This is a story I came up with a little while ago, and I thought you might want to read it. The picture below is the image which inspired this story.
The sky above,
The earth below,
The fire within,
Resurrect the violin
Those were the words on the wall. The words that had mocked Anastasia for years. The years she had spent in her little quiet castle, alone, in dark rooms. No sky above, no earth below, no fire within. For years- every one of her slow fifteen years- she had grown up in the castle, with only the mocking words, and the locked up violin to keep her company. She wanted desperately to break free of her dark, lonely, prison, and see the sky, and earth, and fire. She had a clear image of what each looked like, given to her by her silent, invisible father. But she desired passionately to see those things for herself.
Anastasia knew what she had to do to see the beautiful creations, she had to resurrect the violin. Just as it said in the words. She had to unlock the violin from its cell, and play the wonderful exoctic notes, to create music. But all her life, she had been afraid. Afraid of creating the music she had never heard before. Afraid to accept her fathers gift, which he had offered to her since birth. She was afraid to leave the dark and despairing castle, the only place she had ever known, no matter how much she hated it, she was afraid to leave.
Anastasia swung around, her simple renaissance skirt swayed elegantly behind her. She quickly and quietly marched out of the vacant room, and shut the door as she exited. She walked down the corridors, and guided herself to her own gloomy room. She entered, and layed herself down on the floor, her raven hair sprawled over the cold ground, her dark green eyes stared up at the bare black ceiling, her white hands rested on her black corset. She began to imagine fresh, bright blue, skies, and green, vibrant, grasses. She dreamed of someday smelling the morning air, and staring up at the glittery night skies.
Anastasia did not understand herself, she hated the dark dreary castle she lived in, yet she was afraid to leave it. She could leave anytime, all she needed to do was play the violin, but she refused. She hated herself for it, she hated her fear, and her loneliness. She was tired of the despair, she was tired of telling herself she would free herself, then refusing. She wanted to take chances. She desired to force herself up, and create music on the patiently waiting violin. But as always, her legs would not move.
Anastasia sighed, and let herself fall into a deep and sudden sleep.
Many minutes later, a loud sound of a great crash disturbed her from her normal dreamless sleep. Another crash sounded from many halls away. The noise resembled a large man, stomping on her castle. She sat up on the cold ground, and searched for any sign of unexpected danger suddenly lurking in the walls. A troubling noise, sounded from above Anastasia. She glimpsed up, and found the sight of a crack in her ceiling. She quickly stood, and spun away, just at the moment that the ceiling came crashing down to her resting place.
Anastasia gaped at the sight. She knew exactly what was happening, her castle was falling apart. And she was about to be crushed underneath the rubble and debri of her castle. But suddenly, she remembered the gift her father had offered her since birth. The beautiful violin. She could still play the violin, and leave the castle, alive. She didn’t think of it any longer, she rushed out of her decaying room, and ran down the corridors, as her castle crumbled to peices. Echoes of the falling roofs rung in her ears, she saw the dreary walls of the castle crack and splinter, the ground shook beneath her.
Anastasia tripped over her own feet, and she fell to the ground, placing a thin wound over her left eye, reaching down to her cheekbone. She stood straight again, and began to sprint across the castle once more. Suddenly, the ceiling caved, in front of her. She screamed out in surprise, but was drowned out by the noise of falling debri. A large heap of rubble layed in front of her, blocking her exit. More debri crumbled around her as she fell to the ground in disbelief and began to sob.
“Why are you crying, my dear princess?” A kind voice spoke, muting out the sound of falling rubble.
Anastasia immediately knew the voice to be her invisible father’s. He was speaking to her for the first time. Through her sobs, she answered, “I am going to die in this dreary castle, under the rubble. I am never going to be able to see the sky, or earth, or fire.” She sobbed into her hands, and continued, “I could have left at any time, but I never did. I let your precious gift of freedom go to waste! It’s my own fault I’m going to die like this! You knew this was going to happen, so you gave me a way out all these years, and I put it aside as something to be afraid of!”
“What makes you think I’m going to leave you here to die without giving you another chance?” Her father asked, patiently.
Anastasia sobbed until she thought she had no tears left. The castle continued to collaspe in front of her, as she answered, “I don’t deserve to be saved. I ignored your gift for fifteen years! A gift from my own father! I was selfish, and fearful, and didn’t trust you! I should have trusted you! Now you must hate me for not trusting you!”
“Why must I?”
Anastasia glanced up for a moment, and found a wonderful sight. The pile of rubble was gone. She smiled broadly, and laughed. “Go, I have given you another chance.” Her father’s voice echoed.
She nodded, and stood up once again, and sprinted as fast as she could through the corridors to her safety. Debri continued to crumble all around her, but she ignored the terror, and focused on reaching the violin. After several turns, Anastasia finally reached the violin. She slowly approached it, beginning to doubt herself again, but quickly put it behind her. The violin was beautiful and majestic. The handsome bow sat beside it, waiting to grasped, and stroke its strings along the violins beautiful notes.
With trembling hands, Anastasia reached down, and clutched the bow and violin. It felt incredibly natural embedded in her palms, as if the two tools were made specifically for her. She brought the bow to the strings of the violin, and instictively began to play. It was as if Anastasia had played the violin a million times before, and practiced this song for that moment. The bow knew exactly what to do. On the first broad stroke, the bow sparked on fire. The unique dancing flames were beautiul in her eyes. Everything about the violin was beautiful. The music that sounded from the notes, were so perfect and lovely to Anastasia’s ears. The fire, which crawled along the bow and violin, danced in majestic motion.
The castle continued to crumble, as she played. At each majestic stroke, she noticed a crack appear on the walls or in the ceiling. They seemed to open up into another world, a world she was eager to travel to. Finally, on the final great stroke, the ceiling collapsed down to the place Anastasia stood. The next thing she knew, she was standing in a green feild, with the sky above her, the earth below her, and a fire newly kindled within her. She smiled, and laughed, as if she were five years old.
With her violin and bow in clutched safely in her hands, she ran freely in the delightful colors and cool air. After joyously running through the feild, she saw someone in the distance, approaching her. She stopped, and stared at the person, who approached her. She had never seen the person in her entire life, but she knew instantly who he was. He was her gracious father.
Still smiling, she ran to her father, and hugged him tightly around the waist when she caught up to him. Her father smiled, “Welcome home, Anastasia. My dear princess.”
She stepped back, and smiled at her father, “Thank you.”
Instantly she began playing her violin, and once again everything about it was perfect. The fire, the music, and there were no mistakes. She danced to the music, with the sky above, the earth below, the fire within, she had reserructed the violin.
