Prologue

The kettle let out a whistle, telling whoever might be listening that the water is ready, but while doing so also startling the furry brown cat who had just about managed to welcome her peaceful sleep. With a soft and rather annoyed, 'Meow' the cat stretched a little, then made her way to the soft carpet next to the fireplace where she curled into a furry ball; enjoying the warmth of the fire and waiting for her peaceful sleep to come back. The man sitting next to her on the armchair watched the scene with amusement. Closing the book he was reading and putting it on the table nearby, he stood up and walked to the kettle. Just when he was pouring the water from the kettle into his mug, a strange flapping sound caught his attention. Setting the mug back on the kitchen counter, he walked to the window but the only thing he saw was the falling snow and the suburb street with no soul in sight. But the strange sound was still somewhere, and by what it seemed it was not coming from outside but from his own house; from his fireplace to be exact. By now the cat too had taken a notice to it, as she took a few steps back, hissing at the now green colored fire as she did so.

The man had seemed to relax as he knew what was about to happen and so he walked back to his half filled mug. The cat on the other hand, had no idea why the fire was acting wild. She let out a surprised shriek and jumped in air when a bird emerges from the fire. A bird made out of green flames. It flew straight towards the man and sat on his finger that he had held out for it. The man took the envelope that the bird had in its beak, and the bird flew and sat on the arm of the armchair next to the fireplace.

The man opened the envelope and took out the paper from it. It was a blank sheet; to anyone who did not know the real use of it, but the man knew. He blew on the blank sheet and slowly but surely, the hidden message started to take a form on it. The message was of no words, but it was a picture. Once the picture had taken its complete form, the man's grip tightened around it as he could not believe his eyes. Seventeen years, he had waited for this. Many nights have passed when did not even sleep in worry. And now, finally they had done it. They have found their last ray of hope. His violate eyes stared at the blue ones in the picture, but he was not paying attention to that blue color. No, he was solely interested in the golden flecks that those blue orbs held. He could not believe he was finally seeing this; eyes that held flicker of gold.

While he was engrossed in those blue orbs, the cat too had found a new interest, in the fire bird. Slowly with curious eyes the cat stalked towards the bird who was staring at the man. Before the blink of an eye the cat jumped at the bird but let out a yelp when the birds' firry wings burned her paw's fur; the bird too let out a shriek surprised by the sudden attack. This quarrel seemed to had taken the man back from his train of thoughts, and without giving a single glance to the bird and the cat who had gone into a glaring contest, he placed the picture on the kitchen counter and rushed towards the table nearby, and took out a quill, an ink pot and a paper from its drawer. The message he wrote was not a long one but of just two words, "It's her". Putting the paper in an envelope he let out a whistle; giving one last glare to the cat, the bird flew towards the man and took the envelope in its beak.

"Take it to him, as fast as you can." He whispered to it and the bird flew straight back into the fire. The cat hissed at the fireplace, but then sat down licking its burned fur. The man ran a hand through his hair and walked to the mug and the picture, and with it back to the fireplace. Giving the picture a long look he placed it in the fire, watching the flames turn it into nothing but ash. With a sigh he sat back on the armchair, where after years he took a sip of the tea with a sense of calmness in his chest. He was not the only one who had finally found peace, for after a few minutes the cat too had finally managed to welcome her peaceful sleep.

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Dedicated to Idyllic_soul for helping me out with the summary and with the prologue.