Dreams of Imahken

Reward all she offers to last the same.

Illus woke up in the middle of the night, as he frequently did in the ruins. The whirling wind, creaking trees, pounding rain, and brushing leaves were only soothing to a certain extent. Waking up to an odd scraping outside the shed never left him with a good feeling because he worried the fox may break the already loose agreement. Nothing held the fox to it beside Illus, and allowing the fox attention seemed to be very valuable in its eyes. The poem spoke more of Ciun than it did the fox, and it spoke of foxes, not a singular fox, so nothing could be certain.

The front door lightly creaked open, a clear night with a bright full moon. The air was crisp, carrying the scent of roses and musty earth into his nose. Illus's legs were getting better after a few weeks of fishing and being careful with his health. His dull gray eyes scanned the perimeter. No fox. No Ciun.

He didn't know if they slept. He had yet to see them sleep, but he had heard Ciun yawn several times, so maybe he would have some time in the fleeting night to be alone in the ruins.

His eyes traced their way around the crumbled roofs and tilted pillars, resting on the mountain again. He thought it would be a good morning to climb it, use the time alone to relax and watch the sunrise before Ciun and the fox stole his privacy.

Through the square, over the bridge, and up the steps he began. The gully chirped with frogs and crickets. Fireflies sparked in the soil, in the trees, in the grass. The light breeze circling the mountain kept Illus's hair from his face, a lovely, brisk walk. Moreover, there was such a silence to the air between chirps, gusts of wind, and calls of the local loons. The dull hum of the Earth invited him to the summit as the moon slowly fell.

Though Illus's legs were already much better, he used a walking stick to make up for the slight limp that persisted. Soil became granite steps which became a rocky summit. Looking away from the ruins was the eastern sky where white light began its ascent, snuffing the stars, awakening the new birds to tweet and chirp about. The water far below was full and clear, a massive crescent shaped lake that the rivers on either side of the ruins flowed from.

The summit was empty of Ciun and the fox, a space freely alone for Illus. Near the eastern ledge was a stone, smooth and indented in the middle. It made a perfect seat, which he happily sat in to commemorate his successful climb and ease his tired legs.

Just before the sun started showing itself, a flap of cloth caught Illus's left ear. His head twisted quickly, a bit shocked at the subtle sound. A figure surrounded by long azure hair flipping in the wind, dressed in Anilee's center-parted floral nightgown of a slightly darker color, and the golden and blue accented ivory fox mask. She stared directly at him, the pale pink light of dawn illuminating her in an ethereal glow.

His heart jumped with a slight burst of fright, almost enough to move him. "By God, you're everywhere, aren't you?"

No response as usual, although she seemed frozen in place for a brief moment. Then she yawned and took to freeing a tangle from her hair with Anilee's brush.

Illus sighed, glancing down at the smooth stone he was seated upon. He pushed himself up and sat out by the ledge, in front of the seat. He paid her no more mind, a bit frustrated that she would even appear when he desired time alone.

The sun was just beginning the rise, painting the indigo night sky in a gradient of orange and red hues

"I was unsure if you were real," Ciun's gentle voice emanated from atop the seat.

Illus didn't turned around. "That's quite the statement from a millennium-old woman who's stalking me."

She paused, a remorseful tone about her voice. "Time has a way of clouding reality. Bygone dreams and days flow with one another in a mind that sees nowhere else. No one else."