the Blood Moon. Really! It think you should write a young adult’s science fantasy with this title!
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Thanks so much, Lill! I have several bits of short or flash fiction that I would like to develop further. Something to think about…
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Oh, this is so creative! It reminds me a bit of the Glasmännlein from an old German tale called Das kalte Herz, or The Cold Heart. In it, or at least how my granny used to tell me, glass can be a transformative thing, because our reflections can reveal who we really are and that can be a transformative experience in-itself. In a sense, though Luna’s reflection was truthful in both forms, it was being reflected that materialised the change.
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Thank you so much for reading and commenting! I haven’t come across Das Kalte Herz before. I must look it up.
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Oh, it’s rather sad and a bit violent, which is common of German fairy tales, but the moral of it is marvelous, I think. It’s a story one carries for life.
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A perfect page of prose pulled from a prolific writer’s journal, it being rife with powerful and interesting tidbits, fodder for further development. This piece contains shreds of pure interest, velvet hooks for the readers.
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Thank you so much, Glenn! I’m glad you enjoyed it, and I am planning to work on it in the future.
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Nice story in a legend mood and myth motions
Happy Monday
much love…
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Thank you, Gillena! Happy Tuesday!
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Kim, your story is true mesmerization. You make a believer out of me. Those two jewels set in a human face are wonderful conclusion (beginning?) to the story.
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Thank you, Lisa! I hope to take this story further in the future.
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Great one to expand on. Isn’t that your “cat’s” name?
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The oldest cat is Luna (also known as Mountains of the Moon), who is a tuxedo cat. Little Mojo is a tabby.
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🙂 I love their names. I hope Little Mojo will be part of your story as well.
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“She had already feasted on a vole and a field mouse. Magic was in the air.”
That cracked me up. 🙂
I love the last sentence of the piece.
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Thanks for reading and commenting! 🙂
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Very nice! Love this… Nature’s symphony magnified in her head.
Love the emerald eyes and the human head!
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Thank you, Dwight!
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What a wonderful tale. I love happy endings!
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Thank you, Bev! I hope to develop the story in the future.
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Wonderful! Like a fairy tale–like a variation of The Little Mermaid. I love how you wove the prompt line into the story as part of an incantation.
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Thank you, Merril!
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WOW, I love this story. The way it transitions in the mood and tone is absolutely mesmerizing and stunning. The fantasy genre here is as well intriguing, and just what an excellent take on the prompt! I was not expecting the ending to be honest.
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Thank you so much, Lucy! This one will simmer on a back burner for future development.
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a perfect piece of escapism, you drew me in!
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Thank you, Kate!
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wonderful piece of flash!
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Thanks so much!
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WOW! This is amazing, the moon, the curse, the emerald eyes. Loved it.
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Thanks so much, Sherry!
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That’s an intriguing bit of magic. The story could definitely have a before and and after. (K)
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Thanks Kerfe, I plan to work on It in the not too distant future.
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Wonderful and magical, Kim. I love the “Fiona from Shrek” feel of it…
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Thank you, Dale.
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This is so delicious- I want more!
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Thank you, Linda!
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I can feel the tension rise and then dip, like a moon overshadowed, by human eyes.
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So glad the curse was broken and I love the way you revealed it… “The eyes that stared back at her were still emerald green, but they were jewels set in a human face.”
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What a nice bit of magic (or witchcraft?).
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Thanks Ken!
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