Kiki stayed with Lim. She didn't demand words from him, realizing that he was not used to talking. She silently followed him as they walked back to his hut. On the way, as if not noticing his silence, she began to tell him her story.
- I'm from the kind of kicks, - said Kiki, her voice sounded like a melody, in this gloomy world. - We live underground, far, far away. We have our own city there, which we hide from monsters.
She said that the Pinks are an ancient race, different from others by its connection with nature and the ability to build strong cities underground, away from the horrors of the surface. They are wise, but very careful, and their lives were filled with peace and knowledge that they kept in ancient books.
- But one day my brother... Icarus... He ran away, - Kiki continued, and sadness sounded in her voice. - He always dreamed of seeing the world above. The world where there are no walls, the world he read about in books.
Icarus was Kiki's younger brother, and he was full of adventure and curiosity about the outside world. He always admired the stories about the sun and grass, which the kicks carefully kept in their books as a memory of the lost paradise.
- When he left, our parents said that I would not return to the city until I find Icarus. That's why I travel... look for him everywhere.
Kiki was silent, as if immersed in her own thoughts, then spoke again:
- Our books say that this world has become so because of the wrath of the three great gods. Elkara, the god of the sun, Eide, the god of death, and Favlis, the goddess of life and nature. They were disappointed by people who did terrible things. That's why they took the sun, sent monsters and darkness here.
This is their punishment.
She said that when the sun was still hovering over the world, the human race was the most numerous. They were powerful, but their selfishness and cruelty angered the gods. And then, three great deities, Elkar, Eide and Fawlis, decided to punish them, leaving the rest of the races to live in this gloomy world.
- And now... we're all suffering, - Kiki quietly finished.
They approached Lim's hut. Kiki carefully examined her. It was simple and miserable, but it seemed like Lim's home.
- Can I stay with you for a while? - Kiki asked, her eyes were full of hope.
Lim did not answer, but nodded his head, and something new was born in his soul, where before there was only fear and despair. Hope? Or something else he doesn't understand yet?
The day was spent working together. Kiki turned out to be not only wise, but also very clever. She helped Lim pick berries, showing which ones are edible and which ones should be avoided. Her quick fingers cleverly pulled out juicy tubers from under the roots, which Lim had never noticed.
She taught him to set new traps on rats, and they brought much more prey than usual.
To Lim's surprise, they even managed to catch a hare. He was big and fleshy, and Lim, after so many days of hunger, felt a surge of joy. But Kiki, when she saw the prey, only shook her head:
- I don't eat meat, it's... disgusting to me.
She said that the pinks are a herbivorous race, and they feed only on what the earth gives. Lim, shrugging his shoulders, made a small fire in the oven and cooked a hare. The meat turned out to be very tasty, and he ate it with pleasure, while Kiki calmly gnawed berries and tubers.
In the evening, when they returned to the hut, fatigue knocked them off their feet. Kiki spread her cloak made of soft leaves on the floor and offered Lim to lie down next to him:
- It will be warmer this way, - she said, her voice sounded a little embarrassed. - Just for warmth, nothing more.
Lim looked at her. He never slept with anyone, and this idea confused him a little. He didn't understand what he felt, but he knew he wasn't ready for it.
He shook his head.
Kiki blushed, her white skin seemed to flash from the inside:
- Well, okay... whatever you want," she said softly, looking away. She curled up on her cloak and covered herself with it.
Lim climbed into his usual place, among the rags he used instead of a blanket. He turned to his side and stared towards Kiki.
The coal was still smoldering in the oven, casting soft shadows on her face. In this dim light, Kiki seemed even more fragile and mysterious to him.
Soon they both fell asleep, each in his corner of the hut, but today, even in this gloomy world, Lim felt something new. Something like hope, something like warmth, something he had never felt before.