The early summer rain painted the already-dull town of Clemont into a darker version of itself. Really, it wasn't much of a difference. The little town had a cloud of somberness hovering above that seemed to leak out of every cobwebbed crevice and cranny.
Veda shoved her numb hands into the pockets of her black coat; the thin material barely protecting her from the bitter cold. One peculiar thing about Clemont was the weather. Mother Nature seemed to be absent entirely. The years' cycle of seasons seemed to dash over summer and spring and went straight to windy autumn and winter. The only real contrast between 'summer' and winter was the absence of the thick, drippy, and notably unpleasant snow; which was only replaced by equally unpleasant rain.
An endless winter.
Veda walked along briskly, her hood drawn around her face to help fight off the stinging rain plummeting around her. She silently skimmed the streets. They were void of cars or bicycles (which were rarely used anyways), but riddled every so often with occasional passerby. The fellow townsfolk mirrored her dark clothing, yet unlike her, wielded black umbrellas which bobbed up and down as they walked. Little black ants marching the streets of Clemont.
She looked at them curiously. Black umbrellas belong at funerals, she thought to herself. And this town just might be that. A silent funeral for spontaneity, for uniqueness. For non-existent summer days. The preacher would open his Bible and speak all things of worthwhile nature into oblivion...
A chilly draft blew her daydreams away, and released a few locks of onyx hair from her hood. Her intended destination was approaching, only a few blocks away by now. She picked up her pace, avoiding the eyes of those she passed. She couldn't wait to pry off her rain-soaked clothes and exchange them for dry ones. She would sit by the oven; have the warmth it provided penetrate through and abolish all traces of Clemont's dreary climate.
The houses of her district weren't allowed fireplaces, for the fear of someone burning down a house by accident,(or on purpose, for that matter). Only the intelligent, the approved, could afford to have such luxuries. By 'approved', she knew they meant the rich, the selected government officials. Though the citizens were taught to deny it, they all knew it in their minds. Things like fireplaces, various tools like hammers, wrenches, and axes, computers, sewing machines, sharp knives; all of it was banned from the middle class.
The truth was, she resided in a town choked to death by an intense fear of "what-ifs". They would smother and suppress even the ghost of a negatively-impacting incident.
****I'M NOT FINNISHED WRITING IT DOWN YET! SORRY!!! ****
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