Copyright -Claire Fuller
From the window, I watched the girl who spurned me.
Lovely Emelie… dangling from the tree, swinging from side to side in mocking glee.
My heart fluttered a staccato serenade. Even then, her beauty didn’t fade.
Her white dress billowed in a breeze I couldn’t touch, concealing all that was denied from me.
The mob stirred like a stormy sea.
I watched as they tore her apart… to pieces, like my broken heart.
Witch or not, she put a spell on me- a man of God.
Lovely Emelie… She should’ve loved me…
Foolish girl chose to die on that tree…
© 2013 K.Z. Morano
The Eclectic Eccentric 
This is beautifully written and a very sad tale. Well done.
thank you 🙂
Was this a particular format of poem? I’m not well up on poetry but it was a different take on the prompt. Well done for originality.
no, not really. i just couldn’t keep the rhyme out of my head ^^ thank you
Another tragic tale. Saddening. Reminded of the poem, The Hanging Tree from the Mockingjay (Hunger Games 3).
i looked it up, a nice poem 🙂 and when i have time, i swear i’ll even read the trilogy, i’ve always wanted to but i always end up reading other stuff instead. thank you 🙂
I got a vibe of a creepy, evil priest/monk/whatever. It starts off so romantic and tragic and then I realize the man is frickin’ psychotic. Then I re-read it and I see the hints. Very well done.
thank you 🙂 and yey, i’m glad someone realized how sick the narrator is, lol ^^
And now her soul lies trapped in its arboreal prison — Arboreal? Arboreal’s a vile phrase!
Perhaps one day some tour guide will tell your tale to a group of spellbound tourists.
arboreal! yes, vile. even if i had no idea what that meant ’til a few hours ago, lol ^^ thank you
KZ! Your talent sparkles! Every single week! This was stellar!!
awww thanks for the kind words 🙂
I wondered who would be first to have someone hanging from that tree 🙂 Nice work!
Fantastic flash. I thought she had taken her own life and then it is revealed, tragedy plus. Very evocative writing, feel for both the characters. You are so good at this challenge.
Very well written. Good thing that real life priests are all lovely balanced individuals, right? Oh wait…
Kz, this was a tragic story laden with all the guilt the church have for witch trials and rotten cleriks.
Tack så mycket
Björn
Nice word portrait of a Claude Frollo, Salem Witch Trial kind of guy responsible for her death even though he loved her. Very well portrayed!
Dear KZ,
I believe you could set this piece to music and have a ballad. Well done.
shalom,
Rochelle
Gosh, you people with the skill to write rhyming flash fiction amaze and terrify me! Good story.
“Lovely Emelie… dangling from the tree, swinging from side to side in mocking glee…” what a terrifying narrator we have here! Even more so that he thoroughly believes in his words…Superior piece yet again, kz, young old friend….
Every week, your stories stand out for their powerful voice. I didn’t even notice the rhyme until the second time through. That’s one crazy man, poor girl.
Why do I think that the Salem witch trials may have been more over the spurned loves of priests and others than we think?
Great job!
Scott
Mine: http://kindredspirit23.wordpress.com/2013/08/21/friday-fictioneers-ff-dispelling-the-evening-rated-r-8222013-horrorsuspense/
Powerful story KZ, and the rhyme brings it together so well!
Very different. Great job.
Dear Kz,
What is it with preachers? Always getting in trouble and then transferring their problems to others. Yours was a great tale. Well done.
Aloha,
Doug
This was beautiful! At first I thought it was so sad, then I realized the priest probably had her put to death. It reminded me of Frollo and Esmerelda in Notre Dame de Paris (the Hunchback of Notre Dame). Absolutely wonderful story and the language was great, too!
Hi KZ,
Wow, this is really a good one. You’ve combined the sonic appeal of poetry and the storytelling allure of prose in one work. So much going on here is so few words. You’re a true wordsmith! Ron
It’s the historical truth behind this great story of yours that made it even scarier.
Yep, poetry and prose all mixed together – I really enjoyed the rhythm of this. Poor Emelie…
very dark. Great imagery
Oh, now this is a deep and dark tale. How did you ever manage to get it down to 100 words. I have read between the lines and I do believe you have a much larger story there. I see the wicked priest lusting after the poor girl and when she won’t put out, calls the Witch hunters in…
Classy as usual kz, love the poetic style. 🙂
What ever she did to convict herself of being a witch, she never got the chance to be happy,
A lot of people are blaming the priest but has anyone taken his feelings into account. He had a spell put on him after all. Witches can’t be trusted! Great story!
Very powerful and disturbing images kz. Beautifully written.
Oh, I love the direction you took this in! Also love the almost-poetic flow of your prose…something about its rhythms almost seemed to echo the way her body swung back and forth, and it works quite well. Thank you for this!
Creepy and spooky, kz. I like your focus on the tree. Wonderful writing!
Yikes. They talk about a woman scorned but men are just as vindictive!
Excellent writing. Your narrator is definitely a sicko. I wonder how many times he’ll lead other young ladies to a similar fate?
Revenge sayeth the priest. Ouch. They don’t take rejection well huh? Great take though kz!
Wonderfully constructed – beautiful rhymes and pacing. It’s almost possible to feel sorry for the priest for his loss, until that last line. If she chose the tree instead of him, he must be really vile.
You knocked it out of the park this week, kz, the rhyme, the story, all of it. Nice work!
Nice take on the prompt and in verse with a decent bit of alliteration and good rhyme.
Kudos and thumbs up are in order.
Keep it up
I enjoyed this piece – chilling.
thank you 🙂
Sounds like a witch hunt – can’t have what ‘I’ want so no one will. I agree with syllabubsea – chilling!
(I was here… so I thought I’d pop in on this one.)