𝐏𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐎𝐁𝐈𝐀 // 𝐋𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐒

three

jack led us up the side of the mountain, and we all followed him, using sticks to make it easier to walk. he sang a song, one of those chants were you repeat what the person is saying. i sang along quietly, mostly busying myself taking in the island from up here. it seemed much bigger from this height. some of us carried fire wood.  

we finally reached the top, and i wandered closer to the edge, watching the sea down below. i gulped at the thought of falling. the wind blew my skirt up gently, but i didn't care. i was already so comfortable around these boys. we were already close. 

after a while, a sturdy fire was built. the only thing missing was actual flames. jack sat by the pile of wood, rubbing two rocks together. 

"here, let me try it-" ralph attempted.

"i got it!" jack said, irritated. "shit!" he cursed. nothing was happening.

"motherfucker." he muttered again. 

"swearing won't help." piggy told him, his hands on his hips again. jack made a noise of exasperation and got up swiftly, pushing piggy back.

"listen, piggy, shut your fat ass up!" he yelled.

"jack, stop!" i stood between the two. ralph stood a little behind me.

jack set his jaw, annoyed. 

"wait, piggy..." ralph spoke. "gimme your glasses." he took them off his face, and piggy began to protest, but gave up. 

ralph knelt by the fire, and angled the glasses so the sunlight was shining through them onto the wood. we waited for a small amount of time, before smoke began to rise from the sticks. 

"fire!!" jack cheered, his mood quickly changing. they danced around the fire, and i stood, watching it, mesmerised by the dance of the flames. my mom used to tell me fire was a poor mans TV, and i now understood why. jack grabbed my wrists, and pulled me out of my trance. i giggled and danced around the fire with him. 

i noticed the grass began to set on fire. 

"wait - fuck, the grass is on fire!!" i called. they stopped dancing and quickly began to stomp on the flames. then the tree set on fire. 

"the tree!!" 
"use your jacket!"
"oh shit!"
"ow, it burnt me!"
"it's too hot." 
"put it out!!"

eventually, we swatted all the flames out. i stood, breathless, looking around the others. the grass was now singed and dry, the tree bare. 

"you got your small fire alright." piggy grumbled sourly from a distance. 

the sun had set, and it was now pitch black. we were gathered around the fire in a circle, the flames being our source of light. 

"the forest was totally dark, but he had to keep going. because the thing was behind him. the pus was everywhere. he could feel it, and all the while, the thing behind him kept coming closer. and then - suddenly - he realised they weren't any normal plants or bushes he was trying to run through. it wasn't the leaves or plants that were brushing up against him, touching his arms and face. it was thousands of claws, long claws, grasping at him, trying to stop him. and he tried to get away, but they held on - choking him! he tries to scream -" jack told them, before a kid screamed, interrupting his flow. a littlun began to cry, and i comforted him.

"it's only a story." i hushed him. jack rolled his eyes and i squinted at him. "c'mon. you guys are tired. ralph will take you down - right?" i looked at ralph.

"sure." he nodded. the littluns got up, and followed ralph down the mountain. piggy stumbled after them, complaining about it being too dark. jack and i were on fire duty.