Tell Me The Story

“Tell me the story,”
“Which story is that?”
“The one about the girl fighting and cheating and stealing, and everyone thought that she was a horrible person, until…”
“Until what?”
“Well, that’s just the point. I can’t remember. So tell me the story.”
“Why?”
“Because I can’t remember.”
“You remembered that she fights, cheats, and steals. Isn’t that enough?”
“But I can’t remember why, or how, or what happens because of it. The only other thing that I remember is her song.”
“Tell me about her song.”
“I told you! I...I can’t remember! It was...a sad song. No, a sweet song. Well, like both. She sang it all the days of her life.”
“What did it sound like?”
“It...it was like that tune when someone close to you walks away but they don’t want to and when they look back at you they promise to come back and you believe them.”
“That sounds more like a feeling inside.”
“No, that’s what the tune was! Or, that’s what it was sometimes.”
“It wasn’t always the same?”
“I don’t think so. She had some similar tunes, like the same rhythm but a different melody. She had one that sounded like when you just beat the scariest thing in the world and you can’t believe that you did it yet you’re not exactly proud of what you just did and realize that your courage hasn’t grown because of it.”
“What would a thief have to face that’s so scary?”
“Maybe she wasn’t a thief. No, she was a thief, but she wasn’t a bad thief.”
“Aren’t all thieves bad?”
“Not her! Thief isn’t the right word. More like a...a… a capturer? No, a securer? There’s not really one word that can describe it.”
“Maybe she was just a bad thief.”
“No! She was a good one! She had another tune that went with it. Like when you have to steal something because you don’t want to fail your friends in this grand adventure that is hinged on you stealing that something. It also sounded like when you steal something because someone proffered it to you and begged you to take it, and you were able to take it because they were so willing to take it.”
“And that’s a good thing?”
“Well, I think it is. It’s like stealing for a better cause, one that makes more people happy than just yourself.”
“Is that her only tune?”
“No! I told you that she’s not just a stealer, but she’s a fighter...and a cheater.”
“You don’t sound very happy about her being a cheater.”
“I’m not! Wait. I am! She was a good cheater.”
“She was cunning?”
“Yes, but it was for a good thing. She helped a lot of people when she cheated because she cheated them out of things they didn’t know they didn’t want.”
“Was there a tune for this one too?”
“Of course. I can’t remember this one too well. That’s why I want you to tell me the story! Maybe I’ll remember it all.”
“Tell me what you do remember.”
“Well, it’s got a really sinister melody to it. Like everyone looks at what she does and thinks it’s the worse thing that could ever be done. But there’s a part that goes up and up and you know that it’s okay because she actually did something to help them even though they thought all those horrible things.”
“Up and up?”
“Yes, like the music went up. The volume, the pitch, the...boldness. The confidence.”
“She was a confident woman then. Didn’t fear what the world said.”
“Well, not all the time.”
“Oh?”
“There’s a last part to the song, I think. It’s really faint and you have to listen really hard and be in the right kind of mood. But it sounds like...she’s lonely.”
“Maybe because she’s too confident.”
“I don’t think so. I think it’s because she sees all the people she’s tried and oftentimes succeeded to help and they don’t realize that it was her all along.”
“She’s like a secret helper.”
“But she doesn’t want to be a secret helper. She wants them to know it was her.”
“Doesn’t that sound a little selfish?”
“No! She’s not selfish! Not at all! She just wants them to...to see her. To be with her. She’s always there for them but there is no one ever there for her. She’s all alone.”
“Helping can be lonely.”
“But it’s a good thing.”
“Not everyone sees it as something to praise.”
“Her song said that too.”
“Her song seems to say everything.”
“Because it’s the song of her life. She sings it all the time. To keep her going. To hide her when dangerous things come but give her strength if she has to face it. She never gets satisfaction out of destroying things though. Her song keeps her humble. She helps others because she knows that it’s right. And her song reminds her what it would be like if she didn’t. It helps her to keep fighting. Because someday, she knows that they will see her and stand by her.”
“Do you still want me to tell you the story?”
“Do you know what it is now?”
“I have a faint idea. But I can fill in the holes.”
“Oh. Then don’t tell it.”
“Why not? It would almost be like the real thing.”
“But it won’t be exactly the same. She deserves the truth to be told. That’s what she fights for. If you tell a story with the wrong things, then you just make her journey harder.”
“But she’s just a story. A character of imagination.”
“But we’re all stories. We all have a song to sing. A tune that will pick us up and blow us forward. A harmony that tells what our hearts want to say. She’s out there somewhere. You can’t tell it wrong. You just can’t.”
“I won’t tell it.”
“Good.”
“...”
“...”
“Tell me a story.”
“What story?”
“I can’t quite recall but she asked a lot of questions and only recieved questions in return. They were big questions, questions she couldn’t answer.”
“Was there a song?”
“I think. It was hard to tell but it sounded like…”