Family – a short story

Anika followed the family of ducks as they made their way to the pond on the grounds. She watched intently as the little ducklings launched themselves into the water in tiny splashes after their mother. At times, Anika felt jealous of the ducklings. Unlike her, they never had to worry about school, homework, exams, chores, …

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The silver lining – a short story

Even with his secret (from the non-magical people) rescue missions (for the non-magical people), Uncle Albert had a lot of time on his hands. Aunt Rosie suggested he take up a project to combat his boredom. She had recommended completing the project without resorting to the slightest bit of magic. The project she had in …

The memory lane – a short story

Mindy had been cleaning out her attic when an old photograph fell to the floor and caught her attention. She picked up the old photo, dusted it off and stared at it. A wave of nostalgia hit her with the force of a speeding train. Her memories took her back to a time when her …

The unexpected encounter – a short story

The narrow alleyway leading to the wine shop was almost deserted except for a handful of people. With her nose buried deep in a book, Mia didn't notice the bridge or the adjoining steps until she stumbled and fell to her knees. To her pleasant surprise, she found herself being assisted by a tall, handsome …

short story #36: At first sight…

Nina was on a shopping spree when she came across the stunningly handsome model. His incredibly good looks were even more accentuated by his confidence. He was wearing the Autumn-Winter collection by the Veli - a leading apparel brand. Nina craved to own Veli's collections but she gave in to her brain's (and her wallet's) …

short story #35: The Last Time

He still remembered the last time he held her in one of his bear hugs. He could still feel the warm kiss she gave on his forehead. He had closed his eyes and savoured the moment even as he tucked a wayward strand of her hair behind her ear. If only he had known at …

short story #34: The Wall of Love

Amora managed to drag herself off the bed to take a look at her "wall of love". Depression had started to rear its ugly head. She could feel it stirring deep within her chest. She could feel happiness draining out of her slowly, only to be replaced by a sickening feeling of emptiness. It was …

short story #33: Survival of the fittest…

The clouds kissed the top of the mountains and chased each other as they moved across the skies. They shed their burden as they moved, ushering in the first showers. The parched land lapped up the water, rejoicing at the onset of the monsoons. A magnificent tigress waited in the shade of the tall bushes, …

short story #32: The “Unpleasant” Fairy

Tabitha was a fairy too, in her own right. Tabitha was the fairy godchild of Cinderella's fairy godmother. Tabitha was the most mischievous and unpleasant of little fairies in all of the fairyland. But her fairy godmother was too sweet to hold it against Tabitha! Ever since Cinderella married her prince and became a Princess, …

short story #31: The penny-pinching Krupani

Krupani was the wealthiest man in the village. But his heart was not so generous. He was as miserly as they came. Like many wealthy moneylenders, he made his fortune by extracting exorbitant rates of interest. Krupani and his goons literally squeezed money from the poor souls whose misfortune had driven them to borrow money …

short story #30: Déjà vu

The little brick house was the first and the only one that her father had built. Amala and her parents had turned the small house into a beautiful home. They had been extremely happy…until a freak accident snatched her father away from them. His death hit them hard - emotionally and financially. Amala and her …

short story #29: Baby Lela’s Adventure – Part 2

Preface: As the title implies, this story is a sequel to short story #28: Baby Lela's Adventure - Part 1. This short story probably may not make much sense as a stand-alone story. Click on the link to read the first part. 🙂 The humans put a round object around both of their necks. Lela …

short story #28: Baby Lela’s Adventure – Part 1

Baby Lela was living a perfectly happy life with her parents and the rest of her monkey community. Deep in the forests, they had plenty of trees to climb, swing from, explore, jump, and do anything their hearts wished to do. Although there was always a looming threat of ending up as a predator's meal, …

short story #27: Crossroads

It was well past midnight. The streets were dimly lit by the overhead lamps. The roads were empty and the shops had all closed for the day. The otherwise busy intersection was now deserted. Even the traffic signals had retired after a busy day's work and were flashing amber. This was the very traffic signal …

short story #26: The Enchanted Forest

Preface: Today, I offer you a glimpse into the adventures of our in-house magical couple - Uncle Albert and Aunt Rosie. You mind remember them from my short story #13: A Cup of Love. Click on the link to read the story. 🙂 Though this short story can be read as a stand-alone story too, …

short story #25: An Unexpected Invite

Preface: Today, I offer you a glimpse into the adventures of our in-house magical couple - Uncle Albert and Aunt Rosie. You mind remember them from my short story #13: A Cup of Love. Click on the link to read the story. 🙂 Though this short story can be read as a stand-alone story too, …

short story #24: Tossing about (SoCS – Toss)

Meera cut all the vegetables that her mother had mentioned in the recipe. She was going to make a Pulav for the first time! The lockdown had forced her to become more active in the kitchen. Meera - who didn't know even the basics of cooking. She could effortlessly burn even the simplest of recipes. …

short story #23: A blast from the past!

The walls of their little one-bedroom cottage were covered with tiny drawings. Each of those drawings was a multi-colored, intricate pattern, painstakingly drawn by Jamie. She loved to paint. One of her most favorite things to do was strike funny poses against the backdrop of her painting masterpieces. Dave was recollecting fond memories of his …

short story #22: A Statue’s Musings

One would assume that one mistake would be enough. One might even think that humans would learn not to repeat the same mistake over and over again. An invisible virus shook their world and brought them to their knees. Things got so worse so fast that many humans went into "hibernation" mode. They stayed holed …

short story #21: Covert operations

To a human eye, it might have seemed as if the two bald eagles were comparing notes on how to catch elusive fat rats. Perched on the highest tree that they could find, they surveyed the humans as keenly as they could. When the dogs and cats had refused to spy on the humans, Agents …

short story #20: The story of an eight-legged monster

"Aaaarrghhhhh", Aisha screamed at the top of her voice, jumping away in alarm. It had always been an impulsive response, the usual response that eight-legged monsters-to-her/spiders-to-others managed to elicit from Aisha. She was terribly accomplished when it came to screaming like a banshee, whenever she saw a spider that looked like a descendant of Aragog. …

short story #19: The Land of Erindell

The forest of Wellspell was beautiful and boasted an almost impenetrable canopy. The heart of the forest was home to a well-kept secret for centuries - the land of Erindell. Steep, intensely rocky terrain on all sides isolated Erindell from the rest of the world. To the human eye, Eridell appeared to be a rocky …

short story #17: In search of food…

The heat of the afternoon sun was unbearable. Ammu didn't know how long she had been walking for. Food was scarce and she was extremely hungry. Ammu hadn't eaten in days. Hunger and desperation were clawing her from inside out. She was alone, separated from her family, and lost. The thick forest cover was slowly …

short story #16: The legend of the gold fairies

Tucked away in a quiet corner of the world was the peaceful country of Alsea. It was famous for its picturesque beauty, with its lush green meadows, rolling hills, forests of cherry blossoms and sparkling clear waters. Alsea was also home to Aureus - the steep, horridly black cliff that was extremely famous thanks to …

short story #15: Surprise!

Donnie was intrigued and a little bit scared too. Mike had said that he had a surprise for her. That was all that he had said. The very thought of his surprises made her smile. One time he had managed to set off the fire alarm as he almost burned their kitchen down, trying to …