The Girl and the Darkness

Once upon a time, in a quiet village, there lived a young girl named Luma. She had bright eyes and loved to play in the sunlight. But one day, the sun didn’t rise. The sky turned black, and a deep Darkness covered the world.

People lit candles and stayed inside. They were afraid. Plants stopped growing. Birds stopped singing. Everyone whispered one word: “The Darkness.”

Luma asked her mother, “Why is the Darkness here?”

Her mother said, “No one knows. It came suddenly. Some say it is angry. Others say it is lost.”

Luma didn’t like to see everyone so sad. She decided to find the Darkness and talk to it.

“Maybe it just needs a friend,” she said.

Her mother warned her, “It’s too dangerous.”

But Luma packed bread, a blanket, and a lantern. She kissed her mother and walked into the black woods.

She walked for many hours. Everything was quiet. Even her footsteps made no sound. Then, a voice whispered:

“Why do you come?”

Luma stopped. “I want to meet you, Darkness.”

“I am not your friend,” said the voice. “I make people afraid.”

“But I’m not afraid,” Luma said. “I think you’re lonely.”

Silence.

Luma sat on a rock. “You don’t have to hide,” she said kindly. “Please come out.”

The wind blew, and a shadow appeared. It looked like smoke, shaped like a person. Its eyes were stars.

“You are brave,” said the Darkness. “Why?”

“I think you’re sad,” Luma said. “You came because you felt forgotten.”

The Darkness trembled. “Long ago, I helped people sleep. I held the stars. I gave rest. But they feared me. They built lights to chase me away.”

Luma listened.

“So I left,” the Darkness said. “Now, I am angry. I covered the world so they would see me again.”

Luma walked closer and took its hand. “You don’t need to scare people to be seen. Let them remember who you really are.”

“No one remembers,” the Darkness whispered.

“I will help them,” Luma said. “Come back, but gently. Show them your stars again.”

The Darkness looked at her. “Will they listen?”

“They will,” she promised.

So the Darkness followed Luma back to the village. Slowly, it changed. The deep black faded to soft night. Stars lit the sky. People came out and looked up.

“It’s beautiful,” they said.

Children pointed at the moon and laughed.

Luma stood in the center and said, “This is not the scary Darkness. This is the night that helps us rest. It watches us while we sleep.”

The villagers nodded. They remembered.

From that day on, the Darkness came each night like a quiet friend. And Luma, the girl who wasn’t afraid, became known as the Light in the Dark.