Hey peeps—if you will, take a break from The Otherkind and read my short story The Crow and the Butterfly, now up on inkpop!
I originally started writing this as a novel, but wrote this short story version for a young writer’s contest. I didn’t get it finished in time, unfortunately. The inspiration behind The Crow and the Butterfly comes mostly from music. Shinedown has a song that shares the title, but the story doesn’t really have anything to do with that particular song. I just thought it was a good name for a short story. Most of my inspiration for writing this was Tokio Hotel’s music video for “Rette Mich (Rescue Me)”. I was also intrigued by some of the ancient, Satanic religions that I was learning about in History class, including Moloch, Kali, and Astarte—Astarte spawning the devil goddess Astoria in my story.
Please note that this story contains graphic violence.
Also, it is unedited, so it is subject to changes in the future. Enjoy. :]
Here is an excerpt from the The Crow and the Butterfly:
There was a boy lying there, in the dry mud and leaves. He must have been there all night. He was naked save a gold-stitched woolen loincloth. His hair was black, long, and wild; I remember it reminding me of a savage bird prince. When I looked harder, I could see white in his hair too. Not the old kind of white, but pure white without a tinge of gray.
He had a beautiful face. Smooth and blemish-free skin, shaped eyebrows, and thick lashes. His nose was long and his nostrils delicate, which only look better with his pink, pouty lips. He was probably around my age; maybe eighteen or nineteen; twenty at the most. He looked as if he was wearing a lot of makeup, and last night’s rain had only managed to wash some of it away. His body was long and slender, his muscles lithe. Then I noticed the slightly smudged, smeared markings all over his skin. Like he was part of a ritual or something. I shuddered, for some reason.
I started to step a little closer, but came to an abrupt halt when my boot crunched a branch with a loud snap. The boy woke, and my heart nearly leapt into my throat. It took a moment for his eyes to focus, but when he saw me, he sprang to his feet and backed away towards the bushes. He looked terrified, but he also looked like he could kill me too.
“No!” I said, regaining myself. He stopped and I saw his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed hard. His eyes traveled my body, and I carefully watched his blank expression until his eyes met mine. His eyes were cold and distrustful, like those of a forest wolf.
“Shh.” I said gently, keeping my eyes on his. I walked forward, slowly, and reached out for his hand to calm him. He flinched back, his breathing irregular. He stank of sweat and some other iron sort of smell.
“I won’t hurt you.” I said. I had used the eye-contact method before when I tamed my stallion, Tora. I was hoping that it would work with this boy. He seemed very animal to me. I wondered if he was some sort of shape-shifter.
So I stared deep into his eyes, and he let me. All I could see in there was pain and sadness and fear. I felt immensely sorry for those beautiful brown eyes.
I reached for his hand again, this time more slowly. He sucked in a breath as I held his clammy, trembling fingers.
“Come?” I said, tugging on his hand. He hesitated, so I returned my eyes to his. I would stare at him until he trusted me.
His voice startled me. “What are you?” he asked. His voice had a slight accent to it that I didn’t recognize.
I misunderstood. Was he human? I wasn’t sure, but still I said: “I’m human, like you.”
His eyebrows lowered. “I’ve never seen anyone like you.”
I smiled at him, and his expression softened a little. “Or I you.” I paused. “Are you alone?”
He looked at the ground and nodded; a shadow passing over his face.
“Are you hungry?”
He nodded as if he just realized that he was.
“You can talk to me.” I said, squeezing his hand a bit. “You can trust me. Come.” I tugged on his hand again. This time, he followed me, much to my relief.
“Do you have a name?” I asked after a moment.
“Crow.” he said plainly. He was staring at our linked hands.
“I’m Nissa. I’ll take care of you.”
