It started small: a piece of candy from the open bin in the grocery store, a pen from the teacher’s desk, or a dirty magazine from his father’s secret stash. As he got older, the items that Daniel would steal increased in value and his schemes were more brazen. He enjoyed the challenge of thievery and considered it more of an art form rather than petty theft. Spending his teen years in a low-income neighborhood gave him ample opportunity to practice his craft.

Now, for his 21st birthday, Daniel had decided to get himself something much more valuable. He had spent the last few days riding his bike through the neighborhood at various times, always passing by the house at 584 Sycamore Way. He knew that every day, between 4:30pm and 5:15pm, the house was completely empty of humans thanks to afternoon Taekwon-Do classes which pulled Mom and the kids away for a while before Dad got home from the office.
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The world was a large place, and he should know, spending the last few days covering every inch of it. He had been forced to swim through underwater caverns, cross barren deserts, and even stumble his way through dark castles. And for what purpose? Love. Stupid, stupid love. His clothes were so tattered he had to scrounge together new outfits every day, usually something that would help him fit in with the locals. To that end, he usually found it best not to ask how they made it, but to just put it on and continue on his way.
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Teddy paced slowly back-and-forth above the pillow, his wooden sword gripped firmly in his right paw. The child was sleeping soundly, tucked in under the blankets with care. Teddy listened intently for sounds in the room, for the monster had promised he would return to claim the dreams of the child. Teddy wasn’t going to let anything happen to his best friend; not tonight, and not any night.

The floorboards creaked, immediately drawing Teddy’s attention. He pulled his shield close to him and jumped up on top of the pillow as the monster slowly approached the bed.

The monster’s body was massive, with his hands alone larger than the child. His elongated mouth was filled with large teeth, sharp and threatening, as his body moved over the top of the bed. His voice was deep and it sounded like rocks rumbling down a mountain as he spoke, “Leave this place. The child is mine.”
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“Whee,” exclaimed Tony as he landed with a loud splash, tucking into a tight ball before slamming into the water. The waves rippled in all directions, splashing the shore with a spray of cloudy water. All of the kids standing on the small island were laughing and screaming; all except Devon, quietly standing ten feet behind his friends.

Tony popped his head above the water, a giant grin stretched across the width of his face. He charged through the water toward the shore, deftly pulling himself over the exposed tree roots and onto the wet dirt. He stood up quickly, with his board shorts draining onto the ground below. “That was awesome! Who’s next?”
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“So it says here on your résumé that you use to ‘Manage Cash Flow’ for a local business, but you didn’t specify the name of the company,” inquired the interviewer.

Diana swallowed hard. She had included that only to fill the 9 month gap in her résumé, and was sure that it was the only reason she had managed to get an interview at all. She had hoped that he wouldn’t notice. “Oh really, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to leave that off. Silly me.” She rushed to change the subject quickly, “I was the 1st assistant accountant in the billing department of Talon Electronics for 3 years prior, and received the employee of the month award twice during that time.” Her eyes shifted quickly, scanning his face.

“Yes, you had mentioned that, but you don’t have any other details here about your last job. Which company was it,” he asked again. He wasn’t going to let this go.
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“You have a slight accent, and I can’t put my finger on it. Where are you from?”

Luke averted his eyes and played coy, counting to two in his head before answering her. “Well, I don’t like talking about it much.”

“Oh come on, please?” She involuntarily moved her body in closer to him.

“Well, only if you promise not to tell anyone. It will be our little secret.”

Her eyes grew wider as the excitement filled her. “I swear, I won’t tell a soul.”
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He couldn’t help himself. He glanced down at the sunburned cleavage pushing out of the top of her corset as they walked down the main path. It was only a brief glance, but cumulatively he had been staring at her all day. They walked with arms wrapped together, his puffy sleeves covering her thin arm as it rested gently upon his forearm. They had spent every weekend together for the past four weeks, volunteering at the Renaissance Faire. She was assigned to work the food court, and he spent most of his day peddling masks. They both got a few hours each day to wander the grounds, and spent much of that time acting like royalty together as they strolled past patrons, actors, and other volunteers.
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