Attic Fragments

This was an entry in the Writing Battle Verdant Raven 2026 contest. In each Writing Battle contest, you are given three cards that the story must include. I drew: arcane studies, femme fatal, and photograph. The word limit was 250… which was one of the hardest constraints I’ve had to deal with while writing. Enjoy.

She is always watching. Eyes so deep I sometimes feel I could fall into the glossy black and white photo. It sits, unassuming, on the mantle, where it has been for almost five years now.

It has to work this time. There is no way I have miscalculated the spells. Everything is in order, laid out across the intricate Persian rug she had loved so dearly. The fire has been banked to a few angry red coals, the heavy velvet curtains drawn, her favorite woodsy incense burning in the corner.

“Soon. Soon I will have done it, and then you will see.”

Her still, dark eyes stare at me, unbelievingly. 

Not this time, though. I can feel the resurrection beginning to hum in the air. My body buzzing with magic. It won’t be long now. Soon, you will understand what I have sacrificed.

I will harness the mystic arts now. She must come back to me. To see what I have done for her. What I have accomplished.

The room is getting colder, yet the dark coals in the fireplace spark with new life. A breeze tickles my hair, softly, just like her fingers once did. And will do again, soon. Soon.

A creamy floral invades my senses, merging with the heady incense. Her perfume…

Then, a weary breath against my ear, “What did I tell you about playing with things you don’t understand?”

She is back.

“There is always a price, sweetness.”

I have finally done it.