A Tale of Twins Fire

A young girl finds herself swept up in a whirlwind of chaos and roaring flames. The trees watch the scene unfold with shock and horror.

A long, long time ago – just last week – there was a young girl whose hair was bright as the shining moon and her skin just as velvety and fair as the petal of a rose. Her eyes were creamier than chocolate and her intelligence had no such viscosity. She was sharp.  Sharper than the axe she used to cut wood everyday to feed the roaring fire that lived in her home. 

She lived in the woods surrounded by trees. She would often run and skip and play in the swaying summer trees, always being sure not to stray too far off the path. Her father had warned her vigorously about what happens to those who tread off the path and those lessons were not soon forgotten. Just like her father, the trees too had watchful eyes. They watched as she ran in between them, playing hide and seek with imaginary friends. They even watched as she cut them down and chopped them up to feed the fire. 

Although the woods were a place of wonder her home was full of fear. A wild fire raged inside the home. Yelling matches would constantly ring out, the swelling anger often threatened to engulf the wood walls and floor. She would play amongst the trees, or hide deep under her covers to escape the heat. Sometimes when the loud bangs and crashes rang out from below, she would imagine her blanket was the sea itself. The waves would ebb and flow to the movement of her restless legs and arms. Guppies nibbled at her toes if they peaked out from the cover of the waves. Water would keep the fire at bay she thought to herself; and so she spent long nights splashing around alone in her room. 

Aside from the heat of anger there lived a larger menace in the basement. A giant lived there, it was made of iron and it belched fire and consumed safety. Every day she would chop up trees to feed its insatiable hunger. The scratchy white logs would be stacked up to her chin as she shimmied the door open. From the top of the stairs she could hear it, groaning, creaking, plotting. Each time she had to feed the monster, she thought it would surely be the end. Her tiny little feet would run down the steps as fast as they could, she would launch the wood into its gaping mouth, and turn to run before the bark even touched the flame. 

As the girl grew older, the watchful gaze of the eyes grew stronger and fiercer. Even the safety of the woods that housed her imaginary friends and the many memories of summer play and winter shenanigans, even they no longer felt safe. She could no longer hide under the safe waves of the ocean that would squelch all fire. No. The fire continued to rage and day by day little burns began to appear. She thought to herself, if only she could be better, different. She thought surely there must be people well suited to live amongst fire. Sorrowfully, she would cry each day that she was born to be a person that would rather live in the ocean. 

As she grew, so did the fire that raged in her home. The monster in the basement required more and more to eat. The crashes and bangs she used to hear as muffled sounds outside the ocean, now they were setting her forest on fire. It was all directed at her because she was the one who would rather live in the ocean. Just like oil and water, she realized she could not fit into the life she had been given. It was like someone had stuffed her in a box two sizes too small and each passing day the walls grew closer. Safe places grew fewer. Trees fell and died, their watchful eyes flickering out, all to feed the hunger. 

It so happened that one day she had finished her chores, fed the beast, and still had energy and time leftover. Years had passed since she last enjoyed the comforts of her woodland games, but she thought today she might return to the comforting gaze of the woods. The sun was shining; the work done, the bullfrogs were croaking, and the general buzzing sound of summer insects filled the air. It was a wonderful day she thought to herself. A special day. 

As she readied herself for her small journey her heart was heavy at the misfortune of her life. There was no way she could meld quietly into the fire. The burns had grown worse over the years and before long they would be more than she could handle – try as she might. Dark red spots covered her body, some fresh, some long since scarred over. When she looked at each spot, they reminded her of her own incompetence. Her own ineptness. If only she had been born of fire, then she might live peacefully with her family. 

With a heavy heart, she slung her backpack over her shoulder and walked across the wooden threshold of the home. The door slammed shut behind her and she walked towards the woods without looking back. The sun danced across the canopy of leaves and branches. Every so often a single beam would escape through the forest roof and shine across her face. As much as she loved the water, the subtle warmth of the sun made her feel at ease. 

Before she knew it the old joy of the forest was kindled within her again. She found herself running through the trees playing tag with the birds. She climbed to the top of the largest tree she could find just to see the infinite expanse of forest and horizon, it reminded her of the ocean – infinite and expansive with so many adventures to offer. Even though she was past the age most people would consider acceptable for such behaviors, she called upon her imaginary friends and acted out all kinds of adventures, using sticks as swords, and each tree as a city, she entered a whole new world. One that didn’t feel quite so watchful, or quite so heated. 

The long hours of the day passed and before she knew it the sun was nearing the horizon. Its reclining position in the sky filled her with sadness. Until then she had unabashedly indulged in the joy of childhood. The sun’s descent reminded her of the weight on her heart and as if she suddenly was a different person, her face became somber, her body stiffened, the laughter in her eyes vanished and she began to make her way home. 

For the entire duration of the walk she was anxious. Praying and pleading that it would be peaceful upon her return and that she wouldn’t be in trouble for her absence. Her feet marched forth kicking up dirt from their subconscious unwillingness to arrive at their destination. After some time, she began to recognize the specific trees and knew she was close to home. The sun was disappearing in the distance leaving long red, orange, and purple streaks through the sky. That was why at first she didn’t think anything of the slight red glow in the woods. The light grew stronger as she came to the edge of the forest. She could see everything now and her heart skipped a beat. 

“This can’t be right” she thought. “That cannot be my home…” In the blackness of her eyes, a roaring fire danced. Her home was nearly engulfed with flames. The sun had set and yet the entire meadow was illuminated from the fire.

“No! Mom…Dad!” She screamed but heard no response. The only sound was the crackling and the random small explosions as the support beams caught fire and broke. The eastern portion of the home had already begun to collapse. 

She stood there, frozen in place at the horror. 

“What do I do, what do I do, what do I do….” She thought. Shaking her head as if she were saying no to this reality - rejecting it and telling it to go somewhere else.  But it didn’t. The house continued to burn. 

“I have to do something,” she thought with courage. Without anymore thinking she ran into the wall of flames. If there were any chance her parents were in there she had to try to save them. She jumped through the flames that consumed the front door, the door she had so casually left behind just hours before. 

Once she was inside there was a break from the flame. Luckily for her the stairs had not caught fire. She instantly ran up them to her parents’ room – nothing there. She checked her room – nothing. She ran back down the stairs, her feet had grown but she could still speed down the stairs like no one else. She checked the living room and kitchen – nothing. They weren’t there. 

“They must not have returned from town. Thank god…” She thought, grasping her heart with relief. The comfort was short lived. She suddenly remembered the situation and looked up. Fire had spread to all the walls and even parts of the floor. The stairs collapsed completely with a loud explosion to accompany. It was growing more difficult for her to breath. She wondered how she could possibly get out of this house, which was now consumed with the fire. Her only option was to do her best to run through the flames to the other side. She took a couple of deep breaths, as deep as she could as the smoke filled her lungs, and without hesitation her bravery carried her forth and she ran through a sea of flames hoping her feet would carry her to the other side. 

All was dark.