THE OMEN GIRL | Wattys 2020 Winner

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I do not mean to fall asleep, but I do. In the morning, Naqi is gone. My blanket is tucked over me.

The grate is open and Yashi is there, waiting. In her hands is a bundle of things: temple robes and a veil and mask, towels and a toothbrush, sandals. By the ladder outside the cell is a plate of baked wheat cake with egg, and a glass of black soy milk. It's my breakfast.

I rise from the bed. I climb up the ladder, and eat the cake and drink the milk.

Yashi turns away while I change into my new robes, so I do not have to worry about hiding my stain. My scab has been quiet, these last few days. Tired, like me.

But from here on out, I can't afford to be tired. I can't afford to hurl and to tremble. I am Lumi, now. I am to fly in the Decade-Races, now. There is no time to be weak.

I drape the veil loose over my head and clip the mask to my sash. I fold Lumi's letter careful into my pocket. The letter crinkles as I move, as I climb out of the cell and into the sun.

#

The dorms are several buildings of woven willow and red wood, looking like delicate bird cages. The windows are rice-paper, and the verandas are thatched. The smaller buildings consist of the mess hall and the infirmary and the storage, and the larger buildings are stacked three or four floors high. Spacious decks and balconies sweep from the upper floors, casting wide shadows.

The grounds are empty. Even inside, it is empty. The bamboo halls are polished, and they echo.

"Where is everyone?" I ask.

Yashi looks over her shoulder at me and presses a finger to her lips, for quiet. Then she points up. I look up at the ceiling. In the morning hush, I can hear the sound of chanting, maybe, or of singing, and of bells. Everyone must be at morning meditations.

I'm led up the stairs and down a hall, a hall full of bead-curtained doors. There's a girl loitering by the doorway of her room, fidgeting with her nails and chewing on the inside of her cheek, staring off at nothing.

She sees us, and smiles and straightens. She continues to fidget. "Oh! Is this her?"

Yashi nods. She turns to me and spells out letters to me, because she knows what Naqi was teaching me in the night.

R. A. M. A.

"Rama?" I try.

The girl perks at her name and nods. "Hi. It's nice to meet you. I'm sorry you had to be in isolation for so long."

Rama is my height, but fuller, with a health about her that glows. Her head is shaved like all acolytes are, and her downturned eyes, blue, remind me of the beautiful women I see in old black-and-white films.

"It's cool that you can understand Yashi."

I pause. "You can't?"

Rama fidgets. "Most people can't."

"Oh." I thought it was something all temple-folk could understand.

"We're going to be roomies. The Suns and High Suns thought it'd be better for you to be staying with the temple acolytes instead of the others, so you don't have to worry about the veil." She fidgets again. "Unless you prefer to be with your friends. I heard seven others from your school have passed. Would you want that instead?"

My answer is immediate. "No." I pause, and try again with, "No. Whatever the Suns and High Suns want is fine."

Rama smiles a timid smile, and nods. "Lumi, right?"