'Bernard! Bernard, wake up! We're opening the store for everyone to hand in their entries!'

'What? Girls?! Oh, it's you Manny.'

'Come on, Bernard! We're late! Give me the keys!'

It was a struggle, Bernard refused but Manny yanked them hard and gleefully opened the door to which a mass people strode in to hand in their entrants. 'Yes, thank you! See you soon! The winner will be announced this time next week! Thank you! Stay if you want, for some fabulous Black Book stock! No? Okay, see you again soon! Bye!' Manny jumped up and down like a school girl. 'I'm so excited! Right, I'm taking the precaution that you don't want to read these Bernard, so I'm giving you a day's notice from yesterday that I'm taking today off.'

'Shut up!' Bernard moaned, still sound asleep from the night's feisty writing.

'Oh, looks like I missed one!' Manny smiled, picking up a scribbly messy story from the wasteland of Bernard's desk. He held the cardboard box full of entrants and placed this new one carefully into it. 'See ya later Bernard!' He grinned and hurried off upstairs to start reading them, leaving his master to the slumbers of sleep.

One week later Manny was standing on a chair in the shop, filled with many, many writers that eagerly waited to see if they had won anything. 'Well, thank you for coming everyone to the grand unveiling of our competition! The winner will be named in a moment, along with two runners up but first I want to read their first paragraph, which is ultimately astonishing! Okay, here we go! And the winner's story starts off like this,

"It started off on a cool day, my dad went out picking potatoes from the field and my mother was busy taking care of my younger brothers and sisters. As usual, the sun streamed through my faded curtains with an air to which would probably have the stunning influence of gold; yet sadly, today was an exception. Today this marked the start of the Ebony Fire which would soon destroy my family unawares."

'Yes, it's some touching stuff that had me weep for practically minutes after that!' Manny smiled. The audience nodded and murmured. This person who will be somewhere in the audience today, made use of the three options. In the story, they used a news story from recent times – remember that fire in a few towns in Lincolnshire the other day? Shocking, I know! Well, they retold it with such fictional brilliance! The fantasy being that it is set in somewhere called LakO'fot Ireland! Yeah, like there is such a magical place!' Everyone laughed to this.

'And finally, there are some comical moments used…well not really but I think they tried to make it funny to lighten it up a bit. I liked the moment when the family cow Georgina trampled that horde of chickens! Ha, ha very funny! So, without further to do, will Sally Frenchman please come forward!'

Manny waved his arm round, hoping to bring the winner forward.

Bernard at that point, reappeared from the kitchen wearily and looked around at all the yobs in his shop. 'Oh, God! Manny, please tell me it's nearly over! I'm going back to have a cup of tea.'

'Bernard! Come over here!'

'What?'

Manny waved him over and all the people looked at him. He smiled hesitantly, 'what is it Manny?'

'We're looking for Sally Frenchman in the room.'

'What a stupid name?'

'You can shut up about that, we've had enough of your opinions thank you very much!' Fran said from the crowd, whom she was with her boyfriend Kyle. He was dressed in a casual suit and looked respectful in the room.

'Okay, then. Maybe she couldn't make it!' Manny reassured everyone. 'The runner ups are…Kenneth penniless! For 'the biography of Fran''

'Yes!' Kyle punched the air and Fran looked at him admiringly and Manny handed him the prize. 'A gift certificate for Joanne's store of art and paintings!...awesome!' Fran cheered, 'yeah! Now, let's see if I won something too!' She looked eagerly up at Manny.

'Third prize goes to Donald Swimmer for 'Long Afternoons''.

'Puff,' Bernard snarled as Donald clamoured to get his prize. 'Ooh, a Bodycare voucher! Lovely!' He seemed happy enough.

'I guess that's it everyone! I hope you enjoyed yourselves and have a good day! See you again soon!'

Everyone seemed happy with themselves and thanked Manny for the opportunity. 'Well I don't know about you Bernard but I think we made ourselves very popular!'

'Yes, whatever! Now we can finally get back to normal!' Bernard sat down and wrote something in his diary.

'Hang on a minute!' Manny said, looking over at his writing. 'But…no! I thought…I recognised that writing! Bernard, are you Sally Frenchman?'

'So? It doesn't matter,' Bernard murmured, carefully adjusting himself away from Manny.

'It does matter! Bernard, you wrote something really beautiful here, how could you of all people write something this lovely?'

'Because it happened. That fire was something that happened to me when I was a boy growing up in Ireland.'

'The Ebony fire?'

'Yes, that was what the village called it because they respected us for being Irishmen.' 'And was…did anyone like, die?' Manny asked.

'Georgina did. And the chickens. Bit that's it,' Bernard got up to get a drink from the kitchen. 'Just those horrified moments of heat doesn't escape me plus my mother's attack of potatoes. She was slightly mad.'

'Really?'

'Yes, now I don't want anyone to know what I wrote, because I have a reputation for being a snarely, nuisance of a bookkeeper!'

'You can say that again!'

'Now please fill my glass with wine from the fridge!' He snapped, still writing.

'And would you like your prize, Bernard?'

'Leave it on the desk.'

Manny smiled, placed a small, hard wrapped gift on his desk and strolled into the kitchen.

Bernard tried to ignore it, but stopped writing and opened the paper. Inside was a golden brooch of an eagle, studded with black jewels. He smiled and put it on his shirt, carrying on with his writing.

'Cost me the whole of the entrant's fees that did! £55!' Manny called from the kitchen. 'I'm a very generous person!'

'Shut up Manny!' Bernard yelled, busy writing.

'Very good, Sally! Very good!' Manny grinned, pouring wine.

'It didn't work out with me and Kyle, he couldn't stop talking about bloody Will Ferrell! It's like he has a crush on him!' Fran moaned, while Bernard poured out some wine for the two of them that night in the shop. 'Hey, do you fancy going out to that new Italian place tonight?'

'Sure, why not? So, the booky type is not really you then?'

'I prefer the talky type!' Fran grinned.

'Come on, Manny! After we've had this drink we're off to the restaurant!'

'Coming, Fran!'

Manny entered wearing a Marilyn Monroe dress complete with a blond wig. His slouch gave them both a heartfelt laugh.

'Oh my gosh! You shouldn't wear white, Manny! Makes your arms look frumpy!'

'But that lipstick does bring out your eyes!' Bernard laughed.

'Thanks, Bernard. I'm taking it off…and I'm quitting.'

'You can't take it off! I'm making you, punishment for what you did to my shop! Plus if you're quitting, and then I'll make you so drunk you won't remember anything you just said! Now, come on before I become sober!'

'I made you more popular then ever!'

'No time for begging. We have some Italian waitress chicks to meet! Ha ha!' He guffawed happily, arm in arm with Fran and dragging Manny out with him.

THE END!

Hope you liked it! Please review. By the way, this was my first fanfic!!