Landed Wings

chapter 3: BELOW



ASHLYNN

The closest I’ve ever been to the ground and the LandBound was the day I almost died. This time is different. I’ve got a purpose and I know where I’m headed. Okay, maybe I don’t know exactly where I’m going but I have a general idea. I just have to keep going down. Sky Patrol is easy, I just have to slip past them when they change shifts – that won’t be a problem. I might run into a problem when I go down there. From what I hear, (from Cyanne our resident bookworm) on the ground, SkyBound are not well thought of. We are taught that they are jealous of our freedoms and that’s why they hate us. No one ever says exactly why they hate us – don’t they have freedoms too? There’s so little I know and when I think about it, I cringe at my naiveté and lack of knowledge but I can’t worry about that now. The real issue is how I am going to hide my wings. I found an old coat hidden on the top shelf of my father’s jacket that I brought with me on this trip. I don’t know why he has this coat because he can’t use it – there are no slits to spread your wings. It doesn’t really matter now though because it’s perfect for my trip. I am going to look ridiculous with an oversized coat but I’m not going to be here long so it should be okay. My feathers ruffle against my back. They are so apart of me, who I am – I still can’t understand how anyone could be whole without them. Stripping them from people seems cruel.

Luck is on my side. No one was around to see me fly in and I was able to land, put on my father’s coat and start walking. I’m in some kind of field of corn. I’ve never seen a field of corn except in pictures from Cyanne’s books. I never expected it to smell so sweet or be so beautiful. I can’t help but laugh – I’m really free! I can’t wait to tell my flock all about the LandBound. I think I see a clearing and someone up ahead. I’ve been walking forever and I haven’t seen anyone - I’ve never had to walk so much in my life. I can feel my wings pushing against my coat yearning to unfold. There is some sort of dusty town at the edge of the cornfield. Up ahead I see what looks like a LandBound woman pulling a small child behind her. The child is wingless. I can’t help but stare. I’ve never seen a wingless child before. I still don’t understand how any child is born wingless. Even if your wings are stripped – shouldn’t you still have the gene for wings? The little girl is looking at me like she knows I have a secret, thankfully, my feathers are fully concealed. The woman bares her teeth at me, like I don’t belong, regardless of my concealed wings. How does she know? I see a few more people as I walk further into the town and they all look at me with the same distrust. What distinguishing mark is upon me, that they know? I look at myself in the reflection of a store window and see a stray feather in my hair. I curse. They will all know me now as SkyBound. I pluck the feather out and drop it on the ground.