Primal Power 1, page 18
Let us dissolve our barriers, bring our hands together and unite in a joint task. A joint task to bring this beautiful Island called the Land of the Shimmering Bridge back to a place of growth and prosperity. Back to a place that is full of kindness and love."
The cheers supporting Queen Chayzlazamia rang loud and clear as she walked off the stage.
The large ballroom was full of people donned in exquisite attire. They stood applauding and then they bowed their heads as she graced the shimmering aisle and she walked towards the doorway.
When she reached the doorway, she did not exit, instead she turned towards the crowd. She clasped the people's hands and spoke to them in her soothing voice imparting her warmth and kindness. There were only a few whom I wondered about, but all and all, it seemed as if her speech had been received in the way it was intended.
The shimmering within the Palace whitened and those who did not shimmer seemed more relaxed. With each step Queen Chayzlazamia took, she glowed with a brightness that brought more eloquence to her already expressive style of beauty. My eyes focused on the ones who shimmered and if they had been grey before, it was no longer visible.
Some of Kyrone's friends were there and I wondered if they had received an invitation. I watched to see if I would notice anything about their energy, but I only noticed that two of them left after her speech and two of them stayed. Had they stayed trying to discover more about the queen or had they stayed, because they too, wanted a life of kindness and love? They were not sitting far from where I sat and I watched as Queen Chayzlazamia was shaking the person's hand next to them.
Listening intensely, I overheard a Camflage saying, "It was a very nice speech. I hope you'll be able to keep it up," he said smiling. "We are pleased you are our queen." Looking from outside, his smile and gestures seemed to be genuine, but a bit of a shiver ran down my spine, nonetheless.
I felt pride when I heard her say, "It is a great achievement to be able to shimmer. It is my hope that someday it will be an achievement you desire also," and with a slight tilt of her head she took the other Camflage's hand and they paused, looking directly into each others' eyes. Had they had an encounter?
"What was that about?" questioned the first Camflage after she left.
"I don't know," defended the other, with a shrug.
Once the first one looked away, the other one watched the queen with what seemed to be compassion and admiration in his eyes. Had she actually reached a Camflage? Are they even able to be reached?
After the shimorphosis, I headed back to the cassida only to find my Rainbow Dancer looking rather forlorn. Hugging him, I put my head up to his, and understood.
"Oh, my Rainbow Dancer, you want to leave the Land of the Shimmering Bridge. You want to be in a place where you can feel free. I just do not know if I am supposed to be the mystery girl in a hooded robe with an oughtleopar at her side. Maybe I was only here to retrieve the ribbon for Chayma. If so, does that mean our mission here is over? What are we supposed to do? Where do we go? How do we go? If it's any consolation, I'm thankful that you're here with me. Tonight Chayma, Queen Chayzlazamia," I corrected, "gave her hello speech. It was wonderful. I am confident she will do well, for she reminded everyone about the spirit of goodness."
Chapter 27 - Morning Weirdness
In the morning, I went to the wardrobe wondering what I could possibly find to wear. The top of my head did not even reach Chayma's shoulders, although she looked to be quite a bit slimmer and that might work out in my favour. In my world she would be abnormally thin. Add the height to the equation and there was a possibility of a similar waist size.
All I knew was I did not want to wear the indigo robe today. One had to change their wardrobe every once in a while, and wearing that gorgeous green gown last night reminded me my personality was not of a bland nature.
I found a pair of pants; it had layers on the legs and was held together with colourful ties. Well, that could work because I could adjust the length. They were brighter than I desired as they were black with rainbow stars sewn upon them, however I found a plain dark shirt to make the outfit work with my style.
It would not make me as dark as the Camflages nor would it make me as colourful as the community, however, at least I would fit in a little bit better if I decided to go out.
Presently, I wasn't sure of what I was supposed to do or even wanted to do. The only thing that I wished was I had some canvases, for I looked at art as a vehicle creating movement for my emotions. With that thought, I took the green extendas and designed my temple.
The first cup of morning tea was barely to my lips when I heard a knock at the door. Expecting to see a Starred Knight, or even worse, one of Kyrone's crew, I saw instead a rather tall girl. Was she the same girl that Khywhy had run after?
She had black hair and must have had at least ten ponytails adorned with colourful ribbons. Her shirt was polka dotted in pink, white, and blue. Her skirt had green squares encased in purple, yellow, and red triangles and her feet were bare with painted rainbows across their arches. She did not say a word. She merely stared and flashed her long eyelashes over her big brown eyes. I simply looked at her until I could not take the silence anymore.
"Hello," I said.
"Hello," was all she said, biting her lip.
"Eh, what can I do for you?" I asked.
"Mmmm," the girl said, looking at the ground and shaking her head. "The pattern I am supposed to break is shyness and I am not doing a very good job of it," she finished, still looking down with her head still moving side to side.
Smiling, I spoke in a gentle tone, "I was just pouring tea. Would you like to join me?"
She nodded. We sat down at the little half moon table and I asked what brought her to my door.
"Chayma, I mean Queen Chayzlazamia, I am sorry."
"I do the same thing. I too, met her as Chayma. So, why did Queen Chayzlazamia send you to me?" I asked, but she just shrugged her shoulders.
I wasn't usually mistrustful, so I didn't understand when the feeling of mistrust arose within me. Were my instincts perhaps trying to tell me something? A part of me wanted to snap at her, though it could be because I like my space in the morning, or perhaps I was picking up on her emotions? She came to my door wanting something, but was not telling me what. Being abrupt within a situation usually only echoes back, so I quieted myself before I spoke.
"What did you say to Queen Chayzlazamia for her to send you to me?" I asked changing my question.
"I told her that I had a secret, but I cannot tell you," she said quickly. Shaking her head, she stood up as if she was going to leave.
In yesterday's world, I might have merely shrugged my shoulders and watched her walk out the door. There was also a possibility I would have told my friends how odd the encounter was, but I was not in yesterday's world. That action, I realize now, would have been unfair, especially in a small community as misunderstandings were often caused inadvertently.
So, I gently said, "Why don't you finish your tea?"
"Alright," she said with her head still lowered.
"Do you live on this street?" I inquired in an attempt at a conversation thinking it might relax her. Also, I remembered Chayma saying that the people who lived on this street seemed oblivious to what was happening in the shady side of town.
"Yeah," she answered unconvincingly, but maybe truthfully, I wasn't sure.
So, I continued, "I haven't been here long. You are the first person living on this street that I have met."
"Oh," she said looking a bit more comfortable.
"Is it fun living here?" I asked.
"Yeah," she said, "the people are really nice."
This was good, she actually added something and engaged in the conversation, so I thought of another question.
"Were you and Chayma," I said with a smile mentioning the queen by her other name, "good friends?"
"Yeah, Chayma was really nice," she answered.
"Yes, she is really nice and she's going to make an amazing queen," I replied.
"She is," she said looking as if she was going to burst into tears.
Quickly, I scanned my previous words as I seemed to have said something wrong. Perhaps this girl was just grieving her friend for she didn't have the same relationship with the queen that I did and I knew I was going to miss Queen Chayzlazamia, as Chayma.
"You will probably miss her, me too," I said with the hope I was reading her correctly.
"Yeah, I could trust her," she said while lowering her head, rubbing her teacup, looking out of the top of her eyes, and still batting her long eyelashes.
Rotating my shimmering ring I said, "You can trust me too."
"That is Chayma's ring," she said in an accusatory tone.
"Yes, it is. Queen Chayzlazamia gave it to me, because I needed help with something. That is one of the reasons why I think she is going to be an amazing queen," I said, ignoring the tone in the girl's voice.
"Queen Chayzlazamia said something..., something that made me feel really bad," she confessed.
My ears perked, "Oh, what would that have been?" I asked.
She bit her lip, looked down, and then stared at me as if she was searching my soul. Starting very slowly at first she said, "Queen Chayzlazamia said if you have hidden things it causes misunderstandings and leads you to a dark place," and then her words became very fast, "and I have something hidden and I don't know what to do about it and I am going to leave now."
Then she got up and left. "Well, Rainbow Dancer," I said shaking my head, "before our strange interlude, I was going to have some breakfast, would you like some? Apparently, there is something more that we are supposed to do here."
As we ate my mind replayed the odd conversation with the strange girl. That was not fair, for I was passing a judgment on her by calling her strange and maybe I should simply call it a strange occurrence. I thought about what she said about Queen Chayzlazamia's speech; to my surprise, anger arose within me.
"Come on Rainbow Dancer, we're going to the lake," I said, abruptly placing my dirty dishes on the counter.
Rainbow Dancer's eyes lit up. Yes, doing something for him is what I needed to do and that brought gladness to my heart. Soon we were hopscotching over the purple stones. When we arrived at the forest behind the Palace, my trusted otter headed straight to the blue and white path.
It was interesting how the stones worked as they made me focus. My mind had to be clear to remember the song, repeat it over and over, as well as watching which stone to land upon. It was like a mediation transforming into a gift, teaching me to enjoy the here and now.
Arriving at the wonderfully clear, beautiful lake surrounded by blue and white rock, I sat down. It was framed by glorious trees that were lush with triangular leaves; except for a small clearing that led to a turquoise field with a backdrop of deep reddish-purple mountains.
This morning's visitor was still troubling me. In yesterday's world, I really didn't have much use for people like her because it felt like some kind of manipulation.
When the visitor arrived, she told me she was shy; that was her pattern. I can deal with that, but she twisted the meaning of the most beautiful speech and turned it into something bad. The queen simply pointed out that if someone had a hidden agenda it could lead them to dark places. In other words, it was better to be open and honest. Maybe, my visitor just was trying to be honest, but it wasn't Queen Chayzlazamia's fault that she had something to conceal.
She said that Chayma had sent her, but Queen Chayzlazamia wanted me to be a spy. I had not yet told the queen what I was going to do with her request. I only voiced that I was too open and honest to be any good at it. Perhaps my morning tea mate had a another hidden agenda. She acted as if she was going to tell me something and did not. She definitely seemed to want something, but I wasn't sure what.
She practically accused me of stealing the shimmering ring and that certainly did not impress me. As if I would steal the ring off the queen's finger?! I knew I was trustworthy and I didn't need to prove myself to her.
The reason I didn't have much use for people like her was no matter how kind, loving, and real I was, they seemed to find fault and a way of confusing things. This was supposed to be an island of growth and healing. That would not be possible if people couldn't take responsibility for their own actions, words, and insecurities. I did not have any hidden agendas or secrets so I understood the queen's speech. I was not the one casting blame, but was I the one judging the girl?
Raziel's words circled around my brain. 'Why then do you let it burn upon your mind? You are a wanderer in a strange land. It is important that your mind is clear. It is important that you remain non-assuming.'
I even remembered my response. 'I must stay true to myself and be appreciative and cautious.'
It wasn't my place to judge whether she was good or bad, or if there was such a thing. It was my choice not to be around people who blame or accuse others. However, I wasn't perfect and have said many things I shouldn't have.
Sometimes blame or judgment were used as an attempt to understand. It was my hope that processing what was said could maybe change my emotions from borderline anger to mere annoyance. However, I was forgetting about the present and no longer enjoying the lake, for I was thinking about her. Was this my pattern? A pattern that I needed to break?
Yes, it was and I did need to break it. Just because I did not understand something did not mean someone was wrong or at fault. There was always a lesson for both parties and the only lesson I needed to be concerned with was mine.
'Associate only with good people', were Raziel's words, but that did not mean my visitor was not a good person, just at this time in my life, she wasn't good for me.
My mind finally cleared. I laid down on the rocks with my hand in the water. Shortly thereafter I jumped into the lake and playfully splashed Rainbow Dancer. It made me smile because it reminded me of the joy I felt while I was in the otters' cave.
The next day, the visitor came back and with her long eyelashes flashing her coyness, she said, "I'm an artist and I kinda was wondering if you would like to come over to my cassida and paint?"
The visitor could have offered gold or silver and I wouldn't have been tempted to mingle with her but paint, a paintbrush, canvas..., I was definitely tempted, but after the last couple of days, I really needed a break from emotions, mine included.
"No thank you," I said politely.
"Even if you do not paint, you could still come over," she urged.
"Sorry," I said, "I do not mean to be impolite, but I do have things I would like to accomplish today."
She was persistent, however, safeguarding my personality and choosing to only be around people I knew I could trust was definitely on my to-do-list, at least for today.
"Aren't you curious as to what I have hidden?" she inquired, not seeming a bit shy, actually now she seemed a tad miffed.
"If you would like to tell me what you have hidden, I will listen, but if you do not want to tell me, that is fine too," I said with her still standing in the doorway.
"I just want to get to know you and see if I can trust you. Why don't you want to help me?"
I shrugged my shoulders and said as kindly as I could, "Well either you trust me or you don't." Then I thought to ask, "Did Queen Chayzlazamia say you could trust me?"
"Yeah, she did," she said. She lowered her head before she continued, "I should not have blamed her as I was the one who had something hidden. It is a pattern I'm trying to break."
"Thank you for letting me know that," I said as softly as I could muster. I had to wonder if she was truly trying to break her patterns and take responsibility for her actions? Was she really a chosen one who came across the Shimmering Bridge to grow and heal? Then again, was she a Camflage pretending to be shy and to be working on her patterns?
"Are you sure you don't want to come over?"
Thinking nothing and staying true to myself was something I should do more often and I simply said, "Yes, I am sure, thank you anyway."
"Alright," she said stiffly. She turned to go, but as I was shutting the door, she quipped, "I found something really weird and I do not know what to do with it. So, I will put it on your doorstep," she said emphasizing the your, and sounding as if I was being punished for not coming with her. "You deal with it."
Shivering over the venomous sound of her voice I watched her walked away.
Chapter 28 - Out of the Box
It was Rainbow Dancer who caused me to open the door. He must have heard a noise outside. At eye level nary a soul was in sight, but when my gaze lowered, I saw a large wooden box with a few holes in the top. Huh? What could possibly be inside that? Was it alive? Was that the reason for the holes?
The thought to lie down beside it and see if it made a noise seemed logical. I didn't want to move it in case it was an egg or it was terrified. Placing my ear next to the base, I could hear a whimpering sound. It was alive! It was not an egg but... but would it come out and bite me? Would it fly away?
Inspecting the box, I realized there were nails holding down the lid. Okay, how was I supposed to get this open? I knew in yesterday's world I would use a pry bar. I doubted the cassida would have such an item. Knives! Yes, there was cutlery here! Perhaps I could pry it open a bit and peek inside?
Turning towards the door, it occurred to me that maybe I shouldn't leave it unattended. I reassured myself that Rainbow Dancer would protect me if it was aggressive.
If it was frightened, perhaps it would only need gentleness. If all else failed, I could leave it inside and get help from the Palace. The visitor must have carried it over, so it couldn't be too heavy and with that thought, I carried it into the cassida and awkwardly placed it in the middle of the floor. Shrugging my shoulders and lightly biting my finger, I studied the box with both wonderment and concern.
