HOLD MY HAND AGAINST THE NIGHT

SHOW ME ALL THE DEMONS LEFT TO FIGHT:

The winter did not bode well for her, simply because the past did not warrant comfort. It had stolen from the girl, and it had cursed her to walk the earth alone. One would think the days would all blur into one conscious memory of what it was like. Somehow the days, stretched with the silences of nature, instilled years upon her brow however. As she waited there, neglecting the need to notify her presence with a bellowing cry, the snow brought her back to the day she crossed the threshold.

Of all things it had been a rabbit that drew her out, poking energy into her step – bringing light and salted giggles into the open. It must have been the smells that excited her, the murmurs permeating the air. When the world appeared simple and manageable.

At the time Ru ignored the idea that her family was dead. Preferring to hold on to the hope that they lived, that they would bring her back to their fold any moment. Alas, death remained the enigma. To be without, to have nothing when it was there a moment ago, burning down to the last moment before the storm, before the winds separated them. A hum on the air breaks the girl’s concentration to her immediate world. The perils, the risks – curling and wavering all together upon the stranger in the distance.

Ru takes in the stranger, noting the multiple barbs curling out from that head. The pale landscape of their body, and from what Ru can only make out, is cold blue eyes that set themselves upon her. Ru remains still as the stranger’s voice calls out. Somehow, the girl rumbles in response, despite having no desire to admit her failure for seeking out the herd. And nods, just incase her gravelly voice did not breach the distance. There was the risk that Ru could be pursued by flight, should she warrant the mare’s ire for whatever reason. But as the stranger closed their distances, it became more apparent that the other was perhaps around the same age. And perhaps Ru could escape her pursuit if she was quick enough.

“Are you alright?”

It would be a foolish thing to ignore the obvious. Or so Ru concludes, ignoring the plethora of emotions drained from her face. How can she fake exhaustion? She hasn’t quite mastered that art yet – should there be a reason for it in the future. Ru simply shakes her head from side to side. Her eyes drift further in the Edge, trying to make her point as clear as ever. And lifts a stiff right wing to point where she gazes.

She waits a moment, so that the stranger can follow the tip of her wing or the flood of dull light exiting those eyes into the Edge’s depths. Shuffling those frosted feathers into her sides, she steps back only once – and lowers her head in what Ru has known as a sign of submission. She wants in.  

Ru waits, quiet, still. The beat of her heart racing against her ears, as each of those fears lathered her mind. Saturated with uncertainty.

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