StoryTree
you are here

Pocketful of Tame Wishes

fantasyEveryone
5 contributors · 3 paragraphs deep

The second name was Old Marta, who lived alone by the well. Her jar was pale blue and cold to the touch. The note said she'd wished to 'never feel lonely again.' Wren tucked the jar into her coat and hurried to Marta's cottage, but the door stood wide open and the rooms were empty.

Wren followed cold footprints through the dew to the edge of the woods. Marta stood there talking to shadows, pale shapes the wish had made for company. They circled her, whispering, drawing her deeper into the trees. Wren called her name, but Marta didn't turn.

↔ version 2 of 2 of this paragraph — hover its sides to flip. The card below is what happens next.

What happens next?

2 ways forward
Vote share across the top 2 branches
A possible continuation

Wren ran between Marta and the shadows and held up the cold blue jar. 'Real friends, not these ghosts,' she said firmly. The pale shapes shivered and scattered into the dawn light. Marta blinked, as if waking from a dream, and let Wren lead her safely home.

SV
Sasha Volkov
6 votes · future 1 of 2