Solo With Stars as My Guide

[Adoros]

12th Day of Summer, 513 AV Astronomy Tower Standing atop the Astronomy, Adoros couldn't help but look up at the stars. This wasn't the first time the young mute had ever gazed towards the abyss above. From the woods to the deck of ships, from his old home to his new, everywhere Adoros had been when the sky was black, Adoros had looked at the lights above. Until this night, though, Adoros had never been to the Astronomy Tower. Maybe it was because he wasn't on the campus of the University, or maybe it was because most orphans weren't out after dark; regardless of the reason, this prime location for stargazing had eluded the young mute. That feat was broken, though. The decision to come here this night was a spur of the moment decision by the orphan, for sure. He hadn't planned this trip in advance, hadn't even woke up that morning and thought seeing the stars from a new perspective would be fun. No, all this child needed was a sign, a signal by someone or somebody; he needed an outside source to put the idea in his head, and then the inside would do the rest. Thus, after hearing about the tower being open to the public on certain nights in passing earlier in the day, Adoros had he needed. A small grin crossed the boy's face, reminiscing on things that seemed so long ago, yet occurred only hours before. And then he returned his focus to the stars. Despite looking at the lights above for most of his life, young Adoros knew little about them. He knew that some of them had names and that some of the stars were grouped together when they formed a specific shape. The names and shapes themselves, he knew nothing about, only knowing that they were in fact there. Sometimes he thought he saw shapes in the stars, and whenever he did, he would give them a name of his own creation. The astronomers may not agree with them, but Adoros always enjoyed finding the "Upside Down Fish" and the "Child with Freckles" constellations in the sky. Sadly, though, Adoros was having difficulty seeing any of the stars this evening due to the overcast skies above. Thankfully, the clouds were moving swiftly with the evening breeze, gracing the young child with short spurts of time when the sky was alight with hundreds of the little lanterns. And there, midst many of the little lanterns, blazed a large, bright star. This star, the giant among dwarfs, was Adoros' favorite to look at. This star seemed to always hang directly above Zeltiva, no matter where he found himself within the city at night. He had noticed it as a young chap, and when he searched for it on the boats he took up north to Avanthal, he could never find it. Nor could he ever see it from the Ice city itself, although he surely tried. It was as if this star belonged to Zeltiva, and Zeltiva alone. Of course this was probably just folly imagined by the vivid mind of Adoros, but to the child, the prospect of a star remaining in one place over a city amazed him. Thus, despite all his effort to find new stars this evening, Adoros repeatedly found his gaze returning to that star, Zeltiva's Star. Whenever the clouds parted, it was this star that could be seen first. This star filled the sky, one among hundreds. It was truly the lead role, the top bill, the star of the sky. It was the star that Adoros could look at for hours at a time. Alas, this would not happen, because a presence to Adoros' right brought the child's eye downward -although not by much- A man was standing beside Adoros, looking at the stars like the child was. The lights above seemed to reflect off the man's spectacles, dazzling the child as the man looked back around. It seemed this man hadn't come beside the child to bug him; he just sought a good view of the lights above, a view that Adoros was currently filling with his own body. There was more than enough room, though, so the child let the man be and returned his own gaze back upward. "They truly are beautiful, aren't they?" So the man had come over here for reasons other than the stars; although, maybe he was here for the stars, just with someone to listen to him. Despite this, Adoros nodded at the man's words, not taking his eyes off of his favorite star. The man didn't pursue a verbal response; instead, he traced Adoros' gaze to the star he was admiring. "Ah, I see you choose that star. Anton's Guide is the name of it, at least by the people of Zeltiva." Adoros drew his gaze from the star, Anton's Guide the man called it, to look at the man himself. The child had expected to find this new arrival looking down at the child, with that grin that adults usually put on for children. Instead, he found the man looking at the sky, almost oblivious to the child. Oh, he was speaking to him for sure, but he wasn't speaking at him, like an adult lecturing a child, but speaking to those around him, like a priest to the people wandering a market. This man loved his stars, and he wished to spread that love regardless of those around him; if they shared his love, good, and if they didn't, that was fine too. This man seemed to notice, seemed to feel that Adoros shared the man's enthusiasm for the lights above. A smile crossed the man's face, two rows of bright stars between his thin, pale lips. And then he said the words that Adoros just loved to hear. "There is a very cool story behind that particular star out there. Would you care to hear it?" The man finally looked down at the boy, and they looked eyes for the briefest moment. There was a pause between the two, and then Adoros nodded, a tiny grin breaking his stoic visage. And then two star enthusiasts looked back up at the sky above, the introduction to a story beginning to form on the lips of the man.

[Adoros]

"Now, no one has ever agreed on who Anton actually was. Some say he was an astronomer from the University long ago had adored the stars above. Others say he was a foreigner who worshiped the goddess Zintila, who ruled over the stars themselves. I feel like this Anton was just a normal guy, like you or I, who happened to look up at the beauty above every once in a while. A man, who looked up at the right time. The story goes that Anton had been in search of something for a long while, something important to the functioning of us normal people. . . Anton had been in search of love. He had been seeking his other half for year. He attended this very university in search of this woman, the woman of his dreams. For months he spent his hard-earned gold on classes he had no interest in, only to scour the classrooms for the one. When this failed, his savings depleted, he got a job down at the docks. Maybe he figured his love would come sailing in on a ship, and he could sweep her off her feet as soon as she reached land. Of course, his friends and family recognized his plight, since it truly was something everybody has gone through at least once; everybody seeks out love eventually. Really, though, they couldn't help Anton. It wasn't as if he was limiting his searches, nor was he unwilling to talk to girls; it was just that Anton didn't want help. Whenever any one brought up the subject, he would always same something along the likes of 'the girls at the University cared only for their studies, the girls at the dock wouldn't even glance at the dock hands, and the whor--" The man pauses suddenly, catching a word mid-sentence. Glancing almost bashfully at the child, he clears his throat and continues the story. Adoros didn't seem to notice; he didn't even know what world possibly started with a "whor" sound. "The entertainers on East Street cared for nothing about Anton, only Anton's money. Overall, it seemed as if Anton would never find love. Until he accepted guidance, that is. Thus, one night Anton found himself looking at the stars above following another of his rowdy tumbles on East Street. It was a cloudy night, similar to the one we have tonight, and hopeless Anton found himself watching that big star above disappear behind the clouds. Astronomers say that the star has always been there, but Anton had never noticed it until this night. So he looked above as he navigated the allies of the East Street, waiting to see this big star return to his sight. And when the star parted the cloud, Anton heard a scream to his right from the alley mouth he found himself standing by. Stepping into the alley, Anton found a woman lying on the ground, a man standing over top her. The man reached to hit the woman again, but Anton interfered. Something took over Anton, something he had never felt before; he saw the woman in front of him not something he could. . . have fun with, but also someone who he could protect. And protect, Anton did; the man didn't like being stopped, but after a few well-placed strikes from the usually passive Anton, the man wasn't protesting anymore. Helping the woman to her feet, he took her back home to nurse her injuries. And can you guess what happened, young one?" The man looked down at Adoros, waiting to judge his reaction. Normally, Adoros would've been annoyed that he was asked a direct question, but the mute was still euphoric from the nice story. Holding his two hands up, he pressed the knuckles together of all his fingers on top, and then pressed his thumbs together on the bottom, forming a heart. The man seemed to know what the heart represented, nodding in approval with a smile crossing his face. "Yes, they fell in love, all because of some star Anton happened to notice in the sky. He had sought love for so long, without any help, and failed. With a guide, though, he found what he was truly looking for. And of course, Anton's story slowly spread through the city. Eventually, everyone was waiting for a cloud to engulf the big star in the sky, thinking that was the trigger to finding their own good fortune. Maybe it truly was a star who granted those who see it at the right moment the thing they had been searching for." The man shrugged his shoulders, taking one last, long glance at the big star in the distance. "Or maybe it was just a star. Regardless, it was a star that would forever be known as Anton's Guide." The man trailed off, the awkward silence filling the void for the moments following the conclusion to the story. Adoros always hated these moments, because it truly was where the crowd decided whether or not the story was good or bad. Part of the child wanted to applaud the man for telling such a good story, but the majority of the child didn't want to make unnecessary noise that may elicit the stares of other people atop the tower. So, Adoros settled on a warm smile, followed by taking his own last look at the star. Besides the unwillingness to make a scene, Adoros had this nagging feeling that it was time to make his departure, and to return to the Orphanage. With the man's attention on the stars above, Adoros attempted to stealthy exit without warranting any "goodbyes" or the like. Adoros always hated those awkward partings, just like he disliked most social interaction at all. Tip-toeing across the stone tower floor, Adoros very nearly made it to the stairs when he heard the familiar voice ring out behind him. "My name is Cyril Tunsten, by the way." Biting his lip, Adoros turned to face this Cyril. Why didn't he ask for my own name? They always ask for my name. Usually, leaving a person without saying anything didn't bother the boy, but this time was different. This Cyril had just taken the time to tell him a story, despite knowing nothing about the boy. Adoros felt as if walking away now would be spitting on the man's kindness. So, with quick thinking, Adoros held his index and middle finger downward, forming an upside down v of sorts. Then, using the index finger of his other hand, he crossed the V shape with a line, forming an "A" with his fingers. And then, without anything else, Adoros disappeared down the stairs. A single letter wasn't much to give the nice man, but for a mute's perspective, it was all he had. ------------ Reaching the base of the tower, Adoros couldn't help but look back up in search of Anton's Guide as he stepped out into the night. The whole descent, Adoros couldn't help but wonder if the story was true, that Anton truly found what he had been looking for just because of this star. Furthermore, Adoros wondered that if the story was true, would it work for other people. Could Adoros find his parents just by letting this star be his guide? There was Anton's Guide, about to disappear behind a large cloud, just like in the story. Well, I guess there's only one way to find out for sure. The Orphanage can wait. Waiting for Anton's Guide to fully disappear behind the cloud, Adoros broke out into a jog, the docks, and his parents, in mind.