Adi meets Entropy

I yawned and stretched, working out the kinks in my back and neck. I had just read an amazing book, not stopping once, and felt the need to just... move! I grabbed the book I had been reading, and padded across the carpet to it's proper shelves. The rows and rows of books on these shelves never ceased to amaze me; sometimes I thought this was more like a library than a bookstore. I've never been yelled at for just coming in, sitting down, and reading the books. The only advantage bookstores have over libraries was that you could buy the book and keep it forever, not just borrowing it. I inhaled the scent of parchment as I walked through the halls, and smiled.
     Grabbing a couple other good books, I settled into a chair. I had barely read for twenty minutes before I heard whispering and giggling. Resisting the urge to turn around and search for the source of the noise, I quieted my breathing and listened intently. "Look at that girl!" One whispered, and my peripheral vision picked up a hand pointing to smeone seated in front of me, in a chair that had it's right side facing the wall. I cocked my head, searching for something that would make these girls talk about her. She looked perfectly normal to me, even pretty-- shoulder-length goldenrod hair, tawny, shiny fur... The eye I could see from her angle was a clear, crystalline blue. She was absorbed in a piece of writing, but I could tell by the way her large ears twitched that she had heard the girls talking about her, too. She brushed it off, though, and gave no other indication that she had heard anything. The two girls continued talking. "She's so smug! Look at her, sitting there. I could just slap her," the other girl whispered, and I stiffened. I decided I would stop them, but before I could do anything, the two were walking away. "Freak," I heard one of them whisper, and I sighed. I decided to see for myself why these girls had taken such a disliking to her.
     I casually picked up my books and walked over to the chair that was directly across from her. She raised her eye as I came into her vision, then returned it to the book she was reading. I pointed at myself, then at the chair. She raised an eyebrow in question, and I smiled shyly. She gave a curt nod after a second, and I sat down. I peeked out from under my eyelashes to examine her. She was dressed in a simple, light blue tank-top that exposed her belly-button, and black pants that had chains and metal trinkets hanging from the belt-loops. She must have felt my eyes on her, and she looked up with death in her glare. "So, come to make fun of the freak , huh?" She asked me venomously, and I must have looked surprised, for she tucked the strands of hair that were covering her right eye behind her ear.
     A gaping hole stood where her right eye should have been, inky-black and... well, gaping. I inhaled sharply, and she gave a grim chuckle. "Ugly, isn't it?" Her tone was light, but underneath it I could sense her anger. Her other eye was staring at me accusingly, a mixture of hurt and loathing reflected in the blue. I shook my head, and she scowled. "Oh, please," she said huffily, tossing her head. "It's ugly and I know it. I get pointed at, stared at, whispered about, and mocked for it. So if you wanted to come here to satisfy your curiosity for grotesque things, satisfy away! " I stared at her, now knowing why those girls made fun of her. She refused to break under their horrible comments, refused to cry about the way they treated her. She was different and proud of it, and they hated her for it. After a minute, she glared at me again. "Well? Aren't you going to point and laugh, or comment on how hideous I am?" I smiled, tapped my throat, and shook my head. "What, are you mute or something?" She asked me, and I nodded sadly.
     Now it was her turn to gape. I was still smiling as I read another chapter, and I could still feel her staring at me. I looked up, my eyes questioning her. "Whoa," she whispered, leaning back in her chair. "So, you're saying you can't say anything? " I nodded again, and she whistled. "You didn't come here to make fun of me, did you?" She asked quietly, and I nodded. She reached out one paw tentavely, and I took it. "Thank you, I guess..." I tightened my hold on her hand, and she flashed me a grateful smile. The empty socket of her right eye mocked me, but I took in her whole face instead of just staring at her missing eye. When she smiled, her eyes sparkled and her expression lightened for a split second. It was returned by her mask of indifference, and I smiled at her again. She nodded to me, and we became friends. I would be her sight, she would be my voice. Other people wouldn't understand what we shared. Besides, how many people do you know that are missing an eye or their voice?