The Moonlight on my Face

Chapter Five (Many POVs)

GOLDENKNIFE

Goldenknife roared furiously. It was more of a low-pitched scream of rage, but he decided to stick with the label "roar". "HOW THE HELL DID THEY ESCAPE?!" he demanded, whipping towards his most loyal guard, Sanso. Sanso shrugged. "WHAT WERE THE GUARDS DOING?" Goldenknife demanded. "Uh--" Sanso said, wringing his hands, "They were on a break? Like you told them to be?" Goldenknife muttered something under his breath. "I'd bet they're running to tell one of the kings about my work!" he said. "Then those stupid kings will say: 'Oh, my, here's a thug who has been doing some illegal things, blah blah blah.' THEN I WILL GO TO PRISON!"

Goldenknife's wife, Myrtle, poked her head nervously into the room. "Goldenknife?" she asked in her feather-soft voice. "May I enter?" "Yes, yes," Goldenknife said, passing a hand over his face. Myrtle entered. "You will not believe what happened," she said. "Yes? Did one of the guards catch Alan and that girl? Then we can have a THRILLING EXECUTION!" Myrtle gave him a look he couldn't decipher. "No," she said. "The thing is...I'm pregnant."

His eyes widened and he went over to his wife. He pressed an ear to her round stomach. He wondered if he was imagining the little heartbeats inside. He rose, beaming. "Well, that's brilliant!" he said. "This way, I can replace Alan!" Fear appeared for a fraction of a second in Myrtle's eyes. "What if it's a girl?" she asked softly. "That's even better!" Goldenknife said, unperturbed. "A girl would be super inconspicuous! Nobody would guess that she's working for me!"

"Goldenknife...you're seriously going to use our child that way?" Myrtle asked, her voice wobbling. "Yes!" Goldenknife said, stomping his foot. "I am the boss here! You have no right to question me!"

Myrtle's eyes filled with tears. She turned and walked away, and, deep inside the last vestiges of his blackened soul, Goldenknife felt a twist of pity. "Well," Sanso said with a tiny smile, "Now we wait a million years for that baby to be born." Goldenknife sighed. "If there is one thing wrong with it..." he said. "That baby is going to die."

JOY

"I can't do this," said Joy, clambering out of the lake. It reminded her too much of Sky--and Sky's near death. "Come on," Jack coaxed. He had become closer to Joy ever since her sadness about Sky's disappearance. "You can do this." "No," Joy said flatly, wrapping her towel around herself. "It's because of--" Jack started. "DON'T SAY IT!" Joy yelled, clapping her hands to her ears. Her shout echoed around the cave.

Jack sighed and emerged from the lake. He dried himself off and pulled on a shirt. He then went to his cave. Tears appeared in Joy's eyes and she walked to her family's cave. "What's wrong, honey?" Joy's mother, Diana, asked when her daughter entered. "I miss Sky," Joy said in a weepy voice. "Oh," Diana said sympathetically, hugging Joy. "Is that why you left Jack's swimming lesson early?" Joy nodded and stared at her feet. "Okay, dear," said Diana lightly. "Go put on some dry clothes and I'll give you cookies and cow milk."

Milk was Joy's favorite drink. The older people of the city went to markets to trade for it. It came from animals called cows. Whenever Joy drank milk, it made her feel better.

After she changed, she hurried to the dining table. A glass of milk and a platter holding three chocolate chip cookies awaited her. Joy wolfed down the food and chugged the milk. "Thank you, Mother," she said to her mother with a smile. "You're welcome, Joy," Diana replied. "Anything to see you smile like that. Would you like to go to the library? The librarian told me that the traders brought in some interesting new books."

"Okay," Joy agreed, scampering away. The library was nearly empty. The only people in there besides Joy were the librarian and Clove. 

At the sight of the boy, Joy's hands automatically curled into fists. He had the giant bruise from Jack swollen over one of his eyes. Joy desperately wished she could add to his damage to fully avenge Sky.

"Hello, Joy!" the librarian said. "Here, the traders gave me some interesting fantasy books. Which one do you want?" "Hi," said Joy, approaching the librarian's desk. She picked out a book called Frozen Winds, a book that had a jacket with a pretty design on it.

"Thank you," she said to the librarian. "You're welcome, sweetheart," the librarian replied. Joy sat down and opened the book. She dove deep inside of it, following the main character on quests, fighting evil, making friends, conquering lands...

"Here," she heard somebody say. It was Clove's voice. He dropped a book into her lap: a book that looked like millions of fingers had leafed through it millions of times. "Enjoy," he said, striding away.

Sadness filled her up. The book was Sky's favorite: the one with the Peace Legion family trees. The book fell open to a bookmarked page...the page about Illys. Joy's hands shook as she gripped the book. Everything she loved about Sky fell in front of her: the way her laughter sounded like bells ringing, the way she was so fast and smart, the way she stuck up for Joy no matter the risk, the way her loyalty to her family and everyone else in the underground city shone like a bright lantern, the way she was ready to break the rules to see the world. 

Joy's tears fell onto the drawing of Illys, and fierce longing for her best friend drowned out any other feelings. 

SKY

She woke up in a bed that was way too fancy in a room that was way too big. She yawned, stretched, rubbed her eyes and got too her feet. Her legs felt like jelly after sleeping in a bed that was way more comfortable than what she was used to.

She changed, brushed her teeth, and pulled on her mask. She did not like the style of these above-ground people. Masks were cool, in her opinion. She went down to the dining room, where Alan, Nettle, Ophelia and William were seated.

"Good morning, Sky!" Ophelia said cheerfully. "Here, eat some pancakes." She gestured at a plate with five pancakes piled onto it. 

In spite of herself, Sky remembered her mom's perfect pancakes, the way they were covered in perfect maple syrup that was harvested in the above-ground farm...

She slid into her seat, sipped the cow milk in a glass that Ophelia had set for her, and ate the pancakes. 

A feeling of nostalgia slammed into her like a tidal wave, twisting her stomach and making her remember all the fun and safety of the underground city. The only unfair rule, really, was the rule about not going outside before the age of eighteen.

Sky suppressed a sniffle of sadness. "What's wrong with you?" Nettle asked, some concern creeping into her voice. "Your eyes just got all sad." "What's wrong, Sky?" Alan asked, putting a hand on Sky's. She sighed a shaky sigh. "I miss my family," she said softly. "I miss my friend. I miss the book about Illys. But I'm scared that they will be mad at me, and I love it outside..."

"Honey," Ophelia said gently. "You can always go back.  We can explain." Sky sighed a shaky sigh and shook her head. "I will be disgraced and probably banished for breaking the rules despite being the leader's daughter," she said ruefully. "Staying here is the only way to be safe."

"Oh!" Alan said, jumping to his feet as if an idea had stricken him. "What is it?" William asked. "Sky, does your city have a letter system?" he asked. "Yes," Sky said slowly. "You can send a message to your friend! A letter! You can put it in the letter chute or whatever you have and write on the envelope that the letter is only for your friend and that nobody is to open it! Don't write your name on the letter, though. You can tell her that you're okay and where you are and whatever other information you want to include."

Sky hugged him. "I forgot about the letter system!" she laughed. "Thanks for the breakfast, ma'am!" "You're welcome, dear!" Ophelia called as Sky ran up the stairs to the typewriter and began furiously typing away.

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A/N

Sadness, sadness, sadness. What a *sad* chapter this is, right, guys? I wonder what Sky is going to write in her letter.

-Blizzard