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Nathaniel didn’t believe in ghosts. How could he? While his parents had passed years before, his religion made it clear that once someone died, they died. End of story. But who can I hear crying outside my room every night?   Every time he got out of the warm bed to check in the middle of the night, much to his wife’s annoyance, he would find the hallway cold and empty, not a soul in sight. Nathaniel had told himself it was just the neighbor’s cat across the street, begging for food. How the dratted thing got its yowls to be so loud, he did not know. He was an engineer, not a scientist. And still, someone cried. Quietly, at first, with little sniffles here and there. But they grew steadily louder with the passing days. Tonight, someone was sobbing right outside his door. Tearing their throat raw with anguished shouts. Throwing off the covers and ignoring his pounding headache, Nathaniel leapt to his feet and threw the door open. The bathroom light was the only thing that broke the darkness of the hall, but his wife had switched it off before going to bed. He was sure of it. Casting a glance over his shoulder, he saw that she was still fast asleep, chest rising and falling steadily. If there was a break-in happening, he should obviously wake her up. So why did he hesitate? He would just investigate, Nathaniel decided. Perhaps his wife simply forgot to switch the light off after brushing her teeth. A harmless mistake. Still, his sense of dread grew as he crept down the hall, his heart rate quickening alongside it. His bare feet made no noise as they pressed into the soft carpet he had carefully unrolled there when they had first moved into the house itself, and he shivered as the chill of the air conditioner on the floor nipped at his toes. When he peered into the threshold of the bathroom, he was glad that he fell asleep with his pants on. There was a woman sitting in the dry bathtub, although with the amount of tears that were falling from her eyes, it was soon to fill. Nathaniel took a step back, alarm surging through him. “Who—” “Nate,” the woman crowed, raising her tangled blonde head from her knees and meeting his gaze. “You’re in trouble.” “Mother?” Nathaniel gawked, leaning heavily on the door frame. He hadn’t seen that face, makeup smudged with sadness, since his mother had come home crying from work all those years ago. After locking herself in the bathroom and refusing to come out all night, Nathaniel was awakened with the numb shock that comes with a still and quiet house. Too quiet. Because he had found her in the bathtub the next morning. Drowned. Looking at her now, he felt sick. He had to have been dreaming; there was no other explanation. I don’t believe in ghosts, he told himself as the woman who resembled his mother stood, still staring him down with those same green eyes that greeted him in the mirror every morning. I don’t believe in ghosts. She was dressed in the same waitress uniform she had worn that fateful night. Her skin was gray and translucent, her lips the tinge of blue that had kissed death. Her eyes seemed to be the only living part of her. Nathaniel felt himself freeze, unable to step back to run away or forwards to see whether or not she was truly real. His mouth had gone dry, throat closing up and preventing any attempt at speech. “I was drawn here,” his mother said, tracing a painted nail across the ceramic tiles of the shower. “You know why, don’t you?” Nathaniel closed his jaw, which had fallen open in shock. “No,” he said, voice cracking. He cleared his throat and tried again. “No.  You’re supposed to be dead. You died, years ago. Before I even graduated high school.” His mother gave him a sad smile, tilting her head to the side and regarding him like a curious dog would. “Exactly, Nathaniel. I’m dead. And you’re not supposed to be.” Nathaniel felt a chill that had nothing to do with the AC this time. If she was dead, if she was truly a ghost, then there was only one reasonable explanation for why he could see her. “Oh.” His mother nodded, regarding him with pity. “You’re dead, Nathaniel.”

Late August, 1941. Somewhere in France.  If you find this notebook, I’m already dead. If you can, please give this attached letter to the Roth family in New Jersey. If you find a zombie clutching the notebook, that’s me. Well, was me. Do a guy a favor and kill the thing, would’ya?  “ To Uncle Herman, Aunt Bess, Sandy, and Phil,  “While moving west, my battalion discovered the zombies in a muddy field around 1200 hours. A commanding officer, the loud one, told us to freeze. One zombie turned around… It had pale green, peeling skin; rotting, yellow teeth, torn clothes, a groan from the depths of hell– why am I telling you this? You already know. You’ve seen them before.  “Anyway, it must have signaled to its fellow freaks, because they all turned and stared at us with wicked eyes. One of them screeched—a God awful, scratchy sound– and they all ambled towards us like an evil witch; their arms stretched in front of them, as if blindly searching for a light in the dark. A parade of death.  “We fought like hell, blasting ‘em with everything we had. I was shooting, stabbing, punching, kicking. I wasn’t going down without a fight. But it wasn’t enough; one of them got the jump on me and bit my arm. It hurt like hell, not gonna lie. But I just shot the son-of-a-bitch before running off; I couldn’t bite my fellow soldiers.  “Currently, I’m strapped down on an army cot waiting for the end. When I turn, someone will end the zombie before I can bite anyone.  “I don’t regret fighting. But I do regret not coming home.  “Uncle Herman, I’m sorry for being an ass. You don’t deserve that. “Aunt Bess, I’m sorry for causing you stress and worry. I hope you can rest with closure. “Sandy, keep on drawing, kid. You can provide hope in these dark times.  “Phil… at the risk of sounding mushy, I’ll miss you kid. Don’t worry about me. I’m in good hands.  “I was never good with ‘goodbyes’ so… love you.  “Alvin.” Ok, you who found this notebook. You must have noticed the inconsistencies and lack of details in my story. Here's what actually happened: the commanding officer yelled at us to retreat, causing pandemonium; the men in the back couldn’t hear or see the zombies and nearly got trampled into the ice cold mud as the front lines pushed them down. I did the same. And look where that got me…dying alone…  I found shelter in an abandoned husk of a building, crouching down by an old fireplace in what was once a living room. I didn’t breathe as I heard the shambling and groaning passing by. I thought for sure this was it, saying my prayers…  Nothing happened. I almost collapsed with relief, slowly standing up. My ears were ringing like mad, I tell you. That’s probably why I didn’t hear the thing sneaking up behind me. All of a sudden, my left arm exploded in pain, like lava bubbling beneath my skin. I must have screamed, but I can’t recall. All I remember is grabbing my gun and bashing the thing’s head in.  My body must be nearly transformed by now, but I refuse to look; I’m writing this with a random candle I found. My arm just aches now, but it looks and feels like green, rotten, cottage cheese with bits of expired ketchup on top. Don’t know why that comparison came to mind, but I can’t think of anything else… my mind is already fuzzy on the edges. You know, it’s strange, but I almost feel at peace. As I slouch against the wall I have no expectations placed on me, nothing to do except, well, die. …look at me getting philosophical. Must be a side effect of death.  Point is: don’t be like me. Be smart, quick, and aware of your surroundings. Go home to your folks when this is over. Please.

Welcome to ~ The Fioretti ~ Marian University's Student-Led Literary Journal Photo by Fioretti Students of '86 - '87 (Vol. 45 No. 1) Why Submit to The Fioretti? With The Fioretti , both our annual print publication and our ongoing online publication, we provide a platform for Marian University's amazing writers and artists to showcase their creativity and talent. Our goal is to create a community for creatives alike who appreciate the art of not only literature but also many other art forms as well. We're constantly looking for new voices in the creative world and would love to see anything and everything you have to offer! About The Fioretti The Fioretti is a literary magazine created by and for Marian University's students. We believe that literature is an important part of our culture, and we aim to provide a platform for student writers to share their work and ideas. Learn More Photo by Kadin Gaviola '27 Contact

Submitting to ~ The Fioretti ~ Welcome, all! Readers and creatives alike are welcome in this space, whether experienced or inexperienced in the ways of creating. Our goal is to support all in our efforts to widen the publishing horizons for those in the Marian community. We encourage you to submit to grow your platform and community of people that you reach with your creative works! We hope to give you a wider audience to view your piece(s) and help you to grow in whatever ways we can! Photo by Kadin Gaviola '27 Our Rolling Submission Guidelines Fiction Creative Nonfiction Poetry Songs Visual Arts And Any Other Creative Works Fiction Guidelines Whether it be fantasy, mystery, science fiction, or contemporary, we consider short stories of all types. We require the stories submitted to us be 3,000 words or less, and if your story contains graphic content, we ask that you include a content warning on your piece. We look forward to reading your work! Submit Creative Nonfiction Guidelines Creative nonfiction reflects a vast genre of work, and we encourage you to explore all that this genre represents! Creative nonfiction can include narrative essays, personal reflections on research or experiences, lyrical essays, and more. The “rules” to creative nonfiction are that the events and/or research present in the piece must be true, and the piece must have some creative aspect to it. If you find yourself writing about things that haven’t actually happened in the real world, then your piece can be submitted through the fiction category. If you find yourself writing about research or historical events, you should be making subjective and personal connections to the information you are writing about. For example, we will not be accepting academic papers that you might write for class; however, if what you’ve learned in class has impacted you in some way, we would love to hear the story of how and why you’ve been impacted. Please keep creative nonfiction essays at 3,000 words or less. Happy writing! Submit Poetry Guidelines We are looking for poetry of many different forms, whether it be rhyming, shaped, or freestyle poetry. There are a variety of creative fiction or nonfiction pieces that authors can feel comfortable writing and submitting to us. An example can include an event that happened in your life or someone else's life with conveying metaphorical expressions. If your piece or pieces have fictional or nonfictional graphic imagery, please have warnings of the pieces for the readers. Submit your work in any style you want, but we may contact you if we need to change the font or style of a piece depending on the journal's needs. We also encourage you to come with a visual if you choose to submit something, but the author does not have to. Submit Song Guidelines Songs can be from any genre you choose with any representation of class, race, religion, morality, or any other beliefs you hold as a song writer. Try to have songs with reasonable amount of graphic imagery or language depending on the creative purpose for the lyrics and the graphic content. For songs, feel free to format how you want either a document or video or voice player format. We also encourage any beats or instrumental pieces. Try to keep songs between 1-5mins depending on the genre of the song. We also highly encourage artists to perform their songs at upcoming events if you feel comfortable in doing so. Events will be posted on website or via Instagram page Submit Visual Arts Guidelines We are keeping submissions open for all kinds of visual arts. There is no wrong answer to this. If you have a creative voice you want to be heard or something that you are passionate about, we would like to hear your voice about that subject so we can be as passionate as you are. The list of examples for formatting can be a film, comic strip, comedy skit, sculpture, drawing, etc. Submit Miscellaneous Guidelines This category is for any and all things creative that might not fit into the other categories! Some examples of this might be videos, comic strips, works of interactive fiction, etc. As long as it has some creative aspect to it, your work can be submitted here. Submit

Welcome to ~ The Fioretti ~ On behalf of all the editors of Marian University’s literary magazine, The Fioretti, we are excited that you have taken the time to look at what we have to offer! Our goal as editors is to show the Franciscan values, which are the dignity of the individual, peace and justice, reconciliation, and responsible stewardship. With this platform, we hope to share work from students of all backgrounds to show off their creativity. Everyone's voice matters in the Marian University community! If you are a Marian University student or alum, we would love to have you come join our band of creatives! Photo by Kadin Gaviola '27 ~ Our Team ~ Meet the students behind The Fioretti. Amari Fields | '24 Poetry Editor Amari is a Communication major with a minor in sociology. If she's not reading or writing, you can find her watching all things Mike Flanagan. Amari chose The Fioretti because it not only allows students to be creative and draws them into new genres of writing, but it also helped her find her own creative writing style. Hailey Ready | '26 Literary Editor| Social Media Manager | Prose Editor Hailey is a junior, majoring in both Biology and English. When she’s not editing for The Fioretti, you can find her reading, running, performing on stage, and talking about salamanders (The Eastern Hellbender is her favorite). Hailey hopes you enjoy reading The Fioretti as much as she has enjoyed working on it! Kadin Gaviola | '27 Prose Editor Hello, my name is Kadin Gaviola. I am an English and Global studies double major. I am on the Freshman Class Board, a Student Government Representative, a Campus Activities board member, and a member of Model UN, as well as an editor for the Fioretti. I am an avid reader and passionate about writing myself. I am a creative person and I like to crochet, draw, and do other crafts. I have an orange cat named Felix and my favorite food is pizza or tacos. Mary Chittle | '27 Prose Editor Mary is a sophomore English major with minors in psychology and ministry studies. She loves reading (especially Tolkien), writing, and spending time with friends, family, and Jesus. This is her first year as a prose and poetry editor for the Fioretti and she is excited to read and work with everyone’s submissions. Thomas Barthauer | '26 Poetry Editor Thomas is a junior studying philosophy, with minors in creative writing and pastoral leadership. He enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with his two dogs. When not in class, he can usually be found playing video games or watching history videos of dubious reliability. Anna Kvasnik | '27 Managing Editor | Web Manager | Poetry Editor Anna is a sophomore Psychology major with a minor in English. Along with her service dog, Stella Luna, she enjoys writing, researching new things, and playing music. When she's not working on the Fioretti's website, she's most likely crafting, wandering around campus, or creating new memories with her family and friends. Julianna Britt | '28 Prose Editor Julianna Britt is a freshman majoring in English and Ministry Studies. Outside of reading and writing, she enjoys building legos, creating playlists, and spending time with Jesus in one of the many chapels on campus. Her favorite book is The Knife of Never Letting Go. Kaitlyn McNamee | '26 Prose & Visual Arts Editor Kaitlyn McNamee is a junior at Marian University studying English and business. She heavily enjoys literature, especially classic novels, and is looking forward to her first semester editing for The Fioretti. Robert Ray | '26 Poetry & Prose Editor I am a junior English major with a double minor in History and Philosophy. When I'm not reading or writing, I am usually watching a horror flick. I stay to myself and let life take me where I'm going. While I appreciate the macabre and grotesque with an eye for the mysterious and unknown. I enjoy jazz, alternative, and metal music . Working on writing something. Never knows best. You're gonna carry that weight. Big brother is watching. Read Hellboy. No truce with the furies. Goodbye! ~ Our Past Team Members ~ Meet some of the previous students behind The Fioretti! D'Asia "Asia" Cole | '24 Poetry Editor Hello! My name is D'Asia Cole and I am graduating with an English major with a Global Studies & Biology minor. This is my last year here at Marian University and my favorite types of reads would include nonfiction and poetry writing, and I am most excited for people to showcase their talents within the Fioretti so other people can broadcast their opinions and continuous support. Elizabeth "Lizzie" Schmidt | '24 Prose Editor Lizzie is a 5th year senior Communication major with a minor in writing. She is a prose editor for the Fioretti, the Editor-in-Chief for the Marian Phoenix (student newspaper), and was a 4-year member of the game day cheerleading squad. While she is not busy with school work or her job of candle-making, she enjoys hanging out with friends or her cat, or listening to anything Taylor Swift Related. Simon Collins | '24 Poetry Editor Simon is a senior English major who loves poetry and western fiction. He's greatly involved with the theatre and music departments at Marian as well, bringing his creativity and passions into The Fioretti workplace. David Green | '25 Poetry Editor My name is David Green, I am a junior English & Secondary education major here at Marian University. I played on the soccer team at Marian for two years and have transitioned into coaching at Indiana Fire Juniors. I am so excited to be working with The Fioretti this semester, and cannot wait to have the chance to improve my writing and editing skills in this class. Madisen "Maddie" Surber | '27 Visual Arts Editor | Poetry Editor I’m Maddie Surber! I’m a freshman History/Marketing double major and Communications/Music double minor! I’m a musician, artist, and massive geek. Drawing, listening to music, and gaming are how I spend my time! I’m in our Jazz, Concert, and Pep band. I play the trumpet, French horn, upright bass, and acoustic and electric guitar! I also have two dogs and a parakeet. I’m a part of The Fioretti because I love to promote the works of my friends and Marian’s students and bring Marian’s community together through creativity and art!"