Linger By The Oak

Meg enjoyed the early mornings. Peace. Open air. Sunshine tilting through the greenery. This morning, she had a pestle and mortar steadied between her knees and her coppery frizz held back with a scarf. Her broad hands and bulky shoulders moved rhythmically, her mind stilling.

At last, quiet conversations filtered out to her sunny spot. The squall of a baby, quickly hushed. The clink of plates, the smell of breakfast. Her belly growled.

Meg stashed her equipment, covered her bowl with a cloth and made her way back. She dawdled back along the path between the Grasses, still enjoying the early sunshine on her back. Janie toddling down the path to meet her brought a smile to her face. They paused together under the Oak to gather acorns. Janie took this seriously, squatting down and turning them over in her chubby hands.

There were more people about. Underneath cheery calls of "good morning!" there was... something else. A rumble, a worry.

They've been Looking again. Whenever They come Looking, it's Bad News.

Meg sighed. She liked it here. She didn't want to move again. Maybe they'd have to. Hopefully it wouldn't be today, at least. Normally the Council would meet first and make a decision about what would be best for the Colony.

Meg lowered herself into the Split, Joanie clinging to her back. It was cool and dark down here, the walls and floor packed smooth by many hurrying feet. Moments later, shrieks filled the air. One of Them is coming!

Meg dared a look up at where daylight spilled down. She could see nothing, but she could hear the clicking. Oh, no.

A tsunami of boiling water and steam cascaded down the Split. The screaming got worse. Some people had already been swept away in it. Their gurgling cries of agony would have been terrible to hear, if every pair of ears had not been attached to people focused intently on their own survival. Meg scrambled away from the second scalding waterfall. There was no escaping the third. The last thing Meg saw was the Ant, its hideous face peering down at them, its mandibles click-click-clicking. We should've lingered another minute by the Oak.

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Word count excluding note: 366

Submitted on Thursday 8th August at 23.25

Thank you so much for reading my story! The ha'penny that Vocal will toss in my hat for your eyeballs landing on this humble piece will be well-spent.

If you enjoyed this one, the very best compliment you can give me is to share it, or read another!

I did another story about tiny people, but the ending was less horrifying, I promise:

Journey to the Edge

A Year of Stories: I'm writing a story every day this year. This one continues my 221 day streak since 1st January.

Please do consider lending your support to the other creators who are also on this madcap "a story every day" adventure. They are putting out excellent content every day!

Rachel Deeming

Gerard DiLeo

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Thank you again!

Especially if you are one of the wonderful people who has been staunchly reading these daily scribbles since the start of the year. I see you, and appreciate you very much indeed!

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