Sitting on the edge of a cloud, he watched her. He was her guardian, Aubrey, the one sent to watch over her and guide her through life’s journey. She was crying again, her body bleeding and bruised, she soon fell asleep, consumed by her own exhaustion; this was when he could help her the most. The girl’s dreams were beautiful, she had everything a little girl could ever hope for and was always so happy. There was never any pain or sorrow when she was dreaming, they couldn’t hurt her here. As he watched her play in her perfect dreamland his heart ached, he knew that it wouldn’t last, that when she awoke the pain and suffering would set in again. His once majestic wings seemed somewhat withered at the thought of what this girl goes through, but he was at least happy that he could bring her the joy that he did.
With the sunrise, the girl got up and fixed the breakfast for her family. He cringed as she was hit for simple mistakes, or simply because they felt like hitting her, but she continued on with her daily work. She didn’t smile when they were around, she didn’t dare, but she delighted inside about the upcoming chores. After eating what was left for her and cleaning up from breakfast, everyone else was off to wherever they went, she had to look after the animals. Her arm was sore from being twisted the night before and she cringed as she lifted the water buckets for the animals, but she enjoyed taking care of them. The cow and sheep in the pasture nuzzled her as she filled their trough with grain, their soft muzzles reminding her of the soft things in her dreams; she patted them on the head and cleaned out the stalls as they ate. Aubrey was always amazed at the soft smile that crept across her face as she worked so hard, she seemed so peaceful even with the pain she carried.
The little girl worked her way over to the dogs, she loved them, and they loved her. She fed and watered them, and spread fresh straw for them to lie on, and then she sat down and leaned against the barn wall. She was tired, and some of her wounds had started to bleed again. As she sat there the dogs lay next to her, their heads on her lap and she smiled a large smile, these were her friends, they cared about her and were always there for her. She dozed off and awoke to the horrifying sound of the younger mans voice screaming for her. She knew she was in trouble and scrambled to get to her feet; but he saw her leaving the barn, he knew she had been sleeping.
He grabbed her by the arm and drug her to the house, he hit her over and over again as she worked, tears streamed down her face from the pain. Aubrey wondered if this the last time they would hurt her, “Surely,” he thought, “her small body can not endure much more of this.” He wept for the girl, wondering aloud why he had been asked to watch over someone that could not be protected, why he could not do more to help her. His wings shriveled at the sounds of her screams as they hurt her, and sorrow consumed his entire being.
They had locked her outside that night saying that she deserved to sleep with the dogs since she loved them so much, how dare such a girl be so ungrateful for all they have done for her. Even the smallest step, the smallest movement hurt her; she wasn’t sure if she was going to survive the night. She reached the barn and lay beside the dogs, the straw stinging every spot it touched. The dogs licked her wounds and nuzzled her softly, and a weak smile shone on her tear stained face as she felt the warm comfort from her friends. She drifted off to sleep, longing for the happiness of her dreams, but there would be no dreaming this night.
Her body ravaged by beasts, her guardian sat withered in a corner, angry and sad that this girl would have to endure so much. She awoke and wondered whether or not she was still alive, but the pain quickly let her know she was still very much alive. The dogs slept pushed against her to protect her from the cold of the night and she smiled at the love from her friends when she heard a soft cry coming from a dark corner.
The dogs whimpered as she moved, and her body screamed in pain, but she had to see what was there. Slowly she approached the corner and could make out the faint outline of a man. At first she was afraid it was someone from the house, but then she realized that this man was different. “Why are you crying?” the little girl asked. Aubrey was shocked, how could this girl see him, he understood that people couldn’t see angels. She asked him again why he was crying and he stepped forward, just inside the moonlight and she saw his withered wings. She walked closer and he knelt before her, looking into the eyes he had seen cry far too many times and he began to sob. He begged her to forgive him for not being able to protect her.
The girl then reached out and touched his cheek; “You’re the man that brings me my dreams.” He nodded, not able to look at her, no longer able to withstand seeing her in pain. Then, he heard a giggle, his eyes raised to see not just the loving smile she gives her friends, but a strong, happy, smile that he had only seen as she dreamed. She ignored the pain in her body and was overcome with joy as she wrapped her arms around him, giggling and laughing, thanking him for all the beauty and love and talking about all the wonderful things he had shown her.
He turned his head from her, tears streaming like rivers from his eyes. He didn’t understand how she could be so happy, why she wasn’t mad at him for not protecting her. She saw him glance at one of her cuts, in all her excitement it had started to bleed again. “It’s ok,” she said, “it will heal” He then asked her why she was so happy, and she told him that she had always wanted to meet him, that she wanted to thank him for all he had shown her and all the loved he filled her heart with. “Someday, I won’t be here anymore, and I won’t get hurt anymore, and you showed me all the wonderful things I get to look forward to”
“What if she doesn’t live long enough to see those things” he thought to himself.
But before he could finish the though, she said, “and if I don’t get away from them here, then I can see all those things from heaven and I can have wings as beautiful as yours were when I dreamed!”
She continued to tell him of all the wonderful things he showed her and how her dreams comforted her all the time because she knew they could never take those away. Her big blue eyes sparkled as she looked into is eyes and she told him that she could never tell him thank you enough for giving her something that no one could ever take away and no one could ever hurt.
As she spoke his wings grew larger, and fuller, sparkling with the light that shone in her eyes. She marveled in their beauty and asked if she could have a pair just like them when she got to heaven. A smile spread across his face for the first time in a long time as he assured her that hers would be even more beautiful, that she would have the most beautiful wings an angel could ever have. As she basked in the light of her guardian, he basked in the warmth of her boundless love, now thanking that he was able to be with this girl.
As he promised her that he would never let his wings shrivel again the sounds of sirens broke through the night. The dogs barked as the sirens got closer and the tires rolled over the gravel driveway. There was screaming and yelling, things being broken, the girls smile was now gone again. She curled in the dark corner, afraid of what was happening, the dogs ran to her and sat beside her. Aubrey wrapped his wings around her and comforted her for a moment. “It’s ok, you will be fine, I promise” He said. “I’ll be right back”
He instructed the dogs to stay with her and he vanished. The girl shivered with fear as she heard strange voices and heavy footsteps. A flashlight shone bright on her battered body and she was wrapped in a blanket and scooped away. As she sat in the police car she watched all the people who had hurt her being taken away, and she saw Aubrey smiling at her and waving, the dogs beside him.
She was taken to a hospital where they fixed her wounds, and then she was given a bath and clean clothes. She didn’t know what was going on but her dreams were more beautiful than ever so she knew she was going to be ok, she wasn’t hurting anymore.
Soon she found herself on the way to a new home. The adults seemed nice; they told her they had a surprise for her. She was quiet, and nervous as they drove towards the place she was taken from, but they drove past that place. She saw that it was all empty now and wondered what had become of her friends, and thought of the night she was rescued, and of her guardians beautiful wings. They pulled into the drive of a beautiful house with a lush green lawn; two other children were smiling and waving. She stepped out of the car, and she was hugged and asked all kinds of questions. She tried to keep up with the answers but there was so much to take in.
The father then knelt in front of her and asked her if she would like to see her surprise. She eagerly nodded her head, and he gently took her by the hand and led her to the gate in a large wooden fence. She looked at him and he nodded for her to open it. Slowly she opened the latch and pushed open the heavy gate when a familiar nose stuck through the opening. Soon she was reunited with her friends, their tails wagging, licking her face, she laughed and laughed. The other children joined her and she played with her old friends and her new friends alike. “It’s just like my dreams” she thought, as she looked up and saw her guardian still watching over her, his wings more beautiful than ever. She knew this wasn’t a dream, this was her life now, and she was at once happy again and could smile like she always wanted to before.
