Mirsha was happy little seven-year old girl. To most, she was considered quite normal. She enjoyed playing with her dolls, running around outside, and pretending to be a princess. She often wore a pink tutu and a tiara, simply because she could, and when she couldn’t, she pouted in an adorable and heart crushing manner. When asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, she would smile real big, showing off her missing front teeth, and reply enthusiastically, “A Unicorn!” then run away giggling. She looked just like her mother; golden blonde hair and eyes of hazel—which some people would tell her were the eyes that fairies had—porcelain skin and dimples straight from a cartoon.
Playing make believe was not just something Mirsha did, it was how she lived. In her mind she didn’t just go to second-grade, she went to The Mermaid Princesses School for Girls and Magic. Her mother dropped her off and picked her up at Rosewood Elementary, but you’d be hard pressed convincing Mirsha of that. You’d be hard pressed convincing Mirsha of a lot of things actually. If you listened to her, she could almost convince the most unimaginative person that above the blue skies was a world where the sea was made of rainbows and penguins flew in the sky. She would tell you stories about how her father was the King of the Elvin people and how he met her mother when he rescued her from the evil Lord Gasterny on the Mountains of Miracles. Her parents would always chuckle at the stories she told people and then return the conversations back to normal subjects like television and movies.
One day at school, one of the young boys brought his grandfather, Mr. Huppantz, in to tell stories of his youth. He told tales of Full Service Gas Stations and Drive-In Movie Theaters. The kids giggled and called him a liar. He would smile, straighten his glasses and continue on with another yarn that seemed too far-fetched, or just plain boring, for the kids of today. After he was done with his stories the teacher announced it was playtime. The kids got into their respective groups and played with blocks, colored, or solved puzzles on the computer. Mirsha walked over to Mr. Huppantz and asked him if he had ever been to the Mountains of Miracles. Mr. Huppantz looked down upon her, pushed his glasses back up upon his nose and replied, “Why, my young dear, what is your name?”
“I’m Mirsha Meadows.” She replied as best as she could for having missing teeth.
“Well Miss Meadows, why would you think I would have been to an imaginary place such as that?”
“I feel like I have seen you there before.”
“Oh, so you’ve been there before? How did you get there?”
“In my dreams of course. You’re silly.”
“Well, Miss Mirsha, I believe you have me confused with somebody else,” and Mr. Huppantz patted Mirsha on the head as he slowly stood up from his stool. “I should probably get going now. You should go play with your classmates now.”
“Ok!” Mirsha exclaimed. “But I’m onto you! Next time I see you at the Mountains, I’ll say hello!” and Mirsha turned and bolted away to join her friend Stephanie over by the fake forest scene with toy animals. Mr. Huppantz said goodbye to Teacher Abi and quietly left the room.
That night while eating dinner, Mirsha’s parents asked how her day at school was and she told them about the stories Mr. Huppantz had told and then she told them about how she thinks that she knows him from the Mountains of Miracles. Her parents didn’t seem too pleased with what she was saying and encouraged her to finish her dinner, clean her plate, and head off to read. Coryn and Saul looked at each other quietly and Coryn topped off their glasses of wine.
“She sure doesn’t seem to be slowing down with these stories” Coryn said after taking a drink from her glass.
“No,” Saul replied. “She sure doesn’t.”
…to be continued…
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