Spring of Forgotten Screams

Iris' life stayed stagnant for days; she couldn't find the motivation to do anything. She wants to continue living, but random thoughts appear in her mind, which causes her demeanor to change as she loses motivation for whatever action she is doing.

With her attached but injured leg still being a problem when it comes to doing her daily life, she just takes many breaks, leans on trees, and looks up at the cold sky. She feels the snow cushioning her legs, feeling the cold snow in her fingers as she draws the many thoughts and emotions she is feeling.

After drawing many simple things, she covers it, slowly gets up, and goes to whatever her destination was. It all felt calm and relaxed, a feeling that Iris had long forgotten. The feeling of not worrying about her future or about anyone, only being in the present, continuing living with an increasingly fading goal.

…

A month after she was attacked, her leg finally stopped hurting, and she returned to her prime conditioning. With her legs fully prepared, she began running, one and two, one and two. Running through the entire day, which caused her to regain some of her color in her dull eyes. 

She also began trying to recreate having two shields, but she still can't figure out how it works. She has done it three times since that day, but she can't have a clear method. She tried having a shield half complete and creating it, then completing the other half, but it only worked one time, as the rest of her over one hundred attempts ended in her replacing her shield.

The times she has created a double shield, she has had improvements in its build, but it is still nowhere near the perfection of that time. Every time she failed, she took a deep breath and continued working. She felt a small fire growing inside her chest; she didn't understand it, but every everytime she succeeded, that flame increased.

…

Iris slowly realized that the thickness of the snow and how much spare wood she was having meant that winter was ending. The days became sunnier, and there were more animals to see. 

…

Then, before Iris could process everything, spring arrived with all of the trees blossoming. Seeing the blossoming of the trees made Iris genuinely smile; she stared at the beauty of the trees.

How weird? Was nature always this beautiful? All of the trees have many different flower colors. My mom would have been very happy seeing all of this. Apatura also would have liked this. I like this; I like this. The clouds are also very nice, but I think it might rain. Iris quickly dismisses the increasingly darker clouds; she makes her way back to her home after collecting some water.

Iris then felt the first droplet of rain hit her body. She looked up and could feel that the rain would be hard, so she positioned her shield on top of her head for protection and to test out how much she had improved. 

The rain began pouring; she stood up, her shield keeping her top part dry as her legs and feet felt the water splashing. She looked at Apatura, realizing that she hadn't talked to anyone for such a long time.

When was the last time I spoke to someone? When" was the last time I used my voice? What will my future be about? Will I ever know the truth about anything? What will be my future challenges? Is this the hardest part of my journey? Do I want to continue my journey? Will I always be destined to be alone?" Iris whispered as she looked at the water rise until it reached her knees. 

She rolled her dress up, feeling the water rise and change temperature. She looked back at Apatura, seeing her cocoon one-fourth covered with rain. She looked at her tree and how it began to grow to survive the water. 

"I haven't had a dream in a long time. All those dreams felt different. I didn't feel like the same person. I knew it was me, but they were different… I think I am just overthinking it." Iris continued whispering.

"There is a lot of rain, the water is producing a weird metallic smell, and the ground is taking the water and producing a bubble. I won't try to understand the forest."

Iris tried walking, but the mud stuck her deep. "I am stuck. Hopefully I can get out—hopefully." 

The rain lasted for many hours, until the sun set. She saw no more rain and realized how much rain there is. The water reached her pelvis; it tickled her, and she decided that she needed to climb a tree to keep herself dry. 

"Why didn't I do that first?" Iris whispered as she was on top of a tree and seeing all of the effects of the heavy rain. She saw many animals dying from the flood while others of the same species were effortlessly floating and swimming around. 

She leaned her head back on the tree. It felt weird how she had been alive for so long. She can't wrap her head around the thought that she is destined for anything great. 

…

Wow, this is comfortable. Iris quickly opened her eyes after smelling the iconic smell of her house. She looked around, seeing all of the furniture and everything in the exact same position as the last time she was there.

"Was it all a dream?" Iris makes her way to her mirror, seeing nothing. 

She realizes that it was a dream but feels confused as she hasn't woken up or can do anything inside her dream. 

"Ahh!!!" 

Iris hears a bloodcurdling scream; she runs to where the sound is located, and there she stumbles upon the mysterious figure with long horns.

Iris looks at how the outside is all covered in snow and ice with many similar monsters invading and killing everything and everyone. She looks at the front side of her house and then falls down, seeing a little elf girl extending her hands with tears rolling down her face. 

"WhAt iS tHe mAtTEr? ArE yOU anGrY?"