Prompt: Potential and Promise

[Prof. Sky Alton]

This month in the Book Club, we’re focusing on ‘New Beginnings’. That got me thinking about what part beginnings (both physical and emotional fresh starts) can play in a story. They can easily form the opening but equally, they might occur mid-way through as a way for the plot to change direction or perhaps even at the end to give the impression that the plot carries on even if the story doesn’t. They can be scary, exciting, cathartic, bittersweet and even sad.

For this month, we’d like you to write a piece (200 words or more) that includes some kind of new beginning. You could approach it as the beginning of a new story, the turning point somewhere in the middle of one or perhaps even the end of one, as your character sees new possibilities unfolding. Providing there’s potential for things to go in a new direction, it’s up to you.

You’ll earn 20 beans for completing this prompt as well as it counting towards the chance to snag our shiny Quill and Ink award.

There is no deadline as such for these prompts but if you’d like it to count towards your chance of earning the award for a specific year, we’ll need it by the end of that school year. If you’re comfortable sharing, then post below. If not, email your story to us via hol.bookclub @ gmail.com (without the spaces). Oh and remember it’s a good idea to check through your piece carefully for spelling and grammatical errors as they make it harder for people to properly enjoy your work.

[Silvana Mandeville]

I opened the wood window, smiled at the sunrise which just appeared, and breathed the fresh air of Parepare. I only graduated from college six months ago and after having a long-deep talk with my parents, they finally allowed me to visit my grandmother and also to find a job here. I was tired of living in the big city. After a long journey, I arrived in Mengkendek at night two days ago and went to my grandmother's house. It took about a day and half, though. A very long journey but everything was worth it. Grandmother's house is located outside the city, which is why I love it because it means I would be far away from busy streets.

"Silvana, wake up! It's morning already!" There's a knock at the door, before it opened slowly and a head poked inside. It was my cousin, Jane Sera. We often talked a lot on social media, so even though we just met yesterday we're not strangers to each other.

Jane stepped inside my room and sat down on my bed. "Do you enjoy it here, Silvana?" the girl asked me. I turned to face her and stared at her for a while. She was two years younger than me. Slender, has fairy skin, long black hair, and a small dimple on her right cheek when she smiles.

"It was only my first morning here, Jane. I can't tell you that I enjoyed it already but I am sure I would love it here." I smiled at her and said, "I am hungry, let's make some breakfast. Anything you would like to request?"

"I want to eat fried rice," Jane said, took my hand and lead me to the kitchen. Together we made breakfast for three.

After breakfast and permission from grandmother, Jane decided to show me around the village and introduced me to her friends.

It was fun but quite awkward when people around got curious about me. It wasn't every day when they got to meet new people from a big city. I hope I will like it here and start a new life here happily.

[Hannah Lovegood]

Monday the One Day

One Monday morning, I jumped out of bed, threw on my black Converse sneakers with my blue ripped up jeans and a rose printed crop top. Then, I curled my hair. Then I grabbed Willow and Windy. Willow and Windy are the 2 little girls I rescued from a basilisk. I got Willow in a purple and white basketball jersey and shorts, and purple Converse. I put her hair back in a ponytail. Then, I put Windy in a rose print dress and little brown boots. I put her hair in a braid.

Then, I grabbed the girls' hands and walked them over to their bedroom door and I told them to get their backpacks. Willow came back with her purple backpack with a basketball on it. Windy came back with a pink and black polka dot backpack. Then, I grabbed the girls' hands and walked outside. I locked up my house. Then, I walked them down the street to Rainbow Arts Academy School.

I went inside with them. I walked Willow to the gymnasium and dropped her off for her basketball practice. Then, I walked Windy upstairs to Miss Emma's classroom where I dropped her off. Windy was really excited about going to that classroom because she got to be with the 1st graders for storytime.

Then, I ran down the stairs and ran out to the bus stop. A minute later, the bus appeared and I got on to the bus and I went up to the second floor where I took a seat in the front. When we got there, I got off with my Harry Potter backpack. I came and walked to the middle of the group. There were two girls next to me. I knew their names were Ava and Narcissa. Ava was saying, “I'm going to move away so you're going to have to get over it Narcissa.” Then Ava walked away. Then Narcissa walked over to me and asked really shyly, “Do you want to be my friend?” I said, “Sure. Why don't we be friends.”

Then, a new girl walked up to me and she said, “Hi. My name is Narnia. Do you want to be friends?” I said, “Sure. Do you also want to be friends with my friend Narcissa here?” “Sure. That's two friends for me right off the bat,” Narnia said. So, all of us held hands and waited for the school to open up their doors. Finally, the doors opened and we rushed in.

We rushed up to the second floor and I said a littler girl who looked really confused. So, I asked the girl, “Do you need help?” She said, “Yeah. I'm trying to find Mrs. Evan's class.” I said, “Ok. I can help you.” I walked to our classroom and the class right new to it was Mrs. Evan's class. So, I opened the door of Mrs. Evan's class and told her to go in.”

Then we walked into Shae & Charlotte's class. We sat down in the middle of the room. While we were waiting for the class to start, I heard another girl in the back named Bri. From what I could hear, it sounded like her friend Allie was sick and wouldn't be able to come back to school but she really wanted to have a friend. So, I got up and grabbed my friends and walked back to Bri. I said, “Do you want to be my friend?” She said, “Yeah!” So, she came back with us to the middle table and sat next to us.

After class, we had lunch. We left the school and went to the Sand Wave Restaurant right across the street. We all sat down at one table. We had little salads and ripped up pieces of chicken on top of our salads. We had the London Delight smoothie. We had cherry ice cream for dessert.

Then we went back to the school where we had art class. Then, after art class, we went to the playground where we played for an hour. Then, the girls went off to their houses and I went and picked up my 2 favorite little girls, Willow and Windy. Then we went home and we jumped on my trampoline and the girls got into their swimsuits and we all swam. Then we all got into rose print dresses and brown sandals. Then we all went through my wall into Diagon Alley. I showed the girls around Diagon Alley.

[Viviana Kingston]

I had it all planned out. Today would be the day I’d ask my childhood friend out. I’d finally found the courage to do after years of pining and longing to tell her how I felt. It would be perfect and there was no doubt in my mind anymore that Adelaide didn’t feel the same way. For the past few weeks, her demeanour towards me had changed. Gone were the hours she spent bickering and teasing me, and I reciprocating. She had become sickly sweet towards me, not that it was an issue.

Even today was one of her sickly sweet acts. She wanted to see me in the park, at the playground. The very same place we had met all those years ago on this very day. She dropped some subtle hints about getting ice cream and although I was sure I’d have to empty my pocket, I would do it in a heart beat for her.

I dressed to impressed. A crisp button down shirt, jeans, my cleanest sneakers…I even went the extra mile to try and smoothen down my hair with some hair foam I borrowed from my sister’s vanity. I did a quick look over in the mirror, trying to tame a single strand that kept sticking up. I struggled and struggled, but rushed out the house when I realised that I was going to be extremely late.

I broke into a run as my feet hit the sidewalk, almost missing the flower shop. I jogged back, entering the store, scanning the buckets of freshly cut flowers. “Can I help you, young man?” The florist asked from the counter. I nodded as my eyes fell upon Addy’s favourite flowers.

“A dozen pink roses, please.” I replied. The florist was quick in wrapping the roses into a neat bouquet and waved me off with warm wishes as I paid and left. “All the best!” he called out. He didn’t realise how true his words would be. I’d really get the best. Who better to pair with than the girl I’ve known since forever?

I had to jog this time, making sure that the roses didn’t take much beating from my movement, making it in record time to the playground. It wasn’t easy though. The side of the park I entered from seemed to be the busiest. It looked like the moms club was out and about with all the ladies in sight either pushing a pram or running after some very troublesome toddlers.

I spotted Addy on the furthest end of the playground, by the swings. She was on one of them, naturally, pushing herself only a little bit. I looked down at the flowers I had in my hand, if I just walked towards her and she spotted me, it would ruin the whole element of being a surprise.

I took a longer way to reach her, skimming just behind the tree line. The trees would stop just before the swing and I’d be able to surprise her from behind, and hopefully catch her if she fell from surprise.

I rehearsed what I wanted to say in my head. ‘Addy, I’ve been in love with you since we were children…’ I shook my head. That was a bit too forward. Short and simple should do it.

‘Addy, I like you, would you like to go out with me?’

‘Addy, would you be my girlfriend?’ I corrected myself.

‘Addy would you…’

I stopped short of making an appearance out in the open. Addy wasn’t alone anymore. Someone else had joined her, and as I looked closely, it dawned on me it was my best friend, Charlie. He handed her an ice cream and gave her a peck on the cheek.

Blood rushed to my face. How long had this been going on? Charlie was well aware of my feelings towards Addy. When were either of them going to tell me about? I could feel the thorns on the roses through the plastic wrap and clenched my fist tighter when Addy laughed.

I was really such a joke. I trailed my way back through the tree line and took a long walk around the park. When I made it to the ice cream cart, I flung the roses onto the pavement near the bin and forced myself over to the cart to get some ice cream. I choose a chocolate popsicle instead of my usual vanilla cone, just to make it hurt so much more. It was Addy’s favourite flavour.

I wanted to drown in my sorrow, and ice cream seemed like the best option at the time. It made it much better that area was less busy than the other parts of the park. After my third cone, a strawberry popsicle this time, and a pitying look from the ice cream seller, a girl walked down the path. I thought she was going to join me, but walked past me, making a beeline towards the flowers I dumped next to the trash can.

She picked it up and I recognised her. She was in my advanced physics class. We made eye contact and she tilted her head, before straightening up. She left whatever was left of the bouquet on the bench next to me and crossed over to the ice cream cart. “One of whatever he asked for, please.” she asked.

She pushed the roses more towards me, and sat down, opening the popsicle and taking a huge bite. I couldn’t help but compare her to Addy. Addy would have licked the entire thing down until the stick.

“You’re Francesca Jesper, aren’t you?” I asked, finally placing a name to the face.

“And you’re Garfield Willow,” she replied. “Just in case you didn’t know your own name.”

“I’d rather be left alone, if you’d kindly leave.”

“I noticed.” She took another bite of her ice cream crunching on the ice. “But I’d rather keep you company. You look quite odd sitting here alone.”

“You’re the odd one here,” I countered. “Which normal person would pick up flowers that were lying on the floor?”

“The same normal person that would pick a fallen flower on the side of the road.” Francesca said. “Just because one person can’t appreciate the beauty of this bouquet, doesn’t mean someone else won’t.”

She looked down at the roses, tossing the stick into the trash can. “They’re not even my favourite, but they’re really pretty. What’s up with you?” She picked them up, dusting the sand that picked up on the plastic wrap.

“Nothing,” I muttered, trying to eat the popsicle a bit faster.

“You’re a bit too dressed up for the park,” she said. She reached over, and I was trying to move away but her hand made it into my personal bubble anyways. She ran her hand through my hair, messing it up. “There. You look much better now. You look much more like you.”

“And how would you know that?”

“I don’t,” she shrugged, standing up. “Though you do have this frown on your face. You should do something about that.”

She began to walk away and I stood up, confused. What did this interaction mean? “And what if I don’t?” I called out.

She looked over her shoulder and scrunched her nose. “You should. Next time, let’s meet somewhere else and try some other food out.”

“There’s not going to be a next time!” I yelled, flustered.

She didn’t turn around this time and simply yelled back,”Trust me, there will!”

I threw my stick towards the trash can. Why was I getting so worked up over someone I barely knew? I wanted to get another ice cream to cool off, but I just wanted to leave. The park didn’t feel the same as it did before.

“Don’t litter, son!” The ice cream seller chided, pointing at my poor aimed ice cream stick that took the place of where the bouquet once laid. I picked the stick up but noticed something pink on the bench out of the corner of my eye. It was one of the roses I bought.

I was having second thoughts about taking it, but gave in and took it anyways. Francesca was right about one thing. Even if it didn’t go to the intended recipient, it fell into the hands of someone who enjoyed the beauty of it. I held it to my nose taking in the scent. What was supposed to be the beginning of something terrible, didn’t feel as terrible anymore as it initially felt. It stung, a lot, but it was replaced with something else, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

[Artemisia Thorne]

Once upon a time in the small town of Meadowbrook, there lived a young girl named Katherine. With her chestnut hair and a pair of curious green eyes, Katherine was a shy soul, always keeping to herself and finding solace in the pages of her beloved books.

As Katherine grew older, she became increasingly self-conscious about her body. The whispers and laughter of her peers echoed in her mind, creating a barrier between her and the outside world. Her classmates, oblivious to the richness of her inner world, failed to see the potential friendship that lay dormant within Katherine.

One sunny day, while browsing the local library, Katherine stumbled upon a flyer for a community theatre group audition. Intrigued, she decided to step out of her comfort zone and give it a try. The prospect of pretending to be someone else on stage felt liberating, a chance to escape the judgments that lingered in the hallways of her school.

With trembling hands and a nervous heart, Katherine auditioned for the play. To her surprise, the director saw something in her that she hadn't seen in herself – a spark, a passion waiting to be ignited. She was cast in a supporting role, and as the rehearsals progressed, Katherine found herself coming out of her shell.

In the world of the theatre, Katherine discovered a newfound confidence. The stage became a canvas where she could paint her emotions and express herself freely. With each performance, the shy girl from Meadowbrook transformed into a captivating actress, leaving the audience in awe.

As Katherine's talent blossomed, so did her circle of friends. The theatre group became a family, offering support and understanding that went beyond the stage. Katherine found companionship in kindred spirits who appreciated her for who she was, not the image she perceived in the mirror.

Amid the camaraderie of the theatre, Katherine also found an unexpected ally in Jake, a fellow actor whose warmth and sincerity melted the walls around her heart. Their friendship evolved into something deeper, and Katherine discovered that love could be a gentle force, nurturing rather than judgmental.

With her new passion, friendships, and love, Katherine's life in Meadowbrook took a joyful turn. The once-shy girl had found her voice, both on and off the stage. The lessons she learned through the magic of theatre extended beyond the curtains, shaping her into a resilient and confident young woman.

And so, in the quaint town of Meadowbrook, Katherine's story became a testament to the transformative power of self-discovery, proving that sometimes, stepping into the spotlight is the first step towards finding one's true self.