Flash Fiction Episode Four- Remembering The Writing On the Wall

Natascha walked with purpose down the medieval pathway that led to the tall building, flanked by statues on either side. She walked up the long sweeping steps that eventually got her to the entrance.  Inside, the bell had just rung and student boys that were wearing dark blue blazers were bustling past her up the stairs to their classes.  She knew she had a purpose for being there, but somehow she didn`t know exactly what it was yet.  Two senior sixth form boys walked past her going up the stairs.

“Glad to know that there are more girls around” The blonde boy half whispered in his friends ear. “‘bout time they stopped being so darn conservative around here”  

     Natascha half-heard them and instead of reassuring her, she felt even more out of place.  She climbed the stairs to an open room that was being used as a exhibition area.  Mostly women with their daughters, well-dressed in tailored coats and with patent handbags looked with idle curiosity at the technically good drawings and paintings hug mid-height on the walls.  They must have thought I was coming here, Natascha thought to herself, but after doing a once-round circuit of the exhibition, she realised that is was not here that she needed to be.  

    Taking the stairs back down, right down to the ground floor, she suddenly found herself surrounded by products of every sort that endorsed or affirmed affiliation with the school.  Jersey shirts and jumpers with the crest embellished upon them and caps with the same, stacked high.  Natascha walked past some teenage girls with long, wavy flowing hair, gasping and chatting with each other.  I didn`t know that the school shop was such a Raison d'être, Natascha thought to herself.  Reaching the ground floor, there was every kind of preppy product you could imagine.  Silver business card cases, tiny brown leather purses to hold your keys, the perfect present for your dutiful and wonderful son Natascha pondered as she smoothed her fingers over the compact and neat carriers.  There is such a mass array, it just seems to go on and on, she thought, passing golf clubs and balls stacked high near the window,  and I still can`t remember why I am here, she sighed.

           Having decided to leave, a few moments later, she found herself back on the sweeping steps.  In front of her was an entrance with high concrete walls painted blue on either side.  This was it, she thought, but not really knowing what “it” was.  Entering the courtyard she saw a swimming pool in front of her full of dolphins.  There was a woman with bouffant hair and brown, fur coat trying to get their attention by pursing her lips and making kissing sounds.  The Dolphins, performed their tricks near her but then turned back into the water splashing her as they did so.  The woman laughed with idiotic glee and hugged her husband who smiled showing his gold plated teeth.  Natascha saw one of the trainers roll his eyes at the affluent couple`s reactions and then nod towards the dolphins who had their noses up above the water and seemed to be laughing to themselves.
 The trainer looked smart Natascha thought, with his blue t-shirt and spiky brown and blonde highlighted hair.  He knelt with one knee on the side of the pool, nodding and splashing a little water at the dolphins and they communicated back to him in happy screeching signals.  Natascha walked closer towards the trainer, knowing that she wanted to ask him something but wasn`t sure what it would be yet.  As she did, the dolphins came racing up against the swimming pool edge completely covering the woman with a fur coat in water and raised up to Natascha`s face.  Her eyes became wide as the dolphin seemed to change shape before her eyes, his blue, grey-silver body seemed to transmute so that its head became more rounded like a whale.  Its face turned into a smile with its eyes slanting shut and a deep “Heeeeellllllooooo” bellowed from its voice and it brought its dark blue fins up to embrace her, before  splashing back into the water, soaking the fur-coated woman again, but leaving not a drop on Natascha.  When Natascha stood back upright clutching her bag, she saw that the trainer she had wanted to speak to was now faced towards her, his mouth open and staring...”What”? Natascha asked nonchalantly.  The trainer still with his mouth a little open, walked towards her, took her by her arm and started chatting, quickly to her. He lead her round the swimming pool, leaving the rich couple behind, Natascha, looking back, saw that the dolphins were looking at her, noses in the air, laughing with their happy screeching.  The trainer was asking her a question....

”and yours...”

“sorry...”? Natascha said 

“I´m Rob, what`s yours”?

“Natascha....my name`s Natascha”

“Well...pleased to meet you Natascha” 

Rob was holding out his hand to her and smiling, keenly. She shook it, if only a bit bewildered.  He continued showing her a large blackboard table with chalk scores hung in front of them, like intricate scores kept from a cricket match,  to stretching to infinity. 

“This is where we keep track of everything.  The dolphins are full of hope and in every game they play, they take us a step further away from the darkness”

Looking at the vast display of chalk numbers small and detailed above her Natascha suddenly felt dizzy.

“I feel like I am having a deja-vu” she murmured.  

Rob paused looking at her waiting, for her to say something more

“Yes, I have been here before...” She said turning to him

He took her arm and ran with her guiding her to some steps that led to another building away from the swimming pool and the other people surrounding it so that they were alone.  

“Yes” he gasped “Yes you have...do you remember”?

Natascha looked at him slowly, beginning to remember fragments that flashed back into her mind like tiny doorways opening into other worlds long forgotten

Rob eagerly continued, “It was here...you were here...a year ago, the same thing happened, with the Dolphins, they know who you are, don`t you know who you are”?....Rob was holding her arm still, his blue eyes looking at her intensively encouraging her to remember. 

“I think...there was...”

“No don`t think, feel what was here, you were here...I was loosing hope it wouldn`t happen again, but you came back” Rob hastily said wanting so much for her to remember

“But I have to do something” Natascha said, slowly “I forgot.... to do something” 

“Don`t worry about that now” Rob said shaking his head... 

Natascha looked up onto another wall of the building in front of them, behind the fire-escape stairs.  There appeared a yellow and green poster covered in white and blue mini paragraphs spread across the page arranged like speech bubbles.  Natascha was trying to read them and as she did those that she had read were being circled by an invisible pen and read out by a deep voice she had heard before.  It was familiar and warm, yet mischievous and versatile in speech.  Natascha, through her curiosity, was being drawn further towards this voice that was sounding out the word on the poster.  She wanted to devour every paragraph on the page and as she was, the invisible pen was mirroring her, circling everything that she read, and as she read the deep voice echoed the words back to her full of delightful mischief.  

    Rob saw her entranced, being allured away and started to protest, “Don`t mind about that now, it only causes trouble”, but she continued reading and listening to this deep voice, at once continuing and pausing, laughing and pursuing with lyrical dexterity.  Rob was watching her, his eyes lowering slightly with disappointment and then he lifted them again with an idea.

“It`s not even funny, I mean he`s even writing over your mother`s best paper”!

As if woken from a reverie she suddenly looked perplexed and disorientated towards Rob.  His smile had turned into a sweeter candy coated shade, and his eyes seemed to asking her something.  Natascha looked to the floor, not really knowing what to say to him.  What he was saying was not resonating with what she could hear and feel from the voice. She paused wanting and knowing that she needed to take action, but not knowing exactly how.