Cocoon | Teen Ink

Cocoon

June 7, 2016
By Anonymous

Characters
Aubrey: Fifteen years old, long brown hair, sky blue eyes, and freckled. She loves to paint, read, and rollerskate.
Mother: 41 years old, bald, tattoos cover skin, wears white robes. She loves to cook vegan foods, dance the rekata for Miva, and sing worship songs.
Man: 64 years old, bald, covered in tattoos, and wears white robes. He is the voice of Miva. He supervises Miva’s followers to make sure they are on the right path and he helps them to transform into their next life.
Setting
In a bedroom of a small cottage- like house with modern interior. A bed, queen size, with aztec looking quilts cover the body inside. The walls are painted light blue, the furniture painted white with a rustic touch. The window is half- way open, letting the breeze play with the curtains. There are pictures on the wall of a young girl and her family and friends. You can hear waves of an ocean crashing to shore outside, and birds yelling out. Above the bed, a blue lotus is painted.

Mother: Aubrey, wake up hon.
Aubrey sits up and yawns. She looks at the window, then back at her mom.
Aubrey: What is it today?
Mother: Oatmeal bites and blueberries.
Aubrey: Huh? We only have that when-
Mother: Don't you remember what today is?
Aubrey: It’s not my birthday…. It’s not takroh or Scheni… umm
Mother: Honey, it’s transformation day…
Aubrey: Oh.. Yeah..
Mother: It will be perfectly fine. I mean, i'm okay and I have been doing this for twenty years. You’ll do just fine. I know you will. All of your friends and your family will be waiting for you, and you are going to make such a good helper for Miva! We are all so proud of who you've become in this life, but it is time to move on.
Aubrey: Mom.. Will it… Will it hurt.. When they-
Mother: No honey, it will be just fine. You won't feel anything but love. Now get dressed, you only have three hours until the ceremony.
Aubrey: And I can't just stay in this life?
Mother: Honey, you know you can't. Your life is for the youth and now you must ascend into the next. It will only be for a little while and then you can ascend into the life after that.
Aubrey: Okay..
Tears fill her eyes as her mother exits. She gets up and goes over to her closet where she pulls out a white blouse and white pants. She dresses then stands in front of the mirror and stares at her face. She memorizes every inch of it then turns around to face the pictures on the wall. She starts pulling them down one by one and placing them in a box.
Aubrey: Faces are freedom. Freedom is disloyalty. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
She takes her toothbrush, her jewelry, and her clothing and places them in the box.
Aubrey: Clothing is expression. Expression is disloyalty. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
Aubrey goes down the stairs to her kitchen and starts eating the oatmeal bites slowly.
Aubrey: Actually mom, can I have some bacon and eggs. Just this one last time? Please?
Her mother nods and starts preparing the food. Aubrey watches.
Aubrey: (Mutters under her breath) Animals are friends. Taking from them is disloyalty. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
After eating, Aubrey goes back up to her room. She starts taking any movies, books, stuffed animals and dolls she has and placing them in a box. She hears a knock on the door downstairs and voices.
Aubrey: This life is for Miva. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
She walks downstairs and greets her friends and family. They all go to the family room and sit down. A man dressed in a white robe enters and stands behind Aubrey, placing his hands on her shoulders.
Man: Friends, Aubrey is now fifteen  and two weeks old. That means it is time for her ascension. Aubrey, will you sit down for me?
Aubrey sits.
Man: Aubrey has had a good first life. She was a bright girl, always making up adventures with the other children, painting pictures and putting on plays, and doing well in our school. And she will carry on some of those traits to her next life and it will aid her in serving Miva. So with that, I shall begin the procedure.
The man takes out scissors and a razor, then starts cutting her hair off. Aubrey has her hands over her eyes. Then a woman rushes to her side, takes out a needle, and pierces her ears. When all of her hair is gone, she is asked to undress and step into the tub near her. The woman that pierced her ears now comes over and starts tattooing different designs all over her body. All ;the while, the spectators drink wine. When the woman is done, she steps aside and the man steps forward with a glass. He hands it to her.
Man: Drink and feel the love of Miva. You will feel it spreading throughout you with every sip.
Aubrey starts drinking. The spectators clap.
Man: We must serve Miva. We must serve Miva.
Everyone: We must serve Miva. We must serve Miva. We must serve Miva..
Man: Aubrey, you are now here to serve. I hope you enjoy this life as well as your other two after this. Serve well.

 

Characters
Aubrey: Fifteen years old, long brown hair, sky blue eyes, and freckled. She loves to paint, read, and rollerskate.
Mother: 41 years old, bald, tattoos cover skin, wears white robes. She loves to cook vegan foods, dance the rekata for Miva, and sing worship songs.
Man: 64 years old, bald, covered in tattoos, and wears white robes. He is the voice of Miva. He supervises Miva’s followers to make sure they are on the right path and he helps them to transform into their next life.
Setting
In a bedroom of a small cottage- like house with modern interior. A bed, queen size, with aztec looking quilts cover the body inside. The walls are painted light blue, the furniture painted white with a rustic touch. The window is half- way open, letting the breeze play with the curtains. There are pictures on the wall of a young girl and her family and friends. You can hear waves of an ocean crashing to shore outside, and birds yelling out. Above the bed, a blue lotus is painted.

Mother: Aubrey, wake up hon.
Aubrey sits up and yawns. She looks at the window, then back at her mom.
Aubrey: What is it today?
Mother: Oatmeal bites and blueberries.
Aubrey: Huh? We only have that when-
Mother: Don't you remember what today is?
Aubrey: It’s not my birthday…. It’s not takroh or Scheni… umm
Mother: Honey, it’s transformation day…
Aubrey: Oh.. Yeah..
Mother: It will be perfectly fine. I mean, i'm okay and I have been doing this for twenty years. You’ll do just fine. I know you will. All of your friends and your family will be waiting for you, and you are going to make such a good helper for Miva! We are all so proud of who you've become in this life, but it is time to move on.
Aubrey: Mom.. Will it… Will it hurt.. When they-
Mother: No honey, it will be just fine. You won't feel anything but love. Now get dressed, you only have three hours until the ceremony.
Aubrey: And I can't just stay in this life?
Mother: Honey, you know you can't. Your life is for the youth and now you must ascend into the next. It will only be for a little while and then you can ascend into the life after that.
Aubrey: Okay..
Tears fill her eyes as her mother exits. She gets up and goes over to her closet where she pulls out a white blouse and white pants. She dresses then stands in front of the mirror and stares at her face. She memorizes every inch of it then turns around to face the pictures on the wall. She starts pulling them down one by one and placing them in a box.
Aubrey: Faces are freedom. Freedom is disloyalty. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
She takes her toothbrush, her jewelry, and her clothing and places them in the box.
Aubrey: Clothing is expression. Expression is disloyalty. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
Aubrey goes down the stairs to her kitchen and starts eating the oatmeal bites slowly.
Aubrey: Actually mom, can I have some bacon and eggs. Just this one last time? Please?
Her mother nods and starts preparing the food. Aubrey watches.
Aubrey: (Mutters under her breath) Animals are friends. Taking from them is disloyalty. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
After eating, Aubrey goes back up to her room. She starts taking any movies, books, stuffed animals and dolls she has and placing them in a box. She hears a knock on the door downstairs and voices.
Aubrey: This life is for Miva. Miva watches over. We must serve Miva.
She walks downstairs and greets her friends and family. They all go to the family room and sit down. A man dressed in a white robe enters and stands behind Aubrey, placing his hands on her shoulders.
Man: Friends, Aubrey is now fifteen  and two weeks old. That means it is time for her ascension. Aubrey, will you sit down for me?
Aubrey sits.
Man: Aubrey has had a good first life. She was a bright girl, always making up adventures with the other children, painting pictures and putting on plays, and doing well in our school. And she will carry on some of those traits to her next life and it will aid her in serving Miva. So with that, I shall begin the procedure.
The man takes out scissors and a razor, then starts cutting her hair off. Aubrey has her hands over her eyes. Then a woman rushes to her side, takes out a needle, and pierces her ears. When all of her hair is gone, she is asked to undress and step into the tub near her. The woman that pierced her ears now comes over and starts tattooing different designs all over her body. All ;the while, the spectators drink wine. When the woman is done, she steps aside and the man steps forward with a glass. He hands it to her.
Man: Drink and feel the love of Miva. You will feel it spreading throughout you with every sip.
Aubrey starts drinking. The spectators clap.
Man: We must serve Miva. We must serve Miva.
Everyone: We must serve Miva. We must serve Miva. We must serve Miva..
Man: Aubrey, you are now here to serve. I hope you enjoy this life as well as your other two after this. Serve well.


The author's comments:

I was originally going to write about a girl that wanted to leave her small town, however I just couldn’t make it work the way I wanted it to. So, I started writing about a younger girl, who was going to face a transformation, and ultimately, the outcome was a transformation into a woman in some made up religion. I made up some basic rules for the religion and a basic understanding which was basically that they would have four lives, a young life, from birth to fifteen in which they would be able to explore and express themselves on their own, then they would undergo a ceremony or a procedure in which they would transform into the middle life, which was made for serving their god, Miva. While in this life, they had to have a shaved head, certain tattoos on their body, and pierced ears.They also had to stay with a vegan diet, wear white robes, and give up any source of entertainment that doesn’t pertain to Miva or the religion. When they turn 50, they transform into their old life, in which they are allowed to have all of their freedom back, and they get certain rewards for serving. The fourth life when they pass over to the kingdom, or in much simpler words, they die. I thought writing a scene where a young girl undergoes this transformation would be best because it is a major turning point in the religion and a lot happens. 


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