Bah. I know you'll read
it anyway. ^^ And now for a lovely
little disclaimer, for the FF.N list has been discussing
copyrights and such these past few weeks.
I don't want to get sued, mind you.
I do not own any of the Secret of Mana characters. Zip.
None. Nada. Zilch.
Not even Sheex … sighs, looks at Fanha*
Bah. Too bad. ^^;;; Squaresoft
owns ALL of these characters, but that doesn't mean you can steal my
story! If I happen to find anyone,
ANYONE who steals my content and ideas, then the story will be removed, my friends
will bombard you endlessly, and Xing will have a word or two to say. ^^;;; Ciao.
Moonlight Dance
by
Kaae
from
Aurora's perspective
It's different
here ... Quiet and dark, with only us.
The moon never wavers, even during the bright hours of the day. There are always two orbs watching me, like
eyes through a dream; one gold, the other pale. The moon dances with the sun, and they intertwine a music, a soft
melody that only they can hear. I watch
them dance during the last few moments of the day, I watch while the sun sings
a farewell ... Then the moon kisses her good-bye with his pale light, and
twirls in the sky to take her place.
My world is
different; drastically different. There
is no evil here, there are no monsters, and there are no other people, except
us. The village, I mean. And ... they aren't here ... Colin and Echo
... They disappeared just after the Mana did, and I felt helpless to stop
it. If I could have stayed ...
The last
thing I remembered seeing was my village, tattered and destroyed, and the white
dragon, chirping at me ... He too, is gone, and I will never be able to look at
my friends again. I haven't cried;
there were never tears for them. I'm
afraid that if I do shed a tear, my memory will go with it, and I'll forget
them. Each tear serves as a single
memory now, and I find myself unable to control them ... They fall, and as they
do, the moonlight kisses each of them.
And as this happens, I know that the memories will never leave me.
I watch the
sky change her dress as she prepares for the night, as she changes from golden
to bluish-black. The beautiful music of the night is woven together as the
crickets chirp, the birds flutter to their nests, the wind whistles through the
trees, as laughter floats through the air as the village tells the old legends.
The beauty of the night is peaceful as the stars begin to shine, their faint
light illuminating the moon. They
twinkle and wink, reminding me of the laughter we shared; then the laughter
fades, remembering the times we were caught.
Trapped.
Sighing, I
watch the moon rise higher into the sky, silently, its light casting shadows
and bathing the land in a shimmering veil of light. I can still see their faces, and I can almost see them in front
of me, saying the words that I never heard.
"
Don't worry, Aurora ... "
"
We'll miss you, Aurora ... "
"
We'll keep the Upperland safe ... "
"
Good-bye, Aurora ... "
I had watched
as the tears welled up in Echo's eyes, how Colin held her close. He smiled sadly at me, the Mana Sword
glowing faintly, hanging at this side.
That is the last I remember seeing of them before they vanished from my
sight ...
Standing up,
I reach for the flowers glowing on a nearby vine. They're silky, the color pearly white, while the inside glows a
pale blue. Beautiful ... I think
of the name, and smile.
Lilies of
Memory ...
I remember
everything as I watch the fireflies dancing in the night, watch them play a
harmony, which, once again, only they can hear. The memory of Grandpa's teachings in the Wind Palace return also
with what he taught me about magic and summons, about the land and
animals. The one particular lesson
stands out to me, the one about these same lilies, and how rare they are ..
" Lilies of Memory have a
faint magic, for their power rests in the imaginations and dreams of
others. But as the dreams and hopes
fade, so does their magic ... Never forget your memories, Aurora. Never forget your dreams, for when the day
comes, these lilies will return to you your memories, through the dance of the
moon ... "
He had
smiled as he said it, I guess remembering a time when the magic had worked on
him, through the dance of the moon ...
I look
towards the ground, sensing a presence.
I swing down the black vines and branches of the tree, watching the
woods swing along with me. The sky
tilts, almost as if shattering, and the fireflies float out of my
direction. My feet softly hit the
ground, and I look up at the moon, still winking down on me. I look at the trees again, their outlines
black, but against them, the luminescent lilies stand bright.
My eyes
flutter shut as the wind steals my breath; making the lilies' magic flow
through me, causing every memory I have to be brought out into the night, into
the stars ... they twinkle, as if
smiling. I feel myself begin to twirl
around and around, becoming a part of the sky, a part of the night, and a part
of the magic. I open my eyes again a
few seconds later, in time to see the fireflies twirl around me and the glowing
part of the lilies do the same. The
glowing part does too, and they, woven together, create a light which had been
unknown to me before ...
... Hope
...
And, like
grandpa had taught me ...
The dance
of the moon ...
Grandpa was
right. The dance of the moon does
return memories ... I laugh and smile, looking towards the woods again. The lilies glow to their own melody this
time, the music floating through the night, this time I can hear it. It's sad and full of the prescience of
memories ... the melody of the past, of life ... and this time I see another
outline among the lilies, a pale blue light in the outline of two living
memories ...
I step
towards the two, not sure of whether to believe my eyes. The two smile as I continue to hesitantly
step towards them, their outlines becoming clearer as I near them.
" Echo? Colin? "
Smiles are
my only answer.
" Is
that ... you? "
I reach out
to touch Echo's face, and as I do, she leans down and wraps me in a joyful
embrace. Colin smiles and does the same,
their shimmering outlines cold in the pale moonlight. I shiver a bit as I feel the two let me down, and then they kneel
and look in my eyes. And then Colin
speaks, his voice echoing, as if he were speaking to me in Gaia's Navel again
...
" Aurora ... we came here because we
know you're troubled ... "
Then Echo
looks to me, her voice the same as Colin's.
Then she too, beings to speak.
" We
needed to show you that memories never fade ... "
"
And neither does love. "
Echo nods,
her eyes once again, welling up with tears.
She bites her lip, and Colin puts an arm around her. He smiles the same way he did just before I
left ...
" And
we have something for you, Aurora. You
must keep it safe for me, until the next person needs it ... "
"
W-what is it, Colin? " I say, my voice trembling.
He stands,
pulling the mystical object out of its case.
Gleaming in the pale moonlight, the Sword almost looks like a legend, a
fairy tale, a myth born in the minds of the hopeful. Colin says a few quiet words, and then the sword begins to glow.
"
Protect it with your life, Aurora. And
always remember us. Never forget your
dreams. " He hands me the
sword, and I accept it bravely. I nod.
Echo stands,
her pale eyes shattering the tears that she has been holding. They run down her cheeks, and she picks me
up again. I wrap my arms around her
neck, and too, shed the tears.
" I
shall always be with you ... "
" And I with you, Echo ... "
Colin too,
embraces me farewell, whispering a few words of consolation. Then he wipes the tears from my cheeks,
smiles, and tells me to never forget the memories, the tears, the laughter, the
dreams. Dreams will always remain
...
And then the
two turn and begin to walk to the edge of the escarpment*, Echo looking back
only once, and even then I knew she was still crying. Her memory will never forget ... and neither will his ... Or
mine ... For even though we can't stay together, we will always be in the
other's dreams ... And that is why I must never forget ...
Seeming
enchanted, out of nowhere, a moonlit stair case appears in the sky towards the
moon ... Colin and Echo walk up it, and as they do, I realize this will be the
final farewell ... and then I run towards them, shouting for the two to stop.
But they keep walking.
" Don't
leave me ...! Colin! Echo! " I run faster, the Sword
dragging me down, " Please! Please
wait! "
And as they
near the top of the stairway, towards the moon and the stars, they turn to face
me one last time ... Their faces
illuminated by the pale light of the moon, by the lucent light of the stars,
they smile. Simultaneously, they begin
to speak once more ...
" We
shall always be with you ... Always remember yourself, Aurora ... and your
dreams ... "
Then they
vanish, into the night, into the stars, into the moon ...
I should be
feeling sad, or small, but I feel lighthearted and complete ... I have seen
them one last time, and I will never forget them. The Sword glints in my hand, allowing the Mana to flow through me
once more. I feel connected to my
surroundings again ... And I smile up at the moon.
And then I
begin to dance in the pale moonlight.