Chapter 2

Chapter 2.

Continuation...

But occasionally, the view took on a beautiful aquarelle quality, soft color bleeding into each other, the sky bleeding with the tops of the trees. Butterflies and bird outgoing each other in splendor, and a breeze wafting across the river like an invitation to come over and play. On these days, Sofia would have crossed the bridge and gone over there, but it never entered her mind to do so.

Sofia was immersed in her favorite game Guardian of the Bridge. Sitting against the pillars, her back straight, her eyes fixed on the stone structure in front of her, she held a few pages of paper she had bound with a leather string from one of her uncle's shoes. With a piece of coal, she noted the time and date. She wrote 'Uneventful'and out loud she said, mimicking Aunt Sybil's stern tone of voice

“But that does not mean, we can be any less vigilant. ”

She looked to her right as if at an imaginary interlocutor and clarified

“Because it is a very important duty and only few people are choosen to fulfil it. ”

She frowned at the imaginary answer that seemes to have contradicted her.

“But,” she added, her face lighting up again , “It is a big secret , and I wont be allowed to tell.”

Then she rolled up the paper, hiding it carefully in between two stones. She got up to take a little stroll along the shore and maybe find Pip and Tin to at least interrupt their games if they wouldn't let her join in. She didn't much like the boys, but she wasn't spoiled for choice in the village.

She was thinking about a way to maybe play one against the other when she heard a strange choking noise. It was coming from the river.

Sofia looked it's way, adjusting her eyes to the water, which always took some effort as if it didn't want to be seen. There was nothing, except for a few bubbles rising. Sofia turned away again. It was only after a few steps that she realize she had seen something breathing beneath the waters after all. There had been an elongated shape in a light color , a skin color, that she hadn't been aware of at first, as if her eyes had refused to see anything they weren't expecting to see. Sofia stood very still as if every movement might distort the imaged. She glance up toward the window of her aunt, but it was too steep, and she could not see her. The bubbles had intensified , then lessened until they had almost vanished. Sofia another step closer , the water lapping onto her shoes. Feeling moisture she took them off and stepped into the ice cold water, carefully keeping her balance on the slippery stones. She leaned over,trying to get a better look.

It was a body.

It was lean and slim, and a mass of silver hair surrounded it's head like a crown. The limbs were long and light blue, and it was completely motionless ,floating.

The bubbles ceased. There was no more breath leaving the body. Without thinking Sofia jumped into the water, which deepened infinitely after the first step , and dove towards the floating girl.Below the surface of the water, the sky moved far away, and the river expanded in width and depth until it seemed endless. Sofia swam towards the body trying to ignor the eerie feeling of having entered to another world.She reached for one of the arm, grabing its wrist when the girl suddenly came alive and struggled out of her grasp. Sofia tore back in suprise and fright, and the two girls shot towards the surface at the same time. Sofia gasped frantically filling her lungs with air , brushing her hair out of her face, as her eyes became used to the outside world again. She stared at the girl who was staring back at her, although she was not gasping for air and didn't seem ruffled any way.

“Who are you? ” Sofia said with her first breath.

The girl moved backwards, not taking her eyes from Sofia. With every inch she put between them, her gaze became calmer and somewhat superior. She reached for a rock in the water and pulled herself upon it in one fluent motion.Sofia could have sworn that the rock had not been there before, and she realized that she was standing comfortably on the ground, the water only reaching up to her stomach ,even though it had been deep and endless a mere few second ago. The girl brushed her long silver hair from her face. It seemed neither wet nor dry, but smooth like a velveteen sheet.

“Since you disturbed me,” she said in a haughty voice “you should answer that question before I do.”

“Disturbe you? ” Sofia blurted out “I saved you. ”

The girl give a little laughter that rang as clear as a bell.

“Why should I need saving? ”

“You-you were drowning.”

The girl pulled her legs up on the rock and looked around with a slightly bored expression. Her arms and legs were light-blue,colored from inside. She was wearing a white and silver suit that was constantly changing form wrapping itself around her body every time she moved.

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