Welcome to the second 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 second week, so it’s time to do it again! Will your story take place in the past? In space? Underground? Whatever you decide, we can’t wait to see how you use this prompt.
So, without further ado, here’s your next prompt!
Week One Prompt – The Setting Prompt
Write a story that takes place in a
Forbidden Garden
Wait…what’s a setting prompt?
A setting prompt is a prompt that takes place in a specific setting. It doesn’t matter who’s there, what happens, or what’s said. The only thing that matters is that your story must take place in a forbidden garden.
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. 🙂 You’re all doing such a great job!
Happy Writing!
Team 1! Sorry if there are typos or grammar mistakes, I’m posting this a minute before the deadline haha <3
When my brother became king, he sealed all entrances to the palace garden. He put his best guards around the perimeter and ordered anyone who strayed close to the entrance to be arrested.
My brother was only in that garden for minutes on the fateful day he watched my parents die, but his eyes are now hollow, his once chocolate brown hair streaked with gray. He told me, and I honestly can’t recall if he has spoken to me since, that he would die before letting another person set foot in that garden.
I pull my hood tighter around my head as the frigid wind bites my cheeks. I have no desire to be the reason for my brother’s death, but my need for answers is becoming suffocating.
Tonight, the moon hides behind the clouds, helping me stay undetected. I zig-zag between the shrubbery that once lined the path to the garden. The guards around the perimeter have become more lax with the rotations since no one has yet tried to break in.
I hide behind a bush and count sixty seconds between when a guard disappears around the corner and another one comes into view. I try to relax my muscles while I wait for the next thirty-second gap. When no guards are in view, I run towards the garden hedge and push off the ground to jump. In the split second I’m in the air, I realize the hedge is taller than I remember. I ungracefully land somewhere in the middle, grasping wildly for purchase.
I’ve almost managed to make it almost to the top when the next guard rounds the corner. My traitorous body freezes in fear, fingers going slack. The guard doesn’t see me until he’s right below my perch. I watch my presence register on his face, but manage to keep my grip. I swing my legs over to the other side as the guard opens his mouth to sound an alarm.
I hit the ground ungracefully, rolling onto my back. Then I’m up and running. I’m not sure if the guards will try to chase me, but I’m not taking any chances.
As a child, I found gardens tedious and stuffy due to the parties of that sort my parents hosted here. Now, I wished I’d spent more time in the garden as I blindlessly race through it.
After putting a good distance between me and where I climbed over the wall, I pause to catch my breath. The palace garden is essentially a maze, somewhere designed for people to become lost in.
For the first time, the layout seems sinister, not romantic. A chill creeps down my spine as I take in my surroundings. The tall hedges are healthy and pruned, even though my brother had the gardeners relocated after his declaration. The leaves are so green they appear black, and instead of the colorful flowers I remember, glowing silver blossoms adorn the hedges.
What happened here?
The flowers start to slowly grow, their petals reaching toward me. I back away, blinking. And that’s when the music registers.
I’d thought it was the wind in my ears as I ran, but there’s a haunting melody floating through the air. It seems to grow louder after I acknowledge it.
Ignoring the fear in my gut, I start following the sound. I’m here for answers, and this impossible song seems like a good start.
I always try to be brave, but this garden is haunting. Vines strewn the ground, and some are splattered with red. All I can think about is my parents and how they spent their last moments here. Was it quick? Were they scared? I feel nauseous.
The music is now so loud it’s almost deafening. It doesn’t occur to me to think about how I know exactly which path to follow, and how the music seems to be tethered to me, reeling me in.
Suddenly, I come to a clearing. In the center, was something that tugged at a childhood memory. A wishing well.
I approach the well in a daze, ears ringing and eyes stinging from the blindly bright flowers. I came here as a child several times, but only made a wish once.
“Careful,” my parents had said. “The well can only hold so many of your wishes before it takes in return.”
I lean over the edge, a terrible feeling crawling up my throat, causing my earlier nausea to return. The water in the well is splashing about, and there, in the waves, I can make out the resemblances of my parents’ faces.
I reel back, horrified. My legs give way, but the well is pulling me closer again. I fall against its rim, shutting my eyes so I can’t see the water.
In one terrible moment, the melody morphs into a voice.
“Elora. I’ve been waiting for you.”
Doc from Team A
Trev was the hesitant one and he was known for it.
“Are you sure that you want to go in there? We’re not burglars, and this definitely ain’t in our job description.”
While he continued to work on engaging the entry panel, Thomas shook his head at the lack of spine his partner had.
“You’re afraid cause it says do not enter?”
“No,” he replied with a shaky voice and a fake laugh. “I don’t see the point. That’s the greenhouse, so there’s no way they have the server with the AI program in there. If there was any moisture the circuits would fry so fast.”
Thomas methodically pressed more buttons expecting his clever password breaking device would decipher code to unlock the door. As a computer hacker, this was a sideshoot of his specialty to be able to gain access to restricted places. The buttons lit up like he was playing Simon, the memory game with tones and flashing lights, which by the way he had mastered the highest level.
Fingers whirling, he said, “We know that they haul produce out from this greenhouse twice a week. Here in January in Iceland? Impossible, right? Don’t ya think this is more than a freak coincidence that the computer our AI hacked to learn about the Time Shift could be in a place that does something impossible? We will find connections to the server through this door, to ADRI the AI program that is behind the mysterious events in the Metropolis of the US two years ago. An event that sped people up but unknowingly was tracked to this location with our little program-”
“The one I installed,” Trev insisted in a surprisingly forceful tone.
When Thomas’ hands froze the device quietly made a solid tone bringing a surprised look to both men as they waited for what was next. Then the door clicked loudly.
Deciding to show his courage Trev reached for the door, pulling it open far more quickly than needed while immediately stepping through. By the time Thomas unconnected his device to look into the greenhouse, Trev was gone. Fear washed down his face as he stared ahead, eyes focused on where Trev should be. Right when he felt his gaze extend into the greenhouse a mist popped before him blocking his view of an eerie face hovering in the center. Thoms reacted quickly throwing his arms up to shield his face while barely withholding a huge scream.
Trev began to laugh as the mist rapidly whisked away.
“Hahaha, I hope I got this picture. Your face was hilarious before the mist, but it was even better when you thought something scary was coming through at you. Hahaha.”
“What the heck, Trev,” Thomas said trying to recover. “You were gone, then you were there, in some cloud,” he said adding a swipe of his hand in front while looking for the mysterious cloud.
The smile plummeted from Trev’s face with his chin dropping nearly to his chest and an odd sound emitting from his throat.
“Whoooaaahhhh, I know what that was,” he said exaggerating every word. “I was Shifted, moving fast. And according to what our AI discovered it was 50 times faster than you were moving.” After pointing a finger at Thomas, he suddenly snapped his head around to examine just inside the doorway running his fingers around the frame like he was scanning for a booby trap. “I was in there probably three minutes, and you just stood here until you looked up and got that scared little girl look. Their device must be right inside here.” Straining to reach over the top of the door he felt the wire, then squatted to look up. “There it is, that green box. And another one on the other side.”
“Wait, you were moving fast?”
Thomas was not able to comprehend the experience and the fact that his previously trembling partner was calm about it. He wondered who the scaredy cat was.
Ignoring the outburst, Trev’s mind was buzzing to fill in the details. He knew he was much better at analyzing computer setups and connections than Thomas but not really a hands-on type of guy.
“Those boxes have to be connected to the AI for it to Shift me, or Shift anyone when they pass through the door.” He looked down to study the floor just inside the door before making his next conclusion. “There is no pressure sensitive plate, so it detected movement coming through the door. We can create a direct connection through those wires to ADRI so I can get the data on this Time Shift stuff.”
“Dude,” said Thomas who waited until his partner finally looked at him. “You were Shifted? That was the freakiest thing I ever saw. You vanished man! Then poof, in a puff of mist, you were here again. And yes your face floating in the mist scared the living crap out of me.”
Trev smiled and nodded.
“Cool,” he said, “but now we don’t have time to waste. Grab the bag and let’s see if we can tap into those cables. And,” he said, “I am way more stoked about getting our hands on the secrets of the Time Shift. Talk about a dream of becoming rich laying right before us. And the was the proof!”
“Are we telling Lex about this?”
Trev replied, “Didn’t he just say we need to stop them?”
“Perfect,” said Thomas showing his excitement now. “Certain information can be kept between us for future use.” He needed agreement with his own statement. “I am sure I have connections to people that will pay handsomely for this unique advancement in technology. Geez, the Time Shift will be ours. This changes everything Trev. We become masters of our own destiny.”
“As long as we accomplish what we were asked,” said Trev.
“The rest is ours for the taking,” replied Thomas. “Let’s do this.”
Okay so it’s a greenhouse, a greenhouse in Iceland and not a garden. I figured the fact that the door was locked made it forbidden. Hope that was a fun surprise to see the Time Shift in action. It is more fun to see it from inside the Shift. The side note here is that this could be part of my second book about the Time Shift so you have to wait for the first one to get the whole picture.
Team A
“There once was a forbidden garden. Guarded by an old troll with green, wrinkly skin. When the little children knocked, she would yell- you cannot come in!” Finn huffed and knocked over the troll he set up on the table and it went hurtling to the floor with a thump.
May, a tot with those cute, spiky, toddler-wisp pigtails on top of her head, bent down and picked up the doll, petting its head. Then she put it in her mouth.
Finn sighed.
“May, give me that back.” he said, holding out a hand.
May shook her head no and her mouth hardened into a pout.
“Mine.”
“No, it’s mine. I need something to be Old Lady Crandall.”
“Mine.”
His little sister could be so stubborn.
“Fine. You can play with it. See if I care.”
“Finley.” His mother’s admonishing, but gentle voice carried over from the kitchen where she was cooking. “Be nice to your sister. She’s little.”
“Okay.” He got down to May’s height. “Sorry I was mean.”
“It okay.” She gave Finn a hug and he hugged her back. He couldn’t be cross at her for long. May didn’t understand his frustrations.
His mother set their pasta dinner on the table and Finn was asked to clear up his creation to make room for his plate. He did- tearing down the Lego fence and removing the dandelions he’d placed to represent the neighbour’s flower garden.
He gathered those in his hands.
“You can have them.” he said, and his mother, a slender blonde woman, set his plate on the table, picked up his sister and settled her into her high chair, and then accepted them.
Pasta was good, like usual. Finn liked it very much. What he didn’t like was the way Old Lady Crandall had looked at him as he walked past this morning on his way to school. He always stopped by her fences and always stood on his tippy toes to peek over the fence into her garden. It was real lovely in there- roses and buttercups, stone walkways, even a pond.
He liked the pond, with its splashy fountain and huge koi. He’d sometimes see frogs over the fence too. Most often, he saw Old Lady Crandall. She looked like a prune and she had a voice that scratched when she yelled. She yelled whenever she caught him watching her. She made Finn feel worse than dirt or an ant on the road.
“Finley, what’s wrong? You seem upset.”
“Sorry.”
His mom smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“It’s okay to have feelings.” she said with a smile.
“Old Lad- Mrs. Crandall hates me. Today she forbid me when I asked to see her fish and garden.” Tears began to spill over, so his mother reached for her napkin and began to dab at his face, cradling him close.
“Maybe I should talk to her.”
“No.” He pleaded with his eyes. “She’ll be more mean when I walk past to school.”
“We’ll see about that. How about we go talk to her together?”
“I don’t know.”
“Some people are mean for lots of reasons. You got upset at May because you were having a bad day. Maybe she’s feeling bad because of her day.”
“Or years.” Finn muttered, a bitter note seeping into his little voice.
His mother patted his head and then directed him to eat his dinner.
The next day was a Saturday, and Finn wasn’t going to school. He was almost glad because he wouldn’t have to see Old Lady Crandall again, but then he remembered Mom’s words. Yes, they were going to see her and talk to her. Big gulp.
He put on one of his Sunday shirts just in case, and brushed his hair real nice. If she thought he was a good boy, could he see the fish?
Only one way to find out.
Finn put on a determined gaze and waved good-bye to his Dad and little sister May. Then he took his mother’s hand and they both walked down the street. Finn’s mom had a soft, warm hand, and a basket of cookies in the other. She said cookies could help anyone remember their manners, and Finn believed her. Unless some people were too cranky for cookies.
His breath hitched as they came into sight of her house, and he had a vivid picture in his head of her scowling face, but she wasn’t in the forbidden garden today.
She must be home.
Finn and his mom came up the driveway beside her car. She was home. Finn gripped his mom’s hand tighter and hid behind her once they were on the doorstep.
The doorbell chimed a beautiful sound, like church bells. What Finn was worried about was the shrill noise that would remind him he was a terrible boy. So, when the door began to open, he wished he was invisible and shut his eyes too, hoping it would work.
“Hello, Mrs. Crandall.” His mother said.
“Cheryl. Your boy’s been trying to ruin my flowers.” She said, fixing Mom and the cookies with a harsh stare that made Finn quake in his sneakers.
“I thought Finn could explain himself if you’d give him a moment.” Mom said, holding out the basket of cookies.
The old lady took them.
“Fine. Speak up, young man. Yes, I see you there.”
Finn stepped out from behind his mother. His eyes threatened to fill with tears.
“I like your garden- I wanted to visit.” He said, and then the tears came.
“Oh. Oh.” The old lady almost dropped the cookies, but managed to bend down a little, so she was looking into Finn’s face.
“You really should have just asked.” She said. “I’m so sorry. I thought you were one of the boys who threw toilet paper at my house last Halloween.”
Finn looked up into the old lady’s face and wiped away his tears.
“It’s okay.” he said.
Then they walked into the garden together.