Chapter Ten!

Yeeeehaaawww! There must be a rodeo in town, 'cause I'm feeling rowdy and ready to write!

That, and there was a thing on the news about the local bars being filled with cowboys…but, that's beside the point. I hope.

This is the end of the first Arc, so be ready for a long one – lots of awesome stuff is going to happen, and Yamatoe Seleena might finally come into contact with those elusive Ryoka. However – at the moment, she's trapped in a cell. But…she is Seleena, I'm sure she'll think of something. The beginning of the next Arc will take a while to get up – I want to finish a few chapters of it before I post, so that I don't decide to go back and change something after finally getting it up there.

BTW, this is going to be a freaking long chapter, unless I get rid of some stuff, which I might - you never know.

I do not own Bleach. I do however, own a bright yellow pair of knee socks :D Don't worry; they didn't use to be white.

Pull the curtain – end our call
We've no more strength to act these roles.
Those roses that were thrown to us -
Those cakes that were gifted to us -
Are now all but ash in our mouths.
We are not your actors – your dolls – your play things.
Beware the moonless nights – that darkness might be your end.

Begin Chapter Ten:

"Well, what do I do now?" I wondered aloud – being confined to this cell meant one good thing: there was never anyone around to hear me talking to myself, which these days I seemed to do frequently.

Okay, I didn't really talk to myself – I talked to Rien.

"You're lying."

'Shut up Rien.' I scowled – not in the mood to be patronized. There were other things to worry about – like those fucking pictures that kept barging into my mind, like they owned the freakin' place. If they could leave me alone for five minutes, I could think of a plan to get myself out of this mess.

"You know; we could just blow this wall to bits and make our escape. I'm sure your shunpo is fast enough to get away before anyone noticed."

My left eye twitched.

"To where, Rien?" I answered aloud, tired of the sound of my own voice, "Where the hell could I go? I have nowhere else…and I won't run away."

"I wasn't suggesting you do – but we can't stay in here forever." She was disgruntled, as she should be, being trapped in here was something neither of us could deal with well. Bars and restrictions – it pissed the both of us off.

"You're right – we can't, but we would still need a place to go. I'm not gonna hide in the filtration system like some damn Ryoka-"

Wait. The Ryoka. Why hadn't I thought of that?

"Because it's stupid." Rien chided, being able to see where my thoughts were heading, but I ignored her.

If I was already labelled as a traitor, why not make it official? I could just join the Ryoka, why hadn't I thought of this before? I didn't need to make the rest of the Taichio see – I didn't necessarily need the help of the Gotei Thirteen at all – all I had to do was make sure that Kuchiki Rukia got out of that cell, and the Ryoka kept from getting themselves killed.

I was sure that the Ryoka knew something that I didn't – something about Kuchiki Rukia that I needed to know – like why she was imprisoned in the first place. I knew it had something to do with giving her powers to a human, but that couldn't be all it was. Such a petty crime, like I had decided before, didn't deserve such a punishment. Alright...so, if I was going to get out of here, what should I do to accomplish it? Blasting a hold through the wall meant having someone notice I was gone fairly quickly...but, what other way was there to get out of here...

Huh. My eyes drifted to Rien, who was laid out neatly on a table across from me. I realized that they had left me with my Zanpaktuô - a weapon that I could use to break out. What kind of system was this? Oh well. Even if they hadn't given her to me, I could still have called her spirit. I guess it was a moot point.
"Alright Rien - give me something I can use." I picked up my fan and held it out in front of me. "Give me a phase that can get me out of here without drawing any attention to myself." She could do that right? Usually...I had to work and earn another phase of her, but this one time, I wished that she could just forget the whole deal and skip to something that would save me.

I closed my eyes...focusing on the weapon/being that I held in my hands...willing her to let me attain a little more of her power today.

"Seleena."

"Rien..." I gripped the fan tighter, awaiting for the power to come to me; for the ability to make itself known so that we could escape.

"Seleena?" Rien sighed, "Turn around."

I realized that the voice that I had heard wasn't coming from my head anymore. I spun, and came face to face with the most beautiful, elegant woman that I had ever seen. Her brown hair fell to her waist - she was clothed in a magnificent robe, decorated with sashes and talismans. Her face was long and smooth - pale in the dim light, and her expression was amused, but that the same time it was soft and inviting.

I could tell, though, that with the eerie glow surrounding her, that she wasn't completely here. I was seeing the spirit of my Zanpaktuô, in all her beauty and strangeness I was suddenly over-whelmed and awed at her perfection. At her strength, which I could feel in the very air; her presence surrounded me.

"Rien..." I smiled, "Nice to finally meet you face to face."

She shook her head, "This isn't our first meeting, but we don't have time to discuss that. As we speak, the guards to the cells are reading your Reiatsu, and seeing it jump higher and higher. They'll be here shortly to take me away from you."

I scowled, "Why didn't they just take you before?"

"You're a fourth seat. You shouldn't be able to summon me, or even use me in this cell. Only those with intense, un-breakable Reiatsu could manage it." She stepped forward, head tilted, "We need to escape - and the next phase that I will teach you is a whole different branch of my power than what you've experienced. You know by now, that I am a shape-shifting Zanpaktuô. I can take on many forms while in Shikai, each of them falling into three categories. The First Phase: New Moon, which you have already discovered two releases to. Now, I must teach you the Second Phase. However, to be able to use it, you will have to me that you are worthy to wield this power."

My heart sunk a little. I hadn't proven myself already? I was still unworthy of her? The revelation of this hit me hard...for so long, I had believed that I was the true master of my blade, but now it seemed that Rien had been deliberately keeping things from me.

"What do I have to do?" I asked, trying not to sound too growly.

Her expression changed, and she frowned, "Not like that...you have to promise to always use my powers for good. You will be one of the most powerful Shinigami in existence, and, though I have complete faith in you, I want you to understand how serious this is. How dangerous this is."

"Rien," I put my hands on my hips, "Even if I did go insane with power, it's not like you wouldn't be able to stop me, right? You could just take your power away..." I smiled, "I think I should be asking you to always use your powers for good."

She slapped my head with her pale hand, but she was smiling to herself, laughing, "Cheeky girl - alright. This next technique requires complete peace of mind, and balance of soul, meaning that you will never be able to use it for evil gain."

"Excellent," I raised the fan in my hand to my eyes, giving Rien a grin. I understood her better now, just after a few moments of seeing her face to face. She was a true, good hearted person, who wanted her wielder to be on the side of justice. To be without corruption and filled with dignity. She sort of reminded me of royalty, with her perceived views of right and wrong, "I wouldn't want to be able to use it that way anyway."

She nodded, and then reached out to hold onto herself...a weird thought...that she was in my hands, while standing in front of me. Cool shit, really.

"The next phase can be referred to as a defensive phase, because it can't really be used to attack and enemy...unless you get really creative, which I'm sure you will, Yamatoe Seleena."

My brain flickered...she said my name...I thought about it. She was a part of me...a piece of my soul, almost. The way that we were intertwined meant that she must know everything about me. My name...my history.

"Rien...tell me," I began, forgetting what she was about to tell me, "Am I really Yamatoe Seleena? Is that my real name? Who am I?" I asked these questions - the same that I had always mentally asked her everyday - but somehow, having her in front of me, made it seem that she would know the answers now. I had lived with thinking that Yamatoe Seleena must be my real name, but I was haunted by the fact that I didn't know for sure of it was.

Rien crossed her arms and sighed, "I can't tell you that now. Not yet...soon, very soon, Seleena. But not right now. It's not the right time or the place. But, yes...your name is Yamatoe Seleena...who you were, however, I cannot say."

I decided to accept that. She said that she would soon tell me. I had lived here, not knowing who I had been for how long...I could stand to wait a little longer. I just wanted to know my history...I didn't know why I wanted to know so badly, but I did. It probably had to do with the strange ass visions that kept popping up out of nowhere. I wanted to know...where those were from. That familiar city that wasn't the Seiretei. And...the feeling of falling that crept up whenever I closed my eyes.

"Alright Rien. Show me. Teach me. Lend me your strength, so that we can get the fuck out of here. I'm sick of these bars."

Nodding, she lightly took the fan from my hands, and held it in front of my face, "This is...what I look like when I'm in the defensive mode. Without blade...without any susceptible power. Of course, looks can be deceiving. You know by now that Zanpaktuô have special abilities that define them. There are element types, enchanted types, and types that can bend time and space itself."

Yeah...we had learned all about that at the Academy. All about that Taichio, and how some of them had abilities far beyond belief. Or course, I believed it now. And, what Rien was saying...made me wonder...

"Rien...what sort of ability do you have?"

She grinned, "Just what I was getting at. I am RienSaku. The shape-shifting blade; the Empress of the Moon."

Those words dusted off an almost forgotten memory. The day that I had been drafted into the Eleventh Company. Rien had said that then too. And, it had been something I had remembered...something that I had known before she told me. Strange...could it be that our souls were even more intertwined than I had thought? Or...was it something else? Something...about my past...about who I was before I became a Shinigami? Could Rien and I have been one before now?

"I can take on many forms - like the ever-changing moon, that looks different for each phase, yet remains the same. The First Phase: the New Moon, is the first tier of my destructive powers. The Second Phase: Crescent Moon, is my defensive phase, as I have said. It is this phase that will give you the abilities' you need to break free before they come for you."

My head snapped up; I looked around. "Rien, didn't you say that they were coming for me earlier? Why are we just standing around talking? They must be close - we've been chatting for ages!" We were being idiots - I was being an idiot, why didn't I move faster? They were going to try and take Rien away from me! No...I wouldn't let them...they could never take her.

But Rien just grinned wider, "No need to panic. I've already put my ability into use...I've stopped time around us."

I heard the words, but they didn't truly sink in. I wanted for a punch line. A joke...because stopping time...that was an incredibly powerful ability...and there was no way that...I ran towards the bars, and peered through as far as I could. Squinting, I could see a squad of guards rounding the corner...rounding the corner...frozen to that spot. "Rien...You can stop time?"

"Among other things?" She was beside me, peering alongside me, "But - this is what we will use to escape. It's the Stop technique. You will have approximately thirty seconds to use this technique before they burst in here."

"Right," I said absentmindedly, still gazing...the torches were frozen too...like molten frozen lava...wait..., "What did you say?" I demanded, but the fan fell into my hand - and the torches began to move again.

"Shit! Rien!" I looked around, but she was gone. The fan in my hand was her only form now. What had she said? The Stop...second phase...

"Second Phase - Crescent Moon - Stop!" The words came out in a fury. Nothing happened...but not that type of nothing I wanted. I could hear them closing in on me, their footsteps echoing...Peace of mind...peace of soul Rein had said...

I closed my eyes. I envisioned black. I envisioned endlessness. I envisioned my own soul stopping, before I spoke again.

"Second Phase...Crescent Moon...Stop."

And everything became as silent as my soul.

"Damn!" The affects wore-off immediately, and I was snapped into regular time space with a jolt large enough to make my entire body ache. I know understood what Rien had warned me about...it would take time to master this technique, and if I couldn't - then eventually, I probably wouldn't be able to undo it...I could unravel the entire space-time continuum...as crazy as it sounded. When I had finally gotten the technique to work...it hadn't really worked. All I had managed to do was slow time down...I had gotten past the slow moving guard without any trouble, but as I went on, it had felt like my brain was going to explode. The pressure was too great for me to handle, and now here I was, barely out of the cells.

I collapsed against the wall, hand clutching my chest...it hurt more than I had thought it would. I was starting to feel tired...my body didn't want to move for me anymore. Well, that's what I got for pushing myself to use a technique that I apparently couldn't handle. But still...I looked at the folded fan in my hand. That ability...it was amazing. For beyond anything that I had ever imagined.

Fucking awesome. I smiled, and went back to trying to keep myself from fainting from the pain. It was ebbing...and I was starting to feel better. Now if only my head would stop spinning, I could get on with my brilliant escape.

"You need to keep moving."

"I know, I know." I shook my head and started running, shunpo-ing in and out of the shadows. Now all I had to do was find the Ryoka. That shouldn't be too hard; I just had to go towards wherever there was fighting happening. Easy-peasy. But...I paused and searched for high levels of Reiatsu. There were no battles going on at the moment...or, if there were, nobody was letting all hell loose. Damn. The Ryoka must be hiding or something...just my luck.

Now I would have to search for them. My abilities to find and separate singular levels of Reiatsu were pretty good...but I had no idea what I was looking for. I wasn't good enough to feel the differences between Shinigami and the human Ryoka. Their souls were too similar for me, and I cursed myself for not working at that sooner. Now I was paying for it.

I had stopped momentarily to gain my bearings, and see if I could feel any significant Reiatsu 's, when I felt something come at me from behind, startling me in my wondering's.

"Gah!" I turned and faced my attacker...and was a little disappointed when I saw that it was some Fourth Company scrudge. I could handle him. "Who are you?" I growled, pointed a transformed RienSaku at him, trying to scare the pants off of him. Oh, and he looked like he was about to lose his pants too. Maybe I over did it a little...The Eleventh Company had always had anonymity and hatred for the Fourth Company, but I never partook in it. I didn't care...and, though I didn't parade my beliefs around the Company, I still believed that healers were vital...and I understood the need to survive and not fight.

But...fighting was just so fun. I couldn't understand how the Fourth Company did it.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry Miss Seleena! I just got lost; I stopped to tie my shoes!"

Miss Seleena? Oh...it dawned on me - he didn't know that I wasn't a member of the Gotei Thirteen anymore. To him, I was still the Fourth Seat of Eleventh Company.

"Um - That's just fine um...what was your name again?"

"Hanataro! Hanataro Yamada."

Wow. That was the most generic name I had ever heard. At least it was easy to remember.

"Well, Hanataro - you need to hurry and rejoin your squad - and find the Ryoka."

"Uh - Right! Of course, Miss Seleena." He bowed again, and turned around, walking awkwardly into a, in my opinion, random direction.

"Hanataro...didn't your squad go that way?" I pointed in the opposite direction he was going. Poor sap was going to get himself lost wandering around like this. He laughed nervously and waved goodbye.

Well, that was interesting. I thanked my luck that I had run into an ill-informed Fourth Company, instead of a Taichio or something. That would have been bad. But...I needed to be more careful. I couldn't let something like that happen again. Diving into the shadows, I started Shunpo-ing from place to place, searching for any suspicious Reiatsu.

I jumped when something black and blurry darted across the corner of my vision - too fast to be something non-threatening. I gasped, afterwards feeling stupid and childish, but I couldn't help myself.

"Hello kitty!" It was all black - my favorite type of cat. It looked back at me with large, golden eyes - eyes that made it look like it was staring at my warily.
"Oh, come on Kitty!" I tried to pitch my voice into a sweeter tone, "Out of all the people in the Seiretei, you can trust me." I leaned down and winked, "I'll even tell you a secret - I'm on a mission to save somebody, I'm a total superhero - so, you can trust me!" I held out my hand, "And I wish I could stay and play, but she'll never get out if I don't break in to get her." I laughed, patting it on its forehead, and racking my fingers down its back.

My sixth sense flared up - and looking into its golden eyes, I got a whiff of a soul; a non-animal soul.

"Oi, cat." I cocked my head, "You wanna go for a ride?" I patted my shoulder. When it stared at me, I rolled my eyes, "Hey, I'm trying to play it your way - just act along with it. If I take you were you want to go, feel free to jump off. Until then, you can pass off as my cat." I winked, and it, after a moment of very human consideration, jumped onto my shoulder.

"Hold on," I advised, "I'm sort of...well, let's just say that we can't be seen and...at some random point, I may start running off."

I stayed low into the shadows, creeping along with my spiritual energy as low as it could go before I felt like fainting.

The top of the Repentance Tower peaked over the barracks. It loomed, and once again I was faced with my problem. The Sekki Sekki rock was going to zap away all of my Reiatsu as soon as I got within twenty feet of it. I wouldn't be able to use the infest phase with that stupid rock stealing my powers.
"Oi cat." I knew for certain now that this wasn't just a regular cat. Inside of this small, furry body was a powerful soul - an old soul that held much wisdom. I would have to be a complete idiot to not notice when it was so close like this. "You wouldn't by any chance...be one of the Ryoka, would you?"

It stared forward, acting like a regular cat.

"That's cool. Next time we meet, you'll have to tell me how you managed to acquire such a rare ability. Turning into a cat would make my job easier. See that tower?" I pointed to the Repentance cell, "That's where Kuchiki Rukia is. And that's also where I am trying to get to, without being caught. My problem is that stupid Sekki Sekki. I can't use my Zanpaktuô close enough to get myself in, let along get anybody out."

I sighed again, still inspecting the tower, trying to look for anything that I could use that didn't involve Reiatsu.

Suddenly, the cat jumped off my shoulder, flipped in the air, and landed on a roof, looking back down at me.

"How would you get in?" I asked, hoping to get something from it. Surely this shape-shifter understood what I was saying...if transforming meant not being able to understand humans anymore; that would be a sucky exchange. I might not take to learning that ability just for that. "Storm the keep? I can't do that...I don't have an army to back me up. Break in? Not very possible...that rock would suck any energy thrown at it. Man, why couldn't I just...walk in? That's why you don't get booted from the Gotei Thirteen!" I slapped my forehead, "If I were still a Company member, I could just sneak into the ward and take the key or whatever it is that unlocks that door."

The cat huffed, and then looked at me, like it was trying to convey something.

"What?" I demanded, pursing my lips, "I'm trying to work out a plan! I'm just saying; that key would...oh." I realized what it must have meant with that look. I could just steal the key anyway. I mean...like I had said before, I might as well go all the way into this traitor business. A little stealing doesn't compare to anything I had planned.

"That's right...I'll just steal the key...and then, I'll break into the Repentance Cell...and I'll help Kuchiki Rukia escape!" But how was I going to keep my powers when I got close to the cell? That stupid Sekki Sekki would take away all my strength.

"I know of a Kidou..." Rien said softly in my ear, "That separates space. If you used it - you would be able to make a separate space inside the cell that would keep out the affects of the Sekki Sekki. But, it's very high class - higher than A, one of the most difficult Kidou to perform without the effects of the Sekki Sekki wearing on."

I was again amazed at Rien - I didn't know how she knew so much. I would have to ask her about it one day. A high level Kidou eh? Sounded like fun...and a challenge. Now that that was settled, I would just have to find the key. Which would be somewhere in the Fourth Company ward, or the First Company ward. Which should I search first? Probably the Fourth Company...that First Company would be much more dangerous.

"Alright, my Ryoka Cat Friend, you should probably make sure that the rest of your part is safe. If you don't mind, could you deliver a message to the rest of them? Tell them to not try and beak into the Repentance Tower...because it won't be any use. It's best for you all to lay low until I can convince Kuchiki Rukia to escape for herself. I'll make sure you all know when she's free."

The cat stared at me, before nodding its head, and jumping off my shoulder and onto a nearby roof. I hoped for its safety, and then continued to travel to the Fourth Company, where I prayed the key was. It didn't take too long to break in - most of the Company was probably out hunting for the Ryoka, or healing all of the Company members that would have been wounded in all the battles with the Ryoka. As I passed by a room full of bandages and other healing tools, I got an idea. A few minutes later, I re-emerged with my head half wrapped, and one of the special Reiatsu eating tools used by some Taichio's clenched in my grasp. It should give me a good disguise for a little while - at least enough for confusion for me to make an escape if needed.

I hobbled through the halls - passing other patients who were being treated. None of them even spared me an extra glance. Lovely. I tried not to be too smug as I traveled...luckily; I was paranoid enough to keep my face straight.

Finally, I reached the wards - and was thunderstruck upon realizing how large the room was...and how full the shelves were.

"Daaaaamn." I breathed, looked at each shelf carefully. "Where the hell would it be? If it's even here...come to me, key..." I said lowly, trying to will it into my sight. It took me fifteen minutes to finish one half of the room...and after that, I was ready to explode. I knew that it wasn't going to be here as soon as I walked in. Who would keep keys just lying around for anyone to pick up?

"God dammit!" I picked up a crate, and threw it against the wall in fury - not caring if anyone outside heard me. Maybe I should just tear everything apart, until I found what I was looking for. "Ouch!" I flinched away from a beam of light that came from where I had thrown the crate. Curious, I stepped forward, and poked at the hidden door in the wall. It slowly opened, revealing a large room, with shelves on the back wall. However, this room was different from the previous room...on all the shelves, were different keys. Each of the groups labelled to where they went.

"What the hell?" I demanded, looking at the shelves, "They keep a bunch of extra keys in a poorly hidden back room? This was way to fucking easy, come on! Rien, can you believe this? It's ridiculous." I snatched up one of the keys labelled Repentance Tower, and stuffed it into my robes.

"You found the room by accident..." Rien said dryly, "If you hadn't thrown that crate haphazardly, you wouldn't have found it at all."

"...Shut the hell up." I growled, shuffling out of the room again - but this time, I didn't risk travelling down the halls. I jumped out the first window I found.

"You asked."

Right. Whatever. Giving it my all, I Shunpo-d to the tower as fast as I could, when really I should have been the most careful. I could feel Rien's objection in my head, but I ignored her. I was so close to it...my goal - the thing that I had set out to do so long ago was finally coming to fruition. I wasn't even that excited about rescuing her...I just wanted to see her again - to ask her...maybe she could tell me more about who I was. And, maybe now - fate would be satisfied and stop trying to explode my head. I hadn't had a flash in a while; perhaps I was finally free. The tower sprouted ahead of me - and I was at the base of it, having managed to dodge all the Taichio that would be lurking around. A miracle, really...but, then, I remembered that I still had the Reiatsu eating object, and realized why they hadn't noticed me. Having arrived at the Sekki Sekki rock, I was able to throw it away. My Reiatsu would be taken by this building instead.

"Alright." I placed my hand on the rock - immediately pulling it away. I could feel it sucking away my Reiatsu at a dangerous pace. I couldn't imagine being trapped in here for more than five minutes...it would be like having no strength at all. And, I probably wouldn't be able to summon Rien. She was, after all, tied to my level of Reiatsu. "Now...how does this thing work?" I lifted the key cautiously, looking for a door, or a place to stick it in. There was nothing here on the ground level, which I had suspected, so I turned my eyes upwards.

There was a thin bridge leading to the middle of the tower, and that was the place this key would go. I Shunpo-d up the wall directly opposite of the Sekki Sekki rock. I wasn't touching it, but I still felt its enormous drain, making it difficult to maintain control of my Reiatsu. However, I managed to make it up - running into a few guards with my hurried entrance. Luckily, they didn't see me coming - so I managed to draw them away on a false lead. A quick call, but I decided to expect those types of things from now on.

I shunpo-d across the bridge, stuffing the key in the lock, and opening the entrance as quick as I could, before closing it behind me in a swift motion. What I had just done might have been very stupid, but as long as I managed to retain my Reiatsu for a little while, I could perform the space - separating Kido and stop the effects of the Sekki Sekki.

Inside, I felt a part of my spirit drain away. It was dark...and cold. Not a place for anyone to have to spend their time. My heart went out to Kuchiki Rukia, and as I thought these things, I noticed movement upwards, on one of the ledges that circled the inside of the cell.

She turned to me - her small face illuminated by the light that streamed through the dozen or so window's that showed the execution grounds. I wondered, again, why she was in here when she was sentenced to be imprisoned for all eternity...you'd think that they'd move her to her permanent cell as soon as possible, instead of keeping her locked in here for weeks. But, my wondering was soon forgotten, as I stepped forward, showing myself fully to her.

I grinned at her, finally being able to say the words that I had been aching to say for weeks - her shocked face more than satisfying.

"Hello, Kuchiki Rukia. I am Yamatoe Seleena, and I am here to save you."

End Chapter 10

End Arc 1

Bonus:

"It's like the end of an era..." She looked across the city; the tall, crystalline towers glittered in the moonlight. At this time, she could see to every edge of her home - to each one of the walls that surrounded them. But this wouldn't be her home for much longer...she had faced that long ago. And now, on this night, it would become not her home, but her past. It was the end of an era...an era of pain, and sorrow. Too long had her world been shrouded in darkness...too long had she been unable to change anything.

The old ways were barbaric - and foolish; she knew that. And tonight, she would do something that had never even dreamed of doing before. She would reach the tall walls that caged her, and she would break through them, and finally see the outside world that had tempted her for so long.

"Ms. Is there anything else that you require?" One of the servants asked from the door.

She turned, and gave the girl a long look, before shaking her head.

When the servant had left, she wondered if she was going to miss this. If she was ever going to miss her home...

What troubled her was that she couldn't bring herself to think so. But, maybe one day...she might return. She might come back, and see if anything had changed. This was, after all, her home. And, thought she might want the life of a stray cat, she would return home sometime, she was sure. If she stayed, however, was a different issue entirely.

Grabbing her small bag, she secured it tightly to her shoulders, and hefted onto the window ledge. Not intimidated by the height of her tower, she gazed to the sky once more, meeting gaze with the moon, who had watched over her all her years. It was the moon she respected above all else. And deep inside, she felt a deep connection to it; a bond that had been there her whole life.

She wanted to be the moon; to be free to roam as she pleased; to be free from all that she had despised. Tonight, she would make her dream come true. Without giving a last look behind her, she jumped down - running through the pale moonlight, towards her destiny.