Eris looked out the coach window with obvious excitement seen in her green eyes. It's still early in the morning so wherever the coach passes, only a few people can be seen.
Eris looked at her mother, her eyes shining and her smile wide.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
Kirsi looked at the child beside her and forced a kind smile to form on her lips. But in the child's eyes, she sees a mother who's finally looking at her kindly and smiling at her gently.
"It's far from here but I think you'll like it," Kirsi said. "Why don't you sleep for a little while since we left so early? I'll wake you up when we arrive."
For a child like Eris who yearns for attention, a simple act of kindness and goodwill will be enough for her to treat that person as an angel. So seeing the smile on her mother's lips, the kind look in her mother's eyes, and the rays of the rising sun seeping through the coach window which outlined Kirsi's body and made it look like she was glowing, Eris feels like she's staring at a real angel.
A few minutes passed in silence and Eris couldn't bring herself to look away from the image of her mother. She would like to stare at Kirsi a little longer but a child's body is more prone to exhaustion. So almost an hour since they hit the road, Eris' eyes slowly closed, and a yawn escaped from her lips as she leaned her small body on the nearest warm object she could feel. With a smile still on her lips, Eris finally succumbed to sleep.
***
It's sunny. The sun is warm and the sky is clear. The grass beneath her is lush and flowers bloom not far from where she is. This is the most beautiful garden she has ever seen.
Eris stared at her reflection in the lake. At first, she didn't recognize herself. It's just that the girl she was seeing is so beautiful. Her straight black hair fell softly on both her shoulders. Her green eyes look bright, like a shining emerald. But what makes her eyes so dazzling wasn't the color or the light. It was the happiness that cannot be hidden beneath it.
Whenever she looks at her reflection, she always sees a girl who hasn't eaten for days. She's more bones that made her clothes seem larger even though it was supposed to fit her. Her hair was always greasy and her skin looked dark and dirty. Whenever she goes out, she will always be looked at by both children and adults. She can see them whisper to each other and then look at her with strange eyes. Whenever that happens, she will always look down at her feet and ignore them.
Was it because she was dirty? Because she's ugly?
With that kind of thinking, Eris started to stay away from glass and mirrors. She stayed away from objects that will make her look at her own reflection.
So seeing the her in the clear lake, she felt surprised. And happy.
While she was still enchanted by her reflection, she felt a hand caress her hair softly. She looked up and saw a woman. Eris cannot see the woman's face but she knows that she's beautiful. And she knows that this woman is kind.
The woman kneeled and gently placed something on her head and when Eris looked at her reflection in the lake again, she saw a beautiful flower crown atop her hair. She smiled and laughed and looked at the woman beside her.
Eris hugged her and kissed her cheeks as if it were the most natural thing to do.
Her father always said that never trusts a stranger since she never knows if that stranger has bad intentions. But Eris thinks that with this lady, it's alright. Because she knows this lady.
The woman held Eris' hand and stood up. They started walking towards that place.
When they were nearly there, the lady looked at Eris and smiled. Then she called her name.
"—"
***
"Eris," Kirsi called but the small child still hasn't steered.
"Eris," she called again. "Wake up child. Come on."
Eris finally woke up and a small yawn left her lips. She sat properly while rubbing her eyes. When her eyes finally adjusted to the light, she looked around her and remembered that she was in a coach. That's right, she was supposed to go to a place to have fun with her mother.
With that, Eris' excitement can be seen again.
She looked at her mother. "Have we arrived?!" she excitedly asked.
Kirsi looked at the child who looks very happy right now. She smiled.
"Not yet child, but we are near. We're just taking a short break. Are you hungry?"
Eris nodded.
Both mother and child got out of the coach and sat at the side of the road. Eris looked around and she can only see tall trees everywhere. Dried leaves were scattered all around them and they barely even see the road path. Eris can barely see the sun or the sky as thick tree branches are everywhere. And they were also surrounded by a thin layer of fog.
Eris doesn't like where they are one bit but since her mother said that they were nearly there, she ignored the feeling of discomfort she feels.
They ate hard bread and an apple quietly. They stayed there for half an hour, Kirsi not saying or even looking at her daughter and Eris, not taking her eyes off of her mother. They spend that time like that before Kirsi said that its time to go.
Eris jumped up and was about to go toward the coach when Kirsi called her back. Eris looked at her mother curiously.
"Don't you need to relieve yourself?" Kirsi asked.
Eris did feel like peeing so she nodded her head.
"Come on. I'll go with you."
Eris and Kirsi held hands as they walked deeper into the covers of the trees. When they were far enough, Eris did her business behind a thick large tree while Kirsi stood on the other side.
When Eris finished, she cleaned herself as she says, "I'm finished."
A few seconds of silence passed and Eris repeated herself.
"Mother, I'm finished," but there was still silence.
"Mother?" Eris walked towards the other side of the tree but there was no one there. Feeling nervous Eris started calling for her mother in a louder voice.
"Mother?!"
"Mommy, where are you?!" she started looking behind trees one by one.
"MOMMY—" she called again but stopped when she heard the neighing of the horses. And then it was followed by the sound of hooves galloping. Eris started running towards that sound and as she finally stepped out of the forest and into the road path, all she can see is the back of the coach leaving.
"MOMMY!" she ran faster but her small legs cannot run that far. She tripped. Both her feet are painful because of the rocks she stepped on which her worn out shoes cannot handle. Her knees and elbows are scrapped because of her fall and even her chin didn't survive her fall. But even though it hurts, she still stood up and started to follow the coach again.
"MOMMY!" tears started to fall from her eyes.
But no matter how many steps she takes, she can't keep up with the horses' speed. And as the coach started to disappear within the trees and the fog, Eris called out for her mother one last time.
***