With her wings spread wide, X spiralled through the air with little Herbie clutched tightly in her claws. In that same air carried the beat of distant drums that acted as a heartbeat for the coming night. The music of elsewhere, it called to her in the same way it called to him, and as the stars blinked and spied upon their favourite child, X let herself be carried by the arms of mother nature, and carry her it did, closer to the music only the animals could hear. In the fields of corn where he had passed earlier in the day, the stalks still whispered her name, as did the trees and the foxes that now claimed him as one of their own. The magpies that followed close behind, they too whispered it, and as that name carried through that cold and starry sky, she felt as giddy as a kid on Christmas morning. In her current state, she wasn’t entirely herself. In truth, she’s not sure what she was, but she gave herself to it completely. That music, it spoke to her heart and eased her pain, and in the starry lights that shone upon her ruffled feathers, it seemed to her there was no other way. Squeaking madly, Herbie thrashed his paws as her grip on him loosened. Squeezing hold of him again, she let out a cry, and from behind came the cries of those just like her- those lonely souls drawn to that timeless beat only the few would ever know. And down there, among the trees, there glowed a great light, like a giant web of candles, shimmering like some strange secret city, and as she glided towards it, Herbie saw it too, and almost at the same time, their hearts missed a beat. When the next beat came, it was in synch to the beat of that music, the music of elsewhere; a place that awaits those whose lives are destined for something more.

A Journal for Damned Lovers UK

A Journal for Damned Lovers US

Anthology UK / Anthology US