It's been forever since I updated this little story. I thought, why not now?


I'm unable to move for the next day. When I wake up from a nightmare about the life of a slave, I see Sinbad sitting at my bedside. He seems worried and horribly tired. I raise my arm and touch his hand. He shivers as he's pulled out of his own thoughts. When he sees it was me who did it, I see a small sparkle in his eyes. He picks up my hand and puts it against his head. Then he looks back at me and forces himself to smile.

"How are you feeling, Sele?" He asks me.

"Horrible," I answer, "I get the feeling I'm being torn apart from the inside."

"That doesn't surprise me. You've had a huge fever ever since you collapsed. Yamuraiha said it might be something like a twin's shared feelings. Dunya's condition has gotten worse for a while now. It could explain your sudden illness."

I shake my head. "I don't believe in something as trivial as twins sharing feelings."

"I thought so, but think about. Didn't you fall ill just like now, when the Mustashim revolt happened?"

He's right. I remember collapsing during one of our journeys. I got a high fever and slept almost nonstop for 4 days. After that I was back to normal like nothing happened. Thinking about it, it could've been caused by Dunya falling in depravity.

"If it's really something like that, then don't you think there's much more coming up?"

Sinbad tilts his head. "What do you mean?"

"Dunya dying. It's inevitable, right? If this is caused by her weakening, then her death…"

Tears come into my eyes. Then another headache, it's worse than the last time. I grab my head, close my eyes and gasp for air. I feel Sinbad's arms around mine. His voices reaches my ears, but I can't figure out what he's trying to say. He lets go of me and walks to the door. I think I hear him call for Yamuraiha. I feel sorry for her. First she had to take care of Dunya and now there's me too. Another headache appears and I feel like I'm suffocating. Why can't I get any air? I softly hear footsteps from the hallway. Suddenly a thought arises to my head. Are my arms covered? The last time I felt like I was suffocating was when I didn't have them covered. I put my arm against my forehead and feel the cold metal. So I'm really suffocating for no reason then. The footsteps have come closer. In the end one set sets in a sprint.

"Sele! Sele! Can you hear me!" It's Yamuraiha. She really came. I try to open my eyes, but I can't get them further than slits. It seems she's more than happy with that response though.

"What's wrong with her?" I hear Sinbad ask.

"I don't know. Dunya's condition is pretty stable, so I don't see why this should be happening."

"Maybe it's not your twin bond." Sinbad teases her.

"I doubt it's anything else though. And could you please go away for now. I need to focus on Sele here. I think this should help…"

I hear her say one of her spells and suddenly the air is back again. I pant and take all the air I can breathe to me. Then I black out once again, hearing the voices of my dear friends calling out my name.

….

When I open my eyes again there's no one around. I feel thirsty and I decide to get some water. I sit up and put one of my feet to the ground. Then a white flower catches my eye. It's a white lily, the one we burn when a person has died. I pick up the flower and slowly I walk out of my room.

The palace seems to be deserted. When I look out of a window I see a dark cloud of smoke rise up from the garden. I clench the flower into my hand. I get a bad feeling. Seeking support by the walls, I slowly move forward. The inside of my head is a mess, a collection of thoughts. Instead of getting myself some water to drink, I end up in the garden, at the source of the smoke. It's exactly what I expected and what I'd hoped not to see. A fire burning a person's body. Next to the fire I can see Aladdin and his friends, Yamuraiha and Sinbad. They all look saddened. I understand who the person, the fire is eating, is and why the flower had been placed by my bed. Slowly I walk to the fire and carefully I throw my flower into it. Suddenly the strength that had brought me here disappears and I fall to my knees. Sinbad sees me and rushes to my side.

"What are you doing here?" He asks me. He waves at Yamuraiha, who hurries the moment she sees me.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I ask, tears falling down my face. "Why didn't you tell me she had died?"

"I couldn't. You were in such a weakened state. Waking you and telling you your sister had died, that would've been stupid."

"So what? You'd tell me the next time I'd wake up. Do you think I didn't notice she was going to die. Did you think the flower on my floor didn't tell it all?"

I feel Yamuraiha's hand on my shoulder. "Sele, I understand your feelings. It's saddening you couldn't say farewell to your sister, but it couldn't be done any other way. For now you should return to your room and rest. You're everything but healed."

I shake my head. "Let me sit here… Let me look at her final moments in this world." I say. Though I've never had any relationship with her, I feel a part of myself missing. The part of me that I always carried with me. The part that would help me and destroy me. It was now burning right in front of me. I don't know how long I've been sitting there, crying, but I guess I fell asleep again eventually, because the next time I open my eyes it's my old ceiling again.