Once upon a time, on a chilly Halloween night, in a cozy little house at the end of a quiet street, lived a curious orange cat named Rio. Rio was known throughout the neighborhood for being playful, adventurous, and a little bit mischievous.
As the sun set and the full moon rose high in the sky, Rio’s owner, Lily, decided to decorate the house with spooky Halloween decorations. She hung ghostly sheets, carved jack-o’-lanterns, and set up eerie, flickering candles. The house cast strange and eerie shadows on the walls, and the flickering candlelight made them dance.
Rio watched with wide, curious eyes as Lily worked. He couldn’t help but be captivated by the mysterious shadows that seemed to come alive on this special night. One particular shadow, a big, wavy one that mimicked Rio’s every move, caught his attention.
Rio inched closer to the shadow, his eyes fixed on it. The closer he got, the more the shadow seemed to taunt him, moving when he moved, mimicking his every gesture. Rio, usually fearless, couldn’t understand why he felt so scared.
“Who are you?” Rio meowed nervously, taking a step back.
The shadow didn’t reply, but it continued to mirror Rio’s movements, casting a dark, eerie presence over the room.
Terrified, Rio dashed away from the shadow, his heart pounding. He hid under the sofa, trembling. “Lily, help! There’s a scary creature in the house!”
Lily rushed over and looked under the sofa, trying to comfort her frightened cat. “Oh, Rio, it’s just your own shadow. See?” She held up her hand and showed him how her hand’s shadow mimicked her movements on the wall.
Rio blinked in astonishment, realizing the truth. “My own shadow? But it looked so big and scary!”
Lily smiled and gently stroked Rio’s fur. “Sometimes, things may seem scary or mysterious at first, but when we take a closer look, we find that they’re not so frightening after all.”
As Rio’s heart rate slowly returned to normal, he ventured out from under the sofa, casting a curious glance at his own shadow. He realized that it wasn’t something to fear; it was a part of him, just like the rest of his playful, adventurous, and sometimes mischievous self.
With newfound courage, Rio decided to join Lily in the Halloween fun. He pounced on the wiggly shadows, played with the flickering candles’ reflections, and even chased his own shadow, this time with a grin on his face.
The lesson Rio learned that Halloween night was a simple yet important one: Sometimes, what we fear the most might turn out to be a part of ourselves or something harmless once we take a closer look. It’s a lesson we can all remember, not just on Halloween but in our everyday adventures as well.
The story of the birds and the bees — Vasilisa the Beautiful