Dim Witted

2. Markets and Stands

Sunny's POV

I tossed in bed, trying to ignore the shadows that were cast from my body every time I shifted, my arm tiring from adjusting my lamp so much. Eventually I gave up, stepping out of bed and walking to my bathroom, throwing open the medicine cabinet and swallowing a sleeping pill. Sleeping pills were usually frowned upon (since they intentionally caused darkness to wash over you) and when mom did her daily check of all the medications tomorrow I would have to explain to her about the hand I saw, but I didn't worry about that right then. The pill works fast, so maybe even before my head hit my pillow I was back to sleep, but shadowy hands clouded my subconscious.

Dusk's POV

The warm glass of the Ablaze's window was easy to forget about when I was chasing rebels down the street, adrenaline pumping and knife reflecting the moon beside me. Very few Ablaze's dare to venture into the night, so it's important to be fast and know the hiding places which receive the least amount of shadows. Searches are important, as they provide us all with a thrill which we so desperately crave, and money from the Ablaze government. The high ranking Ab-lames normally frown at our mysterious and dangerous behavior, but when we turn in traitors, we become an important part of their society, in their eyes. We don't really care about the long speech of gratitude they give us, as long as our pay is bigger than their mouths.

Today, I'm turning in a boy, about fifteen, who keeps begging and pleading. I role my eyes at his pathetic attempts.

"Look, I just want to be a Dim, I went out looking for one of you, please!" he writhed in my restraints, which consisted of twine.

"Right, kid. Even you should've known the right way to become one of us."

"I thought you guys were all about not doing things the right way! Please, sir!"

I huffed, exasperated.

"We do things the right way, in our own way. And plus, you'll feed me for months. Juveniles aren't supposed to be out this late." I brushed sweaty hair off my forehead. I looked back at him, and watched as his eyes widened.

"You're going to eat me?!"

I chuckled at him, amused by his ignorance.

"No."

And I went on walking to the center of town.

The kid went for a high price- almost a thousand dollars for catching him. I was smirking to myself as Jet met me half way, displaying his two one-hundred tokens. I held out my nine and a half of them, and his eyes widened. His question went without saying.

"Just a kid. A dumb kid, but he still went for a lot." I smiled, remembering chasing him. He must have been on the track team, but obviously not football. One I was within a yard, I tackled him and he did nothing but cry on the ground. He cried all along the walk, too. The officials will never know if his bloody nose came from the physical act of catching him or it happened sometime during the walk there.

"Great, then you can run to the market and pick up cat food. And bacon. We always seem to be out of bacon. Oh, and I got a letter today." He finished, and both our faces turned grave. A letter meant someone wanted to become a Dim.

The proper way of becoming one of us is fairly simple. An Ablaze slips a letter under our door, saying that they will be there in X amount of days to perform the ritual. Once we receive the letter, we drop it back off at the writer's house. It's usually awkward for the family, because they're not allowed to talk about the letter. No one can stop anyone from becoming a Dim, so the letter is left on the kitchen table, and the night that the family member who wrote it leaves, he takes the letter, holding it up as he walks so none of us gives him or her any trouble. They arrive at the house, and are immediately taken to the third bedroom that adorns all of the Dim's houses. It has no windows, much like the rest of the house, but this one has no retractable skylight to see the moon. The newbie is then submerged in darkness for two weeks, the only other person they come in contact with is the Dim they first wrote the letter to. Neither of them are allowed to leave the room or see any light.