A week had passed since the monumental celebration of the Druuns ultimate defeat and the five great Tribes coming together in the tropical, verdant isle of Heart, a historic event that at long last set the splintered Kumandra on the path to recovery. Both resident and visitor alike were dead on their feet, fatigued to the point of collapse from the all-night festivities, dining and dancing until sunrise and far beyond. Even so, the majority of Heart's citizens still had their everyday routines to go about, errands to run and work obligations to fulfill, regardless of how weary some of them might have been. Life still went on.
From the open foyer of Heart Palace, ones ears could palpably make out the everyday sounds of Hearts renewed bustling community, from the clamoring of tiller's bells in the waters surrounding the island, to the glassy jingle of jade coins exchanging buyers hands in Market Square, and even the merry laughter of children playing with Dragons in the streets, those mystical serpents that until now they only knew of through art, literature, and the limits of their imaginations. To their delight, Dragons in real life turned out to be very playful in nature, all too happy to entertain the younglings and engage with them in their favorite activities, Tag, Hide and Seek, and Jump Rope (in which their lengthy tails voided any need for an actual rope) being just a few. Often the Dragons would even let them experience the thrill of flight first hand, taking the eager youngsters securely in their large but gentle paws (letting the little ones ride on their backs was too great a risk for their petite arms and lack of grip strength, but thankfully Dragons had opposable thumbs and could keep a firm hold on their young passengers to ensure their safety) and then gliding across the waters of the lake or climbing high above the elaborate constructs of Heart to see the great kingdom from the skyline, only inducing cardiac arrest in a few worried parents in the process. Of course, said parents were immediately put at ease once they saw their children were perfectly safe, and happy, in fun-loving Dragon hands.
Boun, Chief Tong, Noi, the Ongis, and Namaari had already returned home to be reunited with their loved ones and to begin the arduous challenge of reclaiming what they had lost, but not before sharing many hugs with one another and saying their goodbyes. With the factions now in unity, it wouldn't be long before their individual communities began intermingling with one another on the regular, and they would all be rubbing elbows together again before they knew it. But for now they each had their families to be with and their homelands to rebuild. Chief Benja gave each of them his blessing as they departed, stating that Heart was now their home too, and they were welcome to visit anytime they wished.
This endorsement of support and hospitality was also extended to the Dragons themselves, whom had an equally challenging future ahead of them. They had to reintegrate with society and once again find their place in the realm, having been absent from it for so long, and while a few chose to stay behind and made Heart their new home, most of the Dragons took to the skies of Kumandra and opted to go out into the world, not just to see the geography of their great land as it stood now, but also to reconnect with its diverse inhabitants and reacquaint themselves with their culture and practices. They had been out of the picture for well over half a millenium, so there was an awful lot for them to catch up on, and a crash course or an overnight cram session wasn't going to be enough here. They needed time to figure things out.
Unfortunately, to Raya's dismay, Sisu was one of them.
There they stood at the edge of the balcony overlooking the lake, one of many connecting the main hallway of Heart Palace, preparing to say their goodbyes. Sisu was propped up on her hindpaws leaning over the ornate railing, glancing downward at the great bridge connecting Heart to the rest of the world, watching as tourist and resident alike came and went, while Raya's gaze was drawn towards the clear blue yonder above. From here, one couldeasily make out the exalted forms of Pengu, Amba, Pranee and Jagan, prancing about in the wispy angel-white clouds high above the lake, literally "making it rain", as the saying went, eagerly awaiting their sister to join them.
"Are you sure you don't want me to stay? They'd understand, you know. They know you're my girl, after all."
That was, and would always be, Sisu's pet name for her friend Raya, and it was one Raya was all too happy to have. From anybody else, with maybe the exception of her father Benja, it would've came off as sarcastic and even disrespectful, but Sisu made it sound noble and dignified, something to be proud of, and she came to adore it.
"That's alright, I think we'll be okay without you."
Though Sisu was hoping to hear otherwise, it came as no surprise to her that Raya was seemingly okay with her going her own way (or so she thought), and the quirky, eccentric water lizard took it in stride. After all, Sisu did inadvertently cause quite a bit of damage in her rascally pep, and owned up to it with no excuses. Honest to a fault and utterly impossible to offend.
"Hey, I get it, totally cool. I did mess up the place a bit, after all. You can bill me in the future, by the way. I'm good for it. Honest!"
A "bit" was a rather gross understatement. More than a few delicate antiquities had met their end at the fins of Sisu's whipping tail and the floorboards had suffered some notable scratchmarks on account of Sisu's jet-black feetclaws, but Sisu was chiefly referring to a rather large divot that her cobalt horns tore out of the ceiling in the main foyer of the palace, accidentally bumping her head during the great celebration as she and her friends 'danced' the night away, a product of Sisu's silly nature and her penchant for tomfoolery. Granted, her idea of 'dance' was to literally pick someone up, toss them into the air, catch them, and swing them around like a human bola. It was wild, and even a bit hair-raising at times, but not exactly unexpected. Boun and Noi didn't seem to mind being her hoedown partners, at least.
Of course, the "bill me" punchline was a jest as well; Sisu was flat broke and everyone knew it. The gags were neverending with this giant, gorgeous furry reptile, but she wouldn't be Sisu otherwise.
"Ahahah, don't worry about it, that was actually pretty funny."
That was no joke, it was amusing for all who witnessed it, even the host himself. Despite the unintentional vandalism at Sisu's paws, Benja shrugged it off immediately, accepting that it was bound to happen with the colorful cast of characters that he himself had invited personally to what was more or less the party of a lifetime, with a living, breathing Dragon surprisingly being the least intimidating of his guests. Property and material possessions could be repaired or replaced, but no amount of Jade could buy the good times that were had by all, or the happy memories that everyone took away from the event. Benja spared no expense and refused any form of recompense from his precious aquatic guest, except maybe hugs. That was always a currency in high demand here in Heart.
But that still left Sisu's previous comment to be addressed, and in one fell swoop the roaring chuckles turned to gloom and despair. The twinkle of glee in Raya's sleep-deprived visage soon jumped ship as if it were on a collision course with an enormous iceberg floating off the coast of Spine.
"But...no, it's not that. It's...well..."
Raya stumbled on her words rather glaringly, and her voice nearly failed her in the moment, something that the attentive Sisu picked up on immediately. To say it didn't give her cause for concern would have been a lie, and a rather big one at that.
"What is it, Raya? What's the matter?"
Raya brought her gaze up to match Sisu's, those gleaming amaranth irises now glossed over with worry and distress, and for just one moment, temptation visited her. She couldn't hide or deny it, she did want Sisu to stay with her. They had more or less become sisters in their time together, bound by a love and trust that had transcended death itself. She didn't want to say goodbye. She still had the loyal Tuk Tuk by her side, the pill bug/armadillo/pug hybrid, her truest companion, and those two would surely be together until the end of their days, but the thought of never seeing her beloved Dragon sidekick again horrified Raya.
And she had no doubt that, if she were to ask, Sisu would without question stay with her for as long as she desired. Selfless and caring to a fault.
"The truth is, I do want you to stay, more than anything. It pains me so much to see you go, knowing that I might never see you again, that you might even forget about me. But..."
But the harsh possibility that she might not see sweet Sisu again was tempered by something far more paramount in Raya's heart: The desire to see Sisu be happy, to be with her people once again. And that was enough to steel her quivering resolve.
"...but that wouldn't be fair to you, or your siblings, to make you stay just for my sake. You haven't seen each other in eons. They're your family. You deserve to be with them. You should be with them."
Though the term Eons was often overexaggerated for humor, it was wholly fitting here. Sisu had not seen Pengu or her other siblings, or anybody for that matter, in over 500 years, the equivalent of ten lifetimes for the average human in Kumandra. Ever since that fateful day when the Dragons elected to sacrifice themselves for the sake of Kumandra, Sisu was not only left as the last surviving member of her people, but became a recluse and submerged herself into a state of physical dormancy, a kind of exile if you will, isolating herself from the rest of the world. You wouldn't have thought it considering Sisu's quirky, happy-go-lucky demeanor most of the time, but, at least until a few days ago, Sisu was really quite lonely. She did a good job of hiding it, but deep down it ate at the depths of her soul like acid on metal.
Happily, that was no longer the case, and now Sisu's family tree ran quite deep indeed, with Pengu, Jagan, Pranee and Amba being but a few members of a much larger menage.
But...
"Raya, that could never happen. After all we've been through together, I could never forget you. You know that."
The shame beared down on Raya like a hungry predator, and she had to look away in complete and utter disgust with herself. It was heartbreaking to behold, and not even her father Benja could do anything to console his disheartened daughter in this moment, even as the tears began to pool around her acorn pupils.
"I know, I'm being ridiculous, but still..."
But it wasn't ridiculous. Though the circumstances were different, Sisu knew all too well that soul-crushing feeling of loneliness poor Raya was experiencing in this moment, because she had once been in that position herself, being on her own for so long. Tong, Boun, and all of their other companions had already said their goodbyes and returned home to rebuild, and while Raya knew they would eventually see each other again as each tribe gradually came together and solidified their ties to one another, it was not exactly clear when that would be. And even though Raya had her father back and her trusty pet Tuk Tuk would always remain by her side, she was now faced with losing perhaps the single most bona-fide friend she had ever made.
And that feeling ran both ways, even if Sisu was better able to keep her emotions in check. After everything they had been through, all the struggle they had overcome, the moments they shared, the lessons they took from one another, saying goodbye to her beloved human homegirl was just as heavy-hearted for Sisu as it was for Raya, perhaps even moreso. It was all she could do not to burst into tears herself, even though Raya was absolutely right. Sisu was meant to be with her own kind.
But then it occured to Sisu, why did that even matter? Just because Raya and Sisu had their own people to be with, their own paths to follow, did not mean they could not still see each other in the future, just as their cherished comrades returning to their respective homelands did not prohibit them from being able to visit with one another in the future. Parting ways is certainly no reason to end a friendship, especially one as profound and rock-solid as the rapport these two shared. If anything, knowing now how badly Raya wanted Sisu to stay with her, to see that Raya was willing to let her go to ensure Sisu's happiness, even at the cost of her own, really cemented in Sisu's heart just how much she truly meant to her little human buddy.
So naturally there was only one sensible solution to this dilemma, and Sisu cracked quite a cheery grin once that epiphany struck her, beaming from fang to fang, wondering why the thought hadn't dawned on her sooner.
"Well, then I guess I'll just have to come and visit you every chance I get!"
And Raya's previously melancholy face immediately lit up like a child on Christmas Morning.
"You...you mean it!?"
Sisu quickly responded with an energetic nod, rapidly bobbing her snout up and down in affirmation.
"Of course I do! I told you, you're my girl, Raya!"
That she was. And Sisu had no plans to stop reminding her of it, nudging Raya with a fuzzy feathered elbow even as her damp cheeks flared and reddened with embarrassment. It was genuinely impossible not to be bashful around Sisu, no matter who you were.
"It might be a little while, my crew and I have a lot to catch up on, but there's still so much for you and I to do together. There's no way I'm going to be a stranger around you!"
And even now she couldn't help but stick in a little extra needling.
"In fact, when we hook up again, I'll be dropping by so often, you'll get sick of seeing me! I'll make sure of it!"
Another joke, of course - Sisu was adorkably irresistable, both her personality and her antics, and none of her friends could ever possibly get tired of being around her - but still, just to hear these prized words from Sisu filled Raya with supreme joy and made her ever-beating heart shine like the Dragon Gem itself. The threat of the Druun had ended and their journey was over, but the bonds of love and faith in one another that Raya, Sisu, and their fellow companions had forged in their time together was eternal. All of Sisu's human friends were equally as dear to her as her newly-reborn Dragon siblings. They were family too, blood related or not, and she wanted to keep each and every one of them close to her heart and remain a part of their lives.
"Heh, you could try, but I'd never get tired of being with you. If anything, I think you'd get sick of being around me."
"Hah! Not a chance!"
They both shared a hearty chuckle at that thought, as they had certainly rubbed off of one another in their time together, and they knew it too. They were polar opposites in personality, but this clash of contrasting traits served to bring them even closer together and shored up the flaws in their character, with Sisu gaining much-needed confidence in herself and her abilities, and Raya learning to place her faith and trust in people, appreciating the beauty of life and what it has to offer. They really did complete each other, like two links in a much larger chain, and as long as they held true to one another, they would always be that much stronger for it.
With something to look forward to now, Raya's gloomy spirits pulled a complete one-eighty and she held her chin high, wiping away the drops of saline that had pooled around her mousy eyes.
"Well, in that case, I'll be counting down the days until you return. Don't tell me when, just let it be a surprise."
A good suggestion, then their inevitable reunion would be all the sweeter. Sisu nodded, linking her claws together and sealing her pledge with Heart's trademark hand gesture, now shedding a few scintillant tears herself. Both Raya and Benja mirrored the gesture with one of their own, being much more practiced at it.
"It's a promise. Just...have something ready to eat for me when I do?"
Yet another joke, typical Sisu and her voracious, seemingly insatiable appetite for anything and everything (except Raya's jerky), and even Benja was amused by Sisu's sense of humor and joined in on the gag.
"I'll leave the kitchen open just for you. Feel free to pilfer our pantry whenever you like."
Sisu was already salivating at the notion of plundering their food stores in the dead of night, wiggling her eyebrows and licking her fangs like a cat that had just finished its meal. She wouldn't do such a thing, of course, at least not without making her presence known first, but the thought amused here nonetheless.
"Ooh, I like the sound of that!"
"Hey, don't give her any ideas, Dad!"
There was one last chorus of giggles between all of them, and then Sisu opened her plumy azure arms wide and pulled Raya in close. The two shared one final long, heartfelt and wholesome hug, holding each other tight and true for well over a minute, with Sisu's ebony claws digging tenderly into Raya's spine and tearing ever so slightly at the fabric of her vest. Benja simply stood to the side and let this enchanting scene play itself out, not saying a word. It was the nicest hug they had shared thus far. The nicest one by far.
And it wouldn't be the last.
"I'll see you soon, girl. Stay strong until then."
They finally released one another, and Raya and her father Benja gave Sisu and her brothers and sisters a proper, cordial sendoff.
"I'll be waiting!"
"We look forward to seeing you again, Lady Sisu. You and your kin are always welcome here."
And Sisu took to thin air as if scaling a rocky wall, climbing ever skyward and galloping across the lake on mystical globes of precipitation to rejoin her siblings already in flight. All of them waved goodbye to Raya and her father in turn as they blazed a kaleidoscopic canvas of greens and blues and reds and violets in their ethereal tracks, the fine droplets of magical rainfall left in their wake harmlessly falling onto the surface of the lake below.
One last tear slid down Raya's emotionally weathered features as Sisu and her brood finally disappeared into the royal blue horizon, feeling a sense of relief and solace when Sisu at last faded from sight. It was a somber moment for sure, and even now Raya struggled to hold her head high in the midst of it, but it was also one laced with rapture and pure, utter joy for this kind and gentle serpent she held so dear. Sisu was finally where she belonged, no longer alone in the world, and deep down she rejoiced in the comfort of Sisu's solemn vow and her fathers wise words.
"Do not worry, Raya. You will see her again before you know it."
Hearing this, Raya bellowed out a euphoric cry and gently clung to her father Benja, holding each other close for what seemed like hours as the mid-afternoon sky took on a crimson tinge, the eve of twilight fast approaching.
"I know."
Yes. Parting was certainly sweet sorrow, but not so much bitter in this case. They would see each other again.
It was just a question of when.