My Short Stories/Story Prompts ✔️

. . . I Fade Away . . .

Hello. My name is Tacitus, warrior of Shelldale.

You might be thinking of how weird my name is and how there is no such place as Shelldale and I'll tell you why.

A) my name was given to me by the adorable Sven Hopkins when he was 3, and B) I'm imaginary.

Over the 5 years since he's imagined me, I have taken the form of many bodies such as a boy his age, a teen, a young man, and even a dog. Not quite sure where that came from, but meh, I'm not complaining. It's kinda cool. I'm currently in the body of a 12 year old, who I'm sure he looks up to like Greeks looked up to Zeus.

It can be kinda nice.

He starts 3rd grade tomorrow. I just hope he'll still remember me...
~~~
Today is the big day for Sven. He is all decked up in a Spiderman shirt and Hawaii shorts. Pair that up with a lilo and Stich backpack and that's him in a nutshell. I took a photo with my invisible phone so I'll remember this moment while I last.

I begin to walk beside him. I know that nobody can see me, but I still feel like I should make an effort to just in case. So I wear my nice armor instead with a sword by my side.

Too much?

Eh, it's not like anyone can see that I'm bringing in a weapon to an elementary school. I can't kill the annoying kids anyway.

I look around. It is like one of those prison camps Sven once dreamed up, except that is was a school for me. It looks exactly like it. Normally I would vote to have a summer vacation all year round, but I guess he does have to get an education.

We walk through the halls, avoiding eye contact with anyone. As an imaginary person, I can see other imaginary people, but I don't see too many from the people I recognize. Most of them belong to the kindergarten and 1st graders. I only see two other imaginary people in his grade, belonging to the youngest twins.

This makes me feel old.

But then we wander into a classroom. I see the desk with his name on it. I would like to nudge him to it, but even Sven can't see me. Since we're in the right place, I go hang out with the other two imaginary kids.

There is a boy and a girl. The boy looks like one of the highschool kids I saw across the road. He has a football jersey on as well as a football in this hands. He intoducess himself as Baller. The girl looks like something out of a dance costume magazine. She is wearing a lyrical costume that is aqua with flowers at the hems. It has a dark blue lace covering the top. She introduces herself as Petals.

After I introduce myself we make ourselves busy telling funny stories of our owners. We are just about to go in for round 15 when it is time for recess.

My IF sensors aren't tingling. I ask them if thiers are.

"No." They chirp together.

That's weird. My sensors always alert me when Sven wants to play with me, and if they were by now I would have a massive headache. In all the years he has created me, this has never happened before. As much as I want him to grow up, another part of me wants him to stay little for longer. It's not every assignment you meet a kid like Sven.

I look at the window overhanging the playground. After searching for a few minutes, my eyes find him. He is with the twins from earlier today. My hands start tingling.

I glance at my hands. They are fading. I turn back to look at Baller and Petals. They too, are fading.

We share the same look in our eyes. Bittersweetness. Sad that we have to leave the people who created the being of us, but glad that they have found each other to confide in. I have found the final group of friends I'll ever have as Tacitus. When I wake up, I will have a new assignment, with a new name. My new friends and I hold hands as we fade away from the kids we love so dearly, and off to a new place.