White

The first snow came after another twelve days of aimless travel. I had begun to go a little west, to angle my path north. I had crossed roads, but had yet to encounter a settlement.

As the sun began to set, I surveiled my surroundings again. The future held gentle rain, so I pulled my cloak tighter, dug out a shelter with an incantation, and slept.

I was in the passenger seat of a little red car. She was driving. I could not see her face behind her shoulder-length brown hair. Bright lights passed us by. White specks of ice appeared from the darkness, revealed by her headlights. A turn was coming up, but we were going too fast. I tried to tell her to slow down. I tried to scream. Nothing came out. The turn came, and we slid off the road. After a moment of dizzy chaos, we both hung from our seat belts.

"No." I whispered.

I saw the red liquid dripping from her with unrealistic clarity. I was hurt too, but that hardly mattered. I had seen the danger, and failed to protect her. And now she was dead.

And that was the beginning of it all.

I bolted upright, shivering. What I had deemed as rain before fell too slowly, drifting lazily in the soft breeze in white flakes.

Snow.

Accursed snow.

The dream-memory made more sense, not that I appreciated it any more. I curled in on myself, watching the snow numbly. It was still just after midnight.

I had never been a fan of snow. Sure, it looked pretty, but that was about it. Last year, which my subconscious had so wonderfully reminded me, had given me a legitimate reason to hate it. Snow was evil. It had taken her from me. Thanks to snow, I had begun the journey here, this mess of a place.

I woke again with a sneeze. At some point, I had fallen back asleep. The snow was done falling, and the grassy hills I had traversed glittered innocently. I glared back.

Finally, with a sigh, I left my little cave and collapsed it with another English sentence.

The snow came to mid-shin. I asked Ragos to keep me warm as I started trudging through the awful stuff.

It wasn't hard to maintain a foul attitude throughout the day.

Countless footsteps trailed behind me, rising and falling with the hills. The fire of Ragos kept my sandaled feet from freezing, and the cloak I had tightly wrapped around me served as a way to retain heat.

I focused on watching my shadowy future, twelve seconds ahead now, as I trudged in the white blanket of ice.

Twelve seconds was not enough. My future self turned his head slightly. I watched, not comprehending why, then I heard it.

"Oi! What are ya doing out here?"

I followed my future's gaze, spotting a young man in a bulky fur coat. He held a spear almost as a walking stick. His mess of brown hair, not unlike my own, tousled in the wind.

I turned away. If I ignored the young man, I would have reason to believe his death would not be in my hands. Not be like Farsfield.

"Oi! I'm talking to ya, and I know you heard me!"

With a sigh, I turned back to face the young man. He had dashed closer. I'd guess he was sixteen or seventeen.

"It ain't safe to be wandering in the snow like this, especially alone!"

I shook my head, "I'll get by. Leave me be."

He had caught up. I had about three inches on him, that much was certain once he was this close. "Look, kaumpi, you could die out here."

"If I die, I die. I will neither hasten nor delay it." I turned to leave. Northeast now, as opposed to my previous northwest.

"Well, let's at least get something warm in ya. My town is over the ridge," he gestured to the west, the direction he had come from.

"If you knew what I have done, you would never invite me to your home."

"Trust me, kaumpi, we're all like that. We all have things we wish we hadn't done."

"Even destroy a village?"

He drew back a little, and in a quiet tone asked, "Did ya mean to?"

For some reason I saw some of the faces of some of the Farsfield villagers. A dozen faces that I had forgotten the names to match.

"No. I destroyed it by not doing enough."

"Can ya hunt? Make stuff?"

"Uh... Yes, I can hunt, and I'm not a bad cook."

"Then I don't mind taking you in. Ma is makin' some stew. I'll bet ya wouldn't want to miss it."

I sighed in defeat. "Fine. I can take a break from wandering. A short break."

"Great. Let's go."