Order in Chaos

An audible #glow of cascading moonlight surrounded her. It emitted a siren call of come hither- never have I heard a more irresistible song. Together we disintegrated like hoar frost vaporized in the morning sun, becoming Chaos, Order, Everything and Nothing all at once.

We lay quietly, gazing at stars. “Do you see the #dragon?” I asked her once we’d come back to ordinary state. “Just looks like a chaotic splatter to me,” she said. “Look,” I pointed to the ones that marked nose, ears, shoulders, feet and tail. “There. All very orderly.”

“Come on,” I said and took her hand to pull her up. “Let’s wander. In the mist and mud, and cool green moss. Let’s look for #jelly mold and find another magical shaft of moonlight.”

“#Jelly mold? What’s that?” Ayria asked, her curiosity piqued. “Curious stuff,” I said. “A fungi of some sort. But I’ll bet the orange and yellow ones can pick up the frequency of the moonlight really well. They’ll harmonize, just like your hair did.”

“Don’t you want to #escape this world?” She asked me the next morning, breathless and hunched over. “It’s so chaotic.” Her hair was a tangled mess. We had just outrun a swarm of yellowjackets after tromping over their underground nest. I shook my head. Smiled. “Never.”

“I’m not sure how I got here,” Ayria said. “All I can remember is the light. And the sound. I tried to #fight, but the pull was irresistible. Maybe I died. Maybe this is my afterlife. My punishment.” I didn’t know what to say to that. “I’m happy to be your Hell guide?”

“Seriously, though,” I said, “This isn’t Hell at all.” A #hollow feeling crept into my gut. “What do you mean about not remembering how you got here. Where were you before?” Silence. Finally, she spoke slowly. “I don’t remember that either.”