Oak Hansford Eternity
Quercus
There stands tall an oak tree
Oak sighs and closes the notebook. They like the opening line they’ve come up with for the poem but, despite staring at the near-empty page for hours now, they can’t work out how they should continue it. He sits on a bough near the top of the tree in Caput Park, easily one of his favourite spots in Principality City. It’s quiet, save for the gentle swishing of the leaves, and the feeling of the wind (real wind) on his face will never get old. It’s far better than the claustrophobic tunnels below, though they still call the Underground their home.
They’ve never been great at writing, always preferring physical tasks and activities: running around, carrying deliveries, inspecting tunnels, and climbing trees (or, at least, the one tree in Principality, which is the only tree they’ve had a chance to climb so far). That’s why he decided to join the poetry club, though he’s continued to have difficulty coming up with poems. Out of the two of them, it was always Sky who was better at writing.
They sigh again as they lean back against the branch they’re sat upon. Almost a year has passed since Sky’s death, and not a day goes by when Oak doesn’t feel their absence. He usually tries to keep active, and there’s been a lot to keep him busy. He’s continued to volunteer as a courier, as well as helping people with their errands, and more recently he’s started working as an inspector again.
But it’s during the quiet moments like this when his thoughts return to his sibling. They used to dread these moments, sleepless nights plagued by nightmares and pain, but now they’ve started to find comfort in them. As long as he remembers Sky, they will be with him by his side. They will live on in his memory, and in his words.
He sits up, opening the notebook again, and takes a deep breath. With pencil to paper, he writes the next line of his poem. They smile. It’s clunky, not perfect, but it makes them happy, and that’s good enough for them.
The sky forever watching over him.
Written by Aric S.