“That’s not right”

My mother corrects me as I’m scribbling on a piece of paper. It has been about a month since I was born. My Mother had read me a few children’s books from time to time. However the language still seems to be a hurdle to me. So I started to write down letters and associating them with sounds.

Languages are like complicated puzzles. You have to distinguish the sounds, then the words and then formulate sentences with them. My parents however seemed very shocked at my actions. I guess it isn’t normal for a child to suddenly start writing when it has barely said a word.

It is just that it will take too long to understand the language the conventional way. Using my knowledge to decipher the language will be much faster. Eventually they stopped looking at me like I was a mystical being and started helping me.

I think they have realised I’m not a normal child. I too have realised some things about this world. I have seen people floating around even without wings and people forming water out of thin air. The lights all around the forest like city go on by themselves every night, even though I have not seen any electricity whatsoever.

A semi modern city, without any of the innovations I remember from my world. I also think I found the reason why. It is much easier to interact with the laws of this world compared to my old one.

Although, because everyone in this world seems to have an inborn ability to manipulate their surroundings, they had a far more superficial understanding then the one I painstakingly put together with my years of research.

Even if some rudimentary devices have been made, like the lock on the doors, it is nothing compared to what humans had achieved with nothing at all. With such a high amount of control over the power that surrounds us and a fusion of technology from my old world, many more things could be achieved.

Maybe it is the great amount of power that stagnated the need to create new things. The manner in which buildings are made still astounds me. They are practically grown and carved like living things, however they stop growing once in their final form.

Well there are still many things I don’t understand. First I’ll need to get this language under my control.

I look at my mother, who is still looking at me with intrigued eyes. I show her the paper I have been writing on. She looks it over for a while then hands it back, seemingly pleased.

“Well done Icarus”

Oh yeah, that’s right, I got a name! Let’s just say, having lived in a box for so long, it had been a while since anyone called me anything.  I’m not sure how I feel about having a name of someone, who according to myths in my last life, broke his wings and fell from the sky though.

I suppose I’ll just have to learn from his mistakes and be as safe as possible. Yep, that was the plan. So why am I back here at the edge of the platform I had discovered on my first day exploring the house!

After my mother and I had spent a few hours writing and talking, she suddenly cleaned up my stuff and took my hand. We walked through the familiar hallways and ended up in front of that accursed door.

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I tried to run, I really did! My mother is just too strong! And now, here I am, at the edge of the platform once again. However this time, I have to try my best to keep my balance on my wobbly legs. I tried to kneel down like I did last time, however my mother picked me up and placed my right back on my feet.

As I look at her, my mother opens her wings and talks to me in a slow calm voice. Although I don’t understand most of what she is saying, I guess she is trying to explain how to fly. Something about the flow and feeling or whatnot.

Maybe seeing that I don’t fully understand, she flaps her wings and lifts up into the air. Her surroundings fluctuate ever so slightly. I guess she is using her wings in combination with her control over her surroundings to keep herself airborne.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. From what I know of my mother, she won’t let me go unless I at least try. Feeling the air around me, I search for the energy I have gotten familiar with the last month. I channel the energy inside my body and surround myself with it.

After a few seconds, I feel stable enough to flap my wings. I have gotten decent control over them lately, although I’ve never used them to fly. Maybe I’m already in the air?

I open my eyes to realise that I’m in the exact same position, flapping my wings like an idiot. I look over at my mother. Bad move! She is giving me a look that screams ‘step off the platform’. Mothers are scary! Was my last mother like this?

Gathering my wits, I slowly lean forward to try and glide down. Soon my feet leave the platform and I feel the weight of my body being pulled down by gravity as I work my wings to utter exhaustion.

I’m pretty sure I’m falling. Very slowly, but I’m definitely falling. At least it is a high building and my wings are doing their job, so I won’t plummet to death as long as I can keep this up. I don’t know how long I can keep this up though. This is exhausting. Like doing constant push-ups. The only difference is that if I stop or slow down I die.

Taking another deep breath, I focus on the energy within me. Absorbing more from my surroundings, changing it into currents and pushing it out like I had researched in my previous life.

I try pushing myself up with the current and supporting my wings with the rest of my concentration. After a while, my falling stops and I do my best to stay in one place.

I look up and realise that I had already fallen a long way down. My mother was but a tiny figure all the way up next to the platform. However, to my surprise, as I focus my eyes onto the silhouette of my mother they somehow zoom in and I can clearly see the cheeky smile on her face.

She is sticking out her chest, like a proud mother hen. This woman is going to give me headaches. Having control over my flight, I slowly make my way up. It takes a few long minutes, but I make it back to the platform. As I land, I fall to my knees and breath heavily. My heart is pounding; my wings and back are sore.

Before I have caught my breath, my mother picks me up with two arms and walks back through the door leading inside. I have gotten a little bigger over the last month; I should be slightly over 120cm by now. My mother should be around 2 meters and my father is probably 20cm taller still. I guess I’ll grow up to be a big boy. Though I don’t know what the average height is here.

Soon, we make it through the hallways and through another door. I sure hope I don’t have to do anymore of this! I get carried past another door and into, what I had come to know as, my room. Its nothing special but it is rather large and I love the fluffy bed.

My mother puts me down on the bed. She strokes the feathers on my head, looking at me with her big blue eyes. I guess I’m off the hook today. At least I know she is trying to teach me. It is definitely better than being alone.

“Well done, get some rest”

I recognize the words coming from her mouth and nod my head. She strokes my head once more, before standing up and walking towards the door leading out of my room. Before she gets to the door I look towards her.

“Thanks mom”

The moment the words travel though the room, she stops in her tracks. After a second she turns around with that evil grin I have seen many times now plastered on her face. However this time, all I feel is warmth.