The morning broke softer than the last. The desert was no longer endless silence, its winds carried the faintest hints of change. The girl led without hesitation, her bare feet touching the earth as though she'd walked this path before.
"East," she said again, and her voice had a certainty that neither Kanan nor Nilo thought to question.
She walked a little ahead, turning once to add, "If you ever want to learn about food; the kind that feeds whole villages, not just scraps of meat, then I'll take you there."
Nilo nearly tripped on his own step. "Whole villages? You mean… they ate together? Every day?"
Her lips curved, though her eyes were somewhere far off. "Yes. Every day."
Kanan glanced at her, suspicion flickering just briefly. "How do you know?"
"I just do," she said. Then, after a pause, softer: "It's something I remember."
That was all. It was enough.
They walked on. The world around them shifted in tiny ways that felt enormous. Blades of grass braving the dry soil, a crooked shrub clutching to life, the faint green shimmer on the horizon that promised change. Every new sight made Nilo's eyes widen with wonder, as though he were seeing magic bloom.
Once, they found a stubborn patch of roots. Bitter and hard to chew, but food all the same. Nilo gnawed on one and grinned, his teeth stained brown. "See! The world's giving us food already. We're gonna eat forever!"
Kanan laughed, shaking his head. For once, his laugh wasn't sharp. It was easy, like he'd forgotten the weight on his shoulders.
That night, they camped by the crooked shrub, their fire snapping against the cool air. The last of the beast meat sizzled on the flames, its smell filling the space between them.
"This meat's still the best thing I've ever eaten," Nilo said, chewing happily. "But… if there's food that can feed whole villages, I wanna taste that too. I've been craving more ever since my first bite." He hesitated, cheeks warm from the firelight, then looked at the girl. "Maybe… maybe you could be our sister. And show us everything?"
The girl blinked, caught off guard, then her expression softened. For the first time, she looked less like someone carrying secrets and more like what she truly was, a child, just like them.
"Maybe," she said with a smile that glowed brighter than the fire. "Maybe I could."
The stars stretched endlessly above them, but for the first time the horizon didn't feel empty. The land was changing, step by step. And so were they.
[To Be Continued...]