* Thank you, Wirrow, for hosting a Tiny Stories collab! Here's a peek at a new tiny story using words from Mushr, The New-Age Thinker, Tommacarte, Casvellon and myself. In my mind, this is one stand-alone chapter of something a little bigger that isn't quite finished. If people kind of like it, perhaps they can add more forward-moving, thematic tiny stories -- (in your own styles, of course, but amenable to adaptation.)

** If you have any guidelines about how long might be too long, Wirrow, let us know :)

...

My hopping kid brother woke me that morning
shining and spinning a globe in my shut face.
He asked where we would go if we were tall
-- tall enough to drive a car, or old -- enough
to get lots of real money from a bank, or if we
had friends who could go beyond the backyard,
or any reason to leave our warm, dry beds.

Where did you go, O singer of my dreams?
Leave the shadows that love you so, come back,
come back into my arms until Darkness is mine.
We were young together. Do you not remember?
I wanted to beam star shine from your best sky.
You cut a pair of wings, sent me off to heaven.
We looked down on earth in tears and laughter.

Remember the Dragonfly who darted this way and
that, angry and wishing that he could breathe fire,
like a real dragon? Or how about the Ladybug?
He avers it's just a name, but no one ever listens.
There was one Umbrella who didn't like the rain,
because it made him cry. So he swam to Spain,
and became a parasol. Ha ha! No, you made that up.

Sometimes, Darkness, you make things up for me.

...