Lone fox.

Throw plastic bags into the wind and let them float back to you like black ghosts.
Kick the litter of yesterdays meal into the gutter and walk fast.
The train approaches and the speaker blares out.
"This is a security announcement, please remain vigilant at all times. Please ensure you do not leave any of your belongings unattended"

"The next stop is Walton-on-Thames"

Concrete on concrete as the ferris wheel turns, lights shine on empty streets as cars break the darkness with twin beams.

Time takes on a pattern of stops and starts. The minutes turn into stations and the train ticks onward.

In my sealed off pod I turn the pages silently, a buzz of music in my ears as I glance to the seat opposite.
Who are you ? What do you do ? Where are you going ?
No matter, zone out and feel the beats, turn the pages and leave the train for a moment.

Metro coffee and free news, silent chatter behind headphones and breathe and breathe and stop.

"The train approaching platform 8 is the 6.52 to Chessington South, calling at ...."

Routine is so quick to take hold, the quick excitement of the unknown soon lost.

The tower lifts into the bleak sky, overlooking the squalor below. A lone fox graces the siding and pauses, reflecting for a moment before vanishing down the tracks.

23/12/05