Agnes was a widow, not just a widow; she was pregnant with her late husband’s child, but that wasn't the case; she was pregnant for more than 9 months, but on the 12 months she gave birth to a health child with heterochromia, which was an extreme case. Agnes was already labeled a witch because during her pregnancy days, it was said that she used to hear strange things, see strange things, things beyond ordinary eyes; she would have dreams of different types of inhuman creatures coming to visit her and comfort her until the baby arrived.
She named her daughter Mirai, "The Future." All the strange beings who came and visited Agnes stopped the moment she gave birth to her baby.
At the age of 3, Mirai had experienced more than a child should experience: starvation, no shelter, and no warm blanket to cover her up like other kids in their own household. Her mother was her only support, but since she was born, Agnes maltreatment in the small village became worse. They made sure to snatch everything that belonged to her and her late husband's, from the house they built together to their lives savings, leaving her and her daughter homeless and hungry.
Agnes tried all she could to protect her daughter, but her loneliness and depression became so visible that they affected her health too. But she knew giving up was never an option.
Mirai, at the age of 5, was very hardworking, but there was something quite unique about little Mirai: she had eyes that weren't meant for ordinary eyes; one eye was as blue as the sky and the other eye was as dark as the night. Using her unique technique, she could see the dreams of others, not just her own; she could consume dreams of misfortune, bad luck, and evil attacks. Some of these dreams were like visions. She knew when a person was crossing over to the land of death.
Whenever an old person was about to die, she would see in the person's dream how peaceful and happy they were. They were always in white garments, happy with their late families, or they were just happy in the dream.
Those who had misfortune or bad luck were liable to have nightmares, and Mirai was the only one gifted to consume and stop the dream from affecting reality.
Mirai knew her mother was about to cross into the land of the dead, for every night she would sneak into her mother's dream only to see her father together with her mother. It was such a beautiful dream, but in that dream, she never saw herself in it—only her dad and mom.
And every time her mom starts to dream of her dad, she consumes the dream of her mom, therefore limiting her from crossing to the land of the dead.
But a deed with a selfish purpose doesn't end well, no matter how good you think your act or action was. Before the night fell, Mirai had gone into the woods to look for some wood to light up a fire for the night. But when she returned, she found her beloved mother dead, a rope around her neck with knives stabbed into her stomach, and she was hanging on a tree, making it look like the woman had attempted to kill herself. But Mirai knew exactly who had killed her mother; she knew it was the people from the village, the same people she cured from their misfortune, the same people she went as far as consuming their evil dreams so that they could live a peaceful life.
“Mama always said that there were good people in the world; maybe she was wrong. I don't want to do good anymore; I don't want to help anyone anymore.” Little Mirai cried. At a tender age, she used her hands to bury her mom.
As the sun begins to rise, little Mirai walks through the dark forest, not knowing where she was going, but she knew it was time for the villagers to taste their own karma.
“Did you hear that the chef killed his wife?” A villager said this to his companion.
“Of course I heard; they said he was having a bad dream where he was seeing a monster. It turns out he was sleepwalking, and he stabbed his wife—not just his wife, his daughter; she's missing an eye,” the other villager responded.
“This is so unfortunate; even the fisherman, I heard we won't be eating any fish soon; I heard they slept in their boat and drowned, something that has never happened before.”
“Ah, I wonder why all these unfortunate things have been happening to us. Since the day that witch daughter left, we have been under some kind of pressure. A lot of people have lost their lives.”
The next day, as the sun rose, the dead of newly born children spread like wildfire; each kid died in their sleep; screams of mothers were heard everywhere; some parents complained about how their children struggled through the night but never opened their eyes till their last breath; it was like they were battling in their dreams before they gave up.
“My child! No! I didn't do anything; I didn't offend the gods; I don't have any blood on my hands; I have become barren; this is the only child I have.” You could hear the sorrow and pain in the mother's voice.
Who knew that the witch's little daughter was a dreamcatcher, the one protecting the whole village, the one who consumed their bad dreams, evil misfortune, evil energy, bad luck.?
And that's when they realize their misfortune; their future was karma, as they had driven away the only person who had cleared up their misfortune. Little Mirai took up the journey to find her own path wherever the wind took her.
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The premise of your story has promise. However, you tackle the telling in an overly broad manner that results in reader-disconnection. To formulate a good, hard-hitting short story, not only do you need to incorporate the holy trio of dialogue, narrative and action, but you need to “show” (more) rather than” tell”. It’s always best to focus your story on a cameo event, say on the events of the evening after Marai leaves the village. Perhaps she meets a traveler who recounts the misfortunes of the village. In this setting you’d have opportunity to include snippets of the backstory, such as the child’s suffering. The reader fails to connect with the characters if they can’t “feel” the protagonist’s emotions. Saying that character suffered is not enough, you need to “show” us by describing her feelings and, perhaps, bring it out in a conversation she had with her mother.
Each time I read your comment on my post of another post like this, I learn valuable lessons. Thank you, @theinkwell
Very touching story. Humans seem to fear and wish to destroy what they do not understand or anything that poses greater than them, I don't know why.
Your story is nicely written and I enjoyed it.
Hmmm, sometimes people just want to destroy things not knowing it would turn out to be their misfortune.
Great story dear.
All things considered, it's a compelling tale that makes you consider the influence of karma and the necessity of speaking up for what's right.
Waw. I appreciate the little girl's gift.
This is one Goldeen gift that's not made public.
I like your story.
It's so unfortunate that the people failed to value what the had until it slipped off. Should I call it a well deserved karma? Oooh, innocent children are involved.
Nice story
A perfect example of, you can't see the value of what you have till you lose it.
I enjoyed this story.
Heart touching story. The gift of the small girl and the loyalty everything was described so gracefully. I am in love with your story.