Melita and the Girl on the Hill

In a small village by the sea there was a girl named Melita. It was summer. The breeze was warm and scented with the flowers that covered the village. Melita loved the summertime. She spent her days basking in the sun, and when it was too hot, she would take a dip in the sea. At the highest point in the village, at the top of a hill, there was a mansion that stood out against the sunny, happy village. The mansion had been painted black with dark purple accents, which seemed curious for a home by the sea. Bats were often seen flying overhead, hunting insects as they flitted over a garden of black roses. In a town full of pin ks, whites, and blues, it was a truly peculiar home. The inhabitants had never been seen by the other villagers. The mysteries of this house caused the villagers to make up stories about the people living in the mansion; they were said to be outsiders, and some even believed they were ghosts. Melita was fascinated by these stories. She felt curious about the people in the mansion, but she was strongly discouraged by her family from visiting. Melita’s family were bakers, and every morning it was her job to deliver freshly baked bread to the villagers. One day, Melita was feeling especially brave, so she decided to walk up the hill and introduce herself to the people in the mysterious mansion. She figured it would be a warm gesture to bring them fresh bread. None of the villagers had ever shown any kindness to the residents of the mansion. Though Melita wanted to be kind, her curiosity also fueled her to visit the mansion. She was in the mood for an adventure. She filled her basket with bread and began to trek uphill. At the top of the hill, a cloud of dense fog clung to the mansion and the sky was a dark gray. Melita shivered as she walked up the chipped front steps. She rang the doorbell, but there was no answer. While she waited, Melita sat on the front porch admiring the strange dark garden. Finally, she heard footsteps approach the door. She stood up, suddenly feeling quite nervous. The door opened, just a crack, and Melita saw a pair of dark red eyes looking back at her. She gasped! “What are you doing here?” a deep voice asked. “I… um… live in the village and I wanted to bring you some fresh bread.” “We don’t eat bread here,” they hissed and slammed the door shut. Melita frowned with disappointment. She had walked all that way for nothing. She let out a long sigh and started to head back to the village. As she walked, still carrying the basket of bread, her curiosity about the mansion only grew stronger. Why didn’t the sun shine on the garden? Why were all the flowers tinted black or deep red? And most importantly, why didn’t they eat bread? She thought it must be terrible to live a life alone, without sun or the taste of delicious baked goods. When Melita told her family about her day, they expressed mixed feelings. They were proud of her for trying her best to bring kindness to a dark world, but they also assured her that she was a child of the sun who belonged in a bright setting with people like her. Though Melita was discouraged, she accepted their truth and continued to enjoy the long summer days. One day, when Melita was taking a dip in the ocean, she glanced toward the mansion at the top of the hill. The fog was burning away, and she noticed something strange. A person exited the house, and when they had walked halfway down the steps, they suddenly seemed to transform from a human form into a bat! Melita had never seen anything like it. She felt something flutter like bat wings inside her stomach. Curious as ever, she had to investigate. Melita waited until nightfall. When she was sure her family was asleep, she grabbed a flashlight and ventured out into the dark. It was hard to see, even with her flashlight. She made her way toward the mansion, stumbling a few times on rocks and weeds. A thick layer of fog covered the house, and rays of moonlight shone through the trees. At the sound of footsteps, Melita immediately hid in a bush. From her hiding spot, she saw a figure appear through the fog. “Who’s there?” they called out. Melita recognized the voice. It was the same voice that had rejected her bread at the door! Peeking through the leaves of the bush, she saw her–the most beautiful girl Melita had ever seen. Her skin was as pale as the moon and her dark hair shone like the feathers of a raven. No one in the village looked like her. She was the night and Melita had only known the sun. Melita had never met anyone who made her feel as warm as she did in the sunshine. The mysterious girl’s expression grew watchful, as if she knew someone was looking at her. Melita began to sweat. The girl crept toward the bush, and without any hesitation, she separated the leaves and exposed Melita! “YOU AGAIN! What are you doing here?” she hissed distrustfully. Caroline thought all the villagers viewed her as a monster. Why would this girl have come here? “I… um… Well, I was curious about this place. I wanted to know more about you and your family,” Melita nervously explained. “My name is Melita. What is your name?” “Caroline…” she said quietly. Caroline felt uneasy. “You know you don’t belong here. You are not one of us.” “Can we just talk?” Melita asked. No one had ever asked Caroline to talk. She never thought anyone cared about what she had to say. She decided to give Melita a chance. Caroline and Melita talked for hours. They shared their hopes, dreams, and favorite things. Though they were exact opposites, their bond was strong. As they talked more, Melita remembered how she had seen someone turn into a bat. “I have a question,” Melita stated. “What is your question?” Caroline asked. “Can you explain why I saw someone on your porch turn into a bat?” Caroline chuckled. “A bat, huh? You must have a really great imagination.” “I know what I saw,” Melita said sternly. “I know your family has a secret. You never come out in the sun, you never come to the village, and you can turn into a bat! You don’t even eat bread! I’ve read about your kind. I know what you are.” “Then say it if you are so sure,” Caroline said. Melita hesitated for a moment. “You are a…. vampire.” Caroline smiled. “Are you afraid?” Melita told the truth. “A little afraid, yes, but I want to learn about who you are.” Caroline beckoned for Malita to follow her into the house Though Melita felt frightened, a deep curiosity about her intriguing new friend compelled her inside.The mansion was dark, lit only by candlelight. Black furnishings and large stained glass windows gave the house a magical feel. Caroline led Melita to her room where a shiny dark purple coffin served as her bed. She opened it and revealed the narrow space inside. It was so different from what Melita was used to. It didn’t look like a comfortable place to sleep, but she could sense Caroline’s pride as she showed her the coffin's lush velvet lining. It wasn’t so different from the pride Melita felt about her own beloved four poster bed. They continued to explore the mansion together, feeling more and more comfortable with each other as the night went on. Melita had always thought of herself as a child of the sun, but spending time with Caroline in this strange dark place gave her a sense that a hidden part of her was breaking free, and it was exciting. “Do you want to play a game?” Caroline asked. With a gleam in her eye, Caroline turned herself into a bat and challenged Melita to catch her. Melita ran around the perimeter of the mansion, leaping to tag Caroline as she flapped her wings up and down. Finally, when they were both winded, they laid down in the grass side-by-side, looking up at the swirling fog. Before they knew it, the sky had turned from pitch black to a dark blue, alerting them that the dawn was on its way. Melita knew it was time to part ways until the next nightfall. Caroline looked over at Melita and said, “Are you sure you will come back?” Melita smiled and said, “Of course.” Caroline frowned, her mind full of anxious thoughts. “Why does she like being around me? The villagers are afraid of me, I can’t enjoy the sun like her, I sleep in a coffin, and I drink blood.” Finally, she murmured, “Now that you’ve seen how I live, you must think I’m an evil monster, like in the stories you have heard.” Melita smiled. “No. Just the opposite. Now that I know you, I could never think of you as a monster.” They held hands until the glowing sun was on the verge of peeking over the horizon, which was Melita’s cue to head home. They said their goodbyes and Melita promised to be back. “Melita, if you love the sun so much, how can you enjoy being with someone like me?” Melita smiled shyly at Caroline. “I thought I needed the sun to feel warm, but I was wrong. I think something was missing before, because when I’m with you, I feel my world getting bigger.” They hugged and said goodbye. As Melita walked home, she thought about sunny days and foggy nights. She thought about her parents and the villagers. They wouldn’t understand her wanting to spend time with Caroline. Not at first. But Melita had hope that, like her, they could begin to see the beauty in both the sun and the moon.