D – Dance

This story was written for the 2025 April A to Z Blog Challenge. Twenty-six words, one for each letter of the alphabet, were pre-selected by a random word generator (MacChatGPT) and were included for each section of the appropriate letter in the Challenge. The chosen word is highlighted within the text. To start the story from the beginning, go to https://www.hdhstory.net/Storyblog/?p=4443.

When we last met in Part 3 – Climb:

 Adriana found food, a backpack with some items, a walking stick, and a rope. Armed with those supplies, she searched out which way to go to achieve her destiny. Remembering a clue she was given, she determined which way to go – “You must go high” entered her mind. Adriana knew she was destined to climb that distant mountain. 

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Destiny – Part 4 (dance)

Making it to the mountain was an arduous task. She was careful to mark things with arrows, using her carving knife, along the paths she took. Each time she reached a fork in the road, she had to stop and determine which fork to take. She did attempt some, only to discover the path taken ended, or it circled back to a path she had already been on.  She chose not to go too deep onto densely covered wooded paths as she didn’t want to lose sight of the mountain. 

She made sure that she ate and drank sparingly, knowing that the journey was long and not wanting to deplete her supplies before she could restock them.

As her canteen emptied, she managed to find small watering holes where she could refill it. When her food was depleted, she happened upon way stations that were clearly designed for travelers like herself. There, she could restock her food supplies and rest to regain strength. 

When she reached the mountain, she looked up. Its snow-capped peaks rose and appeared to touch the sky.  Springbounder had told her she must go high to reach the next marker, where she would look to the sky to find the ones to follow. Did she need to go to the top peaks to see the marker, or would there be something for her at a lower level that was easier to get to? 

The only way to find out was to climb. The bottom part of the mountain had paths that she could use. She felt confident she was going in the right direction as long as she kept going upward. 

She came to a point where the path she was on ended. Above her, there appeared footholds that she might use to climb further. However, she had never climbed a mountain before and was unsure how to proceed. 

She heard footsteps behind her, and a deep voice said, “Interesting place for you to be. Do you climb these hills often?”

Adriana turned around to find herself staring into the eyes of the well-built man who had spoken. He was a few inches taller than her, with eyes a deep shade of blue, well-groomed, jet-black hair, and dressed in rugged outdoor apparel with a backpack over his shoulder. 

She paused for a moment before speaking. “Who are you? And what are you doing here?”

He looked at her and slightly smirked as he replied, “I might ask you the same. I’m called Rowan. And I’m here because this is what I do. I climb mountains. I noticed you in my travels, and seeing the path you were taking, I was curious about what you would do when you reached this point. Now I’ve told you my name, what is yours?”

Without hesitation, Adriana stood straight and said, “My name is Adriana. I’m here because I am following a quest to find my destiny. I was instructed to go high to find my next marker. I have reached this point but am unsure what to do next.”

“Then it’s good that I’m here to help. I see that you carry a rope. It is very useful when climbing. If you allow me to lead, I can guide you up part of this mountain to another resting place. You should be able to find further help there.” 

This time, Adriana hesitated. She did not know this man. Was he trustworthy? Should she believe all that he said? The problem was that she still needed to climb the mountain. “What would I need to do?” she asked.

“It’s quite simple. I will tie one end of your rope around my waist and the other around yours. I will begin to climb, and you will wait until I stop and then follow in my foot and handholds. I will keep the rope taut as you climb. Should you slip and fall, I will be anchored to stop you from hurting yourself. Once you have reached my position, I will move further up and repeat the process until we reach a safe place where I can leave you.”

Adriana agreed to try it. She suggested they practice a few times, going up partway and then back down, so she could better understand the task at hand, which they did. 

They rested a bit, and then Rowan suggested starting the climb. It was getting late, and they needed to get to a more convenient resting place for the night. 

They climbed for over an hour until they finally reached level ground. There, they found a series of small houses. There were people there, too. 

Rowen suggested that Adriana try to befriend some of the people by explaining who she was and her task. They would shelter her for the night. As for him, he had to continue on a different path. He wished her luck, turned, and left her on her own. 

This wasn’t exactly what she had planned, but it was the only thing she could do. Finding someone who would listen to her tale and provide a place to sleep wasn’t hard. Many were interested. They were also willing to restock her backpack. Interestingly, when she mentioned Rowan’s name to anyone, no one had heard of him. 

The woman she stayed with remembered some story about a large odd-shaped rock in the middle of one of the fields nearby. She suggested it might be the marker Adriana was looking for. 

Adriana thanked all of the people who had helped her and departed in search of the rock. She followed the path they had described until she came to a turnoff. Taking that, it was not much further before she found the field with the rock. It certainly was odd-looking. It had seven curved sides and a flat top. Each of the sides faced a different path. The top of the rock was flat and smooth. 

A shadow passed overhead. Adriana looked up into the sky and saw a flock of seven birds. The birds all looked like the same species – small in stature, with black and white stripes on their heads, brown wings with white stripes, and light grayish bodies. The birds all seemed to be looking down at her. They came lower and lower to the ground until they all landed on the top of the rock. They all moved to the top side of the rock that faced the path Adriana had just taken. Their backs were to that path. Then, six of them moved to another side. One stayed there, and the rest moved to another side. This continued, as one bird was always left behind. Sometimes, two birds would end up on the same side. When all was done, there were one or two birds at four sides of the rock, and three sides remained empty. Then, all but one flew up and landed atop one of the empty sides. From there, those birds fell off the rock. These actions repeated themselves (All starting together on the same spot, leaving one back flying to a different spot precisely as before, and when done, flying to an empty spot and falling off the rock). Other than picking a different one of the empty spots at the end to fall off, the pattern of where the birds went each time was identical. 

Adriana reasoned that the birds appeared to be doing some kind of dance. And their dance was meant to give her a message. 

If she only knew what it was.

To be continued in E – Elegant