by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) The shelves behind the bar were crenellated with bottles, crystal decanters of liquid amber and jewels. Adam sipped his ginger ale, the condensation from his glass numbing his hand. Around him, people wearing suits that they probably thought of as investments in their careers were waving down the bartender, […]
Tag Archives: hyakunichisou 13
30
Jul
Dreams come true at the Velvet Rose
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) Infrastructure. It’s all the stuff you don’t think about, the stuff that works until it doesn’t, and then your tube of personal lubricant turns out to be full of toothpaste or you end up knee-deep in chocolate milkshake. That’s not the fun kind of surprise, and it’s not a random […]
30
Apr
The Reel of Rory McAllister and the Moonlit Man
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) illustrated by The Druid Elbow on thigh and chin glumly in palm, Rory gazed into the forest gloom. Behind the cabin, from the new pile of logs that resembled a barn the way a cairn resembled a castle, came a mighty racket as of crockery colliding, and some whoops and […]
26
Feb
What happens next may surprise you
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) 1 It’s another Saturday night and you’re tired of lying on the couch crying. Wallowing is officially over, you decide. You grab your headset and jack into the club. You’re standing in a corridor lit purple by the strips of glowing pink and blue that run at ankle level. Straight […]
18
Dec
Always will I ever
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三 ) Beside the bed, on the old steamer trunk Jacob used as a table, Peter’s phone buzzed. Peter noticed it and immediately forgot about it again. He had other things on his mind. “Never have I ever worn lingerie,” said Jacob. His breath was warm on Peter’s lips. “Oh, yeah? […]
30
Oct
Run For Your Life
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) Reed hovered in the darkened doorway and wondered why he’d thought it would be a fun idea to spend his day off pissing himself with fear on national TV. The two candles on the mantelpiece cast just enough juddering light that he could see the darker gloom of the bed, […]
21
Aug
Off-site team-building
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) illustrated by Keshi “I want a ridiculously large soft-serve ice cream cone with sprinkles on it,” Russell said, ticking the list off on his fingers. “I want a button with an ironic pop culture reference that I’ll lose before I get home. I want meat on a stick, and I […]
24
Jul
Unlocked
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) Jai let his overnight bag bounce on the bed with a careless jingle of souvenir charms as he darted across the room to the wall of windows. “Will you just look at that. Isn’t it spectacular?” Alyxi closed and locked the door and waved a hand over the light holo. […]
20
Jun
The undersampling of success
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) i. Make empathy great again. Girls just wanna have fundamental rights. The number of people massed on this oval of urban grass and the roads that encircled it must have been larger than the entire population of the town Henry’d grown up in, the signs as varied and colourful as […]
20
Jun
Try to keep it all the year
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) Half-frozen rain ticked against the windowpanes, trailing watery smears and blurring the colours of the traffic lights and gas station neon outside. Inside, everything was dark leather and maroon damask. A real wood fire burned in a real fireplace; candle flames drew sparks of gilt from wine glasses and silverware […]
19
Jun
Constantine’s red letter day
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) After eight hours, the highlights of which were a bag of half-full spice bottles, a batch of Mladenka’s handmade soap, and an extended argument over whether nostalgia value equalled actual value (no), Constantine locked the back room behind the counter and closed the door of Stores behind him. He […]
23
Mar
The uninvited visitors
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) (mirrors http://s2b2.livejournal.com/354313.html) “There’s no flipping way,” one of the girls said, voice low but carrying, “that she’s the chosen one.” Bent in half, hands on thighs, lungs heaving, Alice couldn’t help but think the girl had a point. She watched a bead of sweat drop through her field of focus […]
22
Feb
The new kitchen boy
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) (mirrors http://s2b2.livejournal.com/352383.html) “Those close to the court get honour; those close to the kitchen get food.” –Chinese proverb It wasn’t as though the new kitchen boy, or stablehand, or tailor’s apprentice ever actually fooled anyone. “We are expected to treat him as we would each other,” the First Cook said, […]
3
Nov
Logging in Old Algonquin
by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) (mirrors http://s2b2.livejournal.com/342896.html) Duncan loved Algonquin Park at this time of year. The summer campers and the mosquitos had cleared out, and it was quiet during the week; the nights were cool and the days were golden. He’d scored a campsite at the secluded end of the radio-free zone looking out […]
29
Sep
Silver Anniversary
illustrated by Tab Kimpton written by Hyakunichisou 13 (百日草 十三) (mirrors http://s2b2.livejournal.com/340502.html) Read this piece’s entry on the Shousetsu Bang*Bang wiki. Love0
