Antithesis

Deathless Death

        Katherine was the opposite of everything I've ever wanted to be. She knew it too. She was brilliant and witty and could capture everyone's attention with a flick of her smoky eyes. Not me. I hid my eyes behind my blonde hair, a shade of yellow so pale that the village elders like to stand around and point at me, saying 'It's ghost white. That one's trouble, sure enough. Her father's got a wildfire on his hands.' But I wasn't. I was quiet and docile, but they still whispered every time I walked by. And my smile? It had to me coaxed out of me like some kind of wild animal tentatively crouching forward. 

        But her smile. It was as bright as the snow-covered ground, and just as freely given by the heavens above. I once was given that smile, and it made my heart melt. Just as freely given, however, was her love, and it was that quality that finally drove us apart. 

        I stood there, shivering around the village square fire, wrapped up in the shawl that Thomson, my best friend, had found. The fire flickered back and forth, sparks dancing around the edge of my vision. The longer I stared at it, the more the flames entranced me, spoke to me. 

        "Anna." One of children spoke to me. "Tell us a story." She pulled my hand closer to the fire, making sit down between her and Katherine. 

        "Tell us the one about the wolf." A wild red-headed girl said. 

        "No, tell us the one about the raven." A blue-eyed boy said, leaning forward. 

        "Hmpth." said a small girl. "None of those are any good. Tell us the one about the violinist."

        "That's not my story to tell." I said, sparing a sideways glance at Katherine. She gave me a barely perceptible nod. "But I will tell it, with permission of course."

        The children circled me excitedly. I took a stick and stirred the fire.

        "Once upon a time, there was a girl." I said. "She was born poor, but she had a rich ear for music. Instead of staying at home and helping around the house, she would sneak off to the square and dance with the men and boys, learning how to play all the instruments she could get her hands on. She got into many fights with her parents, but learned that if she could show them that making music could earn them money, they would let her play to her heart's content."

        I held back saying that this was all five, ten years ago, back when the Establishment didn't monitor our every move, our every thought. 

        "She also knew that just learning how to play an instrument wasn't enough. She needed to be a master at a chosen instrument to prove to them that she was worthy of their love." I stole another glance at Katherine. She looked perfectly relaxed, but if you glanced at her hands you could see the fine tremor in them. I took a breath. 

        "She chose the violin, and traveled far and wide to find the ultimate master, the one who could teach her everything. One afternoon, she was practicing in a field of flowers when she was approached by a young man."

        I leaned forward, knowing the girls would love this part. "He was very handsome, with dark hair and auburn eyes. He showed K-" Pause. "Her a way to make her playing better, and she was so delighted she played for him a song she wrote. He fell in love with it, and she with him, and they refused to leave each other's side for the rest of their life."

        Dramatic pause for the boys. 

        "But little did she know, he was the devil." The children gasped. "That's right. He tempted her with false promises, and after he was almost through with her, he promised her one more deal. She would become the ultimate master if she would just do one little thing. She had to sell her soul to him."

        Yet another gasp. I held up a finger. "But." I said. "There was a loophole. If she could find someone else to love her as much as he loved her music, she could keep her soul and her talent. She was given three years to find someone to love, but after that, he would come and collect her soul."

        Katherine's hands were visibly shaking by now. I gave her a reassuring glance, knowing that the story must be told, and continued. 

        "She settled in a small village, much like this one, in fact." I said. "For a year, she restlessly searched for someone to love her, before she realized that she was tricked. The devil had given her enough beauty and talent to attract a man, but with that came a curse. No man would stay long enough to find out who she really was. Her likes, her dislikes, her favorite memories, her hated enemies, not a single one of her lovers knew anything about her. Once they had their fun, they would move on, leaving her heartbroken."

        I took another pause, dropping the volume in my voice to make sure the adults couldn't hear. If we were overheard, Katherine and I would be accused of going against the Establishment, and rebellion meant death. 

        "But then." My voice quiet as I could get. "She met someone. Not a man, pray you, but a girl. See, the devil forgot about that. He refused to believe that a girl could love another, the way he loved her music, but he was wrong."

        "She met the girl one day when she was walking the fields. The girl was sitting in the middle of a field, just sitting and thinking. Naturally, she went over and started talking to the girl. 'What's your name?' She asked. The girl answered. 'My name is April."

        "She just kind of looked at her and said "My name is Kyra' April's eyes widened. 'The violin master Kyra?' Kayra just nodded. And after that, they bursted into laughter, and started talking, telling each other stories about their childhood and what they liked and everything."

        "They began meeting in the fields every day, sometimes bringing lunch and going on a picnic, other times taking walks in the forest groove. No one suspected a thing, and Kyra and April fell more and more in love with each other every day."

        "Finally, the devil came back after three years and asked Kyra if she found a love as powerful as his love her music. She looked him straight in the eye and said 'Yes.'"

        I paused for a moment, deciding the right way to revise the ending of the story. 

        "The devil was shocked, and with a sudden creaking sound, his hands and feet started to turn to ash, bright grey ash that disappeared when it touched the ground. Kyra, having found the power of both love and music, had managed to vanquish the devil on her terms. April and Kyra continued to love each other, and lived happily ever after."

        The kids were quiet for a moment, and then their hands shot up.

        "Did they get married?" asked the red-haired girl.

        "Well, um-" I said, or tried to say, before the blue-eyed boy blurted out another question.

        "If the devil's vanquished, then why do the adults still talk about him?"

        "It's just a story." I said, flustered. 

        The little blonde crossed her arms. "No, it's not."

        "What?" I said.

        "It's true." The girl insisted. "It's not just a story."

        "Y-yes it is." I stuttered out.

        "No it's not." The little girl turned to face her friends. "Anna is April, and Kyra is Katherine."

        She turned back to us. "And that means you broke one of the Establishment's laws."