[The Phantom of the Opera] Boundary Bridge

Witches appear at dusk.

She walked through the broken sunset and came to the rose garden of the princess in the light of the afterglow.White roses are planted in the garden, symbolizing innocence and pure love.This rose garden is facing the window of the princess' bedroom, and the princess is sleeping peacefully in bed.She was lying on her side, just facing the direction of the rose garden.The witch waited patiently for her to wake up, and seemed in no hurry.

Her short body was tightly wrapped in a black robe, making it airtight.This is the black of a crow, but it lacks a little luster than that, and the afterglow of the setting sun has never given it a warm color.No one knows how long the witch has been wrapped in this black cloak, just as no one knows where the witch came from.This time she traveled for a long time, and her black robe was soaked in the wind, frost, rain, snow, stars and moon, and finally arrived outside the princess's window near dusk.

The witch sniffed greedily. She was not in a hurry, not at all.When necessary, she can be more patient than anyone else.

In the bedroom, the princess was suddenly awakened by something - perhaps a gust of wind.She sat up in bed, brushed her blond hair back, then put on a cloak, and opened the door to the room.It's very quiet outside, nothing.Enid felt a sudden palpitation as she walked down the aisle to the end and turned a corner.A gust of wind lifted her long golden hair and white cloak, and Enid saw the witch.

"Good afternoon or evening, miss," said the witch.

Her expression was humble, or perhaps contrived.The hood was pulled down very low, reaching down to the aquiline nose, the eyes were hidden in the shadows, and a strange light was also hidden.Her voice was hoarse, like the friction of metal, and her toothless mouth opened and closed.Her bewitchment is not concealed, or there is no need to conceal it-because she is a witch in the first place.

Enid was wearing that white cloak, standing on the top step and looking at the witch from a distance.Her hair is golden, her eyes are blue, her face is white, and her expression is melancholy and noble.Even though she was a little thin, standing there, she was still extremely moving.She exuded an aura that stood out from the crowd even among the crowd, and she stared at the witch quietly and sadly.

The witch curled up her twisted and dry lips with great effort, stretched out a dull tongue and licked it.She became more and more interested in this young lady, how pure is that clear soul—but this is a girl who is very obsessed with her own soul, she will never accept the choice of handing over her soul, the witch sighed, feeling a little regretful , It seems that there is no such regret.She already has new ideas.

What is a witch?No one can tell, and no one will know her purpose, because she has no purpose.She can be the incarnation of some absurd desire, or she can be a wise man from ancient times, she can be anything, as long as there is a human being, a witch will exist.Because people will definitely have something they can't ask for.The witch is not a persecutor, although she does have an interest in the girl's soul.But more often—she gave an odd and vague laugh, the witch was interested in the transaction itself, or rather, the people involved in the transaction.

Few people can resist the witch's temptation, and even fewer people can accept the deal without regretting—and the witch's pleasure is to watch these people who trade with her, and at the same time accept the inspiration of fate in the dark, and go to the next one that can give She brings fun to the venue for swapping.She knew where she was going, when to go, and where bright or twisted souls awaited her.She is exercising destiny, and she is also a part of destiny, aimlessly, and never tired of it.She had been looking forward to her meeting with the young princess for a long time, and her weather-beaten eyes saw the will of fate, and the witch knew what to take out of her pocket.

"Let's make a deal, miss." On the old and withered hand of the witch, there was a faint blue light lingering. It was many beautiful and jumping light spots, converging and dispersing, which strangely made people feel alive.The witch said: "This is the singing of the youngest daughter of the Sea King, Princess Ariel of the Little Mermaid."

"Let's make a deal, miss," she said again, confidently.

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Enid finally agrees to the deal proposed by the witch.

Evening is over, night is coming.In the cold moonlight, white roses exude a delicate fragrance.Enid will answer the witch's question, what can she give in exchange for the singing of the Little Mermaid - her bravery and enthusiasm, she left her country to wander and take risks, and chase her love.What would Enid offer in exchange?

Singing is a metaphor, a symbol, and an obsession.It's not just singing, it also represents a lot of things.The witch will give her the singing voice of the little mermaid, send the faint blue light into her throat and heart, repair her weak and sick body, and make this human body able to carry the singing voice of the princess of the sea and the undying spirit .At that time the princess will cease to exist, and what will survive is a new and very different person.

"Use my life." After thinking for a long time, Enid said, "Exchange the life I never wanted for everything you said. My title, wealth, reputation, everything can be taken away. These things Naturally, it is not as precious as a mermaid's singing, but there are very few treasures that can be compared in the world. I think what you want to take away is something that is equivalent to me."

"Smart girl." The witch smiled approvingly, but she continued, "But how do you know I'll agree? You don't want that kind of life, and you're asking me to give you one more thing, which is that you want freedom of."

"I don't want this kind of life, but it represents all of my past 17 years." Enid said quietly and tenderly, "It forms me, supports all the memories in my life, includes all my social relationships... and I will completely break away from all of this and never look back." Her eyes were bright and firm.

The witch giggled thoughtfully.

"As you wish, princess." Those faint blue light spots danced around her, and then slowly entered her body. It was not warm, but very comfortable and peaceful.With a flick of the witch's staff——

"Remember, the princess is dead." She whispered, "you use my magic to restrain yourself from the past and use it as an opportunity to start a new life. Therefore, your price is—you will not be able to voluntarily give up your life everything in it."

"This is our second bargain, miss, about the spirits attached to the song, and what you achieve by this restraint. You shall wander forever, never stay, never return; you cannot take anything but bread and water You can’t gather wealth for yourself in any way; you can’t use the mermaid’s voice to seek fame and interests for yourself, you can only accept alms for living; you can’t use your past names, and you can’t meet your former friends and relatives ...you will have the singing of a mermaid, and a body cleansed by the singing and the spirit. In repairing your singing organs, I also cured your heart disease—Miss, let's see what you will do What kind of way?"

Her staff emitted a dark light, and at the same moment, the calm and smiling body of "Enid" appeared on the princess's bed.She has lost her breath.

"After the funeral at the latest, you have to leave here." The witch said hoarsely, "Wandering forever, never looking back, never staying."

"I remember." Enid said calmly, "I appreciate your presence."

That day was Enid's 17th birthday. She was carefully dressed and pushed out, and she received guests with elegant speech and noble manners.They chat in personable and hideously, while joking about her upcoming wedding with her handsome and charming fiancé.Enid smiled quietly and politely, until Bernard realized that her body could no longer hold on, and hurriedly sent her back to the room for a nap.Enid asked the maid to leave and lay down on the couch to rest.Then, her fate changed completely on this day.

After the funeral, she left the Ducal Palace where she had lived for 17 years.

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The days after leaving, whether happy or sad, are several times as imagined.

Enid had imagined countless times that she walked out of that cage by herself.But when she did seize that opportunity and leave her home forever, never to return, like a rootless duckweed...she would be sentimental too.Poverty, hunger and cold, these things she had never experienced before, no matter how cold her imagination was, it could not compare with the real arrival of the wind and frost in reality.Enid had a lot of very difficult days. She collapsed in a corner and gasped for breath. When she wandered outside the bakery, there was almost instinctive regret in her heart—poverty, hunger, cold, the pain of these things may not be It is better than her original heart disease, but people always prefer to be familiar with the pain.

However, in the day-to-day wandering and walking, her pure soul has been polished, and she has become more and more radiant.She read the road she had traveled, contemplated the faces she met, sometimes happy and sometimes sad, sometimes lost and sometimes hesitant, but she never looked back.In the vast world, she has encountered trivial warmth and undisguised malice.She passed by many mediocre but real souls, and also encountered a real wise man.She met them one by one, and waved goodbye one by one.The singing voice of the mermaid stretched and opened in her chest, like a big flower blooming on the bottom of the sea, and her soul also grew and climbed, rushing out of her chest, approaching the light.

She has traveled to many places that she could only reach in her dreams, and the wonders of nature have also nourished and enriched her soul.She engraved in her heart the joy of those journeys and the feelings of wandering.She has climbed up the high red mountain peaks, looked at the vast world, and also pursued the projection of flowing clouds, and crossed thousands of ravines.She pinched the flower buds the size of fingertips all over the mountains and fields, and watched them bloom into bowl-sized flowers.She has also been to a lake surrounded by snow-capped mountains, where a living sun lives in a blue mirror.It was there, where the snow was about to melt and the grass slowly greened, by Lake Vänern, that she heard a story from the villagers there.

Those are fishermen who have lived for generations, and they live by fishing all year round.This work will not stop when it comes to winter - they break the ice to catch fish, because no matter how cold the winter is, it will not be able to freeze all the lake water.Under the ice, there is still fresh life.

Enid's eyes were slightly moist, she thought of her own origin, the place where she could not turn back was far away and blurred, she thought of the heart she had hidden, those fresh lives under the ice, those buried in the mud but broke the ground. out of the seeds.She thought a lot, but didn't think about anything.Her skin was whiter than snow, and she was on the top of the snow mountain. The wind tore off the hood of her gray robe, revealing her brilliant golden hair.The girl with blue eyes smiled peacefully and serenely.

She continued her walk, and she knew she was going to go further.Her next stop is Paris.

The author has something to say: *White roses mean "I am enough to match you".

*The imagery of the scenery in the penultimate paragraph is based on a prose I have read before, but I can’t remember the name QAQ, invaded and deleted.

* These two chapters actually explain a lot of small details, such as why Enid can speak French/why her skin is so white when she wanders around This is a bit obscure) / She also had a painful mental journey, etc.

*Suddenly found that there is no long comment on this article o(╥﹏╥)o When it is finished, a little angel will write it for me.