The Dawn of Darkness

It was the first night of their travels. Zeek and Winnrey camped under the open stars in the soft grassy ground of an unknown plain decorated with a few tall old trees. Not much was said. Even Ditto was quiet. A spell of silence had woven over them like the spider’s web wrapped prey in a cocoon. The horse was tethered to one of the trees and left to its own devices. Dinner was eaten cold before the setting sun, and no fire was lit. It was a warm summer night. One of the last. Fall would trip in soon. Both travelers had agreed to retire to sleep so they could awaken early in the morning. Ditto slept like a log. He could have been dead if you didn’t know any better, but Winnrey couldn’t sleep. Grief weighed down upon her small shoulders like the sky weighing upon the earth. No sound issued from her frozen mouth; her breath caught in her throat. She felt she would waste away in this temperate night. Tears fell down her cheeks rosy with emotion pouring down to the earth like the merciful rains on soil cracked with drought. Each drop of salty sorrow fell with a part of her washing away. She was dying emotionally. Her body would soon fall away from her tormented soul. If only’s raced through her tortured brain only adding more suffering. If only I hadn’t been so stubborn. If only I had agreed to marry Victor. If only I had been a better child. If only I had listened more...

Zeek felt irritated that he had to have the princess tag along. He would have ditched her if he hadn’t made a promise to King Stephen, she didn’t happen to be the princess of Terra, and if she didn’t tend to get into trouble. He sighed and sat up quietly so not to wake her up. His depressed thoughts would not let him sleep. His amber eyes caught Winnrey’s form shaking silently and softened. Royalty was a living prison. There was no freedom at all. He silently moved to sit close to her. She was crying. Poor girl. You didn’t deserve to live through that. Zeek changed his mind about her and cupped her streaming face in his soft stone hand. He wiped away her tears with his pallid thumb.

“I’m not going to tell you it’s all right, because it’s not, but you’ve got to let them go.” His voice was rough with emotion. “They’re in a better place than this world. In Aura they are beginning eternal life with Egosum. You’ll see them again someday.” He surprised her by speaking religiously for the first time to her. Zeek pulled off the cap and brushed her matted hair out of her face. Winnrey closed her eyes against a fresh torrent of tears and bit her lip.

“Come now. Don’t cry. Girls like you look so much prettier when their happy.” He catches a rogue tear on his finger and raises an eyebrow at her. Winnrey blushed a tentative smile. She felt a little happier and a little guilty for feeling that way. Mother, Father, I’m sorry for being selfish. I am going to let you go. A sweet breeze blew in her face as if a goodbye and a kiss for good luck from her parents. Zeek takes his hand away from her face, and a little disappointment washes over her, to prop up his head.

“So, what’s it like to be a princess. I’ve always wanted to be one.” They fall into a bought of laughter. Princess and pauper talked through the night laughing and huddling closer as the air began to grow colder.

“Why do you hate being a princess so much?” Zeek asked curiously. His glorious face just inches away from her blushing features.

“Well, I just never seem to fit in. I can’t sit still. I’m always clumsy unlike Nicole. Most of the other girls in the court don’t like me. Besides, all they do is talk about boys, marriage, gossip, and fashion. They’re just boring twits. I’d rather go horseback riding, or sail in a ship, or-or-or... go on an adventure. The guys are okay, but I can almost never join them. I must remain ladylike to attract a suiting husband. Life is easier as a boy!”

“Hmm... I see. We’ll need to work on princess conduct.” Zeek says sternly, giving a reproving look that Winnrey’s tutor would have been proud of. They burst into more laughter, subsiding into gasps for breath. On a sudden impulse she quickly pulled out the cube Nicole had put in her bag.

“Do you know what this is? Nicole gave it to me.” She asked and placed it in Zeek’s waiting hands. He looked at it thoughtfully and shook it gently. A rustle and a clinking noise came from inside. Zeek’s long graceful fingers glided across the surface pressing at different points.
“It’s a puzzle box and a hard one at that.” was all he said before handing it back.
“I guess we won’t be getting up early tomorrow.” Winnrey says guiltily, slyly snuggling nearer to him after she put away her strange gift. She felt safe near him.

“That’s ok. The world can wait, I think.”

“But I can’t. We’ll just have to make up for it tomorrow night and get up earlier.”

“Yes, my queen.” Zeek tries to bow his head majestically without bumping heads with her. She giggles at his antics and yawns. Zeek kisses her forehead, “We should get at least a little rest. I bet someday you’ll discover your calling in life and find the right guy who likes you for who you are. You’ll need to be ready for it or it will slap you in the face.” He chuckled under his breath at an inside joke and draped his arm protectively around her.
The moon watched over two sleeping travelers, just beginning a hard journey, like a mother guarding her children.