This place where I stay, the cave, is a good and safe spot to be. No one showed me the way. It's all mine. Most of the time darkness reigns but that's no issue. I learned to deal with it after 'the dark days'. I can see plus there is no anywhere to go. 'Being safe and staying safe is what counts.'
These words I remember very well. Someone told them to me long ago in another life. I forgot the name but can see the face and hear the words, these words. Strange how I can remember words. So many words said and told to me specifically. It was a long, long time ago, even in another life. From that moment on my goal was set. Staying safe is what I am good at from the moment I arrived in the world. No one knows I am here and they will never find me. You won't find what you aren't looking for.
My cave is a good, warm place. One I share with my blanket and a wall built out of boxes. All boxes have the same size and it must be a long time ago someone brought them here. I know because on my arrival they stood here already. I never felt the need to open or exam them. There's nothing I need and those boxes, if you ask me, they are left for a reason. At the moment they benefit me because they protect and warn me. One day they might help someone else.
Most of the time I lay down covered by the blanket. We both hide. It's warm and cozy together. I have time, all the time. I know I have, can tell even without a clock or light. My eyes don't care and the blanket doesn't either. What I see is enough. My nose can smell the changes in the air and my ears can hear the difference.
On rare occasions, I can see some light. If so, it's always red. It's as if it runs over the cave's wall and explodes. Sometimes there's only one, at most times there are three following each other. There are never more than three. I can't hear special sounds, screeches different from what I am used to. I only see this strange, rosy exploding light. You could say it brightens up my days, my boring moments íf I would ever feel bored, which I am not. Safety above everything is my motto.
My life started long ago. I should say my first life did. It all began in the dark. For a short time, I saw the light even thought people were happy to see me but it didn't last long. Out of experiences, I can tell you life doesn't take long, neither does happiness or health. I was small and she brought me into the world. A dark, dirty world. My world was a small room with a bed and bucket but we were not the only ones.
"Way too small, useless, you better get rid of it. The sooner the better," a harsh voice said.
"We can give it a chance," she begged but it wasn't something he fell for. She was ignored, like usual. A poor woman, being the slave of a spoiled, drunk, selfish man. It was hard to believe a fine woman gave birth to such a monster. He added nothing to the world, never did any good. His sick mind and dirty hands... It was worth deleting him out of all good mother Nature created as fast as possible but like we all know it rarely happens this way.
'Useless, a waste of energy' the cold voice called me and he threw me in a bucket and kicked it partly underneath what they called the cupboard bed. I tried to make a sound but if I managed at that time they must have overheard me. It became quiet around me as the weeping stopped and it was at that time I heard someone say: "Being safe and staying safe is what counts."
Was I safe, did I feel safe? At certain times I was. Someone, it was her, lifted me out of the bucket and held me close, fed me. After the bucket I hid in a cupboard -it was a closet underneath the bed- till I became old enough to be noticed. I was caught by the harsh voice who couldn't believe his eyes.
"Who is this, who's child is this, speak up!"
She didn't say a word and I didn't speak either. It was not because I intended to be rude or felt afraid but I came without words and it remained that way. I am not dumb, not 'a complete idiot' like he said. My brains work fast, my ears and nose are excellent. I just lack the words to speak and that is why I was sold -not long after he saw me- on the marketplace of the village between the cows, goats, chickens, rabbits, and one single horse.
It was crowded and a dirty, reeking area but no one seemed to care. They came for a reason, with one purpose. Making money or buying was their intention and some hoped for a bit of free food given by a generous heart. All those people together, their voices, the different ways they stunk, the scent of the village, altogether it was overwhelming. This was my first day out. Away from and out of my shelter, the hidden place underneath the bed. That small place where I was born was gone. It no longer existed for me. He threw me into the open air, dragged me by an arm outside, and brought me into this village. I walked the entire way, watched the grey clouds floating by, heard the birds while the yellow and red leaves -blown off the branches by the wind- flew through the air.
Those voices... Some sounded not different from the one of the man who took me to this location. Harsh, hostile voices shouted at each other, some willing to share a drink. No one offered me something or showed any interest no matter how loud he shouted about his 'fine piece for sale, strong, tough, a fighter, good for everything'.
"Too tiny and young, " a drunk man, who stopped by and observed me from head to toe, said. He held a bottle in his hand, his breath smelled horrible and it sounded wise to me to keep my eyes focussed on the dirt in front of my feet.
"She's humble, never speaks, and literally rose from the dead. This little one even crawled out of the toilet bucket herself. What do you say about that miracle? Look at her folks, she is a good buy, doesn't eat much either."
He slapped at my back and nearly made me fall forward. Many passed by, some stared at me, even pinched or hit me to see if I was as strong and healthy as he claimed me to be. They loved to try out if I would shout out for pain but it was like he said, I was speechless, came without words, and would leave this world in the same way.
It was on a dark day my life changed. At least that was what the woman said to the man, the one who still tried to sell me, at the end of the day.
"These are dark days, take it, or leave it."
He wrinkled his nose, groaned like a wild boar but as she stepped forward, looked him straight into the eye for longer as he felt comfortable with, he nodded and pushed me forward.
"Take her before I change my mind," he growled.
I became used to his voice and noticed he sounded not as harsh as before more relieved. The woman threw some coins at him which he hastily grabbed off the ground.
"Like a dirty pig, he digs around in the dirt for a hand of copper coins. Look at him! Beware they might turn into buttons."
She laughed and still laughed long after he ran out of us. I watched him till I no longer saw the man I never really met or knew. The marketplace became quiet and no one seemed to care about the woman who just bought me or about me. The grey air became dark and for the first time, I felt drizzle on my face.
"We need to go," she looked at the sky, "we can make it if we hurry. Eat this while we are on the way."
She opened my fist and pushed a piece of bread with what she called 'fried bacon' in my little hand and lifted my head.
"Look me in the eye if I speak to you. Do you understand? It's rude not to plus it shows your character and good intentions. Only cowards do not face the one who stands in front of him. Cowards are those without any guts."
She knew I couldn't speak but my eyes told her I understood.
"I am glad I found you. Now follow me and make sure you finished your meal at the time we arrive home."
I nodded and did as she told me. I followed her, kept an eye on her skirt while I ate, and tried to discover the world, my new world. A life outside of the cupboard bed, and the marketplace. There was no need to look back. Why should I? I knew what my past looked like and there was no one I left behind. No one missed me, fought for me, loved to have me around. The exception was the woman who had just bought me. She told me she was glad she found me. With her, my life could be better. She had laughed louder than anyone else dared to.
How long we walked I can't tell. She never slowed down, didn't speak a word, and kept walking at the same pace. The landscape changed and there was enough to see even when it became darker. The darkness never scared me or made my vision worse. My life underneath the bed -with a little time close to the one who saved and fed me- might have been the reason why. Already at that time, my vision was sharp.
I ate my bread as she told me although my stomach had a hard time digesting it. The man was right I never ate much nevertheless I grew, looked healthy, and was tough. Tougher than anyone could imagine.
It was at a small cottage we stopped. I never saw anything like it. Not that I am an expert and saw many houses but this one was special. It was as if it was protected by nature itself. High trees and bushes surrounded it and I swear they moved away as we walked by. People called it a dark place but it didn't scare me. This 'dark place' was incredible. A good habitat to be, one I loved from the first moment I saw it, and most importantly it felt like home.
"Come on in dear."
She had watched me from a distance and smiled.
"I will make your bed and give you something to wear for the night. Those lumps you are dressed with now... put them at the door. This is not the kind of outfit people like us wear."
After she made my bed, washed, and clothed me, we sat at the large table placed in a room she called the kitchen. We both drank the tea she made out of the herbs she grew herself.
"I show you the herbs garden after we slept. It's late we better get some rest first," she promised me.
It's not that I felt tired after the long day but some time alone was what I needed. Time to think as I did during all those hours I hid in the cupboard underneath the bed. The place that protected me against those who intended to harm me. Folk I knew and didn't know yet. I wasn't sure if the woman belonged to the good or bad side if she intended to harm me. So far I felt safe enough to stretch out on my mattress, close my eyes, and pull the blanket she gave me over my ears. I liked the way it smelled. It was one of the best scents so far that had tickled my nose. Before I knew I fell into a deep sleep.
The blanket she put on me on that very first night... I still have it. It's here with me in the shelter, the place where I hide today. It keeps me warm and kept my thoughts and dreams safe for many years. I know it is the same blanket because the little mark I made on it during those long dark days, days they even dared to call a community project, is still visible.
Written words: 2169
Prompt November 1, 2020: community project
The first part of my entry to NaNoWriMo 2020. It's a rewrite which means there's no plan made about what to write. The story will develop while writing. Perhaps it will be influenced by the prompt. In this case, it was not.
This story is my intellectual property and will be saved at different places to prove it and fight plagiarism.
2,000 words is a lot in one seating but i wonder where your story will be headed to