A Search for Paradise (On Hold)

A Search For Paradise

Hey! Well the idea for this story has been mulling around in my head for a while, so I decided to see what you all thought of it so far! I got the idea doing a writing workshop, where we had to create a new place. This story began with the place, Anya. Anya is a made up island in the Indian Ocean. Please note that the people on Anya have no idea about the 'outside world'. They have no technology or anything like that, they just lead simple lives. Well, I hope you enjoy! 

The waves are my protectors.

The sand is my comfort.

The wind is my game.

The trees are my shelter.

The sky is my freedom.

The animals are my friends.

The beach is my secret sanctum.

Prologue

I never understood why my name was ‘Serenity’. It means ‘serene and calm’, which is the opposite of me.

I had been visiting Seraphine for as long as I could remember. She was how I escaped from the long and boring days of living on a small island with the same people who had watched me grow up. But one particular day stood out to me and pricked my curiosity. It wasn’t hard to be curious by unfamiliar things, seeing as nothing on Anya ever changed, from the gossipy people or the waves breaking at the cove. It was always the same and I hated it.

Seraphine was beautiful in a timeless way. She had floaty silver hair that flew around her head like a halo. Her face, unlined but seemingly ancient, was always uplifting. Her eyes were full of knowledge as if she knew everything. Seraphine always had the answer to any of my problems – and everybody else’s too. She was the ‘witch’ of our island, but everybody respected her and went to her for advice. Many people said I looked a bit like Seraphine, but I couldn’t see it. I stared at my reflection for ages in the shimmering water, trying to capture even the smallest similarity but I couldn’t.

My blonde hair was always tangled and curly from sea spray. It hung around my waist, constantly blowing in the wind and flying out behind my. People were always telling me how beautiful it was, but I hated it. I wished for slivery locks like Seraphine’s, which never seemed to knot or be out of place. The only thing I liked about my appearance was my eyes. The round, violet depths were always filled with mischief and in my opinion, were the windows to my soul. Everybody could tell what I was thinking just by looking into my eyes.

I was eight years old, and visiting Seraphine with my six year old sister, Vera. Seraphine held onto Vera’s hand firmly, but I refused her other one, claiming I was ‘much too old’. She took us to the fruit trees where Vera loved climbing and collecting all the fresh and plump fruits. Seraphine sat me down in the shade of the largest apple tree as Vera disappeared into the leafy shelter.

“Seraphine,” I said, my young voice high and excited. I was always excited around Seraphine – the only person on Anya who wasn’t predictable. “Why are we not allowed to go to Forbidden Bay?” I was hoping for some wonderful story filled with adventure, romance or something thrilling. I didn’t get what I was hoping for, but instead I got something better.

Forbidden Bay was at one end of Anya, a towering stone wall separating it from the rest of the island. Everybody avoided it, even the bravest hunters. Though somehow I knew Seraphine would tell me something nobody else could. It didn’t even occur to my eight year old brain that she could have made up the stories.

“Little one, you have to understand that the people of Anya aren’t used to change,” Seraphine said in her slow and melodic voice. I nodded eagerly. “There are many stories about what’s over that wall. Some say it’s a graveyard for all the shipwrecked boats and others say that the most fearsome and ferocious animals occupy it.”