This morning, when I got out of bed and left the house, the town was still dark. The sky was blue though, which told me that the sun had indeed risen. It just had not yet risen above the massive stone wall in the east; the wall stands a hundred feet high, and is built of so many grey bricks that I cannot count them all. I tried once, but I lost track.

Old ma--the oldest lady in the village--says that the wall goes all around our country and keeps enemies out. She says that it took very many years to build, and that many men died while building it. Their bones, according to her, are buried in the walls underneath the stone and cement. The walls show other countries that our nation is strong, and will never ever lose to enemies.

As I looked up at the great grey walls, I began to wonder what it would be like to be buried inside them. All the men that were... were they happy about it, or were they sad? What was it like to spend one's life building something, but never get to see it finished? I hoped they were happy though. Even if they never saw it completed, I hope they're still proud of their hard work.

My thoughts drifted more and more as I stared at the wall. I might have stared at it forever had Misake not been wandering down the alley.

"Kanoma," she called out as she came close, "what are you doing? We have to go to work. The boss will be mad if we're late, and the apples are in season so we need every person we can get for the harvest."

I let out a sigh as I turned to face my friend. She was fourteen, a year older than I. Even though she was only older by one year, she always took it upon herself to act as my mother in the absence of my parents. I did appreciate it, and I still do, but sometimes I wish she would let me act on my own. I'm a big girl, after all. I don't always need her to tell me what to do and what not to do.

"I know," I replied.

She frowned. "Then why are you standing there? Come, the apples aren't going to pick themselves."

I blinked a few times as I looked into her eyes. Her stare was firm, but her eyes were very dark and deep, and shone with a certain intelligence. Even though her face was stained with dirt, she was very pretty. Her dark hair was tied up in a knot behind her head, which is how she always wore it when working so that it wouldn't get caught on something.

"Sorry," I said softly. "I guess I got lost in thought."

Her eyes seemed to soften at that. "I understand, but you need to keep your head on your shoulders and your feet on the ground. There's no time to be drifting off like that."

I nodded. "Uh-huh. I'm sorry."

Her gaze shifted into one more comforting. More reassuring. "It's alright. Now come on, let's head to the orchards."

She began to walk past me and head towards the clusters of trees in the distance. I turned to watch her go, and hesitated for a moment. What would the boss do to me if I didn't show up? None of us were very strong, but an adult man or woman would be able to beat me nevertheless, simply because they are adults. Beatings... I didn't want to be beaten again, so I began to follow Misake. I could see the red spots on the trees in the distance, glistening like little jewels as the sun finally began to peek over the walls and shine down upon the vast orchards to the south of the village.

I hurried after Misake, my leather shoes patting against the dirt as I went along, and kicking up little clouds of dust. So much dust. The village was often dusty, which is why so many of us are so often covered in dirt. The nearby river that runs through the plains and woodland is where we bathe, but the water stirs up the dirt and carries it along. Because of that, bathing in the river never fully gets rid of the dust and dirt. We don't mind the dust though, it helps protect us from the sun. Protection from the sun is important for us, as we work under its harsh rays every day.

Every week, we are assigned a job, and are expected to do that job every day for the rest of the week. At the end of the week, we are assigned new jobs, and we do those the following week. Changing jobs helps keep life from growing too dull here. Every week is something different. This week, however, will be different. Because the apples are in season, and there are so many trees, most people in the town are called to the orchard to help pick them so that nothing goes to waste. We will work this week in the trees, and leave not a single fruit behind. Whatever is not eaten will be dried and preserved so that it can be eaten later.

Misake and I entered the orchard and began to work, plucking the fruits from their lofty branches. We worked hard for many hours as we felt the little droplets of sweat slide down our faces and drip from our chins and our wrists.

The whole time, I kept glancing over. I kept feeling my gaze wander from the glistening apples until it finally rested upon the wall. That magnificent stone wall. Only that time, something was different. I didn't feel the same wonder that I did before. Something had changed in my mind as I came to realize something.

That realization, in turn, brought about another question. A question that followed me all the day while I worked, and refused to be ignored. I'm not sure if it truly matters at all, but I realized something about walls. They can be made to keep things out, yes; but they can also be made to keep things in--to keep them from escaping.

Once more, I must say that I cannot be sure whether this matters at all. But for some reason, the thought and the resulting question haunted me. I was always told that our walls were made to keep enemies out. But... what if they were made to keep us people from escaping as well?

Once work was done and we all began to return to our houses, I spent a few minutes more staring at the wall. Those great, strong walls.

Were they there to keep danger out? Or were they made to keep us in?

I went to bed afterwards, and now here I am, writing this. I hear the noises outside again and I realize now that there is much danger within our country. Within the walls. Why do we have these walls, if all they do is trap us within the country with those... entities which we hear at night? Those walls... were they ever truly meant to keep things out?

Or... were they meant to keep things in?

No. I'm thinking too much now. It's time to get some sleep.

Goodnight.