Brigit's Flame, December Mini Contest, Week Three

Well this is happier than that last one. We return to the first weeks story with Chaase and Amhold, but that's at the end. HEY THIS IS A HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE STORY!!!! YES, HAPPY, I CAN DO HAPPY.

Earth and the Moon

Rache was rolling around in the snow. She was very silly, even for a raven. "You know, from Mars the relative sizes of the moon and the earth are not so different. In fact, you would say that they are almost equal."

Bard, her lifetime mate was now pruning himself. He was tired of rolling around in the snow. "Well, did you know that it is an almost freakish happenstance that the moon's distance from the earth is exactly what it needs to be to cause a solar eclipse?"

"I HATE ECILPSES! Do you remember that last one? We almost lost baby Mac. He got so excited he fell right out of the nest!" She was now lying on top of the snow on her back, staring up at the full moon. Winter Solstice was her favourite time of year. Sure, it was dark and the search for food was a bit harder, but the heoomans came to the remaining forests less often and the beautiful timber wolves wandered down from their hiding in the mountains to dance about.

"Don't you love timber wolves Bard? I LOVE them! Their fluffy tails and their big dumb slobbery mouths, oh and their singing! Nothing like it on a winter's night!" Besides being a bit silly she had a tendency to jump from one subject to another.

"Then why are you always teasing them? Honestly Rache? You know they rely on us for weather forecasts and warnings and if you constantly give them the wrong information..."

"Well who would believe it was going to start raining frogs?" Rache was laughing, her head thrown back in convulsive glee.

Bard was standing on the side of hill looking out past the snow filled valley. "This moon is so beautiful and the snow makes everything so quiet. Let's go up and just enjoy the view, Rache."

"Oh Bard, even after all these years, you are still a romantic." His slick black feathers were shinning reflecting the light . He was very handsome. Even at his age there were none to compare in Rache's eyes.

They took flight together and landed on one of the upper most branches of an ancient fir tree.

"The earth and the moon are like you and me Rache, without each other we would spin out into the vacuumous space of meaninglessness."

Rache rested her head on Bard's shoulder. "My mother told me to find a mate with the heart of a poet. 'There will be many days when beauty will be all that can sustain you.' You have given me more than sustenance Bard, you have given light to this journey we have shared,"

They sat there for a long time. Rache, untypically, said nothing more while they watched the moon rise.

Chaase awoke to the bright sunlight tearing through her small Cape Town apartment. It was Winter Solstice. She had promised to Skype with Amhold. When she was in Germany it had been their favourite day of the season, usually their last day together before she jumped on a plane and headed home to her family in the States.

He looked like he had been awake for hours whereas she looked like she had just gotten out of bed, which she had.

"Amhold! I just had the weirdest dream. We were ravens and my name was Rache, and yours was Bard and we lived in the far north and we liked to play in the snow!"

"Well, that is good. I would prefer to do more than roll in the snow with you in your dreams..."

"Shut up!" she said laughing.

"Happy Winter Solstice!" he said leaning close to the screen and making his nose look even more hawk like.

"It's 'Happy Summer Solstice here!'"

"Meet me on the equator?"

She leaned towards her screen and kissed the image of his nose.