I do not own this book, or the characters. I hope you enjoy this story though!

That night, the river flowed gently beneath us as I took a long, hard sigh, sitting down against the logs. Jim was laying in the shade, must'a been sleeping. Something nagged at Huck as he continued staring at the blanket above him. I thought why the sky was a called a blanket at times. The Widder Douglass had mentioned it, and saw some of her books call it that too. It didn't make no sense though. Most everybody knowed that stars were far away. I pushed it off. "Some kinda fancy speakin', I reckon." he muttered.

"Fancy speakin'?" Jim muttered.

"The stars," I spoke. "People call 'em a blanket."

"They sho' are, ain't they?"

"Then why done everyone get cold at night?"

Jim thought long and hard about this. "I reckon it has something to do with the farness."

I nodded. "They just so far away."

It didn't last long. Jim shook his head. "But that ain't true neither. Ah remember hearing a story 'bout a man who touched the moon."

I didn't like school much, but I wasn't dumb neither. "Hogwash,"

"It ain't!" Jim defended. "I heard it once, and knowed it once too. If a man can touch the moon, stars ain't that far away, see."

"When'd it happen?"

"I don't know."

"Then how'd you know it happen'd!"

Jim waved his hand up. "No need to shout, just you, me, and the stars."

I frowned, his mind seeming to spin. "Stars ain't people, even if they was, they too far away to hear."

"Naw, Huck, now yore speakin' hogwash. Everyone knowed that stars are just your kinfolk smiling at ya'."

I sat up, rockin the raft. Joe was very keen on the fact that stars were far away, and it seemed to be keen in the way adults spoke too. "Joe Harper told me that them're just suns that're far away, and I reckon Tom said it too once."

Jim had his face scrunched a bit. "Well they ain't too far to touch, or we wouldn't see 'em."

I looked back up at the lights, putting my hand out to see if I could grab one. "I reckon you done gone it right, 'bout some at least. You reckon people we know're up there?"

"Shore! Lots of 'em" Jim nodded, with a serious sort of smile. "And everyone knowed 'at the shootin' stars are just kinfolk showin' love."

I paused for a minute. I'd seen shootin' stars, sure 'nuff. "But stars don't move, 'sides that I reckon."

"They kin, but they like the river, they just move real slow. Ya have to be lookin', 'bout ev'ry night."

"But what about the man?"

"What man?"

"The man that gone'n touched the moon?"

"Well, what about 'im?"

"Was he tryin' to hug the moon?"

Jim scrunched his face again. "I reckon I kint remember. It'd make sense tho'."

"Ye think we oughta' try it sometime, huggin' the stars?"

Jim paused again. "I ain't thought 'bout it."

"I ain't thought about it neither. I reckon it'd be worth somethin'." I perked up. "Tom! Tom could come with us. I'd shore bet he'd like to hug someone up 'dere. He'd probably think'o somethin' clever ta help us up." As I leaned back, the stars seemed to shine a little less bright. "It seems a mighty far ways away."

"Ah reckon yore right, they's a long ways away. We kint really jump 'r climb there."

"Maybe they'd meet us halfway." I stated. "Chances are they'd love the comp'ny. Yo said so yoreself, 'bout them shooting stars just huggin'?"

"Yea, yore probably right." he muttered, laying back down again, placin. "Reachin' for the stars ain't such a bad idea."

I glance back up at the stars, they seemed to stay the same farness away, but somehow found a way to wink at us. Maybe they was just some dumb sun that 'us shinin' from far away, or maybe his mama was up there somewhere, waiting for him to come see her. Either way, that blanket didn't seem so cold no more.

I hope you enjoyed it! You all should tell me why you reach for the stars, it might do me some good to see. Thanks for reading!

Zippy