"Reach for the stars..."

[Raevis]

SPOILER: Click to show

Author's notes: This is still incomplete. XD

In order to get myself willing to finish up the last three pages, I'm going to go ahead and start uploading the other pages one by one until the story is over. I made myself promise to finish the rest of the story by the end of the week, so maybe having some other people actually interested in it will give me the drive to finish it. x3

ANYWAYS!

This is supposed to be purely fantasy, inspirational, and a bit confusing. I'm refusing to edit anything after it's gone down into my notebook, so it's pretty much barebones with how I naturally plan everything out.

Enjoy! (P.S. I intentionally didn't say anything about what's going to happen so that you have to read it in order to figure things out. 8D)

Oh, how I wish I had an indent button on this site. ;_;

---

Back in the days of my youth, I found a book with a strange quote, you see? The author; his name escapes me, but he had created a story to show how he was able to do his work. He needed only to see the stars to feel ready to create, yet I never understood it, despite how amazing it seemed.

He wrote of how there was an artist in the world for each and every star. Of how the stars with the greatest glow had belonged to those who had hit the peak of their abilities, still not ready to give up and dull, sometimes even in death. In his eyes, new stars twinkled into existence every day, showing the rise of a new creator somewhere in the world.

The constellations were drawn to show the relation between two, he wrote, where the brighter of the two stars inspires the duller. The vast number of stars in the sky left a virtually limitless system for finding oneself, and this author urged his readers to find their star, draw the lines to their mentors, idols, and loved ones. He hoped that the people of the stars would find and grant whatever was desired to those who listened.

...I never understood.

It seems so silly, a writer needing to say such a thing. That we have another self on the star, placed in the sky near those we know. That all we need to do is reach for the stars and call the people to us. If he were right, then the constellations should be ever-changing, forever expanding. This is what I told myself in those days, letting my logic take over. ...But sometimes, we need to switch the logic off...

...You see... (sigh)

[Raevis]

I met them today. The people of the stars...

Away from the city, I sat by myself, underneath a tree. The leaves fell down, whisked away into the sky by an autumn breeze, twisting and turning as they left my sight to dance together elsewhere. The sky itself was filled with clouds, the grass still wet from an afternoon shower, the tree above me moaning in the wind, and arcs of lightning jumping from cloud to cloud.

Smiling to myself, my eyes moving slowly between opened and closed, tail lazily resting in my lap, I let out a pleased sigh. My left hand bounced through the air, each finger tapping to the rhythm of the natural world. The air around me howled, the branches whining from its force as the blades of grass whistled. The low claps of thunder, the chirping of birds overhead, my own gentle hum tying everything together... The night would have been perfect had the rain not stopped.

Resting my head on the brace that covered my right hand, I turned my head away from the sky, looking at the grass around me. My eyes locked onto an object, eliciting a groan as my discontent returned. I reached for my notebook, its blank pages wrapped in a leather binding to prevent the wet blades from ruining them. A quill sat nearby, ink still on the end of it. That's what I was here for, after all.

I picked it up, still nodding, retrieving the quill and turning to the first page. After all, the ideas, the setting, the characters... Everything was in my head. Blank paper was there, the quill begged me to bring someone to life, to share this world with others.

...I couldn't do it. For some reason, I was afraid.

[Raevis]

Sitting there, wide-eyed with fear, my ears caught a new sound. Footsteps behind me caused me to turn around, surprised that anyone had found this place. I looked around the tree as a figure approached, wearing an open jacket, simple pants, and a cap atop his horned head. I knew I'd seen him before, but my memory was foggy.

Or maybe it was how strange the Horned One was. His fur was completely without color, thought I could see where the lighter and darker parts were. His dull, grey eyes looked incredibly calm, perhaps even thoughtful, as he stopped in front of me. A playful smile appeared on his face; he recognized me, even if I didn't return the favor. With that smile still on his face, he held out his hand towards me.

In it, he held a paint brush. He gestured it towards me.

Curiosity rising, I took hold of the brush. The Horned One soon began to motion as I stared at him, wordlessly asking me to paint. Fears sliding away, I swiped the brush through the air, right in front of his eyes. The dull grey disappeared, leaving behind a bright yellow to match his smile. Surprised, I swiped again and again, bringing the Horned One into a world of colors. His horns turned red, the dark parts of his fur becoming brown as the light became creamy, and his clothes gave off a shade of royal blue.

I started to giggle, my mind lost in the sudden fantasy, as he nodded in approval. Giddy now, I colored horns again, turning them into a bright orange. Shocked, the Horned One stuck his tongue out and crossed his arms in a mocking manner, reaching into a pocket and revealing a marker. I watched, amazed, as he pointed the tip away from us, his hand running through the air, higher and higher. A blue glow formed as a staircase appeared along his lines. He happily pointed to it. He wanted me to climb them. Without hesitating, I ran to them.

[Raevis]

Reaching the stairs, I turned to look for the Horned One... but he was gone.

I felt a tap upon my shoulder, causing me to turn back to the stairs. A new figure was there, a mischievous smirk on his blue and white face. The blue coated the outside of his body while the white covered the inside, yet where they met, spots and bubbles seemed to spring to life instead of the fade that I was used to. A blue collar sat around his neck, its pink bell ringing clearly in the night. He felt like someone else I should know, but couldn't remember.

“Don't you wanna see what's up there?” So surprised was I, just from the sound of his voice, that I nearly jumped out of my fur. I'd become used to the lack of talking... so used to it that when I went to respond, I found that I could say nothing. He smiled, pointing his two-fingered hand up to the top of the spiraling staircase. “Don't worry about others... Cut your own path. Get going!” With that, the Spotted One started for the top of the stairs.

Maybe I didn't need the words. He seemed to understand.

My fears dispelled for the moment, I chased after the Spotted One, eager to see what he had to show me. Up and up, the stairs spiraled higher, creating a break in the thundering clouds. I slowed myself, coming to a rest a short distance from the clouds, watching the bolts jump above my head. Each of those bolts had the strength to easily fry me... I could feel my fur frizzing up each time one passed.

“Don't stop now! I'm rootin' for you! You can make it!”

His voice again, from far above me, boomed down beyond the clouds. Determined to not let him down, I steeled myself, shutting my eyes and charging straight through the clouds.

[Raevis]

The ground shook, the thunder crashed and exploded around me, and I could tell each time the lightning struck from the intense flashes burning through my eyelids. I continued running, waiting for that break when this would all pass. At times, my fur stood on end as a flash appeared, other times, I stepped over an area that was still hot from the bolt. Still, I pressed on, afraid, but determined.

As I started to wonder if this torment would end, it did.

I finally opened my eyes, the crash of thunder still echoing below me. The rolling clouds painted a dark, grey landscape akin to gentle slopes as far as the eye could see. On occasion, the 'ground' would flash, illuminating itself as the storm raged on below me. The force of the thunder was still enough to shake the stairs, a low rumble permanently playing in my ears.

Above me, the staircase spiraled far beyond my sight, extending into an empty spot in the sky between a group of stars. For a brie moment, I thought I spied movement, but I quickly lost sight of whatever it had been. The stars, which seemed so dull from the ground, were now glowing brilliantly above.

Had I gone that far already? It hadn't felt like much.

Or maybe it was. At some point in time, entranced by this new world, I had fallen to my knees from exhaustion. My breath coming in short gasps, I rose to my feet again. Slowly beginning to ascend again, I let myself get lost in the continuous rumble from the thunder below.

No reason to rush. I shouldn't wear myself out.

[Raevis]

My footing still unsteady, I continued along my way, always keeping my eyes straight ahead. I'm not sure how long I spent climbing those stairs... Seconds? Minutes? ...Days? The path to the stars was obviously a long one. Yet, I hadn't seen any sign of the coming daybreak. No light besides the glow of the stairs and stars, no sound aside from the rumble of the land... Did I want to press on?

I continued walking, though. Someone was waiting for me up ahead, after all. I'd seen him at the edge of my vision from time to time, a jet black form against the glow of the stars. The Dark One waved to me, beckoning me to him as he led the way, never close enough for me to see him. I was starting to get the feeling that everyone I met on this never-ending night was meant to show me something. ...But what was his purpose?

I took a moment to catch my breath and look back...

The rumble had continued no matter how far I ran, yet I had pushed it out of my mind. My footing was unstable, but I believed it was from tiring out after moving for so long. The stairs were crumbling apart behind me, moving far faster than I could walk. I turned to run as fast as I could, but seeing how far I had to go... I fell to my knees. I'd lost my resolve to reach the end.

There was a hand in front of me, waiting to be taken. I looked up, seeing the Dark One's blue and red eyes. I took his hand, and he pulled me up the stairs, becoming an aide on my path. The Dark One, a rabbit just smaller than I, pulled me by my hand to the top of the stairs in less time than I had spent climbing alone...

[Raevis]

I'm not sure I really knew what to expect. I stood at the top of the stairs, my mouth agape as the Dark One stood next to me, smiling. Perhaps I believed that I would meet the others who had gone through this before; that they would be here, showing off what their inspiration had brought to them. Or perhaps I believed that I would finally learn who it was that truly inspired me, and I'd be able to finally thank them.

The Dark One pushed me forward onto the grassy hill.

I looked back at him, confused if only for a moment. He winked at me, closing the red eye, while he pointed to the tree at the top of the hill. Beginning to feel dazed, I walked through the grass, still wet from rainfall, to the tree that sat atop the hill. The Horned One had gotten his revenge, it seemed, as my sleeping face was covered in marker of varying colors. He was nearby, playfully sticking his tongue out as I came closer.

The Spotted One dropped from out of the tree, with the mischievous smirk still on his face. “So slow. We were up all night waiting, ya know.” With that, he slapped my back, making me stumble towards myself. I barely avoided stepping on my still-blank notebook, lying right next to my left hand. It wouldn't be blank for long.

I walked around, gazing at my sleeping body, the tail still curled around my legs, the quill falling out of the right hand. As I looked, I felt someone take my left hand into theirs. I turned to see the Dark One's smile, watching as he bent down and grabbed the sleeping form's right hand. Returning his smile, I took hold of my hand, leaning back against the tree in the same pose.

[Raevis]

Someone was shaking me when I returned to the real world.

My eyelids still felt heavy as I woke to the amazingly large amount of green from a worried friend. He'd come out to find me when people noticed that I hadn't returned home. Apologizing as much as I could, I ushered him away with a promise to be home soon. It was still night, after all, with the storm flashing above me. Once he was gone, I took hold of my quill, smiling as I remembered a book that I knew years ago.

...I still don't understand it.

It seems so silly, doesn't it? After such a trip and everything that I saw, I'm still saying such a thing. Yet... I didn't make a new star, did not draw a constellation... My 'people of the stars' were those who I hold dear to me, and only a small fraction of them at that. And they brought me to myself, not to a mystical place that would suddenly make me amazing.

Myself, who has this all locked within his dreams.

...I'm leaving this notebook here, a document of what I've learned, so that someone else may come across it, buried lightly underground. Upon reaching this point, I can only hope that the one who finds it can find the will to reach for their own star, the person closest to them, and tell them thank you.

And you, the Reading One... You have my thanks as well. Being able to tell you of this night has been both astonishing and enjoyable for me. I can only hope that you get as much out of it as I did.

Thank you.

- Raevis Verinet

[Raevis]

SPOILER: Click to show

Final notes (FA crosspost ):

"A tale of finding one's inspiration, enwrapped in the constellations above."

Roughly three weeks of off and on writing. XD This is supposed to be inspirational as well as some practice with descriptions (something I think I'm rather bad at ). In the end, I'm actually incredibly happy with it. <3 It's set so that each section is exactly one page, handwritten in my notebook. (That's what the * are for, separating pages between each other.)

Also, the three characters are all supposed to show a specific trait. I'll let you guys see if you can pick up on that one without me. And yes, each of them is someone on FA. XD I wanted to focus on something that both would and wouldn't give them away. x3 (Hopefully you guys can at least pick yourselves out of it. =P Otherwise I did a REALLY bad job at what I was practicing on. XD)

Alright, now I need a nap. x3 I could talk about this thing all night and where the idea came from and what it all means and blah blah blah but no sense in boring you guys. XD
[Word count says: 2451]

[Spyke]

Well I'll say one thing...you certainly got what you were aiming for.

The descriptions alone made my writing feel insignificant x.x. Definitely a nice bit of imagery there. The word choice also seemed to keep the dreamy feel of things throughout the piece.