The Night Guardian

The Night Owl landed on my windowsill at 2.43am. I know, because the numbers on my old alarm clock had just been glaring at me, chastising me for reading so late. A rushing, swooping sound heralded the bird, followed by a wooden clatter. I looked up with a start, and froze. A huge Barn Owl sat perched on the sill, folding its wings. What the hell? What was it doing here? This wasn’t normal. Then, the Owl turned turned to gaze directly into my eyes. Its dark eyes overwhelming. I gasped, and was fixated.

The Owl was stark white in the moonlight. It looked like a Barn Owl, which I hadn’t since I was a young girl. It ruffled its feathers slightly, continuing to stare at me. I didn’t break the stare, couldn’t. Eyes piercing straight into mine, it was as if it had control of my body. What did it want? I thought of the hockey stick resting near my door. Could I grab it in time, if the Owl attacked? It had big claws. As I thought this though, my mind rejected the idea. It didn’t feel like a threat.

A serene calm washed over me as we continued the stare. The edges of my vision began to blur. What was happening? I should look away. But no, another part of my brain said. Just let it happen, this is something good, something extraordinary. A rushing noise escalated in my ears. I felt like I was being pulled underwater. My limbs heavy. All I could see was the black of the Owl’s eyes. Deep tunnels pulling me forwards. My mind went fuzzy, and I felt consciousness slip away.

I awoke what felt like a few moments later. I lay on the floor at an awkward angle, my cheek against the floorboard. I must have fallen off the bed. Pushing myself up, I expected to feel pain from the fall, but there was nothing. That was strange. The alarm clock said 3.56am, it had been over an hour. An hour since what? A bright light flashed out of the corner of my eye, and with a jolt I remembered the Owl. I spun to see it still on the sill.

The Owl seemed brighter now. Almost glowing. It was still staring at me. Something wasn’t right. This was not normal owl behaviour. I broke the stare this time, turning to my bed and the door. But what I saw froze me in my tracks. My breath caught.

My body was laying on the bed.

Me. My body. Only I was standing near the window. How? This had to be a dream. I sank to my knees, and slapped my face. Hard. The body was still there. I crawled towards the bed, heart banging. Maybe I was hallucinating, sleepwalking. My mind grasped at desperate straws. Did this mean I was dead? Had the Owl come to take me to the afterlife? As I got closer to my body, it stirred. I stopped in my tracks. The other me rolled over, and I saw my face, obviously asleep. A shock of relief came over me. If I was alive over there, it had to be a good thing. I reached out to touch the other me, to see if it was real. The Owl screeched loudly. I halted.

The Owl still stared intently as I turned to look at it. It shuffled its wings impatiently. Deep in my mind, I heard the word ‘follow.’ Or, not heard, but felt. Was the Owl speaking to me? It turned suddenly, and launched itself from the window. It swooped towards the forest at the end of the yard, and foreboding crept in. I felt a jolt in my chest, and next thing a pulling sensation that drew me towards the window. I was compelled to follow it, and found myself leaning out the window. The Owl wanted me to follow it for some reason. The pulling sensation didn’t cease, and was even becoming painful. Panic burst in me in, how was the Owl doing this? What was I supposed to do, jump out the window? I couldn’t fly. Or maybe… I was a a ghost now. Maybe I could. The pain continued to grow, urging me forward. The thought of backtracking downstairs hurt too much.

There was nothing for it. The pain reached a new level, and I threw myself out the window. Eyes scrunched against impact, I waited. Waited for my life to be over because of some sleepwalking nightmare. But the impact never came. Wind still rushed against my face. I opened my eyes to see the ground flying by beneath me. Flying. I was flying through the air. Like a bird. My feet were up in the air behind me, my arms slightly spread. I didn’t seem to be directing myself anywhere. The invisible string was pulling me, presumably after the Owl. Terror and joy warred within me, and a shaky laugh escaped.

As my body soared across the first tops of the forest, I spotted the Barn Owl gliding up ahead. The pressure in my chest eased with every meter gained, and as I came up level with it, ceased almost completely. I shouted around the wind “what is this?,” but it didn’t look at me. It just veered slightly to the right. My body followed. Humans couldn’t fly, so this obviously wasn’t real. The thought gave me comfort, and curiosity grew. I was starting to enjoy this, whatever freakish nightmare or fantasy it was.

We flew over a few houses scattered on the other side of the forest, and then into a suburb. I recognized it. My Grandparents lived here, in the blue house. Their car was parked in the driveway, lights out like all the other houses in the street. We continued past their house, towards the centre of town. The Owl angled down now, and I realized it was aiming for the hospital. Dread pooled in my stomach. Did it want to show me something in there? Was someone I knew in there? We landed on a single story building opposite the entrance. My feet touched down lightly on the concrete, and I felt gravity return to my body. It was heavy, and I stumbled slightly. The Owl perched on the edge of the building. I felt the feeling in my mind again, this time saying ‘watch.’ Reluctantly I turned towards the entrance doors.

After about a minute, I wondered what I was supposed to be seeing. Absolutely nothing had happened. Just as I was about to attempt saying something to the Owl, who hadn’t moved, an ambulance came around the left hand corner, siren off. My breath caught, and I waited as it pulled up beside the doors. The back opened, and some EMTS jumped out. They pulled out an ambulance bed, and on it was- my Sister. My older sister. She was unconscious, and looked pale and drawn. My heart picked up, was she alive?

The word “Overdose,” sounded in the night. Oh God. Drugs?

My sister lived in town by herself, and attended the local college for 2 years now. Me and my parents saw her only about once a month, when she came around for Sunday dinner. She was studying art there, and said it took up most of her time. She had always been the quiet creative type, so we hadn’t questioned the lack of contact. We hadn’t had a close relationship growing up, I was the annoying younger sister. But now… Tears pricked my eyes. Had she been struggling? She had turned to drugs instead of her family. We could have been there.

The Barn Owl turned to me. I met its eyes again, my own brimming. “Learn” sounded in my head, the dark eyes burning into mine. I nodded. I knew, somehow, that this was not the first time this had happened to my sister. She was hiding it from us. But we would be there now.

The Owl crouched, and then launched itself into the air again. The pulling sensation reappeared, but I didn’t fight it this time. I threw myself off the roof, and let gravity disappear. There was less joy in this flight, I only wanted to get back to my body and the real world. The Owl took me back the way we had come, over the suburbs and forest, wafts of pine lifting to greet us. When we neared my window, I wondered how I was going to angle myself in. But the Owl tucked its wings and swooped inside, and next thing I new I was standing on my bedroom floor. I looked at the Owl on the sill.

“Thank you,” I said, voice cracking. The Owl gazed at me, and blinked once.

The rushing sound returned to my ears. “Wait,” I said, wanting answers. “What was this? Are you real?” I tried to pull my eyes away to prolong it presence, but the lock was on. I couldn’t move. My vision went dark, and the last thing I saw was my reflection in the Owl’s dark eyes.

I awoke at dawn, groggy. For a second I was confused, I hadn’t gone to bed late. Then I remembered. My eyes snapped to the windowsill, but nothing was there. Wait, my sister. I leapt up from bed and rushed to the door, grabbing a robe on the way out. I thundered down the stairs, and found my mother in the kitchen making coffee, ever the early riser.

“Mom, we have to go. Now.”