I knew that smile. It carried the same essence Avesta could convey with a single sidelong glance. Seeing it on Charlie opened up the hole in my chest I tried so hard to keep closed. All I could do was put on a brave face, smile back at her the way I did at sister, time and time again. Like we were already complicit in something.
“It’s beautiful.” I said honestly. “Of course I like it.” I could not fathom why Indy wouldn’t. Not that I knew the bird very well, or at all really; the thought of her as a fashion critic, flying around and judging everyone’s accessories, made me smile to myself.
Oh, I knew all the interesting places. Still do. I also had an unconventional idea of what was “interesting.” Still do. I knew Charlie was probably not interested in the high water line from the tidal wave, or the strange crack in the ground near the market, or the single blue rose in the rose garden; a drop of blood in the noontime sea, except reversed. I knew other places of interest, too, onces with more intrigue and mystery and danger.
Me and danger had a curious relationship. We were always courting each other, but with the awkwardness of children, never in sync.
Regardless, I had found a particularly interesting place recently. A oblong, walled-off section near the Eastern gardens. The walls were tall and thickly covered in lush green ivy. As far as I could tell there was a single door in the structure. It was some kind of wood, its once-rich color faded to an ill-looking grey. When I first found it, it was so overgrown I had to cut down with my horn the thick green wall that covered it.
It was, naturally, locked, and I no longer had Avesta to whisper it open.
I walked toward it instinctively before even sharing our destination out loud.. “There is a place I’m curious about, but I’ve never been inside.” We ducked along alleyways and slipped across busy streets, hip to hip. Her wings brushed against me, soft and warm and full of the wind’s secrets. As we walked, the streets thinned. We passed the residential area and entered the citizen’s gardens. Rows and rows of public plots, many of them clearly tickled by Spring’s warm kiss. We moved past the heart of the gardens and through its outskirts, thick with trees, and suddenly we were before the walled off section that so irked me with its inaccessibility.
“Can you fly over, and unlock the door for me?” My voice was tense with excitement and there was an eager warmth to my smile. Like my parents, I dearly loved a secret.
art“It’s beautiful.” I said honestly. “Of course I like it.” I could not fathom why Indy wouldn’t. Not that I knew the bird very well, or at all really; the thought of her as a fashion critic, flying around and judging everyone’s accessories, made me smile to myself.
Oh, I knew all the interesting places. Still do. I also had an unconventional idea of what was “interesting.” Still do. I knew Charlie was probably not interested in the high water line from the tidal wave, or the strange crack in the ground near the market, or the single blue rose in the rose garden; a drop of blood in the noontime sea, except reversed. I knew other places of interest, too, onces with more intrigue and mystery and danger.
Me and danger had a curious relationship. We were always courting each other, but with the awkwardness of children, never in sync.
Regardless, I had found a particularly interesting place recently. A oblong, walled-off section near the Eastern gardens. The walls were tall and thickly covered in lush green ivy. As far as I could tell there was a single door in the structure. It was some kind of wood, its once-rich color faded to an ill-looking grey. When I first found it, it was so overgrown I had to cut down with my horn the thick green wall that covered it.
It was, naturally, locked, and I no longer had Avesta to whisper it open.
I walked toward it instinctively before even sharing our destination out loud.. “There is a place I’m curious about, but I’ve never been inside.” We ducked along alleyways and slipped across busy streets, hip to hip. Her wings brushed against me, soft and warm and full of the wind’s secrets. As we walked, the streets thinned. We passed the residential area and entered the citizen’s gardens. Rows and rows of public plots, many of them clearly tickled by Spring’s warm kiss. We moved past the heart of the gardens and through its outskirts, thick with trees, and suddenly we were before the walled off section that so irked me with its inaccessibility.
“Can you fly over, and unlock the door for me?” My voice was tense with excitement and there was an eager warmth to my smile. Like my parents, I dearly loved a secret.
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