Sunday 13 June 2010

The Music Box: Chapter Eighty

Emily woke to a silent house. As she peered over the edge of her flower-embroidered bedspread, watching the patch of morning sunlight where it fell on the wall, she noticed a small shadow broke the straight lines of the orange box of light.

She turned slowly towards the window and saw that a little round bird had alighted upon her window sill. It appeared to be observing her quite intently with its beady black eyes, but as she watched it swing its tail feathers side to side another bird came, seemed to have a quick word in its ear and the pair flapped away as though they had been caught somewhere they shouldn’t be.

Emily had never seen such strange looking birds in her life and it took her some time to register what she had observed – the first bird was mostly green with a bright red chest, a green head and then a blazing red feather ruffled from the very top of its head. The second bird, which she saw only briefly, was the complete inverse; right down to the bright green feather poking off the top of its head.

But surely not.... Emily rubbed her eyes, deciding she must have imagined the whole thing.

Yet a moment later, as she watched the space on the open sill where the birds had been, another landed. From its long, sleek body, a shimmering silver-blue, she saw a pair of bright white wings emerge, then fold back in. She at first thought the bird was looking at her down its long straight beak, but realised that its eyes appeared closed.

As Emily watched the unseeing bird, a moment passed between them.

The bird began to sing.


Fin