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She was gifted, honorable, strong, brave, loyal beyond sense and reason; the best.
The other- her best friend, first love, her sister- was selfless, hard working, compassionate, and willing to give and give and give until there was nothing left of herself.
She had no family save for her sisters, no friends besides the strange girls that fate or chance or some strange little deity had bestowed upon her.
The other had a loving father, a mother who couldn't bear the sight of her, an aunt who loathed her for the scandal that she was, and the sisters who would love her no matter what path she chose in life.
She held no place in her life for such emotions as jealousy and love.
The other would grow to teach her everything that she knew.
She wanted a place to belong, people to respect her.
The other wanted similar things, along with food for the starving and currency for the poor.
She is fully prepared to- and probably will, before all is said and done- die for her chosen family, for her best friends, for the selfless girl that she thinks she might possibly love.
The other knows this, but desperately pushes it out of her mind.
She picks things and objects in the world, tags an ideal and a memory to them, so that she never forgets.
The other knows this, too, yet she's still stunned into silence when she sees how much her best friend has matured.
She's always getting herself into trouble with the other guards, because she will be the best some day, and she won't stop until everyone knows it.
The other avoids trouble like the plague for the most part, but still manages to find herself in over her head.
She vows to bring her best friend back, no matter what.
The other has no desire to leave.
She would die for any of them- especially her.
The other begs and pleads and cries for her to run away and save herself.
She smiles, kisses the other girl on the brow, and breathes her last breath while defending her best friend from those that would hurt her.
The other girl dies anyway, in the end, a victim of her own foolishness and a vial of self-induced poison- her best friend's name silent on her cold lips.
She is Xaforn, a soldier and a guard, a sister and a friend, and fits neatly into the niche of heroes after she is gone.
The other is Qiaan, who will die a traitor and a coward, filled with regret and shame, and will find acceptance in the arms of the sisters who have gone before her.
And the Dragon will rage and burn her kingdom, and the Poet will live on to nurture and protect, the Dancer will hold the hope for the future in her womb, the Wise One will become confused and mournful, the Healer will never be touched by death ever again, the Alchemist will continue to tear things apart in order to see how they work…
The Soldier will smile more and lay down her sword for good, and the Giver will weep sorrowful tears over all humanity.
Forever bound by sisterhood and a promise among women, broken and beaten and bruised.