Dusty's Origin: Part Three


"Solar, where are you?" I remember screaming as I was searching for my brother. It had been only about 3 months since our mother's announcement, but even after that, we saw very little of my brother. He had completely disappeared without a trace, at least for a while.

After following his tracks leading away from his home, I found him in a solitary dark cave cuddled up next to a cozy fire. This place was no doubt familiar to him for some reason, but that can be stated why later.

Seeing him there asleep brought back so many memories for me back when before we became spirits. It was back way when I was having my nightmares. Just like our Mother would, Zack always would look in on me if he heard me cry. He just had a way of sensing when I was upset, and right now it was the same thing with me. I knew when he was upset, and I wanted to do everything I could to cheer him up.


"Faster Solar, Tooth said that she'd show me Tooth Palace when she got back from Jacksonville. She could be back any moment," I said, holding my brother's hand as we surfed up higher into the sky at high speed on my brother's hoverboard.

"What was it this time I wonder," my brother said with a chuckle as we dived down past a migrating group of birds.

"I heard from Mom that Tooth had muttered something about a lateral incisor or something," I said with a giggle.

Joining in, my brother chuckled as he slowed to a medium hover as he turned around to face me. "Hey, where's Mom? I thought she was coming along, I thought I heard her say."

"She is, she just went to see if Casey wanted to come along. Mom said that she'd meet us there."

"Well then, we better hurry. Hang on," he said, leaning down hard on his foot as his board just shot forward.

Now, I know I could have gotten there myself, but with my brother's hoverboard we got there much faster due to his speed. And, I didn't want to let him out of my sight if the news of our Mother expecting got to him, again.

"I'm surprised Heather has let you out of her sight lately," I said, teasing him about Heather's crush on him. "Usually when me or Natura ask her to go check out the humidity levels, she usually asks to go see you first."

My brother's speed lowered to a moderate drift as his smile softened just a little. "Well, she knew I needed some time alone these days."

"Solar, just what is it that's bothering you? I've never seen you act like this. It's almost like you don't think anyone will understand what it is you're going through."

"Linds, please, not now," my brother sighed, pouring on the speed. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Zack, we need to talk about this. I miss you, Mom misses you, we all miss you back at home."

Looking back at me for a moment with sorrowful eyes, my brother said, "I miss you all, too."

"Just what is it that's bothering you then?"

"Nothing, alright," he said with a pinch in his voice. Sliding to a stop, he said, "We're here."

Looking up, Tooth's beautiful Tooth Palace filled my sights as its towers stretched up towards the sky, but after a stray moment my eyes returned back to behold my brother's cautious eyes peering over at the door.

Over no more than a mere wingflaps away sat Mom and our friend, Casey Aqua, chatting away at old times. Having her blue hoodie over her head, you would almost think she was Jack, but when you saw her jet black hair and her kind sapphire eyes, you knew you were face to face with the compassionate and playful water spirit herself. Casey was someone I would've loved to known back when my brother met her. He first introduced me to her no more than a few weeks ago after the defeat of Pitch and before the proposal of Mom and Sandy's wedding.

"Zack, Lindsey," I heard Mother say as she lifted her elegant head with a smile. Hiding a tear as she wiped a tired wisp of hair out her face, her other hand lowered to her side as she stood up to meet us.

Casey smiled up at us, too, as she said, "What took you two so long? We started to wonder whether you two were going to make it."

"Zack, honey, we need to talk," Mom said with a serious yet soft smile.

"About what? There's nothing to talk about, I'm fine," my brother said a little too quickly.

"Zack, something is bothering you about the baby, I know. Please, just tell me what it is and we'll work this out together."

"That's why you asked me here," my brother said, dawning on the situation in front of him. Turning to me, he said, "That's why you tracked me down, to bring me here."

"No, Zack. We did need to see you, but you were distant. You kept yourself from us, and you're hiding your feelings about our new little brother or sister from us right now, aren't you?" I asked him, coming out with the truth.

"What is it exactly that you want me to say, that I'm scared? I told you I don't want to talk about this. I'm sorry, Mom, I can't say. I can't," he said, turning to get Mom a teary almost desperate look before he took off into the air at top speed.

"Zack, wait!" Mom called out to him, flying up after him. Flying mid-flutter, Mom watched as he zoomed out from sight as she bent over with fatigue.

"Mom," I said, touching her arm, "you'll never catch him in your condition. Let me go after him. I'll find him, even if I have to drag him all the way home."

With a chuckle, Casey said, "In that case, you better let me come along. I just might know a few tricks that might slow him down to do just that."

So, that was how I ended up streaming after my brother over the northern Atlantic Sea. Casey was keeping up with us from a different aquatic level. While my brother was faster than both of us put together, Casey proved to be in her element as she swam just ahead of me as we both managed to keep pace with my brother.

Looking over his shoulder at me, his face showed his desperation and sadness as one of his tears was wiped clear of his face as he speeded even more further away.

Casey, summoning her element at work, threw up water jets up like columns in a cathedral hall, but my brother only swerved them past them all without any problem. We quickly noticed though that a wall of them slowed him down due to finding a way through it.

"One more wall and I should be able to bring him down, but you're going to have to distract him," Casey called out to me as she dove back under to send out another sturdy yet powerful wall jet wall ahead of him.

I hated to do this, because I knew that he needed his board to fly, but willing my tired wings to flap even harder, I threw myself forward to grab my brother's board right as he cleared the wall.

As his fingers almost had ahold of the board, I whispered, "I'm sorry," as I pushed him away to pull the board higher into the air as he fell towards the water.

Panicking, my brother gazed up at me as his fiery blonde hair flared up even higher as he fiercely threw out a hand to summon his board back to him.

Immediately, I felt it start to fight me as it pulled me in his direction, and my wing strength paid it no resistance. He almost had it back when a huge jet spray of water hit straight in the face.

Sputtering, he fell out of the sky and into the sea. Surfacing, he paddled madly as he shivered and his firelight immediately went out. With his hair drenching wet, his sodden and burnt brown hair fell flat against his face as he turned a resigned face up to face us.

"You think that no one understands what you're going through. Think again, I do," Casey said, looking him straight in the eye.


Here's Chapter 3. This chapter took a lot of thinking, so please enjoy. :)