Activity

Sorry if this post is too long, but here my beginning scene in the  role play.

 

Megyn stepped over another rock and then another. When she had begun her hike, the sun stood high in the sky. Now it had sunk into a furnace of crimson and gold. It burned as the last torch of the day, as mysterious shadows gathered about her. Only by its flames could she seethe path that veered and twisted it ways through the rocky terrain. When the flames burned out, nothing but darkness would remain.

Climbing atop a rocky hill, Megyn sucked in a deep breath. “ Stella!? Stella, can you hear me?” she called. Only the echoes off the rocks replied.

“How could we have been separated?!” Megyn wondered.“She was right with me when I slid down that incline. She promised to find a safe way down and meet me.” She sighed, murmuring aloud “Where is she??”

She pulled a compass from her pocket and took a bearing. “Still on track.” Lifting her eyes, she scanned the landscape around. No one landmark, not one of the cliffs or points of rock looks familiar.  Not a trace of the parking lot where we had started out from either.

Her eyes turned upward to the indigo heavens, where the first stars were just beginning to poke points of light through the dark. A thin, pale moon slid out from behind the golden and blue clouds, but it’s light seemed so feeble. She could never navigate her way with that light. And the stars were so few and half obscured by the billowy clouds.

“Lord,” she whispered, “ You can see me down here, lost and parted from my best friend on the earth. I don’t know where to go or where I am. But I do know that I can trust You. You can use even this situation for good, even though I don’t understand how. Please guide me safely home again and keep Stella safe.”

She stepped down the hillock and set off down the path, only a little reassured. “ ‘When I am afraid , I will trust in thee.’ ” She quoted. “I am not afraid. She told herself. Only worried. Poor Stella, she is afraid of the dark. What if- she is lost out here too? Why hasn’t anybody found us yet? They must have missed us at the orphanage. Where are they?”

“Don’t think about it.” She mentally scolded. “Just look how fearsome the beauty of the sky is tonight.” It was her nature to distract herself by enjoying creation. But tonight, as with every step the cello bag chafed her back, those worrisome thoughts wouldn’t leave. Every step drained a little more strength from her being. And all the while, the flames in the sky were smoldering into coals of smoky blue gray that just barely glowed above the horizon.

Megyn glanced at the sky. “I should seek shelter now. If I keep wandering like this, I sure to run into some trouble, especially if I can’t see.” She stepped off the path and picked her way across the hillside to her right. “That pile of boulders should be a suitable shelter for now. I would climb a tree but all the tress around here are so short and scraggly.”

As she skirted around the pile, her eye zeroed in on – on light! She froze, peering through the darkness at it. Could it-could it be? It may be a town, the parking lot or a group of searchers with flashlights. What a sight it was as it lights glowed through the dark like the fireflies on a cool June evening.

Joy rushed through her being, brightening her shadowy face with an elated smile. “Thank you . . Thank you!” She gasped.

Springing forward, she half ran, half slid up the steep incline between her and the light, both her cello bag and her thick braid of hair slapping and bumping her as she went.

The incline smoothed out into firm, level ground as she ran on. “I’ve reached the top of the canyon! I’m now on the level land!”

She threw herself forward and ran with her fullest stride. Not a rock blocked her feet. Not a single slope challenged her. As she swung out of the savanna of trees and onto a beaten path, her feet forgot their weariness and sprouted wings as they swept pounded the ground.

A bend in the trail brought her up to a gateway of stone, flanked by well-lighted lamp posts Though the gates stood with open arms, she froze mid stride and stared in bewilderment, panting. “Where-where am I?” She gasped. “Stella and I have climber all over these mountains, and have never seen a place like this. The savanna and this archway? It doesn’t belong here.”

A few moments passed as she stood still, catching her breath and listening. With such a splendid entrance, there must be someone about. But not a sound, save the chirping of insects and an owl call broke the silence.

Cautiously, she approaching the gate and walked through. “Strange” She thought, “no one guards the gate.”

She was now in a shadow-haunted garden. Tree and plants of every size and shape flanked the stone pavement she stood on. “They certainly smell wonderful.” She thought dreamily as she ventured on down the path. “This place feels like a shadow; dark with mystery and deep in adventure.” Occasionally she would pass a lamp post but mostly the garden was not lit well, lending to the intriguing feel. On it meandered through the shadows, leading her deeper and deeper to it’s heart.

Moments later, she found it’s heart. She again had to stop and stare. A mansion, that looked more like a palace, spread our before her. It towered above, so high and dark she was uncertain as to how tall it was. She could tell it had many floor and porches, judging by the many columns. The wall from the gateway she had entered surrounded it with stony protection. And she stood on the first step its grand veranda.

“Only in books have I seen a palace like this. Who could have a home so wonderful in a wilderness like this?” She eased across the marble pavement and eyed the rosewood double doors and their gold lion’s head knockers. “The lights are on, so they-whoever they are-must be home. But why so many lights? Are they having a party?”

The thought troubled her. Her joy cooled a light, and the along with it, her poetic feelings about mystery. “But,” she reasoned, “I need to find my way back somehow. I have wandered very far away form home but perhaps they can help me. And it must be just as grand inside.”

She grasped one of the knockers and thumped it gently three times. Nothing.

She started to knock again when the doors burst open. Light swept over her, overwhelming her like a wave crashing on a beach. “SO bright!” She couldn’t see clearly but simply squinted at . . . SOMEONE. “Someone in a dress?”

“Good evening, Miss.” chirped that someone.

“Good evening.” “Why do I feel so stupid?” Megyn tried to focus on the girl, but found only a shadow comfortable to look at. “I- I am afraid I am lost and I don’t mean to bother anyone but–”

“Oh, never mind about that. His Majesty is expecting travelers tonight. Come in, Come in do.”

The girl gently seized her arm and tugged her in, pushing the doors close behind them. Releasing her as swiftly as she as had seized her, she lead the way down a hall.

Megyn meekly followed, too confused to really notice the majesty about her. “His majesty?!” she murmured. “What can she mean? Where am I? She’s. . . very hospitable and friendly but this is-”

The girl whisked open a door and ushered her through. “ Don’t worry. You are very welcome here and I hope you have a pleasant evening. But I must something to attend to, so someone else with entertain you.” With a curtsy she whirled away, leaving Megyn’s wits scattered on the floor.

Megyn closed her eyes and leaned her head against the doorpost beside her. “I have to be able to THINK again.” People surrounded her . . .were packed in around her. And the noise! The harsh change from silence and friendly night sounds to confusion and a jumble of chatter and clatter shook her overwhelmed mind. “Being in crowds usually doesn’t faze me.” She told herself. “ Why do I feel so . . . so silly and scared?”

She open her eyes. Mistake. This room was even brighter than the hall. She caught the glimpse of someone in a fabulously flounced dress go sailing by before she close her eyes again and thought, “You have to calm down and pray.”

Slowly she filled her lungs. Slowly she exhaled. “Lord, I feel like crumbling.” she prayed. “You’ve brought me here. What do I do now?”