Monday, February 9, 2009

Loren: The lure, the girl, the rabbit.

(Geoffrey Gorman)

The girl hunched over the wooden desk, bone white fingers splayed over the keys of her keyboard, still. Her chest moved slightly with her shallow breathing, the only sign of life. If anyone approached the table, they would naturally mistake her for being asleep. She was so still. 
But for the brave person who dared to inspect closer, her eyes were wide open and bone dry. Exhaustion was marked across her face in the shadows that hid beneath her eyes and in the corners of her lips. She was tired, so tired, but she had to continue her vigilance. She had to stay awake in order to restore order. 
She blinked her eyes, once, twice, fighting the lure of sleep.
Her bones refused to stay upright. Heavy, so heavy. 
She had no choice but to let her layer of skin be the only thing encasing them, preventing them from sinking into the earth.

She wished for escape. An escape from responsibilities, from boundaries, from the bottom line.
She blinked hard. Breathed out.
When she reopened her eyes, she saw it.
Squatting in a corner, picking up a dust ball with its small paws.

The rabbit. 
A dried up carcass, with rust in its ears, and shrivelled tree branches serving as its bones.
Its bandaged joints creaked slowly with every movement.

"Hello." She whispered, licking her dry lips with a sandy tongue.
The scrawny creature twitched its ears in her direction, swivelled its head to fix her with a metal bolt eye.

"Are you here to lead me away to Wonderland?"
A yawn bubbled in her throat.
The rabbit stared at her, opened its jaws, and swallowed the dustball whole.
Her eyelids fluttered downwards again; she was helpless to the seductive lure of sleep.
"Just lead the way." Her whispered murmur hung in the air. 
The rabbit stared at her, no change in its wooden expression.
With her next soft exhale, it disappeared with a creak.


(Information on this rabbit can be found here. *yawns*)

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