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Mother wouldn't let me jump with the others today, Milly looked at me sadly, but I only smiled. Mother knew of my secret, that niggling fear that kept me stationed firmly on the Earth and far away from those fledglings in the sky. I watched Milly that day, swooping, stretching her beautiful brown wings as though she'd been flying all her life. I hated her for it.
Nothing about it changed, none of my quiet wishing, whispers were captured by the cruel winter air and suffocated into darkness. That's all there was, darkness, and it made me feel smaller than I already was. The trees were close, tall and skinny with little more than a few branches to adorn their naked bodies. I feel that I hated stronger today than I had ever hated in my life, and I was only a year old. Could somebody even hate that much? It was terrifying thought and I cringed under the weight it carried. Much-too-small wings suddenly jerked outwards and I started, the muscles in my back spasmed. I hated that too, the occasional lack of muscle control where my wings were centered. But was that really why I hated it so much? Or were there other reasons as I twisted my head around to glare at the protrusions. Suddenly there was noise followed by the faint, tickling glow of light that I had not noticed before. I am huddling close to the ground without realizing it, ears lost into the fuzz of my mane. If I cowered they would not find me, not even the snow could find me sometimes, and it was bright. Bright like the moon. Bright like Mother.
Milly was hanging out with Brutus a lot, I didn't like Brutus. He was a brute, like his name implied. And stupid. Pretty, I guess, but stupid.
"Who, who goes-" My voice was small, like me, trapped inside of a throat that wanted to close and disappear. I saw him for it was a him, and he was huge, tall and outstanding with wings that shuddered against him. I liked him, at least I liked his suit, it was two colors instead of one and I have never seen a coat like that. It was pretty, like Milly and her black legs. He spoke as though he didn't hear me, couldn't understand my voiceless plea, and he was kind. A warm sort of feeling came to me then and I felt the need to move toward it, like the light bugs did when the stars came out. They were always buzzing about, reaching out to things they couldn't have.
"Here, I'm here!" I call, legs shaking and heart pounding, my chest hurts. What he hurts me? What if he only looks like an angel and he is really a demon? Mother warned me about strangers, demonic creatures that wanted my heart and soul. They always made me think of boys, Milly said boys were always after the heart and soul. I thought I should like to keep them both, even though I was already moving. Gangly legs taking me forward through the snow, getting caught in a drift, breaking through and suddenly there was light. Dim but still, it was light. A gasp, mine, echoed against the chill and I was able to forget about it for a moment, he really was very tall. Like Mother. "Hello." I say, and hope he doesn't steal my soul
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