Jonas and Kira: In Between

1

Kira's Perspective

Matty's dead. How is that even possible? He was here only three weeks ago, and now he's gone.
He was so young, yet so wise for his age, and always cheerful. I miss him.
I can tell Seer, my father, misses Matty greatly. It was Matty who found my father and reunited us. He was just a boy then.
Many people in Village knew and loved him. They miss him too, but somehow they seem to be alright.
Without Matty I feel as if something's missing. Father suggests I tend to the garden, that usually cheers me up. But since Matty's death I've had this feeling of grief harboring in me.
I haven't left my father's house since the man called Leader brought me here.

Leader is a nice man. Young and handsome; and not married. I shouldn't be thinking of him like that, like someone who I could ever be with. No man wants a wife with a damaged leg. True, I've accepted the way my leg slows me down, I'm used to it. But marriage is not a choice for me.
My thoughts are interrupted by a knock.
Father goes to answer the door.
"Leader, welcome. Come in, come in."
He opens the door wider, letting Leader in. "Kira, it seems we have company." I stand up, and nod my hello.
"Hello, Seer, Kira. I hope this is not a bad time." Leader says, smiling.
"No! Of course not. Is anything the matter?" Father closes the door, and walks to the chair in the corner to sit. All though he's blind, he has every bit of this house memorized.
"Nothing's wrong. I actually came to ask Kira if she would like to take a walk with me." Leader looks to me.
I scramble for words, "Oh, um, I would only slow you down." I look down at my leg.
Leader shakes his head. "I'm a slow walker. If anything, I'm the one slowing you down." I meet his eyes, and he motions to the door, eyebrows raised. I nod, and smile politely.
"In that case, of course I'll walk with you, Leader."
We start off down a path by the house. My crutch thumps against the soft earth. For a moment I feel embarrassed; then I stop myself, 'Why should I care what he thinks about my leg. He's probably not even thinking about it. What is he thinking about?' I cast a sidelong glance at him. His eyes face forward. His face completely blank. 'Why does he want to walk with me?' I wonder.
"Leader," I start, breaking the silence that had been held.
"You must call me by my given name." Leader interrupts. "It's Jonas."
I nod, not knowing how to respond. In the village you're given a title name based on your gifts. I recall Matty's name, Healer. He had wanted the name messenger, because he'd always run around delivering messages. But Healer was a perfect fit. He had received the name when he died, healing the forest. That was his gift, the gift of healing. As we walk on I continue  thinking about Matty.

The path starts to lead out through the village. Going past all the homes and buildings, we make our way to the still and peaceful river. Once we reach the river dock, we sit on its edge and watch  the sun set. Before long, the sky begins to darken, the stars shine.
Beside me, Jonas sighs and leans back on the dock. I lay back beside him.

"The sky fascinates me. See those stars there? They make up the constellation Orion. Over there is the large Dipper, and over there is Cassieopia. Up there is the small Dipper, and right down there is Lyra." He points to a group of stars. I follow his finger and gaze at the vast array of bright white circles in the dark sky. Being here, looking up at the large, wonderful, sky made me think about what lives all the other people in Village lived before they came to this place, it made me think of how I lived before Matty rescued me. I never thought about the sky much, or the many other villages and communities that were likely out there.

"Its late. I should probably walk you back to Seer's house." While deep in my thoughts, Jonas had stood up and was standing over me, his hand outstretched. I take his hand, and he pulls me up to him. I smile, and he smiles back.

We start on the path back into the village, and I realize I haven't said much this entire time. " You must think me horrible, not holding up my side of our conversation."

Jonas shakes his head, "No, of course not. I could never think of you as horrible, Kira." I blush at his words. Once again, we stay silent until we reach my fathers house.

"Thank you for walking me home, Jonas." I turn to him, "I enjoyed our walk, maybe we could do it again." Jonas smiles, and nods, "Yes, I would like that. Tomorrow, perhaps?"

"Yes, tomorrow would be nice...but if you would like, perhaps maybe you would want to join me and my father for the noon meal?" I ramble on. "I'm not much of a cook. Father usually prepares a stew and bread but if you would like som-"
"No, stew and bread sounds delightful. I'll be here." Jonas laughs. He has such a contagious laugh. It makes me smile.
"Good. I will see you tomorrow, Jonas." I turn away from him and walk to the door, opening it as I watch him walk away.
Father is setting the table for the evening meal as I close the door. "Did you have a nice walk, Kira?"
"Yes, we did." I go to him and kiss his cheek, "a very nice walk indeed."
Father smiles, "Leader is a nice young man. What did you talk about?"
I hesitate. "Hardly anything. I invited Jonas to eat with us tomorrow, then we're going for another walk. Is that alright?"
Father raises his eyebrows, as if to say, 'one walk and you're already on given names?', but he just nods. "Of course that's alright. Leader is always welcome here."