Aaron opened his eyes and thought that he had gone blind. The thought of not being able to see again was just too much for him to handle, along with everything else that had happened to him. Tears welled up in his eyes as stifled sobs echoed in the darkness. Aaron held back his desire to scream at the top of his lungs, thinking that the two monsters that put him in that terrible place might hear his cries. He felt along the cold, hard floor, crawling, until he found one of the walls to his cell, made of the same black material. Aaron assumed that it was also the same black material he had seen earlier in the throne room—at least he figured that’s what the room was called. Leaning against the wall, he put his knees to his chest and rocked back and forth. His mother used to rock him to sleep, but she hadn’t in very long time.
Minutes passed and Aaron’s sobs subsided a little. Out of the darkness images began to materialize about three feet from his face. Only straight lines at first, then the images began to transform from thin lines into long thin tubes. Aaron’s face brightened, his sobs ceased, once he realized that his sight hadn’t left him but a knot in his stomach tightened as he realized what those long thin tubes were: prison bars. Beyond his cell Aaron could just make out the outline of a doorway and a staircase.
A faint flickering light suddenly illuminated the dungeon, emanating from the doorway at the top of the staircase. Aaron then heard shuffling feet and labored breathing. He retreated back to the wall, not realizing that he had started crawling towards the bars. Aaron figured that whoever was coming to see him was not going to be someone he considered a friend.
Grizelda’s gargantuan form filled the doorway. A glowing torch held in her right hand was the source of the light. Aaron squinted, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness.
“You’re awake I see. Good.” Grizelda grumbled. “I have some food for you.” Aaron now saw that a silver tray was floating in front of the witch, hovering in mid-air.
“I’m not hungry.” Aaron turned away, facing the wall to his right. However, his rebellious stomach spoke out against him, craving whatever food the witch had to offer. Grizelda smiled, “Suit yourself. I’ll just leave this here in case your head decides to listen to reason.” Aaron looked out of the corner of his eye and saw something so strange that his entire head turned to look out of curiosity. The tray of food floated through the black bars as if it were made out of sand. The edges of the tray bent around the bars and reformed on the other side gliding through the air until it came to rest inches from Aaron’s feet.
“Surprised?” Grizelda asked.
Aaron turned his attention from the food and opened his mouth to ask a hundred questions only to find that his mouth was still recovering. “Of course you are. You come from a world that no longer sees miracles, even when they happen right in front of your eyes. After everything you’ve seen today a simple trick is the thing that shocks you?” Grizelda shook her head and turned to leave.
“Thanks,” Aaron whispered in the dark. Grizelda stopped, the torch still glowing, (Aaron noticed that it wasn’t making the cracking and popping sounds he usually associated with fire) her right foot resting on the first step in the doorway. She snapped her fingers and the light on top of the torch split in half forming two distinct, but smaller balls of light. With a wave of her hand the second ball of light floated closer to Aaron’s cell, stopping as it reached the bars.
“I suggest you eat within thirty minutes. After that you won’t be able to see if you’re eating the food or the tray.” Grizelda, her back still facing Aaron, placed her left foot on the first step and said in a tone so soft that Aaron barely heard the words that escaped her lips, “You’re welcome.” And without another word, Grizelda walked through the doorway and shut the door behind her.
Aaron didn’t know what to think. So far, his stay in this world had not garnered much hospitality; a simple “you’re welcome” was something he did not expect. His mom used to say, “Being polite will get you far in this world, Aaron.” He was starting to believe that she might have been right.
For the first time, Aaron actually saw what was on the tray of food Grizelda had brought him: a peanut butter and jelly sandwich cut diagonally and a pint-sized carton of orange juice. The first thought that came to his mind was, how did she know that peanut butter and jelly was my favorite? He didn’t ponder the question for very long because his stomach screamed for him to eat first and ask questions later.
Aaron’s hands grabbed the sandwich and all but stuffed it into his mouth. In an instant, his voracious appetite consumed both the sandwich and the small carton of orange juice. While the small meal didn’t satisfy him completely, Aaron was still glad for the meal, as was his stomach, which was quieter now that it had something to occupy itself with.
Having finished everything on the tray, Aaron pushed it away turned his attention to the floating ball of light. He was transfixed. His curiosity was too strong, so Aaron stood up and walked towards the bars of his cell.
The light was a brilliant white that bathed the entire room with a soft glow. Assuming that the ball of light would give off some sort of heat, Aaron reached out his hand and tested the ball’s temperature with the palm of his hand. For some reason, he wasn’t surprised to find that no heat whatsoever was coming from the white light. Aaron smiled and reached further, stretching his fingers in hopes of touching the light. For a split second, Aaron felt a something like a feather touching the tips of his fingers, however the moment didn’t last long. The ball of light vibrated and shrank, pulling into itself until only a pinpoint of light remained and then it vanished, once more leaving Aaron in the dark.
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