Chapter Three
Larissa couldn't see anything.
She was floating in an abyss of nothing. She was lost in a soft cloud of consuming darkness that soothed her till she felt unreal. Her body no longer existed, she was just a floating consciousness upon a sea of black beauty.
The singing had abandoned her as had the light, yet she didn't feel alone. Somewhere something was near. Like a body pressing close against a sheet of glass that separated them there was a presences hovering, watching her drift in this blissful nothingness.
Until gently, like raindrops running down a window, a picture began to seep into Larissa's dark serenity. It came in splatters, drips of colour here and there until it flooded into her blackness and drew here into a scene.
She was in a small room, but it was a fantastic small room. Its walls were a vibrant peach colour and the floor was made of a varnished and freshly waxed wood. A large, golden yellow rag rug was laid out on the middle of the floor, hiding most of the shinny wooden floor. There was a large, glorious wardrobe against one wall, a beautiful velvet couch beside it and vases of richly smelling flowers sitting on little tables spread about the room.
Then there was the mirror.
It was the largest and most beautiful mirror Larissa had ever seen. It took up most of the back wall in this room, dominating it easily with its glimmering immensity. It appeared to Lara to have some sort of angelic glow seeping off it, but she dismissed it quickly. Don't be silly! Mirrors don't glow! Then again, nor should rings…
The room, which Larissa somehow new was use to bright light and activity in it, was instead dimly lit by one candle sitting upon a writing desk.
And sitting at this desk was a girl.
She was a delicate creature. Pale pink skin on graceful limbs, golden hair like corn in summer light flooded down her back and spilled over her shoulders. She had eyes of glossy silver which twinkled like stars in the candle light and a soft featured, heart shaped face to finish off her perfect appearance.
Larissa hated her instantly. She was so beautiful and angelic that all she needed were angel white wings and a shining halo to finish off the look!
Larissa was confounded by why she was seeing this girl instead of enjoying the dark bliss of before. But it confounded her even more that she had this strong nagging feeling that she recognised this girl somehow. She had never seen her before. Yet she somehow knew her. But as hard as she tried, Larissa couldn't figure out how! She had no clue who this angel girl was.
Drawing her eyes back to the girl (or young woman as she was about her late teens, early twenties by the looks of it) Larissa watched the girl furiously write something down on a sheet of paper, seeming so deeply engrossed in her work Larissa wondered if she wouldn't notice the singing.
Larissa had heard it as soon as the first light, godly note was sung. She couldn't possibly miss the voice that had begun to haunt her lately.
It grew steadily, consuming the room in its sound, seeping effortless through the mirror and entering like some secrete guest.
That was where it was coming from. That large, glorious mirror. It was being emitted from it like music from stereo speakers, becoming louder and purer as it filtered through the glass.
Larissa remembered her dream again with the voice beyond the room of mirrors, the voice she couldn't reach, the voice that didn't hear her cry out to it.
Suddenly all she wanted to do was move towards that voice, to pass like the ghost she felt like through the mirror and see the singer. She wanted to watch them create there unearthly song. She wanted them to sing to her.
But here, in this mysterious room, Larissa was just a bodiless onlooker, listening to that voice sing out not to her but the girl!
Envy would have grasped Larissa if she wasn't swept away in a wave of confusion and intrigue at watching this beautiful girl being sung to by the very same voice that had sung to her!
The pen slipped from the girl's grasp as she heard the song for the first time. She sat slowly up straight and turned mechanically round in her chair to look towards the mirror.
The voice, like it knew it had her attention, sung more forcefully and gloriously, drawing her towards the glass that hid it.
The girl rose from her chair, a strange look of ecstasy had drifted over her face and her eyes were wide with an unspoken pleasure and joy at hearing that voice.
Walking like a zombie up to the glass, the girl stood only a step away from it, gazing upon the reflection of herself with dreamy adoration. The girl swayed on her feet and Larissa thought she might pass out, but she didn't. Instead, her hand suddenly lifted, reached out across the gap and laid flat against the glass.
And the singing abruptly stopped.
The girls face instantly fell into one of misery and horror.
"No." she breathed in disbelief, pressing her other hand against the glass too, her breathing becoming fast and short.
"No! Come back! Please! Angel come back!" she cried, hitting her hands against the glass in her fury, "Please! My Angel! My Angel of Music! Please, come back!"
Tears were stealing down her perfect cheeks, and Larissa felt her sadness and pain. She had heard that voice, let its enchanting notes embrace her till it had taken over and took her away from reality. So to suddenly have it stop so sharply that reality hit with cruel force must be horrible. She didn't want to imagine what it must feel like. Watching the girl was bad enough.
The girl was angry was well as miserable now. While she cried she thumped her fists against the glass, repeating over and over again "My Angel of Music! My Angel! Come back! My Angel! My Angel!"
Unable to help her in anyway, Larissa watched the girl succumb to her tears and collapse to the floor, hugging her knees and sobbing bitterly.
"Please come back." she mumbled, her silver eyes now surrounded by red puffiness staring fixedly at the glass, "You were sent to me, Angel. Father sent you to me."
"Yes, he did."
Larissa and the girl both shared an expression of shock and joy at hearing this amazingly beautiful voice speak out from the mirror so suddenly.
The girl jumped up, pressing her hands to the mirror then rested her cheek against it to and closed her eyes, smiling.
"Angel of Music, you have found me." she breathed in happiness.
"Yes my child, I have found you." the unearthly voice replied, its deep, passionate, male tone wrapping around the girl like an embrace. And unintentionally, it wrapped a little around Larissa too. It was the most enchanting and incredible voice she had ever heard!
"Why did you not come sooner?" the girl asked lightly, her joy still growing, "I had begun to loose faith in you."
"I had to wait till you were ready, my child," the voice replied in a tone very gentle and caring, like a father speaking to his beloved daughter after not seeing her for years. "I had to wait till I was needed."
"But I have always needed you!" the girl cried, pulling back from the mirror but keeping her hands there, like she feared the voice would vanish if she didn't hold on to the mirror. "I have been alone for so long!"
"I know, my child, I know. But I am here now, and I shall not leave you."
The girl let out a long, relieved sigh and leaned against the mirror, moving her fingers around in circles caressingly on the glass and saying "Promise you will never leave me."
There was a pause, thoughtful and contemplating from the mirror, before the voice truthfully replied, "I promise."
The girl closed her eyes again and smiled, tears of joy sparkling in her eyes when she opened them again, "Thank you." she breathed, kissing the glass softly.
There was silence beyond the mirror, but Larissa was sure she heard a weak sigh of bliss resonate from behind it, before the voice composed itself and said, "Now my child, we have many years of singing lessons to catch up upon, so I believe we should begin now. Are you ready?"
The girl stepped back from the mirror suddenly, like obeying an unspoken command and with her eyes full of glimmering hope she nodded and replied, "I think so, my Angel."
"Very well, we shall begin…"
Larissa wished she could have seen and heard more, but the image was dragged away from her in a fast and cruel flash and she was left in the dark silence again. But it was no longer peacefully and enjoyable, but lonely and cold. That strange vision had left her with too many questions running around her head, making her feel sick and confused. She wanted to wake up now. She wanted to be embraced by sunlight. She wanted to hear the voices of her friends. She wanted reality to claim her again.
And like the spell was broken, snapped apart like a brittle twig, the darkness shot away from her and Lara flew towards light and awoke into reality and life again.