Far and Away

Silence fell. Twinkle star tried to keep the feelings of these ponies away from her, she tried to say to herself not to feel too shocked or touched by this, but she couldn’t do it. She knew what it was like. She had been there, she had seen it, the horrors of what happened, the ponies that died… Maybe in that way the story of this family wasn’t special, maybe they had even been lucky to survive with the three of them, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t painful or sad.

“When we reached this place we found a few ponies that had survived and wanted to rebuild this little village.”, Aline’s father continued after a while. “We didn’t know what else to do; we had never been out of the Friendship Lands, we have never been interested in the world out here. So we decided to stay there, help the ponies rebuild the little village , raise you here as if you were one of the ponies here. We thought it would be best for you, if you didn’t know too much, we didn’t want you to go back there, not after what had happened to the scouts anyway… We wanted you to have a normal life, like any other child.” Aline’s father said. Aline nodded. “I understand.” This reaction surprised Twinkle star quite a bit. She somewhat expected Aline to be at least surprised, or angry, or something… but she was none of those things. She even smiled a bit. “Really, I understand. Even though I’m not surprised. It feels as if somehow that what I expected all along has been confirmed.”

For a moment nobody said anything, the only sound was the sobbing of Aline’s mother. Twinkle Star felt a bit uneasy here, being here with a family she didn’t know, while they are sharing their emotions… She was still a bit puzzled with Aline’s reaction, too. Of course it would be obvious that she would realise this was the truth she had known in her heart all her life, but Twinkle star thought it was highly unusual for her to be so calm about it. Aline wasn’t faking her reaction, either. She really didn’t show any signs of anger or pain, and Twinkle Star knew that if Aline was only faking she would have noticed. Usually she could judge people’s emotions just by looking at them. But Aline was calm, a bit hurt, yes, but not upset at all…

Suddenly Aline’s mother looked at Twinkle Star. “Your highness… begging your pardon for asking this, but why are you here? Why did you come back?” Twinkle Star sighed and explained her about what had happened to her; about finding the new Friendship Lands her mother had founded, about leaving them again (though without telling them the real reason), about hearing Stelline might be alive and the fact that she was looking for her. Aline’s parents were speechless. “We… we didn’t know… Her highness is alive? She has founded a new country?” Twinkle Star nodded. “And I have to go look for Stelline. I want to find her. After all, she is my mother’s real heir to the throne, so I will do whatever I can to find her.” “And that is why you came here? To find clues about her whereabouts, you’re not saying she has been here in this village?” Aline’s mother asked. “I… no.” Twinkle Star sighed. “I didn’t come to this village because of the village, in fact it was just a coincidence, I didn’t even know it was here until I saw it earlier this morning. I wanted to rest here for the night, before I could go on. I am following the river Fiume back to the old lands.” A painful silence fell. Twinkle Star knew what Aline’s parents were thinking. Going back to that dreadful place… She looked at Aline. She was still calm, there even was a little twinkle in her eyes, now. What on earth was up with that girl? “The princess lives there? She has been so close for so long and we didn’t know? Why did she not come out, why didn’t she go looking for us?” Aline’s mother asked at last. “That is something I want to find out.” Twinkle Star answered. “I will go and look for her as soon as possible.”  “But my lady… I… Have you ever heard of the prophecy, the story behind it? I do not want to see you in any danger, but…” Aline’s mother began. “I heard about the prophecy already, ma’am, but I do not fear it… I know I have to go, and there is nothing that can stop me anymore.”

That evening Twinkle Star was invited to spend the night at Aline’s house, so she could rest a bit before she would depart first thing in the morning. She talked with Aline’s parents the entire evening. They talked about the new lands, Twinkle Star told them all she knew, and Aline’s parents were doubting whether they should go to the new lands or stay in the little village, but in the end they decided to stay; they had build their lives up here now, they were happy here, and even though they were very happy to hear Regina was still alive and the Friendship Lands were founded again, they didn’t want to give this up, especially after they heard they weren’t needed there. Aline had been quiet the entire evening, even though she was there with her parents and Twinkle Star all the time. Her mind seemed far away and Twinkle Star hadn’t been able to understand what she had been thinking of, though she completely understood why she was so absent. It probably wasn’t easy, having your life changed like this so suddenly… Twinkle Star felt a bit guilty about it. It was because of her that Aline’s life had changed so much, or at least this is how Twinkle Star felt about it. She didn’t really know what Aline thought, all she noticed the entire evening Aline was just like that, calm, far away… What else was going on in her mind? But even though Twinkle Star was curious why Aline was so calm, Twinkle Star decided not to worry too much about it. She had other, more important things on her mind for now. Tomorrow she was going to cross the plains, and by the looks of things it wouldn’t be such a pleasant journey. She hoped she could fly for the most part, as there were no ponies living there…

Twinkle Star didn’t sleep very well that night, even though she was finally sleeping in a nice, soft and comfortable bed in a nice room with walls in the same soft-green colour that had been used in the living room, but also in all the other parts of the house. The colour combination had been the house colours of Aline’s family. All the steward families had their own colours, just as red-orange-yellow were the colours of Twinkle Star’s own family, the royal family… Twinkle Star couldn’t stop thinking about what was coming up in her life; she was getting close now. Somehow her doubts had gotten a hold of her again; was it really such a good idea to go back? She didn’t doubt the fact that she wanted to go back and find Stelline, but now that she had found other survivors, who told her she was really close… It gave her a weird, uneasy feeling she couldn’t really describe. Could she really face going back to her old home again? True, it was sixteen years ago since she was there last, but the idea of going back…

The next morning Twinkle Star awoke from a dreamless sleep because of the noises coming from further away in the house. The sun wasn’t even up yet she noticed, and everything around her was dark. She got out of her bed and brushed her hair a bit before she grabbed her bag. She made sure she had all her stuff with her before she left the room; her blanket, some empty bottles, her plates… After she had made sure she had everything, she left her room and walked through the empty house. She entered the little shop where she found Aline’s mother working already to make sure everything was in place when the store would open later that morning. “Good morning, my lady. Are you leaving already?” She asked, when she noticed Twinkle Star. Twinkle Star nodded. “Yes, I am sorry. I like the idea of departing while it is still dark. I don’t want to explain to anyone where I am going. Apparently most ponies think the old lands are cursed and should be avoided at all cost, and I don’t want people to start complaining or trying to stop me.” Aline’s mother looked at Twinkle Star. “they do think that, and with good reason. The things that have happened there after the eruption… I don’t think anyone ever came back alive. You have heard the stories yesterday, and I heard Aline has told you some stuff, too. I really hope you know what you are doing, my lady, going back and all… but I guess you have no other choice.” Twinkle Star was happy Aline’s mother agreed with her. “I don’t. I don’t know why, but there is no other way for me. To find me, to find what I am alive for… for that, I’ll have to find my sister.” Aline’s mother gave Twinkle Star a little bag. Twinkle Star fond out it was full with fruits and vegetables. “For your journey, my lady. Please, stay close to the river. There will be no water anywhere else.” “I will. Ma’am, Please say hi to Aline for me when you talk to her. Thank her for all her help, for taking me to you. I am glad I met you and your family. It is good to know you have survived.” Aline’s mother promised to talk to Aline, and with a last goodbye Twinkle Star left the store.

Fiume disappeared into an endless nothing. Nothing at all. Just a brown surface, interrupted by Fiume’s crystal clear flow. The sun was rising now, and Twinkle Star had managed to leave the village without being noticed. Now she was at the same place where she had been yesterday, before she noticed the village. “Well,” she said to herself, “this is it than. No turning back, only going back…” With this she walked onto the brown rocks. They still felt the same. Soft, but also hard, and she noticed it was all very dry and dusty, even so close to the river. It was almost as if the river wasn’t really there, as if it was just a reflection of something beautiful that had disappeared long ago. But she knew the river was real, she knew everything around her was real. Real and deserted. Never, in her entire life, had she seen such a lonely place before. There was nothing, nothing, nothing at all… She would be lonely here. “Twinkle Star!” A voice yelled. Now what, Twinkle Star thought surprised, and she turned around. A pony was running towards her. She couldn’t see who it was very clearly because of the rising sun, but she didn’t have to see who it was to know. She had recognised the voice. “Aline! What on earth are you doing here? You shouldn’t be here!” She said, when Aline had reached her. Aline was out of breath. She had been galloping very hard, to catch up with Twinkle Star. “I… I am coming with you.” She said, still out of breath. “What!” Twinkle Star yelled, much louder than she actually wanted to, but she couldn’t fight down her surprise. What on earth was this pony talking about? “Aline, you can’t come with me! You know it is dangerous just as much as I do, but you have no business there!” “That’s not true!” Aline yelled. “That’s not true! I do have my business there, I always have! Remember what I told you yesterday? That this place attracted me? I know why now! I was born there, just like mom and dad, just like you!  You should understand, I want to go there, I want to… I want to know.” Twinkle Star was a bit shocked by Aline’s words. She noticed the tears in Aline’s eyes, the tremble in her voice. “I don’t remember, Twinkle Star, I don’t know. I don’t know anything about it, and I want to, because I do feel it’s power. I want to, I have to, please, Twinkle Star… let me come with you…” “Aline…” Twinkle Star didn’t really understand why, but suddenly she understood Aline’s feelings. She knew what she felt and she realised she had been wrong. There was a reason for Aline to go back. “You had decided this yesterday already, didn’t you. When your parents told you the truth.” Slowly Aline raised her head. “How did you know?” “Thinks like that… I guess I just know.” Twinkle Star smiled and hinted Aline to follow her.