Creative Writing

The Persuit of Happiness

Our next project was by far my favorite. We were assigned to write a fictional and imaginative story that had some sort of moral to it. I loved going above and beyond with this story and even though it is insanely long, I think it is worth it. Enjoy!

Smokey clouds began to settle in closer, not too far from the ground. Snuggling against one another, they slowly drew in to blanket the gray town in fog. The promise of rain was tangible, the air thick with moisture, but none ever came. Townspeople peered through their rickety doors made from rubble, and through glazed eyes that barely knew a sense of hope, they gawked into the haze of the sky. Each would count their prayers on their hearts, longing relentlessly for a drop of rain to descend from the heavens and to land onto their pleading lips; to finally quench their parched tongues which they had felt for so long. But their prayers were unanswered. No rain ever came.
Others yearned for a glimmer of sun to poke through the dense sheet of fog, but the clouds insistently pressed inward, filling each crevice of the town with vacancy. 'Surely the piercing rays of the sun would be able to send the clouds astray,' some would think aloud, but the mist would only thicken before their eyes. One would draw in a deep breath, seeking to fill their lungs with something, anything, but they were left unsatisfied with the emptiness that the air had to offer. No sun came to break through the dense wall of fog nor did it hand over the palpable moisture it greedily held, not even to give a mist upon the ground or to bring green life back to the barren earth. All that was left of the town was an eerie silence. A vacancy that could be felt in the pit of the stomach, like looking at a clear glass, knowing that something should be in it, but seeing that the space inside was devoid of any substance. Without the sun or the rain, the town was robbed of any emotion and subjected to uncanny nothingness.
Inside one of the many houses made of recycled garbage and dilapidated wood, a young girl sat upon the uneven, dirt floor of the kitchen, watching intently as a colony of ants marched by. She had rags for clothes and neglected to wear her shoes made of recycled cloth and animal skin. The tips of her long, brown, and incredibly unkempt hair swished at the dust on the floor as she moved her head from side-to-side, but none of this mattered as her attention was focused on the duties of the ants marching along before her. She gingerly tucked her knees to her chest to avoid interfering with the ants' work. The girl had no intention of hurting the colony; rather, she was more interested in observing the tiny creatures.
She surveyed how several ants emerged from their miniature hole in the wall just to the left, and after peering around warily, they scurried toward the small crumbs littered around the floor. A group of about ten would crowd in a circle around a single crumb and tentatively grab piece by piece of the speck until there was nothing left. But, some were so hungry and did not wish for the benefit of the colony, so they separated themselves from the group, and began to voraciously eat their portion of the crumb. A few ants over at a different crumb were crawling madly amongst one another, fighting to get a share of the substantial food, and once one prevailed, it would dash away with its prize.
But, to the girl's surprise, one particular ant skulked through the swarming crowds, completely avoiding any conflict, and began to wander far away from the hole they called home. It was as if this ant disregarded the normal behavior of any other ant and was in search of something that the others could not see. There were no crumbs strewn across the dirt in the direction it was headed. As the ant scuttled from left to right in a zig-zag motion, the girl began to notice the intentions of the little critter. It was searching for the pantry.
The girl was about to lift herself to her feet to follow the ant until her mother's voice rang out from across the room. "What are you doing dirtying up your clothes on the dusty floor?" she scolded as she hastily stumbled to where the girl sat. As she spotted the ants, the woman proceeded to nag, "And haven't I told you to not play with vermin? Let us have some sort of decency in this house by not being overrun with swarms of bugs, unlike our neighbors." She mumbled under her breath. She continued to scoff as her mighty foot came down upon the crowds of ants around the crumbs and crushed them into the floor. The little girl watched in dismay as the ants flailed desperately with their legs pointed to the sky, but she secretly felt relieved as she watched the one ant disappear unnoticed into the pantry.
Once her task was finished, her mother fell into one of her coughing fits, as if the burden of ridding the house of pests had proven too much for her. As the girl watched her mother's hunched-over figure hobble away, she quickly darted to the pantry, hesitantly opened the creaky doors, shoved some of the old, dusty boxes aside, and in the back corner of the nearly empty pantry, was a pot. She crawled in a little closer, and there she saw the one ant, nibbling happily at the green leaves poking out from the dirt inside the pot. Instead of taking the ant from the last plant that she knew existed, the girl hid the pot behind the old boxes and closed the pantry doors once again.
By now, her mother was cringing under the weight of every cough, causing her chest to heave painfully for a chance to breath. She had to grasp onto the wall and table and any nearby object to steady her uneven steps. The girl's grandmother was seated at the wooden table, but swiftly rose up to lead her mother to her bedroom. As the two ladies linked arms and trudged through the doorway, her mother grumbled, "This fog will be the death of me! It brings along sickness and nothing else. It takes away any happiness I used to have and leaves us empty."
Her grandmother helped the women down onto the bed in her room, closed the door, and then returned to the kitchen and sat down once again, now gazing at the young girl.
"Why such a long face, child?" she asked, pursing her lips together as she often did when thinking.
The girl's nose scrunched up and her eyebrows pulled together in thought. "What is h-ha-a-ppiness, Gran Gran?" she sounded out the new word on her tongue. "Like the one mother talked about."
Gran Gran smiled and let out a sigh as she sorted through how she could explain the concept to such a naive child. "Happiness," she began. "Well, happiness is a wonderful feeling that used to be everywhere in this town. It's a feeling that makes you smile, and laugh. It's a feeling that shows us that there is still good in the world."
"But the town," the girl continued, still looking confused. "You said that we used to have happiness. What happened to it?"
Gran Gran let a long sigh escape through her nose, and once it was finished, she spoke. "This town used to be filled with happiness and joy. I remember when I was a girl, the sun used to shine all the time, and rain would come once in a while to feed the grass and the plants. Happiness would bring life to the town. But despite our good fortune, others sought out to find the source of happiness, to keep it for themselves. Amongst these people were four siblings who heard of a legend that said true happiness could be found beyond the mountain to the north. So, in light of their ambitions, each of them set out to climb the mountain. However, along the way, each sibling got caught up in their own greed and selfishly caused war and poverty to descend upon our town. They found their own, twisted definition of happiness, an none ever made it beyond the mountain. It is through the war and poverty that they put upon us that we lost all sense of happiness."
As the story came to an end, the girl stared contently at the floor, chewing subconsciously on her lower lip as she tried to understand what her grandmother had explained. "Has anybody ever tried to stop them?"
"Many people have tried, but every single one got lost along the way because of the temptation that the siblings had put upon them. No man has ever made it past the mountain to find true happiness."
"Will anyone ever find happiness and bring it back to the town?" The girl's eyes grew big with wonder and hope.
Gran Gran smiled a toothy smile and then picked up her granddaughter and set her onto her lap. "I believe that there will come a day that happiness will return to our town. It is said that to defeat the temptations of the siblings, one must be pure of heart and not wish to partake in what the siblings find happiness to be. The only way to reach the other side of the mountain is to seek their own definition of happiness."
"But how do you find your own happiness?", the girl cut in.
"Well, happiness is different for everyone. It is the journey that will determine what happiness means to you," she finished, poking the girl playfully in the ribs, and then setting her back down onto the floor.
As Gran Gran pressed herself up to a standing position and began to shuffle off, the girl quickly asked in desperation, "Will I ever be able to find happiness?"
Just for a moment, Gran Gran turned to gaze warmly into the girl's curious eyes. "Of course, child. If you go and look for it." And with that, she turned and trotted down the hallway.
That night, the little girl grabbed a sack of things she needed, and then raced out the door, the tip of the mountain to the north set on her horizons.
* * *
It was nearly sunrise once she had reached the foot of the mountain. She had trudged barefooted through shrubs, tree roots, and plenty of mud, but what lay before her now was a large expanse of grass and weeds, giving her feet a brake from the mushy ground in the forest. Putting her hand to her forehead, the girl peered up at the massive mountain. It seemed so tall and almost impossible to climb alone, but she was determined to bring happiness to her mother and back to the town.
As she continued to walk, feeling the long grass swish at her sides and tangle amongst her fingers, a low growl sounded a few yards away, causing her head to snap up in shock. Her heart began to pound as she waited for paws to be upon her shoulders and then a heavy weight pinning her helplessly to the ground, but nothing happened. She dared not move as her eyes slid to the right, and through her peripheral vision, she could barely make out a dingy mountain lion, perched on top of a rock, several feet above her head. But then she noticed that it was not her that the lion was growling at, but at a few other lions below it.
The lone mountain lion continued to hiss menacingly at the others, baring its teeth in hostility. The girl began to back away slowly as she realized that none of the predators had caught sight of her yet. But, it was the defiant lion on the rocks that kept the girl's interest. It was skinny, with countless ribs showing through it's pelt, and plenty of scars starting from it's neck and drawing to it's back legs and even more on it's face, yet the lion continued to defend it's place high above the others. She wouldn't be surprised if the thing dropped dead this instant as it refused to take care of itself and go hunt for food. Rather, it stayed and stubbornly kept it's place on the rocks, not letting a soul touch the sacred spot.
Once she was far enough away from the mountain lions, the girl bolted through the gargantuan grass that hid her completely from sight. It seemed that none of the lions had chased her in pursuit, so she deliberately slowed her pace to a walk. She watched for the first time ad the sun rose into the sky, letting warmth soak into her skin unlike she had ever felt before. It was so tempting at one point that she decided to lie down on the soothing grass for a quick nap, for her feet ached already from her journey.
She didn't know how long she had been asleep, but she was aroused in a trembling terror as hands clasped around her shoulders and carried her roughly and quickly through the grass. The girl began to scream and pound her fists into the persons back as she realized that she was being taken away. It felt as if she had been squirming and thrashing for quite some time, trying desperately to break free or see who her kidnapper was, but all attempts were futile. By the time the man stopped, she was exhausted and quit fighting.
The hands finally set her down to the ground, and before she could open her mouth to ask a million questions, a shadow crossed in front of her gaze. Another tall man loomed in front of her, blocking the blinding sun from reaching her eyes. Once she adjusted to the shadows, the girl could finally make out what the make looked like. He wore fine armor with designs embroidered all over it. A magnificent sword was sheathed at his side and his arms were strong, probably from holding the thing for so long. But it was his face that was most peculiar of all. He had scars criss-crossed over his nose, along his jaw, and a few nicks in his ear. Such nice things he had, yet his face was hideous!
"Why did you bring a little girl to me?" the man bellowed, turning his back from me.
"She was wandering around in the grass before." another replied. "We assumed that you wished to speak to her also."
"I only need to talk to those who are climbing the mountain, not children playing childish games in the field." he roared, whirling on the men behind the girl. "Why waste my time with such impudence?"
"But I am here to climb the mountain." the girl piped up.
The tall man stopped in his tracks, and with a hearty laugh, he turned to inspect the tiny girl. "You?" he asked. "You are going to climb the mountain? Only a grown man could make it up this mountain." He began to laugh hysterically again.
"Then why haven't you made it up to the top yet? You are one of the four siblings, are you not?" the girl fired back.
At this, the man immediately stopped laughing and glared in hostility at the girl's defiant expression. "Yes. I am the youngest of the four siblings. My name is Jerrico." he narrowed his eyes while continuing. "And the only reason why I refuse to finish my climb past the mountain is because I have found that there is no need to. I have found happiness right where I stand and I need nothing else."
Jerrico got up from his knees and proceeded to pacing around with his hands set firmly behind his back and his neck craning as if he was trying to make himself look taller. " Several years ago when I first decided to come to the mountain, I stopped my journey here because I got caught up in the vastness of this field. My eyes were open to the reality that our town could be attacked by any neighboring places and have no defense to keep everyone safe. So, I took it upon myself to start an army right here, and lead them to victory. And now, when I see people who want to climb this mountain, I ask them to come and join the army. To find their happiness in fighting for the greater good."
Glad that Jerrico had finished his long speech and that she could finally stop biting her tongue, the girl began, "But you say that you fight for goodness when all this army has brought is enemies and fighting that our town cannot handle."
Before she could finish, Jerrico spun around and snarled, "We fight to show that we will not be taken advantage of and that we are stronger than anyone else," the menacing glint in his eyes sent a shiver of fear spiraling down her spine. Suddenly, he began to blink, and the horrid look in his eyes faded. He stood straight up once again, cleared his throat and said, "I try to help as many people as I can, and even though you are young, I can still teach you something. I have found happiness in fighting to be the at the top, and in proving that we are the best army there is, and that I alone, am the best leader. Does that not make you want to join our efforts in any way possible? So that you too, can also find happiness?"
Without hesitation, the girl replied, "Happiness is different for everyone. And it is through the journey that one finds her way."
"Well," Jerrico sighed, unsure of what to say next, "What do you think your happiness is?"
"I do not know yet, but I can't stop until I find it. Right now, I understand that happiness doesn't hurt others, but it brings a smile to their faces." the girl answered, locking her innocent gaze with his.
"And you believe that happiness doesn't involve fighting for the greater good?"
"As long as no one is being hurt, then yes."
Jerrico took a long pause that lasted for several moments, and when he seemed finished, he bent down to stare eye-to-eye with the girl. "I don't usually do this, but I have decided to let you go on with your journey. I want you to find your own happiness, and when you find it, please, come back to tell me about it." And for once, he tried to smile, making his face brighten up and not look so hideous.
"Thank you," the girl replied.
"But, before you go," Jerrico said hurriedly as he went to grab something from a sack. "I think you will be needing this to keep you safe along the way." He then pulled out a small knife that was generously embroidered and shone like it had never been touched before. The girl clasped it between her hands, uttered another thank you, and then was on her way up the mountain once again. But, it wasn't long before the weight of the knife became too burdensome for the girl to carry, so she decided to tuck it away in some bushes, and then she journeyed onward without a single glance behind her.
* * *
Much time had passed, and despite it still being midday, the rays of the sun were unable to pierce through the course needles of the evergreen trees. Branches soared high above the girl's head, giving the feeling that she was trapped in the forest with no way out. But despite the dim sense of encampment, the girl seemed transfixed with all of the new sights and sounds which she had never encountered before. New creatures scurried past her feet and hopped from branch to branch. A small bird was set to pecking furiously at the side of a tree, creating quite the ruckus, and a scaled creature with but two legs and a set of wings whizzed by over head.
As the girl strolled on, out of the corner of her eye she spotted a bush covered with plump, red berries. They looked delicious and as she was about to reach out and grab one, a little monkey head came poking through the leaves. Deciding not to spook the animal, she watched from a distance as one-by-one, the creature picked a berry from the plant and stuffed it into it's mouth, disregarding any pit that sat in the center of the fruit. The monkey was so caught up in it's hunger for berries that it continued gorging without giving a rest. The girl noticed that the creature ate far more than what was needed, and even then proceeded to stuff it's face.
Once it had nearly cleared the bush completely of any fruit, the creature flopped to the ground and stumbled clumsily away. As the tail of the monkey disappeared into the underbrush, another rustling noise sounded back from where the bush was. The girl looked over and right before her eyes she watched as the bush possessing no more than a handful of berries left, began to crumple and shrivel, the leaves growing crisp and dry as it seemed that all of the life of the bush was being sucked out. It continued to shrink and crackle at an unnatural speed until it suddenly burst into a cloud of dust, causing the girl to leap out of her trance. All that was left of the once beautiful berry bush was a rotten, crooked stump protruding from the earth.
The girl stood for several moments, trying to understand what had just happened, but the sound of hysterical laughing and music suddenly appeared in the distance, making her forget all about the bush. She started to creep towards the sound with extreme caution, not knowing what kind of trouble could be brought from the situation. As she neared the source of the sound, the girl squatted down, and parted the branches in front of her face to get a glimpse of what was happening. There was a small clearing, but still no sunlight came through, and in the open space was a decorative carriage, and men standing around playing music, and tables full of food.
The girl's curiosity got ahold of her and so she decided to step out from her hiding place and approached to tables of food. On them was a feast with exotic foods unlike she had ever seen before, but the most delicious looking food was a rectangular bread role with jelly in the center she knew to be called a 'danish.' Hoping that no one would see her, she silently reached her hand out and was about to nab the desert from the table when a booming voice shot from the carriage, "Stay away from my food!"
The girl fell backward in terror and was about to sprint to the safety of the trees, but it was too late as the woman leapt out from the carriage and seized her by the arm. She twisted and squirmed, trying to break free, but the woman's grasp was firm and her eyes were set with fury. "Why are you stealing from me?", she hissed.
"I'm sorry!", the girl yelped. "I just need to be able to get to the top of the mountain."
Once those words were uttered, the woman let go and a sly smile crept onto her face. "You are climbing the mountain? You are looking for happiness?", she inquired.
With a nervous nod of the head, the girl straightened herself up and tilted her head to the side. "Are you one of the four siblings in the legends?"
The woman squeezed out an obnoxious chuckle, grasping at her gut as if she had just heard a hilarious joke. "I am the third born sibling. My name is Eden.", she replied, wiping away the tears from her eyes. "I haven't seen a travel for quite some time since my brother started recruiting people into his unreasonable army. But, I can also say that I have never seen a traveler as young as you. Come! Sit with me before you go and tell me about your travels."
The woman turned and headed toward her carriage, and seeing that she had no choice, the girl followed. Inside the carriage were plush seats with gold trimming and magnificent paintings placed on the walls, and through the large opening at the front you could easily see the musicians and entertainers make a fool of themselves. As of right now, they were all standing around, looking exhausted, but upon noticing this, Eden screeched at them to continue playing and entertaining.r
"So why are you looking for happiness?", the woman asked wit a warm smile while plopping a cherry into her mouth and then taking a sip from a bottle.
"I have never felt true happiness before, and I want to bring it back to my town.", she explained. The girl tried hard not to look disgusted as Eden ate and drank and chuckled at the floundering entertainer.
Deliberately setting down her bottle, Eden exclaimed, "Well there is no reason now to climb that treacherous mountain because you have found happiness right here!" And just then, she fell into a fit of continuous laughter, pointing her finger at the humiliated entertainer who had slipped and fallen into a puddle of mud.
As her laughter continued on, the girl got up and muttered, "I don't think this is what happiness is."
She was about to slip off unnoticed when Eden snapped to attention and exclaimed out, "Why of course this is happiness! Do I not seem happy? I have everything I need, food, drink, music, and a good laugh. When I first arrived here, I decided that I don't need anything else. I don't need my stuck-up siblings. So, I called a carriage to arrive here and I have lived in this spot ever since with not a worry on my mind."
"But don't you miss your family?", the girl retorted. "Don't you miss the company of other people who love you? Happiness isn't found in things. It's in other people and in doing good for others. Not humiliating and hurting them."
Eden took a long pause, and then her eyes suddenly brightened. "Ok! So then you can stay with me and we can be friends."
"No.", she shook her head despairingly. "I have my destiny elsewhere."
"Ok, then I will give you this danish to help you."
Annoyed, the girl sighed. "That's not what I meant." And without another word, she took the danish and walked over to the musicians and the muddy entertainer. It was obvious that they had not eaten much in quite some time as they looked hungrily at the danish in her hand. "Here. Take this.", the girl offered the treat to them. One tentatively took it in their hands and before they could say anything, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a role of bread. "Sorry, but this is all the food that I can offer." They all stared at her in amazement, clasped their hands around hers with tears brimming in their eyes and graciously thanked her.
With a great smile upon her face, the girl turned toward the trees, but before she disappeared, she glanced back at Eden. The woman stood alone in the middle of the clearing, but for a second her eyes clocked with the girl's, and then she was gone as she was engulfed once again by the forest.
* * *
The moment that she emerged from the dense forest, the young girl broke into a run, not minding the sharp pains the rocks sent through her feet. She eagerly leapt up onto a rock and gasped in awe at the sight around her. The tips of the trees were now below her as she stood taller, imagining that she was a giant and the world below was small compared to her. She peered around and could barely make out the dark smudge in the distance that she knew to be the town and the fog. But the Sun was the most magnificent. Now touching the horizon, the orange sphere sent the sky into a rainbow of vibrant colors. The girl took in a deep breath, attempting to store this image into her memory forever.
It was now getting late as the sun was setting, and the girl knew she didn't have much time until the Sun, her companion, would be gone. She continued to climb the steep, rocky slopes at a swift pace so that she could reach the top of the mountain by nightfall. To pass the time, she began to count things like how many birds would fly over her head or the different types of wild flowers scattered around the face of the mountain. She trekked along, tallying up in her head the numbers and then letting her mind wander.
She looked at her surroundings with wonder as she noticed how the warm sunlight caused the rocks to turn from a harsh gray color to an orangish-pink, and the flowers were dappled with countless scales of color. The girl loved flowers, and began to pick some. She would burry her nose and take in the delicate scent, treasuring every breath. But it was while she was caught deep in thought that a glimmer up a ways above her brought her attention back to reality. She set out towards the shinning object, and once she reached it, she realized that it was a puddle.
Upon closer observation, the girl noticed that the puddle wasn't water; rather it was thick and golden. She had heard about gold before, but she never knew about it being in liquid form. It almost had a luring call to it, making her heart pound in fear. She was transfixed on the puddle when suddenly, the wind picked up and a petal from a nearby flower broke away and then landed into the golden puddle. The substance was so thick that it took a while for the petal to sink, but that made the moment only more bothersome. The girl watched as the middle of the petal sank down first and then slowly brought the other ends with it until it disappeared completely into the thick liquid.
Straightening her posture from her crouch, the girl was about to walk on, but then she noticed that all of the flowers around her had specs of gold upon them, and they lead to a cave in the side of the mountain not too far off. Despite her better judgement, the girl tip-toed to the gaping mouth of the cave, and then proceeded to enter. The walls echoed so clearly that she could hear her own breathing, and drops of water further down the cave, and also someone muttering to themselves.
Luckily, the cave wasn't at all dark because as she crept onward, the cave opened up and was completely lit by the glimmering of gold and gems. The girl's eyes widened at the amount of coins and intricate jewelry just lying about the cave in mounds. But placed in the middle of the cave was a man wrapped in a silk cloak, with rings shoved onto every finger. He was muttering under his breath as it seemed that he was counting the coins and then stacking them into neat piles. The girl noticed that he head bags under his eyes and probably hadn't eaten anything for a long time.
This man was definitely one of the siblings, but he seemed much more delusional than the others, so the girl resolved to duck out of the cave and press on with her journey, but as she turned to leave, her foot carelessly brushed against a pile of gold and sent them clattering to the floor with much echoing in response. At this, the man straightened up, pointed his finger accusingly at the girl and roared, "Thief! You sneak in and try to rob me of my belongings? You shall pay for what you have done!"
The girl put her hands up in submission and fear and cried, "I don't mean to take anything! I am just passing through on my journey up the mountain."
The man stopped, not letting his guard down, and with the vacancy reentering his eyes, he replied, "Only two people have ever made it this far before. Both were grown men and both died here." He nodded towards the bones piled in the corner, all of which had liquid gold splattered on them. The girl returned her gaze to the scrawny man in the oversized cloak as he proceeded speaking, although she did not know if he was actually speaking to her or to something or someone else because his voice seemed distant. "But, I do not understand how a child would be able to climb so far as so many others have not made it."
The man began to pace around the cave, muttering to himself again, and to snap his attention back to her, the girl said, "You are one of the four siblings, are you not?"
This caused the man to straighten and peer at her again, his focus seeming to be back in line. "Yes. I am called Kalil. The second born. I presume that you have met my younger brother and sister by now and have rejected their childish ideas of happiness. Maybe now you can see that I am right and that this is where true happiness lies." He began to smile a crooked smile as he gazed hungrily around the cave. "Here, I have everything to fill my heart, and as time passes, this cave gives me more gold coins as a gift. What could be more perfect?"
"But, what about all of the people you left behind in the town? They have nothing while you sit here and keep it all for yourself. You-"
But before she could finish, Kalil whirled a threatening glare on the girl and sneered, "They did not earn this fortune like I did. I climbed this mountain farther than anyone, and my older sister and younger siblings gave up this bounty for their own notions of happiness. But, they are wrong! This is a gift to me and me alone."
No longer afraid of the man, the girl stamped her foot down in defiance and said, "But this is not what happiness is! Happiness is seeing a smile on someone else's face as you give a piece of yourself to them. It is opening your eyes to what has been given to you and loving the gift, but also being willing to let it go for the benefit of someone else. That is why I want to find true happiness. So that I can bring it back to the town."
Kalil squinted his eyes at the small girl and knitted his lips into a thin line. He looked around at his mounds of gold for a long time, and when he looked down, he saw the girl at his feet, holding a bright orange and red flower up to him with a warm smile. He reached out, unsure of what to say, so he just stared at it. This thing did not shine like the gold and jewels did, but it had its own beauty unlike what he had seen in a long time. By now the little girl started to back away, avoiding bumping into the piles of gold, and then deliberately turned and trotted out of the cave.
* * *
The Sun was completely gone and the sky was speckled with stars and the moon was bright enough to lead the girl along her way. The journey had become very steep now and she was climbing vertically up the mountain, but none of this mattered because she was so mesmerized by the sky and by how high she was and how the air felt crisp and fresh. She loved the feeling of the wind brushing delicately through her hair.
At one point, her hand grasped onto a ledge to where she hoisted herself up and sat for a moment to catch her breath. There wasn't much around her other than rocks and couple of branches, but to one side, washed generously in the blue moonlight was a massive weed. Its gnarled roots twirled in the breeze and spread out along the rock for several feet. But, this one weed sat alone in the expanse of rock while other shriveled up plants and flowers lay littered amongst the roots. It seemed that this weed had sucked the life out of all the other plants around it and so it grew on it's own. This was the last plant the girl saw until she reached the peak of the mountain.
She resumed her climbing, but moved much slower now because clouds had gathered around the mountain, making it difficult to see where the tip the mountain was. So the girl proceeded to climb for that was all she could do. But, before she had processed what happened, she pulled herself up to a standing position and realized that she was at the very tip of the mountain because there was nothing ahead of her to climb. Unlike what she had expected to see, clouds still masked her vision, making it difficult to see the world below her. However, the height was empowering as she closed her eyes and spread out her arms to catch herself in the wind.
The moments that the girl felt like she was flying were cut short as she finally heard the thud of boots coming up from behind her. "No one. No one other than me has been able to climb this mountain to the top. And you, a little girl, has done it all by yourself." The girl spun around, taking care not to topple over the edge of the cliff, and stared face-to-face with the oldest sibling. Her eyes were a sharp blue and radiated off of the moonlight like pools of water. Her hair was long and came down to her belt that held swords and multicolored gems of all shapes and sizes. She wore a silver cloak that glimmered in the light and a glowing necklace around her neck. "My name is Emery.", the woman said, "And I understand that you came in search of true happiness, am I right?"
The girl nodded and replied, "I want to find the happiness beyond this mountain so that I can bring it to the town."
Emery huffed a short chuckle as she stood upright, towering over the little girl. "Come this way.", she gestured to the edge of the mountain. The girl followed obediently. "Look out at the world.", she ordered. There wasn't much to see as the clouds blurred the girl's vision, and as she peered into the sky, it was also difficult to even see the moon and the stars. "I presume that my brothers and sister did not give you much to go on and help your town. I bet they kept their money and food and pride. But me, what if I gave you the ability to take it all back? So you can give it to the town."
"Just take it from them?", the girl asked in bewilderment. "What good would that do?"
Emery bent down and picked a small, blue gem necklace from her belt and put it around the girl's neck. "With this, you will be able to control the clouds of the sky and all of the weather in this world. You can cast down your enemies and help those that you care about. And in the end, the world will kneel at you feet."
After staring into the depths of the gem for a few heartbeats, the girl stuttered, "I don't want this sort of ability." She attempted to take the necklace from her neck, but Emery stopped her with a confused frown.
"But why not? I have controlled the wars and everyday doings of everyone in the world. I have taken down each of my enemies and avenged those who have caused me pain. I alone have the strength to change people. There is no other happiness other than this!", her voice suddenly rose to a cry as her icy stare grew to show her hunger for control.
"But there is! There is happiness on the other side of this mountain that doesn't hurt anyone and makes everyone an equal and brings a smile to everyone's face. That happiness is better than this."
Emery stopped for a moment, and then spun around to look out at the world below once again, her hands trembling at her sides. The girl, not waiting for an answer, shuffled to the other side of the cliff and peered curiously down the edge of the mountain. "I am going to complete the journey that you and everyone else have been unable to finish.", she concluded.
The girl ripped the necklace from around her head and set it on the ground, and with a huff of excitement, she leaped off of the edge of the mountain. She began to slide easily down the face of the mountain as she passed clumps of gray clouds. But, almost all at once, the clouds disappeared and the girl had to shade her eyes from the blinding light coming straight at her face. Once her eyes adjusted to the light, she gasped in awe at the rising sun and the scenery of the land below. Meadows and streams filled with life danced on this side of the mountain. There were no clouds in sight as the sun dappled the numerous trees and glimmered beautifully across the waters. The girl had never seen the sun rise before.
As she neared the end of her journey down the mountain, the girl broke into a run and came face-to-face with a massive tree that possessed every color that existed. As she walked curiously around the trunk of the tree, butterflies burst from the leaves and came down to greet her. It was at this moment that the girl realized what true happiness was. But, she did not necessarily find it on this side of the mountain, but along her journey, she was able to understand what happiness was all about. And with her newly acquired knowledge, the girl set out with a butterfly at her side to spread happiness to those who did not have any.