Welcome to the fourth week of the Spring Writing Challenge!
You all did so well with your stories last week! There were so many interesting and unique ways you interpreted the prompt. It’s now the fourth week, so it’s time to do it again! Will your story have an epic battle between good and evil? A long-lost evil brother? Whatever you decide, we can’t wait to see what you come up with.
So, without further ado, here’s your next prompt!
Week Four Prompt – The Theme Prompt
Write a story that’s about a
Bigfoot Reunion
Wait…what’s a theme prompt?
A theme prompt is a prompt that’s about a particular subject! It doesn’t matter where your story takes place, who’s in it, or what’s said. The only thing that matters is that your story must be about a Bigfoot Reunion.
Before you start writing, we have some important rules for you to follow.
Writing Rules
1. Please keep the content of the stories you post to a PG rating. Please avoid real curse words. Violence/fighting should be limited and purposeful. Please do not include any spice.
2. Your story must be 1,000 words or less, and must contain the prompt to be counted for the challenge. You’re not required to post it in order to “win” the challenge, but if you want it to count for your team, your story must be posted by Sunday at 11:59 PM ET, and you must include your team name.
Remember to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and post your story as an “answer” to this question, not a “comment”. 🙂 You’re all doing such a great job! I’m so proud of all the stories you’ve posted.
Happy Writing!
“Skunk Ape”
By: Hannah Stiff, Team A
Jase Bailey was going to put the town of Muse on the map. He grinned as he eased back in his seat, glancing up at the giant oaks surrounding their campsite.
There was a muffled yelp, and he turned to see Cody wave his arms like a cheerleader before falling from his chair.
“C’mon man!” Jase hissed.
“Look I’m sorry, ‘kay? But I think I just got stabbed!” Cody stumbled to his feet, rubbing his neck.
“Keep checking your phone like that and the gallinippers will get you before Skunk Ape does,” Jase snickered. “You’re a beacon for every bloodsucker 5 miles around.”
Cody growled and sunk deeper into his hoodie. “Do you Floridians have any non-deadly wildlife?”
“If ya wanted safe, ya shoulda gone to Disney World.”
Cody edged his chair a little closer to Jase’s. “How’d you get Aunt Leanne to let us do this? We’re in the middle of nowhere!”
“As long as I bring my anti-venom and rifle,” Jase shrugged, “Mom lets me go camping whenever I want.”
Cody blinked. “See, I’ve only ever used a Nerf gun, and you said you were seven when you got to—”
“Five,” Jase corrected. “Dad got me this one after I shot my first gator,” and he patted the Winchester beside him.
Cody was silent for a few moments. “Bro,” he finally said, “Your family’s got problems.”
Jase chuckled and reached for his thermal scope. The floodplain forest was still, save for the saw palmettos swaying to a warm night breeze.
“Sooo, you gonna shoot Bigfoot when he gets here?”
“Skunk Ape.”
Cody rolled his eyes. “The rest of the U.S.A calls it Bigfoot.”
“Yeah, my state my rules,” Jase countered, “And no, I want to shoot him with a camera, not a rifle.”
“And your neighbor lady saw him last night?”
“Yup.” Jase stretched. “He was making for this area, and on two legs too. She could see his red hair—”
“Skunk Ape’s got red hair?”
“You read the article I sent you, right?”
“Nope.”
Jase sighed. “‘The Skunk Ape is between five and seven feet tall with mottled red hair, commonly purported to emit a foul odor, and resides in southeastern United States.’”
“Hey, it could be you with that description!” Cody exclaimed with widening eyes.
Jase whammed a pillow into his cousin’s face before continuing. “He’s been sighted all over Florida, for decades now.”
“SkunkFoot must be an octogenarian at this point,” Cody remarked. He glanced at Jase. “I thought we could compromise on the dude’s name.”
Before Jase could find another missile to launch, a throaty grunt sounded from the brush across from them. Cody gasped as Jase shoved the camera into his gut.
“You get the shot, I’ll cover for us in case Skunk Ape’s grumpy,” Jase whispered, his Winchester cocked.
“How d’ya know it’s him?” Cody’s eyes were as round as the full moon that shone on the grove.
“I’ve heard every sound the Florida bush makes, and that is not one of them.” Jase murmured as another grunt followed by a branch snap met their ears.
The boys turned to stone as a lumpy figure trundled out from behind an oak, rocking its head back and forth as it surveyed its surroundings. A shaft of moonlight caught its shaggy head and revealed its face.
“Sweet Caroline!” Cody squeaked, “It’s an orangutan!”
The creature made a shrill kissing sound, its wrinkly face dividing into more creases as it did so.
A crash came from the left side of the clearing, and two more orangutans materialized and ran to meet their friend.
“What the…” Jase exclaimed under his breath.
“Bro, I thought these things come from Asia?” Cody protested.
“They do,” Jase spoke slowly, watching the primates reach out to hug each other. “They’re not wild.”
“How do you know?”
Something emerged from around a saw pine, and Jase’s neck hairs shivered. This had to be a male! His wide gray face was framed with scarlet fur, and his arms were twice the size of the others. With a lurch, he stood to his feet and jerkily waved to the others.
“Does a wild ape do that?” Jase asked quietly as the male bowed to his adoring audience. “Besides, I read orangutans are loners, they don’t congregate like this normally.”
“It’s a Bigfoot reunion,” Cody breathed. “I mean Skunkfoot. But seriously, where’d these guys come from? A circus?”
“Ya know,” Jase gently uncocked his rifle, “I heard tell of a reserve up north. It’s supposed to be for rescued chimps. Like the ones you see in movies.”
“A retirement home for acting monkeys?”
“Sure. But I didn’t know they had orangutans. The reserve doesn’t like to be in the public eye.”
“So if their residents broke out, they wouldn’t exactly advertise it, would they?” Cody deduced, watching the three smaller ones tussle through the palmettos.
“No.” Jase looked uncomfortable. “It’d make them look bad, like they weren’t taking good care of them.” Cody nodded, and they both fell silent.
“What if they aren’t? I mean, we don’t know but…” Jase didn’t finish his thought. A tiny squeak pierced the air, and an orangutan slowly pulled a squirming object from her chest. A baby with a face as ancient as her mother’s was presented to its aunties, who swarmed it immediately, humming curiously.
Jase yanked the camera from Cody, who was too startled to react. With a click, he pressed the button.
The flash lit up the forest like lightning, and the group scattered, grunting and hooting.
“Jase!” Cody protested. “You weren’t even pointing it at them!”
“I know,” Jase said. He lowered his arm. “I’m not betraying them.”
Cody began to reply, but a grunt interrupted him. The boys peered into the grove and saw the male, standing silently in the center. Facing them. He lifted his arm slowly and wiggled his fingers. Then, with a long sigh, he turned and walked away.
Thanks Madi! This was definitely the most challenging of the prompts so far.
I love the twist of this story but most of all it was the interaction with Cody and Jase that really made the story come to life. You did a wonderful job giving each of the characters a way of interacting that made this story more engaging. Very well written and thought out!
I love the dialogue! “My state, my rules,” haha. Nice job!
Thanks Eunice! I love brother/cousin relationships, and so that definitely was one of my favourite parts of the piece. (:
Thanks Jordan, I liked that bit too, I’m Canadian, but I know some guys in the south of America who talk alot like this. (:
Yeah, fun interactions between Jase and Cody, Hannah. I’m a fan because (1) I also have a Skunk Ape WIP (I didn’t use it for this challenge), so I’m glad to see someone else take that bigfoot angle, and (2) you named a character Jase, so I’m instantly partial. Nice job.
This is so good! I love the talk about how Jase’s family is crazy for letting him shoot a gun at five years old. It’s so random and perfect. Sweet Caroline is one of the best clean exclamations I’ve ever heard! I’m proud to be on team A with you 😆
Go Herbert!🐸
Hey Jason, glad you liked the dynamic between the two, and one of the names stood out to you. (: So cool you’ve got connections with Skunk Ape in your own writing, I learned about him a year or two ago and thought he was a quirky twist on Bigfoot.
Hey Lillie, thanks for your encouragement! “Sweet Caroline” popped into my mind during the writing of this one, and I decided it would fit with Cody’s character type pretty well. Glad you liked that addition!
TEAM HERBERT FOREVER!!
Cool story Hannah! I love the dynamic between the cousins and their two perspectives. I also like how you handled the prompt 🙂