I couldn’t take it any longer. The subtle shaking of the head, the constant belittling, the never-ending criticisms.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve,” he squawked.
“Give me a break.”
“You’re useless.”
Truth is, I was the one to blame.
I put the cover over his cage.
Peace at last…
Susan Gale Wickes is from Indiana. She enjoys writing poetry and short stories.
“Blackbeard’s mighty quiet this evening. How’d he lose his voice?”
“He ignored my advice. I told him to record a homemade CD and put the pertinent track on a loop, but he had to do it the old-fashioned way.”
“Do what?”
“Teach his new parrot to squawk like a pirate.”
John H. Dromey has had flash fiction published in a number of print anthologies, as well as online at Liquid Imagination, three minute plastic, Thrillers, Killers ’n’ Chillers, and elsewhere.
This story is a finalist for the Audience Choice Award and the Grand Prize.
Captain Crunch had a parrot, Polly, who chanted “Treasure Chest” four times in a row every ten minutes. The crew members hated it.
When the Captain was sleeping, the crew taught Polly to say, “Ahoy,” so it sounded like the crew was listening to their captain.
The crew was happy.
Rosie G. is a member of Todd Battaglia’s Grade 7 Language Arts class.
“Do you have Polygons for sale?”
“Certainly, sir!”
“Excellent. They’re just what I need to solve my problem. You see, lately it’s felt like part of me is missing…”
“Very strange. And you think new Polygons will help?”
“Probably not, but I hope they’ll at least solve my parrot infestation.”