Fly (2nd in the feather series)

Seventeen

From that point onwards, things started to go right again. I went back to Srrin with Amy to see my mum and I thought she'd be ashamed of me but I was wrong. My mum ran to me happily, hugging me and telling me how sorry she was that I'd upset her. But she told me something I'd never have expected her to tell me.

"Your friend Ava called today. She looked really worried and wanted to say sorry to you. She gave me her address should you want to ever see her again." My mum told me sadly.

Amy looked at me and I knew what she wanted me to do. I took the note from my mums table and said goodbye before heading off into Nyk to try to find Avas address. The route to Avas house was long and confusing, leading us down may alleys, fields, streets. But eventually, I found Avas house. I hesitated when I reached for the doorbell. After all, Ava had attacked me and insulted me, broken friends with me. But when I looked at Amy, who was behind me, she told me,

"Don't hold a grudge, Layla. Say sorry and show you're a good friend, that's my advice."

I turned around again and knocked on the door of Avas house. There was a moments silence before I heard someone chant a spell to unlock the door. The door swung open and there, in the doorway, stood a man with blonde hair, which looked slightly gingery in bright light. Seeing my expression, he asked me,

"I guess you're Layla, Ava's friend, right?" After I nodded he continued, "I'm Ava's dad, just so you know. If you want to see Ava, I'll call her downstairs."

"Yes, I'd like to see Ava." I replied, walking through the front door of Avas cube-shaped, white house.

After Ava's dad had asked Ava to come downstairs into the sitting room, Amy and I sat on one of the multicoloured sofas, nervously waiting for her. Well, I was the only one who was nervous. Amy isn't scared of many things. Moments later, the door to the sitting room opened and Ava walked in. I stood up and walked over to Ava, still keeping my distance should Ava launch another attack on me. But Ava didn't. When Ava saw me, her expression indicated she had mixed emotions. Then, there was an awkward silence as Ava and I looked at each other. Eventually, after several minutes, I broke the silence and told Ava,

"I'm sorry about what happened a few nights ago. When I was escaping Srrin, I was in such a hurry that I didn't see I'd picked up a 'feather prize'. I didn't mean to ruin your life, I didn't want to break friends with you..." I paused for a moment sadly, before finishing, "... I'm sorry for all that's happened to you, Ava."

There was another silence before Ava replied,

"No, no, it shouldn't be you apologising Layla, it should be me - I attacked you and injured you. When you gave me back my feather prize, all the emotions I'd had from having no 'feather prize' just seemed to come crashing down on me at that moment and I lost my temper, taking all my anger out on you. For this reason, I'm sorry, Layla."

I then moved a little closer to Ava so it didn't seem like I was trying to avoid her.

"Thank you." I whispered to Ava. "I don't want our friendship to end - do you want to be friends with me again?" I asked quietly.

Ava thought about this for a while and then nodded her head.

"Yes." She replied, a lot happier than before. And this time, she wasn't hiding her feelings from me.

We linked arms with each other then and Amy, Ava and I left Avas house to do something fun together. Now we were all friends again, I had nothing to worry about.

*****************

Standing on the edge of 'my spot' - my mountain cliff where I transform in Atlo - I transformed into my winged form. A light breeze tickles my neck as I leap off the cliff confidently. For a few seconds, the wind rushes against my neck, ruffling my hair and feathers and then I open my wings. Angling my wings, I stop falling and woosh upwards, with the wind blowing against me. But the wind can't stop me as I fly skillfully, soaring above some low lying clouds. 7 months ago, I learned to soar above my troubles and not run away from a challenge. Now I know that life throws some nasty surprises at you and sometimes, they can make you feel as if your falling, failing to keep on going. No matter what happens, you can always get back up and fly through the storm. Beating my wings carefully, I fly through a cloud and look at the beautiful mountain scenery as the sun begins to rise, casting light over the area where I live. I look around me and smile contentedly. It was going to be a beautiful day.

The End