I am not an insomniac:
There's so much to think about
At night,
So much to hear in the darkness

There's so much to think about,
Recollections of the day past;
So much to hear in the darkness:
Promises of tomorrow

Recollections of the day past,
Things done and not done
Promises of tomorrow,
Things to do

Things done and not done -
Hurry, scurry, little thoughts
Things to do
So much to worry about

Hurry, scurry, little thoughts
At night
So much to worry about
I am not an insomniac

distant rumble of a train on the tracks
punctuated by its horn and a crossing jingling

dumpster gate slowly swaying open
creaking closed, the unlatched padlock clanging

when the train fades, the softer hum of the freeway
commerce, progress, never sleep

graveyard worker driving home
the daily grind is more of a grind at night

another train grinds along the tracks

Long overdue response to kiwifruitbat's prompt.

Title: Heart of Gold (very uncreative, I admit)
Rating: perfectly safe
Spoilers: Firefly episode "Heart of Gold"
Characters/Pairings: Mal & Inara
Word Count: 100

~*~

( Heart of Gold )

for the_rainbow_jen's prompt, which (intentionally or not) made me think of our RP characters.

Title: Plead The Fifth
Rating: safe
Spoilers: none whatsoever, based on an RPG
Characters/Pairings: Narcissa Black, Regulus Black
Word Count: 100

( Plead The Fifth )

for starfirenz's prompt. Kinda.

Title: Just When You Think You've Seen It All
Rating: G
Spoilers: rather big ones for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Characters/pairings: Indiana Jones, Daniel Jackson, Jack O'Neill
Word Count: 100

( Just When You Think You've Seen It All )

for cj_major's prompt. I may have to come back and expand this some day...

Title: You Can Leave Your Gloves On
Rating: PG-13 for innuendo
Spoilers: None. This is utter non-canon crack shipping
Characters/Pairings: Oliver Wood/Narcissa Malfoy (wow it's been a long time since I played with them!)
Word Count: 100 on the nose

( You Can Leave Your Gloves On )

You know how they say when you're stuck in your writing to just write anything, just keep your pen moving, even if it's nothing other than, "gah, why can't I think of anything?" over and over? Had a moment like that today, and it spawned poetry, of all things! Once again a pantoum, which is probably my favorite form.

~*~

Writer's Block

What to write about?
This isn't what I should be doing right now;
There are files to tidy and documents to scan,
But I can't seem to concentrate.

This isn't what I should be doing right now,
Doodling while I wait for inspiration to strike,
But I can't seem to concentrate.
Haven't been able to concentrate for a few years now.

Doodling while I wait for inspiration to strike,
Half-formed thoughts flit through my mind.
Haven't been able to concentrate for a few years now.
Did pregnancy hormones fry my brain?

Half-formed thoughts flit through my mind.
I used to be so clever and prolific,
Did pregnancy hormones fry my brain?
Other women seem to manage all right.

I used to be so clever and prolific,
Back in high school I was always writing something.
Other women seem to manage all right;
I should be able to do this.

Back in high school I was always writing something.
Now I'm juggling a child and a job.
I should be able to do this,
But I'm so busy being busy that I end up doing nothing.

Now I'm juggling a child and a job:
There are files to tidy and documents to scan,
But I'm so busy being busy that I end up doing nothing.
What to write about?

Title: Bean sidhe
Rating: PG-13 for dark themes
Genre: dark supernatural
Teaser: "Some people try to say it's the wind, now, when they hear her. But no one has tried to build where the great house used to be, up on the hill: not even those who say they don't believe."
Author's Note: This started out being a rather emo doodle about Narcissa while Lucius is in Azkaban. But it rather quickly turned into... something else. Happy Halloween!

~*~

( Bean Sidhe )

Title: Dreams of Home
Rating: PG
Spoilers: None (I think)
Character: Malcolm Reynolds, oblique reference to female OC

( Of all the dreams that haunted him, the nightmares of death at his hands and before his eyes, the worst were the dreams of home. )

Title: Princess in the Tower
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: The books up to and including GoF. Begun between Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix. Does not take into account events and new information presented in either Order of the Phoenix or Half Blood Prince.
Genre: Drama
Ship(s): NM/LM
Summary: What kind of woman would marry, and stay married, to a man like Lucius Malfoy? A devoted wife and mother, Narcissa has embraced the life that Fate has given her, even if sometimes it seems like a cruel joke. This Chapter: Even fairy tales have dark sides.
Warnings: Het. Mean!Lucius.
Author's Notes: Well, this was a long time coming, and for that I apologize. As always, thanks go to my lovely beta, Steph, and to Alan for being my "angry Lucius" muse. This would never have been finished without you two.
( Chapter 8: Princess in the Tower )

Reposted from johnnies_darlin

My contribution for the first several_ways challenge, "Several Ways to Die Trying." These are in chronological order and are titled for the episodes they concern. Spoilers ahoy, 'cause, well, character death (people die rather a lot in this fandom).

Ye Olde Disclaimer: These are works of fanfiction. The characters and situations presented are the property of Gekko Production Co., the SciFi channel, and various and sundry others who are not me. Just playing with someone else's puppets, here.

Title: Divide and Conquer (Season 4)
Author: johnnies_darlin, Sierra
Fandom: Stargate: SG-1
Rating: PG-13 for on-screen death.
Characters: Samantha Carter, Martouf
150 words

( It's not him, it's the Zatarc programming )


Title: Meridian (Season 5)
Author: johnnies_darlin, Sierra
Fandom: Stargate: SG-1
Rating: PG.
Characters: Daniel Jackson
200 words.

( Daniel supposed he was good, but it never helped enough )


Title: Abyss (Season 6)
Author: johnnies_darlin, Sierra
Fandom: Stargate: SG-1
Rating: PG-13, for a blasé attitude about death.
Characters: Jack O'Neill
100 words.

( Jack didn't know how many times he died while Baal was interrogating him )


Title: Heroes (Season 7)
Author: johnnies_darlin, Sierra
Fandom: Stargate: SG-1
Rating: PG for off-screen death.
Characters: Daniel Jackson, Janet Fraiser
200 words.

( It showed Janet being who she was )

Reposted from johnnies_darlin

Written for zeldaophelia for the 2nd Harry Potter Gen Ficathon. The Masterlist of all ficlets is here, if you're curious about the others.

Title: All Through the Night
Main character: Molly Weasley
Summary: Molly sits by Bill's bedside, the night of the battle at Hogwarts.

( All Through the Night )

First rain of the season last night;
Drops fell on the roof just as the sun was setting.
And once it was gone, the thunder started.
Sitting on the front porch swing with my daughter,
Watching and listening.
"That's 'rain,'" I tell her, as fat drops
Fall not from the sky, but from the branches of the oak trees
Surrounding the house.
They fall on the dried leaves coating the ground,
And make them rustle again;
Satisfying plops against the deck,
And metallic tinks from inside the storm drain.
The red earth drinks its first drops in months,
And the whole world seems content and at peace
As the last light fades, and all that is left are the sounds
Of the rain, and the thunder rolling through the trees,
And the rhythmic creaking of the porch swing.

Title:  The Girl in the Red Hat
Rating:  G
Genre:  Nonfiction
Summary:  The true story of how two young people met and fell in love in the fall of 1937.

~*~

Title: Love Is
Rating: PG
Genre: fantasy
Summary: A fairy princess meets her prince, who is perfect in every way. Unfortunately, life is not perfect.

~*~

 

( Life is not perfect )

 

Alphabet Poem: Moving

Another week down, still need to pack
Baby things and my books.
Cardboard boxes in the living room,
Don't know how I'm going to throw it together in time.
Each day is one closer to being home,
Far away from here.
Grandparents want to see the baby I took away,
Hold her and tell me how much she looks like me.
I give the phone to her when they call,
"Just to see how you're doing," so they can talk to her.
Kind of strange, to think about leaving,
Like I'm giving up, or
Maybe just running away so I don't have to think about it.
No one's been able to give advice,
"Only you know what's in your heart," they say, and
Pretty sympathies that don't mean anything.
Quiet moments to think are few around here,
Reflection almost impossible,
So I can only hope
That the thinking I managed was enough.
Upstairs, my husband plays with the baby; he'll miss her
Very much.
With mixed emotions, every day I put a big
X through another day on my mental calendar.
You have to keep moving, though. Put a stuffed
Zebra in the box and tape it shut.

My boys

Graeham – first kiss, no thought
over in a heartbeat, lasting forever
never know what might have been:
I moved away

Iain – tall, dark, & handsome
New Zealand accent,
first time for butterflies
summer camp was over too soon

Chris – not so tall, still cute
boys are dumb but he was cool
not afraid to hang out with a girl,
and I was afraid to ask for more

Jeff – blonde & blue-eyed
finally enough courage to ask
(probably shouldn’t have)
‘cause it scared him off

Jordan – dark & brooding poet’s soul
best friends for years
but when the time came
he didn’t want to ruin it

David – green-eyed soccer star
a Cold War of a catfight
with my friend Nicole…
never spoke to either again

Ian – a dancer & a gentleman
requited at last!
the candle was bright & hot
but it burned out fast

Greg – my dreams given flesh
everything was perfect
except one tiny detail:
he didn’t love me

Alan – another Kiwi, with hazel eyes
kindred spirit or past-life partner?
broke through defenses and pain
just to talk for hours

Johnnie – blue eyes like wells
and the soul I’d been looking for
he gave me a new name
and a beautiful baby girl

Little Brother

My little brother, caught in boredom there,
If only we could have those days again –
The simple life of children’s innocence –
Back when the world was safe and life was fair.
What happened to those kids we were, and where
Has our enjoyment gone? Remember when
We’d laugh at anything, and all our friends
And family would always be right there?
We’ve both grown up – time goes by in a whirl –
Known love and pain and grief and death and birth,
We’ve moved out, gone to school, and "seen the world."
But if this makes you sad, here is this pearl
Of wisdom: that, for whatever it’s worth,
I think we’re still the same young boy and girl.

Ex Cathedra

This cathedral was not made by men,
But by God –
The better in which to worship Him

In the cold, rushing Merced
Two men stand,
John pushes his cousin under
And the sun shines upon them

The sugar pine reaches down to offer a cone,
The fruit of her body
Joshua breaks it, “For you,”
And offers the nuts to his companions

Peter kneels on the rocks at the base of Bridalveil
His hands cupped and held out in supplication
The life of all falls into them
And he drinks

The Chapel bell rings
And out runs the couple:
Their fingers entwined like little garden snakes
And apple blossoms in her hair

A park ranger guides pilgrims around the valley floor,
Stopping every now and then
At fourteen points,
To let them reflect and wonder

This cathedral was not made by men,
But by God –
The better in which to worship Him

Title: Airhien
Rating: PG
Genre: Fantasy
Summary: If you love someone, let them go...

( Airhien )