The Non-Human Society

Chapter One - Renn - Time

      Grass was starting to grow.

It hadn't taken as long as I had thought it would have. Maybe because winter was upon us. I had expected the large plot of earth to remain mulch and black for longer than it had.

"But time isn't fair, is it?" I asked my friend.

These last few months had been... very long for me. A rarity. Precious, in their own way.

Yet all the same, for as much as I wanted to hear her voice again, and laugh with her over some silly long forgotten joke...

I didn't. Because I didn't want her to suffer again.

"I'll probably never see you again," I said to the few blades of grass that had started to grow. They were roughly where her head was. Not too far from the small cross I had made for her.

She hadn't been very religious most of her life, but near the end she had renewed her faith. The book she had forgotten for years upon a shelf had become a permanent fixture in her hands and on her lap those last few months. Out of respect of that, I had done my best to make that cross. Hopefully it lasted longer than it looked like it would.

"But I'll remember you. Maybe not as your old self, but that vibrant woman who had helped me. You were brave," I said to her.

Birds were chirping, and I knew I was going to miss them as well. Their familiar sounds were... almost comforting. I glanced to the tree that they had made their nest upon, and hoped they'd stick around for a long time. To watch over her for me.

For a few moments I looked around. The large yard we had tended. Full of fruits and vegetables. Trees, and bushes. A decorative table, which had always seemed too big for just us two.

The small cabin that had honestly been a little cramped for the both of us. It looked a little... rundown now. And not just because she hadn't been able to keep it clean like she always had during her last few months. It was indeed starting to wear down. The wood we had used to build it was becoming brittle, and I knew there were a few sections that the insects were doing just too much damage to. Even during these cold days.

"It was fun," I said, to her and this place.

About a decade. Maybe a little longer...

For me it had passed in the blink of an eye.

"You said it was okay to stay here, after... but I can't. I can't..." I whispered, and did my best to stop the tears.

She had saved me. Yet humans did not live as long as we did.

They never did.

With a gulp, I walked towards the patio. I wasn't going to go back inside. I had finished. I had closed the door. I'd never go in there again.

I was leaving a lot of stuff here, but... I couldn't carry it all. And...

"Sometimes starting anew is best," I said, as I reached down to grab the small pack.

A few small things. A few set of clothes. Some money, that I honestly didn't know if was even accepted and used anymore. Hopefully a single decade didn't change things too much beyond our little grove.

While I secured the pack to my back, I felt my hat shift on my head. I grumbled, and wondered if it was going to get me in trouble later.

Steadying my hat on my head, I felt my ears shift under it. They weren't so large that they'd push it off, but it was somewhat uncomfortable. I also didn't like how the world got a little... quieter, with it on.