In Dreams

Mystical Happenings

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      Urumiriel* sat cross-legged in a small meadow surrounded by tall trees, decorating her long, golden wavy hair with flowers as she curiously watched butterflies flit from flower to flower; some occasionally landing on one of the flowers above her pointed ear. She put the last flower in a small braid- which was part of a pattern of braids she had finally perfected- before standing up, scaring the butterfly in the process.

      Urumiriel ran through the tall grass, her elegant white dress flowing behind her and exposing her bare feet.

      She followed her sensitive ears to the creek up ahead and stepped in, lifting her dress to keep it from getting wet. She looked up when she heard a shrill chirp and spotted an unfamiliar bird perched on a low branch.

      'Miriel.' A voice whispered on the wind. 'Follow me.'

      Urumiriel looked around, trying to find the source of the voice, but only the bird was in sight. The butterflies in the meadow had disappeared along with the bees, and there weren't even any other birds around: only her and the unfamiliar bird.

      'Come along, young elf.' The voice whispered again.

      Urumiriel looked back up at the bird, which immediately flew down and hovered in front of her face.

      'Follow me.' The voice whispered yet again; this time seemingly coming from the bird.

      Urumiriel looked at the bird with wonder and curiosity. It was unlike any bird she'd ever seen. Its wings, back, tail and top of its head were blue, as well as the upper part of its breast, making it look like it was wearing a v-necked garment made of feathers. Its beak was also blue: everything else was an off-white color. The feathers on top of its head were longer than the rest, and its feathery tail was twice the length of the bird; the bottom part a lighter blue.

      The bird turned and flew into the forest a little ways before turning towards Urumiriel and hovering in the air.

      'Come, little one!'

      Urumiriel walked to the other side of the creek and took a tentative step into the mystical forest. It looked different than most forests, as the rays of sun that shone through the leaves appeared to be blue in color, giving all the trees, leaves and plants a bluish tint.

      The bird stopped hovering and, after turning around, flew down the wet dirt path. Urumiriel lifted her dress and looked at her feet. She wiggled her toes and continued following the bird. It was a very strange thing. Even though the path was clearly wet, her feet were completely dry. In fact, now that she thought about it, her feet hadn't even gotten wet in the creek.

      She stopped when she realized that she was no longer on the path. She pushed through the weeds, which were sparkling with dew, and a few minutes later she stumbled across a hidden path and continued to follow the bird, occasionally climbing over a fallen log. The bird turned left and led Urumiriel onto a blue tinted grassy path.

      It turned to the elf and looked her in the eye once it flew down and hovered in front of her face. Its eyes were black; like any other birds- but they had a certain familiar twinkle in them. 'We're almost there.'

      Urumiriel stared at the bird. She was positive that the voice was coming from it. She jumped back, startled, when the bird suddenly turned around and continued zipping down the path. She continued following it, but stopped and put her hand to her forehead when she suddenly felt like she was spinning. She squeezed her eyes shut and the dizziness left within seconds. When she opened them, she gasped. No longer was she on the ground, but floating a few feet above it!