Bird of Fire

4

Children were laughing, women were singing, nothing could go wrong in this utopia. There were only happy faces and bright colors; Alex looked down at what she was wearing, a dull grey dress, nothing special about it. As Alex danced with the cheerful strangers, bringing color to her dress, she was so happy, but something was wrong. Her head screamed warnings at her, but it didn't work, Alex kept dancing even as the color slowly drained from her dress; the same way the color arrived, the same way it left. Alex kept dancing, not listening to her common sense, she kept dancing.

Fire. Fire was everywhere. People were screaming, she stopped dancing. Everyone was running as she regretted not listening to her warnings. Alex panicked not knowing what is to become of this town and these people- A man and woman ran towards her. The man ripped off his robe as the woman reached her arms out to Alex, he wrapped his robe around Alex as they all huddled together.

They both definitely had money, from the woman's golden red colored dress to the man's royal outfit and their crowns; they looked so familiar yet so strange, their faces were blurred. Ice had followed the fire, ice so cold it could freeze bones, yet the ice hadn't touched her. Alex couldn't say the same for rich couple, they had been frozen still, the world was quiet, everyone had been locked into a still run. As she freed herself from their icy grip she turned to see what these petrified people had been running from, the robe sliding off her shoulders.

Alex jolted out of bed. Sweat dripping from her forehead, heart racing. She wasn't in her room. This was definitely not her room: the bed was in shambles, drenched in her own sweat, there was only window showing the rise of the sun. Dawn. Alex whipped her head back to the door at the sound of light foot steps. A woman with ebony hair flowing just past her shoulders and eye greener than grass stepped into the bedroom holding a tray of bread. She spoke as she shut the door behind her "I saw you fall. Are you in any pain?" her voice was sweet as honey, and she didn't look a day older than twenty. Alex remained quiet as she looked her up and down; the woman was dressed in a green gown with lace edged sleeves.

"Lithaen Sullivan. And you?"

"Alex Hem" neither spoke as Lithaen set the tray down beside Alex, taking in the bruises on her back, definitely from the fall. Alex only stared at the bread, as Lithaen said "If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it while you were sleeping. Now eat." that was all Alex needed to hear as she scarfed down the bread.