It was bright when Kibum woke up. Exceedingly, blindingly bright. He put a hand over his eyes and used the other to feel around him. It didn’t seem to be a bed that he was laying on but it was soft enough that he let himself relax. He tried to think back to the day before, hoping that remembering where he was would help him decide where he was sleeping, but to his surprise he wasn’t able to remember anything. He remembered words and objects and even some of the schooling he must’ve had, but there was not a single place or event from his life that he could remember. The light began to lessen, so he put his hand down and eagerly looked around. His eyes immediately fell upon a woman sitting to his left.

“Ah, I see you’re awake,” she said with a smile. “I was wondering how long it would take.”

“Where....where am I? How long have I been here?” he asked, looking around. If there were walls and a ceiling, he couldn’t see them. There was some sort of big, white blanket on the ground, the thing he was laying on, that seemed to go on forever.

“You’re here and you’ve been here long enough. Do you remember anything, darling?”

Kibum sat up and shook his head. He hoped she would give him some answers but she only offered a sigh. She stood, offering him her hand. He took it and attempted to stand, but instantly sank onto his knees. The ground was a lot less firm than he’d thought and it took him a long while to be able to properly stand. The woman watched with seeming affection but said nothing. When he finally stood, she offered her hand once again.

“Now I need you to hold on tight, ok darling? We’re going to get off this cloud and I’m going to teach you to control the wind,” she explained.

Kibum’s eyes widened and he took a step back. Surely he couldn’t be on a cloud? Though his memory was poor, he distinctly remembered belonging on solid land. He took another step back and screamed when his foot fell through. The woman laughed and shook her head, walking towards him.

“Darling, you needn’t be afraid. You won’t get hurt if you fall and even if you do fall, the wind will just catch you.”

“The wind? Will catch me?”

The lady laughed again. “Come now, darling. There’s a lot to learn and a short time to learn it.”

She pulled him up and out of the cloud, leading him to the edge.

“Um, ma’am, not to ruin your plans, but I’m terrified of heights so maybe you should pick someone else for this job.”

She laughed, louder than before, and snapped her fingers. All of a sudden, Kibum found himself in the air. He screamed and tried to reach for her, but something -- he assumed it was the wind -- began to carry him away from her and down towards the sea below. He began pleading with it to stop, afraid that he’d be slammed into the water, and was surprised when he stopped moving.

“If you talk to the wind, it’ll listen to you, little one!” came the lady’s voice. Kibum was puzzled. He saw a rocky outcropping below him and the want to be on land became overwhelming.

“Uh, wind? Can we please go down to that rock? Really slowly? Please?” The wind obliged, moving him down at a leisurely pace. When he was on the ground, he immediately sank onto all fours. There was a bright flash, and the lady was standing next to him again.

“As time goes on, it’ll get easier and you won’t have to say anything out loud. You’re a part of the wind now and it’s a part of you. Good luck, little zephyr.” She began to walk away.

“Wait, please. I don’t understand! How did this happen? Is there anyone else out there? Why me?”

“I cannot tell you why or how, little one. It’s not the right time. I will return and tell you when you’re ready.”

“But is there anyone else? I just want someone to talk to, anyone, please.”

“If you ask the wind, it’ll take you to see the welkin. The two of you should play well together.” There was another bright flash and the lady departed before he could ask anymore questions. He stood and looked around at the ocean before him. The sun was at its highest and he knew he had to find somewhere to sleep before the sunset. Maybe the welkin would know.

“Hi, wind. It’s me again. Do you know who the welkin is? Or what it is?” he asked. To his surprise, the wind picked up and blew to the east of Kibum, pointing him to a strange looking cloud formation. Was she sending him to see a huge cloud?

“Well I’m glad you know the welkin. Can you take me to it?”

Once again, Kibum felt himself being lifted up, albeit more gently than before. As they travelled on, his fear of heights began to subside and he began to enjoy the sensation of flying though he was nowhere near comfortable with the sensation. As he got closer to the cloud formation, he noticed a small white cloud that seemed to be the origin of the storm. As he watched, the storm ended and the little cloud began heading towards his direction. He hoped he hadn’t disturbed it and that it’s path was just a coincidence. The wind picked up speed as the cloud did. He wondered if the cloud was pulling him in. He began to notice something on top of the cloud.

WHAP

It wasn’t ‘til the wind caught him that Kibum realized that he’d run straight into the cloud. He rubbed his forehead and sighed. Today had just not been his day.

“Are you the zephyr??” came a small but excited voice from on top of the cloud.

“I? I think so? My name is Kibum. Are you the welkin?”

A head popped over the side of the cloud. Kibum sighed in relief. The welkin wasn’t the cloud, but a boy like himself. The wind brought him up so they were eye to eye.

“Yeah, I’m the welkin. My name is, uh, Taemin. I think.” the boy paused for a moment. “Yeah, Taemin. She told me you were coming so I figured I’d try to find you in case you were having a hard time.”  

“Who did?”

“The lady. You saw her right?”

“Oh. Yeah. Her. She didn’t really explain anything to me so I’m a little lost. All she said is that I can control the wind, whatever that means.”

“You control wind? That’s so cool! That must be why she calls you zephyr.”

Kibum figured there was context to his comment, but was too drained to ask.

“Why does she call you welkin? Can you control the wind too?” he inquired.

Taemin laughed.

“No, I can control storms and clouds. Maybe we’re meant to work together, if she sent us together.”

Kibum contemplated the comment. It seemed likely enough, and was the only thing that had made sense so far. He noticed the sun beginning to set.

“So, Taemin, is there like a place we’re supposed to go to sleep?”

“I mean, there’s not like an official place or anything, but you can come stay at my cave if you want?”

Kibum nodded, and the two headed off away from the dissipating storm. To say that today had been the oddest day of Kibum’s life was (probably) an understatement, but at least he had ended it with a friend.