The Lights of the Lake

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The grass rustled underfoot as she walked resolutely towards the waters. She stopped by the lake’s edge and sat down on the soft earth.

The knife her father forced her to take gleamed in the moonlight. With it, she made a light cut on her forefinger, opening up the scar that was already there. A drop of blood fell from her wound as she lightly dipped her fingers in the water, making gentle ripples on its surface.

There was a sudden breeze, and lights appeared in the middle of the lake. A quiet, singsong voice gently rang in her ear. “So, you have returned.”

She moved her cut finger in the water, making little circles. “I promised.”

She felt a breeze blow past her, and the lights in the pool pulsed brighter. The voice seemed to echo everywhere now, its tones seductively sweet yet also a little sad.

“Are you prepared to pay the price of your request?”

She took a deep breath and answered as calmly as she could. “Yes.”

At her reply, the entire pool lit up. She bit her lip as the lights started dancing up her fingers and unto her arm, her legs, and her hair. She felt a deathly cold weigh heavily around her, yet her heart felt oddly at peace.

As she felt herself being enveloped by the lights, she thought of her beloved brother, for whom she was forced to – no, for whom she willingly supplicated for before the spirit of the lake. She smiled, remembering her mother’s tears and her father’s shouts as his eyes, once thought to be closed forever, opened with confusion and wakefulness. They darted toward her, and her newly awakened sibling immediately understood what she had done for him. As rough hands took her away from his side, she heard him scream and fight to reach out after her – in vain, of course.

A small tear fell from her eye as she took careful steps towards the water. With each step, the lights danced vibrantly around her, following her every move. Her last sigh was barely audible as the lake swallowed her up completely.

The lights vanished as soon as they appeared, and all was quiet in the forest once more.

–
Image by Poncho Rulloda.
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First written December 29, 2017.
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