Leaves did not crack underfoot. Wind did not blow through the darkened trees. All around her, the birds did not sing nor fly, and the deer did not prance. She stared in awe at the leaning tower ahead, a disaster captured in stasis for untold centuries for all to see. It was a crime, then, that no one had bothered to witness such a marvel, scared as they were of the timeless valley. But Dana wasn’t scared, not of the forest, the valley, of the legendary wizard who called it home. She wasn’t scared of anything. The long-haired girl took a breath full of the thick stagnant air and pushed forward, heading for the base of the tower. A fluttering noise hung next to her ear, the fifth time it’s happened since arriving in the valley. And for the fifth time, nothing came of it.

“Fine, go and waste more of our time on another of your pointless endeavours, you’ll be back.” She remembered him saying. But this time wouldn’t be pointless. It had to lead to something. Anything. It had to.

“Shut your goddamn mouth. Sit on your ass here and wait, I’ll be back to show you just how wrong you are and then I’m out of here.” Is what she wanted to scream at him, her eyes glowing red with rage. Instead, she gave a quick nod of her head and slipped out the door, her eyes the usual weak blue. Pathetic as usual. Lost in thought, she tripped over a root hidden amidst the low-hanging fog which coated the earth and fell to the ground. Can’t even walk right. She rolled onto her back and craned her head toward the tower, taking in the view.

Sitting several dozen metres up, the tower rested upon a twisting staircase built into a rock, weathered as it was from the years leading up to the valley’s freeze. It was no small wonder as to why it had begun to collapse in such a state.

Dana rose to her feet and continued to the bottom of the structure, ascending the steps upon which dust did not fall and debris sat unmoving. After some climbing, she was but a few short staircases away from the opportunity of a lifetime.

From a life of eternity.

Had time been in motion, she would have sworn the stairs took hours to climb with each turn adding an impossible number of steps. Finally, she reached the door, her short legs burning from the workout. Dana positioned her hand to knock on the glass panes but paused as the door popped open with a click and a creak. She flinched and braced herself, mistaking the noise for the tower resuming its fall. Regaining composure, she leaned from side to side hoping to catch a glimpse of whoever was inside. A flickering, almost sparkling object appeared for only a second before vanishing.

“Hello?” She called out in a raised whisper. The sound of her own voice took her by surprise, more closely resembling a scream in the timeless void that was the valley. Out of options, Dana pushed the door open as quietly as she could. Every creak of the old wood and every footstep felt like fireworks exploding in her ear. How did anyone live like this?

The house atop the tower was built of grey wood, the floors covered in a thick sheet of dust which remained ever stagnant. The entranceway was lit only by the light of the overcast sky outside, leaving much of the area dark. Several jackets hung on a coat rack, all of them ripped and torn, with a shoe stand nestled underneath them. A single pair of white slippers sat on the stand, their condition seemingly untouched. Moving through the archway ahead of her, she entered into a kitchen and dining area. Dust, dust, and more dust adorned every inch of counter and tabletop. Grey wood floorboards and tables and grey stone counters furnished the room along with a couch and armchair in the far corner. With each passing second, Dana’s mood worsened just by being there. She took the hair blanketing her lower back in one hand and pushed it over her shoulder, checking to ensure it had not faded from red to grey. The same fluttering as before whisked by her ear, breaking her out of her train of thought.

“You might consider knocking, next time.” Startled, Dana turned to see an older man standing in the far doorway.

“Oh! The door, it opened when I went to knock, I called out but to no response, so—“

“Did you let her in, Dhrea?” The man of no less than fifty said to nothing in particular. The fluttering flew by her once more, heading towards the man.

“Yes sir! It’s been so long since we had company, we thought you would appreciate it!”

Next to the man, a creature appeared out of the thick air, floating off of the ground with two large pairs of red-green butterfly wings. Its shape was partially humanoid, with a head slightly too big for its body and a second pair of arms below the first. Its eyes numbered six, one pair above the usual two and two in the centre of its forehead, above the others. Its stomach, hands, and neck were a pale flesh-like colour, while the rest of it continued the red-green pattern of the wings. Had Dana not just walked through a timeless pocket in reality, she would have been terrified.

“Very well. Get our guest some tea. Regular tea. Not your tea.” The butterfly-fairy creature he called Dhrea zipped through the door behind him. The man had shaggy hair and a short beard, both grey with patches of black scattered throughout. On his right cheek sat a cotton ball stuck with tape, a thin line of an injury poking out the side. He wore a long blue-black robe, with what looked like oversized night pants underneath.

He motioned for Dana to take a seat on the once-green couch across from a once-red armchair, to which he proceeded to sit down. “Don’t worry. The dust won’t cling to your clothes.”

“You’re Cerulean, right? Well, I want to live forever.” She said. For a moment, she was surprised at her directness. But only for a moment. Her face straightened and her eyes locked on his. She refused to move from where she stood.

“Well, you’re in the right place. Congratulations. You’re immortal.” The fluttering sound returned as the butterfly appeared next to the table with a cup of tea held between each pair of hands.

“So long as we stay here, we are eternal!” Dhrea sat the mugs down and playfully danced over to Dana as it spoke. “But if you leave… Poof!” It disappeared.

“This here is Dhrealisi, and what she means is,” He took a long sip of the scolding tea. “So long as you live here in this valley, you will live forever. But once you leave, the lost time catches up with you. And, for the record, I am not Cerulean. My name is Cobalt.” A battle of emotion raged across her face at the news. She opened her mouth again and again without speaking and repeatedly wrung her hands together, unsure of what to do with herself. The old man and Dhrealisi stared at her, one more respectful than the other.

“But— You, you’re not the one who made this place? You live here though, so you must know how to do it, but to a person instead? That must be easier.” Her voice rose and cracked, the panic creeping through her weak exterior.

“No, I can’t say it was. Dhrea here served the previous owner of this tower, however. Cerulean, the one who made the pocket. I am her son. I’m afraid I can’t—“

“But you’re a stasis wizard, you gotta be if you’re living here!”

“Cobalt is no master of time, just a wee apprentice of clocks. Master Cerulean was a marvel of the eternal arts. Oh to see her perform once more!” Dhrea circled Dana like a ribbon to its dancer, creating a mesmerizing pattern as she flew around and around. Had Dana not been so distraught, it would be a beautiful sight.

“Unfortunately, Dhrea is correct. My mother created the tower and the spell. I do know how to use the magic, but creating the spell is several leagues above my skill level. So I’m afraid you’ve wasted your time. You are free to come and go as you wish if it’s any consolation.” Cobalt said. He rose out of the chair with tea in hand, and started for the door he had entered from. “Now if you’ll excuse me.”

“Cobalt can learn, we ask him to try week after week! Or, year after year? We can’t tell!”

“No, I can’t. I have no desire to learn my mother’s magics. And besides, it could take decades without resources from the cities and nearby lands. I don’t need to tell you how little I wish to be another pile of dust in this heap.” He disappeared into the next room. Dana remained standing with her head to the ground. It couldn’t be pointless.

“But! We can leave, we can leave and guide the child, she can be your little hand, and we shall be the big hand which guides her! We have waited centuries, Cobalt, now we can finally fulfill Lady Cerulean’s wishes!” Dhrealisi flickered away into the other room, leaving Dana alone. With her help, she thought, they could use her help. They needed her. She clapped her hands to her cheeks and ran across the room to the doorway the other two had gone through.

“I’ll help!” Inside was an empty bedroom. Dana threw open the closet door, having nowhere else to search, and found nothing. She waited for a few minutes before heading back to the front door. Through the quiet, she could hear nothing. No talking, no movement, nothing. Had they left her, did he refuse the fairy’s suggestion so harshly as to deny her a simple no? She began down the stairs, her breaths heavy.

Back on the silent path, a thought stuck out to her. What will it feel like, passing back into the flowing world? Will it hurt, aging days in an instant? Suddenly, she was now terrified of the simple act of leaving. One way or another, returning home was going to hurt. After another hour of walking, she arrived at the partition between stasis and flow. On the fourth attempt at telling herself to ‘just jump’, she held the stale air in, clenched her jaw, and slowly moved one foot beyond the barrier.

The sensation was painless, more akin to a shiver washing over the body. For a few seconds after stepping through, she could feel time blanketing her in a warm swaddle. Or maybe it was just the feeling of moving air. The pleasant feeling wore off quickly as the winter winds stung her face, and as the reality of where she had to go next set in. Back home. Maybe she could run away instead. The thought inexplicably brought tears to her eyes, while the thought of returning brought only fear.

“Little hand!” A soft voice rang out. Dana wiped the tears away and through blurry vision made out the shape of a butterfly. And another. And another and another until she was surrounded by a swarm of blue-green insects. “We are here to guide you! Cobalt has relented, and requests your aid! Will you help us? We shall be taking you far from your home, and we must go now. Will you follow?”

The fear vanished, taken over by pure excitement. “Yes, please lead the way!” Dana said through a sniffling nose. She had an innumerable amount of questions, but for now, she didn’t care. She followed after the trail of butterflies that were Dhrealisi, ready to go anywhere but home.