"The Lightless" Chapter one

          A few months ago I wrote this story for a local contest here in Vernal. I wouldn't care to publish the results of that contest but lets just say in spite of them I had fun writing this story. I like it and I have a few family members that want to read it so here it is. Once again I am scraping by with previously written material. =)

           "Winter's Knight"

            By; Melissa Francisco

            On a cold winters night a young woman walked the streets of her small village and sighed.

            "No wonder my parents named me winter, I am as cold as the coldest night in January." She muttered. Suddenly she jerked her head up as she realized someone had spoken before her.

            "Who is that?" she asked. She quickly checked around the street corner and behind a trash can covered in snow. "No I am serious, who is there? And why do you keep saying everything I am doing, its creepy." She said. She then folded her arms and knitted her brows. "Who is there, I demand you show yourself at once!" She said. Of course had she known that the voice which was narrating her couldn’t show himself she would never have made such a request. She frowned as the voice said something that puzzled her.

            "What are you then?" she asked a little less boldly, obviously she was getting nervous. The voice would have liked to answer her but it wasn't sure how so it went silent for a second. The girl scratched her head.

            "The voice really was silent for only a second." She said. She sat down on the icy curb, and put her head in her hands. If someone had walked by at that moment they would have wondered what she was thinking about.

             "I am just making sure I am not dreaming this." The girl said. Then she put her hand down and drew up some snow "The ground is cold and I can feel the snow on my hands so it must be real." Then she spoke harshly again. "Okay, what's the big joke, who is pulling my leg?" she said, looking around with renewed suspicion. Naturally she wouldn't have done this if she knew what was happening to her. She suddenly pursed her lips, her eyes growing glazed as she thought.

            "She then wondered what was happening to her and if the voice could please explain," she said. The voice knew very well that it was unable to speak directly to her but she was unaware of that fact. Of course she could listen carefully to what the voice was about to say next and she might figure it out. She cocked her head to one side obviously interested. The voice then said it was there because of what had happened earlier that day. The girl, or Winter, as she is named, had been at her sweetheart's house but she had spent little time with him. She felt like she had too many things to do and couldn't spare very much of her day. He had tried to convince her to take a walk with him but she declined and rushed out the door, promising she would go another time. At these words Winter frowned and looked angry, she must have not liked what the voice was saying. The voice continued anyway and explained that it had come to show her something more valuable than all the treasures of the earth. At this Winter raised an eyebrow, apparently she didn't trust the voice much. But then she looked forward and gasped. Right in front of her a ball of snow was forming. She didn't know that the voice could control the snow but fortunately she didn't faint as they hadn't time for that. Then to her utter astonishment the ball of snow started to glow and began to show a story as in a picture book. The first page was of a beautiful princess and her handsome knight walking in the woods together. Winter was so amazed that she couldn’t move.

            "They look so happy," she said almost without thinking. Then the page changed and the next image showed the princess shooting a bow. This surprised Winter a little as she obviously didn’t think it had much relevance to the first image. But she quickly recovered her surprise and seemed pleased. "The princess is obviously improving her archery skills," Winter said happily. "Good for her." Then the image changed and showed the princess sitting in a chair with a book in her hand, staring at it intently.

            "Look," Winter said suddenly, pointing to the snow globe. "The knight is in the background. He looks as if he is trying to talk to the princess." Winter looked down for a second obviously thinking of something other than the globe. She also must not have noticed that the knight was in the previous image where the princess was practicing archery. Winter looked back up with almost a hopeful expression on her face as the page in the snow globe changed again. Her face fell however when the next image varied little from the last two. The princess was now drawing a beautiful picture clamped to a board. Again the knight stood behind her watching, but this time his face was quite sad.

            "He seems to really want to be with her." Winter said solemnly. "Voice?" She said. "Or I mean night narrator, why does the princess keep doing all those things instead of being with her Knight?" She asked. Though the voice wanted to answer her it just changed the page again and Winter turned to see what was happening in the story.

            "Another picture where princess is doing some silly thing," Winter said with annoyance in her voice. What is she up to now, cross stitching? Well of all the silly…" Winter stopped mid-sentence and looked down at the pouch at her side. She pulled out a piece of cloth with a hoop on it and frowned. She then shoved it back in the pouch as if it were on fire and quickly looked back to the globe. The next several images were of the princess doing multiple things, writing in a large book, knitting, learning to fence, and other skill improving activities. In each of these images the knight was always standing somewhere in the back ground as if talking to or waiting for the princess, but she was never looking at him. Winter grew surprisingly irritated at the princess and finally spoke. "Come on girl, he wants to be with you so much!" As she said this, the image changed to something completely different and Winter gasped softly. This time there was a large fire breathing dragon attacking the castle. The brave knight was swinging a sword at the monster and the princess was standing a little behind him with horror on her face. Winter leaned in toward the globe, obviously anxious for the next image. But when it came she slumped her shoulders and bit her bottom lip for though the dragon was dead, the knight lay motionless on the ground. The princess was weeping by his side and though there were no words her face made it quite clear, the knight was dead. The next image iced Winter's heart as she realized what the story was about. Suddenly she noticed for the first time the princess in the story was her. The last picture was of the princess burning all the things she had been working on in the first part of the book. Winter looked away, realization hitting her like a slap in the face. She now knew that nothing was more important then the people she loved. And that everything else is secondary to them.  

            "Well Mr. Narrator," She said wiping a tear from her eyes, "Thank you." The voice thanked her back in the only way he could. She felt a breeze blow toward the south, where her sweetheart lived. She smiled, feeling warm all over.  Then she gave one last glance at the snow ball and started toward the south, unquestionably going to see her Knight.