She knew with more certainty than she had felt since awaking; broken in the street, with no memory, that if she were to jump from this building, she would fly.
So without hesitation she dragged her tattered body to the edge of the building and flung herself over the side. She never doubted her one simple truth, as the wind snatched away what little air there was. SHE WOULD FLY. Even while falling rapidly towards the ground her body remained posed to take flight at any moment. She closed her eyes as the sound of wings flapped behind her and saw clouds so vibrant with color that they could not belong in the city where she had woken up.
So where did they belong? As soon as she had this thought, her body was yanked from her free fall. Her eyes snapped open; delighted that she had finally managed to take flight. Only what she saw instead was the immaculate silhouette of what was sure to be the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. A whimsical chiming of notes struck her ears and traveled straight to her heart. There was a flash of light where her mouth should have been. She immediately knew that was a smile and regretted that the light blinded her from seeing it.
Then the woman spoke in a voice so sweet, she was sure she could taste each of her words. "Did you jump from there, hoping to take your life?
Her question didn't surprise her. In fact she knew that, she had come to the logical conclusion. "No, I jumped so that I could fly." The woman seemed taken aback by her answer, but her shock soon turned to amusement. "And why did you think you could fly?" The question came out a half laugh. The girl answered easily, "Because I can fly.
"Is that so?" Not only was this question rhetorical, it was more of a statement saying that she couldn't. Although she wanted to be angry, she racked her mind trying to find proof, her mind was empty. The only memory she had was of the clouds and that hardly seemed like enough evidence. Thus she remained quiet.
"Suppose you can fly. Did you believe you could fly with your body so abused?"
Again the woman made sense but the girl still did not want to admit she was right, so she said nothing, her face displayed a pout so innocent and childish the woman couldn't hold back her laughter. Her whole body shook with it. It was such a warm laughter that the girl unknowingly let a smile splay on her lips. Seeing this the woman's laughter faded out as she returned her smile.
"Where is the nest from which you fell from, little bird?" "Nest?" She was dumbfounded for a moment before it clicked, yet still she could not answer. The woman persisted, "Your parents must be worried about their poor flightless bird. I would return you to them, if only you would tell me where." This was meant to prompt the girl to answer. However she could not answer since she did not know if she even had parents.
Instead she slowly raised her arm and pointed to one of the windows on the building she had thrown herself off of. Behind that window was the room she was brought to after waking up in the street; it was a hospital. The woman looked away, then they slowly started to ascend towards the window. In that moment she realized they had been flying the entire time. No; she thought sadly; the woman was flying and merely carrying me. How had she not noticed such an obvious fact, but even as she asked herself this the answer came to her. This woman's presence consumed all of her senses.
Now that she was more aware she could see she had wings almost twice her size. They were of the purest white and seemed to intensify the light that already surrounded her. The light made it impossible to define her features. Soon the woman landed on the ledge of the window. With perfect balance she perched herself on one leg and used her other foot to open the window then hopped inside landing quietly. Quickly the woman took in the room, from the dimness of the room, to the faint smell of blood, and finally to the fact that no one else was in the room with them. "Did your parents go home for the night?" The girl shook her head. "I was brought here alone. I don't remember anything before yesterday."
The woman shifted the girl around in her arms then went to the bed and gently set her down. She then turned to leave but abruptly stopped and turned back to the girl. "Do you remember your name?"
The girl searched but nothing came to mind. Unfazed by this discovery, she told the woman no. Slowly a single streak of light stained the women's cheek. The golden tear drop fell to the floor and left an afterglow.
The girl felt nothing about the situation she was in, only indifferent. She could not understand why the woman cried. Even so the sight caused a pang in her heart. Still she could think of nothing to ease the woman's suffering. No move was made to wipe the tear away. Before she could think of something to give comfort, a reluctant smile creep onto the woman's face. Such sadness didn't suit her, her sorrow seemed so deep. Too deep. She wanted her to smile and laugh again. Not knowing why she felt so strongly she couldn't act.