The shot rang out of nowhere.

A deafening thunderclap of a sound which reverberated off the surrounding buildings and silenced the rest of the city.

Slowly, people gathered around the sorry creature slumped in the street. A splash of buttercup yellow stained the road.

A low murmuring reached the gathering crowd. A soft, whisper of a voice breathing a epitaph on the wind.

There was no colour anywhere but by just giving a little bit more they hoped to bleed some sunshine into the world.

The spectators exchanged glances and moved as one to cradle the small figure amongst them, scooping up the spilled sunlight as they went.

They pressed warm, caressing hands against clammy, trembling skin and muttered reassurances.

You don’t need to bleed for the world; your sunshine is brighter when it shines through you.

“You’re a storyteller. Dream up something wild and improbable,” she pleaded. “Something beautiful and full of monsters.”

Strange The Dreamer by Laini Taylor

Inspired by Erin Morgenstern’s Flax-Golden Tales, I have decided to embark on my own creative writing blog series, “Wild & Improbable Tales”, as a way to write more freely and more frequently. At least once a week, I will choose a card at random from The School Of Life‘s ‘Small Pleasures’ box and use the image and/or writing on the back to inspire a short piece of creative writing. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.