A gentle breeze rustled my long, brown hair as Leu, Ix k'eh, and I once again headed up the craggy mountain. It had been a week since I began searching for the light rays, but my efforts hadn't been entirely successful. I had almost four full bags of moonlight and six of sunlight, but not a single strand of starlight. Even worse, my lack of success with the starlight seemed to be affecting the morale of the others. As I glanced at Leu and Ix k'eh, I realized that they looked more tired than ever before. Ix k'eh, known for his alert posture, was slumped over more than a hunchback. Leu, who normally skipped briskly and asked others to "hurry up," was now the slowest of the group. I wasn't sure how much longer I could put them through this.

I trotted ahead of the rest, scanning every bush and tree in sight in an attempt to find the beams I lacked. In my peripheral, I noticed Leu, who was in the back, trying to pick up the pace. I slowed so she could catch up to me. Once Leu caught her breath, she leaned over to me. 

"Can.... can you teach me how to catch light?" she whispered. "It would go much faster if two of us were looking for it, not just one."

She had a point. We probably could have found a lot more if another person were excavating it. But I didn't have the time to teach her right now. It took me years to learn how to catch it. As much as I wanted her to help, I had no time to spare.

"Sorry Leu, but not now. Maybe when I'm done with the dresses." I gave her a hug to try and lessen the blow, but it didn't help. Leu's eyes clouded, and she looked down at the ground. 

"I figured," she choked out. "Its just.... I feel so useless. All I do is hold the bags and then hand them to you when you need one."

"Which is a huge help," I insisted. "Really Leu, I couldn't have done any of this without you. I really am sorry, but right now I have to devote all my energy to making the dresses."

"That's OK, I understand," Leu tried to assure me. She smiled a little, but her eyes betrayed how hurt she was. I sighed, but there was little I could do.

We climbed higher into the mountains. The wind grew stronger, pulling at my skin and chilling my bones. I adjusted my blanket so it shielded me better.

Up ahead, a ray of sunlight rested on the side of the mountain trail. My entourage halted as I stooped to place it in my bag. We continued until we arrived at a small clearing with a few bushes and small trees, where I expertly retrieved more sun and moon light. By the time I finished, the moon was high in the sky. Once again, it rose far sooner than I would have hoped, and it was time to turn back. It was almost like the time grew shorter every day. Dismayed, I trudged through the frigid snow back to camp. I still had no starlight. There was only a sliver of the moon visible now, indicating that nearly half the time between the last gathering of the tribes and the upcoming fitting for the girls was gone. I was running out of time to find the starlight.

We were almost back when I came to an abrupt stop. A faint light shone brilliantly in the dark path in front us. It was quite stunning, its pale yellow color nothing like the obtrusive, golden sunlight, or the mysterious, silvery-white moonlight. Finally, I had found an elusive beam of starlight! Leu and Ix k'eh must have realized what it was, because they both went unnaturally still. Leu handed me the bag for the starlight. Tenderly, I reached out my hand and approached it, like trying not to scare off a small animal. Much to my surprise, it floated a small length away. I took a few steps closer. It dashed into a bramble and got stuck. A few specks of golden dust drifted to the ground. I crept toward the bush and stretched out my hand to untangle it. My fingers wriggled in and out between the light ray and the branches of the bush. I supported the freed areas of it with my left hand as I continued to loosen it. The tension in the beam lessened; it was close to being freed. Come on Celisae, you almost have it! My eyes examined every part of the beam. There couldn't be a single part of it stuck in order for me to remove it from the bush. The tip of the beam stretched up high, lodged tightly between two branches. I reached up to release the final part of it. And then.... my finger slipped, scratching the beam. The starlight disintegrated into a shower of yellow dust, before disappearing.

I froze, my gaze transfixed on where the beam had just been. It took a while before I could process what had just happened.

Realization came like a slap in the face. I had just destroyed my only beam of starlight. I buried my face in my hands to keep myself from screaming in frustration. Shuffling feet approached me.

"It's OK," Leu tried to console. She placed her hand on my shoulder, bringing me back to reality. I gazed up at Leu and Ix k'eh, their expressions riddled with distress.

"Sorry," was all I could manage to say. Leu put her arm around me, and we continued to our caves, even more disheartened than before. We parted ways as soon as the caverns came into sight. I stepped up the rocky staircase leading to my cave. Gea was sound asleep when I arrived, like usual. I lay down on my mossy rock and tried to get comfortable.

 Ix k'eh and Leu probably fell asleep instantaneously. But I couldn't sleep no matter how hard I tried. How could I have been so foolish! Of all the times to mess up and scratch the ray, it had to be with the one type of light I couldn't seem to find. I gazed up at the heavens. The stars stared back, mocking and defiant. Catch us, if you can! they taunted.

It seemed that as soon as I fell asleep, I was awakened by Gea.

"It's time to get up, Celisae," she informed in a soft but firm voice. My senses were numb, like my brain was stuck in a thick fog. My body was begging me to go back to sleep, but I forced my muscles to move. I stood, though my legs threatened to give out at any moment. When my vision cleared, I was met with Gea's face, which was a strange mixture of sympathy and worry. 

"Any luck?" she inquired as we strolled to the dining area to get breakfast. I didn't answer. My foot caught on a rock, but Gea grabbed my arm to steady me.

"Sorry," I said.

"It's alright," she replied. But her voice was thick with concern. Surely she was convinced that this rigorous schedule and lack of sleep was no good for my health. Finally, Gea stopped.

"Celisae, it is not right for you to be going through this. This project is just too much. And the fact that Nal m'se won't let you sleep in after you've been up half the night is insane. I'm fed up with you seeming drained all the time, and I think I might just go to her and ask that she reconsider whether or not you do this anymore."

"It's alright Gea," I tried to assure her. "I've basically collected all the sunlight and moonlight. I just.... I can't find any starlight." My throat started to tighten, but the words poured out of me. "After a week, I managed to find one ray of starlight, but I.... I accidentally destroyed it." I stared at the ground, heat rising in my face. "I desperately was in need of starlight, and yet my clumsiness ruined it."

Gea gave me a big hug. "It's alright, Celisae. Mistakes happen." A tear formed in the corner of my eye, but I suppressed it. Gea pulled away to look at me. "Let's go and have a nice breakfast. Don't you worry a thing about finding the light. Wipe it from your memory until tonight. OK?"

I nodded. Gea put her arm around me, and we continued down to the eating area. But it was impossible for the light rays to not bother me. It was as if a gray cloud had settled in my mind, with no intention of ever leaving.

I wandered aimlessly through the thick forests. The snow was waning, my feet no longer sinking as deep into it as I walked. My eyes flitted over the various bushes and shrubs, although most were barren. A couple of times I thought I saw a plant that was promising, but I wasn't paying close attention to scavenging for food. I plodded onward, all ambition gone. Over and over, the scene from last night played in my head. What was I going to do?

As I passed by one particularly large tree, I felt my foot catch on a root. I fell to the ground, knocking the wind out of me. I gasped for breath, drinking in the cool air, rich with the sweet smell of pine. I rose, but my ankle was sore when I put weight on it. After scanning my surroundings, I spotted a small grotto just a little bit away. I grabbed my empty foraging bag and limped towards it, careful not to trip on anything else.

I soon arrived at the grotto, going a little ways in. Once I was safely inside, my legs gave out and I collapsed onto the smooth, stone floor. Exhaustion got the better of me, and I fell fast asleep.

My eyes fluttered open. I stretched, feeling much more energized than before. A short nap was exactly what I needed. I turned to face the opening of the cave, then gasped. It was dark outside, and the moon was just beginning to emerge from under the clouds. I need to get back to camp! Who knew what would happen if I didn't arrive soon! Gea and Leu were probably sick with worry. Nal m'se may have even sent out a search party for me. I leaped up, sending a shooting pain in my ankle. But I couldn't worry about that. All that mattered was getting back as quickly as possible. I began rapidly making my way to the entrance of the cave.

But something flickered in the corner of my eye. I turned back. In my haste, I had not noticed a distant glimmer of light. In spite of myself, I headed back, drawn in by it. The dull glow grew stronger. A little ways away, I could make out a beam of light, then another, and another, until the whole cave was filled with sparkling light of all colors. Red, orange, yellow, white, and even blue rays surrounded me. And it was all starlight. I could hardly believe my eyes. So this is where you've been hiding! The starlight must have floated into this cave. Perhaps it was attracted to the darkness. 

A wave of relief washed over me. I would be able to finish all the dresses. I began collecting as much starlight as possible in my foraging bag, until the bag was full. I'll be back tomorrow, I promised. I left the cave and started back toward camp. Surely the others would be forgiving towards me when I brought back a bag full of starlight.