When an unexpected betrayal sends a wingless fairy into a lonely world of darkness and self-loathing, Rey must learn how to love herself again - with the help of a Raven
Events loosely inspired by the movie Maleficent
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The morning felt like the beginning to any normal day. Rey stirred from her slumber, listened to the choir of birds sing in the canopies, and rose from her hammock. Up until the moment she began noticing everything that divided reality from fantasy, she assumed the world around her was real.
The voices caroling in the trees began to gradually diminish, fading to a more long-distant hum. The air was warm and cheery, not laden with the usual sticky summer heat. The atmosphere appeared hazy and dreamy like she was living in some kind of trance. Or was it a dream?
Slowly, intuitively, she began to move toward the heart of the lagoon where waterfalls plunged from cliffs at whimsical heights. She hardly ever visited that area of the waterfront so she didn't understand why she was brought there.
Perhaps it was simply eager for her to see nature's most breathtaking scenery. Or maybe it was destiny's way of showing her something more, something bigger. Something beyond the bark and wilting branches of a willow tree. Away from shadows and where sunlight thrived. Apart from solitude and where friendship bloomed. A belonging. Although she would be surprised if that were so.
A small gathering of waterfowl and other creatures were there to welcome her. Surprisingly she saw none of the other fairies who usually populated the area. That was her final verification, this version of her homeworld definitely wasn't real. Much to her own amusement, she stayed, wanting to savor it all before reality made it vanish.
Parking herself amongst small pebbles of bedrock and mud, she teased the shallow water there with her toes, gazing with awestruck eyes at the musical ensemble straight ahead. It was the first symphony of its kind for her to have ever witnessed. Sadly it would likely be the last since dreams like this seldom ever happened more than once.
There were turtles sunning themselves on rocks. Fish of species big and small grazed beneath the water's surface, snatching insects that hovered above, avoiding the blue herons and loons who lingered nearby. Mockingjays mimicked the toons of their cousins from cherry blossom trees. Water frogs and toads provided just the right amount of base from their posts on moss-infested logs.
When one melody ended another abruptly started in its place. She sat like that for the longest time, listening, hoping her other self held no intention of waking anytime soon. And then, like it was rehearsed specifically for the act, a smaller jay flew from its blossom perch and landed on the finger she'd offered, singing to Rey her own personal solo.
Or tried to at least...
For being a songbird the little jay was slightly off-key; however, the speckles dotting its back told her it was still a chick. With a smile on her face, she watched it perform, trying not to wince whenever it struggled to reach higher-pitched notes. It sang and sang and sang. And sang some more until its tiny heart was finally content.
