There was a settling over the next few weeks. Anxieties drifted by instead of ringing its usual cacophony of alarm bells. We were preparing. The winter was at its end and the thaw had begun. We could only stare out of the window as the last icy winds gripped the area. Trees being ripped apart by harsher winds, leaving little behind.

The house felt better though, less like a threatening monster. It’s just…a place. A noun. A person, place or thing. Instead of a maw of damp breath and decay, or threat of imminent digestion, there are twinkling lights of warmth. Small, soft moments that feel like fireflies floating in the night air. When it has been so long, it is impossible to emphasize the difference between the waking nightmare and simpler dreams.

We were quiet, mostly. Parallel in our interests, but keeping to ourselves. The house felt like it sighed, almost. As if the misery locked into it was a curse being lifted.

I let my mind think further to before even the before, itself. Remembering the ringing of a door bell, sweet and vibrant, beckoning me to come outside and play with whomever waited behind it. This is where we were, at least in spirit.

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“You okay?” Bleu asked.

“I’m better, I think.”

“Not as sore today?”

“No, not nearly. The light feels different doesn’t it?”

“Yea, it’s a bit brighter.” Bleu reaches over to give Lily a scratch as she’s curled up between our reading nooks. “Whose turn is it to get the neighbor today?”

“I’ll do it,” I said. “I’m feeling better than I have in a long time.”

“Just let me know if he’s under the porch again, that’s trickier!” They called back.

I stepped out carefully into the cold and made my way around the corner to the neighbor’s place, sure enough, finding him stuck in his usual place near the stairs.

He’s never been bright, even before.

“No,” I said, answering the wind. “But, he doesn’t deserve to freeze to death, either.”