Untouched by Morning

by daifuku

An imitationfanfiction of the works of William Faulkner, done as an assignment for English class. Quentin Compson, after surviving his attempted suicide, wanders the land of Yoknapatawpha in search of his runaway sister. Told from various perspectives. AU

1. Cash

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters—they all belong to Mr. Faulkner. :D I only hope I did them justice.

Warning: Hinted incest, one-sentence chapters, sudden flashbacks, and lack of punctuation, capitalization and any sensible grammar ahead.

Safe in their Alabaster Chambers—

Untouched by Morning—

And untouched by Noon—

Lie the meek members of the Resurrection—

Rafter of Satin—and Roof of Stone!

-Emily Dickinson

Cash

There was leaves too, leaves and frost on the ground. And then there were two men, two men amid the leaves. They were standing there with the frost on their boots, blowing it out of their mouths like furnaces, and I never knowd them, not one bit. But one was a colonel, some rich colonel with a good piece of land in the country. He was a Satoris man. And the other was a boy, and I thought to myself I wonder why a boy goes and talks to a colonel like all that. I wonder why.

He was taking schoolin the boy, at one of them big universities, and I heard from somewhere that he was lookin over a bridge once lookin like he wanted to jump. I heard he jumped, with flat irons in his trousers to weigh him down. But he was there and all, this boy, though he did look a bit wet. And I didn't see one flat, not one.

So they was talkin there with the frost on their boots, the boy scratchin at his neck like he was bit by some fly. And he said "give her back to me, give her back", but old Colonel Satoris just stared at him, lookin like a bear with his coat around his shoulders, lookin at the boy. He was reachin in his pocket now, and I swear I thought I seen a pistol in there, back when I seen him comin over.

Dont go away she said, dont go away. I dont want to be found. So I let her stay, thinkin she wouldnt do no harm, being sick and all. At first I believed her that she was sick. She came in and her dress was wet and her hair sopping about her shoulders, and she said I am sick, I need a place to stay. So I let her stay, thinking she wouldnt do no harm, being sick and all.

We was all movin all right, with that boy brandishing his pistol and the colonel with a knife and grabbing for his own, and he was hollerin at me for something, since I was lookin like I was goin to help. I dont reckon I couldve helped him much though, since he was lyin with his face in the dirt already when I got there. I checked him afterwards and I didnt feel nothing, so I figured he was off and gone. Then the boy looked at me, and there was a wild look in his eyes. And he said "you go on and tell them what you saw. Go on and tell them, and tell Caddy too. I'm coming, you tell her that." So I went and ran, leavin him there with old Colonel Satoris and his pistol.