Leaving Laurabelle Falls

Chapter 14

We stood in front of a mandala carved into the ground. It had intricate workings, colorful variations of curves and points, all spiraling out from the center point. At points, it looked like tree roots. Other portions had very specific and precise geometry.

Deacon stood on a stage at one of the points. Beside him was a bow and arrow, and beside that, there was a torch burning in a holster. At the other end of the mandala, there was a pile of wood that was large and dry.

It was clearly my time to shine.

A small band stood on the stage, holding instruments of various shapes and sizes.

"Let us commence the waltz. Everyone, take your places," He instructed, and several people came to stand around the circle. Some of them I recognized, some, I didn't. My brother and Therese were directly opposite to me and Clyde.

Clyde took a few steps in, guiding me along the way. I took a shaky breath, and I stood in front of him. I raised my head high and put my elbow out at an angle, remembering the proper stance that we had been taught in class.

"Aaand, begin!" Deacon announced, giving a bow to the band. The music began, and Bethany took a few steps by herself at the edge of the circle. He hopped off the stage, and effortlessly joined in, replacing the ghost she had been dancing with just moments before.

I barely even noticed that Clyde and I were moving, but we were. He stepped back, leading me to step forward. My eyes fell to the ground as I struggled to follow his steps, wanting to appear graceful.

What sort of hope would these people have if they thought that their savior was too clumsy to waltz?

We began to rotate, and Clyde squeezed my elbow. My eyes snapped back up.

"Just relax." He iterated, looking deep into my eyes. I felt a cosmic flood of relaxation shower down upon me, like the best anxiety medicine that money could buy. I found myself moving with him, and felt an odd pressure between my shoulder blades. "We have some help for this part."

He looked different. Was glowing, just a little bit, around the edges. It was a silver kind of glow, and I glanced down. I found that I was glowing, too. Gold around the edges, like a chocolate coin wrapped in a golden wrapper.

The crowd oo'd and ahh'd, accepting the natural display of the cosmic divine. I wondered whether or not they had ever seen this in action before, or if it was the first time.

I was working with something, with someone. There was a second presence in my brain, guiding me and Clyde. I could feel the power of the Goddess flowing through me, I could sense the cosmic humm that powered all of this in every step of the dance.

We rounded towards the fire pit, Clyde's hands on my hips and the fire in our hearts illuminating the ring. He spun me out, and I ducked under his arm on instinct, causing my dress to flare out dramatically.

I glanced over towards my brother to see that at some point, Therese had been switched out for Velma, and the two of them were now dancing.

We rounded the three-quarter point, and I prayed that this feeling wouldn't go away. It felt like there was a second presence in my head. Something vast and all-knowing, something beautiful. I had never felt more reassured.

As we came to a stop at the top of the ring, the music stopped, in the middle of its swell. My chest was rising and falling in large pulls, but I didn't feel like I was out of breath. On the contrary, I had seldom felt more alive.

"Now, it's time for the ceremonial lighting! It will begin our journey into the woods, it will begin the final fight against the Deerman." Deacon announced.