Hello all! This chapter is updated 03/27/19. Most of the chapters after this will hopefully be of similar length or longer. If you're reading this story for the first time or revisiting it, keep an eye out for updated chapters with a date stamp. There's a lot more content coming to the chapters which are already published, as well as just longer new chapters in the future. This story will also soon be cross posted on Ao3, so if you'd like to read it without the old chapters hanging around, look for it there! Enjoy!

Chapter 1

As I came into being, my first recollection was of being suspended in a vast nothingness, only my sense of self to indicate I existed at all. Then I became aware of sensations in the darkness. I felt a warmth on my face, and the soft caress of a summer breeze on my cheeks. Beneath me the ground was soft, and small blades of uncut grass tickled my back. The sound of the air on my face suddenly registered with my ears, then another sound, and another. As the symphony of the world came crashing down around me, I heard the wind now rustling through the trees overhead. Farther away I heard the soft pattering footfalls of an animal off in the distance, and the incessant bubbling of a stream. High above me in the dark I could hear the whooshing of the air and swear to this day that I heard the clouds themselves tumbling across the sky. I took it all in and then became aware of the smells.

The breeze was fresh and filled with the various scents of life. I could smell many different flowers and fruits, and the hazy overlay of recent summer rain. The air was so clean, not a single trace of pollution, and I could almost smell the very time of day. At the time, I didn't know what any of the things I was experiencing were, just that everything… was. As I'm sure you can imagine, it was very disorienting. It was all so new and exciting. I could feel the fresh earth beneath my back and the sun on my face. The wind was warm and everything just... simply... Was.

Then I heard a voice. It was the sweetest, strongest, most compelling voice I have ever heard. It was filled with compassion, joy, and love. It filled me with intense emotions, and I wanted to cry and laugh and shout for joy all at once! And it said to me, "Open your eyes."

So I immediately did exactly that, and it was better than a blind man suddenly being able to see. The colors were brighter, details were sharper, and the whole entire world was suddenly a real tangible thing. I looked at his (and I use the term "he" loosely, the figure before me didn't have a gender, but most of the people I would later encounter referred to "him" as such. So, as not to be overly political and for the sake of convenience, I'll do likewise) face and felt so small. All the words in the world couldn't do him justice. His eyes were a shifting rainbow of colors, sparkling and changing from moment to moment, and held an expression of excitement and childlike pride. Since I first looked into those eyes, I've never been able to forget the feeling of safely that washed over me. One thing I can say however, was that he seemed to radiate a light that I just couldn't pin down. When I looked away, I could see it in the edges of my vision and it was blinding, but when I looked back it was gone and yet still there somehow.

As I gazed at him, he smiled and said, "Your name is Starlight. You are special. Stand up child." As I got to my feet he nodded and gestured to the surrounding land. I looked around in wonder and saw hundreds of trees laden with fruit and flowers, berry covered bushes, and wild grass. A stream wound its way through the foliage and colorful birds sang overhead. I could see the blue sky through the leaves and the sunbeams filtering down onto the ground. Small creatures darted around both on the ground and in the treetops, calling to each other with various short chirping noises. There was so much to take in and I almost became overwhelmed, but as I turned back and looked up at him, I smiled.

"This is your home child. You may go anywhere you wish. See the trees? They are filled with delicious fruits. You may eat as many as you like. And the animals, their blood is for you." He held out his hand. I took it, and as we wandered through the paradise he started telling me what everything was. Every time we'd encounter something new, he'd stop and point it out, giving me some type of interesting fact about it. I learned of all the animals and their names, and of all the different plants and colors and many other things. Then I asked, "If my name is Starlight, what shall I call you?"

"Teacher," he smiled.

Soon we came to a small clearing. A man and women were lounging by the banks of the stream. The far bank was hidden by reeds and dragonflies darted around the area. She had her hand in the water and flicked some droplets onto the man. He laughed and splashed her back. Looking in our direction she sat up. "Father!"

The man looked over and the two of them stood up. "Father, it is good to see you!"

"Hello children. I have brought you a companion. Her name is Starlight." Teacher nodded towards the two saying. "Starlight, this is Adam. He will be your Father. This is Eve, she will be your Mother. They will look after you."

"Hello," I waved shyly at them. Eve smiled at me and I could tell she was excited to see someone new. Looking back, I suppose it made sense. As I grew to know them, I'd always been closer to Eve and understood her better than Adam. We had the same passion for discovery and new things and quickly bonded over it. Adam was also an extremely curious person, but his curiosity had an unhealthy passive edge to it. He had a habit of standing by to watch things happen, regardless of what he expected the outcome to be or if it should be prevented. Eve also had her own shortcomings. She had a vast amount of patience, but after it ran out, she had no more tolerance for things. She had the ability to look at a situation from all angles, but tended to focus more on some facts than others. These traits wouldn't have been much of an issue, nor would Adam's faults, if it hadn't been for the sad fact that the two just didn't work well together. Their unique personality quirks, which at first had seemed endearing, ended up causing friction between them, leading to arguments and bitter grudges. Of course I knew none of this to start with and was intrigued at the prospect of getting to know them.

Teacher nodded at them and gently nudged me forward. I frowned as a thought suddenly struck me. "Teacher?"

"Yes child?"

"Are you leaving now?" My brow furrowed. I didn't want to let go of the sense of safety I felt around him.

He looked at me with rueful condolence and raised a hand to the back of his neck. "I'm afraid I must."

"Will you come back?"

"Of course child!" he grinned and ruffled my firey hair.

Hearing this, I nodded with a happy smile and ran to my new Mother and Father. "Good bye Teacher!" I called.

"Goodbye children. Until we meet again!" We all waved and Teacher walked back the way he had come.

I turned my full attention to my new family, "Hello Father. Hello Mother!" I was unsure of what I was supposed to do, so I just stood there, my hands hanging lamely at my sides.

"Hello Starlight," Eve smiled at me, bending down to my level and peering into my face. "You are very pretty. Your eyes are like gold." Her complexion was darker than Adam's, a sort of mid hued coffee color. Her hair and eyes were both brown and when the caught in the sun, both had brassy undertones, through her eyes also held glints of a yellowy green.

"Yes," Adam agreed. His voice was deeper, a rich baritone, and held a note of avid intrigue. His hair was black and he also had brown eyes but his were much darker than Eve's. "Hello Starlight. Tell us, do you always sparkle like this?" He reached out a hand to touch my cheek, and while his touch wasn't rough, I still didn't quite feel comfortable with the close proximity to these new people.

"No," I took a step back out of the direct sunlight (and his reach) and shook my head. "Only in the sun."

"I see." He dropped his hand and cocked his head, "What did Father tell you?" He and Eve sat down again and motioned for me to join them.

"He told me of all the things in the world and their names," I said as I sat down. Eve opened her arms and gently pulled me into her lap. I didn't resist, though I was still slightly tense. I soon realized when my attention was captured by one of the iridescent bugs. It had landed on my knee and I stroked a finger along it's back, fascinated as it's wings fluttered.

"Did he tell you what you are?"

"I'm not sure what you mean," I frowned. The bug started to hover again, it's wings beating rapidly. "He said my name is Starlight. That's it, why?" I looked up at him as the bug flew off to join it's friends.

"Because it is my job to name all the things on this earth. I think it shall name you... Lucian. It means light."

"Like Starlight!" I giggled. For some reason the title made me immensely pleased.

"Yes. Like Starlight!" he agreed and reached over playfully to ruffle my hair as Teacher had done.

"If I'm a Lucian, then what are you?" I shook my head to settle my hair and Eve huffed as it hit her in the face. She ran her fingers through the errant locks to smooth them down.

"We are Humans," Adam said bit proudly, like a child stating his age. "It is our job to take care of the earth."

I looked around at the lush paradise in wonder. This place was huge and it wasn't even the whole earth! I looked up at Eve and then fixed Adam with an intense look. "What is my job?"

"Your job is to help us," Adam grinned. "Come, feel the water. It is nice."

I stayed with them from then on. We explored the garden and I made friends with some of the more friendlier animals. Teacher would come to visit everyday and would teach me new things. I had so many questions. Many of them I would ask Adam or Eve, and if they didn't know I would ask Teacher. Through talking with Teacher, I learned a lot about how everything worked, including science. The terms were different, but I understood the basic concepts of the universe. He warned me that not everyone would be accepting of the knowledge and that sometimes I needed to recognize what's worth my effort and what isn't. It wasn't until much later that I understood what he meant.

One day I was climbing my favorite tree when a little green serpent approached me. "Hello Serpent!" I called, preparing to jump from the branch I was on.

"Hello. What are you doing?" It asked as I flew from one branch to another. It kept pace with me on the ground easily enough.

"I'm swinging like the Monkeys. What are you doing?" I shot back. I didn't like this particular serpent much. It was different from the others. Usually they just minded their own business and liked to sun themselves on rocks or slither about looking for cool places to hide. Some were curious, but none of them overly so. This one was very nosey and very annoying.

"I just talked with Eve."

"Did you?" I didn't bother to conceal the distaste in my voice. "What did she say?"

"I asked her why your Teacher," it sneered the word, "forbade them from eating fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden. The big one with the special fruit. You've eaten it, haven't you? She said your Teacher told them they would die. But of course he lied. She ate the fruit and she didn't die. Neither did Adam..." it hissed in mockery.

"What?!" I almost fell out of the tree at it's admission. "Why did they disobey Teacher? And I actually haven't eaten it for your information! It smells funny." That- that was unthinkable. Why? There was no reason to do so. What could possibly have induced them to-

"I expect they had realized he had lied," the serpent's voice was filled with derision.

"No." My tone was final. "Teacher doesn't lie. He doesn't need to. Now they will die. Oh Mother! Oh Father!" I jumped from the tree and ran back to our main clearing as fast as I could. That serpent! As I ran, I was enveloped with a new emotion- rage. My ire mounted the more I thought about the situation and it seemed to battle for dominance the worry and bewilderment towards my family. Why? Why? I didn't understand… As I neared, I hear the sound of arguing voices. "Mother! Father!" I called, a bit desperately to be honest.

"Starlight!" A broken voice resounded from the bushes.

"Mother?" I came to an abrupt halt and glanced around anxiously.

"Starlight come here! You are naked!" Eve reprimanded. The bush she was in shook slightly as a hand popped out and waved me over.

"So? I don't care! Mother tell me you two did not eat the fruit! The Serpent said you did!" I crossed my arms.

"We did," came the ashamed reply.

"Why?"

"He tricked me!" Eve huffed argrily. "The Serpent said Father knew that if we eat the fruit, we would be like him. And Adam was no help at all! He was RIGHT THERE and didn't even say anything against the Serpent! I ate some and nothing happened, then I handed Adam the rest and he didn't have to eat it- no he didn't! -but he did, and then our eyes were opened and now he blames me for giving it to him! I didn't know anything would happen if he ate it, seeing as nothing happened after I ate it! It wasn't until after HE ate it that anything happened at all! And I now realize that nothing happened because Father told ADAM that he couldn't eat it, and never said anything to me. It was ADAM that told me I couldn't eat it, not Father!"

"The rule applied to both of us! And you know it!" Adam countered, hostility coloring his tone.

"I know it NOW! You didn't even try to stop me from eating it! You wanted to see what would happen, and after nothing did, you thought you'd be able to get away with it! You've always been this way, I just couldn't see it before! You KNEW it wasn't allowed and did it anyway! I had a vague idea that it wasn't allowed only because you said it wasn't! I wasn't even created yet when he told you that!"

"You should have known!" Adam yelled. "I told you it wasn't allowed and you did it anyway! You're just like her!" I wasn't sure which 'her' he was talking about, I was the only other 'her' here and I felt a stab of hurt. His last comment effectively silenced Eve, who also seemed confused. I later learned that he hadn't been talking about me but about his first wife. I was never quite clear on what happened there, but apparently she'd refused to sleep with him- and good on her! Adam was a stuck up prick anyway so no loss there. Eve soon found her voice again and it was evident that she was holding back tears.

"I didn't know what I was doing before! I didn't know what wrong even WAS until after you ate the damn fruit! Don't pin this on me! Yes, I shouldn't have done it, but you didn't even try to stop me! Why didn't you at least TRY? You just stood there and watched me make a monumental mistake and didn't say anything!" Eve was crying by this point, and I was understandably very upset. I'd never heard either of them raise their voices at each other before. I started to approach the bushes they were hiding in when I heard a voice calling for them.

"Adam! Eve! Where are you children?" Teacher walked into the clearing and looked around. "Hello Starlight. Where are-"

"In the bushes," I gestured a bit helplessly with a shrug. "They... won't come out."

"Adam?" Teacher's voice was full of concern. "Are you alright? Why are you hiding?"

"I heard you in the garden. I am naked, so I hid," Adam replied from inside the bushes, his voice full of shame.

"Who told you that you were naked?" Teacher asked perplexed. He looked at me. I shook my head. "Did you eat from the tree I told you not to?"

"It was Eve's fault! She gave it to me!" Adam protested.

"It was that Serpent! He tricked me! And Adam just watched it happen and did nothing!" Eve countered.

"Where is this Serpent?" Teacher asked.

"I saw him by my favorite tree," I said angrily. "He told me of what had happened. He said you had lied about the tree. I think he was the one who lied!"

"Serpent! Come here!" Teacher commanded. The Serpent came. I watched with a fair amount of vindictive satisfaction as Teacher cursed him. Then I grew alarmed when he turned to my family with displeasure and a shocking amount anger, and cast Mother and Father out of the garden. They stumbled fearfully out, hands trying to conceal their nakedness. He mumbled to himself about how he shouldn't have made them so inquisitive or at least not set them such an impossible task, and I realized he wasn't angry at them, he was angry at himself. "Another mistake… apparently I'm just not good at matchmaking."

"Teacher?" I felt very small in that moment and my voice was barely a whisper. "Must I go too?"

"No child. You may stay. But be warned by all that has happened." He shook his head and passed a hand over his eyes. I could have sworn they were a little too shiny not be holding back tears. His voice remained steady though, so I refrained from commenting.

"Yes Teacher. May I go with Mother and Father, but still return to the Garden?" I pleaded, hope evident in my eyes.

Teacher looked at me and smiled. "Since I see your heart is good, I will allow you to do this. But if you bring anything from this garden with you whenever you leave, you will not be allowed to return. Go in peace and help your Mother and Father."

"Yes Teacher. Thank you!" I hugged him and ran after my parents. "Mother! Father! Wait for me!" As we left the garden I saw an angel take up a post at the gates. He had a flaming sword that cast a brilliant beam of light from the tip. He began waving it around his head creating a shield of light around the entire garden, prohibiting anything from getting back inside.

On that first day, we set up a camp. Adam built a fire and Eve made a bed from bits of moss she had gathered from the trees. They were both still angry at each other. We decided we needed to go hunting. Adam tried tracking but failed miserably. Even Eve was better at it than him, but she was nowhere as good as me. I went hunting on my own to avoid hearing their snide comments at each other. Never before had I truly wanted to be away from their company, and it was an unsettling feeling. I loved them dearly, regardless of their faults, and just wanted things to be as they were before. I approached the area near the garden and found a good tree to sit in. In the distance I could see the glowing dome peeking through the tops of the trees.

I reviewed the days events and tried to reconcile the disappointment I felt towards my family. I still couldn't understand why they'd done it. The garden was amazing, why do anything to risk losing the only home they'd ever known, a near perfect one at that? There were several things that bothered me. Why had the serpent thought I'd tried that blasted fruit? It smelled intoxicatingly sweet and was so strong that I usually avoided the area so as not to feel nauseous. How could they have possibly eaten it when it was so strong? How could they have stomached it? And another thing- who had Adam been talking about? Realistically I knew it probably wasn't me, he'd never voiced any concerns about me. And what did Teacher mean? Matchmaking? The questions swirled tauntingly around my head and I had no answers.

My reflections were cut short then a rumble came from my midsection. I sighed and hoped down from the tree as the sun started to near the horizon. I caught the scent of a herd of deer a few miles away and darted forward. After carefully snagging one, I found a good place to watch the sunset and drink. I sat there for a while and traced the orange and purple clouds across the sky. It soon grew dark, and with a heavy heart I returned to the camp with the deer, drained and ready to be skinned.

Wordlessly, I offered my family the deer. I helped them build a fire and they ate the meat in tense silence and went to sleep. I kept watch in the night, guarding the camp from wild animals. Life went on from there as well as could be expected. Their relationship slowly got better over time, but it was never fully repaired itself. Adam forever blamed Eve for his own mistake, and Eve never forgave Adam for it. They had more children, Humans, and eventually they grew old and died. Teacher had made other Humans by then and Eve's children each made families of their own. Their descendants built villages and soon more Humans were born and cities sprung up here and there over time, and I… I would go visit the garden as often as I could. I'd stay there for years at a time, to avoid some of the more mean spirited Humans. I couldn't understand why anyone was discontent, but I carefully observed the world and events that followed and eventually learned to trace problems back to their source and I felt pity for them. This sparked questions about myself, and there were those that I could not answer, no matter how hard I thought. These questions I would as Teacher, as he alone I could trust to give an unbiased answer.

One time I asked him about why he allowed such terrible people with terrible motivations to exist. He replied that Humans had cursed themselves with the knowledge of right and wrong, and that it was up to each individual to choose what they did with the knowledge. On another occasion I asked Teacher a burning question I had been thinking of for a while. "Teacher," I said. "Why is it that all living things have others of their kind, Humans each have a mate, and all the other Animals have a mate, but I don't?"

Then Teacher told me, "You have the power to choose your own mate. You can mark Humans to become like you, fast and strong, and live side by side with the Humans. But choose wisely, for not everyone would appreciate such an opportunity and they all bring their own trouble with them."

When I left the garden next, his words were at the forefront of my thought. I'd made several friends over the years, happy souls with similar values. My most recent friend was a young girl of fifteen. Her family were farmers and she wanted nothing more than to leave her household and go exploring with me. I stopped by her home, intending to tell her the news. "Lily!" I knocked on the door. "It's me, Starlight!"

"Hello Starlight!" Lily laughed as she open the door. Her family hadn't come in from the fields just yet, and she was tending to their dinner alone. "What brought you to my home at this time of day?"

I looked at the setting sun and laughed. "For you it is late, but for me it never gets late! Lily, guess what Teacher told me today!"

"What?" Lily waved me inside with an amused smile and we sat down in front of the hearth. Lily was one of the nicer Humans, who wasn't as touched by the evils of the world. She had a kind heart and always made time for me.

"Well, you know how everything has others of its kind, but I don't? Guess what!" I grinned. "Teacher says I can choose others to become like me! Anyone I want! Isn't that great?"

"My! It most certainly is!" Lily agreed as she stirred the meal. "Who will you pick?"

"Well, I was thinking maybe you would like to join me…?" I hesitated, hoping I hadn't overstepped.

"Oh Starlight!" Her wide eyes shined with excitement. She shifted to face me, the meal forgotten. "I would like nothing better! How does it work?"

"Well... I have to mark you." I leaned closer, tilting my head in question.

"Oh well, go ahead. It's alright with me!" Lily laughed.

I nodded and embraced her. "Thank you Lily!" I buried my face in her shoulder and gently bit her neck. Her blood tasted disgusting and I pulled back, wiping my mouth with a grimace.

She shivered for a few seconds before falling forward. My eyes grew wide in alarm but I deftly caught her and carried her to her bed. Her eyes were shut but moved underneath her lids as if she were dreaming. Luckily it only lasted for a few more moments, and I watched amazed as drastic changes took place. Her skin smoothed out, her hair became fuller and her face turned even more beautiful.

About a minute after I had bitten her, she open her eyes. "Wow!" She gasped, testing out her new improved senses, much like I had at first. Her nose wrinkled as she caught the early scent of burning food. I watched as her eyes darted around the room and a brilliant smile spread across her face. She finally looked at me with an intense gaze.

"Lily?"

"Star! Is this what everything feels like to you?"

"Yes," I laughed. "And that isn't even half of it! Come on! Let me show you!" Before I took her outside, she grabbed the pot off the hearth and set it out for her family. I grabbed her hand and we raced to a nearby lake I knew of, whooping in childlike joy.

She approached the water tentatively and gazed at her reflection in awe. "Star, this is amazing!" She turned and took my hands in hers. "Thank you!"

"Yes, yes it is! And you're welcome," I said looking up at the stars. She cast her eyes upwards and even though I wasn't looking, I knew her smile had gotten wider. I closed my eyes and murmured, "Thank you Teacher."

I finally had a proper friend!

Yay! So Starlight has a friend now! The next few chapters will be a bit religious, then dip into more historical fact and mythology. Rather than taking down the story and reposting, I've decided to leave the old chapters up, so please disregard any inaccuracies within the old chapters. This will be addressed eventually. Thanks for reading and as always, reviews help me break through the depression to update faster!