Dawn at Belvedere Castle - Déjà vu

[nomorekaraoke]

At first, there's barely a sound, barely a speck of color among the shadows of the deceptively old structure. Not anything remarkable about the place, except for its location, perhaps. The air is crisp, the ground is slippery here and there, ice covered in sludge losing the war against the patches of green grass spreading all around.

He's always liked spring. Especially now, when his eyes are closed and his senses are focused outward; every little hint of it is like a peck on the cheek or the ear or the back of his neck - there's a certain smell to the air, a green scent that resonates within him. He remembers the first spring on Earth, and the winter that came before it. He kept imagining the snowflakes were fairies - tiny little darlings dancing in the air only to become it if they ever touched you. Evaporating, melting... It's an end he wouldn't wish on anyone. But spring... Spring is hope. Spring is being born again.

Slowly, softly, color seeps into the world between the cracks. Yellow tones, orange and ocher battling against the dark in an eternal war.

It's beautiful. It gives him hope. The world didn't end tonight. It's just begun anew. Turned a new leaf, if you will.

He opens his eyes, the warmth reflecting in the red of his irises. Maybe today, he can turn a new leaf too. Maybe it isn't too late.

Maybe there's hope for him yet.

Comments

[stilljustandrew]

Really it would make more sense to walk around the front of the Turtle Pond instead of going up the rise behind the pond, past the little toy castle, and down the other side. But Andrew's pretty sure that from the railing of the castle's courtyard he'll be able to get something close to an overhead view of the bronze King Jagiello on his pedestal, and maybe some further clue as to what Vayan and his people were doing there that night last month.

It's not really all that cold, but he’s been out in it for a couple of hours and that's enough to make his muscles stiff and complainy as he climbs the rise. "Quit whining, legs," he mutters under his breath. "We're almost done and then we can find a Starbucks and get a hot chocolate, okay?"