The Universe Rings (A Ringing Purpose)

Chapter Twenty-One

A memorial service was held two days later. Afterward, a wooden memorial was placed in a clearing in the nearby woods with other memorials and graves. The day leading up to the memorial, Kenneth and Halo spent hours at a nearby creek at the edge of the woods; Kenneth felt too weak to do anything else. Aur had left in the early morning and didn't return until late night, and Kenaly disappeared into her room with her baby.

On the day of the memorial, Kenneth worked up the strength to shower and put a nice outfit on—Kenaly had said the outfit used to belong to Dior. Kenneth noticed a few people at the service who looked like they were related to Dior; two old men, a young man, a teen boy, a younger boy. Other people showed up too—probably family friends or neighbors.

Kenneth had refused to tell Aur any details about the events of Dior's death—he hadn't even told Halo that much so why would he tell Aur?

    Kenneth and Halo slept on sleeping mats in Dior's old room, both of them respectfully refused to sleep in Dior's old bed. Kenneth's spirits lifted slightly when he found a dog and a cat in the living room on the first morning; he learned Dior had had a dog and a cat. Apparently seven year old Dior had creatively named the dog 'Di' and the cat 'Or'.

    To Kenneth's confusion and dismay, Halo chopped most of her hair off—claiming it was too tangled—and cried in the bedroom. Kenneth slept on the couch that night.

    Kenneth had a feeling Halo was hiding something from him, so he stubbornly chose not to tell Halo anything. Not even Dior's past wish for Halo to put something poetic on his grave.

~
Kenneth awoke a week later feeling refreshed for once—he could feel his strength coming back everyday. He changed into a clean outfit, washed his face and combed out his hair. He knew his hair needed a trim; the ends began to curl into natural waves, which only happened when his hair grew out.

Entering the living room, Aur sat on the couch reading; he looked up from his book and gestured for Kenneth to sit beside him. Kenneth walked around a coffee table and sat beside Aur. He hoped Aur didn't have some sort of serious talk involving Dior planned. Kenneth didn't want to talk.

    Surprisingly, Aur asked, "Are you and Halo interested in school?"

    "What?"

    "School starts in two hours and it's only a mile and a half walk," Aur said, looking at his book.

    "I don't know..." Kenneth wasn't from this universe. It would be strange to go to some random school on this farm planet. He also had no desire to make this farm planet a permanent home, even if he would have nowhere else to go. Also, he was tired of walking and the idea of a mile and a half walk removed some of the motivation he had.

    "Well, if you decide you wanna, I'll walk you. If you want, you can just tell a teacher or someone that I'm your guardian if there's any problems," Aur said, still looking at his book.

    "I don't cause problems, sir," Kenneth blurted.

    Aur glanced up from his book, cracking a smirk. "I didn't say you did," he said, underlying humor in his voice. Kenneth saw a great resemblance in Dior's smile and Mr. Munroe's.

    Kenneth knew Halo hadn't been to school in around four years—maybe she would want to go to school. "Sure—I mean Halo hasn't gone to school in four years," he replied. "I'll see what she wants."

    Halo came out of the bedroom and Kenneth stood and walked to her. "Do you want to go to school? I know you haven't gone in years," he asked.

    Halo smiled. "Yes...Well, are you going? I don't want to go alone,"