100 Drabbles of 2012 #1-10
1) candle
Time Period: Post-last regular chapter of "Secundus," pre-wedding (the wedding rehearsal, in fact)
Notes: The prompt that became "90) Author's choice: anniversary" was going to be here, but I decided it didn't relate enough to the prompt word. So instead I stole one of Victor's problems from his wedding rehearsal with Victoria in the movie and ran with it here. I think everyone's reactions serve as a nice contrast to canon -- and highlight what Victor's gained by staying in Secundus.
“With this candle. . .this candle. . .this candle. . . .”
Victor stared at the tapered candle in his hand. Why wouldn’t it light? He was starting to feel like an idiot, standing here touching it to the flame to no effect. What must his friends think?
“Must be a bad candle,” Marty said.
“I don’t know – any candle that keeps fire away from me seems like a good candle to me,” Alice joked.
“Don’t worry about it, Victor,” Father Gale said. “We’ll change candles later.”
Victor smiled. Good friends made all the difference. “With this candle, I will light your way in darkness. . . .”
2) scouts
Time Period: Post-"Secundus 2," young children era
Notes: A two-for-one in focusing on less-used characters -- Christopher and his son Jonathan! I got this cute little bit of playtime from the fact that I have Jon idolizing his dad and wanting to be a lot like him when he grows up.
Christopher peered curiously at the pair of toy soldiers standing to attention just inside the door of the sitting room. “Have you come to life when I wasn’t looking?”
“Oh no! The advance scouts have been spotted!” Jonathan’s voice came from around the doorframe. “Quick, send in reinforcements!”
More soldiers appeared on the threshold, manipulated by little hands. Christopher smothered a laugh. “I seem to find myself outnumbered,” he said, sitting on the floor. “Does this mean I’m now a prisoner of war?”
Jonathan’s smiling face peeked out. “Don’t worry, Daddy. I think we can open peace negotiations with Mummy.”
3) doggie paddle
Time Period: Pre-"Secundus," Victor about 13 or 14
Notes: Surprised I didn't think of doing this about Scraps before. He was a great dog, but, even Victor would admit, sometimes a messy one.
“Come on, Scraps! Come here, boy!”
Scraps bounded up onto the shore of the little pond. “Now what inspired you to take a swim in there?” Victor asked, shaking his head at his wet dog. “You look like a drowned – ahh, don’t shake, don’t shake!”
But it was too late. Water and mud splattered everywhere, including all over Victor’s pants and jacket. He groaned softly as he looked down at himself. “Oh no. . .Mother’s going to let me have it when she sees this.”
Scraps barked, completely oblivious to the damage he’d caused. Victor frowned at him. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”
4) coconut
Time Period: Anytime pre-"Secundus"
Notes: I was looking up coconuts the day before writing this (though for the life of me I can't remember why), and I was inspired to do a prompt on them. So here's Lewis pondering on adding something tropical to Wonderland Park.
Richard peered at the coconut in his friend’s hands. “You really want to grow it?”
“It would be nice,” Lewis said, shrugging. “Add a touch of the tropics to Wonderland Park. I could plant it on the shores of the Vale of Tears. And creating localized rainstorms for it is not a problem at all. The trouble is, how do I keep it sufficiently warm without drying out all the other plants around it?”
“Heaters?”
“Maybe. . . .” Lewis turned the coconut over. “We’ll see if I can figure it out. If not – well, you ever have coconut milk in your tea?”
5) sultry
Time Period: Post-"Secundus," Victor & Alice's honeymoon
Notes: Mildly risque! I decided I wanted to write something about Alice sort of seducing Victor on their honeymoon. It would be just like him to have an attack of nerves right before the "main event," wouldn't it?
“Alice?”
“Yes?”
“I’m – I’m n-nervous. Very nervous. I m-mean, I know we’ve – that is, we’ve – ah--”
Alice smiled at her new husband. “I know what you mean,” she said. “I’m nervous too. But – well, I always think actions speak louder than words. . . .”
With that, she began undressing in front of him. She didn’t have much experience in being sultry, but the way Victor’s eyes bugged out seemed to be a good sign. Finally, once she was down to her corset and drawers, he grabbed her tight. “I want you,” he breathed.
Alice turned and kissed him. “I want you too.”
6) plant
Time Period: Post-"Secundus 2," teenage kid years
Notes: A drabble on good old Touched Lorina -- and yes, it pretty much is just one big Little Shop of Horrors joke. I've only seen part of that film on TV, but naming Lorina's pet Venus flytrap "Audrey" just had to be done.
“Here you are, Audrey. . .” Lorina placed the dead fly into the jaws of the Venus flytrap. The leaves obligingly sprang shut. “There, you liked that, didn’t you?”
The plant happily wiggled its leaves. Vincent, standing over her shoulder, shook his head. “I still think that’s a little creepy.”
“She needs to eat insects to thrive,” Lorina told him, frowning. “It’s not like I feed her Father’s butterflies. She gets the pests that get into the house.”
“I know, I know. I just worry one day you’re going to cut yourself over her and she’ll get a taste for human blood.”
7) ship
Time Period: Pre-"Secundus," Victor's early childhood (could in fact be considered a companion to 2011's "28) pier")
Notes: William-centered drabble! I figured I ought to do something about him and his one true love: the fishing industry. It is a little sad, though -- William genuinely did want to share this with Victor. He had no idea what to do when his son turned out to be not the business type.
There were few things in life that gave William Van Dort more pleasure than standing on the dock and watching the fishing boats come in. He stood proudly by as the sailors unloaded their nets onto the wood, bass, cod and salmon flopping everywhere. Such good men. Rough around the edges, to be sure – wouldn’t let Nell within three feet of them – but they kept the wheels of commerce turning. And it was best to inspect the fish at their freshest – nothing but the finest for his customers!
He hoped his son would like this as much as he did.
8) sand
Time Period: Pre-"Secundus," Doc's younger years
Notes: I noticed Doc wasn't getting many prompts in this table, so I decided to do a short focused on his initial move to Hill Valley. Guy had no idea that moving there would eventually lead him to so many adventures. . . Also, the ending line is a joke on Hill Valley's town motto.
Emmett was starting to get heartily sick of sand.
Granted, he’d known his newly chosen residence was in the desert. But he hadn’t realized just how boring that would make the trip there. There wasn’t anything to look at outside – just miles and miles of endless sand. It was enough to drive a man mad.
Fortunate I’m already insane, then, he thought with a chuckle. Still, he was looking forward to his journey coming to an end. He glanced down at his map, and at the town’s name written on it. Hill Valley. Let’s hope it’s a nice place to live.
9) cabana
Time Period: Post-"Secundus," Emily & Richard's honeymoon
Notes: I wasn't sure what to do with this one until I looked it up. Upon discovering you could have a cabana with cloth sides, one that looked like a hat seemed an obvious choice for Richard and his bride. So they get a beach honeymoon like Victor and Alice -- though, obviously, they went somewhere with "build-your-own" cabanas. Maybe a little tropical island? Hmmm...
“Oh Richard. . . .”
“What?” Richard pouted. “Don’t you like it?”
“Oh no, it’s fantastic,” Emily assured her new husband, trying to keep her giggles to a minimum. “You did a wonderful job setting it up.” Her eyes traveled over the odd little hut Richard had constructed, with its colorful drapes and flat roof. “I’ve just – I’ve never seen a cabana shaped like a top hat before.”
“A first time for everything,” Richard grinned. “To be honest, once I had the cloth in my hands, I just went into that mode.”
Emily giggled again, then snuggled up against him. “It’s wonderful. Thank you.”
10) water
Time Period: Anytime post-"Secundus"
Notes: This is sort of a spiritual successor to "3) doggie paddle" above, given the subject matter. It was kind of fun figuring out how you might clean a giant riding butterfly.
“Bath time!”
Ferdinand jumped happily under the “shower” Victor had rigged up. Victor grabbed a broom and started scrubbing grime off his mount’s wings. A few scales fell loose as well – Victor picked those up and put them in a bucket for later delivery to Richard. “I’m glad you’re more cooperative than Scraps was,” he told Ferdinand. “I used to have to fight to get him into the tub.”
Ferdinand wiggled his antennae, then curled his proboscis to get a drink. Victor laughed and finished sloughing off the last of the dirt. “All clean! Now then – don’t shake your wings!”
Time Period: Post-last regular chapter of "Secundus," pre-wedding (the wedding rehearsal, in fact)
Notes: The prompt that became "90) Author's choice: anniversary" was going to be here, but I decided it didn't relate enough to the prompt word. So instead I stole one of Victor's problems from his wedding rehearsal with Victoria in the movie and ran with it here. I think everyone's reactions serve as a nice contrast to canon -- and highlight what Victor's gained by staying in Secundus.
“With this candle. . .this candle. . .this candle. . . .”
Victor stared at the tapered candle in his hand. Why wouldn’t it light? He was starting to feel like an idiot, standing here touching it to the flame to no effect. What must his friends think?
“Must be a bad candle,” Marty said.
“I don’t know – any candle that keeps fire away from me seems like a good candle to me,” Alice joked.
“Don’t worry about it, Victor,” Father Gale said. “We’ll change candles later.”
Victor smiled. Good friends made all the difference. “With this candle, I will light your way in darkness. . . .”
2) scouts
Time Period: Post-"Secundus 2," young children era
Notes: A two-for-one in focusing on less-used characters -- Christopher and his son Jonathan! I got this cute little bit of playtime from the fact that I have Jon idolizing his dad and wanting to be a lot like him when he grows up.
Christopher peered curiously at the pair of toy soldiers standing to attention just inside the door of the sitting room. “Have you come to life when I wasn’t looking?”
“Oh no! The advance scouts have been spotted!” Jonathan’s voice came from around the doorframe. “Quick, send in reinforcements!”
More soldiers appeared on the threshold, manipulated by little hands. Christopher smothered a laugh. “I seem to find myself outnumbered,” he said, sitting on the floor. “Does this mean I’m now a prisoner of war?”
Jonathan’s smiling face peeked out. “Don’t worry, Daddy. I think we can open peace negotiations with Mummy.”
3) doggie paddle
Time Period: Pre-"Secundus," Victor about 13 or 14
Notes: Surprised I didn't think of doing this about Scraps before. He was a great dog, but, even Victor would admit, sometimes a messy one.
“Come on, Scraps! Come here, boy!”
Scraps bounded up onto the shore of the little pond. “Now what inspired you to take a swim in there?” Victor asked, shaking his head at his wet dog. “You look like a drowned – ahh, don’t shake, don’t shake!”
But it was too late. Water and mud splattered everywhere, including all over Victor’s pants and jacket. He groaned softly as he looked down at himself. “Oh no. . .Mother’s going to let me have it when she sees this.”
Scraps barked, completely oblivious to the damage he’d caused. Victor frowned at him. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”
4) coconut
Time Period: Anytime pre-"Secundus"
Notes: I was looking up coconuts the day before writing this (though for the life of me I can't remember why), and I was inspired to do a prompt on them. So here's Lewis pondering on adding something tropical to Wonderland Park.
Richard peered at the coconut in his friend’s hands. “You really want to grow it?”
“It would be nice,” Lewis said, shrugging. “Add a touch of the tropics to Wonderland Park. I could plant it on the shores of the Vale of Tears. And creating localized rainstorms for it is not a problem at all. The trouble is, how do I keep it sufficiently warm without drying out all the other plants around it?”
“Heaters?”
“Maybe. . . .” Lewis turned the coconut over. “We’ll see if I can figure it out. If not – well, you ever have coconut milk in your tea?”
5) sultry
Time Period: Post-"Secundus," Victor & Alice's honeymoon
Notes: Mildly risque! I decided I wanted to write something about Alice sort of seducing Victor on their honeymoon. It would be just like him to have an attack of nerves right before the "main event," wouldn't it?
“Alice?”
“Yes?”
“I’m – I’m n-nervous. Very nervous. I m-mean, I know we’ve – that is, we’ve – ah--”
Alice smiled at her new husband. “I know what you mean,” she said. “I’m nervous too. But – well, I always think actions speak louder than words. . . .”
With that, she began undressing in front of him. She didn’t have much experience in being sultry, but the way Victor’s eyes bugged out seemed to be a good sign. Finally, once she was down to her corset and drawers, he grabbed her tight. “I want you,” he breathed.
Alice turned and kissed him. “I want you too.”
6) plant
Time Period: Post-"Secundus 2," teenage kid years
Notes: A drabble on good old Touched Lorina -- and yes, it pretty much is just one big Little Shop of Horrors joke. I've only seen part of that film on TV, but naming Lorina's pet Venus flytrap "Audrey" just had to be done.
“Here you are, Audrey. . .” Lorina placed the dead fly into the jaws of the Venus flytrap. The leaves obligingly sprang shut. “There, you liked that, didn’t you?”
The plant happily wiggled its leaves. Vincent, standing over her shoulder, shook his head. “I still think that’s a little creepy.”
“She needs to eat insects to thrive,” Lorina told him, frowning. “It’s not like I feed her Father’s butterflies. She gets the pests that get into the house.”
“I know, I know. I just worry one day you’re going to cut yourself over her and she’ll get a taste for human blood.”
7) ship
Time Period: Pre-"Secundus," Victor's early childhood (could in fact be considered a companion to 2011's "28) pier")
Notes: William-centered drabble! I figured I ought to do something about him and his one true love: the fishing industry. It is a little sad, though -- William genuinely did want to share this with Victor. He had no idea what to do when his son turned out to be not the business type.
There were few things in life that gave William Van Dort more pleasure than standing on the dock and watching the fishing boats come in. He stood proudly by as the sailors unloaded their nets onto the wood, bass, cod and salmon flopping everywhere. Such good men. Rough around the edges, to be sure – wouldn’t let Nell within three feet of them – but they kept the wheels of commerce turning. And it was best to inspect the fish at their freshest – nothing but the finest for his customers!
He hoped his son would like this as much as he did.
8) sand
Time Period: Pre-"Secundus," Doc's younger years
Notes: I noticed Doc wasn't getting many prompts in this table, so I decided to do a short focused on his initial move to Hill Valley. Guy had no idea that moving there would eventually lead him to so many adventures. . . Also, the ending line is a joke on Hill Valley's town motto.
Emmett was starting to get heartily sick of sand.
Granted, he’d known his newly chosen residence was in the desert. But he hadn’t realized just how boring that would make the trip there. There wasn’t anything to look at outside – just miles and miles of endless sand. It was enough to drive a man mad.
Fortunate I’m already insane, then, he thought with a chuckle. Still, he was looking forward to his journey coming to an end. He glanced down at his map, and at the town’s name written on it. Hill Valley. Let’s hope it’s a nice place to live.
9) cabana
Time Period: Post-"Secundus," Emily & Richard's honeymoon
Notes: I wasn't sure what to do with this one until I looked it up. Upon discovering you could have a cabana with cloth sides, one that looked like a hat seemed an obvious choice for Richard and his bride. So they get a beach honeymoon like Victor and Alice -- though, obviously, they went somewhere with "build-your-own" cabanas. Maybe a little tropical island? Hmmm...
“Oh Richard. . . .”
“What?” Richard pouted. “Don’t you like it?”
“Oh no, it’s fantastic,” Emily assured her new husband, trying to keep her giggles to a minimum. “You did a wonderful job setting it up.” Her eyes traveled over the odd little hut Richard had constructed, with its colorful drapes and flat roof. “I’ve just – I’ve never seen a cabana shaped like a top hat before.”
“A first time for everything,” Richard grinned. “To be honest, once I had the cloth in my hands, I just went into that mode.”
Emily giggled again, then snuggled up against him. “It’s wonderful. Thank you.”
10) water
Time Period: Anytime post-"Secundus"
Notes: This is sort of a spiritual successor to "3) doggie paddle" above, given the subject matter. It was kind of fun figuring out how you might clean a giant riding butterfly.
“Bath time!”
Ferdinand jumped happily under the “shower” Victor had rigged up. Victor grabbed a broom and started scrubbing grime off his mount’s wings. A few scales fell loose as well – Victor picked those up and put them in a bucket for later delivery to Richard. “I’m glad you’re more cooperative than Scraps was,” he told Ferdinand. “I used to have to fight to get him into the tub.”
Ferdinand wiggled his antennae, then curled his proboscis to get a drink. Victor laughed and finished sloughing off the last of the dirt. “All clean! Now then – don’t shake your wings!”