Cyclical
Gravity is a force that cannot be ignored. Many have tried to escape it by leaping off the ground, eyes fixed on the stars, only to find themselves back on the ground. Feet locked on the ground, eyes still fixed on the stars, they try again, drawn by another form of gravity: the inevitable pull of dreams, of transcending what is possible, of flying. It is a cycle that goes on forever.
She still remembers that night, on her high school track field. She ran. Each step heavier than the last, but her body felt light, as if it were being pulled by an invisible thread toward the pillar of light that began to appear in front of her. She saw the boy's expectant face and leaped into his arms with so much ease as if gravity had released her from its grip, as if she were as light as a feather.
She can never forget. The memory pushes through her thoughts, refusing to be forgotten, begging to be noticed. Sometimes she thinks it would be better to forget. The mind is easily convinced, but the heart, not so much. And so she remembers: "I'll never forget you." It is a cycle that will perhaps go on forever.
It happens again. A strange pillar of light appears, and a girl is transported to Gaea. The girl with long light brown hair and bright green eyes finds herself alone in front of a grave, surrounded by trees and flowers in full bloom. The place was strange and yet vaguely familiar, as if she had seen in it in a dream.
"Did you come from the Mystic Moon?"
She turns around and sees a young man standing in front of her. His armor and the sword strapped on to his side made him look intimidating, but his amber eyes expressed kindness. He notices her unease toward his battle-ready appearance, so he drops his sword, looks at her intently, and asks "Did you come from the Mystic Moon?"
The Mystic Moon, she remembers those strange words from the stories her grandmother would tell her about a mysterious land called Gaea where you could see the Earth and the moon hanging above the sky. She locks eyes with the boy and nods. "Is this Gaea?" she asks tentatively.
"How did you know?" he asks.
"My grandmother told me stories, and I've seen this place in a dream, I think," she replies. He smiles, recalling the stories of his grandfather about a girl from the Mystic Moon who saved all of Gaea. Perhaps this girl's presence means that the war will be over soon. He removes the pendant from his neck and gives it to the girl.
Scenes change rapidly. The boy and girl are attacked by a troop of enemy warriors in the forest. He takes her hand, and he leads her to a chamber where a giant machine slumbers. He tells her that his grandfather never wanted to use this machine again for war, but now they have no choice. She sees visions of brutal deaths, burned down cities, and brutal battles. She cries and begs for it stop, but he kisses her hand and assures that it will all be okay. She watches him on the battlefield, whispering to herself that he'll be okay. He sees her and vows to protect her at all cost. War separates them, but the gravity between the girl and the dragon is far too strong to let them be apart for long. He loves her, and she loves him, and somehow that was enough to end a war. History repeats itself, they said. Eventually the war is over, and she returns to the Mystic Moon with another promise of "I'll never forget you." She never forgot nor did he, even when they were in their own worlds, in the arms of other people.
It happens again. A strange pillar of light appears, and a girl is transported to Gaea. She meets the dragon: a boy of royal blood who vows to protect her no matter what. A war commences. Her visions come true: lives are lost, cities are destroyed, battles are fought. They fall in love. The war ends. She returns to her own world with another promise of "I'll never forget you." History repeats itself over and over and over again. The gravity between the girl and the dragon is far too strong for even time to suppress. Each repetition tears the fabric that separates the Mystic Moon and Gaea. The tear grows wider and wider until the two worlds eventually collide to bring the two together. A war between the two worlds commences. The girl and the dragon are caught in between. It happens again and again and again and again.
Akiko Kanzaki wakes up in a sweat. She's been plagued by these dreams ever since her daughter returned. She never inherited her mother's clairvoyant abilities, but sometimes she has these dreams, most of them about her daughter. When Hitomi was in Gaea, she dreamt of her and the dark-haired boy who vowed to protect her daughter at all costs. The boy who had wings like an angel. Perhaps she even noticed the growing love between the two before any of them realized it.
But she hasn't said a word to Hitomi. It's been four years, after all: enough time to forget. But she knew that her daughter could never forget. She only pretended to ignore the way Hitomi would scream that boy's name when she had nightmares, the way Hitomi always seemed to somewhere else - far far away.
Today, during breakfast, she finally told Hitomi everything.
"I know," Hitomi says calmly.
"Then I suppose you know that you need to go back," Akiko replies, taking another sip of tea.
"Will you let me?"
"I should have let you go years ago."
"I tried, but I couldn't."
Akiko looks at her daughter, a bit startled.
"Gravity," Hitomi begins, "is a force that cannot be ignored. I do feel myself being pulled back to Gaea, back to him. But something else is keeping me here." Hitomi looks at her mother and smiles.
"Oh," Akiko says with the realization that she's the reason that her daughter couldn't return to the place she really belonged. She wanted her to daughter to stay with her so badly, she willed it to happen. "I'm sorry, Hitomi. I just wanted you to stay with us,"
"Don't be, Mom. I wanted to come back too, to see you and everyone else. I love you, Mom."
"He's waiting for you, isn't he?"
"Yes, he is."
"Then go."
Hitomi smiles. "Thank you, Mom." Hitomi wraps her arms around her mother one last time and whispers, "I love you, Mom. I'll never forget you."
Akiko Kanzaki still has dreams about her daughter sometimes. Her daughter, in the arms of the young man with dark hair and the most beautiful wings. Her daughter, surrounded by people - a knight with long blonde hair, a princess, a cat girl? - overjoyed that she has finally returned. Her daughter, radiant in a flowing white dress, walking toward her king. Her daughter, cradling a little boy with dark hair and bright green eyes in her arms, telling him stories of a place called the Mystic Moon, and of the people she loved the most and would never forget.
The girl and the dragon were finally reunited because after all, gravity is a force that cannot be ignored. Years and years after, the story of the girl and the dragon will never be forgotten. It will be passed on from fathers to sons, from mothers to daughters.
It is a cycle that will perhaps go on forever.
Author's Note: Reviews would be greatly appreciated! :D