Windows

The following is an original short story by me! It is a longer post, but I hope you are able to make it to the end. It was a fun creative bit to write. Let me know your thoughts, and if you'd like to see more of my creative writing stuff on here as well!

She found herself on a path so familiar to her it could be home, and yet it was more foreign than some far off land. The path led to a cliff lined with windows suspended in the air. They were hanging from somewhere unseen far overhead. She looked down over the precipice, but it was shrouded in mist so thick she couldn't see how far down the drop went.  She knew that somehow she had been here before, and yet she couldn't figure out how or when that would have been.

Surely no place like this could possibly exist in the real world.  a breeze blew past her drawing her towards the windows.  Some she could see into easily, while others were too far beyond her reach to steal a peek.

She could smell the salty sea air that reminded her of the beach coming from the window closest to her.  She closed her eyes, and in the distance she could hear seagulls. Suddenly, she felt the spray of salt water on her face which caused her to open her eyes. She staggered forwards as the ship she was on lurched with the waves it road on. "What have we here? A stowaway. What are ye doin' here lassy?" a rough looking man with a red beard asked her. "A ship such as this is no place for a lovely wench such as yerself." She saw something in the man's eyes that made her feel uneasy. A voice called down, "Land ho cap'n!" They both looked up towards the voice, and that was when she saw an all too familiar black flag bearing the skull and crossbones...PIRATES! The red bearded man grabbed her arm, "Now ye be knowin where me treasure is hidden lassy...I'm afraid I can't be letting you live. Pity really. What a waste." His crew cheered loudly as he announced she'd be walking the plank.  A sharp sword poked her in the back forcing her to inch forward on the rickety old wooden board.  The water below was so dark blue it was almost black, and she could already feel it's cold bite.  "Enough waitin!" one yelled, and suddenly she was flying downward into the cold depths. She scrunched her eyes shut, but the cold rush of water never came.  She opened one eye out of curiosity and found that she was back in the cliff. She saw where the water spilled from the window before her. It fell in a beautiful waterfall and disappeared down into the mists below. She heard a hearty cheer rise up in the distance, or did she imagine it?

The next window she happened upon held within its frame a forest bathed in all the colors of fall., but it wasn't the forest that caught her eye. She could see the figure of an archer hidden amongst the shadows.  She somehow knew that he was an elven archer, and he was an escaped slave.  She could see traces of pale blue tattoos where magic had been etched into his very skin.  He was filled with anger and hatred towards the humans that did this too him, but there was one human that showed him not all were as evil and corrupt as those had been.  In fact, he had fallen in love with her.  Her kindness, her courage, her bravery. He came here, to this one place they could call their own, to meet her.  They stole a few minutes here as often as they could.  His master would stop at nothing to see him in chains again if he was ever caught.  She saw his lover slip into the clearing, she was breathtaking (not just physically, but in a way that radiated from the inside out). Their eyes lit up the moment they saw each other.  For the moment the shadows were forgotten, old pains faded away, and time stood still.  They knew there were many obstacles to overcome on their path to happiness, but here in this secluded sanctuary in the middle of a beautiful forest it was clear they would do anything and fight as hard as they could to get their 'happily ever after'.

The scene grew dark, and her gaze shifted yet again. This time upward to a window filled with blue sky.  Several birds escaped it and flew overhead.  Oh, what it would be like to fly! She closed her eyes, and when she opened them the ground and world were far below her.  She laughed as the clouds tickled her nose.  It was a feeling she felt words could never do justice.  She looked down to the ground again and noticed her shadow, though it wasn't the one she normally saw.  She saw a body of water and flew towards it.  That's when she saw herself, but the reflection she saw wasn’t the one she expected to see.  She was a huge,  beautiful, black dragon! Her leathery wings moved effortlessly keeping her body suspended. The excitement boiled up inside her until it escaped in a deafening roar that echoed across the mountaintops. She spread her wings further and let them lift her higher and higher and higher still.  She was on the top of the world. Her dragon eyes could see for miles in all directions, and her dragon nose could pick up smells beyond her imagination.  Up here...she was free.

She blinked and found herself once more on the cliff lined with windows.  She craved to return to the window she had just been lost in, but the smell of wildflowers drew her attention away to yet another window.  She could just make out the most magnificent meadow filled with the brightest and most beautiful butterflies she'd ever seen...no...her eyes widened...not butterflies...FAIRIES! They were everywhere! It seemed that they made the flowers even brighter than before.  One landed on her outstretched hand.  She was beautiful...so tiny.  Then without warning they covered every inch of her body.  She couldn't see anything but the fluttering of their wings.  Then as quickly as they were there, the fairies were gone.  The flowers now towered over her like skyscrapers. She was small enough to ride on the back of a passing caterpillar. She yelped and ducked behind a nearby stem of a tulip.  The fairy that originally landed on her hand was suddenly behind her grinning.  She had forgotten that fairies can be quite tricksters.  Again, without warning several other fairies appeared and together they lifted her off the ground high above the flowers.  Their laughter sounded like bells tinkling. They dropped her and she fell for what seemed like eternity, and yet it was over before she knew it.  She landed with a soft thud in the center of a flower in a puff of pollen. She sneezed attracting all the fairies attention, and again they hoisted her up into the air. She closed her eyes waiting to fall again, but instead she felt solid ground beneath her feet.  She hesitantly opened her eyes and found she was quite alone, save for the windows, and now a door.

Had that door always been there, and she'd just never noticed, or had it just appeared? Tentatively she approached it. The knob was like ice under her fingers. The shock caused her to pull back. She wasn't about to let the cold stop her. So, she took a deep breath and pulled it open.  A bright light washed over everything blinding her completely.

She woke with a jolt and sent her notebook and pen clattering to the floor by her bed.  She had to blink a few times to make her bedroom come into focus. She wiped her eyes and looked to her clock: 1:00 AM.

She leaned down and scooped her notebook and pen from the floor and set them carefully on her nightstand.  She smiled seeing the pages covered in her own writing and sketches.

She wished people could understand.  So many windows were holding so many ideas inside her head..new worlds, new characters, new enemies, new experiences. All she had to do was open the windows and let the words set them free.  She switched off the light and snuggled down into her covers with a smile. She had more windows to explore.