author: Nicole J. LeBoeuf

Notes from the author:

Story ideas aren't scarce. The art is in noticing them as they occur, refraining from instantly rejecting them, and taking note of them so as to remember them later. It's less an art and more a habit, one I've spent conscious effort trying to foment. That sort of effort is probably where the small spiral flip-book full of story prompt sentences that I found in my bookbag came from.

One of those sentences was, "A man and a woman arguing over whose fault it was that the Saints lost this week." It was probably inspired by the Bud Lite "Very Superstitious" series of commercials, with the tag line, "It's not weird if it works!" What if it really did work? Would failure to perform the superstitious act cause a loss? How would this change the dynamics and culture of professional sports?

Those are questions that deserve thoughtful, world-building answers, for which I fear you must search elsewhere. Instead, I give you Rhonda and Edward: Argumentative, comical, terribly earnest, and as devoted as any Saints fan who ever attended a game wearing a paper bag over their head, or who chanted "The Saints ain't the Ain'ts anymore!" in hopes that shouting it louder would make it true.

During the revision, I replaced the original couch pillow with a scarf. For one thing, I didn't want anyone thinking I actually meant the sacred Ernie & Antoinette K-Doe pillow. The K-Doe pillow is serious mojo, and I would not presume. For another, I had to think in terms of possible cover art. I don't have a suitable pillow to photograph, but I do have a fleur-de-lis scarf that I knit out of black and gold ribbon yarn. So that's what became the catalyst for Rhonda and Ed's argument, and that's what's featured on the cover of this week's fictionette.

The game was over, and Rhonda was furious. She'd had a suspicion early in the first quarter that something was out of whack, when the offensive line fell apart and Drew Brees got sacked on the second play of the game. Still, Rhonda had held out hope. Both she and Edward had. You don't let the team down by turning off the TV before the scoreboard says FINAL. That kind of fatalism could make a heroic comeback attempt fizzle. Only once it was over did Rhonda turn her eyes from the screen in disgust, and that's when she discovered what had gone wrong.

"I can't believe it! You left the Saints scarf on the couch! You forgot to activate the scarf and hang it in the shrine! How could you? For Christ's sake, you were sitting on it!"

This has been an excerpt from the Friday Fictionette for October 17, 2014. The fictionette appears in its entirety at Patreon and is available to all Patrons pledging at least $1/month.

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