The Girl with an Owl

Chapter 4

The Inbetween

Even though she was ready to stay there for a long time, admiring the truly mesmerizing sights she had never seen before, she knew they had to go on. It was clear that it was just a hallway to whole new worlds, but it was still the most magnificent thing she had ever seen.

"What is this place?" she asked, stunned.

"I thought it was quite obvious. It is the Inbetween, the place where all the magical portals reside." Wallace answered.

The answer came as a shock to Ajana because she felt like there was only one portal, the one that was calling to her. Every part of her body and soul was attracted to it, and she thought she would have felt if there were other portals.

"Other portals?" she asked.

"Yes, physically, there is only one representation of the portal, but there is more than one portal," Wallace replied patiently.

Ajana nodded her head, although she had no idea what he was saying. Seeing her confusion, Wallace approached the portal and pointed one of his wings to the golden arch above it.

Only then did she notice that there were some strange symbols carved into it. Around them, rings were encircling each one of the symbols separately.

"What you see now is the portal in its stagnant phase, but once we turn these symbols upside down, the portal becomes active," Wallace said.

Since Ajana still seemed stunned, Wallace decided to show her what he meant. Using his beak, he turned one of the symbols upside-down, and the moment he did so, the surface of what Ajana thought of as a mirror immediately changed.

There were no longer any shifting properties to it, just the most fascinating image she had ever seen.

Ajana could see a place that she could only describe as breathtaking.

There were some unusual monuments embraced by the green ivy that was all around them, and there was also raw power emanating from them.

Around them, there were so many colors that her mind couldn't comprehend all of them. What she could tell was that they were mostly light colors, including different shades of pink and purple.

It seemed as if the wind was made of colors, and it was blowing all over the beautiful place.

To Ajana's utter delight, she could also see some fairies flying around and performing some magical rituals. There was fairy dust all around them, and it was incredible how well they fit in with the colorful surroundings. The wind of colors didn't seem to disturb them in any way. They were enjoying it.

In the background, Ajana could see a shimmering house-like structure that looked as if someone had made it out of magic. She wasn't sure if the fairies made it or if it was always there, glittering proudly on the hill.

Besides that, there were many trees. Some of them looked like regular trees, and some seemed to shimmer from all the magic they contained.

"Is that where we are going? Is that Mag?" She asked.

"No, that is not Mag. That is Far, the land of fairies. Maybe you will go there one day when you are ready, but for now, I just wanted to show you how the portal works." Wallace said.

It was a bit disappointing for Ajana that she wouldn't get the chance to go there immediately, but she was looking forward to visiting someday.

"Okay, let me now adjust the portal for Mag," Wallace said as he turned the symbol of an owl with his beak.

Ajana found that a bit unusual since she thought they were going to the magical land, and although she loved owls, she didn't think of them as magical beings. However, she decided not to say anything for fear of offending Wallace.

The moment he turned the symbol, the picture changed, but it still showed a place of immense beauty. It was a different kind of beauty, more subtle and peaceful. However, it was still fascinating to Ajana.

In the foreground, there were perfectly shaped trees whose tops reminded her of mushroom caps in shape. They were the most vibrant shade of green she had ever seen.

Further on, she could see lovely flower fields of different colors. The closest one was red, but there were also purple and blue ones.

There was also a yellow path that led towards an enormous green castle that seemed to be composed of a firm crystal that she had never seen before. The shape was also different from what she expected. It reminded her of icicles, only reversed, and instead of the sharp points, they were rounder and gentler.

It was difficult for her mind to try to understand it because she had never seen anything like it before. The comparisons made it easier for her to catalog what she saw.

Finally, she was snapped back from her fascination with the sound of Wallace's voice.

"Come on, let's go!" he said.

And off they went.