The moon was out that night. The light it reflected lit up the room enough for him to see. He was wearing his softest boots and made sure to not make any sound. His target was right in front of him, but just a moment ago he’d accidentally hit a plate that was for some reason laying on the ground. He held his breath, worried that someone would catch him. It was absolutely crucial that he would get away without anyone seeing or hearing him. After what felt like hours but what were only seconds passed, he allowed himself to breathe out again. No one was coming. Only a few more steps to his target and then he could turn around. The stool he held in his hand was the last big hurdle. He had to put it down without making a noise. Ever so carefully he lowered the wooden object, only touching the floor with one of its legs. A second leg hit the floor and finally the stool was in place. Nervously, he climbed on top of it and reached for the high shelf. There it was, the treasure he’d been hunting after for weeks now. He grabbed hold of the glass object and pulled it towards him. As he did so, he lost his balance and fell off the stool, kicking it over in the process and tumbling to the ground while holding the glass object close to his chest to avoid damaging it. Silence followed the sudden sound. Did someone hear him? Was he safe? He laid there for a few moments, too scared to get up. Finally he figured that he was safe. He stood back up and put the glass object on the ground in front of him. He opened the lid and just as he was about to reach for the treasure inside, the light behind him turned on and his head swiveled towards the door.
“Stephen, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”
He hid the cookie jar behind his back. “Nothing mom, just getting some water.”
“Do you think I’m stupid?”
“No mom,” he answered.
She let out a deep sigh and walked over, taking the cookie jar from him and putting it back on the shelf. “Go back to bed, and no cookies for you for the rest of the week.”
“But mom,” was all he could get out before she shushed him and pushed him out of the kitchen. The mission was a failure and the silent knight was captured and severely punished for his crimes. No cookies for the rest of the week, the worst possible outcome.
This is a story I’ve had in my head swirling around for years but realized at some point wasn’t a big enough idea to make a story out of. So with not much to post right now, I figured I’d work it out into a super short paragraph. I hope you like it, and if you don’t, well, at least I can put it to rest. Good night.
Opal Kaharis 