Eleven Months of the Year

When Rosie opened her eyes, she thought, Meh.

But then she saw the red-haired boy.

His hair wasn't really red. It was a mix of burgundy, bright orange, muted yellows, and vibrant reds in a nest of unruly hair. Like a hill of autumn leaves set on fire. Plus, she didn't expect to see people camping in the middle of the forest. There was no tent around, just a campfire and a group huddled around it.

He was screaming at the group. Rosie stood in the shadows, watching them. Together, there was nothing surreal about the group huddled around a campfire. There were eleven of them, and studying each of them, Rosie found not-subtle quirks that set each other apart. One of them was completely gray, with startling blue eyes. One of them was clad only in leaves, covering only her private parts. One of them had ram horns.

"We have to find him," the boy with the autumn hair told no one in particular. "He's our brother!"

A pale girl with close-cropped black hair in a black tank top stirred. "You mean he's your brother, stupid."

"How could you say that, September?" he whined, facing her with a frustrated look on his face. The girl shrugged, like, What?

Rosie frowned. September?

"Lay off her," another one said. This one had a lazy light in his eyes. His hair was a shock of bright blue. "We have to follow the procedures. We're here today--"

"--tonight," someone  in a leather jacket called out.

"Thank you, May. Tonight, gathered once more to greet the New Year, to hear the reports and stories from the other months. And now, it's March's turn to tell a story. Sit down, October."

A muscular boy let out a low, dirty laugh. "Finally. My turn."

"The procedures are stupid," a little girl blanketed in her voluminous blond hair mumbled.

"January," October said calmly, "April is right. Your procedures are stupid. We have to find him--"

Rosie cleared her throat. The boy faltered in his speech as he stared at her. The people around him followed suit and turned to look and puzzle over her. Rosie stared back at their uniform electric blue eyes, shining in the dark like those of a predator's in the movies. She got one message: she was not meant to be there. 

The blue-haired boy narrowed his eyes. "Outsider. You're disrupting the procedures."

"Shut up about your procedures already, January" September said exasperatedly. She glared at Rosie. "What are you doing here?"

"I-I'm Rosie-"

"Nobody asked, nobody cares," January said, waving a hand dismissively. "What are you doing here?"

Rosie hugged herself. The air was too chilly. "I-I don't know. My head's a little fuzzy..."

The tiny blond girl stared at her with her wide blue eyes. She looked young, but she spoke with the voice of an old crone. "They don't care because they already know who you are, dearie."

"Calm down," a soft voice said. It was melodious, and it blanketed them in a wonderful feeling. The girl who spoke smiled kindly. She was plump, with white hair that stood on ends like a halo. "Hello, I'm July. These are my siblings. How did you get here?"

September made a face. "Siblings? We're not siblings."

Rosie shook her head. "I-I was following my little brother. Did you see him? He's tiny, with this weird white hair." Rosie giggled sadly. "I lost him in this forest. I reached this clearing and... here you are. Please, I have to find him. He's sickly."

"We have a sickly brother, too," January said, thoughtfully. "He's missing."

The redhead, October, stared at her with wide eyes. "Did you perhaps see a rainbow when you were looking for your brother?"

Rosie frowned.  "Yes. I-I think so. It was twilight when the rain stopped, but I did see a rainbow. A small one, just overhead. It looked so... reachable."

"And maybe you reached it," October finished. "The end of it. It looks for those without hope. Now you're here with us."

Rosie looked around them. There were still trees around them. The sky was darker now. Perhaps their dad has found Arky already. She looked over her shoulder. The forest looked dense and threatening, but she knows these woods. She played here all the time when she was a child. "That's impossible. I'm still in the forest. This is just... part of it."

"My brother is missing, too," October said manically, as if Rosie hadn't been just speaking. "We could look for our brothers together."

"You're staying here, October," the blue-haired boy declared. "It's part of the procedures!"

The muscular boy eyed Rosie from head to toe, grinning all the way. "Maybe she's December's replacement. Tell good-bye to him by the winds, September, October, November. Your brother's gone, replaced by a sister."

"He's your brother, too," a thin little boy in gray said softly.

"His hair is white," October said sadly. "His eyes are blue. Like mine."

"Like ours," July said with a tiny knowing smile.

"And he's tiny, like me," April said in her old-woman voice.

"Maybe your brother is home already," the little boy in gray said. His hair was ashen, like his face. His eyes seemed to glow. "Unlike ours. I'm November. Do you know your way home?" 

Rosie looked behind her. The trees looked as dense as ever. "I don't remember home," she whispered. "I don't remember home," she said, a little louder this time. "Oh, God, I can't remember my own home. What is this place?"

"Oh, God, I can't remember my own home. What is this place?" March echoed mockingly in a high-pitched voice. "It's the End, stupid. You're in the End."

"Your brother should be the one who's here, not you," July said kindly. "You are both lost. You're supposed to die tonight, and your brother is supposed to reach this place. Maybe we should all look for him. Rosie, dear, try to remember more. Close your eyes."

"Die tonight?" Rosie screamed. She took several steps back. "No. No, no, no, no. I'm alive!"

"You're alive, yes," September muttered sarcastically. "What about your brother?"

"My brother belongs to home," Rosie said weakly, but she closed her eyes nevertheless. She remembered running through the forest, looking for her baby brother's white hair anywhere. She remembered seeing a splash of white on the bottom of a cliff, and the tiniest hint of  a larger pool of blood. She remembered running away, seeing a rainbow, stopping in her tracks to stare at it-- it was so long since she last saw one. And somehow, reaching... the End.

October looked down sadly. He held out a hand. "Shall we look for our brother?"