12 disbelief at dawn

The two girls flatten a path behind them as they cross the field, letting the natural garden gracefully brush between their fingers. The clouds still cover the landscape and shuffle across the horizon without letting any light escape from their haze. Butterflies and mosquitoes flutter and buzz across the field in search of a new seat to gaze from, letting the breeze decide where they land. Vaelyn puts her hair up in a bun, letting a few strands loose to rest over her grey jacket. As her hands fall back down to her sides, the little girl grips them again to remind her that she isn't roaming alone.

"How long have you been going on walks by yourself like this?" Vaelyn asks the child. Kit hopes over a puddle as she spots it obscuring her path.

"Since summer started," she responds with a huff. Vaelyn isn't familiar with the normal schedule of public school given her consistent packets that are given to her through the hospital. In any case, the math in those packets could be solved by this little girl with ease. It's been a few months since school ended, however, and a new academic year isn't far behind. This child has been wandering the forests for months.

"When you get home, tell your parents that it isn't safe, okay?" Vaelyn asks shyly. The little girl nods quietly, leading their footsteps in the field.

"Don't worry so much," she says. As if something came up to sting her, her eyes widen as she bounces with an exclamation. "You never told me your name!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Vaelyn chuckles, "It's Vae."

"That's a pretty name," Kit comments. Vaelyn blushes at the unexpected compliment, smiling at the girl respectfully.

The only sounds that follow are the steady swishes of grass as the two flatten their footsteps into the untouched pasture. The soft songs of birds echo to Vaelyn as she guides the sun back to her side of the earth, her grasp in the hands of the star that keeps all life from sleeping eternally. Her eyes are glossed over the waving leaves with the light of the moon, her skin as pale as the beams of the night. She carries the dawn in her hand, the flowers blooming in the child's strands of gold, her smile guiding the sun as it waves over the sky with every hour. The two trust each other even when they've never seen one another before, and their relationship keeps the earth in motion. As both the sun and moon grace the soil with their footsteps, they look out to the life that relies on them through the thin branches of the forest.

"Can I tell you a secret?" The little sun asks the dim moon.

"Sure," the moon responds. Kit lets Vaelyn's hand go as she feels through the grass on her own.

"My parents didn't actually say to be back before lunch time," Kit admits quietly, "I'm not supposed to be out at all."

Vaelyn furrows her brows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Kit bites her cheek. "They never said I could leave."

Vaelyn pauses, halting her path in the grass, and Kit slows down to meet with her.

"You mean you ran away from home?" Vaelyn asks gently. Kit hesitates a moment before answering, but gives her an affirming nod.

"They weren't very nice to me," Kit mentions.

Vaelyn crosses her arms. "It doesn't matter, they're probably worried sick about you! I wouldn't doubt they're looking for you right now."

Kit looks down to her feet in guilt. "I'm sorry."

Vaelyn brushes a strand of hair out of Kit's face and kneels, the grass holding her shoulders.

"It's okay, but you can't do that again," Vaelyn tells Kit, staring into her eyes as they match a clear summer sky. "I'm sure your parents mean the best for you."

"Where are yours?" Kit jabs at Vaelyn. The question crawls into her chest like a knife, slicing the air out of her as she tries to discipline the child. Vaelyn freezes up trying to think of an answer.

"I'm old enough not to need them," Vaelyn smiles weakly. Kit thins her eyes, nearly finding the lie in Vaelyn's answer. She turns back to the path she was making and continues her stride once more. Vaelyn stands and follows close behind. She assumes her lie fluttered by like a stray leaf without another thought.

"I wish I could be," Kit says, her voice filled with defeat.

"No, you don't," Vaelyn tries to assure her, "I think they're just trying to look out for you. They wouldn't mean any harm, would they?"

Kit glares back, her new friend supporting her current enemy.

"Sometimes it feels like it," Kit says. Vaelyn reaches out to hold her hand again.

"My parents were mean, too. I guess, I know they were trying their best to help me succeed, as I know all parents do. For me, it was because they were trying to make me into something I wasn't," Vaelyn explains.

"What did they want you to be?" Kit asks.

"It didn't matter. It wasn't what I wanted. I had a future planned out, but they told me that it was going to ruin my life. All of my achievements didn't matter to them. I—"

Vaelyn pauses to gather missing memories from the deep of her mind. Kit slows her walk to help Vaelyn focus on her thoughts.

"They spent too much time belittling me. They gave me a novel of a lecture when I did something wrong, and struggled to find a word to give me when I told them of something I did right. There was no 'how was your morning' or 'how are you feeling'. I struggled to pursue a relationship with them… at all," Vaelyn releases, weighing her burdens onto the girl who had no idea who she was twenty minutes ago.

"Did it get better?" Kit asks her. The wildlife has gone silent to match the tone of the conversation, the sun and the moon meeting at a rare eclipse.

"I thank them for all they did to get me to where I am, but I don't think I could have continued with them watching over my head," Vaelyn steps out of the field with Kit at her side, "Sometimes the sun is so bright, you have to shelter from its rays, you know? I wanted to make my own path."

Kit laughs. "So you tried to become a monkey."

Vaelyn's smile dies, reminded of her plans before she had been caught in the beams of a veiled, innocent sun.

"Yes," she whispers.

"It was funny to watch," Kit says innocently, "I hope you get what you want one day."

Vaelyn helps Kit through thick bushes in silence, the cement sidewalk of the city waiting for them just beyond the wilderness. As they shuffle with the cheerful couples and tired businessmen of society, the two hold close to each other as they meet the streets of the outskirts alone for the first time. The glossed reflection of the clouds sprinkle as a blur over towers of glass, and Vaelyn takes in the sight as the smoke of the sky mirrors in her eyes. She hasn't stood under a streetlight in years.

"Oh, I know this street! I know where we are," Kit hops to Vaelyn, holding her arm as she freezes at the beauty of freedom.

"Oh, okay," Vaelyn says to Kit, her focus glued to the scenery. Kit drags her by her arm, guiding her to a new path along the sidewalk, and together they continue their journey through the sea of reflections awaiting them.