Before the world was engulfed with a plaguing darkness, Viola stole scraps from the bins outside the restaurants that lined the alleyways of Toronto like a line of toy soldiers. She walked back to her “home” if you can call two slabs of tin that were mounted together a “house.” When she traveled through the deep wood and arrived to her destination, she sat down and ate the only things she had. Coleslaw, cold dim sum, and seafood.

Coldness seeped into the “house” as she tried to wrap herself in thin blankets. For her, living was hard, but sleeping contently was like pushing a person through another reality. As the night dragged on, Viola heard something shake among the bushes.

Grabbing her switch knife, given from her parents before they died, and a flashlight, she ran to the bushes and yelled, “Get out of here!” She expected a bear or a fox, but it was neither. Instead, a long shadow snaked out of the bushes. Stunned and shocked, Viola’s eyes were as big as the full moon on a clear summer’s night as her mouth slowly went dry.

“Sh-Show yourself.” Indeed, it did. Once it did, it revealed a beautiful, tall young woman. She was in a gown that was fit for a queen, which was pitch black and turned to a soft, deep and rich purple; it  speckled with the constellations of the night that shimmered and glowed. Her complexion was smooth without a single wrinkle and on her head was silky, smooth black hair that spilled over her shoulders like licorice.  

“Who are you?” Viola sputtered out while yielding her only weapon.

“I am the face of the shadows at night. I am the dust that covers the grounds of young children’s dreams. I am the stones that-”

“Yeah, yeah that’s all well and good, but exactly who are you?”

The woman smiled. “I have what you are looking for.”

Viola looked at her confused, “And what exactly is that?”  

With compassion, she said, “I am the answers to your calls for help.”

To be Continued…