HtH134 – Looking Backwards and Forwards
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Eclair climbs a mountain with Lumi.
Step by step, Eclair makes her way up the mountain stairway. She does so, leaning her body forwards with each step, one arm clinging onto the old steel railguards. Sweat drips down from the front of her face onto the worn white staircase, her other hand holding her aching thighs.
(A slightly worried chime)
"Oh dear... Eclair, are you alright? We can... slow down if you wish."
Eclair waves Lumi's worry away with a quick hand, before returning to massage her thigh. Lumi and Ablam seem to have no problem walking up this mountain path; why, Ablam has hopped on far ahead after spotting a glimpse of her dark-furred friend hiding in the ferns further down the path.
A dozen steps ahead, Lumi stops, and pulls onto the straps of her tiny backpack. Swaying slightly, Lumi watches Eclair take one agonizing step after the next, before the girl reaches her side, collapsing into a sit-down on the stairs, head leaning against the railings.
"... ... Let's... rest for a while." Eclair's eyes are tightly closed, her face just edging out a smile.
Behind her closed eyelids, the girl hears the sound of dress fabric sitting down next to her, then the sound of a backpack being plopped down at their feet. Together, the two sit in silence under the early morning light for a while, the sound of Eclair's heavy breathing their only companion.
Back at the foot of the stairs, she had scoffed a bit when Ablam tried to rope her and Lumi into doing stretching exercises before heading up the mountain. Naturally, Eclair's dignity did not allow her to do such a thing, so she looked on while her companions did sideways stretches without her. Lumi in particular looked especially strange, doing stretches in a long skirt, but she still did them diligently.
(A pause, a subtle whirring sound)
"How are you doing, Eclair? It's concerning... how you seem to be in such a hurry. We will be camping at the summit, so you can take your time."
Eclair winces, her eyes still closed. Perhaps her plodding steps had given it away; she had been in a hurry. In a hurry to keep up with the girls. In a hurry to head back and try writing the next big thing. Even knowing that they would wait at the top of the mountain didn't give her any peace of mind. Instead, it made her heart flutter, her breathing a little harsher now. Still, she spoke in as gentle a tone to the teal-haired girl beside her,
"Well I must be honest with you, Lumi, I have been feeling low energy for two weeks already." Words start to tumble out of the dramaturg's mouth, "Every time my body starts to feel tired, everything looks like a crisis."
(The whirring sound repeats, ending in a subtle click)
"Thank you for sharing that, Eclair. It’s… concerning to hear about the low energy and the disruption to your routines."
Behind closed eyes, Lumi's posture shifts, leaning close to Eclair. There is the sound of a backpack's clip being undone, and a small rustle can be heard. Eclair continues, "I feel like I am running out of time. To help the house, I mean. I want to call this a crisis, and that the house has survived a lot more, but it does look like a crisis to me. No matter how much rest I take, I do things that make me tired again, and can't concentrate on building our house."
"I had thought we could start off strong, send the draft in and get it accepted. I didn't think that--- waugh!!"
Eclair practically leaps up, her back hitting the back of the railings! She had felt something ice-cold press against the side of her neck! When the girl comes to her senses, she sees Lumi holding out a tall thermos flask, chilled condensation still dripping from its bottom. Our kind-hearted actress presses the thermos flask into Eclair's hands, giving her a gentle nudge to drink up.
Thankful, Eclair leans in close to Lumi too, and raises the thermos flask.
Cool refreshment slides down the girl's throat, and it was a while before she brought the flask back down.
It is then that the girl sees.
"Say, Lumi, do you see that too?"
Lumi nods, her eyes having been watching the same direction that her dramaturg is pointing at now.
Facing the direction they came from, she saw tall white-stone structures rising up in the mist far away. She would never have seen it at ground level, low mountains and tall shrubs blocking the view. Up here however, the little town is quite visible, pillars and columns from a bygone age dot the town. It might have been a trick of the morning light or the way the fog moves, but Eclair swears that some of the buildings seem to perch themselves atop the fog, floating in mid-air. Far in the distance, little glimmers of light dance and sparkle, like a lingering invitation to come and visit.
"White... Do you think the same people who built that place built this staircase too?" Eclair knocks upon the stairway they are sitting on.
The two girls ponder in silence for a while, admiring the view for just a moment longer, they pass the thermos between each other until it felt light enough, and it went back into its backpack.
(A quiet, almost tentative tone)
"I don't know, Eclair. Perhaps… it would be a place to explore together. To unravel the mysteries of Ethelgard..."
"Mysteries... Do you think that this place has mysteries, Lumi?"
(Thoughtful affirmation, nodding her head)
"I think so. I believe so."
Lumi's eyes, resolute, sparkle with an emotion that she does not usually show back at home.
Certainly, our theatre house is a place of comfort, but here, all the way in the outside...
... it feels as if anything could happen.
"... Well, I think it would be a splendid place to run off to when we come back this way! Who knows, maybe I'll get some inspiration out of it!" Eclair stands up, a little slow, but steady. She straightens out her back, stretching in the air. Looking upwards at the seemingly impossible flight of stairs...
... somehow, the climb doesn't seem so insurmountable now.
Her companion also dusts off the back of her long skirt, looking up in the same direction. By now, Ablam must have been far, far ahead of them at this point, for the girl is nowhere to be seen.
Still, that does not worry the two in the slightest.
Ablam will wait for them.
Step by step, the two girls make a steady pace up the stairs.
Not too fast, not too slow.
They step into the future together.
Behind them, a single red eye gazes upon a leather carrying-case left behind.
We are trying something different! This is a simul-posting at the same time as the Scribblehub release! Go check out the entire series at this link!
