This is the first time I've been able to see outside at night - I wasn't even sure for a while there was a night on this planet.
Mia smiles and nods, glancing up at the sky with a wonder that is...
I don't know how she can still have it.
"They really are different here. Completely."
I nod, because that much is obvious.
They're so strange.
I've spent my whole life in Oregon, where we don't get much in the way of pollution, so the night skies were beautiful to look at, but...
They looked nothing like this.
Here, there are two moons, one smaller and closer, one bigger and further away.
I'd think it's the other way around, but the smaller one is overlapping the bigger one just enough for me to tell.
The stars shine brightly, the sky is clear and deep, and the constellations...
They're completely unfamiliar.
The quiet girl sits beside me, and I don't have to look to see she's looking too.
"See that?" Mia's arm comes around me, pointing out to a constellation.
It's not one I recognize, but.
"Yeah?"
Mia hums. "One of the guards said that's called 'The Wasp' here. It's supposed to be a sign of luck."
"...That's weird." I can't think of what to say to that, other than the obvious truth.
What is lucky about a wasp?
Strangely enough, I don't find it weird that Mia managed to get constellation info and superstition from a guard, though. If anyone can do it, she can.
Mia snorts a soft laugh. "It's weird to me, too, but. It's nice, to know a bit about what these stars are, right?"
"Yeah."
I don't really know how else to answer.
Mia seems to pick up on my hesitation and shifts a little. "...It's not going to be easy from here, so. Let's try to stay optimistic."
I look over to her.
She looks...
Tired.
I've seen her scared before. She's great at hiding it.
But I've seen it before.
And I see it now.
She's tired and she's scared. And I can't blame her, because...who wouldn't be? I'm not exactly brave and fresh, either.
But I can't help but worry anyway, because it's. On her sleeve.
For once, I don't think she can hide it. And that's.
Frightening, in and of itself.
"Optimistic." I repeat, smiling a little.
She nods. "Yeah."
The quiet girl looks between the both of us.
I sigh softly, leaning over and bumping my shoulder into Mia's, gently.
She makes an exaggerated pained noise, but she's grinning, so I can't feel guilty about it. "That was mean!"
"Hey, it's a sign of affection!"
"It was a shoulder attack!" She giggles, reaching out with a hand and shoving me back, then shoving the other girl, too. The girl squeals in delight as she gets shoved a little, and she shoves back, giggling all the while.
We're laughing and playing, even in this stupid cave.
Even though we're scared.
And I'm glad Mia brought that up, because...if I hadn't seen her smile, I'm not sure I could do it, either.
I need to keep that up, no matter how hard it gets.
We don't have much.
We don't even have hope, if I'm honest.
But I don't know what will happen. If I let myself collapse and give up, I think...
I'd just die.
So I have to stay strong.
I have to stay positive.
I don't have much of a plan, but. 'I don't want to die' is a motivation enough to do a lot of things. And. So I guess it's motivation enough to cling to positivity, too.
Strangely morbid.
Mia sighs, and leans her shoulder against the rock wall.
"Whatever we're doing, I think it's physically intensive."
"...I guess it makes sense. We were doing that stupid rock pushing thing before."
She hums. And then her gaze turns to the quiet one. "....And she's here." She muses, thoughtfully.
"What about it?"
"...You can't speak the language yet."
"-Thanks."
Mia smiles and shoves me lightly, before continuing, expression fading to seriousness again. "...And she can't speak at all. So if we're all being brought here, it can't be because we're learning something more advanced."
I tilt my head.
I hadn't even thought of that.
"...So...what does that mean, then?" I wonder out loud.
"I don't know." She admits. "But it means that whatever we're doing, it's got nothing to do with how well or not well we've done in training."
"Great."
I don't like the sound of that at all.
I don't even know what it is. But it's already sounding bad.
"Hey."
Mia elbows me again.
"What?"
"I think you'd do well at a physically intensive activity."
I click my tongue and cross my arms. "Are you calling me stupid? Because Eric's the one who's the best at physical stuff, anyway."
She shakes her head, and smiles. "...I just think...you're the most stubborn of us. That's all."
That's...
I stare at her.
"I don't know about that. I mean...Eric is stubborn too, isn't he?"
Mia shakes her head, eyes closed. "You're stubborn." She opens them again and grins. "He's just determined to prove a point."
"What's that point?"
"Who knows. He's got some chip on his shoulder, that's for sure."
I snort. "....I mean. Yeah. He does."
Our laughter echoes off the walls and...
Even if Eric's not here to be exasperated by it, or defend himself, I find my smile sticks to my face long after the silence falls again.
It's not a terrible thing to look at the sky at night.
And.
The quiet girl has curled up against me, resting her head in my lap and falling asleep. I smile down at her, gently touching the hair on her head. "....Do you think she'd like it if I called her Hestia?"
"Hestia? The goddess?"
"The what?" I stare at Mia in confusion, but she laughs.
"You. Don't know...?"
"Know what?"
"Hestia was the goddess of hearth, home, and domesticity. You've never heard of her? Greek myths and stuff?"
"No?" I feel a little silly, now. I just picked the name because she reminded me of my aunt's dog who had the name...
But...
Mia shakes her head. "You're really something else, Sarah..."
"I-!" I feel a little insulted. But also, I'm not sure what to say.
Mia smiles. "...I think she might not mind though. You should ask her when she's awake."
"...I should."
"....For now...let's sleep, yeah?"
I look up at the sky.
"Yeah. Let's."
We have to do our best tomorrow.
Whatever's waiting for us, we'll just have to keep pushing.