To Fall for a RiverA Story by Vian He would always water them when the clouds were too busy in another land to do so, and be ever so sorry when he accidentally stepped on their roots. To
Fall for a River One day, many
millions of human years ago, a child was born. This child had a mother and
father that loved him very much but they did not see it fit to love anyone else
just as much. The boy was friends with very many trees and flowers. He would
always water them when the clouds were too busy in another land to do so, and
be ever so sorry when he accidentally stepped on their roots. In return, the
trees gave the child permission to sit in their shade and the flowers attracted
the most beautiful butterflies to entertain the boy. The trees had
long decided that the boy could not be a boy, but an oak tree disguised as a
human because he was just as stubborn as the towering oaks in their forest.
Sometimes, squirrels would come to the boy that the trees had named Oak in
search acorn nuts and no matter how often the boy told them that he’d never
once before grown any acorns; the squirrels were sure that others of their kind
had gotten them first and vowed to return earlier next season. One night, Oak
could not sleep because the pregnant Moon was too bright and it pulled the
tides of his consciousness from Dream Land back to the coast of Waking World.
So, he quietly got out of his bed and crept down to his backyard where Maple
and Birch were murmuring quietly while the wind restlessly whistled here and
there. It seemed no one could sleep that night.
Quietly, he bid
the Night World goodbye and climbed into Maple’s waiting arms. Sensing his
restlessness, Wind pulled the heavy, reluctant clouds over the bright light of
Lady Moon and began to sing him a song. Wind whistled harder still, to coax a
groan of a voice out of Maple. They told a tale
of a young girl who wished to have many children. She did not want her children
to ever leave her so she became the Earth; a home for all her children. The
girl took care to be fair and equal to all the children she bore. She had many
children, some tall and strong, others delicate and beautiful. She had children
that stood in one place for many decades; amassing wisdom, and others that
flitted from one side of her endless sea to another to a perch on one of her
many Tree-Children. They also told of swiftly running river spirits that
stretched long and far, until forever.
However, the rivers were always lonely because they didn’t have any one
to play with as they had to hurry from one place to the next. Wind and Maple
sung praises of their Mother Creator all night long. Soon, Birch too joined in
and Cloud and Moon told quiet whispers of her love for every being in
existence, even the ones that weren’t quite nice all the time. Oak was
delighted by the story but couldn't say so until morning because Maple and Wind
were the best bed time story tellers ever and he was fast asleep. In the night,
sparkling blue rivers flowed through his dreams and when he awoke he couldn’t
help but tell Maple and Birch all his dreams. However, he overlooked telling
them of the deep calmness that had encompassed his being during the dream. The
River spirit from his dreams had eyes in all the shades of its river and hair
in the silver of the moons kiss on the water’s surface. Oak was overjoyed to
learn that there was a river not very far from his home and should he wish to
visit it, he could follow the baby birds on their evening drink. As the darkness
came the next night, he saw Lady Moon begin to rise, fully visible, high into
the sky. Before he left to follow the birds, Maple was sure to warn him not to
get too close to Rin because it was dangerous to fall for a River Spirit. Oak and the
birds set off gently through the forest soon after Sun had begun to travel
beneath the horizon. All the while, the birds chirped to one another singing
Oak’s praises. Oak was strong, he could carry the birds on his shoulders and
head all the way down to the River. The birds adored that there was a Tree that
could go from one place to the next all on its own. They had often asked the
Trees that they made their homes in, if they would consider joining them on
their migration flights, but the Trees always refused to displace their roots
from the warm soil so close to the winter season. Several flocks made plans to
build their nests in Oak’s warm hair before the next migration so when they
arrived to their new land they would not have to persuade a new Tree for a
branch. When they finally arrived, the birds were
quick to take a sip from Rin’s water and depart to their nests. Oak remained
beneath the protection of a young birch who had heard of the ‘Walking Tree Boy’
from the murmurs of the Outskirt Trees. Oak sat as near to the riverside as he
could, without being scolded by Maple on his return. As he waited, he asked Moon
to tell him more about Rin. Lady Moon whispered of Rin’s strength and speed.
Rin was so great that he flowed effortlessly over and under and around sharp
and treacherous rocks of every kind. However, he had slippery and snide river
banks, despite his beautiful appearance. “I take offence
to that, Lady Moon.” An amused voice spoke from the now still river. Atop the
still waters, the tall, slim, beautiful boy from his dreams appeared. He had
white- almost translucent- skin; like water. His eyes were in millions of
minute shades of blues and grays and sometimes greens. He had the same silver
hair as Moon’s light and it was as long as the Lady’s rays too. “I do not have beauty, I am powerful and swift,” said the spirit with a sneer. “I think you’re
very beautiful Mr. River,” said Oak with a kind smile. “You can be swift and
powerful and beautiful.” Moon conveyed
her agreement with Oak’s statement and informed Rin that the boy was the
Tree-Child in a human’s appearance. “My name is Rin,
not ‘Mr. River’” Rin said coldly in response, not looking at Oak. “Why are you
here?” “I wanted to
meet you, Rin” Oak said moving closer so he could lay on his front while facing
the spirit. “Why in the
world would you want to do that,” Rin asked, now half intrigued by the strange
boy who sought him out when no one in the past ever did for any reason but to
have his water. “Well, I like
you,” Rin had an annoyed look on his face at these words, for he was sure he
had never met the boy before, he would have remembered even a fleeting
encounter with this boy. Oak continued on to tell Rin his dreams from the night
before. In his dream he had felt an uncanny contentness in being with Rin that
seemed impossible to exist in the living world. “Do you feel it
now?” Rin asked with surprising gentleness. “Almost,” Oak
said in response. Oak then asked
Rin of his adventures across the lands and in return told him that life as a
human progressed very differently than those of the Mother’s other children.
Lady Moon was glad to keep the Rin’s spirit in that forest for the night so he
could be happy with the Human-Child. She and Mother Earth often spoke and Moon
knew she wished to see this deep happiness in Rin always. As the Sun drew
nearer to their forest Moon knew she would not be able to allow Rin to remain
much longer. Oak and Rin
slowly became closer and closer as the night progressed. They shared the
deepest recesses of their souls with one another as some unseen force spurred
them on with an urgency that spoke of an end. Lady Moon was
fading quickly as Sun touched the horizon and urgently warned the children
below. Oak stood from
the ground and quickly walked to Rin whose waters were now swiftly running. His
spirit began to flicker in and out of existence on the shining surface of the
river. “Rin, will I
ever see you again?” Oak asked timidly, standing right at the edge of the bank,
bathed in the last remnants of Moon’s light while longing to go further and be
with Rin always. “Perhaps,” He
said with doubt, the same longing and sadness in his voice. They had felt an
echo of the completeness while together. Rin did not feel the loneliness that
came from exploring the world alone, for no matter how many fish swam in his
waters, none made him whole like Oak did. There was some magic in the
Tree-Boy’s soul that complimented his own. Oak, himself, admitted to feeling
the need to be nearer to Rin; the urgency to do something. “I love you,
Rin,” Oak whispered and took another step forward. A pink blush
dusted across Rin’s cheeks and he instantly turned his head away before
muttering a “Same here.” Oak gave a grin
and reached out to hug Rin. He felt the barest instance of a cool body in his
arms and then was immediately swept away beneath the water as Lady Moon lost
her hold on the waters to the powerful sun. Oak’s body
struggled and thrashed in Rin’s arms, however, his mind was at peace. The blues
and silvers of the waters around him were like looking deep into Rin’s eyes.
The blue made him feel at home in the water; home in Rin’s soul. The feeling of
completeness began to seep into his limbs. His body did not fight Rin’s hold
anymore but welcomed it. Soothingly, Rin’s voice bubbled in his ear, telling
him of the wonderful adventures of they would have together. Tired due to his
long sleepless night, Oak faded into sleep in the comfort of his Rin’s embrace. A.N. It was meant to be a children's story but my vocabulary got the better of me... © 2013 VianAuthor's Note
Reviews
|
StatsAuthor |
![[send message]](https://www.writerscafe.org/images/mail.png){kind=small}
![[befriend]](https://www.writerscafe.org/images/friend.png){kind=small}
Share This
Email
Facebook
Twitter
Read Request
My Library
Flag Writing