A Tale That Never Known

The white expanse stretched endlessly as it always did, but it felt quieter than usual. Little Lu sat cross-legged on the ground, her hands resting on her knees as she gazed at Al, who was floating nearby. For once, she wasn't running, laughing, or asking endless strings of questions. Instead, her face was serious, her brows knitted together in thought. After their deep conversation, something stir in Little Lu. She has been thinking, a lot of thinking. She has been questioning herself a lot. If I am just like the fairytale, and those terms of dreamy or dream or imaginative, am I exist or is this a mind of someone? There's fairytale about empty space like the stars on the sky, the black room or those terms of sandbox? But am I something that truly exist or I am a being that is well alive? Little Lu has been trying to put some pieces on her own questions. Then, she turn to Al not for lesson but the beginning of it all.

"Al," she began, her voice unusually soft.

"Yes, Lu?"

She hesitated, as if the weight of her question was too heavy to ask all at once. "What is… life?"

Al froze for a moment, his pages fluttering as if caught in a breeze. "Life? That's… a big question, Lu."

"I know," she said, her eyes meeting his. "But you know everything, don't you? So… what is it? What does it mean to be alive, living, exist?"

Al settled down closer to her, his usual lighthearted tone replaced with something more measured. "Life," he began, "is… well, it's different depending on how you look at it. To some, it's about existence—the fact that something is rather than isn't. To others, it's about growth, change, and connection. It's the beating of a heart, the thoughts in a mind, the feelings that shape choices."

Little Lu tilted her head, her curiosity growing. "But… there are so many things that exist. Like you, Al. Are you alive? Or, am I alive?"

Al chuckled, though there was a hint of awkwardness in his tone. "That's… debatable. I have knowledge, Lu, but I don't have a heartbeat or feelings. I exist, but I'm not like the beings I hold stories about."

"Beings?" she repeated, her eyes lighting up. "You mean… like the ones in the stories?"

"Yes," Al said, his tone shifting into his usual teaching mode. "There are countless beings, Lu. Humans, animals, plants, even tiny things you can't see called microorganisms. They all make up life as we know it."

"Tell me about them!" she exclaimed, leaning forward with excitement.

And so, Al did. He told her about the vast diversity of life, painting vivid pictures with his words. He spoke of sprawling lands filled with forests, oceans teeming with creatures, skies that stretched endlessly with birds and clouds. He explained how some beings were small and simple, like ants or moss, while others were vast and complex, like whales and trees.

He spoke of sciences—the study of life and the world itself—and history, the story of how beings changed and evolved over time. Little Lu listened with wide eyes, her mind filling with images of worlds she could barely imagine.

"Hey, Al," she said after a while, her voice thoughtful, "you said the other day that I look like a human, right?"

"That's right," Al replied.

"What makes you think I look like them?" she asked, her tone curious.

Al laughed, his pages fluttering with amusement. "Well, for one thing, you have a head, two arms, and two legs. That's a pretty good start."

Lu grinned. "Okay, but what about the rest? What makes humans… human?"

Al paused, as if considering how best to answer. "Humans are… unique," he began. "They have the ability to think deeply, to imagine, to create. They feel emotions—love, fear, joy, sadness—and those emotions shape how they live their lives. They're curious, just like you, always asking questions and seeking answers. But they're also flawed. They make mistakes, they fight, they struggle. And yet, it's those very struggles that make them grow."

Lu nodded slowly, absorbing his words. "So… if I'm like them, does that mean I'm flawed too?"

Al hesitated. "I think everyone—everything—is flawed in its own way, Lu. But that's not a bad thing. It's what makes life interesting. It's what makes you… well....you."

She smiled, but then her expression turned pensive again. "We talk about this before but I want to understand something." Almanac plop straight stand on the white ground in front of her, "Sure, I'm listening." Little Lu also seated on the white ground trying to be a bit more serious because from this point, it'll be serious. "You said this world doesn't have time," she said, "but you've also said that you've been around for a long time. How does that work?"

Al laughed again, this time a little nervously. "Ah, well, that's a complicated story. You see, as a book, I've existed through many eras—different times and places. But this world… it's different. Time doesn't move here like it does in the stories I hold. Or maybe it does, but only for you."

"For me?" Lu repeated, her eyes narrowing.

"Yes," Al said, his tone growing serious. "You're changing, Lu. Growing. That's not something that should happen in a place like this. It's as if time exists only because you're here, and it bends itself around you."

Lu frowned, her fingers tracing absent patterns on the ground. "That's… strange."

"It is," Al agreed. "But then again, you're strange too."

She shot him a mock glare. "Gee, thanks, Al."

He chuckled. "I mean that in the best possible way, of course."

Lu sighed, leaning back and staring up at the endless white sky. "So… time exists for me. Life exists for me. But what does it all mean? What about you?"

Al floated closer, his pages brushing against her shoulder like a comforting pat. "That's something only you can figure out, Lu. For me, time stop when.... I don't remember but maybe when I was there buried probably, time stop for me. After all, I'm just a tomb of knowledge, a book in a way." Little Lu frown a bit, "But this-" Almanac cut her short, " Ah, ah, ah, remember what I tell you and the fairytales lesson, 'Life isn't about having all the answers.' It's about asking the questions and finding your own meaning in them."

She smiled softly, her gaze distant. "Then, I have a very lot to ask, are you ready to hear and answer it to what your knowledge has?"

"Yes, and I'll be here to help," Al said.

"For now," she teased, "as long as you don't get bored of me again."

Al laughed, his pages fluttering wildly. "Don't worry, Lu. You're too interesting for that."

They sat in silence for a moment, the expanse of white around them feeling oddly still, like it was waiting for something. Little Lu tilted her head, a mischievous glint in her eyes, but her tone turned curious. "So, Al… can I ask you something weird?"

Al floated slightly higher, a playful flicker in his voice. "Lu, everything you ask is weird. Go ahead."

She grinned but quickly grew serious again, looking down at herself. Her voice softened, almost hesitant. "Do you know that under this…" she gestured to herself, tugging at her plain white dress, "this thing you taught me is called clothes—a dress, right? Well, under this, I see nothing. It's black… and it sparkles. Why is that?"

Al froze mid-float, his pages stiffening like someone caught off guard. His usual lightheartedness faded, replaced by something heavy, almost somber. "Why?" she pressed, her gaze unwavering. "Is that normal? Is it part of growing?" Almanac stayed quiet for a moment, his pages barely moving. "It's something I know well," he finally said, his voice low and careful. "But… I wonder if it's too early to tell you. Or if you even want to know." Lu come closer to him, her eyes full of curiosity searching for lots of answer and hopes, "I want to know," she said firmly, her eagerness laced with a tinge of worry. "Am I… am I not the kind of being in those fairy tales? Not even one of those villains you refuse to let me read about?"

Al sighed, his voice softening as if trying to find the right words. "It's… complicated, Lu. You're not like the beings in those stories. You're not a princess, a hero, or a villainess. But that doesn't mean you're less than them. You're just… different."

"Different how?" she asked, her expression searching his pages for answers.

Al hesitated again, as though turning the weight of his knowledge over in his mind. "You're the same as this world," he said at last. Lu blinked, her brow furrowing. "What does that mean?" Al bend up his stiff book body to the horizon up there, "This world," Al continued, his voice thoughtful, "is unlike any other. It's blank, yet endless. It has no time, no rules, no life as you've come to understand it. And yet… it exists. Just like you."

"But I'm not blank," Lu argued. "I'm growing, changing, learning. This world isn't."

"Are you sure about that?" Al asked, tilting slightly as if studying her. "This world changes because you change, Lu. It reflects you in ways you haven't noticed yet." Lu's gaze drifted to the white expanse around her, her fingers brushing her dress again. "So… I'm like this world. Empty but… full of possibilities?" Lu look at him in mix feelings and uncertainty. "Something like that," Al said. "You're not bound by the rules of the beings in those fairy tales because you're not like them. You're something else entirely. What that is… well, that's something only time will tell."

"But you said time doesn't exist here," she countered with a small, weak smile. "Time doesn't exist for this world," Al corrected. "But for you… it's a different story."

Lu sat back, her thoughts racing. For the first time, she felt a strange weight pressing down on her—an awareness of herself that hadn't been there before. "So… I'm not human, or anything like the beings you've told me about. I'm just… me." Al look at her greyish-blue eyes, "Just you," Al affirmed gently. "And that's more than enough, Lu."

She smiled again, though there was a flicker of sadness in her expression. "But Al… if I'm growing, and this world is supposed to be timeless, does that mean…" She hesitated, her voice trembling slightly. "I can only think of the signs that I'm here to be ended. That's all I could think of the reason why I'm only growing and it looks valid that it is because I'm supposed to… end?"

Al didn't answer right away. His pages fluttered softly, a sound that felt like a sigh. "Lu," he said finally, his voice low, "everything that begins has an end. That's true for the stories in me, for the worlds I've seen, and… maybe even for you. But an end isn't something to fear. It's just another part of the story."

She looked at him, her eyes glistening. "I don't want to end."

"You don't have to think about that now," Al said gently. "Right now, you're here. You're growing, learning, changing. Focus on that, Lu. The rest… will come when it's time."

Lu nodded slowly, her gaze distant once more. "But what am I?"

To be continue....