Storytime (Prologue)

A soft humming went through the walls and reached Lily’s ears.  The girl turned in bed, with her eyes ending up facing the door to her room. It was the middle of the night. The moon shone through the window and cast a shadow around the furnitures and various toys lying on the floor.

The humming increased and Lily recognized the song. It was the song her grandmother always sang to her. The beautiful melody and the mesmerizing words always made Lily’s heart flutter in her chest.

Quickly forgetting about her need to sleep, Lily got up from the bed and headed down the hallway to her grandmothers room.

The door was slightly ajar and Lily opened it just enough for her body to slip through.

Her grandmother sat in the rocking chair. She had a needle between the fingers on her right hand and in the left she held a piece of clothing. The needle went down and then up again and repaired the quite large hole in the white blouse.

The elderly woman suddenly looked up and smiled.

“Lily, should you not be in bed?” the woman said while she put the needle and blouse away.

Lily walked up to her and sat down on the small carpet between the fireplace and the rocking chair.

“I could not sleep and I heard you humming my favorite song.”

The woman smiled and started to get up from the chair.     

“Come on now, a little girl like you need her sleep.”

“Can you tell me the story?”

The woman stopped in mid-air and sat down again.

“Which story, my dear? I have told you so many that I have not figured out which is THE story yet.”

The girl gave the woman an amused smile and giggled slightly.

“You know which one I am talking about. The story about good and evil. When The Evil Queen showed up in this land with the Savior and how they brought peace to all the kingdoms.”

When Lily saw the playful smile on her grandmother’s lips, she knew that she was just teasing with her.

“Of course I know THAT one. It has always been my personal favorite.” the elderly woman said.

The woman leaned towards the shelf, right beside the rocking chair, and pulled out a leather covered book with strange carvings and letters. Lily had always wanted to learn what they meant, but her grandmother refused to tell her. First it had hurt her a bit, but Lily was still only a child, and one day she hoped that her grandmother would trust her with the secrets she held on to.

The woman breathed in deeply and slowly opened the book. Lily heard the crackling sound from the old leather and moved closer to her grandmother. The old woman put a strand of her silver-gray colored hair behind her ear. Lily was always surprised of how concentrated her grandmother always seemed to be while she told her this story. But Lily imagined that the reason was because they both found the story so amazing.

The elderly woman cleared her throat before she spoke up, her voice loud and clear.

“Once upon a time…”

Lily closed her eyes and soon she was lost in Fairy Tale Land.