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Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of urban fantasy short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

Urban fantasy Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. From vampires at the bar to werewolves around the corner, our collection of urban fantasy stories will bring the magical into everyday life.

Urban fantasy Short Stories – Page 10

The shop that noticed her

Weekly Contest #339

seraphiel had lived in Yorkshire all her life, and she knew Leeds like most people know their favourite mug — familiar, comforting, and chipped in all the right places. She’d walked past the City Varieties more times than she could count, usually in a rush, usually thinking about something else.And yet she had never once noticed the tiny shop tucked beside it.Not until today.The door stood open, warm air drifting out — tea, chocolate, and old books, all swirling together like a spell. She hesitated only a moment before stepping inside.The sh...

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The Raven’s Brew

Weekly Contest #339

“So, how’s the big city treating you, Gus?” Darius says, lifting his mug and breathing in the scent. “Not bad. Much smoother than on your ship,” Gustav replies with a chuckle. “Hm. You realise your repeated seasickness was mostly down to the quantity of cheap rum you drank. My cheap rum,” Darius says, amused. Gustav pauses, eyes drifting to the window as he bites at his left thumbnail. “Have you really not touched a drop?” Darius asks, taking a sip. “Ella’s letter sounded very positive.” “I—well, there were times.” A faint rattle escapes as ...

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That Time I Married a Demon

Weekly Contest #339

I escaped three minutes and thirty-nine seconds after our first dance as husband and wife. My heels click-clacked against the cobblestone at the costly resort we booked for our wedding, and a bystander gaped at me as I ran by. The bells of the cathedral rang down my spine with each tone. It was your typical girl-meets-guy tale, a simple, but cliché, love story where we met at the neighboring county's fall festival. In the orchard. Picking apples. Sounds too good to be true, right? I don't know where my red-flag detector went, but the minute ...

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The Memory of Warmth

Weekly Contest #339

The kettle’s whistle cut through Ethel Jean’s spiral like a blade through silk—sharp, wrong, impossible to ignore. And then it hit her: someone had put it on.She had retreated to the secondary sitting area an hour ago, maybe two. Time had gone soft since Nathan’s injury. Time didn’t keep shape anymore.Three days. It had been three days since the Fire Elemental's attack. Three days since Ruby disappeared behind her door. Three days since Ethel Jean had felt anything through the sanctuary taste like ash.The chair she’d claimed—a faded green wi...

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A Familiar Warmth

Weekly Contest #339

“How is your promotion going? Malguinem Port is a big place,” Belle asks, taking a breath as she lowers herself into her chair. The chair is still upholstered in that old, frayed fabric. Greyed by years of use, patched over with similarly coloured cloth. Its timber frame is strong, dark wood, no doubt the most expensive part of it, whenever it was made. And the smell, soap, wool, smoke. So familiar. This place was my home for a long time. Belle was a good landlady. She got the house after her husband died in the war, but she never let it sho...

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Snow Day

Weekly Contest #339

I was pouring our coffee when Acacia, Ward’s very large cat, head bonked my ankle, causing me to spill hot coffee on the counter and my hand. “Damn it. Girl, I love you and all, but you almost wound up covered in scalding hot coffee.” Acacia meowed in response, then sat down behind me with her tail curled around my foot as I rinsed my hand in cool water. “Then you would’ve been mad at me because Ward would’ve had to walk you to the vet in all of this deep snow, and I would’ve been irritated at you for…” “Babe, who are you ta— There you are, ...

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We’re Closing in Ten Minutes

Weekly Contest #338

Eileen had reached the stage of academic failure where panic stopped being useful and turned into personality.Not peace—nothing that dignified. More like resignation with opinions. The kind that said, Yes, the ship is sinking, but I’d like to complain about the chairs first.Across the street, the university library crouched beneath a sky that couldn’t decide if it was July or October. Stone walls. Ivy-like veins. Windows dark enough to feel judgmental.Oksana stood beside her, coat zipped to her chin despite the heat, staring at the building ...

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Was It Worth It?

Weekly Contest #338

You know, hanging here. Suspended a foot off the ground in a kinetic field. I keep thinking to myself: Was it worth it? … Two days ago … “Dammit, Mark! By Spiff, what happened to your eye?” “Oh, uh… I fell.” “You fell, huh?” That’s Val. My dormmate. Very astute. Or maybe my excuses are just bad. Especially when reused them over and over. “Fell into someone’s fist?” “I, uh—” “Get over here, you idiot.” She demanded. I had learned not to go against that iron will. Plus, she could afford the good medicine. Not the bargain-bin salves I grew up w...

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The Super Pals

Winner of Weekly Contest #338 🏆

Have you ever slept through your alarm and had to skip breakfast? Have you ever wished for more protein in the morning than what bland oatmeal could provide? Have you ever been stranded in the woods, starving, with nothing but a raw egg? If you answered “yes” to at least one of these questions, Lenny Livingston could have helped. You see, Lenny had a superpower. …Well, it was less a superpower, and more a “specific issue resolver.” Lenny Livingston could [insert drumroll here] fry an egg under any circumstances, provided he had a frying pan ...

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The Artist & the Whisperer

Weekly Contest #338

Lorendale Academy, the only place that would take me. And that was after a sizable donation from my mother. The academy wasn’t bad, just grimy and old. The professors stank of salt and sweat, and the dorms weren’t much better. But still, I was worried. That place became my home. Four years in any place will do that. But there I was, sitting on a bench, waiting for my fate. “The headmaster will see you now. Adam, was it?” “Yes sir,” I replied, too quickly. All while the urge to remain perfectly still rushed through my head. I mustn’t shake. I...

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The day I discovered Alchemy wasn't a Gimmick

Weekly Contest #338

Warning: Somewhat vague reference to waterboarding near the end ---------------- It’s an old thing. Brown, leather bound, nothing embossed into the cover; it resembles a boring little journal.I was told by my mother of its status; a family relic. Something passed down through generations and generations. The date was never written anywhere in it, so all are unsure of where, exactly, in the family line this book spawned in. One thing is for certain; it dates back to a time where alchemy was heralded as the answer to all problems.The way to le...

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The Complete Idiot's Guide to Managing Your Undead Lifestyle

Weekly Contest #338

Danny closed The Complete Idiot's Guide to Managing Your Undead Lifestyle and tossed it onto the coffee table, where it landed next to a half-eaten gas station burrito and three empty Monster Energy cans. The book had been zero help. Chapter seven promised "Practical Tips for Maintaining Human Relationships," but it was mostly Victorian-era advice about not drinking your servants and shit about finding discreet donors at opium dens."Opium dens," Danny muttered to his empty apartment. "Yeah, let me just head down to the Tucson opium den. It's...

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The Story of my life

Weekly Contest #338

When you see a dusty red book that has your name on the front with your birth and (what you assume to be) your death date, you have to open it, right? That’s what I did. Big mistake. This story begins in a library and ends, well, we’ll just have to find out together. I’ve not written it yet, and you’ve not read it, so no skipping to the end to find out. I went to the library because I wanted a new book to read. A Kindle is fine, but nothing beats feeling the paper on your fingers, smelling the ink, especially of older books and seeing the st...

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The Raven’s Mark

Weekly Contest #338

Ella slams the book closed, the first sound in the room since her brother’s obnoxious snoring briefly interrupted the deal. She takes a breath, passing the book to her right. Raj, the giant of a man, stands ever vigilant at her side. For a hired muscle, Ella has used him for much more. A childhood spent travelling gave him knowledge of many criminal underbellies that Ella lacked experience in. He can spot false currency at a glance and usually knows its source. But most of all, he dealt with anyone who dared scam the Raven family. Ella takes...

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The Librarian

Weekly Contest #338

Kenzo wakes up clenching his sword's sheath. He finds himself sitting in an elegant white chair. There is also a white table, at which Kenzo notices a man sitting across from him. The man wears a suit just as white as the table and chair. As a matter of fact, the entire “room” they’re in is completely white. The man’s hair and comical mustache are also white. You’d think that his mustache would make him look silly, but he appears serious, cold, and calculating. “Welcome, Kenzo,” he says, speaking slowly, confidently. His voice seems to carr...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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