One Last Letter

It had been several days since Nephrite's encounter with the mysterious boy by the river, but Nephrite hadn't been able to stop thinking about him. A shiver ran down his spine as the image of the boy's sad eyes appeared in his mind again. Nephrite felt as though there was a reason they met, but he couldn't quite figure out what it was. The sun shined into Nephrite's bedroom window, nearly blinding him. He shielded his face from the sudden brightness and sat up in his bed, peering out the window and sighing. Another sleepless night had come and gone, and that wasn't just the case for Nephrite.

In their small home's second bedroom, Sophia and Noah laid wide awake in their bed, talking quietly amongst themselves.

"I hate this" Sophia murmured, her voice cracking with emotion. "I haven't slept in days. Every time I try, the visions come back." Noah turned to look at her, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Visions?" he asked curiously.

"Yes" Sophia said, turning her head towards him. "I feel like something bad is going to happen."

"Tell me what you've been seeing, Sophia. I know it will be hard, but I need to know" Noah said gently, reaching out and stroking her hair softly. She sighed and pulled herself up, brushing her softly tangled bangs out of her eyes before speaking.

"I keep having visions of our kingdom becoming shrouded in darkness. No one can escape the darkness and live…" she explained, her voice trailing off as she spoke. Tears filled her eyes as she looked into Noah's. "I'm scared" she whispered. Without a word, Noah pulled Sophia into his arms and began to stroke her hair again as she quietly sobbed into his chest.

"It's going to be alright" Noah said, trying to convince Sophia, and himself, that it would be.

"Mom? Dad?" The sound of Nephrite's voice in the doorway caused the two of them to jump. And they turned to look at him, trying to act as normally as possible.

"What is it, son?" Noah asked, hoping Nephrite wouldn't notice the slight quiver in his voice.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course. You can ask us anything" Sophia said, smiling softly at him.

"What's going on? I feel like you two are hiding something from me." Sophia sucked in a sharp breath and slowly turned to Noah, silently hoping he would intervene.

"Well…" she began, attempting to discreetly nudge Noah under the covers. After a moment, he cleared his throat and turned to look at Nephrite.

"I guess we can't hide the truth from you forever" he sighed, then patted the space next to him on the bed. "Come here for a second." Nephrite walked over and sat down next to Noah, his eyes never leaving him or Sophia.

"Well?" he prompted.

"I don't really know how to tell you this delicately" Noah said hesitantly. Nephrite furrowed his brow then looked at him, and it was obvious he was becoming frustrated.

"I don't care how you tell me, just tell me" Nephrite snapped. "I feel like something bad is going to happen, and I think you know what it is" he continued, his voice now less harsh.

"I know, I just…"

"You just what?"

"I don't want you to worry" Noah said, knowing deep inside that there was very little chance of that happening.

"Fine" Nephrite huffed. "If you won't tell me, then maybe someone else will." He got up and walked out of the bedroom before either of his parents could protest, and a moment later they heard the front door slam.

"Where do you think he's gone?" Sophia asked, worried. Noah sighed and shook his head.

"I wouldn't worry too much" he said, reaching over to place his hand on Sophia's. "He probably just went for a walk to clear his head. He'll come back."

"He really is just like you" Sophia giggled, laying her head on Noah's shoulder.

Meanwhile, just outside, Nephrite was sulking on the front step, mumbling to himself.

"I bet Helios would know what's going on. I wish I knew where to find him" he sighed. Just a moment later, a bird seemed to appear out of thin air. It flew overhead and swiftly landed on the ground just a few feet from Nephrite. He looked at the bird curiously, examining its colors and markings. It was white with a blue belly, and blue speckles on its wings. While admiring the bird, Nephrite began to sense a familiar energy around it. The bird suddenly began to fly away, and Nephrite quickly stood up to follow it. After a few moments, the bird landed in a pine tree. Nephrite looked around and realized he was not familiar with his surroundings.

"Where am i?" he murmured. A bright, golden light flashed in front of him, and when it cleared, Helios was standing before him.

"It's you!" Nephrite said happily, running toward him.

"I could sense you needed me, so I led you here" Helios said, smiling calmly. The sight of him nearly made Nephrite forget why he was looking for him in the first place.

"What is this place? I've never seen it before" Nephrite wondered aloud, looking around and taking in the beautiful scenery.

"This is my home" Helios explained. Nephrite looked at him, puzzled. Before he could say anything, Helios began to change form. After a moment, the man who had been so familiar to Nephrite changed into a magnificent winged horse.

"How did you do that?" Nephrite asked, a shocked expression on his face.

"This is my true form. I can't stay like this for too long because there are people looking for me, so I take on a human form to disguise myself."

"Who is looking for you? Are they bad people?" Helios nodded in response and waited a moment before speaking again.

"Yes. The people who are looking for me are under the control of a very powerful, very evil entity named Queen Metalia, so this is not their doing, but hers."

"My parents have talked about her…" Nephrite murmured, recalling hearing her name before. "But they're not telling me anything. They seem really worried, and it's making me scared too" Nephrite said as tears began to form in his eyes. Helios changed back into his human form and walked toward Nephrite, pulling him into a gentle embrace.

"I know you're scared. I can't promise you that everything will be okay, but there is one thing that I know for sure."

"What's that?" Nephrite sniffled, wiping the tears from his face with his shirt sleeve.

"No matter what happens to your parents, you will be safe."

"How do you know that?"

"I promised them you would be" Helios responded. His words put Nephrite somewhat at ease, but the boy was still unsure of what the future held for his family.

"Do you think something is going to happen to them?"

"I can't say for sure. However, if anything does, I can promise that you won't be alone."

"Really?" Nephrite asked, sniffling.

"Yes" Helios said with a slight nod. "You'll know what I mean when the time comes." Nephrite stepped forward and hugged Helios, and all his tension seemed to melt away.

"Thank you. I feel a lot better."

"I'm glad. You should probably start heading home so your parents don't worry."

"How do I get back?" Nephrite asked, unsure of exactly where Helios' secret home was. Suddenly, he could hear Sophia calling for him.

"Follow your mother's voice" Helios said with a smile. "And, just know that whenever you need me, I will find a way to help you get to me." Nephrite smiled and nodded in response, then turned to run toward the sound of Sophia's voice. When she saw him, the worry faded from her face. As he drew closer, she stepped off the front step and ran to meet him.

"Where were you? I was so worried" she said, pulling him into a hug.

"I was talking to a friend. I'm sorry for worrying you" Nephrite said, returning her embrace.

"Did you and your friend have a nice talk?" she asked with a smile.

"Yeah, we did" Nephrite said, smiling back at her.

For the rest of the day, the three of them talked, laughed and cherished each moment together as if it were their last. When nightfall came, tiredness began to overtake Nephrite. After hugging both of his parents and telling them he loved them, he walked into his bedroom and climbed into bed, falling asleep more easily than he had in recent nights.

The next morning, Nephrite awoke feeling fully rested and happier than he had been the past few days. He got out of his bed and got dressed, then walked out of his room, expecting to find his parents sitting in the front room talking as they often did in the morning. When he didn't see them, he assumed they were still asleep. Quietly, he crept to their bedroom and was surprised to find it cracked open slightly. When he noticed they weren't there, he began to worry. On the dresser, there was a small white envelope. On top of the envelope was a small green stone. Nephrite curiously walked over to the dresser and picked up the envelope to look at it. Noticing it was addressed to him, he carefully opened it and pulled out the paper that was inside. As his eyes scanned the words on the page, his heart felt as though it would shatter into a million pieces. After reading the last words, he looked up and saw the green stone. He picked it up, then slid it in his pocket. Along with the letter. He sat down on the bed and began to attempt to process what had happened. His parents were gone.