Looking back at it, everything was bound to fall apart eventually. I was a thorn in their sides, living too freely, too much like myself. The rumours, the talking, they never bothered me. They saw that. I should have seen it coming but I didn’t care enough. Why would anyone want to stay there, in this place of hypocrisy, of arrogance, of chains that keep you from flying too far.
Wings should offer freedom. They should allow you to fly across oceans and mountains and clouds, soaring with all your worries left behind. That’s what they mean to me, that’s what they do for me. I love them, these stardust speckled deeply violet feathers. The anger and despair I felt when they bound them, when they took this freedom from me. Had they damaged them, I would have killed them all.
Betrayal, sin, danger. Words repeated until they lost all meaning, until those present breathed them and ingrained them into their minds. Suffocating stares behind blank faces, arrogant tongues, they never change. Those who condemn love and praise obedience, who convict the free and applaud the tethered.
Their applause rings loud in my ears. As my eyes wander towards the council, I can see the jovial faces of the gallery. They relish in the exile of another who fell victim to the darkness, of one who fell from grace.
Others had been screaming for them to cut my wings, to take away my freedom, my love. The council considered it for a second, then denied the request. Fear was all too present in their eyes. One who could have burnt everything and leave it nothing but ash, they would never have survived taking the wings.
They decided to send me away instead, away from the brainwashed public. So that I wouldn’t infect them with my free spirit that seemed so dangerous to them. For them, it was a punishment, for me, it was a chance at true freedom. And I smiled as I fell, feeling freer than ever before. Just as free as when I met them, broke my chains, lived as who I wanted to be since forever.
Them. The one who the council deemed has tainted me. The one who they wanted to neutralise to sell their version of our story. But my love would never fall to them. They hid away where no one could find them, waiting for my fall.
I realised it when I saw them for the first time. Their free heart that I desired. They helped me break my chains, break away from the ideals that the council imposed on us. They helped me live.
Maybe one day, we will extinguish their ideals, plant a seed of freedom for those who want to break their chains. We will show them how to escape their restraints, blind the impenetrable darkness with our colourful light.
I came to in a dark forest. Through the silent night, the insects chirped a soft harmony. I looked to the night sky above, through the thick branches of the trees. It resembled the canvas I once knew but I barely recognised it. Less colour, less stars, it seemed as if the magic it once carried was taken away. Even the cold wind didn’t feel the same. I closed my eyes as I remembered the bright sky, the warm wind, the colourful lights.
I hid my wings, my flames as I heard muffled voices. My magic, I locked away, for another time when it was needed.
As I passed the group of humans, I smiled. I could hear the voice of my love calling for me, leading me to them. With the sparkling lights of the city on the horizon, I took a deep breath and started to walk.
I passed by grey dull buildings covered in layers of dust and mould. Dim warm lights shone through the heavy curtains. Several humans walked the streets, hushed and huddled as they hurried through the night. They feared what could lurk in the darkness behind each corner, things that they could not understand. The shadows moved and slithered and shrouded, hiding their secrets behind an opaque veil. Sensing a familiar warmth behind me, I smiled as I finally felt at home.