spark a dream

luminescence

A/N: This is my story, filled with unadulterated passion for the imaginary world I love most.

PUBLISHED IN STANDALONE 'LUMINESCENCE': LINK IN COMMENTS! 
Read the standalone instead for the final version.

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It's light.

It's always the lights—they glow with a stunning ferocity, bright and colorful and beautifully dazzling. I can never escape them. They're everywhere: in the glow of a magic wand, in the light of the stars, in the burst of fireworks. They are magic, unfurling treasured memories more sacred than any gift in the world. Light is a haven on its own, and I relish its splendor and glory.

The light inside me will never diminish. It's carried afloat by the sun emblem of Corona and drifts away into an indigo night sky, and it rides above the red lanterns as Mulan saves China. It's faith, trust, and pixie dust all wrapped into one. I scream, cry, laugh, and pour out my heart and soul to every single moment—because of the light.

Oftentimes my dreams wander past the second star to the right, and straight on till morning—my light started from a fairy's laugh, and weaved its way up to Pixie Hollow where I found my first friends. There, I bask in the golden Neverland sun, chasing field mice with Fawn, designing snow globes with Periwinkle and Tink, crafting dewdrops and capturing the double rainbows in a reflection of light...Disney always goes back to the light, doesn't it? I find my solace in the shining escape of the island, existing perfectly between reality and imagination. Here, I am an untamed spirit that flocks to the daydreams and relentlessly pursues adventure. I follow the light, and it leads me on.

Yet, at other times, I ground myself in the presence of light. Music is light—in the soft ballads or uplifting showtunes, in the lullabies and the grand openings. It is steady as a beating drum, and soothes my fears like the wind. At other times it reminds me to fight, swiftly as a raging fire, and to stand up for what I believe in. Music is my mantra, for loudness and for silence. It is the beacon that guides me to make wish after wish, then take charge of my own destiny and fulfill those dreams.

The light is what separates things from the dark. Opposites, a clear-cut image of good and evil, spawn from brightness and emptiness. The fairest princesses carry the radiant beams on their conquests, be they damsels or heroines. The villains have no room for it, and they unleash their fury in a sea of lime green, ultimately falling to their demise. I've clapped and cheered for the ones that saved the day countless times, watching their heroic feats through a screen and longing to partake in the adventures. Yet as the time passes, we've all come to realize that the fine line between dark and light—the gray area—is expanding before our very eyes. Good and evil blend into one with plot twists and heart-wrenching backstories. It's beautifully tragic and revolutionary all in one, and ever so humane. The grief, guilt and antiheroism tug at my heartstrings, and reinvent my blurred perceptions of the world. Yet I find the light—the ever-optimistic, ever-shining light, and carry that in my heart forever.

You can tell that I'm a fan when I say I've dedicated hours to scrounging Mickey Mouse ears, filling in personality quizzes, and playing dress-up. My bookshelf is lined with figurines of the characters I love. I treasure the pins on my jacket that I've collected over the years far more than most gifts I've received. My phone case and home screen are patterned with the castle and the bright fireworks above, or the characters I love most. Yet light is not what money can buy, nor do these things represent my greatest passion. I carry Disney with me—not just in the materialistic merchandise, but his spirit that exists because of the light everyone's created together.

The light is the rhythm that carries me afloat every day—that reminds me of the 'bear' necessities of life and that I've always got a friend. I dance and sing my way through each day, for the brightness gives me strength to weave my own tales. I carry the thread of imagination carefully in my palm, and will it to be weaved into a craft I can call my own. I share the wonder, revelations, and messages with the community. I give away parts of my soul so they reside in the stories I've written, and I stand firm, shining at the end of every day. The messages of hope, acceptance, and belief resonate through my works, and I firmly aspire to live in a world where nobody is shunned, where Ohana is found everywhere, and where laughter never ceases. I do this through my writing—a fervent passion that nobody will ever be able to take away from me. I choose to use the light for good.

And the light always leads to a great big beautiful tomorrow, where we keep moving forward and opening new doors. I wish upon a star—a tale older than time itself—and use the light, love and creativity in its purest self, to lead me on.

I will never, ever let go of the light.

Word Count: 850