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Anita's lullaby




Anita sat at the piano with only the light from the fireplace to illuminate the keys her hands so gracefully danced upon.


Her soft brown hair flowed down past her shoulders, shaping her slender face. Her green eyes glimmered with every flicker of flame. The white dress she wore made her look even more delicate and regal than I had ever seen her.


She played a slow tune that mixed with the sound of rain tapping against the window. The call of the wind that whistled underneath the door and thin cracks of the wooden house.


I sat in my armchair, occupying a space beside the window that faced the warm fireplace. The flames danced along to Anita’s lullaby while my eyes grew heavy and drowsiness poured over me. Anita continued to play. My eyes barely closed before I noticed a sudden change from outside the window. I turned sharply, my eyes wide and searching.


Dark fields surrounded our house with a small lake nestled by the front. There was nothing much else around other than trees and bushes to decorate the land. Nothing looked out of place, but as I continued to stare out of the window, there was a small light coming from the lake.


“Darling?” I heard her call. I didn’t even notice that she had stopped playing. Her voice, so soft and soothing. I turned to her and saw the worry look in her eyes. my heart melted at the worry I caused.


“I’m sorry dear; I got distracted.” Slowly, I rose from my chair and walked over to where she sat, watching me. I placed a hand on the side of her face and kissed her forehead. She smiled and turned to look at the window.


I continued to look at her and watched as the smile faded from her lips.


“Tell me, my love.” She implored as she turned her whole body to me, taking my hand away from her face and kissing the knuckles. “What did you see out there?”


Her eyes were so doe-like.


“It was nothing my dear, only a small light reflecting on the window.” I managed a small comforting smile, hoping it would ease her worry.


She turned her head again towards the window and sighed before nodding and going back to playing the piano. “It’s getting late; you should head to bed.”


“What about you?” I asked, trying to catch a glimpse of her face that remained focused on the piano.


“I will be up shortly. don’t worry.” She smiled as she turned ever so slightly from her perch on the piano to look at me. A sort of quick flick across her shoulder. I returned the smile and kissed her goodnight before heading upstairs.


The piano was silent from the top floor and the rain and wind were louder.

Once inside our room, I took out a box of matches from the bedside table and lit a few candles to chase away the darkness before donning a dressing gown and lying down in bed.

---


My eyes opened heavily. Once their focus had returned, I could see Anita step softly about the room, changing and then making her way to the window. She stopped and stared out from it until some moments passed. Suddenly, she opened the window, letting in a small breeze. She turned and looked down at me with a loving smile. Her feet padded against the floorboards as she came closer and placed her soft lips upon my head. I smiled lazily back at her, sleep quickly steeling me away.


The feeling of coldness soon followed, sharply separating me from my deep sleep. My jaw ached; as my body began to violently shake and shiver. A soft lullaby drifted and danced all around me as I fought against the drowsiness that rested on top of my eyes. It was only when my bare feet sunk into ice-cold water that I jolted awake.


I stumbled back onto the mud, as I looked all around to see I was by the lake a few feet away from the house.


I watched as my wife came running out of my house, screaming my name, screaming for me to come back. Soon, the lullaby drowned her voice out entirely and held me captive.

Unwillingly, my feat turned around and stepped back into the pond. A strange calmness swept over me, and yet my wife continued to yell. She rapidly got closer. I took another step into the freezing cold water, towards a fair maiden that held a single black candlestick.


Dressed in white, her dress floated with the wind as her soft brown hair flowed down past her shoulders, shaping her slender face. Her green eyes glimmered with every flicker of the candle.


Her lullaby made my ears deaf to the cries of my wife, and impervious to the pain from the freezing water reaching my waist, numb. I wanted her to embrace me in her arms as she extended out a hand to me. When those arms, slowly, sinuously wrapped themselves around my waist, my heartbeat at a prominence that I had never known. It was a mix of fear and longing.


“No, William don’t!” She sobbed, resting her head against my back.


I lifted up my heavy arm to meet the fair maidens’ hand.


“I never want to do this to you.” Anita’s teeth chattered as the fair maiden’s small pink lips smiled ever so softly at me.


“Anita,” I sighed. I was pulled into the maiden’s soft and caring embrace as Anita stayed attached to me, pleading the maiden to let me go.


“Please, not him!” She wailed, holding me tight against her. “I don’t want to do this anymore!”


The fair maiden’s voice still rang out in the air. “Can’t you see? I love him!”


It was then that I felt the coldness consume my whole body. I was held gently in place, my limbs heavy and weak to fight back. My whole world went black in the matter of seconds as the coldness got too much to bear. My heart broke, in an ecstasy of love, an ache.


Water filled my lungs.


The soft lullaby tickled my ears in those final minutes. I could hear two voices singing in beautiful harmony, but the second voice sounded so full of lament, it would have made even the dead cry.

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