I look out upon the sheer beauty of the scene that takes place before me. Fields, stretching for acres to the other side of the world, unobtruded by man's footprint, are teeming with wildlife. Specks of white dot the tall blades of grass, daisies that reach towards the sun-light, craving for the beautiful blue sky. Among the fields, a single oak tree, a vast network of branches bearing the leaves of a majestic green, swaying rhythmically in the light breeze. Beneath the canopy of the large oak, I see a single person. The only being besides myself for many a mile, head hung low, slumped against the trunk of the tree, unaware of any other presences than it's own. Standing upon a large hill that provides a vantage point for miles into the horizon, I hesitate. It seems wrong to disturb the scape before me with another footprint, the figure by the tree seems not like a person, but like a part of the wildlife. It belongs there. Soon, I convince myself to put one foot in front of the other, then, one foot behind the other as I stumble at the head of the steep hill. After coming close to falling face first, I move to a steadier pace and gently trot down the hill, careful to remain upright and lean in towards the hill. Upon reaching the foot of the hill, the figure knows I'm here, but whoever it is pays no heed.
Able to maker swifter progress but all the more reluctant to disturb the vibrant energy of the beautiful landscape, I continue towards the oak tree, a beacon in my path to direct the lost, the centre of this wonderful land. Only as I at last approach the canopy of oak leaves does the figure look up.
A girl, no older than myself, younger, in fact. But the wisdom of the earth is hewn into her beautiful eyes of a deep silver. Her eloquent blonde hair curls around her waist and falls upon her forehead, while the power within her shows again upon her smooth face, yet the divine beauty of a goddess is there, too. Dressed in bright white, as she looks me in the eye, I feel a tingling sensation run through me, once more am I reminded that she does belong to this world, that she is part of it and she has so much life within her.
She gets to her feet with no hesitation, and smiles in greeting.
"I had thought that you wouldn't come," she says. Brushing the brown hair out of my eyes to get a better view of her, I return the smile.
"I had my doubts," I admit. "Seeing all that power born in you, I thought that if you turned against me -"
"You mustn't think such things," she says soothingly, and takes a step towards me. As she places her hand on my arm, once more I can feel the energy flow through me. "I would never use this blessing to harm a friend."
Reassured, I look into her eyes, and find myself lost in their depth. She elaborates,
"It's such a wonderful gift. I can change the world around me."
"How did you come upon such a gift, Luna?" I ask the girl. She does not reply, instead, holds my hand in hers.
"Come on, Ginny."
Leaving the canopy of the oak tree, she takes me hand in hand back the way I came, towards the hill. Once we reach the hill, I once more find myself burdened with a difficult climb, but Luna has no trouble, she ascends the hill as if it were a downward stream, gliding through the grass. Seeing my difficulty, she helps me up the hill.
Before long, we reach the top, once again I'm presented with the vast scape so full of the life within Luna. I glance around at her, but her gaze is not upon me, instead she stares resolutely at the field beyond the hill, her silvery eyes fixed upon the edge of the horizon, her blonde hair billowing in the steadily growing wind. As my hair once more obtrudes my eyes, I start to notice that the wind is gaining in velocity, soon I find myself pushed from all directions by the gale.
"I don't know why I was chosen, Ginny. But I was given a gift from the heavens. Look at the beauty of what I can do," says Luna. I glance around at the field, and do a double-take. The field slowly disappears, the elements distorting as if it is merely a painting with water cascading upon it. She holds my hand once more as the surroundings begin to reform, I gasp in amazement. No longer are we upon Earth, but flying among the stars. I look beneath me and find to my surprise that there is no floor, merely a dark void, stretching out infinitely. Around me, the stars shine in greeting, no longer the small specks that can be seen from Earth, but beautiful orbs of light, shining determinedly for billions of years.
"It's wonderful," I manage to say, squeezing her hand. She returns the gesture, and smiles wistfully.
"I can take you to a time years ahead or to the years that have passed. I could take you to the stars above, the Earth below, or to far away from the realms of knowledge. I can build the Earth itself, make it a better place. This is my blessing."
Next to Luna, I suddenly feel small, as if I'm a mere nothing, but still I continue to gaze at her eyes, the stars reflected within them. She is omnipotent. Knowledge and power are mere items to her, not things to lust and wish of as lesser beings do. But she doesn't abuse them. She has been given a gift, and rather than use it to dominate the Earth, she uses it to make it better.
"Let's go back to land," she says, and the stars melt away before me, but this time, the field does not return. Instead, we stand at the ledge of a cliff, looking down into the powerful ocean below, that attacks the waves with a bestial ferocity. Yet, it's cry is still wonderful in it's own way, almost as if showing that chaos and peace co-exist within the world. A fierce gale attacks us from all sides but, once more, Luna is unaffected. On sensing my struggle, the wind immediately dies down.
"I have the elements within my grasp, as well," she adds. "As you see, not all of the world lies in balance."
Sensing more excitement yet to come, my suspicions are confirmed as she raises a hand to the sky and holds it palm upwards, as if expecting to be given something. Grey clouds brew, a distant rumbling of thunder can be heard. First comes the rain, however. A gentle pitter-patter of water at first, building up to a greater torrent, the rage of the oceans cast upon the scene.
Luna wraps an arm around me. She feels warm, already I'm tempted to hold her tighter, the heat coming from her very being seems wrong in the apparentl chill of the storm. The rain cascades upon us both, flowing from our head to the floor of the cliff. Her blonde hair getting wetter and wetter, I can see once more a trace of the power within her. Never before have I felt so drawn to her, have I felt like I belong to her, have I felt an affection for Luna so great. Her wonderful power echoes into every depth of her being, she has every force at her command. Surely she can't feel the same towards an insignificant mortal like me. But as she holds me close, I can't help but lean into her, yearning to be close to her, the girl who had become something different now.
"Why are you showing me this?" I ask as she gently draws away and tames the storm she had summoned. She does not speak for a while, holding her palm upwards once more, towards the sky. Then, she turns over her hand so her palm faces towards the floor, the rain slowly subsides. The clouds disperse, even the ocean calms. After a minute, traces of the rain still upon her, she turns towards me once last time.
"This world is how it should be, in balance. Back in the world shaped by men, hatred corrupts people, differences leave people at war. People are shunned for their skin colour, their sex, their belief, for being gay, and such a world has to stop. People shouldn't be treated differently because they are different, because differences are what build the world." I daren't break the silence, listening to her intently, hanging on every world, the philosophy of the omnipotent girl. "Who we love, who we hold close to us and why we continue to live in a world torn apart by hatred are the things that matter." As she says this, I once more feel a shiver run down my spine. She continues.
"In mortal life, I believed it made you different if you didn't love someone of the opposite gender. I can see even now, you starting to doubt if you believe this yourself."
It is unnerving, how much Luna knew, but I do not interrupt, desperate for her to go on. I long for her to elaborate, knowing what words are in the offing.
"We should go back. Time's of no issue to me ..." says Luna, and I feel disappointed, "but all the same, I'm sure that you want to go home."
In truth, I don't, I want to stay with Luna, but instead I allow her to take me by the hand and watch our surroundings melt into nothing once more, then blend into the grassy terrain of Ottery St. Catchpole.
I'm home. Luna is gone.
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I have no idea how this story started, I just started writing and the story wrote itself, really, I didn't plan it. But I like the idea that I've started, I wanted to capture the essence of transforming the world around you. I don't know why I used present tense either, I guess I'll have to stick to that. Please R&R and tell me what you think!