Fading

Every night at midnight, the purple clouds came out to dance with the blushing sky. And every night at midnight, Peril twinkled in delight as she whooshed in among the other small, wispy, balls of light. The dance was about to begin here above while life below waited for change as part of predestined plans. Leaving the light-filled realm required much patience from the wisps as they had to come to a complete stop before descending. Many of them had memories of existing below before serving here and those with happy memories shimmered in anticipation.

The purple clouds wrapped the wisps and held them close while their energy levels dropped. Each wisp took on different hues born from the tones of each heart song. When the lower vibrations came into focus, a plethora of colorful lightning bursts singed the night air and gave way to whirlwinds on which our travelers rode. "We’re here, we’re here, we are here", whispered the energy of the wispy lights.

Tranquility’s soft tone of green didn’t go unnoticed by a gigantic woodborne named Starkbald. A calmness spread down to the ends of his roots, opening his eye just enough for Hope to fly in. Hope set herself in his heart and played her song. Starkbald sang along as he thought to himself, “Maybe it’s not too late to turn some Leaves. Why not? I may be starting later than the rest, but I must still be here for some reason.” As he inhaled a long, slow breath, Starkbald reached his limbs high above his familiar space and thought about the other woodbornes who had already started to fade. He hoped that he would be able to turn over as many New Leaves as they had so that he could join them. For now, the only fading he could do was fading to sleep. Just before drifting off, Starkbald sighed, sending Hope out into the waiting world again. His dreams were so deep that he didn’t notice the unkempt, drunken man when he landed against his trunk.

While Starkbald slumbered in stillness, the wisps labored on, darting hither and yon to bring light to the dark world below. Peril flew over the multitudes of humans searching for one that might stumble. Peril was often accused by her fellow lit friends of being unnecessarily harsh. She knew however, that her job was crucial to the growth of any human soul and she was thankful that she had Braverie to help her. Braverie was strong and unbending, as she helped people through difficult changes... Peril’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Hope’s melody, drawing her attention to a giant woodborne just in time to see a dark shape crumple at it’s feet.

Denton slung the empty beer can across the emptiness around him not caring where it landed. Dizzy, he slid down against the tree and tried to focus on his hands in his lap. He couldn't see the numbers on his watch so he asked them the time. He was rewarded by shrill screams telling him that it was way past his time to be in bed. It was a struggle to stand, but Denton managed to stay upright as he took one step and then another heading back to the road. Finally making it back to the truck, tripping over his own feet, his stomach revolted and Denton lost his supper. Grabbing the remaining box of beers, he decided not to drink anymore and left them sitting on the ground where he stood before climbing inside and shutting the door. From the corner of his eye, he watched as the Trashcans scraped the beer box into it's barrel and rolled away. “Please stop spinning, please stop spinning,” he said out loud. But the spinning didn’t stop.

Peril’s aura glowed pink as the red ember from her core expanded and she floated above Denton's truck. When Braverie saw the pink light from a distance, she hurried to Denton’s side, knowing that he would need her courage more than ever when dawn came.