Going east

Ruki had not realized the sky had turned this dark. So little stars… Well, she hadn’t really seen many stars in ZoroAster, but she thought that was just the light of the city and the shining of the prana that kept the starlight away. But this, out here in an open field so close to the breach… this was different. By all means, there should be more stars to light up the night somewhat. But she saw so little, and it was all so dark…

The countryside was so big, Ruki had never realized just how large the west was. So many parts of the land were uninhabited. She remembered Takato had told her most western ponies lived in the cities or big towns, preferring to be surrounded by other ponies over having space. They had been travelling for two weeks now, and all Ruki had seen were three villages. Two weeks… it seemed months and months ago since she had said goodbye to Takato.

It had been a beautiful morning… there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, the prana shone as bright as ever and the city was slowly waking up. They had packed all their belongings the day before, and in the evening there had been a feast to honour Ruki and her family. It had been a wonderful party with plenty of wonderful fresh fruit and lovely drinks Ruki had never tasted before.

The treaty between Asterian and the Friendship Lands had been finished two days before that. Ruki did not know the exact details, as she had spend her days exploring ZoroAster together with Yuuro, but the treaty was finalized and all seemed to be happy with the result. Taira and Hikary had insisted they headed home almost immediately after, but Takato would not hear it; he insisted on giving a farewell party.

They left early the next morning. Ruki remembered it all too clearly; Takato standing near the gate of the castle, Flora standing next to him. Only then she had realized this would be the last time she would see him in a long, long time. Takato had promised to visit the Friendship Lands in the future, but that was most likely years and years from now.

After everyone had said their formal goodbyes, it had been time to go. It had been time to turn her back on Takato and never looked back; but that had been harder then she had imagined. She was unable to hold back the tears that forced their way to her eyes.
“Takato, I…” She had sobbed. Through her tears she could see Takato approach her, but she was still surprised when she felt him holding her.

“I know… we’ll see each other again. No one here will ever forget you, Ruki…” He whispered as he let go of her.
“I won’t forget either.” She promised, and she forced herself to turn and walk away. Her family soon followed her, and they left the castle of ZoroAster behind. Ruki could not stop crying, no matter how hard she tried.
 “I understand it is hard, Ruki… you spend so much time with those ponies. But you can always go visit them. They’re not gone.” Yuuro had said, trying to comfort her.

But he didn’t understand, and she would not explain. Leaving Takato behind was admitting that it would never, ever be the same between them. The next time she saw him, he would be married and Flora would be raising his children. He would be the High King, King of Asterian, no longer would they be two lost souls finding each other in the darkness of the ancient forest…

As they had travelled on, however, Ruki began to understand she had made the correct decision. What Takato had been for her… she had to stand on her own four hoofs now. There was no turning back, and there shouldn’t be any either. What was ahead of her, she did not know. Yes, a country in which she would be a princess. A sister. A grandmother. A home… but how and what, she had no clue. Would she even like it?

Ruki glanced at her mother, who was sleeping quietly next to her. She had talked a lot with her the past two weeks. Her mother had told and explained everything… Aras, the old Friendship Lands, even her visit to Batafurai when she was looking for Ruki. Batafurai… when Taira explained that they had to take away the holy stone, as it was one of the five stones they needed to resurrect the guardians… Ruki had become so angry. How could they? Surely they knew it would destroy her home? And the butterflies… they would all die!

But Taira had explained that they knew. Her father Fjaril knew, the butterflies knew, and they still agreed to let the stone be taken away. It would mean the death of the island… the only protected place in the whole world, where prana was as strong as it used to be in the Old Days… her home for so long.

Her father… Ruki knew she would have to face him. She would go with everyone to get the stone. She had to… she had to say her final goodbyes. And she had to apologize to her father for letting him worry for so long. It was the one thing she always sought to avoid thinking of; what she had done to her father and her grandmother. Her grandmother had died… and she had not even been there. Thinking about that, Ruki felt flooded with guilt and despair. How could she have ever left?

She had been as selfish as the dark sky that was swallowing all the stars, one by one, until none remained. If only she had waited as her father had told her to… she would have met her mother, she would never have met Takato and she would not have missed all those important events. If only…

A few weeks later, Ruki walked on a forsaken road that led them through an abandoned part of the world. “There it is.” Hikary said, pointing in the distance.
The dry earth gave way to some buildings, Ruki saw, and beyond that, the breach. She didn’t really see it yet, but she could feel its presence, an ominous darkness that fought hard to keep the two parts of the world apart. She had been here before of course, once so long ago in her search for her mother, where she managed to cross using false papers. Now, of course, her official papers were signed by Takato himself.

As they got closer, Ruki was reminded of her last crossing. The bridge that broke, the strange pull she had felt… she shivered. Even on her last visit with Takato, she had felt it. Something pulling on her, something calling for her… a voice she could barely resist. She stopped, staring at the gatehouse ahead of them. And they wanted her to cross it again?

“Ruki? Are you okay?” Yuuro asked as soon as he saw her stop.
“You look pale.” He added.
“I… last time I crossed the breach… the bridge we used broke while I was on it. I almost fell down.” She told him.
“Ah. I understand… that it must be scary to you to cross it again. But this bridge is safe. It’s in proper shape and well taken care off. There’s no need to be scared. Besides, I’m here with you.” He smiled.
“I know. Thanks.” Ruki said, wondering once again why Yuuro was always so kind to her.

About 30 minutes later, they reached the bridge. It was a clear day and it was only midday too, so they were allowed to cross right away. As Ruki set a hoof on the bridge, she instantly realized this was different. There was nothing down there that pulled her. She felt it vaguely, the strange idea that someone was calling her, but it was not nearly as strong as it had been up in the north. She would be fine.

They crossed the bridge without any trouble, and once their papers were checked on the other side as well, they were officially in the east. Suddenly, Ruki felt her mind was so much fuller than it had been just a moment ago, as if it was flooding with a liquid she did not really comprehend. But that did not mean she had never felt this before. She tried to walk on, but she got dizzy and almost fell over. Instantly, Yuuro was next to her to support her.

“Are you okay?” he asked again.
“Yes. It’s just… mom, my head, it’s…” Her mother seemed to understand what Ruki meant.
“Oh dear, it’s your powers isn’t it? You released them, and now that we’re here, they’re surfacing. Here, sit down. Take it easy. Let it sink in for a bit.” Ruki sat down on the barren earth, letting her powers slowly fill her mind.

Strangely enough, her mind felt more complete instead of crowded. Only now she realized how empty it had been, as if there had always been a huge void that was supposed to be filled but never could. She had no idea what she could do with these powers, but they felt comforting. After a few moments, she opened her eyes again. “This is…” she started.
“Weird?” Hikary asked, but she shook her head.
“No. Not weird. The way it should be.”

Ruki tried to get up, and found that the dizziness was gone. “You’ll have to teach me on how these powers work.” She said.
“We will. But first, let’s get out of this place and go home.” Hikary said, and Ruki could not agree more.

Twinkle Star breathed the fresh air as she stepped outside her house. Câlin was off to school, Meran was taking her afternoon nap and Kiyoi was working in the forest. Such a quiet and peaceful afternoon… Twinkle Star glanced at the forest and to her surprise she realized the trees were already beginning to fade to yellow and red. Summer had gone by so very fast… Meran had grown so very much once again. Her speech had improved so much, and her girl was able to say whole sentences now. Even Twinkle Star did not know where her daughter had learned all the new words.  

Every day they had gone out into the forest together. Every day, Câlin had mourned the loss of the flowers that had disappeared now that Fiume was nothing but a normal river. Every day, Meran had learned more and more of the forest and its inhabitants. Every day, Twinkle Star had realized just how precious these days were.

She walked to the river, which was so loud and present; she was still not used to it. She sat down on the dark late-summer grass as she stared at the water flowing by. She still did not know… she still did not understand what had changed. What had made the spirit of the river leave? She would probably never know.

Câlin was still upset by it. She once said
“It’s changing. It’s so different from what it used to be. The end of the world… is this but the first sign?” Twinkle Star was not sure what to make of her daughter’s words, but they kept haunting her. The end of the world and the fading of the stars… was the disappearance of Fiume and the dark sky related? Would solving one solve the other as well?

Staring at the water, Twinkle Star kept telling herself to stop worrying. Her life was here now, with her daughters and her husband. Saving the world… it was not her destiny. Her destiny was to be here and raise these beautiful girls. Her destiny was to help Kiyoi in taking care of the forest. It was what she wanted, it was what she wanted to protect at all costs… But still she could not escape the nagging feeling that her part in this was not yet finished. What was worse, Câlin knew it as well.

“Mommie?” Twinkle Star almost jumped up as the soft voice came to her from behind. Her little daughter stood behind her, her big eyes staring at her expectantly.
 “Oh, Meran! What are you doing out of bed my dear?” Twinkle Star said as she hugged her daughter.
“I couldn’t sleep. I wish Câlin was back. I want to go look at the forest again before the winter takes all the prettiness away.” Meran said.

Twinkle Star smiled. “Câlin won’t be home for a while dear, you know that. But how about we go together?”
“But you don’t know as much as Câlin does.” Meran protested.
“No. I don’t. But maybe you can show me all Câlin has taught you?” Twinkle Star asked, and Meran shrugged.
“That will do.” She said and got up, and trotted towards the forest. Twinkle Star sped after her daughter, her worries from before all but forgotten.