Did you have a “lovey” as a child? Do you still have one?
Jack gazed out the viewscreen of the wall opposite his bed. His arms hugged his knees tightly to his chest as he watched Earth spinning tens of thousand of miles below, her colors not as vibrant as they once had been. The blue was still striking of course, there was too much of it to be fully muted, but the jagged shapes that flowed across her surface did not hold as much green as they used to.
He tried to stare past her, beyond, to the twinkling stars of galaxies far, far away. He used to dream of flying to them, wondered what mysteries they held, if there were other civilizations looking up at their skies imagining his existence. He had looked so far beyond that he never thought of neighbors within his own Milky Way.
The Mosari believed there were other people in other galaxies, much as there were dozens of worlds within their Spiral, but they feared what dangers those outsiders might bring. Their first Empress, Saf’en, had had the gift of Sight. She had seen a great tragedy befalling the galaxy, a destroyer that would devour every world in every star system within the Spiral. They were too small to face it alone, and so the Expansion began.
Veralis was the Empress now. She had come to Earth chasing her sister, seeking to continue the work their ancestors had set upon them to do when she had whisked him up to her ship in service of the Empire. Him and a few thousand other kids from Appalachia.
He tightened his grip on Sable’s arm. The old stuffed tiger hanging at his side had seen far better days, but it always grounded him when he began to drift too far towards the void. He wondered if he would ever set foot on the ground again.
Earth was haloed by the sun and the viewscreen dimmed automatically to protect his eyes while still preserving the beautiful image. Set foot on the ground? His lips tugged upward in a boyish grin. How could he ever want to return to the surface now that he was finally among the heavens?
Notes: Well this was going to be a tale about Jack losing his “lovey” or at least interacting with another character in regards to it, but it turned into an exposition dump. Which I guess is still ok. I have more words now than when I woke up. And new insight into this world with the Mosari. Of course now I have about a dozen more questions. Like why Jack was brought up to the ship. How big is it? Why did they let him keep Sable? Just to name a few.
I still have my Blankie and Teddy from when I was a baby. Teddy has had several surgeries over the years, but mostly he’s spent the last several years in a box. Come to think of it, I’m not sure where blankie ended up after the move. It used to be on the spare bed but I know it’s not in there now. It’s probably in the linen closet.
What about you? What was your beloved childhood toy that you just couldn’t leave home without? (I’m totally just assuming that’s what a “lovey” is since I only ever had a Teddy and blankie.) What sort of object might your characters cling to from their childhoods? It’s an interesting character interview question anyway.
That’s it for tonight. I’ll see you tomorrow!
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Closet Full of Notebooks 