#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 58: Jurassic Era

1/3/26 #TimeTravelAuthors Deal #Wss366

We approached the caves cautiously. The thrum of the dragonflies added to the sinister feeling. Inside, anarchistic cave-#drawings showed monstrosities with many tentacled faces fighting toadish creatures. Further down, the octopi beings were shown being roasted alive over huge fires. Underfoot, seashells, small bones, and scurrying beetles crunched.

A breeze blew from the far end of the cave, dispersing the stench we had smelled climbing the ridge. The open sky at the far end beckoned, offering relief from the ominous atmosphere of the cave.

Our relief was short-lived. Below, we could see a narrow strip of jungle stretching along an aquamarine sea. Islands dotted the water. Each of the four largest islands had a pyramid on it. Three white pyramids formed a triangle, with a towering, coral-pink pyramid rising in the center. An enormous eye, carved at the pinnacle of the fourth pyramid, peered over the others.

“What’s the #deal? The Eye of Providence? Freemasons? Here?” Emily questioned.

“I think you mean the Illuminati. That’s their symbol,” Bijou corrected her.

“Illuminati? Perhaps. Until recently, I would have thought you were a bit of a mug if you’d said that, but now, seeing it… it gives me the heebie-jeebies.”

Eye of Providence:

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 59: Jurassic Era

#TimeTravelAuthors 1/7/26 Name #Wss366 Dash

Bijou continued to look at the pyramids. “I wonder if Tolkien had visions of that?”

At Emily’s questioning look, she said, “He’s a famous writer from the 1950s. His villain, Sauron, was depicted as a giant eye that peered out over the world from his tower. ‘One ring to rule them all and in the darkness to bind them.’”

“That sounds grim.”

“I suppose it’s better than Lovecraft and beings that Should Not Be #Named.”

“I don’t suppose either of those offers any clues on what we might face?” Emily asked.

“Let’s hope not. They’re both way out of our league.”

“#Dash it! I was hoping for some help here.”

“I think Nazi Rabbits are more our speed. Let’s not wish for eldritch gods.”

“Well then, here is to Nazi Rabbits.”

Bijou finished the cheer: “And the Illuminati.”

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 60: Jurassic Era

1/15/26 #TimeTravelAuthors The cost of time travel #Wss366 pyramid #MastoPrompt aromatic

I kicked the detritus near the edge of the cave, then sat down with my legs dangling over the edge. An #aromatic breeze, reminiscent of ferns and conifers, rose from below, masking the odor of guano.

"If we want to learn what the rabbits are up to, we're going to have to go out there," I said, pointing to the surreal #pyramids.

“Can you fly that far? You'd be easy pickings out there on the water.”

“Yeah, I can’t see myself building a raft and paddling across open water. I don’t suppose we could just time-travel over there? We don’t seem limited spacially when doing it. And it doesn’t seem as taxing as dematerialisation.”

“All we can do is try.”

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 61: Jurassic Era

1/17/26 #TimeTravelAuthors #work #Wss366 #work

“First, though, we should watch from here for a few days. Whether it #works or not, having more information could be useful.

“I agree,” Emily said. “How shall we spend our time?”

I manifested a deck of cards. “How about pinochle or gin rummy?”

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 62: Jurassic Era

1/19/26 #TimeTravelAuthors A character's goal #Wss366 #coke (implied)

The two of us spent the next couple of days playing cards and observing the pyramids. We learned more about the former than the latter. I taught Emily pinochle, and she taught me bezique. She liked that pinochle was more intense; I liked that bezique took its time. We had plenty of it to kill. Now and then we mixed up the terminology, which led to some friendly squabbling.

More importantly, we learned creatures avoided the pyramids. This wasn't immediately apparent, as flying creatures took flight from the pyramid closest to us. That was until one flew near us.

“An ornithopter,” I exclaimed as a pterodactyl-like machine flew by.

“A what?”

“An airplane that flies by flapping its wings.”

Emily shook her head. “At least it’s not trying to kill us. Still, no sane pilot would trust that.”

“Sane or not, we had better try our experiment before one of those spots us.”

“Agreed. We’d be in a jam if they knew we were here.”

We joined hands and repeated together: “We want to be on the central island five minutes after the big ornithopter took off.”

The cave faded, and we stood with the central pyramid in front of us, a towering mass of coral.

Emily touched it and asked, “Do you think it grew here?”

“I don’t know. I’d believe anything at this point.”

“Holy moley! Wait, I think there’s writing over there.”

We walked down a beach of pink sand, prehistoric shells, and fine, black ash until we faced the words carved into the pyramid:

          OCULUS APERTUS ERAT
          ANTEQUAM REGES ESSENT

          We guided the fire.
          We guided the crown.
          We shall guide the end.

“Masons/Illuminati,” we said at the same time.

What followed was a laugh, a strained echo of our squabbling over cards.

The laughter trailed off as we looked at each other.

“Nazis, Illuminati, eldritch horrors—why do we have to be the chosen ones?” I said, collapsing against the monolith.

Ornithopter:

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 63: Jurassic Era

1/21/26 #TimeTravelAuthors #count #Wss366 #Roger #Mastoprompt

“Chosen ones?” Emily repeated. “Could you explain?”

"It's a literary trope where someone, usually unsuitable, is 'chosen' to save the world while fighting against impossible odds."

“Trope? Pray tell, what does that mean?”

“A literary cliché.”

“So, you think we’ve been chosen to stop the Illuminati?”

“Not really. It’s more likely that we're Lovecraftian characters who will be polished off or driven insane by implacable dark forces.”

“We could just travel to a pleasant time and place and live out our ghostly lives.”

“When you were alive, you could have just written a nice ‘women’s column,’ and ignored the threat in Europe. But you didn’t.”

Emily smiled, kicked a piece of coral, and then said, “No more than you can turn your back on this. There are things more significant than our puny lives and happiness.”

“#Roger that! Bogart couldn’t have said it better.”

“You know I can’t #count the number of times you make references I don’t understand.”

“Actor, 1940s. He starred in big films, including ‘Casablanca,’ where he says, ‘It doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world.’”

“It’s a good line even if your imitation smells like yesterday’s fish.”

Casablanca (1942), starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, & Paul Henreid:

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 64: Jurassic Era

1/23/26 #TimeTravelAuthors A favorite moment in your story #Wss366 grounds
1/25/26 #TimeTravelAuthors Problem/difficulty you had with time travel
1/27/26 #TimeTravelAuthors Medical care.

“So what now? We’re on the island.”

I didn’t have a good answer to Emily’s question, but I offered, “We can walk around the pyramid looking for a way in. Then we do an Indiana Jones—Sorry, I did it again. Act like tomb raiders. Like those Egyptologists and King Tut’s tomb. Wait, that’s cursed, isn’t it?”

She laughed. “A curse can’t kill us. We’re dead already. We have the best medical care there is. So, let’s go.”

Actually, that worried me. Time travel and/or being a ghost seemed overpowered. We could go to any time or place; heal; manifest clothes, money, and other items; fly; go through walls; and God knows what else. Changing history didn’t seem to be a problem. There was the amnesia, the fatigue of changing between material and dematerialized, and the possible complication of meeting yourself. Were we really OP chosen ones? It just didn’t track.

I didn’t bother Emily with these worries. What #grounds except instinct could I base my worries on? What could go wrong if we were overpowered? Famous last words.

The pyramid was even bigger than it had looked from a distance. It took a good five minutes to round the first corner.

“What’s your favorite memory?”

Emily’s question caught me off guard. Why was she asking now?

“I told you I don’t remember my old life, so there isn’t much to choose from. Let’s see… I think it was when Josephine Baker gave me the name, Luminelle Bijou.”

“Not when you met me?”

Was she fishing for a compliment? That didn’t strike me as Emily-like. “As I remember it, you were in a panic when we first met, and your living counterpart was downright rude. But if you need a compliment, I enjoyed playing cards with you and matching wits even more.”

She smiled. I’d said the right thing.

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 65: Jurassic Era

#TimeTravelAuthors 31. Author's choice #Wss366 Redolent #MastoPrompt Melt

The inner sea, surrounded by pyramids, was calm. It wasn’t until we reached a corner that we encountered significant debris: piles of seaweed and logs, as well as a huge squid #melting back into the primordial ooze. The air was #redolent of decay. The buzzing of insects over the corpse underscored the absence of larger living creatures within the inner sea.

We skirted the corpse, rounded the corner, and found steps carved into the pyramid's side. They rose gradually, switching back and forth as they climbed. Emily scouted ahead and reported that the stairs ended at a tunnel leading into the pyramid about two-thirds of the way up.

“It’s a long, exposed climb,” I said upon hearing the news. “I think we should decide where we’re going next in case we need to escape quickly.”

Learn more about the rabbits
Learn more about the illuminati
Learn more about Bjou’s past
Visit Emily’s Grandmother
Take a break and go somewhere safe and cozy.

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 66: Jurassic Era

#Wss366 Mace #TimeTravelAuthors 7/1. Saturday excerpt (optional word: love)

With the question of where we would go next settled, I began climbing. At first, an accumulation of small debris made climbing difficult, but the endless steps weren’t steep. As long as I took my time and rested periodically, I could avoid becoming exhausted.

Eventually, I reached the top of the stairs and faced the tunnel. Looking back at the numerous switchbacks, I chuckled at the thought of a ghost getting winded.

The tunnel was dimly lit by #mace-like torches spaced every dozen meters. Their flickering, flameless orange light made navigating easy. Dust covered the floor, disturbed only in the center.

When Emily checked, she found the walls were thick with no chambers beyond. I shivered at the thought of what might happen if I rematerialized inside a wall. There would be no escaping that way.

I explained my thoughts to Emily and asked her to stay near me in case I needed to time-travel quickly. I wanted her within easy reach. Solo time-traveling and rematerializing in solid matter weren’t experiments we dared try. We didn’t even know if she could travel on her own.

She nodded.

I eyed the tunnel again and said, “Spooky! I would #love to know where that tunnel goes without entering it.”

“Probably Ayesha awaits us there,” Emily responded.

“Sorry, who?”

“Got you. ‘Ayesha, She-who-must-be-obeyed,’ the antagonist in H. Rider Haggard’s book ‘She.’”

“Touché, you did indeed.”

“Shall we go? I could hold your hand,” Emily said.

I declined the offer, but the tunnel seemed a little less creepy because of that thought and the humor.

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 67: Late Jurassic Era: Switzerland

#Wss366 Mercurial #MastoPrompt Surreptitious #TimeTravelAuthors 8/1. Anything: #TimeParadox?

Our footsteps rang hollow in the tunnel, which curved slightly to the right. After a hundred meters, the passageway branched into three tunnels: up, down, and straight ahead.

"Which way?" I asked in a low voice to avoid echoes.

“Let’s try forward,” Emily said, her tone matching mine. “It looks safest. The dust is undisturbed. If we learn nothing, we can always come back.”

That made sense. To be even safer, I tried manifesting a marking pen. When that failed, I attempted to manifest a piece of chalk. I’d pictured a nice, colorful piece of sidewalk chalk, but I received a rough, chalky stone. It would serve my purpose, though, so I made a #surreptitious mark to show which way we’d come.

[Continued in next post]

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 67: Late Jurassic Era: Switzerland (2 of 2)

#Wss366 Mercurial #MastoPrompt Surreptitious #TimeTravelAuthors 8/1. Anything: #TimeParadox?

[Continued from previous post]

On either side of the corridor, large empty rooms opened up. A thick layer of grime gave evidence that no one had used them in a long time.

We’d just started considering turning back when the passageway opened into a large tunnel heading down. It too had been long neglected. Faded murals depicting a history were painted on the walls, drawing us onward. Above ran inscrutable astrological symbols, along with inscriptions in forgotten languages.

We'd emerged at a midpoint depicting a toadish creature leaping, as if traveling forward in time. We could either head back the direction we’d come and learn about these creatures’ prior history or go down to learn about more recent events.

I pointed toward the future, and Emily nodded in agreement.

Initially, the scenes resembled those we’d seen in the pterodactyl caves, depicting a war between the toads and tentacle-headed monsters. From these scenes, we gathered that the conflict had gone on for centuries, if not millennia, with the toads as the eventual victors.

Mixed in with these images were blobish creatures that gradually became more rabbitlike. Initially, they seemed little more than domesticated beasts, then slaves, and finally soldiers. Next, the rabbits appeared, revolting against both of the eldritch races and eventually achieving freedom.

Someone had defaced the next portion of the mural, obliterating the drawing.

When the images resumed, the first one depicted a rabbit morphing into a man with wings on his feet.

Above it was inscribed:

आशुपद्भ्यां शरदः पतमानानि पत्राणि अनुपद्यन्ते।
Ὀξυτάτοις ποσὶ δεῖ σε τὰ φθινοπωρινὰ φύλλα λαβεῖν

We almost continued, but Emily noticed chalk marks near the floor.

“This looks like your writing,” she said, reading, “You need the fleetest feet to catch the autumn leaves.”

“Not me. If I’d written it, it would be a #timeparadox.”

Time Paradox:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 68: Late Jurassic Era, Switzerland

#Wss366 Mercury #MastoPrompt Trepanning #TimeTravelAuthors 9/1. Does your story get “political?”

“Well, someone wrote it, and it must mean something,” Emily said, tracing the chalk writing with her finger.

“‘Fleetest feet’ clearly refers to #Mercury,” I said.

“But what does Mercury symbolize? If you wrote it, I would interpret it as, ‘You need to be fast to catch the past.’ Autumn leaves symbolize the past. To catch the past, one needs to time-travel. The rabbit becomes Mercury, meaning it can time-travel, which is something we had already suspected.”

I nodded. It was conjecture, but it made sense. Could I have written it, though? I puzzled over that and then said, “Well, according to the time particle theory, it wouldn’t need to be a paradox.”

The only reply I got was a nod.

After that, the mural showed a procession of figures, often with rabbits in period-appropriate garb. Most of the humans appeared to be kings or nobles, while others were warriors. Among them, I thought I spotted a Mayan #trepanning a victim, Nero plunging a dagger into his throat; Genghis Khan heading a horde; the Goths burning Rome; and Joan of Arc being tried. All races and genders were included.

Latin captions replaced the Greek ones, while Sanskrit continued. The next translation we found was under a figure wearing medieval armor. He stood proudly holding a lance and a shield bearing a large, scarlet Maltese cross. Above the drawing, it was written:

क्षुद्रे́भिः क्षुद्रे́भिः छेदै́रपि महा́न् वनस्पतिः पतति
Multis plagis parvis cadit magna quercus.

In chalk below appeared: "Council of Nicosia, Christmas 1191: 'Many small cuts will fell the great oak.'"

“This definitely looks like your writing,” Emily said.

“Well, I wish I weren’t so cryptic!”

“It wouldn’t be you if you weren’t.”

The figures became more recognizable as we progressed. Emily recognized Ivan the Terrible, Tsar Nicholas II, and Robespierre, who stood next to a guillotine. Each person was accompanied by sneering, whispering rabbits. We both recognized Stalin and Hitler. Next to the latter were rabbits wearing SS uniforms. Later, I recognized Trollop, alongside men with "ICE-Nine" emblazoned on their jackets, like a medieval insignia. Here, the rabbits wore red hats.

Few tyrants weren’t associated with the creatures.

Mercury:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 5 Part 69: Late Jurassic Era, Switzerland

#Wss366 Buck #TimeTravelAuthors Hug

“I remember this man,” I said, pointing at Trollop. “He was a TV star and grifter. I have no memory of how he ends, so this must be from around the time I died. From here on out, it’s a futurerama. Maybe you’ll get to see #Buck Rogers. You said you wanted to see that kind of future.”

“Who?” Emily looked like she was going to laugh.

“Sorry, I thought you would know that one. He's an old science fiction character. At least he's old to me. He featured in serials...”

“Shush, listen,” Emily interrupted.

I heard a faint sound like, “Tekeli-li! Teke-li!” The flute-like music grew louder, raising the hair on the back of my neck.

Desperate, I grabbed Emily in an embrace that under other circumstances could have been mistaken for a #hug, saying, “We have to get out of here.”

“Take us somewhere else where we can learn about the rabbits!” we said together.

Buck Rogers:

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 6 Part 70: Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, Yucatán

#Wss366 #Evolution/ #DarwinDay #TimeTravelAuthors Whatever

Perhaps because we had been discussing Buck Rogers just before we time-jumped, we appeared in what at first seemed to be a futuristic scene.

We were atop a tall tower that bent like a stalk in the wind. Below, a town spread out, made up of buildings of many shapes. There were triangles on top of squat, square structures; octagons balancing great globes; and tiered palaces in shapes that defied description. Colossal, arched roadways and fluted buttresses linked all the buildings. Lovecraft came to mind once again.

Massive shapes crawled along the causeways in huge, battling waves. Creatures resembling two-horned triceratops mounted by toads wielding lances clashed with an army of rabbits armed with spears. Here and there, a bridge would collapse under the weight of the combatants. Above them, pterodactylish creatures as large as dragons flew. Rabbits dropped flaming projectiles on their foes from their backs.

The scene was straight off the murals in the pyramid’s tunnels.

Suddenly, they all stopped and looked up at the sky. At first, I thought they had spotted us. But when I followed their gaze, I saw a massive fireball streaking toward us. Time slowed as I realized this was the meteor that had hit Yucatán—one of the great extinction events.

I grabbed Emily as a burst of light and heat enveloped us. The land buckled, and the spire collapsed. The roar of the wind and super-heated air drowned out my scream. “Take us someplace safe.”

Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #History

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Part 71: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 lavish #TimeTravelAuthors 02/13. Love in your story

“Arrrhhhh Arrrrhhhh Arrhh…” I screamed, rolling in the grass. I was on fire! Everything was black except for the pain that filled my universe. Then nothing—not a velvety darkness or a #lavish tunnel of light leading to the beyond, but a void. Before I plunged into it, I had a last regret: “Death… Too bad… I could have… loved that woman…”

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Part 72: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Flash #MastoPrompt Breed #TimeTravelAuthors 02/21. Saturday excerpt (optional word: listen)

“#Listen, I'm telling you this woman has nothing worse than a bad sunburn,” said a man with a British accent as I awoke. My skin felt like it was on fire, but the pain was nothing like what I had endured before I blacked out.

When I opened my eyes, I found a man in a white coat leaning over me. The stethoscope around his neck made it clear who he was.

Another voice, thickly accented, spoke next, “Ah swear, sir, she had third-degree burns over most of ’er body. Half a dozen folk told us she were on fire. One o’ them daft Buddhists what set themselves alight in protest.”

“Look at her. Do those look like third-degree burns? What kind of idiots do they #breed in Yorkshire anyway!?” The doctor was clearly irritated, and I didn’t think my explaining that they were #flash burns from a meteor would help. Things would only get more complicated if I tried.

Already, the burning sensation had decreased and was more like an itch. I was going to have to escape before they noticed I was still healing. It would be a sticky wicket, as they say.

I sat up, jumping off the gurney. “Excuse me, I've got to go,” I said and bolted.

“Hey, wait,” I heard behind me. I don’t know who it was, nor did I wait to find out. Spotting a restroom sign, I headed straight for it. On the way, I noted a nurse in uniform. I could use that to make my escape.

Once in the bathroom, I manifested the uniform, ducked back out, and headed down the first corridor I saw. No one seemed to follow me, so I slowed down and was relieved to see Emily floating along behind me.

“That was close,” I said, stopping.

“That was a frightfully close shave,” she replied in a mock British accent. “Your quick thinking is commendable. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t gotten us away from that meteor. I’m not sure even your healing trick would have helped.”

A worse alternative occurred to me: constantly healing while being burned away in the next instant. I knew this time-traveling ghost business had to have a few gotchas. Turned out they were big ones.

Flash burns:

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Part 73: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Masher #MastoPrompt Render #TimeTravelAuthors 02/23. A #TimeTravel fiction that your characters enjoy.

I was already drawing unwanted attention by talking to thin air. Attention, I didn’t want. If this continued, someone would spot me as a fake.

“Excuse me, I’m new here. Could you point me to the way out?” I asked a fresh-faced nurse who paused to look at me. I definitely had to get out of there; my American accent was a big liability.

The woman pointed, and I headed in that direction.

I was almost at the door when I stopped. Seated in the waiting room, a young teen was reading a copy of “A Wrinkle in Time.”

I stared as a memory surfaced.

When I was young, we traveled to Great Britain, where my mother was in an accident. While I was stuck in the hospital, waiting for her, I read most of that book. That's what first sparked my interest in time-travel. I bet I read everything I could find on the subject.

“Oh!” I squealed as a man walked by and sat down next to the girl. He had just groped my ass.

I was #rendered silent by the outrage, but Emily wasn’t. “#Masher,” she spat. If she hadn’t been incorporeal, I think she would have slapped him or worse.

I didn’t tell her he was my father.

A Wrinkle in Time:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Part 74: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Cascade #TimeTravelAuthors 02/25. glow

Once outside, I found a secluded spot and changed into less conspicuous clothes.

Emily watched, amused. “That’s rather frumpy,” she said, looking at the shapeless dress I had adopted.

“I didn’t know you cared,” I responded.

“But I do care. You looked much nicer as a Florence Nightingale.”

I hoped the #glow on my cheeks wasn’t obvious. To help cover up my reaction, I “frumped,” “I’ll draw less attention this way. Besides, being goosed by strangers isn’t my idea of fun. Now let’s find a friendly pub where we can get a pint and discuss what to do next.”

“I noticed a place along the way we came, the ‘Kensington #Cascade.’ The sign showed beer flowing from a keg.”

It sounded like a bit of a dive to me, but I agreed.

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Part 75: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Front #MastoPrompt Kink #TimeTravelAuthors 02/27. Author's choice/promo

The pub was dimly lit, with light jazz playing, and a lively debate was going on among patrons about devolution. We found a private booth in a corner where we could see out, but other people couldn’t see in. It was an ideal place to meet and discuss our plans.

I hated to bring up our recent misadventure. Just thinking about it made me shudder and caused my hands to shake, but it had to be done. "We're going to have to be more careful about how we do time-jumps. That was close."

Emily nodded and materialized just long enough to take a sip of her cider.

“I don’t know how complicated we can phrase things. Simple might be best.”

Emily nodded again, then said, “Pretzels. I want pretzels.”

I chuckled and ordered some. While waiting for them to arrive, I studied the room more carefully. It was a nice place where an office lady might stop for a drink after work. In fact, a couple was talking at a nearby table. Emily had done well to pick the place.

The pretzels arrived, and Emily materialized long enough to nibble on one. She stroked another one as if she had some kind of bread #kink. I think some of the oddest things at times.

I resumed. “I recognized a girl at the hospital, so I'd like to talk to her and learn more about my past. After that, we should leave. Going to specific places and times should be safe. Here are the options I’ve thought of. Some are from the mural, and others I have just thought of.”

I listed some options.

“What do you think?”

Devolution in the United Kingdom:

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#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Part 76: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Cleavage #TimeTravelAuthors 03/03. Are your characters protecting anything/one?

Besides deciding where to go, we discussed how to protect ourselves from a bad-trip. That was my poor joke, but the discussion was anything but a joke. In the end, we couldn’t decide. We didn’t know enough about how phrasing our intentions works. We decided to keep it simple, but add provisos if it seemed warranted.

Upon leaving the pub, my first task would be to visit a bookstore. The proprietor of the Kensington Cascade was happy to direct me to one nearby, where I found the book I was looking for.

Next was the hospital.

I changed into an outfit that I hoped wouldn't draw attention, but would also seem trustworthy to a young girl. I consulted Emily, who suggested that I show less #cleavage in case the father showed up. It wasn't like I was dressed like a sex bomb, but I adjusted the bodice just in case.

Upon entering the hospital, I checked for my father and the doctor who had seen me. Seeing that the coast was clear, I sat down by the girl's side.

“I see you like time-travel stories,” I began.

The girl looked surprised. Then, in a voice tinged with a French accent, she replied, “They’re okay.”

“Here,” I said, offering her the book I had bought, H. G. Wells’s “Time Machine.”

She took the book hesitantly, and I had a brief flash of memory. I was sitting in the hospital, worried about my mother, when a strange woman came up to me and gave me a book. My younger self thought how the woman’s dress was almost identical to one her mother wore.

“You look like my mother,” she said, and I heard Emily snort.

“Oh, is she in the hospital?” I asked, ignoring Emily.

“She suddenly got sick.” A tear ran down the girl’s face.

“She’s going to be all right,” I said. “It’s appendicitis. But she’ll be fine.”

“Where were you born?” I asked. “I notice you have a French accent.”

“Normandy," she replied. "My mother just got married, and we’re moving to America.”

“He’s coming,” Emily called.

“I’m sorry. I have to go,” I said. “Keep reading about time-travel. I think you’ll find it fascinating.”

With that, I got up and hurriedly left.

H. G. Wells, “Time Machine”:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Post 77: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 befog/befogged #MastoPrompt Corner #TimeTravelAuthors 03/05. Apologies

After leaving the hospital, we strolled toward Kensington Gardens until we found a pleasant place to sit. I sipped a coffee I got from a #corner store. The trees behind us muffled the noise of the London traffic. In a place like this, it was hard to believe that monsters lurked in the shadows, perpetuating evil for unknown reasons. But for the moment, at least, I could relax in peace.

When no one was around, I asked, “Is there anything you’d like to do or see while we’re in London?”

“I can’t think of anything. Oh, wait! 221B Baker Street and the Elgin Marbles. Though I suppose we could see those in their original glory.” Emily was sitting on the grass, smiling up at me. You would almost think we were a normal couple, except the grass didn’t bend under Emily’s weight.

“Indeed. Going to Ancient Greece would be fun. We could see a Greek play in the original or consult the oracle at Delphi. But while we’re here, we could do something of local interest. It’s a little late for sightseeing, but we can check out Sherlock Holmes’ digs tomorrow. It might also be a good idea to go to the British Museum. Maybe we can learn something there. There might be things that other people aren’t allowed to see, or secret rooms. I can’t think of anyone better than you to sniff them out.”

“Then let’s walk to the Prince Albert Memorial,” Emily said. “Then we can find a place to stay for the night and eat. Time-tripping to avoid waiting a night seems like taking a risk for nothing.”

I had to agree. Besides, it would be nice to walk in the park with her. I apologized for her not being able to share oysters or steak with me.

She laughed, saying, “Oysters are disgusting. But if you order room service, I could share a few bites of steak with you.”

So that’s what we did.

The next day, we were out and about before anything opened. The streets were still #befogged when we reached 221B Baker Street. It turned out to be nothing more than a plaque on the wall stating that the fictional character Sherlock Holmes had lived there. Watching Emily’s face drift in and out of view in the fog was actually more interesting.

221B Baker Street:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Post 78: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Bowels #MastoPrompt Winsome #TimeTravelAuthors 03/07. Quiet/loud

Now that we had seen the sights, I caught a cab to the British Museum, while Emily flew overhead. An insipid ballad, “Swear It Again,” played #loudly on the radio. So I tuned it out along with the heavily accented East-Indian voice of the driver offering me additional ride services. Instead, I manifested a cell phone and played with the browser. I had forgotten how janky that experience was in the late 90s.

When we arrived at the museum, I showed Emily the phone and the internet. She was suitably impressed and offered me a #winsome smile. It wasn’t flying cars, but she was thrilled.

Since it was a Thursday morning, the museum was #quiet when we arrived. We hurried through the lightly populated rooms to the archaeological section, where I spent most of my time. Some items, such as German World War II artifacts and Crusader swords, made me uneasy. I couldn’t tell whether that was due to their supernatural aura or my own biases.

The Sutton Hoo exhibition, however, was wonderful. As I gazed at the treasures, fragmented memories surfaced of seeing them as a young girl.

At some point, Emily and I separated, with me exploring the public exhibitions and her roaming areas unavailable to visitors. I had just begun examining some Chinese jade artifacts when she appeared.

“Follow me,” she said.

“What did you find?”

“You were right. There's more here than meets the eye. Come on, you'll understand when you see it.”

We hurried through a door marked "Private," down a set of stairs, and through a maze of corridors. I wasn’t sure how Emily had found anything here. Finally, in the #bowels of the museum, we arrived at a heavy metal door.

The Anglo-Saxon ship burial at Sutton Hoo:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Post 79: 12 May 1999: London Part 1 of 2

#Wss366 Escape #TimeTravelAuthors 03/11. Wednesday leaf/leave

The door resembled an ancient bank vault, complete with a brass lever and a combination lock. Faded flowers were painted on the base, and the words “Chubb Treasury Strong Room Doors, 1900” were written at the top. Had we been ordinary trespassers, there would have been no way for us to get past this solid slab of steel.

“I’m going to have to dematerialize. I assume it’s worth it,” I said.

Emily nodded and walked through the door. I followed, pushing through the metal. It was worse than the last time I passed through something. If you could imagine bathing in stinging nettles, you’d have a good idea of what it was like.

Inside was a long room dimly lit by light escaping from glass-topped display cabinets. I manifested a lantern to see better, revealing shadowy paintings above the cases. Scattered around the room were items such as a suit of armor and an old flag.

“Wait until you see what’s in them! It’s the cat’s pajamas of exhibitions.” Emily was clearly excited, and I could see why. Who knows what this secret museum might reveal?

The first item I came to was a folk-style painting of long-necked dinosaurs, above which was an orange streak of paint. A plaque revealed the title was “The First Coming by Frida Kahlo (1931).”

When I looked down, my hands grew numb. In the case was a smooth rock labeled “Meteor Fragment: Cretaceous–Paleogene Era.” I flinched as an image of fantastic towers melting in the heat filled my mind. It was a scene I had blocked out from only two days prior.

Still trembling, I tried to push the memory of the meteor away as I walked unseeing past the next few exhibitions. Then, a stunning painting titled “The Crucifixion by Leonardo da Vinci (1500)” jolted me out of my traumatic flashback. I’d never heard of the painting before, but it looked genuine to me.

I was even more surprised when I saw displayed under it a #leaf-shaped lance-head that gave off a faint white light. Its plaque read, “Authentic Holy Lance/Lance of Longinus recovered June 1098 from beneath the Cathedral of St. Peter in Antioch.”

“Authentic?” Were they verifying that it was really the lance that killed Christ, or that it was the lance Peter Bartholomew found—or both?

Lance of Longinus:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial #UrbanFantasy #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Post 79: 12 May 1999: London Part 2 of 2

#Wss366 Escape #TimeTravelAuthors 03/11. Wednesday leaf/leave*

[Continued from previous post]

Next to the lance was a gem-encrusted tome, labeled “Gospel According to St. Judas (310 AD).” There was a palpable sense of power emanating from it. It wasn’t my imagination. Was this an unknown copy of the Gnostic Gospel of Judas or something else? Whatever it was, why was it being kept a secret, locked in a vault?

The third item in the case was an unadorned parchment scroll. After the previous items, its plain appearance was underwhelming. I didn’t sense any supernatural power emanating from it. However, the label riveted my attention: “Covenant of St. Judas, Council of Nicosia (December 1191)” This was the second time in as many days that I had seen a reference to the Council of Nicosia.

Nicosia had been a Templar stronghold. Yet I didn’t recall learning about this council in class. Why was it so important?

I looked at Emily, who was standing next to a blackened bronze tube, roughly one and a half meters tall. “Did I just #escape from an insane asylum? What the hell is this stuff?” I said.

Gospel of Judas:

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#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Post 80: 12 May 1999: London (1of 2)

#Wss366 stasis #MastoPrompt Figment #TimeTravelAuthors 03/13. Cultures in your story

“A history of cruelty and tyranny,” Emily replied. “That’s what it is.”

“There’s a Christian relic, an unknown da Vinci painting, and other priceless artifacts. Locked away in an archaic vault!” I said.

“Very British, wouldn’t you say?”

I joined Emily and looked at the objects next to her. In front of the tube was a plaque that read, “Di Xin’s ‘Pào lào’ (Roasting Pillar), c. 1046 BC.” In the display case were Chinese coins labeled "Goose-eye cash coins minted after Dong Zhuo melted down the Twelve Metal Colossi, 192 AD." On the wall hung a Chinese painting labeled "Daji Watching the Bronze Fire at Night" by Fei Danxu (1831) that depicted a beautiful woman with an amused smile.

“A multi-#cultural display of cruelty and depravity,” I said.

“Yes, they even have Lenin’s embalmed body and Vlad the Impaler’s mummified hand.”

“How did they get here?” I asked.

“Time-travel,” a deep voice said as dim lights came up. Startled, I turned to face the voice. “Mercury's court warned me about you, but I never thought you would show up here: Mademoiselle Henrietta Dubois and her mysterious companion. Quite a troublesome pair. #Figments of a hope that can never be. The Countess Bathory should have disposed of you when she first met you, but I suppose she thought it would be amusing to watch the mischief you cause.”

“More likely,” I thought, “she knew she couldn’t dispose of me.”

Di Xin, Pào lào’& Daji:

[Continued in next post]

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 7 Post 81: 12 May 1999: London

#Wss366 Sock #MastoPrompt Humble #TimeTravelAuthors 03/15. Does anyone have fun (or want to have fun) with time travel?

When Nostradamus spoke next, he had adopted the clipped accent of a Londoner. “I know you won’t take this advice, but you'd be better off enjoying your travels than meddling in divine affairs.”

“1900s Paris is lovely. You would enjoy it. The World's Fair was fabulous. Or how about settling into a #humble croft in Cornwall? You could enjoy the peace and quiet, not to mention the fresh country air. Or maybe somewhere more idyllic, like Tahiti before Captain Wallis arrived? I will say nothing of your visit here if you say nothing of what I have told you.”

I wanted to #sock his smug face. His advice amounted to, “Ignore the evil around you and have fun.”

Emily and I had discussed this several times, and enjoyed the pleasures of wherever we ended up. However, we wouldn’t let evil fester without at least trying to do something about it. After all, we were the “chosen ones.” In my words: “Fair may be foul and foul may be fair, but something stinks in Denmark.”

Rather than say that, I equivocated. “You might be right. We've discussed getting a villa in Versailles.”

“Prudent. While you're there, invest in some Monet or Tissot paintings before they become wildly famous. Though I warn you, 1789 is a terrible year.”

From the enslaved populace songs, chants and demands,
While princes and lords are held captive in prisons.
These will in the future by headless idiots
Be received as divine prayers.

          [Nostradamus, Les Prophéties, Quatrain I.14]

“Now, if you will excuse me, I have a consultation with the president of Sole Fruit,” the prophet said, waving toward the door.

Nostradamus:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 82: 2025 Arkham

#Wss366 Irish & #StPatricksDay #TimeTravelAuthors 03/17. Patient or patience in your story

Rather than leave the way we had come, I decided to time-trip out. The less information we gave our foes, the better. Apparently, they knew we could time-travel, but we could hold dematerialization as a trump card.

I took Emily’s hand and thought about our next destination. “Take us to my university office on the day the pink rat arrives from the future.”

The familiar sensations of time-tripping took over, and we appeared in a small academic office. Green streamers hung from the window, and a mega plushy papillon wearing an emerald top hat sat in the guest chair. A small plastic Buddha rested on the desk next to a picture of a young woman and me. Behind them stood the brick wall of an #Irish pub. The picture triggered a sense of profound sadness, but no memories.

Emily burst out laughing when she saw the clothes I’d manifested. “Nice duds. Is that what the daring avant-garde wear in your time? Absurd, but it’s charming in its own way.”

I pulled the floppy hat down and the N95 mask up higher, hoping they might hide how red my cheeks were. They probably matched the large cherry-red sunglasses I was sporting. I’d considered wearing a hijab but was unsure about the cultural implications of a nonbeliever wearing one. “I told you I don’t want people to see two Professor Henrietta Dubois’s.”

“Professor Tweedledee and Dum,” Emily joked.

I tipped up my glasses and rolled my eyes. She laughed.

“And this must be a young Tweedle-dumb,” she said, looking at the picture. “You look happy.

She stopped, tapped a signature, and said, “Who's Sarah Lockwell?” The amusement on her face had faded.

“I don’t remember.” My response wasn’t an evasion. I truly didn’t remember.

“Shame,” she said, but it didn’t sound as if she meant it.

Next, she walked around the desk, materialized her hand, and opened the bottom drawer. “Brandy. You were a bit of a lush, weren’t you, Professor Dumb?”

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“I’m a spy, sleuthing.”

“Well, be careful. You’ll get caught snooping.”

“You’re the only one who can see me.”

“Right, I forgot.”

After that, I sat #patiently on the edge of the guest chair while Emily continued to investigate. “Faustus Pakt, Liber Juratus, Pompilius’ Spiegel,” she read as she browsed the books on a shelf. “You had quite an interest in Faust and medieval grimoires.”

Having no memory of my prior reading, I didn’t comment.

Emily had moved back to the desk when the door opened, interrupting her investigation. In the corridor stood an outraged Professor Dubois, carrying a pink rat in a cage.

Medieval Grimoires:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Series #SaintPatricksDay

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 83: 2025 Arkham

#Wss366 Spoiler #TimeTravelAuthors 03/21. March/step

“What are you doing in my office?” My living counterpart asked, looking between Emily and me. “#March right out of here, you two, and make an appointment!” she snapped. “Students!”

“You see her,” I said. “You can see Emily!”

“Of course I see…” Ms. Dubois looked at Emily again and did a double-take. “She’s transparent!”

It seemed a suitable moment, so I removed my disguise. “And I’m you.”

“Good Lord!” the professor exclaimed.

“Have a seat. You look faint.” Emily gestured to his chair. “We need to talk.”

Ms. Dubois slumped into her chair, her eyes darting between us.

“If you need a drink, feel free.” This time, Emily gestured toward the brandy drawer.

I had to smile; she did love needling me.

Instead of accepting the offer, the professor finally said, “So I’m going to be successful at time travel.”

“Yes,” I replied. “We’d like to know more about that.”

The professor abruptly rose from his chair, almost dropping the rat. “Come with me. Professor Skully will believe me if he sees both of us together!”

“We decline,” I said. “We’ve met him in the future. It would be a #spoiler now and could mess up the timeline.”

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 84: 2025 Arkham

#Wss366 Shower #TimeTravelAuthors 03/25. brief/short

Professor Dubois looked confused and, perhaps to buy herself time to think, stroked the rat, and said, “Patroclus deserves a treat for his hard work,” and opened the bottom drawer, extracting both the bottle of brandy and a container of rat food.

“Patroclus, that's the first recorded individual… ghost to transcend time. You were quite clever naming him,” I said.

Emily snickered. “Show-off.”

There was a #short pause while Patroclus enjoyed his meal, and the professor and I sipped the inexpensive brandy she had offered me. I guessed it was what a professor could afford.

“So, why today’s visit?” Ms. Dubois asked, looking over the rim of her tumbler.

“Three reasons. First, tell us about time-travel. Why can we do it?” I answered.

The professor looked perplexed, so I added, “For reasons I can’t explain, I don’t remember anything. Professor Skully has explained to us about time-streams, particles, and pressure. But he didn’t know the details.”

“Good old Dana. I didn’t know he listened to me. Okay, so you want details. Time-travel has been my life's work. After I realized that my mother’s spirit had visited me and given me a time-travel book, I became convinced that magic was the key.”

“Wait a minute,” I interrupted. “Your ‘mother’ visited you and gave you a book?”

“Yeah,” Ms. Dubois said, as she opened the top drawer and took out a dog-eared copy of “The Time Machine.”

I glanced at Emily; we both recognized it. Not too long ago, by our time, I had given that book to a young girl waiting for her mother to recover from surgery.

The professor continued, “My mother used to #shower me with gifts, but this one was special.”

She sighed and put it back in the drawer. “Of course, it took a long time to pick up the trail. It wasn’t until I obtained a copy of ‘Faustus Pakt’ that I made any headway. He talked about what he’d seen, but the key was that the formulas had come from ‘Pompilius’ Spiegel.’”

“Who?” Emily interrupted.

“Faust, of course. He relied heavily on Pompilius’s book, which is also rare. That’s where I learned that you have to tear the soul from its moorings in the present to project yourself into the past. Let me show you the pentagram.”

“Be #brief,” Emily said. “The two of you can be so pedantic. We can already time-travel, so we don’t need any complicated rituals.”

Patroclus:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 85: 2025 Arkham 1 of 2 parts

#Wss366 Slip #MastoPrompt Brunt #TimeTravelAuthors 03/27. Alternate timelines?

Even with the abridged version, Emily’s eyes had glazed over by the time Professor Dubois finished. For my part, I only understood the high-level stuff. The salient details were twofold: first, that Faust knew more about time travel than I ever had and might have information on the Rabbits; and second, that while every time-particle had minor differences, alternate timelines were almost impossible. Time-pressure quickly erased significant deviations.

Emily had a question about that. “So you’re saying that saving Archduke Ferdinand or killing Hitler wouldn’t change history?”

"Exactly. There would be a short-term disturbance, but things would ultimately settle back into place. Faust tried to save Margarete several times, but she was always executed or died violently."

“But something like a meteor that caused the dinosaurs to go extinct would be enough?”

I saw what Emily was getting at, but I wasn't sure how she had arrived at the conclusion that there was a deeper reason for us to have witnessed that event. Besides, how do you influence a meteor?

“Possibly… I suppose. At least locally, but not on a universal scale.” Then, Ms. Dubois turned to me, said, “There were three reasons for your coming. What is the second?”

Goethe's Faust:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri #Faust

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 85: 2025 Arkham 2 of 2 parts

#Wss366 Slip #MastoPrompt Brunt #TimeTravelAuthors 03/27. Alternate timelines?

[Continued from previous post.]

“The second is that I would like you to take notes on what happens. Deposit them regularly and secretly. You will want to review them later.”

“Where do you want me to leave them?”

I hadn’t thought about that. I manifested a phone and searched for a mailbox rental place. “Rent a box in the name of Sarah Lock…”

That was a #slip. I could feel Emily’s eyes boring into me. What is it with her and that name?

“Lockhorn. Sarah Lockhorn,” I improvised. “At Arkham Mailstop.”

“That’s too obvious. They’ll spot her depositing mail,” Emily said, and took the full #brunt of another of her glares.

“Who?” Ms. Dubois looked between us, mystified.

“I’ll explain in a minute. That’s item three,” I said.

“I could leave them in my office?”

“No,” Emily and I said together, and I continued, “It’s going to be ransacked.”

“I don’t suppose you’re going to explain that,” the professor said, her tone petulant.

“No, I’m sorry I mentioned it,” I said.

Dubois sighed. “You know the hole in the big oak in Franklin Square Park? I could slip them in there.”

“Where’s that?” I asked.

"Behind that awful modern art statue. You know, the one that looks like a rock gnome giving the heavens the finger.”

I didn’t know where that was, either, but I figured I could find it. There couldn't be many statues like that.

"That will do," I said. "The third thing is to watch out for anthropomorphic rabbits wearing ICE Nine vests. Try to stay away from them. But note anything you see. It's important."

“What? Rabbits?”

Emily and I both shrugged and smiled.

Faust:

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri #Faust

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 86: 2025 Arkham

#Wss366 Minister #TimeTravelAuthors 03/29. Characters' eye colors

We wrapped things up from there and departed, leaving behind a mystified professor. I suppose we could have told her that a prehistoric race of giant rabbits was about to gruesomely murder her, but if events were immutable, why add that grief to her life?

Now we had to wait to retrieve any letters Ms. Dubois might have left for us. The best time for that would be just before they found her body. From Professor Skully’s story, we gathered we had a narrow window of opportunity before time-pressure would erase the letters.

In the meantime, we would wait rather than risk a time-trip.

That left us with a few days to enjoy ourselves. Had it been later in the year, we might have gone to Vermont to enjoy the countryside. Instead, we took a train to New York to see a few shows. Since money was no object, I bought tickets to The Great #Minister, a play about Winston Churchill. It would be a good history lesson for Emily.

On the train down, we discussed what we would do next. We had already rejected time tourism or finding a cozy refuge. That left three options: go directly to investigate the Council of Nicosia; visit Faust for more information; or experiment with commands by doing some safe time-tripping.

Once we had made our decision, Emily looked at me, her cobalt eyes surrounded by little creases. "So, who is Sarah Lockwell?"

“Are you jealous?” I asked.

“Just answer the question.”

“I truly don’t know who Sarah Lockwell is. I only used her name for the mail because it was the first thing that came to mind. Please believe me!”

She continued to peer into my eyes.

It was disconcerting, so I nervously asked, "What do you see?"

“They are brown like good fudge.”

She looked away. “Okay, I believe you. But if you’re lying, you’re a real mug.”

“Oh, boy,” I thought. “Are things going to get complicated?”

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 87: 2025 Arkham

#Wss366 Suit #MastoPrompt Lessen #TimeTravelAuthors 03/31. Author's choice/promo #WordWeavers 31 Share or tell us about a fun scene you recently wrote.

The rest of the trip was awkward. I kept catching Emily glancing at me. Logically, I knew this was a good sign. I had feelings for her, but it didn’t #lessen the feeling that I wanted to escape. Her jealousy of the women in my life before we met raised red flags.

It was more than that, though. There was a sense of dread and panic. I found myself thinking things like, “Been there, done that,” or “It never turns out well.” It frustrated me that I couldn’t pinpoint why I felt that way. Was it an intuition about Emily, or was it something from my past?

Other than that, the trip was fun. It was nice to just enjoy things without worrying about anthropomorphic rabbits, the Illuminati, or other hidden terrors.

When I asked Emily if she enjoyed herself, she said, “I had a swell time.”

The day we arrived back in Arkham, it was sunny. A robin greeted us from a tree near the station. People had smiles on their faces. It was hard to believe that tomorrow someone would discover my mutilated body in Franklin Park.

It was still early, so I pointed out a café. “That’s one of my favorites. I think it’ll #suit you. They make excellent coffee, and the coffee cake is that old-fashioned kind with lots of brown sugar on top. We can go to the park where you can have some.”

“That’s peachy. I’m glad you’re getting your memories back. Is any of it useful?”

“Memory?” I asked.

“The café?

I blinked. “It wasn’t really a memory. Just a feeling.”

It would have been an inconsequential occurrence, soon forgotten, except for the server's greeting upon entering the café: “How was your vacation, Professor Bijou?”

I was stunned. Had she addressed me as Professor Dubois, I would have assumed my makeup was an inadequate disguise. But this woman knew my name.

I ordered two coffees and some pastries, then hurried out. There were people all around, so I didn’t dare talk to Emily until we reached the park.

We found a quiet bench where Emily sat next to me. She materialized, taking a sip of coffee and a bite of cake. Then she asked, “How did you know the way to the park?”

It was the third shock in a row. I answered, “I don’t know. I just did, and I know where the statue and oak are as well.” That was something I hadn’t known before. This wasn’t like returned memory.

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri #NMWW #NMPrompts

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 88: 2025 Arkham

#Wss366 Set #MastoPrompt Palm #TimeTravelAuthors 04/3. What kind of coffee/caffeinated beverage do your characters like?

“Want a sip of my coffee and see what it’s like? French Roast with chicory,” I asked, while thinking about the new mystery. “That is, if you don’t mind that I’ve already drunk some.”

“I don’t mind a secondary kiss,” Emily replied.

I began passing my cup to her, then stopped. “Secondary kiss? That’s a weeb term.”

I laughed, embarrassed. “Forget it. You wouldn’t know what a weeb is.”

“Weeb? It’s like being a Japanophile or an Orientalist, only interested in anime and manga. Wait! I shouldn’t know any of that! None of that stuff existed when I was alive!”

“We’re being absorbed into this time-particle, aren’t we?” I asked.

She nodded, took a thoughtful sip of my coffee, and #set it down, grimacing: “Bitter!”

“So, what do you think?”

“I think you're right about being absorbed. The coffee? I prefer the one you bought me, mellower or tea. I got a taste for it while I was in China.”

“Let’s get those letters and move on before we forget what we are doing.”

Emily held up her #palm in a halt gesture. “Let’s finish the cake first. It’s good.”

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri #Mystery

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 89: 2025 Arkham 1 of 2

#Wss366 Rabbit / Easter #MastoPrompt Boredom #TimeTravelAuthors 04/5. Games in your story

By the time we had finished eating, the park was emptying as dusk approached. The effort of materializing meant Emily had to rest after finishing her cake. “But it was worth it,” she said.

I pointed to a collection of budding maples. “The statue is over there in that grove,” It was convenient that I knew where it was, but also frightening. What would happen if this new persona took over? Something told me I would forget about the rabbits, the Illuminati, and all that had happened to us. I might even forget Emily, a thought that made me sad.

“Isn’t that you?” Emily said, pointing to a familiar figure hurrying down the path ahead of us. “Let’s ask her about being absorbed.”

I nodded, brushed cake crumbs off myself, and stood up. We’d need to hurry; Professor Dubios was walking fast and glancing over her shoulder.

We had almost caught up when I spotted something lurking in the shadows of the maples. “Psst! Hide ICE-Nine.” I resisted pointing.

Emily nodded toward the nearby trees and slipped into the shrubbery underneath them.

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 8: Post 89: 2025 Arkham 2 of 2

#Wss366 Rabbit / Easter #MastoPrompt Boredom #TimeTravelAuthors 04/5. Games in your story

[Continued from previous post]

Once I was out of sight, I whispered, “We need to head Ms. Dubois off before they learn about the letter cache. Be ready to time-trip if the #rabbits spot us.”

It didn’t come to that. The rabbits were focused on the professor.

We were also fortunate that the path the professor was on curved down into a ravine and then backtracked to the statue. That meant we could dive straight through the woods using an unofficial trail. The extra time allowed us to be cautious.

Periodically, we glimpsed ICE-nine uniforms and hid. It was a grim game of hide-and-seek. It kept #boredom at bay but was nowhere near as fun as playing pinochle or bezique with Emily.

While on our way, I came up with a plan and manifested a loose-fitting trench coat, fedora, and surgical mask. I also doused myself with Old Clipper cologne to hide any unique smells. Sus, I am sure, but I figured in the dim light I would pass as a man, someone clearly not Henrietta Bijou.

I was ready by the time we stumbled out of the ravine onto the path. I leaned against a tree, panting. A new idea occurred to me, and I hurriedly manifested an empty bottle of cheap vodka. Then I waited for my living counterpart to arrive. As she drew near, she moved to the far side of the trail. Yeah, I was suspicious, definitely creepy.

A look of terror came over Ms. Dubois’ face as I lurched across the trail. “Flee! The rabbits are on to you,” I whispered. Finished, I staggered away, dropping the liquor bottle. Lurching explained.

To my relief, the professor turned back, hurrying in the direction she had come from.

I turned in the other way and rushed to the tree to fetch the notes that were already there.

Emily drifted up as I shoved the papers into a pocket of my coat. “That was a plucky move,” she said.

Bezique

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 9: Post 90: 1912 #Titanic

#Wss366 Fare #MastoPrompt Hesitate #TimeTravelAuthors 04/9. Will your characters admit they're wrong?

“We want to go to an unoccupied first-class cabin on the Titanic on the afternoon of April 14, 1912, unless there’ll be a disaster on board before it reaches New York. If so, take us to the Golden Spike ceremony for the linking of the two sides of the transcontinental railway.”

This wish included several experiments: 1) a very specific location; 2) a conditional; and 3) complex instructions. Theoretically, we should arrive in the American West.

That wasn’t what happened; instead, there was a ripping sensation as red lights flashed before our eyes. I gasped in pain, staggered, and braced myself against a metal wall that had appeared. We found ourselves in a white room with two single beds, a carpet, a sink, a couch, and a writing desk. The steam pipes and painted walls were far less luxurious than I had expected. Still, after the Hindenburg, it seemed spacious. The #fare for this cabin probably cost a lot, though not as much as the wood-paneled suites I had imagined.

I sank onto the couch. “So only part of that worked. That’s too bad,” I said.

Emily shrugged and flopped down on a bed. As expected, she left no impression on the white sheets.

“I need to apologize,” I said. “I wasn’t supposed to risk the rabbits spotting us.”

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll both feel better knowing you tried.”

I spread the letters from the cache on the couch. That was part of why I’d scared Ms. Dubois, but I was glad Emily gave me credit for having nobler intentions. In hindsight, I could have grabbed the letters and ditched the professor. I #hesitated to give myself nobler intentions.

“There are only two notes here. We’ll never know what was in the one she was carrying,” I said.

Emily shrugged.

“Shall I?” I asked, holding up the first note.

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 9: Post 91: 1912 #Titanic 1 of 2

#Wss366 Lean #TimeTravelAuthors 04/11. Point

Emily nodded in response to my question, so I began reading the first letter.

This was my first trip, so I started conservatively and jumped ahead a week to find the newspaper I needed for Professor Skully. However, time-pressure swept me all the way to April 2026. Things haven’t improved there. According to a student paper, there’s a war in the Middle East. ICE-Nine was running unchecked and was pepper-spraying protesters and killing opposition figures. The newspaper claimed that i9 was behind my murder.

MY MURDER!!!

Why didn’t you guys warn me about that? If I knew more, maybe I could avoid being killed!

I stopped reading to say, “Burned.”

“It wouldn’t have made a difference,” Emily said, shrugging. She then rolled onto her back and said, “Continue.”

I went to visit Professor Skully to learn more about my death. However, I found i9 agents in our building, accompanied by the creepiest rabbits I’d ever seen. At least you warned me about them. Rather than risk being caught, I traveled home right away.

“What do you make of that?” I asked Emily.

“You can travel into the future, but it’s unreliable. You can return to your starting #point. And that you’ve stirred up the Illuminati/Knights Templar/Lapin Cabal. Whatever we’re going to do, they want to stop it.”

“Lapin Cabal, I like that.”

“Did you notice anything else?” she asked.

“Nope, that sums it up. Oh, there was the abbreviation for ICE-Nine.”

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri

#TimeTravelingGhost EP 9: Post 91: 1912 Titanic 2 of 2

#Wss366 Lean #TimeTravelAuthors 04/11. Point

[Continued from previous post]

I put down the first letter, picked up the second, and began reading it.

Today, I visited Dr. Faust to clarify some #points about time-travel.

I’m glad I don’t live in the Middle Ages. It was smelly and uncomfortable-looking. I wouldn’t eat anything there.

The doctor appeared only mildly surprised by my visit and proposed a question exchange, which I agreed to.

• Who or what are the ICE-Nine rabbits? He responded, “I don’t know what ICE-Nine is, but the rabbits are God’s guardians of time.” He seemed serious, though I doubted his answer. It’s more likely that they’re demonic agents. For heaven’s sake, according to that newspaper, they tortured and assassinated me.

• Have you ever tried to change history? He answered, “Unsuccessfully. I’ve tried saving my lover, Marguerite, several times, but to no avail. It takes something big to alter history.”

• Legend has it you sold your soul to Satan. What really happened? He laughed. “The devil, God—are they not the same? I have torn my soul loose from the world, but I have not sold it. I have sworn allegiance to the Illuminated Ones, and they have promised me knowledge beyond my wildest dreams. No matter what history says, I am not wrong. You should do the same before God’s wrath falls upon you.”

I stopped again. “I’m Glad we didn’t visit Faust. It sounds like he’s one of the bad guys.”

Emily waved her hand for me to continue.

There was a knock at the door just then, and my host said, “There they are now. You should leave or be prepared to swear an oath to them. God’s emissaries will show you mercy.”

I did the former. No good could come of dealing with the Illuminated Ones.

“That’s it,” I said, putting the letters down. “I guess we’ll never know how or why they murdered me.”

“Not the details, but I think you got into the soup visiting Faust. Let’s not make the same mistake.”

That was one major option out, so I suggested an alternative. “Given what has worked, I bet it’s possible to visit an opponent of the rabbits.”

“And end up meeting one of those prehistoric monsters we saw in the mural. Bad idea.”

“I wonder if saying ‘meet an ally’ would work better?”

“Might. I #lean in favor of that. But before we decide our next move, let’s get dressed and explore the ship.”

#TootFic #MicroFiction #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri