One Word Short

Shadow

Have you ever seen the flicker of shadows in the corner of your eye?

Long ago there was a mage, who lived in a sweet little cabin in the woods. Through their magic, they had the ability to do amazing things. They could conjure fire with a wave, ripple water with a snap of their fingers, shake the earth with a stomp and most of all, they could control shadows to do what they wished. But instead of controlling the shadows, they gave them the free will and life to do what they wanted, and on the darkest of days, the shadows in the cabin danced gleefully and left joy in their wake.

But the mage was lonely there, and knew that outside of the forest was a village full of people. They heard chatter and songs and laughter echoing through the forest every day, and knew that these people had others to count on and to talk to. While the shadows were there, and could talk to them, the mage wanted to talk to humans like themself. And so the next morning, they took their cloak and set off through the forest to arrive at the village.

The mage had it all set up in their mind. They would perform for the villagers, show off their magic, and impress them. The villagers would then want to talk to them, and welcome them as a friend.

But the magic frightened the villagers. They screamed when the fire was conjured, they ran when the water was rippled and when the earth was shaken? They grabbed all the rocks they could carry and hurled them at the mage. They called the mage a freak, a monster, a demon… And when the elders came, the mage was declared an outcast and an enemy.

The mage ran back into the forest amidst the shouting and screaming and the soaring of stones, and crumbled into their cabin. They cried, and cried, and cried some more, and no matter how much they wiped their eyes, the tears still ran down their face in streaming rivers.

The shadows saw how sad the mage was. They crawled over the mage, covered their lap, tangled into their hair, cloaked their shoulders, and whispered.

“Why do you cry?”

The mage sniffed and coughed back a sob. “They think I'm a freak, a monster, a demon. I only wanted to be a friend and now I'm an enemy instead.”

The shadows didn’t know what to do at first. They had never seen their beloved mage this upset before. So they gathered together, talked in hushed whispers… Then together, they decided. They shifted and grew, until darkness covered the walls of the sweet little cabin. “Let us help you,” They said.

And so the shadow on the walls began to shatter. In a twisted dance, they split into twos, fours, sixes, until the wall was covered in a cross patch of shadows and light. With an almighty whoosh, hundreds of thousands of tiny shadows darted past the cupboards and in between table legs, even rushing through their hair, all out of the front door. By the end, only five remained.

“Where did they go?” The mage asked, suddenly afraid.

“They are going to help,” The final shadows answered. “They will protect those who are outcasted by others, thought to be freaks and monsters and demons, in your name. We will stay here to protect you.”

So when you see the flashes of shadow in the corner of your eye… Don’t be afraid. They are friends. They will always be there for you. They will watch over you and guide you to those who will not hurt you, they will fight those who call you names and turn away from you, they will stay by you to protect you...

But if you ever try to alienate someone, no matter how different… To call them a freak, a monster, a demon…

Watch out.