Thaw Fickle Buskin

Afternoon Confluence

The wind was pounding louder than before on the sides of the church. My entire body was frozen, completely shocked about what was going on. Kanoa Mahi'ai, right here, in my arms. The glowing of her hands was spreading up her arms like a disease, illuminating her veins in a sickening light. Her body shuddered at the cold creeping through the holes in the walls.

I had no idea what to do. My main priority was getting Kanoa to a safe place. I wasn't sure how long she would be out, but I was guessing from her limp body that it could be quite a while. After that, I would decide whether I should call the authorities or not.

With her secure in my arms, I lifted her up and began walking towards the door. Her foot banged against a rotting pew. "Sorry," I said, knowing fully that she couldn't hear me. I dodged the rest of the furniture carefully. I didn't want her to wake up with new bruises all over. I was probably in trouble with her already from intruding on...whatever was going on.

My whole body was buzzing from adrenaline. I couldn't feel the cold anymore because of the amount of shock running through my blood. I reached out slowly to open the door, almost dropping Kanoa in the process. I gathered her in my arms once more and propped open the door with my foot. It shut hard on it, causing me to yelp in pain. I was barely two minutes into my heroic escapade and it was going miserably.

We managed to make it outside when I realized I couldn't walk down the sidewalk with Kanoa like this. Although this was the old side of town, there were still residents that lived here. On a regular day, there would be mothers strolling their children to the nearest park or elderly men walking their dogs. Even my brother and I would play in the overgrown trees that encapsulated the blocks and grew their roots underneath the pavement.

I was just glad the rain had dried, or else I would never had made it that far.

I decided I should take the back trail through the trees that led close to my backyard. It would be a more brutal journey, but we would get there unseen. I just prayed that my mom wasn't home.

We made our way behind the church to the shadowed outline of the Astral Forest. The ground was covered in fallen pine needles that stuck to the underside of my boots. The threat of dropping Kanoa was even greater now that my arms were beginning to strain under her weight. She was much taller than me with a muscular body. My arms were still shaking with disbelief that I was there, on the Sol Trail, with Kanoa's breathing growing more pained as we stand out in the cold.

The trees were whistling as the wind continued to grow. I could see the clouds dancing above us and sending fractals of light through the open spaces. Whenever lightning struck, the world flashed, momentarily blinding me. My ears would burst at the sound of thunder, sending a shockwave through my chest. Kanoa's hair flew softly across her face, the only gentle thing in the increasingly harsh world around us.

I saw my picket fence up ahead, close enough to be relieved but far enough that it made my arms ache. I quickened my pace. My feet were suddenly sure of themselves once they reached the point of familiarity. The trees thinned once we arrived at the rickety gate that lead to the safety of my house.

There weren't any cars at the front of the house, meaning that the house was empty. I breathed out a sigh of relief and kicked the gate open. It was never locked, thankfully. As I walked up to the screen door, which was knocking against its frame from the hard winds, my arms began to shake. I hurriedly pushed it open with my shoulder and stumbled inside.

I went over and set Kanoa on my couch. Embarrassment settled in my stomach as I looked around the room. There were newspapers scattered on the floor from my mom looking for a job. All nursing openings were circled in red. At that moment she was interviewing for a job, shadowing at the local hospital. I wasn't sure when she would be back exactly, so I needed to figure out this situation quickly.

I went around the house and began locking all the openings I could think of. The screen door, the front door, all the upstairs windows. The kitchen windows hadn't been opened in years--there was dust lining their frames and dried grease was permanently stuck to the small platform underneath the window. The old linoleum was starting to tear and stain. I decided that the kitchen was off limits to anyone who was unfortunate enough to end up here.

There was a bark at my feet. I looked down and saw my golden retriever Garfunkel happily panting at my feet. His hair was curled from dried rain. His ear was inside out, but it didn't look like he cared that much. I reached down to pet him and he barked cheerfully. I put a finger to my mouth to quiet him, but he didn't know what that meant. Instead, he continued to gleefully chirp as he helped me scour the rest of the house for openings.

After making sure the house was secure, I returned to the living room. Kanoa had shifted slightly, meaning she could wake soon. If I was going to bring her downstairs, it better be right then. I slid my hands beneath her and lifted her up once more. Her throat made a small grunt, but her body was still stiff.

"Sorry," I said once again. Garfunkel barked in response for Kanoa. Then I turned towards the entrance to the basement and started going down.

I took the stairs slowly. I knew that one wrong move, and it would all be over. The stairs were carpeted, but that didn't cushion the hard concrete below. My feet were slipping against the edges of each stair, making my heart beat quickly after each step. Kanoa made another noise, but she still made no signs of waking. I was halfway down the stairs when I felt my foot get caught on something.

Garfunkel yelped and scurried on the stairs. I felt my body lurch forward, one foot in midair and the other persistent on staying on the step. Kanoa tumbled out of my hands, but I didn't see where she ended up. I flung down the stairs one at a time, each fall feeling worse than the next. By the time I got to the bottom of the stairs, the world was upside down.

Then it was fuzzy.

Then it was black.