Carnation

After Altale

Dawn melts away slowly like butter on toast, revealing the clouds that overlap each other like a soft blanket wrapping the sky with its warmth and tenderness. The mountains are dark silhouettes against a crimson sky. The sun raising slowly from behind the mountains, emitting its first rays over the forest, bestowing a golden path from the plain to the horizon. Dark oranges and reds paint across the new day as if by a celestial hand, sunrise spreading across the dawn. Sunlight rises more from behind the mountain from their sleepy monochrome which had finally lay rest. Minutes pass, and the sun is fully in the horizon, just above the mountain, setting a majestic and blazing sunrise. A reddish orange hue that’s glowing bright seeps over the horizon as if the light itself is being pour from a molten blaze, announcing the new day. Powerful rays flood the landscape like the ocean sweeping across, lighting every blade and the snow glimmering like sparkling stars. The lifeless trees and bushes transform as if new life flows through them, giving them colours once again. Against the trees were silhouettes, still as if they’re statues and darker than ravens. Across the plain, a faint outline of a mansion emerges from the still darkness and the mist dissolve into water.

Rays of sunlight leak through the darkness, piecing through the darkness like a blade. Sunlight sneaking into the small area through the canopies of the trees like a ghoul’s grin yet gives the shutters a halo of brilliant light, sending a glossy, golden sheen all around the small meadow and sending a wave of warmth and light up with luminous glows of white and gold. A gentle breeze blows lightly through the naked trees. When the light spread throughout the woods, the new saplings have a light green sheen. The wintry mist sets upon hundred beads of frozen water, each one a perfect sphere like speckled glass, shining brilliant in the morning rays. The mist will return to the earth and to the skies, quenching new saplings that are already springing from the winter depths and ascending to at a slow rate. There’s something about the dawn that makes each new day such a gift, eases it in gently, unwrapping the world anew. Outside the looming mansion, the girl is curled up in a ball, sleeping peacefully and perhaps dreaming of spring just like the sleeping trees. The child stirs as sunlight hits her petite face and her eyes lazily flutter open, glazed over with the remnants of a dream like a glazed panel of glass and sits up while rubbing her tired eyes with the insides of her palms. It’s like she has woken from a deep slumber and her mind is still a surging perplexity that’s searching for answers as her eyes daze with soft warmth and yet, with still fragments from lost memories.

She slowly adjusts to the sunlight that’s flooding the forest and stares at the two corpses, lying on the ground as if they were peacefully asleep. The loneliness is a vice on her heart, squeezing with just enough pressure to be a constant pain. It hurts so much that it kills her, taking what is once her inner light and replacing it with a darkness that overshadows each moment. It is the fuel of her nightmares. Tears dwell in the corner of her eyes as a soft whimper escapes her lips like a puppy when it’s being scolded, remembering last night’s event. The tears that are dripping from her cheeks are cold and wet like icy water, dripping down her rosy plump cheeks to the snow. Staring at the two corpses through hazy eyes, she stands up shakily but falls over due to her trembling legs. Her body aches with tremendous coldness and despair, seeping slowly through the cracks into her broken heart. Her mind replays the tragic moments from last night onwards and the images continue to be gruesome even nevertheless she sees them again and again but after time, they’ll inert and then stop all together. The wind whispers through the trees as if it’s saying something. The small girl looks around, hoping to get out of the forest as she’s shivering, her skin prickling with goose bumps. No animals stir within the snowy wonderland nor a single soul apart from her. The girl chokes a cry for help, but the cry didn’t come as if her throat is cry from the harsh coolness of the night.

The small child listens for anything but no familiar sounds can be heard. Looking around, she flinches as a drop of icy cold-water splashes onto her nose, making it colder than before. Staring up, the child squints at the blue ocean above and the sun, blinding her. She lowers her head and continues to stare at the corpses. No movement could be seen, the rising and falling of the chest is still unmoving. She closes her eyes as she listens to the soft melody of the wind. Snowflakes flutter down gently like swaying quartz, shimmering under the sunlight. Suddenly, out of the blue, the wind softly blows through the trees and pass her. Bright, white snow falls from the sky, dancing in the wind. From where she cries, the little girl is all alone, surrounded by nothing but death and constantly falling snowflakes. He long hair blows like rolling waves on the shore, the only contrast to the brilliant sky. Within the wind, she hears a smoothing whimper that’s faint and soft as leaves dancing on the wind. Slowly and warily, she stands up, her muscles in her legs begun to ache but instead of collapsing onto the snow, she walks over to the direction of the soft whimpering and finds a small creature that’s curled up in a ball in front of a small snow drift that’s out in the open, shivering from the harsh cold winds. Walking closer to the animal, curious as to what the creature could, the girl is carefully and cautious as to not to disturb the sleeping creature. When she approaches the small animal, she could see how tiny it is and assumes that this little one had been born days ago and yet, haven’t learned to stand nor the wonders of the world and the harsh truth of reality. The creature is about the size of a foot that has short, ceramic golden like honey coat with a fluffy, ceramic golden long tail and has a long, thick collar of fur around its neck and chest. Its eyes are small and narrow that are like thin slit lines.

It has Fennec foxlike ears but much longer and a bit wider as if they’re floppy like dogs and pointed with white tuffs of fur inside. Her eyes widen with astonishment and shock when she realizes this animal is elegant fox pup. She could think of nothing else but the pup as if the small animal has bewitched her very soul. For perhaps a split second her grief will be suspended, the surprise protecting her until it shatter like glass. A heavy silence settles over them like thick fog, her eyes fill with astonishment as she gazes into the most crystal green eyes that she has ever seen that shine luminously under the light rays of the sun. Her body feels hot as if fire is burning right through her and lava is seeping through the cracks. The girl reaches her hand out to the fox’s head, offering peace and saying that she isn’t a threat and is surprise when the pup didn’t snap at her hand. She hesitates, remembering how wild and untamed the animal could be yet, the fox seems to want the girl to pet it. The fox lifts its elegant, small head and stares at the girl with hypnotising crystal blue eyes. Mesmerize by its hypnotic eyes, she stares at them, sensing a familiarity while retracting her hand but stops as the fox struggles to stand. Watching amazingly as the fox manages to stand with how weak it looks, and it walks slowly towards the girl, limping and breathing softly then stops and lifts its head towards her hand. Closing its eyes, soft fur as if silk collides with the girl’s cold skin and instantly, she feels warmth radiating into her body and hope.

The amount of warmth that the pup produces is amazing that would seep into her and he comforts her. She has melted into the pup like ice-cream on a warm porcelain bowl like she needs the small animal and it needs her. Of course, the fox is just a pup and is probably a few days old that needs her love and care to grow big and strong.

The fox pup backs away after a minute of heartfelt love and warmth. Her eyes shows the kind of gentle concern for the pup. Golden rays of sunlight spread throughout the forest as the pup stares at her and blinks at her while barking squeaky. Wondering what to do now, the girl hears the soft crunching of the snow. The approaching footsteps have the wet sound of someone on grass as if they’ve not learnt to walk quietly and instead relies on the verges to muffle their steps. Out of the trees, a white fox with its tail swishing steps out of the trees and stands on a large snow mound a meter away from her as the small animal scans the area, probably looking for threats. The girl’s eyes widen as she examines the fox and sees red around its neck. Remembering the red, she instantly thinks to the fox that had saved her last night. The fox finally looks at the girl, its eyes are crystal blue that are gentle and kind. The small creature sniffs the air and stares at the fox pup as if wondering why a pup would be out here. The pup stares at the adult fox and runs behind the girl in fear that the adult might do something to it. Walking down the mound, the fox leaps onto the ground a meter away and runs back into the forest. The small animal halts to a stop in front of a frozen river with large rock in a line that goes across the river, creating a path. The water that once freely flows in the failing light of dusk is now trap in an icy form, beautiful under the glare of a flashlight. It runs across the rocks and stops amid of them as the fox lifts its head high, sniffing the fresh air as the watery daylight pushes back the remainder dark edges of the woods, reclaiming the colours of day that has been wash out by silver moonlit night.

The world is now back like a freshly developed photograph, every colour bright and new. Rays of golden sunlight shine down upon the fox, the light radiating of the fox’s fur. Staring at the sophisticated creature that’s like a perfect statue, the girl’s legs move on their own as if they’ve a mind of their own into the brilliant bathe of golden light. The warm rays kiss her skin lightly, warming her from the inside out. Seeing how the fox is standing so sophisticated, the girl lifts her head higher as time passes. The small girl runs over to the river and leaps over each stone gracefully and carefully, not wanting to slip onto the ice like glass below her and lands on the soft, white of snow. She swirls around on her tiptoes, her brown golden hair flying like waves rolling onto the shore and her white dress fluttering in the breeze, admiring the beauty of the forest. The girl keeps running through the forest, following the fox but she feels if she’s chasing the creature. The fox disappears into the darkness of the looming trees where there's no sunlight and the girl stops.

The kit yelps as it stares at her with beady eyes as if telling her to not be afraid. Deep inside, the girl knows that she’s afraid of what to come. The trauma of last night’s event is still playing in her mind as if like a short film, endlessly continuing. The pup tilts its head and its eyes drop with sadness, sensing the girl’s emotions. Taking a deep breath, the girl walks slowly towards the darkness of the trees, telling herself not to be afraid while the pup wags its tail, its eyes are cheerful. Walking closer, the girl fears that there’s no going back but at least she has the kit to keep her company. Entering into a world of fantasy, the girl breathes in awe as she scans the surreal landscape while stopping. The landscape is every vivid colour that ranges from ceramic white to icy blue, every one of the colours as fresh as a new painting. The trees were deep with slumber and most divine of icicles that hang from tree branches. Before her, another frozen stream lays in waiting of spring. It’s as if the frozen surface is flowing water still but it’s not. The surface is like crystal white glass that’s smooth and not bumpy.

The stream goes on and on through the woods that could be connect to the first stream. At the start of the stream are large, colourful rocks that ranges from light brown to grey with lumps of snow like frosting, spreading across the rough surface. The once flowing spray of water that flow over the rocks is now flat as paper ice that hangs down the top of the once waterfall and icicles that hang down aside of the frozen waterfall. The colours of a thousand stars swirl in her mind like water going down a celestial plug hole. As they billow and spin in the unseen breeze, they left colours behind until all that is left is a world like a beautifully painted page in a children's picture book. Each colour she touches sing with its own sweet sound. She hold out her arms wide and spins like a child's spinning top so that the music encase her like a soft fleece blanket as the fox yaps softly at her. She stops after hearing approaching footsteps that’ve a wet sound of someone on grass; someone who has not learnt to walk quietly and instead relies on the verges to muffle their steps. Each footfall is chaotically spaced from the last, no rhythm at all. Whoever it is lacks confidence, is likely scared. They are neither a threat nor of interest.