Friday 17 April 2015

"The Mystery of the Chicago Bears" by Perry McDaid

In a little known corner of Dvorak, in a hidden cave network, live a family of bears which has an odd hibernation cycle. Highly intelligent and given to flamboyant camouflage, they emerge each football season in costumes sewn from the missing bodies of homicide victims and make their way to the subway where they use the coins found in the park during the year for fares.

Fellow passengers shy away from them: a bear’s processing of its sense of smell doesn’t alert them to the need of proper tanning. Getting off at central, much to the relief of security and commuters alike, they shuffle across to Soldier Field where they sneak in the back doors of the stadium. They are master locksmiths one and all.

There they somehow manage to blend in – the secret of that particular achievement has never been discovered – and steal into the changing rooms where they jump the home players and don their kit, stuffing the players into their own lockers.

Although the foray onto the field of battle is great fun and exercise for the bears, they cannot play for tuppence and the fans are invariably disappointed. They grunt convincingly at the coaches’ chew-outs during the game, and disappear ninja-style at the end: returning to their comfy cave; temporarily content at a decent work-out in an urban arena.

The players’ attempts to explain all this only results in more smoke from the coach’s ears and the manager asking his secretary to check out local counsellors.

Disbelieved and somewhat dishevelled, the grumpy players have to be satisfied with their outrageous salaries.




FlashFlood is brought to you by National Flash-Fiction Day UK, happening this year on 27th June 2015.
In the build up to the day we have now launched our Micro-Fiction Competition (stories up to 100 words) and also our annual Anthology (stories up to 500 words).  So if you have enjoyed FlashFlood, why not send us your stories?
More information about these and the Day itself available at nationalflashfictionday.co.uk.

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