In Mysterious Kôr, the full moon symbolizes the state of being in-between, which is experienced by the three protagonists. In a world where their rational dreams have been broken, the moon triggers unreal fantasies.
The first paragraph is dedicated to the description of London in full moonlight: Even though the city has been bombed by the Germans, it is not completely destroyed yet--its condition is between being intact and being annihilated. The moon also acts as an equalizer, making old and new buildings appear dull--neither particularly beautiful nor ugly. Moreover, it is perceived as a threat, as people coming out of the Underground try to get off the moonlit streets as quickly as possible. Even though the Germans have stopped bombing the city by the full moon, people still prefer to stay indoors, with the "day between days", the one day of peace every month, taking its toll on the Londoners. This time is "more than senses and nerves could bear," because the people are stuck between the action of war and the tranquillity of peace.
Two of these people are Arthur and Pepita. Arthur is a soldier on leave, which means for this one night he is somewhere between civilian and military life. The moonlight glittering in his eyes triggers Pepita's fantasy of a mysterious place called Kôr, which in her imagination is a perfect place for the two lovers to be together: Lost in her thoughts, she is therefore in between reality and utopia. Her state of being in between worlds becomes even more evident when she tells Arthur about her fantasy of being alone with him, to which he replies in confusion, "But we're alone here." Pepita, however, does not acknowledge him, which makes him question her love to him. He lets "out as a laugh the sigh he had been holding in for some time," indicating that he wants her to stop fantasizing and instead enjoy their time in the real world. After all, he as a soldier knows how precious time is, because he is constantly at risk of losing his life during deployment.
In the meantime, Callie, Pepita's roommate, finds herself between being alone and being in a relationship. While she is waiting for Arthur and Pepita to come to her flat to spend the night, she imagines being part of their love, which shows how strong her own desire for love is. Again, the trigger for this feeling is the moon: When Callie looks out of the window, the city seems to have a magical quality, as "something--was it a coin or a ring?--glittered half-way across the chalk-white street." She then follows the rays of moonlight, which seem to direct her eyes to photographs of her parents and her dogs. More importantly, however, the moonlight "exonerate[s] and beautifie[s] the lateness of the lovers' return," which brings her back to fantasizing about Arthur's and Pepita's love. When Callie eventually lies down in her bed that she is to share with Pepita, she holds her hand into the moonlight on Pepita's side "until it was no longer her own." This description indicates that she does not only feel a connection with the lovers but is now completely absorbed in her imagination of Pepita being with Arthur.
When Arthur and Pepita finally come home to Callie, Pepita is openly frustrated that she is not able to spend the night alone with her lover, as Callie is the one taking care of Arthur by offering him cocoa and making him feel at home. Arthur's and Pepita's faces "were alike in abstention from any kind of expression; as though, spiritually, they both still refused to be here," indicating a discrepancy between their desire to be alone and reality.
Callie immediately feels attracted to Arthur, when "she rather beheld than felt his red-brown grip on what still seemed her glove of moonlight;" Arthur, however, seems to be oblivious to her affection. Later at night, when Pepita is sleeping, Callie's desire for Arthur is evident by the way she observes him carefully but nervously after both have woken up: "She could smell the coat, and each time he pulled on the cigarette his features appeared down there, in the fleeting, dull reddish glow." However, she is unable to make her dream of being with Arthur come true, as he keeps talking about Pepita's obsession for Kôr. He admits that he now shares her desire to be in this mysterious city because it gives them a sense of hope and helps them escape from reality: "When two people have got no place, why not want Kôr, as a start?" Callie, however, is convinced that it is better to find hope in real humans. She asks him, "But, oh, Arthur, can't wanting want what's human?", which can also be interpreted as a blunt advance by an inexperienced girl. Arthur simply replies, "To be human's to be at a dead loss." His answer shows that he does not know whether it is better to find hope in a real or in an imagined place--his opinion is in between.
Callie continues to watch "the lit-up inside of Arthur's hand as he brushed the sheet," but it seems to dawn on her that she will be unable to follow her dream of being with Arthur. When Arthur asks her, "And how's your moon?", she says, "Not so strong," which means her dreams are slowly fading. Thus Callie's perceived magical moment with Arthur ends, which is mirrored by the moon: "Indeed, the moon's power over London and the imagination had now declined."
When Callie goes back to bed, she watches Pepita sleeping and imagines her dream about Kôr, where Arthur is "the password, but not the answer." Callie's observation indicates that she believes Pepita will never love Arthur as a real human the way Callie could have.
