Post by Fiona McFly on May 22, 2017 5:02:01 GMT
Chapter 3
"PROCESSION"
"PROCESSION"
March 24, 2017 - 7:00 AM
Three hours before the wedding, inside Regina Kimble's house...
...we find Fiona McFly sitting up inside the guest's bedroom, wide awake in a red silk nightgown. Outstretching her arms, she stood up and walked towards the bedroom's window, gazing out as a wondrous sunrise took place in the heavens above the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. Like all things in life, it was the start of another day--another chance to go out into the jungle that is "the real world" and make a grand impression on the people she loved the most.
People like Regina Kimble...
...and especially her fiancee, Jack Gaither.
On this particular day, the Northern Irishwoman would make a solemn vow to love and cherish her future husband through sickness and in perfect health, for the rest of her natural life. Yet when her eyes gazed upon the mirror in the corner, she sighed at the sight of the twin bandages that cover the spaces below her right and left eyes as a result of a former girlfriend's fury. The incident in question, as it turned out...left her mind frazzled, her soul uncomprehending about what the wedding parties would do if they saw her in this condition.
"More than likely," Fiona's mind began to ponder the very notion that Jack would, undoubtedly, put a bullet in Angie Johnson's head for what she did.
But Fiona, in her soul, didn't want that to happen. She took the mugging in stride, knowing damn well that it was merely part of a journey that began nearly twenty years, on the campus of Arlington High School. Yet she found it difficult to have the desire to tell him about the extent of the relationship with her old volleyball teammate. The whole spectrum of it all left Fiona in a state of confusion, feeling as if she was completely out of focus. Deep in her consciousness, she began to remember the Biblical passages she had written down months ago, teachings that dealt with fear and anxiety.
"Close your eyes..."
The words of her mentor, Miss Kimble, rang into her head as she did as instructed. Fiona, in her mental faculties, heard several heartbeat sounds playing, one after the other, in a slow and steady tempo. The world around her had faded into nothingness, at least for the time being...replaced by a vision of being alone in some faraway park, with nothing around her save for the clear blue skies and pristine oak trees.
She then began to hear the all-too-familiar strains of Queen guitarist Brian May's famed "Red Special" playing from afar as the principal's words became more pronounced.
"Hear the music in your soul..."
The "spirit" that was Fiona's inner soul strolled towards the figure that was playing the opening riffs to the instrumental tune "Procession." It was a gorgeous tune, full of hope and wonder--a perfect piece to start any day off on the right foot. McFly continued walking towards this "mysterious stranger" in a black suit, marching to the slow and deliberate beats of the opening track to the "Queen II" album...all the while, hearing Kimble's instructions play out in her ear.
"Breathe in, breathe out..."
She breathed, slowly and confidently, before walking up to the guitar player in question. He sported that classic Texas smile that only one man in her life ever had--the warmth and comfort that only Jack Gaither himself could have ever instilled into her life force.
"What do you see?"
Around her, as if on cue, we see other apparitions float past her, celebrating the joy and excitement that only a wedding can provide. It was, indeed, a celebration of life that consumed the entire area for as far as the eye could see. It was a time for peace, a time for love, and a time for appreciation of the things that God Himself had provided for one Fiona McFly...
...but it was only a small part of the procession--the journey--that lied ahead.
We now see the guitar-strumming "Jack Gaither" fade into the annals of time, replaced by a coffin with an Beckham Elementary School T-shirt draped on it. We then see figures comforting Fiona on all fronts, using her shoulders like napkins to wipe away tears of sadness and sorrow. The blue skies soon gave way to dark, menacing clouds--a heavy rain and lightning show soon ensuing, encapsulating the grasslands and trees around her. This moment was somber, rife with internal pain and suffering. We then see "Jack" standing next to a small marked which read "HERE LIES - REGINA KIMBLE" in gold letters, placing his guitar below it in tribute to a mentor, a teacher...and a friend.
At this point in time, Fiona began to realize...that the journey doesn't end with a simple wedding.
It just keeps on truckin' along.
She focused her eyes upon the man in the black suit with red bowtie, knowing that they--as a couple--will now have to create their own destinies, following their own paths toward a common goal.
"Open your eyes..."
Fiona opened her eyes...and we find ourselves back in the corporeal realm that is the simple one-story home on Wheeler Avenue. With a visage as good as gold, with a smile as deep as the Montreux lake waters, Fiona peered down at the alarm clock on the nightstand as it buzzed. The day had, truly, finally come...
...yet in her mind, the journey was only beginning.
"Live in that moment."
~THE STORY CONCLUDES IN "DEARLY BELOVED..."~
~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~
Dear ladies...
Sometimes I'm left to ponder....what's happening to me.
Having to sit back and watch as Pandora Freeman sells her soul in an effort to become Diamonds Champion...has consumed my soul. Having to stand there and witness the one formerly known as "Johnny Gillmen" destroy whatever good-guy image he had...has boiled my blood to no end. Yet as I've had to learn on the day of my wedding...it's times like these when I'm forced to sit down and say to myself "fuck's sake, what am I to do" as the world around my very essence becomes more and more fluid with each passing moment in time.
My career, much like the days and months leading up to my marriage, has been...quite the journey as it were, rife with its fair share of ups and downs, inversions and whatnot. It is when I have to keep reminding myself, every singular day and night, that it's how we handle those wins or losses that define me as a person, not "just" as the competitor as some critics might say. It is there that we choose our OWN path in life, one that will guide us into becoming the best in our craft. Oddly enough...time and time again, I've found myself unsure of where I want to go, of which road I wish to travel on...
...and it's hurt me--more than anything else in the world.
I have a dark side in my soul, a violent temperament that wants to be unleashed out upon the planet, breaking the bones of those who dare oppose me. But I want to be part of the light side of things...where you march out to that arena and bring hope, joy, ans smiles to the massive amounts of lovely children everywhere I go. Yet it is this difference between anger and humility...that has created the division within me, one that I've had since the very beginning, since I joined Imperial over two years ago.
In the end...I can only choose ONE path--my own. I won't follow the ones set by Pandora or James Gilmore, no matter how hard they try to impress their own beliefs into my subconsciousness...
...no. The division I've had--between the light and the dark--must end.
It must ALL come together...starting with the two beauties that have been placed before me.
Kate...it's funny you find yourself in the exact same position as I am, trying desperately to bring out the first that burns from within. I mean, for God's sakes...you WERE a Shieldmaiden and all that jazz, but ever as you got yoru revenge on me after I tapped YOU out in 47 seconds, what have you done since? Nothing...alll you've done is question your own abilities as a competitor, allowing yourself to be mired in self-doubt and self-pity. You've gone BACKWARDS since that time, and quite frankly...there is nothing more disheartening to a soul than to try and turn back the clock so you can relive your past glories...
...and you just can't do that. NOBODY can.
Then there's you Alicia...and I want you to know something, from the bottom of my own heart. You beat me fairly and squarely. You nearly solved the puzzle that is Eternity the other week, and guess where that got you? It got you respect from the others--AND from me. You should be applauded for making the best attempt at doing something I've been trying to do for years--and that's to figure out that deranged loony who laughs at you or anyone else for no rhyme or reason. But here's the deal...ddon't EVER let that loss dishearten you. Learn from it--for it's merely a part of the road in which we ALL travel. When you feel the urge to snipe at a referee...don't. That's a mistake I once made, what EVERYONE has made at some point in time...
...in the end, I can only hope and pray that you'll be a Champion in the future.
But just 'cos I say those things...it DON'T mean I'm going to make it easy for you OR Kate. After all...there can be only one winner. It's the hardest thing in the world to think about, but it's just a fact of living. When it all boils down to it, if there's ONE THING--one SINGULAR thing--that has helped me to learn what it takes to grow and prosper, it's that living in the moment is the most important thing a person CAN do...
...no matter the outcome, win or lose.
Cheers!