The Moon Child: A Reylo Fanfic

Prologue

"Onecannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well."
― Virginia Woolf,

The mug of hot coco felt calming in Rey's palm. The contents sent curls of steam into the atmosphere and the comfort she felt settled like a heavy blanket upon her core. Despite the sighting of the deep tracks in the snow from earlier, Rey's mind felt as serene as the ambiance of the room around her. The licking flames inside the hearth danced and flickered, shadows performing a jig against the hardwood floor just beyond the screen.

She sighed. Knowing what she saw, and not denying the fact the creator of the prints was abnormal caused her head to hurt. Rey didn't consider herself a thinker, or voice, of reason. However, seeing things she only thought belonged in fantasy novels didn't follow any sort of logical philosophy. If giant monsters existed, wouldn't there other types of proof besides oblong tracks in the snow? Or had her entire life thinking the false creature under the bed seem to be nothing more than absolute lies?

Rey tucked her knees to her chest in the overstuffed arm chair. Placing her steaming mug on the coffee table next to her, she stared intently at the dancing inferno within the fireplace. Her thoughts were a jumbled mess of confusion and denial. Too long had she been led to believe certain things were not real, or the fact that any kind of idea lingering on such a thing was preposterous. Sure, she had been an imaginative child. Her grandfather informed her of that all the time.

Monsters, though? Was that even an option of being real?

Analyzing her current situation did nothing but confuse her more. She groaned, her head beginning to pound. Standing slowly, she decided to give in to her dread of figuring out anything surrounding her host and his mystery. Instead, she reckoned she would continue the perusal of the cabin and its rooms beyond what she had already searched.

Rey listened to the quiet of the cabin. The creaking wood and crackling fire seemed the only thing to break the silence. It was nice if she were to think on it. There were times at home in Oklahoma that she wished to be back in the country again. Her grandfather lived in the country and that was where she grew up. It was much different than the towering trees of the mountains, but she couldn't deny excitement at the thought of seeing the rolling hills of green in the spring time again. The newborn calves and life erupting around her was something she always remembered.

Thinking of the animals back home led her mind to wonder somewhere else. Since she was little, she remembered animals everywhere. Even in the city as a college student, and a worker, there were many different types of creatures she found in her path. Of course, she never adopted anything. Looking back, Rey didn't really know why. She didn't find it appealing at the time. If she lived through the ordeal, she thought it a good idea to look into a cat. Something to keep her company.

After the ordeal in the woods, she didn't want to be alone.

Something in the cabin kept her nerves at bay, though. If she seemed scared of the quiet and loneliness, she didn't seem to let it show. Inside her head she felt a war raging on. Between her raging nerves firing warning shots to her situation and the footprints in the snow, she grew aware of how she wasn't dealing with someone normal. Even though those things would cause her anxiety, she didn't feel it consume her. Her nerves were jumbled and buzzing with confusion. She couldn't expose it. She needed to keep strong.

Moving slowly toward the opposite side of the cabin, Rey found herself starring down another hallway. It mirrored the one her room rested in, with a few doors. There quite possibly appeared to be one more and Rey walked forward to confirm this assumption. The floor boards beneath her feet creaked a bit, driving the slight buildup of anxiety to build a little more.