Family bonds

“We’re going to land here, Câlin.” Twinkle Star pointed at the crossroads below. It was the middle of the night, but she still recognized the crossroads from the last time she and Crystal had been there. The lonely sign still stood in the middle of the roads, pointing towards the deserted road that would lead them to the Friendship Lands. Next to the road still stood the large deserted buildings, throwing a shadow over the fields behind them. The light from the crescent moon seemed to lose its strength in this deserted place. Everything was dark and lonely, ignored for years by merchants and travelers.

They landed behind the crossroads in the long grass. Câlin landed not as graciously as she still hadn’t mastered landing without falling.
“You okay?” Twinkle Star asked, but Câlin didn’t reply as she was trying to get up.
“You got to practice, you know. One of these days you’ll get really hurt.”
Twinkle Star smiled as Câlin gave her an annoyed glance. She knew Câlin couldn’t stand it that she couldn’t land properly yet, but she refused to listen to advice. Yet Twinkle Star trusted Câlin, she knew she would get it right some day on her own.

Twinkle Star stared to the road that would lead them to Madash. It wasn’t that far now, especially if they would keep up their flying through half of the night. A few days, maybe, before they would be able to smell the salty air that came to them from the sea. It had taken her and Crystal quite a bit longer, as they had to stick to the road, and they had met Jiro, a pony that had traveled with them to Madash who had a crush on her sister. They probably had to visit that village to get some supplies for the last part of their journey, but they could avoid a detour by not following the road for most of the time, something she was unable to do with Crystal because without being able to fly, there might be obstacles they couldn’t cross on foot. But for now, they had to rest. They had been flying for over two hours, and it was time for them to sleep.

“Where are we?” Câlin asked as she made her wings disappear.
“The crossroads…” Twinkle Star whispered, as she observed the deserted buildings that stood near the roads. Old inns, or old café’s… when the old Lands were still there, this had been a busy route, linking Madash to them… but that was a long time ago, and now hardly anyone ever took these roads anymore… That afternoon, Twinkle Star had even heard someone in a store say they were haunted.

“This road leads us back home.” Câlin noticed, and she pointed at the sign that said ‘Friendship Lands.’ Twinkle Star smiled.
“I’m sorry Câlin, it doesn’t. It doesn’t lead us home… it leads to the old Friendship Lands. But they’re ruined now.”
Had Illuvia ever told Câlin about her mother, the old lands? Twinkle Star suddenly realized she had never even told her about where they came from. Did Câlin even know that they were closely related?

“Why do they have the same name? That makes no sense.” Câlin sighed while she opened Twinkle Star’s bag and took out a few slices of bread and two banana’s.
“No, Câlin, it does make sense. The Friendship Lands this sign points to… it used to be our home. But it was destroyed in a volcano eruption, and thousands of ponies died. My mother… she was the crown princess. The queen died, and my mother became the queen of the surviving ponies. They founded a new land in a small region in the mountains, given to them by the Tokowa Lands.”

Twinkle Star wondered if Câlin had heard that story before. The way she looked, though, made Twinkle Star think this was the first time ever for Câlin. She stared at the sky, as if she was counting the stars in the endless blue. The wind played with Câlin’s pink hair as she closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, Twinkle Star thought her eyes were like little stars themselves. It took her a moment to realize that her tears were only reflecting the moonlight.

“I wish I could turn off the stars… they’re staring at me.”  Câlin whispered as she sat down on the dusty road. The large house behind her looked as dark and gloomy as Twinkle Star remembered it from the last time she was there. This place was deserted, and avoided by everyone. She seriously wondered whether anyone had visited the crossroads since her last visit last fall. Accompanied only by the stars… Twinkle Star could see what Câlin meant. In this lonely place the stars shone unusually bright.

“The Friendship Lands… It is where I come from… right?” She asked without taking her eyes off the stars.
“Well, sort of. Your… grandmother, your mother’s mother, Reine… she was my mother’s older sister. She was forced to leave the country because she… did something unforgivable. She gave birth to Chifre and your mother in exile… and when you were born this country was already gone. So you do come from there…” Twinkle Star could see this was not the answer Câlin desired, but she did not know what else to tell her.

“So we’re family… I knew that.” Câlin whispered. She seemed to return to normal a little bit, looking at her surroundings instead of the sky now.
“Yes, we are… your mother was my cousin.” Once again, Twinkle Star got the impression this was not the answer Câlin desired, but she let it pass.
“Well, Câlin, we should eat something and get some sleep. We have to go on tomorrow. I want to get to Madash as soon as possible.”
“I know.”

They ate in silence, and even during their meal Câlin was already yawning. She was tired, Twinkle Star knew that. They traveled a lot during the night, and Câlin had trouble sleeping when the sun was up, which was quite early these days. After Twinkle Star was done cleaning their plates, she noticed Câlin already lay curled up, sleeping. She had wanted to move a bit into softer grass, but she didn’t want to wake her up, either, so she took Câlin’s blanket out of her bag and covered the girl. “Sweet dreams, little Câlin…” She whispered, and she lay down beside her, covering herself with her own blanket.

The next morning everything looked different. The sun was shining and Twinkle Star was awoken by the singing of a bird. The empty inn didn’t look as scary, and the fields didn’t seem as empty as the night before. She was surprised to find Câlin wasn’t sleeping next to her. Instead, she was sitting in front of the sign in the middle of the road. One sign still clearly read Trading Village Tarem, but the sign pointing towards the road they had to take was completely faded, and Twinkle Star wondered if it once had said Madash, or were they still too far away and it had said something else? You could still read Friendship Lands on the third sign, but it was much more faded than the sign that read Tarem.

Câlin was staring into the direction of the Friendship Lands, as if she was trying to catch a glimpse of the mountains that had marked it’s border. Her tail was moving a little constantly, going right and left all the time.
“Hey, what are you doing up so early?” Twinkle Star asked as she approached Câlin.
“Couldn’t sleep.” She answered shortly.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Did you get enough rest, though?”
“Yes. We can travel on after breakfast.”  Câlin replied, still staring at the road. Twinkle Star gazed into the distance now, too, trying to see what Câlin was looking at, but she didn’t see anything unusual. A bird flew out of a lonely tree, and the soft breeze sometimes swept the soft sand from the ground. Nothing that seemed out of order.

“Do you see something?” She asked at last, when Câlin did not give up either.
“Not now. Earlier though, I thought I had… I felt… something out there. I don’t know. But I guess it’s gone now.”  Câlin sighed deeply and got up. Together they walked back to their blankets and bags. Twinkle Star didn’t remember hearing or seeing anything, but she had been sound asleep, so it was very well possible that something, or someone, had been out there earlier. It reminded her of the night she had been there with Crystal once again.

She had seen someone too, or so she thought… she still wasn’t sure. The pony she had seen in the mountains of the old Lands, when she had been looking for Stelline… she had been there that night. Was she still dwelling here? No… if she had, Twinkle Star was sure she would have felt the overwhelming royal powers she possessed. Unless she wanted her stay here to remain a secret this time, but she couldn’t hide herself from Câlin… for whatever reason.

Twinkle Star once more wondered who that pony had been, anyway. She hadn’t seen her ever since the last time she had been on the crossroads. Twinkle Star was sure she was still out there somewhere, but… Well, she had no time to investigate that now. They had to eat their breakfast and get on their way to Madash. They would meet the village where she and Crystal had met Jiro soon, but after that, Twinkle Star was a bit on her own. Last time, she had trusted Jiro to guide them to Madash. This time, she had to find the way to the coast by herself.

They ate their breakfast in silence once again, but quickly. Packing their bags didn’t take long and they were walking on the dusty road only a few minutes later. The sun was shining strong, which made the sandy road shine in their eyes. They met some more deserted houses and inns along the way, and at some point even a farm, whose fields were overgrown with strange weeds now.
“There really hasn’t been anyone here for a long time…” Twinkle Star said to herself.
“No… they left. The new road is where they all are, I think.”  Câlin replied, surprising Twinkle Star.
“Was this road like this when you were here last time?” She asked.
“Yes, it was. There is another crossroad a few days from here, and after that, the road gets busier until we run into a little village. Then, it gets deserted again… Until we reach Madash. The most common route takes us too far in the wrong direction, so we take the lonely road that follows the old river banks of Fiume. I only met one pony on that road…”

Yes, she had met only one pony there… the pony that had seen her wings even though she had hidden them, someone no one had ever been able to do. Jaze, she had called herself. A lot of strange things had happened on her previous journey to Madash, she realized now.
“Anything wrong?” Câlin asked, when she realized Twinkle Star wasn’t going to continue her story.
“I… no, nothing is wrong, Câlin. I was just thinking about that person I met on that road. She was a bit… extraordinary.”
 “Why?” Câlin asked curiously.

“Well, that girl… she could see my wings, even though I had hidden them. It was really weird… even I can’t see them right now. Can you see yours when you hide them?”
“No… but you met a very special pony.”
Twinkle Star blinked. “What do you mean?”
“Well…” Câlin hesitated, “Mommy once told me the ponies who could see my wings were very special. The only ones, she said… who could turn the coming night into the dawn of the future.”