A Single Lily
By: WolfMoon968-7-08
Prologue
The river flowed without stopping for a breath. The fish darted around. The peach blossom tree's petals fell to the ground with a twirl.
The wind rustled her hair. Her rosy cheeks stood out in the sunlight. Her eyes closed with satisfaction. Everything went black. All she could see was a single lily floating down and landing into a still pond with a few ripples. She opened her eyes, and looked at the river with longing. She stood up from her small hand-made bench, and she turned to leave. Before she did though, two words escaped her lips "Some day" she said, then she walked away, her blue skirt flowing in the gentle wind.
She walked down the sidewalk humming a small tune. She was serene, with flowing brown hair and ice blue eyes. Her name was Lyla. She stopped humming and walked up to a small house that had only two floors on it. "Home." she said, letting out a happy sigh.
She walked up to the door and took out her keys that jangled in her hand. She unlocked the door and stepped in, only to find her black cat already been sleeping there. Disturbed, he hissed and flew away in anger. "Sorry Jay!" She called after the cat. She heard him hiss in the living room.
She walked into the kitchen and seated herself on her favorite chair. Then she started to read the mail. Her eyes scanned the paper and she looked at the bills in disgust. "Dang gas prices are always raising." She mumbled to herself. Suddenly she heard the screech of familiar tires. She looked up and out the window to see a school bus at her driveway and a young girl walking off the bus smiling with a big backpack on her back.
Rena her daughter was home. She got out of her chair and walked outside to greet her. Her daughter rammed into her and hugged her tightly. "How was school sweat pea?" she asked giving her a kiss on the cheek. "It was amazing! Everyone was so nice to me! My teacher Mrs.Gretta gave me less homework because i was new!" she said, jumping into her mother's arms. The mother smiled. "How are you supposed to be as smart as me if you have barely any homework!" she teased. She laughed and grabbed Rena's hand. "Come inside and I'll make you some hot chocolate." She said still smiling. Her daughter smiled back at her and the two walked into the house. Jay bolted into the kitchen as soon as the scent wafted through the rooms as the hot chocolate was made. "Sorry Jay you can't have chocolate today!" Lyla said, petting his soft fur. Jay ignored her and stood on his hind legs and placed his paws on her leg. "Sorry Jay!" she said shooing him away. She sighed and poured the hot liquid into Rena's favourite cup and walked back to the table. She smiled when she say her daughter busily scribbling away at some homework on the wooden table. She set the hot chocolate beside her paper and sat down with a sigh and she looked out the window. Snow was steadily falling. She closed her eyes. Her life was perfect. No troubles. Just an ordinary life. That was soon going to change.
Chapter 1: What's that?
It was a snowy morning. With the sidewalks packed with snow and the cars hidden under a thin la
yer of snow. A laughter filled the air as young Rena bolted out of the house and jumped into the snow. An older looking woman known as Lyla walked out of the house, a thick coat wrapped around her and a steaming hot cup of tea in one hand. She smiled as her daughter laid down on the ground and made tiny snow angles. A dark blur darted out of the house and then darted back into the house. Lyla laughed as Jay poked his head out the door and shivered. "That's right i forgot. This is your first snow isn't it Jay?" she said reaching down and stroking his back. he purred but kept his multi-coloured eyes on the white and shining snow.
Rena suddenly sneezed and looked at her mother. Serene's face softened. Her daughters face had rosy cheeks and flashing emerald green eyes like her. Her little nose was slightly red from the cold and her brown hair lifted slightly as a soft breeze brushed their chapped lips. "Come here sweetheart and let me put some chap stick on your lips." She said, smiling. She watched as her daughter stood up and ran over to her. She stuck her hand in her pocket and fished out her chap stick. She popped the cap and she rubbed some on her daughter's lips. "What's wrong Rena?" She asked, seeing the sad look on her daughter's rosy red cheeks. " I wish daddy was still with us." She said, tears gathering at the corner of her eyes. She cupped her hands around her daughter's chin and lifted her head up so she was facing her. "I miss him too, but we have to let go of things sometimes." she said, still smiling. Her daughter nodded her head and whipped away the tears on her cheeks. She smiled and they walked into the house, hand in hand.
She set the cup of hot coco in front of her daughter and ruffled her hair. "I got to go and check on the drying clay." She said, lightly kissing her on the forehead. She nodded her had, to in-crossed in trying to get Jay to eat a marshmallow without getting some of it on his nose. She walked up the stairs slowly. She was thinking about what to do for Sunday morning. Suddenly she felt something. It was as if something was faintly pulling her towards the clay room. She picked up speed and burst into the room. She saw a faint image in the mirror where she made designs around her clay models. She ran up to it and she heard a faint voice. She looked closer into the mirror. Soon the image became more clearer to reveal an Arctic man. She smiled at him and pulled up a chair. She started talking in rapid Inuk. Her mother had been an Inuit before she had married her father, a man from New Jersey's shores. So she had obtained the ability to speak a good variety of words in Inuk. Her father had charmed her mother with the sea's gifts. Sea glass, shells, and much more. He smiled at her warm face and started to speak with her.
Rena, having given up trying to feed Jay a marshmallow, heard her mother talking upstairs. Out of sheer curiosity, she started to climb the stairs. She flinched when they groaned in protest. She had skipped several stairs before she finally reached the top landing. She tip toed over to the clay room's ajar door and peeked inside. She saw her mother, staring into the mirror, and talking to it. This made her freeze with shock. Her mother was thoroughly interested in fantasy things, but she wasn't crazy! She listened carefully to what she was saying, but she didn't understand half of it! She wondered what language they were talking in. Suddenly, she heard a word that sounded familiar. She thought of when she had heard it. It had been when her mother was telling the story of the polar bear goddess, Marathi. Nanook. That had been the word. Suddenly she heard another word she recognised. Amarok. Meaning wolf. She cringed. What was her mother talking about? And why was she talking to a mirror? She thought sadly, still staring at her mother.
Suddenly she felt a sneeze coming on. She scrunched up her face, and before she could stop herself, she sneezed. Her mother jolted out of her chair and turned towards Rena. She squeaked and ran down the stairs and jumped onto the sofa and turned to TV on quickly. She already had an Alaby playing in her head.
Lyla bolted down the stairs and into the living room only to find her daughter peacefully watching Winnie the Pooh. She sighed a sigh of relief and she walked back up the stairs, still getting over the shock of seeing her daughter spying on her. Then, she remembered the Inuit and she raced into the clay room saying sorry several times in Inuit to the angry Inuit. She sat back on the chair and sighed. The Inuit saw that she was stressed and suddenly, he disappeared. She looked around her clay room, searching for something to keep her mind off things. Suddenly, something shining caught her eye. She stood up and walked over to one shelf stuffed with clay models of wolves and polar bears. She parted some wolves and she smiled. Their in front of her was an auburn coloured wolf hide. When she was young, her mother had given her to the grey wolf tribe to learn their ways. As she grew, the chief of the clan had given her her tribe and a hide to put on her clothes whenever she was around other tribes to show that she was not a white man. She smiled as she picked up the wolf hide. I was warm and it gleamed in the sunlight that poured through the window.
Lyla closed her eyes and her lips moved soundlessly. Suddenly the auburn wolf fur glowed a faint blue and then it floated to the top of the shelf and then, it fell onto the top shelf and disappeared behind the clay wolves and scrolls,she stumbled back into her chair. it had been years since she used magic to levitate something. She looked at her clay models with a dreary and tired look. All of her failed attempts to bring one to life with magic. She sighed and leaned against the wall, still in her chair. She had been worried about her daughter. She was at the age of when she started to use magic without control over it. She opened her eyes and she heaved a sigh. Her gaze wandered over to a small wolf that was sitting on it's haunches and howling. It was supposed to be Rena's first magical item. It would grow into an adult wolf as she grew and it would be her guardian. She smiled. Rena's birthday was coming up and she was going to be so happy when she sees the small wolf pup come to life in front of her eyes. Maybe a little shocked too. She had been trying and trying to bring it to life, but she has yet to succeed. Maybe if she visited her old home... She shook the idea away. No. She would never go back to her old home. It was to sad and it held to many bad memories.
She looked out her window and jumped in shock. The moon was high and the stars were shining bright. I must have been sitting here for hours! She thought warily. She walked out of the clay room and down the hall to her daughter's room. She was surprised to hear a faint snoring sound coming from inside. She opened the creaky door as quietly as she could and she smiled when she saw Rena's beautiful brown hair in a mess on her pillow. She slowly backed out of the room and she closed the door. Her daughter was becoming more of an adult every day. She smiled and she walked over to her room and she flopped onto her bed with a grunt. Her eyes drooped wearily and without a second thought, she fell fast asleep.
Chapter 2: It's Alive!
"Mom! Mom! It's my birthday! Wake up! Wake up you sleepy head!" Her eyes flickered open and she smiled when she saw her daughter's face staring at her with intensely green eyes. "Mommm!" Rena whined. "I want to open my presents now!" She said, jumping of her bed. She flashed an tired look at her daughter and she sat up in her bed. She sighed. "Wait for me to get in my bathrobe and then we can open them. Okay?" She asked quietly, still waking up. "Sure mom." She said, walking out of the room and jumping down the stairs. She yawned and she stretch her arms. She got out of bed and she wrapped herself in an aqua bathrobe and she shuffled out of her room and onto the stairs. When she reached the landing she smiled when she saw her daughter in the living room looking with a pained looked at all of the presents sitting next to the fireplace. "Go ahead you monkey." She laughed.
Rena tore into her presents with a tad of hysteria. She screamed in joy when she pulled out a stuffed wolf. She hugged it tightly and kissed it on the nose. Lyla smiled. Soon she would open her present. Rena demolished another present to find a new makeup kit. She smiled and set it aside. She still held the stuffed wolf closely to her chest. She tore into another present. Suddenly, Lyla saw it was her present to Rena! Rena finished tearing the paper and started to unwrap the bubble-wrap. When the bubble-wrap fell away Rena touched the small clay wolf. Her eyes glittered. She closed her eyes and an image came to her mind. A small wolf pup, howling to the moon. It's glittering opal eyes staring at the moon. It's beautiful tan fur, lifting with the soft breeze. Suddenly, a movement in her hand jolted her to the real world. She stared at the clay wolf. Something was different about it. After a few minutes of staring at it's face she realised what was different. It's eyes were open! When she had opened the present the wolf's eyes had been closed! She gasped and the clay wolf landed in her lap with a thump.
Lyla smiled with joy. It had worked! The spell had worked! For days and weeks she had been trying to summon a piece of something from her homeland. Finally, she had summoned a piece of whale blubber. The spell wasn't to hard. All she had to do was find something of her history and merge it with the artifact. Although, she preferred the other way, were she had to summon the spirit of that animal and put it into the ob
ject. She shook the annoying thoughts away. Her daughter had had her first encounter with magic and there's no churning back.
Rena stared, mouth agape, as the wolf pup slowly closed it's maw and turned it's head to stare at Rena. It's fur was the same color of that in her small vision. The wolf cocked it's head in confusion. Slowly she picked it up and she dared to stroke it's spine. She smiled when she felt the rough yet smooth fur under her finger.It was no longer the rough clay that she had felt 10 minutes before. She also felt surprised when she felt a rhythmic thumping coming from it's chest.
tle="Wink" /> I like Jay the cat. Reminds me of my old baby-sitter. Jay-Hon.