Quote from: Shantel on October 17, 2014, 08:36:19 AM
Too many scary things, maybe if I go to sleep they will go away.

sootball jumps in with the scared pooh and pats back

Cerys has been hidden, wrapped in her shadow form in the darkness under the forest. Not the darkness of the void, or the silver emptiness of the blade garden, rather a healing darkness. She feels the arrival of a fellow dragon in the skies of the forest far above her and calls a welcome, rousing herself she starts to fly upwards to light and life. The myriad grottos and hidden kingdoms that lie beneath the forest pass through her insubstantial form. She smiles thinking of The Shadow and the place they call home, she calls to them, and hearing an echo of herself in their thoughts changes the path of her upward flight.

At the side of the forest pool, a dark mist starts to rise from the earth, gaining momentum until it becomes a vortex of shadow. The Shadow smiles at the obvious fear of the other forest creatures, they alone know what is happening as it was they who called Cerys here. As suddenly as it began, the vortex is gone, leaving Cerys stood there in her human dragon form. She smiles warmly, lest the other forest creatures think she is a threat and raising her voice in welcome beats her wings once and powers into the sky.

this vampire turns away and walks back into the dark fortress. suddenly turning around, an arrow flew right past, cutting the vampire *baring fangs and claws* "omg, stop flinging arrows. one just cut me!*

"What arrows?" The genderless fairy child smiled, holding a small Nerf gun in their hand, they had modified it with glitter heart stickers. They clicked the gun and several harmless foam bullets that bounced off the vampire's body, "Accept the love, Brianna!!! Pew, pew, pew!" They giggled and hid behind a bush.

raising a hand, this vampire summons 3 wolves "here, go play tag with these guys. they've been itching to get out for exercise"

not enough kats in here...

a lone ball of soot jumps onto the pack leader's head and tickles its ear.

the vampire raise a hand and summons 3 black tigers. "there you go. just be careful"

a shadow throws itself around the nearest tiger's nech and swirls it away to a cave to cuddle.

the sootball is a little started, and kind of worried to be left alone with the big wolves.

sings in the night than suddenly the waters rise in cascade and begin to form into what appears to be a large dragon. "i got bored so imma just play with water. dont feel like playing with fire right now"

finishing a book and out of boredom, this vampire decides to descend into the city bellow. " hey, has anyone seen my raven. cant seem to find him anywhere" of course the 2 shadow guards follow much to the annoyance of the vampire. talking to the guards " just dont cause trouble. i dont feel like dealing with the locals again"

The genderless fairy child swooped the sootball into their arms and placed them on a branch of a nearby tree, patting its head gently before flying off into the sky.

Their colorful wings hummed as the child flew through the air, they took a deep breath and disappeared into a small rocky cave that led deep beneath the ground, towards the shimmering lake that reflected the vast, peaceful galaxy. This was their safe place to relax and look deep within themselves. Privacy was important to them, it allowed them to reflect on their deepest and perhaps, the darkest parts of their core.

They approached a mirror, twisted metal and rocks framing it against the wall within the cave. Without hesitating, the child peered into their Mirror of Truth.

Their reflection was murky and it faded to black, a young girl walked into view, her hands against the mirror, her words were muffled but from the way her lips were moving, the child could see she was begging and screaming for, "Help! Somebody help me!" Her cries went unheard, the child was ashamed of this but kept watching. The rules and pressure from society held its heavy weight on the girl, she also disliked her female body because it felt wrong... she did not desire having children, she saw no reason to receive periods, she saw no reason for sex or to have breasts. The girl clutched onto her chest, crying and her body burst into flames, the darkness eating away at her body, eating her will to live...

A shining light appeared from above, the light washing away the flames, the girl was left with burns, scars that would never heal but the light gave her hope, a will to live... it was the light of being trans. The girl had foolishly picked the wrong light within the trans umbrella... but she was happy, being a boy meant fighting the darkness that gripped her as a girl. She was seen smiling as she changed into he.

He was confident, full of life and happy. He charged at life with great purpose. Slowly, it began to dawn on him, the pressures and rules surrounding males were no better than the pressures and rules surrounding females. He realized passing as male was painful, relationships failed because he refused to be a carbon-copy of "stereotypical sexist cis-guy", he refused to cave in to the pressure and rules that dictate how he should act or live. Living as a male was a trigger for dysphoria, just as living as a female did. He knew he wanted a flat chest but he was once adamant on having complete bottom surgery, doubt began to creep in.

He looked deep within himself, searched the memories of his and hers... desperately searching, the answer, their truth had to be somewhere... The girl's thoughts of not wanting her female parts... yes, that's it...! She thought being male would be better than being female, that if she hated being female so much, that being male must be the answer... ahh, that binary way of thinking. He told her that disliking being female does not necessarily mean she desires to be male. It means she simply desires to be sexless, devoid of sexual characteristics altogether. 

The girl and the boy both cried together, they wept and wept and wept... They both had made mistakes but they did not regret the choices they made, all they can do is move forward and make the changes they can make now...

They both looked at the genderless child on the other side of the mirror, the girl and boy merged into one, becoming the genderless child's reflection. Their truth...was painful but it was beautiful. It served as their purpose to keep moving forward... The child smiled and whispered, "Thank you... you two have sacrificed so much for me, I will not let your sacrifice be in vain. We will be happy together! We may smile on the outside and frown on the inside due to how the body looks but one day, we shall smile both outside and inside the day our body mirrors our truth... until then, please hold on!"

The child leaned forward and kissed their reflection, cuddling the mirror, "It will be okay... we are survivors, we have come too far to give up now." They smiled, their reflection smiled back to them in response.

"i feel like playing the role of evil villain for once" with an evil smile, the vampire raises a hand. suddenly the sky turned back and the sound booming. the sky starts to crackle with immense energy. than after a few seconds, several bolts of lightning fire hitting the ground "hmmm, now lets play. always wanted to try to. no pain, just been cooped up, my power has become a little rusty. need the exercise" the shadow guards appear, raises their tridents and starts firing several balls of dark energy "sry town's people. forgive me" the vampire points a finger and bombards the town with devastating power, almost turning the landscape to ash. after the fireworks, the vampire followed by the guards, ascend back into the dark forest, with the vampire's evil laughter fading into the haze " i should get out more. that was....kinda fun" with an evil grin, showing 2 pointy fangs

The genderless fairy child shook their head in disappointment, "Brianna, I welcomed you to the forest to encourage exploring yourself, not to play a game. It was fun at first but now it is boring. You do not need to play a role of being a villain, you just need to be yourself."

"Are you brave enough to peer into your Mirror of Truth, Brianna?" The question is asked but will it be answered...? Will the lonely vampire muster the courage to peer into their truth...?

One can only pray... and hope...

Kel the leafy sea dragon emerges from the pond and reverts to her dormouse form. She looks around, sniffs the air and makes a choice. She uses her stored acorns to leave a message in the clearing..

Be happy, be well and thank you..

Suddenly a phoenix rises from the clearing, flying straight up above the tree tops, where it vanishes without a sound.

upset, the vampire walks to the middle of the forest and stabs the staff into the ground " i'll leave it here. the gem contains my power. succumbed to the last bit i had left." turning away, the vampire takes one final look and walks away " i'll be back for it another day. i still have meditating to do. i shall take my leave for now" with that, the vampire vanishes along with the dark fortress.

The genderless fairy child frowned, as predicted, the young vampire had given up far too soon. A common trait but one that can be changed with time, effort and finding love within oneself with the support of many forest creatures here. Fear surrounded them, unwilling to let the vampire open their heart to the light... the light will not burn them as the notion that sunlight burns vampires to their death. Light and happiness will not cause your death, it is the sign of your rebirth, dear Brianna. I am sorry that you cannot see that but one day, without a doubt, you will on your own accord. I assure you, you will find love and acceptance within yourself like many others here have... 

The vampire speaks of the shadow, a balance between light and darkness - but how can one claim such balance when the darkness is their only solace...? How can the shadow help you understand reality when you cannot see the light and refuse to look deep within yourself when given the opportunity to do so...? Is it that scary to gaze into your Mirror of Truth...?

Resorting to fantasy will lead to chaos in terms of understanding your reality. Destiny is well within your reach, dear Brianna, the last of your power is not within your staff, that is just a piece of metal, the power is within your body - you.

You, just like every creature here, have the power to control your life and your destiny. Do not be afraid.

"Who's gonna fight for what's right
Who's gonna help us survive
We're in the fight of our lives
(And we're not ready to die)

Who's gonna fight for the weak
Who's gonna make 'em believe
I've got a hero (I've got a hero)
Livin' in me

I'm gonna fight for what's right
Today I'm speaking my mind
And if it kills me tonight
(I will be ready to die)"
- "Hero" by Skillet

Circling lazily in the sky, Cerys wonders where the other dragon went. Her time in the darkness, followed by all this activity has left her feeling hungry, and her lazy circles become more measured as she starts to hunt. Her flight takes her to the distant edges of the forest and towards the world of cis and it is there that she spies her prey. Falling from the sky like a copper thunderbolt she knocks the pizza planet delivery truck on its side and casually tears the roof off with her razor sharp claws.

"Oh, perperroni with long pig sashimi on the side! My favourite!"

A blur of wings and the fairy streaked after the Phoenix, confused as to what was happening in he'r beloved forest.  She had seen the genderless fairy and their painful truth, the other creatures too who found their truths in the forest, daring to reveal themselves in ways impossible elsewhere.  The forest had changed, strange thoughts had taken root, old deceptions returning.  And some think it a toy, this truth in this place, but many know the importance of it, the power of it, it is a way to speak not taken lightly here.

She flies high and fast, she is protective of the dormouse, they touched her heart.

Be wise, my dear ones, the forest is rare, and easily lost.  Our warriors were wounded, some are gone, we must see clearly, passing on that entrusted to us for the good of trans.  We are as rare as the unicorn, we must endure, preserve, and live true.

Blessings and

Satinjoy

The snail finds Kel's acorns, and smiles remembering sitting by the pools with the other creatures, warm and safe well into the night...
He saves a few for future nourishment, then follows her regretably towards the horizon..

The phoenix glides in huge, silent circles over the forest, watching, waiting. She sees the snail and smiles as he finds the acorn and then frowns as she sees him leaving, so she swoops down and says, 'Please don't leave the Forest, not on my account, for I will return...