Eventually, none of the people who had witnessed the Wall's appearance lived. And people took the Wall for granted. They never wondered what was on the other side.
Eventually, none of the Wall's appearance's witnesses' children and grandchildren lived. And people didn't spare a thought about the Wall. And they never wondered THAT there was something on the other side.
Only one thing remained the same through all this time.
No one ever got too close to the Wall.
Now a young man lived in the North half of the country. He was the son of a bourgeois, harmonic family, had had a bourgeois, harmonic childhood, and his parents expected him to lead a bourgeois, harmonic life. But this son, whose name was Faer, was fed up with his bourgeois, harmonic home. He wanted to rebel. And as it always was, is and will be with young men, he wanted to belong to a gang. To become a member of the gang he had to take a test of courage. And the test of courage was: go to the Wall and touch the stone!
Faer was very frightened to go near the Wall. Although he wasn't quite sure what exactly he was frightened of, but it had been impressed upon him ever since he had been a child: never get too close to the Wall!
However, Faer was anxious to belong to the gang. And he wanted to do something to shock his parents. And so he agreed to the test.
The whole gang, a group of nearly thirty young men, were standing at a safe distance at the edge of the no man's land that separated the people from the Wall. Faer was standing in their midst. He swallowed hard. It took all of his courage and cheekiness to square his shoulders and say:"To the Wall!"
Slowly, step by step, he crossed the no man's land. His courage fell rapidly the closer he came to this huge, unrelenting, grey parapet. Quickly he reminded himself of the tactics he had thought of to take away the test's terror.
And so he began to sing.
He sang, quietly at first, then, as he picked up courage he sang up in time with his steps that took him ever closer to the Wall. He sang nonsensical words, rhymed with a happy melody, and he knew he would pass the test. He was standing directly in front of the Wall now, he only needed to reach out his hand -
He reached out his hand -
And just as his fingertips were about to touch the stone, singing sounded from the other side.
It was a young man's voice and it sang nonsensical words, rhymed in harmony with Faer's happy little song.
Faer was standing dumbfounded, his fingertips still poised to touch the Wall, and the song died in his throat.
The voice from the other side of the Wall called quietly:"Why do you stop singing?"
As he could not think about anything better to say, Faer asked back:"Why are you on the other side of the Wall?"
The voice from the other side laughed. "For the same reason as you are on your side. I was born here. As my parents, grandparents and great-grandparents were before me."
Faer swallowed hard. Irritated, he demanded to know:"Does that mean there are more people on your side?"
At this the laughter came again. "Of course! Only because there's a wall here doesn't mean it's the world's end!"
Faer stared at the Wall in amazement. And somehow, he suddenly wasn't afraid of it anymore.
