sudden inspiration, thanks tumblr. Sorry if it sucks, I wrote it just now and it's like 1:00 am
- M
I trail my finger down the mirror, keeping in sync with the beautiful girl on the other side. I stare into her glittering blue eyes. Her hair cascades across her shoulders in waves of smooth black. She stares directly back at me. She sees me, but she's really just seeing a reflection of herself.
I know you might think it's self-centered of me to say that she is beautiful, since technically we are identical twins living in an alternate universe, but it's not. Really it's not. We are not the same person. We are both so vastly different. It's in the eyes. It's in the way we talk and the way we smile. It's the way our hearts beat out of sync when the rest of us moves in perfect unison. And she is beautiful and free, and I am hard and weathered.
She leans her forehead against the cold surface and lets out a breath, closing her eyes. I do the same but I keep my eyes open, I watch her, I keep her from falling into my world. I watch the way her eyebrows have a small crinkle in the middle, and the way her lips are slightly parted as though she wants to say something. I watch the way she rests her hands so gently. Then she pushes herself back and walks away.
I stand there for another minute or two. Then I slowly press the button next to the mirror. A shield of metal slides down and clanks into place. I twist the lock tight, sealing away the portal. That's my job, to protect her from entering our world. Everyone has one, they call them their Shadows. I would call her by her name if I could, but the mirrors are sound proof so I don't call her anything.
Some people don't protect their shadows, they let them enter our world and die. They neglect them. Other peoples shadows died long ago and yet they live on without them. When they look in a mirror they are left staring at a blank space we're they're shadow should be. Then there are some, but very few, who can take on another shadow. That can only happen if the other half of that shadow for both parties have passed on. But usually they just live on forever never seeing anything in the mirror ever again.
Most of us protect the people behind the mirrors because we want to preserve they're purity and they're freedom and joy. I think what motivates most of us is the thought that somewhere in an alternate universe a part of us is living in a happier place.
I grab my sweater and head out the door. I stomp down the long fire escape, my boots rattle the brittle rusted metal. My world is so dark and colorless. Different shades of whites and greys, but mostly black. Shadows envelope everything, and the shadows only grow, they never fade. Sometimes I fear that the only bright things left in the world one day will be the mirrors that shine into the other worlds. The last bit of light to stand by while the rest of our world fades.
I pass many people on my way. We are all dressed in the same black clothes, most of us are grim faced. A gust of wind billows, stirring a cloud of ashes. I duck into the rubble of an old building.
I make my way past the broken furniture and crumbling walls, and go into the basement. I see my old friend Mags sitting cross legged staring into her mirror, awash in golden orange light. As I descend the creaky old stairs Mags looks over at me with a huge grin, then waves me over excitedly.
"Quickly, come look! My boy took his first steps today!" She exclaims, beaming with joy, tears in her eyes. I sit next to her and see a living room, dusk is setting. In the room there is a boy and his mother, she takes his hand and lends him her balance. He wobbles on his unsteady feet, then takes a tentative step forward. Mags gasps and radiates pride. She has been protecting him since he was an infant, she has watched him grow up. He is like her very own son.
I remember how bleak things were for her. She would sit in front of the mirror for hours but would see nothing but herself. She never talked about her previous shadow and I never asked. She was slipping farther and farther down as the years went by. I would try to support her and be there for her but it's hard to stay happy in this world. Then she looked at the mirror and saw the reflection of a baby boy. And her life changed. She suddenly had a purpose.
