The soft red gem in the Lion's collar glowed as he neared the lifeless figure that lay in the grass. He was slow and hesitant, as if she might awaken at any moment, but he knew that she wouldn't. He knew that she was dead.
He slowed to a stop when he reached her body. He leaned down and pressed his dark nose to her forehead, closing his blue eyes. He could feel the warmth around his neck as the amulet glowed, pouring a new life into the lifeless woman.
She was old, with a wrinkled face, thinned grey hair drawn back in a bun, and a frail figure. Beside her lay a basket that seemed to have fallen from her hands – perhaps she had been out picking berries or gathering herbs, something of the sort. Whatever the case was, this elderly woman was now dead.
As the Lion opened his eyes and lifted his head, he saw a figure standing before him. She looked relatively solid, but for a mysterious ghostliness that gave her a slight transparency, right around the edges, when she moved. She lifted one hand, gazing curiously at it. She lifted the other. It was this same woman, but the wrinkles were gone. She was young again, and beautiful. She had long, flowing silvery hair and a flowing, goddess-like blue dress.
"Wh-what happened?" she asked, stepping back and gazing down at the body that lay between them.
"You died, my dear," answered the Lion. The warmth from around his neck had faded. The amulet had fulfilled its purpose, at least until he had delivered this soul to the afterworld.
"Who are you? You're a lion? You can talk?" she asked, seeming afraid.
"I am your spirit guide," answered the Lion, bowing his head graciously. "You may call me…Lion."
"What happens now, Lion?" asked the beautiful woman, her pretty blue eyes beginning to look around her, her expression becoming one of frantic fear.
"Well…I suppose that you tell me your name," answered the Lion. "Tell me your name and tell me your story as I carry you to the afterworld."
The girl stopped as she heard his answer. She stared at him for several long moments. His simple statement – tell me your name – had brought a certain calmness back to the worried woman.
"My name is Elizabeth," she answered. "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean, tell you my story."
"Climb up on my back," said the Lion, bowing down so that she could do so. She seemed afraid, tentatively moving forward. "It's okay, grab on to my mane. I feel no pain." With that said, she grasped the thick fur of his mane and pulled herself up. She was light. He had lied. Her hands pulling on his mane had hurt him greatly.
"Where are you going to take me?" she asked.
"The nearest afterworld access is just North of the little village," he answered. "So we'll be going there."
"The mountain?" asked Elizabeth.
"More of a hill. What's mountainous is relative," he said to her. "Now, tell me about yourself."
"I – er – my name is Elizabeth Montgomery, but I was born Elizabeth Bradshaw. I live in the little village near here, and I am seventy-one years old."
"That's an excellent age, you must certainly have been in good health," the Lion told her.
"It didn't stop me from dying, apparently," she answered.
"No, but everyone dies eventually. Continue telling me your story, please."
"My husband's name is Joseph Montgomery. We have five children together – Sarah, Mary, John, Michael, and Julie. Julie passed away when she was six – she got sick…" Elizabeth's voice trailed off and tears came to her eyes.
"You'll see your daughter again soon," said the Lion. "She'll look just as you remember her, as young and as beautiful as she was when she was healthy."
"But I want to see my husband again," said Elizabeth.
"Your husband will come and join you one day. For now, he needs to be in the village, alive and helping your children to cope with your passing."
"They'll certainly miss me," said the woman, hanging her head.
"They will, but they'll be happy that you lived a full and happy life. Do you have any grandchildren?"
"Sarah has two daughters, Victoria and Lauren. Mary has a son, Peter. John has no children, and Michael has a daughter named Olivia. She's brand new, only a few weeks old. She's so tiny and perfect…" There was a certain happiness in Elizabeth's voice when she spoke of her granddaughter that made the Lion smile to himself.
"I'm sure that you raised your children to be good people, and that they will do the same with your grandchildren. You can watch them, you know – look at them any time you wish from the afterworld and see what they're doing. You can watch little Olivia grow up, see how beautiful she becomes, see how much she is loved when she marries, see the beautiful great-grandchildren that she gives you."
"But I want to be there with her," said Elizabeth. "I want to hold her again."
"Have you held her before?"
"Yes."
"Then treasure that memory. Treasure the memory of holding your little granddaughter in your arms and feeling how tiny and soft she was." The Lion smiled as he heard the silence of Elizabeth taking in his words.
The mountain was appearing ahead of them. It wasn't very large, and a gasp left Elizabeth's lips as she saw it.
"The mountain! It shrunk!" she exclaimed.
"No, you simply see it for all it truly is," he said. "To your people, it is a mountain. It cannot be moved, it is too steep to climb without the proper equipment, and it is wide. To me, it is a hill. I can walk up it with ease. It is not tall."
Elizabeth was again quiet, presumably taking in all that he had said. One paw in front of the other, he began on his way up. His claws sank into the hard stone, supporting him as he made his way up. Darkness had fallen in the time that he had been walking, but at the top of the mountain was a soft white glow.
"What is that?" asked the woman.
"The entrance to the afterworld," he answered. "Only spirits can see it."
"Are you a spirit?" she asked him.
"Yes, I am," he replied. "I am an old spirit, tasked with the job of delivering the newly deceased to the afterworld."
"What is the afterworld like?" asked Elizabeth.
"It's perfect," he answered simply, reaching the top of the mountain with those words. He stood there and turned his head to face her. "You can get down now."
Elizabeth slid down off his back, leaning against the Lion and lifting one hand to pet his mane gently. "Will it hurt? I'm scared," she said softly, a frown on her lips as she gazed up towards the white light above.
"You will feel only peace. You will understand that all your fears were for nothing, and you can rest easy there," he answered. As he spoke, a smile came to her lips, and a frown came to his. The white light was drawing nearer, almost like arms reaching for the young woman. Her silvery hair fluttered in the breeze and she arched her back, leaning into the light.
"Thank you, Lion," said Elizabeth.
"You're welcome," he said solemnly, watching. The light grew brighter, almost blindingly so that he had to turn his head away. The light soon dimmed, returning to nothing more than a glow above the mountain. Elizabeth was gone.
There was sadness in the Lion as he padded away. He hated that he had damned yet another innocent soul to the torturous nothing of the afterworld. He hated that he had lied to her. Every word, every promise, everything. It had meant nothing.
It's not very good because it's just something I threw together, but there you go.
The characters are Elizabeth and Lion. Elizabeth is an elderly woman from a small village who died while out gathering berries. She is kind, loving, and affectionate. Lion is a magical being that delivers spirits to the afterworld. His amulet releases the spirit from the body and then he carries it to the nearest afterworld access.
The conflict lies in Elizabeth's worries and fears. Now that she is dead, she is sad and afraid. The Lion wishes to resolve this conflict by calming and reassuring Elizabeth.
The goal is to carry Elizabeth to the top of the mountain and send her into the afterworld.
The photo takes place at the moment when the Lion promises Elizabeth that she will be at peace when she goes into the light. Elizabeth is smiling and happy because she trusts the Lion. He promises her peace and no fear, so she believes that there will be no more fear or worry. The Lion is frowning and sad because it was all a lie. The afterworld isn't what he told her it would be, and he hates doing this to innocent, sweet, loving beings like her, but he has no choice.
