The Blue Folder at Dawn

It is half past five, and the field is still dark. Damir walks along the rows of balloons with a small lamp. Each balloon lies flat on the grass like a sleeping animal. Big fans hum. Pilots call to their crews. The first balloon will rise at 6:15.

Sekarang pukul setengah enam, dan lapangan masih gelap. Damir berjalan menyusuri deretan balon udara dengan sebuah lampu kecil. Setiap balon terbaring rata di atas rumput seperti binatang yang sedang tidur. Kipas-kipas besar berdengung. Para pilot berseru memanggil kru mereka. Balon pertama akan naik pukul 6:15.

Damir runs the launch field. Before every flight, he checks the pilot's papers. It is his one big rule. No papers, no flight.

Damir mengelola lapangan peluncuran. Sebelum setiap penerbangan, ia memeriksa dokumen pilot. Itulah satu-satunya aturan besarnya. Tanpa dokumen, tidak ada penerbangan.

Ciro hurries across the grass toward him. He is the pilot of the yellow balloon. He wears a woolly hat and a worried face.

Ciro bergegas melintasi rumput ke arahnya. Ia pilot balon kuning. Ia memakai topi wol dan berwajah cemas.

"Damir, I have a problem," he says.

"Damir, aku punya masalah," katanya.

"What kind of problem?"

"Masalah apa?"

"My blue folder is gone. My licence is inside. My flight card and my map are inside too."

"Map biruku hilang. Lisensiku ada di dalamnya. Kartu penerbangan dan petaku juga ada di dalamnya."

Damir stops walking. "When did you see it last?"

Damir berhenti berjalan. "Kapan terakhir kali kamu melihatnya?"

"At the coffee van. Around five o'clock. I put it on the counter to pay."

"Di van kopi. Sekitar pukul lima. Aku menaruhnya di meja untuk membayar."

Damir looks at his watch. "Then we have forty-five minutes. Let us be quick."

Damir melihat jam tangannya. "Kalau begitu kita punya empat puluh lima menit. Ayo cepat."

They pass the gate hut on the way. Mattias, the guard dog, lies on a grey blanket by the door. Damir keeps cheese in his pocket for him, as always. He is a huge brown dog with a black nose. His eyes are shut, and his chest goes up and down. Damir frowns for a moment. At dawn, Mattias always barks at every van and every gull. Today he does not even lift his head.

Mereka melewati pos gerbang dalam perjalanan. Mattias, anjing penjaga, berbaring di atas selimut abu-abu di dekat pintu. Damir menyimpan keju di sakunya untuknya, seperti biasa. Ia anjing cokelat besar dengan hidung hitam. Matanya terpejam, dan dadanya naik turun. Damir mengerutkan kening sejenak. Saat fajar, Mattias selalu menggonggong pada setiap van dan setiap burung camar. Hari ini ia bahkan tidak mengangkat kepalanya.

"Strange," says Damir. Then he forgets it and hurries on.

"Aneh," kata Damir. Lalu ia melupakannya dan bergegas pergi.

The coffee van sits at the edge of the field. A woman there pours hot chocolate for a line of sleepy passengers. Ciro runs up to her.

Van kopi itu berada di tepi lapangan. Seorang perempuan di sana menuangkan cokelat panas untuk antrean penumpang yang masih mengantuk. Ciro berlari menghampirinya.

"Did you find a blue folder?" he asks.

"Apakah Anda menemukan map biru?" tanyanya.

"Yes!" she says. "I saw it on my counter. I knew it belonged to a pilot. I did not keep it. I gave it to a man in an orange jacket. He said he works for the field."

"Ya!" katanya. "Saya melihatnya di meja saya. Saya tahu itu milik seorang pilot. Saya tidak menyimpannya. Saya memberikannya kepada seorang pria berjaket oranye. Katanya dia bekerja untuk lapangan ini."

"Do you know his name?" asks Damir.

"Anda tahu namanya?" tanya Damir.

"No. But his jacket said CREW."

"Tidak. Tapi di jaketnya tertulis CREW."

Damir sighs. "Half of my field wears orange jackets."

Damir menghela napas. "Separuh orang di lapanganku memakai jaket oranye."

They walk between the balloons and look at every orange jacket. At the third basket, they find a young man. He stacks ropes and sings a quiet song. Ciro stops in front of him.

Mereka berjalan di antara balon-balon dan memperhatikan setiap jaket oranye. Di keranjang ketiga, mereka menemukan seorang pemuda. Ia sedang menumpuk tali sambil menyanyikan lagu pelan. Ciro berhenti di depannya.

"Excuse me. Did a woman give you a blue folder?"

"Permisi. Apakah seorang perempuan memberimu map biru?"

"Oh, yes!" says the young man. "I did not know whose it was. I thought, who looks after lost things on this field? The night guard, of course. So I took it to him."

"Oh, iya!" kata pemuda itu. "Saya tidak tahu itu milik siapa. Saya berpikir, siapa yang mengurus barang hilang di lapangan ini? Penjaga malam, tentu saja. Jadi saya membawanya kepadanya."

"Where is he now?" asks Damir.

"Sekarang dia di mana?" tanya Damir.

"His shift ends at half past five. He went to the gate."

"Shift-nya berakhir pukul setengah enam. Dia pergi ke gerbang."

Damir and Ciro run back across the grass. It is now 5:50. The sky turns pale grey behind the hills. At the gate hut, the door stands open. The little room is empty. The night guard's coat is gone from its hook. His chair is pushed in.

Damir dan Ciro berlari kembali melintasi rumput. Sekarang pukul 5:50. Langit berubah abu-abu pucat di balik bukit-bukit. Di pos gerbang, pintunya terbuka. Ruangan kecil itu kosong. Mantel penjaga malam sudah tidak ada di gantungannya. Kursinya didorong ke dalam.

Ciro looks inside. He opens the drawers one by one. He checks the shelf and the floor. There is no blue folder anywhere.

Ciro melongok ke dalam. Ia membuka laci satu per satu. Ia memeriksa rak dan lantai. Tidak ada map biru di mana pun.

"He took it home," says Ciro. His voice shakes. "My passengers arrive at six. I cannot fly without that folder."

"Dia membawanya pulang," kata Ciro. Suaranya bergetar. "Penumpangku datang pukul enam. Aku tidak bisa terbang tanpa map itu."

"He did not take it home," says Damir. "He is a careful man. He never leaves the field with another person's papers."

"Dia tidak membawanya pulang," kata Damir. "Dia orang yang teliti. Dia tidak pernah meninggalkan lapangan dengan dokumen milik orang lain."

"Then where is it?"

"Lalu di mana map itu?"

Damir stands very still and thinks. Three people hold the folder, one after the other. The woman gives it to the young man. The young man gives it to the guard. The guard is the last one. He keeps it safe before he goes home.

Damir berdiri sangat diam dan berpikir. Tiga orang memegang map itu, satu demi satu. Sang perempuan memberikannya kepada pemuda itu. Pemuda itu memberikannya kepada penjaga. Penjaga adalah yang terakhir. Ia menyimpannya dengan aman sebelum pulang.

"Ciro," he says slowly, "where does a guard keep a thing safe?"

"Ciro," katanya perlahan, "di mana seorang penjaga menyimpan sesuatu dengan aman?"

"In a locked cupboard?"

"Di lemari yang terkunci?"

"Yes. Or with a guard."

"Ya. Atau pada seorang penjaga."

They both turn around. Mattias still lies by the door. His legs twitch, and he makes a soft sound in his sleep. Damir looks at the dog for a long time. Under the big body, a small blue corner sticks out.

Mereka berdua berbalik. Mattias masih berbaring di dekat pintu. Kakinya berkedut, dan ia mengeluarkan suara lembut dalam tidurnya. Damir memandangi anjing itu lama sekali. Di bawah tubuh besarnya, sebuah sudut biru kecil menyembul keluar.

"Ciro," says Damir. "A sleeping dog is a tired dog. But Mattias is never tired at dawn."

"Ciro," kata Damir. "Anjing yang tidur adalah anjing yang lelah. Tapi Mattias tidak pernah lelah saat fajar."

"So why does he sleep?"

"Lalu kenapa dia tidur?"

"He does not sleep. He works." Damir kneels beside the dog. "The night guard says, guard this. So Mattias guards it. He lies on it, and he does not move."

"Dia tidak tidur. Dia sedang bekerja." Damir berlutut di samping anjing itu. "Penjaga malam berkata, jaga ini. Maka Mattias menjaganya. Dia berbaring di atasnya, dan dia tidak bergerak."

Ciro stares. "Is my licence under him?"

Ciro terbelalak. "Apakah lisensiku ada di bawahnya?"

"I think so."

"Kurasa begitu."

Damir puts a hand on the dog's warm side. "Mattias," he says softly. "Good boy. Up now."

Damir meletakkan tangan di sisi tubuh anjing yang hangat itu. "Mattias," katanya lembut. "Anak baik. Bangun sekarang."

Mattias opens one eye. He looks at Damir. He closes the eye again.

Mattias membuka satu mata. Ia memandang Damir. Ia menutup matanya lagi.

"Stubborn," whispers Ciro.

"Keras kepala," bisik Ciro.

Damir takes a small piece of cheese from his pocket. He holds it under the dog's nose. Mattias's ears go up. The big nose twitches. At last, he stands and shakes himself. He takes the cheese with a happy sound.

Damir mengambil sepotong kecil keju dari sakunya. Ia mengulurkannya di bawah hidung anjing itu. Telinga Mattias menegak. Hidung besarnya bergerak-gerak. Akhirnya ia berdiri dan mengibaskan badan. Ia mengambil keju itu dengan suara senang.

On the blanket lies a blue folder. It is warm and a little flat. It has a few brown hairs on it. Ciro picks it up and opens it. The licence is there. So are the flight card and the map. He holds the folder to his chest.

Di atas selimut tergeletak sebuah map biru. Map itu hangat dan agak pipih. Ada beberapa helai bulu cokelat di atasnya. Ciro mengambilnya dan membukanya. Lisensinya ada di sana. Kartu penerbangan dan petanya juga. Ia memeluk map itu di dadanya.

"I could kiss this dog," he says.

"Rasanya aku ingin mencium anjing ini," katanya.

"Please do not," says Damir. "He does not like it."

"Tolong jangan," kata Damir. "Dia tidak suka."

Ciro laughs. He shows the papers to Damir. Damir checks every page with his lamp. Everything is right. Damir signs the flight card at 6:02.

Ciro tertawa. Ia menunjukkan dokumen-dokumen itu kepada Damir. Damir memeriksa setiap halaman dengan lampunya. Semuanya benar. Damir menandatangani kartu penerbangan itu pukul 6:02.

"Thank you," says Ciro. "Come and fly with me one day."

"Terima kasih," kata Ciro. "Suatu hari datang dan terbanglah bersamaku."

"I stay on the ground," says Damir. "Somebody must guard the field."

"Aku tetap di darat," kata Damir. "Harus ada yang menjaga lapangan."

Ciro runs to his yellow balloon. His passengers already stand by the basket. The fans roar. The big yellow shape slowly lifts from the grass.

Ciro berlari ke balon kuningnya. Para penumpangnya sudah berdiri di dekat keranjang. Kipas-kipas meraung. Sosok kuning besar itu perlahan terangkat dari rumput.

Back at the hut, Mattias turns around twice on his blanket. He lies down again with a long yawn. He looks at Damir and gives one short bark.

Kembali di pos, Mattias berputar dua kali di atas selimutnya. Ia berbaring lagi dengan menguap panjang. Ia menatap Damir dan menggonggong satu kali, pendek.

"Woof."

"Guk."