The Trip To Knowledge

The Word Count, including this line, is 1985.

The Trip To Knowledge

     They were walking down the Walkway hand in hand. She was looking at the different landmarks. That little village had a lot of them. He was also looking at those landmarks. MorGion was looking around the crowded Walkway too.

     There was a lot of people using that Walkway today. It was very hard for MorGion and ShaRana to walk around together. Let alone walk hand in hand – but they did it. Which wasn't easy some of the time. Not because of all the other people there, but because MorGion was looking all over the place.

     MorGion wasn't just looking at the landmarks and people. It's how he was looking at the people that ShaRana was worried about. She knew why he's did it. That's one of the reasons they were holding hands. ShaRana was getting tired of always jerking his hand to make him keep up with her.

     ShaRana was a fast walker – and MorGion wasn't. It's a little hard to believe how fast she can move consider how she looks. She wasn't a normal thirteen year old girl. She was about to have a baby.

     They started their trip ten months ago. ShaRana waited almost five months before she told MorGion about their baby. She wasn't worried how MorGion was going to re-act. It was their parents she was worried about – especially her parents.

     MorGion was a little surprised about what ShaRana told him. He had been noticing she was getting fat for the last month or two. So it wasn't that big of a surprise. In fact, MorGion was about to break up with ShaRana. At sixteen he didn't want to love a fat girl.

     ShaRana didn't have to tell LaDaune she was about to have a baby. LaDaune knew her daughter hadn't gotten fat. She didn't like that ShaRana was having a child at her age. So ShaRana was right about her mother. ShaRana was also right about ChiMond, her father, too. She didn't really want to tell him the good news – but she knew she had to do it.

     ChiMond didn't think it was good news. If there was something he could to about it he would have, but he couldn't. ShaRana was old enough to make her own decision about sex. There was no decision when it came to the baby though. On the planet of Muin it didn't matter how old you were if you were about to have a child you had no choice but to have it.

     MorGion's parents weren't as upset about the child-to-be as ChiMond. They were more like LaDaune. FreiDra, his mother, was a little bit more upset than his father, PaThorn, was. He was upset too – but he still believed in the Universe Rules when it came to male vs female and sex. It was the female's responsibility not to have a child if she wasn't ready, or wanting, for one.

     All the parents did agree on one thing: MorGion and ShaRana were too young to have a child. That's why they decided they would take care of the child once she was born. Since ShaRana was the mother-to-be the baby would stay at her house, so would MorGion, for the first five years of her life. Then she would be old enough to decide who she wanted to live with after that.

     PaThorn and FreiDra could come and see her anytime they wanted. They could even stay there anytime they wanted too. Neither one of them liked that, but they had no choice. ShaRana was the mother-to-be. So her parents were the ones that would be raising ShaRana and MorGion's child.

     MorGion and ShaRana didn't like that arrangement either. They didn't know what they were going to do – but they knew they had to do something. After thinking about it for a few weeks they finally decided what they were going to do. MorGion and ShaRana decided they would raise their child. Even if that meant they would have to raise her somewhere else. But where?

     After thinking about that for another few weeks they decide they would take a trip around the world. Not only did they have to decide the best place to raise their child, but it gave her an education before she was even born.

*******

     ShaRana always liked history. She also liked traveling too – but she had never done it around the world. MorGion never liked history, or traveling, that much. But if that was what ShaRana wanted then he would do it – for her and their child. That wasn't the only reason they started their trip around the world. The main reason was their parents.

     MorGion and ShaRana knew their parents would never let them raise their child on their own. Which means if they were going to raise their own child they would have to leave home. Maybe even for good. It also meant running away from home. Since they didn't know where they were going to live they decided a trip around the world would not only help them figure out the best place to live but it would also help their child too.

     That was almost ten months ago. ShaRana was about to have their baby – and they were almost finished with their trip. They still hadn't decided where they were going to live. There were several possible places that were looked good. But they weren't quite finished checking out the planet. They also had to very careful while they traveled. That's why MorGion is always looking at everyone and everything around them.

     During the day they spent their time looking at history and landmarks – and deciding if that was a possible place to live. But at night they sleep in a wooded area. It was usually just outside of a village, but sometimes it was within the village.

     The next day they would head for the next village. It usually took about one day to get to that village. MorGion and ShaRana had to walk most of the time – and because ShaRana was about to have a child that slowed them down. Every so often someone would give them a ride to the next village, and it did happen a lot, but not that much.

     When they got to that village the first thing they did was to find a place to sleep. Since it was usually late in the day they would sleep there that night. Then the next morning they headed into the village for a day of history and learning.

     Which means it actually took two days to visit each village.
It also meant they couldn't visit every village on Muin. If they did that they would spend the next ten years doing it. That's why they had only been visiting villages with some history or interesting landmarks within it.

*******

     ShaRana didn't just study history or look at landmarks. She also talked to her child too. Part of the time she was looking at history or landmarks but most of the time her head was lowered – talking out loud to her baby.

     She was talking so softly that only her baby could hear her. Every so often MorGion would ask her something like, "Did you say something to me?" Or "Are you talking to me?" Or something like that. It wasn't the same thing each time he asked her, but they were similar and they meant the same thing. MorGion did it several times with each village they visited.

     Mostly what she talked about what the history or landmark she was at – but she also did it while they were just walking too. Especially when she was headed for the next village.

     MorGion thought it was stupid to talk to their baby. He thought it was a waste of time – but it was her time to waste. Beside it helped pass the time between villages. As for the history and the landmarks he figured it didn't hurt. He didn't think their baby even heard ShaRana - but ShaRana thinks she can.

     ShaRana didn't always talk to her child out loud. She also talked to her from within. In fact, that's the way she talked to her most of the time. The only time she didn't was when she was excited about something. Which meant she did it most of the time while looking at history and the landmarks.

*******

     It was almost time for ShaRana to have her baby. Which meant that was going to be the last village they visited. She decided a long time ago, almost from the day they started their trip around the world, that ShaRana didn't want to have their child within a village.

     Since ShaRana knew that she was about to have her baby, and that would be the last village they visited as a possible place to live, they choice a wooded area outside the village. That was where they were right now.

     ShaRana had cut the day short when she felt the first signs that she was about to have her baby. She barely got back to where they were sleeping before she had her baby. MorGion was right there next to her. He promised her he would be there – and he was.

     MorGion and ShaRana knew that ShaRana and their daughter wouldn't be able to go anywhere, especially VerNici, for several days. So they decided to go over the villages they visited and talk about which one they would call home. It took them a long time to do it, but they finally decided on which village was going to be their new home.

*******

     They weren't the only ones in that wooded area. QuYinan was also there too. He was just walking through the wooded area when he heard a baby crying. At first he wasn't doing to do anything about it, but when the baby keep on crying he decided to check it out.

     QuYinan was wrong. The baby wasn't alone. Her parents was just having trouble stopping her from crying. It took another few minutes before they got her to stop crying – but they did it. MorGion and ShaRana didn't even know QuYinan was there until he asked them, "Is everything all right?"

     One look at QuYinan and ShaRana was surprised. She wasn't shocked because he was there. No, it was because of who he was. "QuYinan is that you," said ShaRana.

     Also shocked QuYinan said, "ShaRana! I haven't seen you in almost ten year."

     "Do you know this guy ShaRana?" asked MorGion. "It sure sounds like you do."

     "He used to be my Love Interest. It was a long time ago. How long has it been? About ten year hasn't it?" said ShaRana.

     "We weren't just Love Interest – we were Love Interest for almost six years. Both of our parents was sure we would someday be Lovers. If I hadn't had to move out of our village I think we would have too."

     "You did move though – without telling me. One second we were involved and the next you were gone. I tried to find you, to tell you we were going to have a baby – but I think you already knew that. Isn't that really why you moved?"

     There wasn't much to be said after that, but they did talk for several more hours before ShaRana finally had enough, and asked, then ordered, QuYinan to leave.

*******

     QuYinan was back in the nearby village again. He was staying in a one-room place looking out the window when he saw ShaRana. Only that wasn't why he followed her back out into the wooded area. It was because of her parents.

     He was talking to them via a Video Monitor. "I have seen ShaRana - and she is okay. So is her daughter VerNici. But I failed. They aren't returning with me."

The End?