Unwanted (open)

Emitting a soft, pervasive glow, the moon looked to Addy like it was growing. After all, hadn't it just been a shadow behind a cloud not so long ago? The girl's sense of time had blurred with the falling rain. All she knew, and needed to know, was that it had once been day and was now dark. Those facts had little impact so far as her opinion went, but they were facts all the same. She still couldn't bring herself to care too much as she laid there in the thick grass.
Addy's thoughts wandered, drifted to the rather interesting acquaintance she'd met today. She lacked the true perception of character to find him fascinating - after all, her interpretation of people was often just a skim of the surface - yet there was certainly something about him that captivated her. His appearance, at first, bespoke regularity; yet the hurt in his eyes said more about who he actually was. A boy around Addy's age, yet he made her feel young and insignificant. Not in an uncomfortable way; it was just that her own experiences surely paled in comparison to his. The girl couldn't say that for sure, of course. But he had a bubbling frustration under the surface, maybe a tired feeling with life in general. It disturbed her - the idea that someone would feel apathetic toward the path their life was on. Rooted somewhere within the teenager was a distrust for Drynis, an inability to feel at ease around him just yet. After all, she hardly could claim to know him well enough to ever be able to predict the things he would do or say. Yet that was a deep emotion, much deeper than the things Addy could ever realize she felt...

It was truly wonderful to live in the moment, she thought. Something in the girl came alive at this staying-out-at-night, this defiance of her parents' wishes and the wishes of the Capitol because she'd distanced herself from the nightmare-screens. It was good to be alive, she decided, good to just lay on the grass and simply be. To give yourself time to think, time to swirl thoughts around in your head until some of them clumped together and formed logic, that elusive tool of the mind. Logic had never exactly been Addy's specialty. She much preferred the vague reasoning of the emotions. Yet this made logical sense, didn't it? That she and Drynis would be friends? They sort of clicked, after all, and from what she had guessed of him, both had troubled pasts. (Did hers count as troubled? The girl liked to think so, yet one could never be sure. It was all a matter of perspective.) So Addy decided that there was a connection there. One worth exploring, building on. Goodness knows the girl could use someone to rant about the woes of the world to. And goodness knows, she thought, he could probably use somebody too. Wasn't that what friends were for?

Still entirely in the moment, the girl pulled herself up into a crouch, then pushed into a full standing-position, straightening her knees which had become slightly stiff. She stood still for a moment, breathing in the night air and absorbing the sounds, watching the stars. Watching Drynis. Eyes wide as usual, her head tilted ever-so-slightly to the side as she regarded the boy. He'd moved a bit closer than his initial position when she'd gone to lay on the grass. Addy smiled softly, instincts she didn't know she had telling her she was safe. Only for a little while, perhaps - that was the disadvantage of being in the moment. Yet it pleased her, the impulsive, eccentric girl who was thoughtful without really knowing her thoughts. Without meaning to, but also without attempting to prevent herself from doing so, she sidestepped closer to Drynis. The girl smiled again and returned her gaze to the moon and stars. Her eyes and cheekbones were visible in the white glow from overhead, and her outline could just be made out by the light from the stars. She felt, rather than saw, the two horses near her; their presence alone comforted her, a warm blanket of familiarity. The girl was so impossibly safe, and it wasn't for another few moments until she realized the true reason: Never again would she face the miniature terrors of everyday life alone but for a horse. Naturally, Addy had had friends, but none were of consequence; all were superficial ornaments with little effect on her life. But here was something she could feel, and what she could feel, she could trust. Perhaps she would come to deeply trust the boy someday; perhaps not. Did it really matter? The future was no longer a threat, not really. She wasn't even a threat to herself at this point.
Consciously this time, albeit without much forethought, she made the necessary steps to bridge the gap between herself and Drynis. The urge took her to reach her left hand out until it touched skin, to find his right hand and hold it for security, but she did not do that. After all, this fleeting safe-feeling was enough, and it was not meant to be pushed or strained. So she merely stood, relaxed in the comfort of protection. Sure, the boy beside her had no idea the protection he provided, yet it was there and she was willing to take it, so why not? She merely stood, watching the moments pass. We'll get through this, she thought as her eyes found Drynis' face. I don't know what it is we'll get through, but it's not longer a threat to us. Not anymore.
Don't worry.