"It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves."
-William Shakespeare
It took a couple more visits before Koriand'r felt truly comfortable with asking the Sky Witch for permission to visit earth again. The star shook anxiously, quivering before her dear friend. "I have a wish, friend Raven," the star said one night, feeble flames flickering around her. "Might I return to earth? It has been so long since I have seen the human world."
Surprisingly, the witch only looked at her, face unreadable, and said, "Okay." She seemed like her old self again and Koriand'r was glad. She was even mores so because she could see the beloved planet of earth once more.
"Oh, thank you, thank you!" she cried. In her excitement, the star emitted bursts of bright light that temporarily engulfed the witch.
The Sky Witch smiled in spite of herself. A ghost of a smile danced on her lips. Still, Koriand'r couldn't help but feel that there was something sad about the way her friend said, "Let's go then, Star."
…
It was every bit as beautiful as she remembered if not more. The sky was the same brilliant shade of dark blue. If she looked closely she could see all of the star people glitter brightly against the night sky. The moon shimmered like a silver orb high up above, its brilliant shine reflected in the dark waters below. The star, now in her insect form, flitted excited above the surface of the water, laughing at the distressed caws of the black bird above her. It's fine, it's fine, the star thought, her light blinking ecstatically. Oh, she loved all of this.
Perhaps her favorite part of earth visits was the glimpses she caught of the actual people. She loved peering into windows, watching families together. Stars were never that close. Once a star was born, they normally made their way around the universe on their own, conversing with their family every once in a light year or two. While Koriand'r's family was more intact because of their royal status, it was still lonely. Koriand'r loved her family but at the same time she wished that they could be as intimate as these human families, where the children laughed and play together. She couldn't remember the last time she was in the same vicinity as her entire family.
"Not too close," Raven squawked whenever Koriand'r flitted too close to a human or observed a household through the window too long. The Sky Witch's form, an inky black bird with beady red eyes, always made the star want to giggle. It was mysterious-looking with a dark aura that matched her friend's true form. Still, that shrill cry instead of her friend's normal, brooding voice was so…mismatching.
Koriand'r would immediately glide away, flapping her little wings rapidly. The feeling of the air against her face was exhilarating. I'm going to stay, she thought to herself one night. I'm going to ask Raven to make me human and I will live the rest of my days here.
…
"Why do you love it so much?" Komand'r interrupted her one night when she was excitedly babbling about what she had seen one night. It was a little anecdote about a few puppies she had seen just moments ago, so small and fluffy, and one had chased her all about the alley! Raven had shouted at her when they got back for being careless but Koriand'r saw no harm. The puppy had only wanted to play with her after all and wished her no harm.
Koriand'r hesitated before speaking. "I suppose I love the colors," she responded.
"We have colors here," Komand'r pointed out, twirling around and emitting her own set of purple sparks crackle about her.
"It's different." Koriand'r thought of the vast darkness of space, how the only color that she ever came upon was either from another star or just the light of the sun hitting the surface of a planet. Other than that, the galaxy was so bleak. "On earth, there are so many different hues and shades and that's only what I see at night, Komand'r. Raven says that in the daytime, the colors are even brighter and more numerous! And I…Well, I'd love to see them. Komand'r, I think I could live on earth forever if I could just live surrounded by such beautiful colors all of the time." She looked wistfully at earth. Even from this distance she could see how wonderful it was, the swirling white clouds above the clear blue waters and the many green grasses that covered the land.
Her sister didn't respond for a while. "This Sky Witch, she said she could turn you into a human?"
Koriand'r shimmered excitedly at the thought. "Oh, yes! She said it was indeed possible!" She had not forgotten the ominous warning the witch had given her about the transformation but she had decided already that, when the time came, she would do anything to acquire that human form.
"But would you really turn into a human?" Komand'r said doubtfully. "The witch said it was dangerous, did she not? Would it not be better to just remain as you are now? It would ensure your safety, no?"
"You would never understand, Komand'r," Koriand'r replied, "because you have never witnessed the world of the humans as I have. It is so truly marvelous and wondrous. Once you have seen it, you would understand everything I have fallen in love with and why I would do anything to live there as a human. The humans, the places, the colors, Komand'r, are beyond anything in your wildest imaginations."
The other star floated next to Koriand'r, still doubting her every word. Koriand'r did not feel any anger at her, however. It was just too hard to explain the wonders of earth without witnessing it by oneself. "Why take such a huge risk just to become human? The way the Sky Witch described it…it does not seem like the transformation is guaranteed."
Koriand'r let out a sigh. "I never would have know the beauty of earth had I not taken the risk to explore it in the first place. Should I give up my dream of human because I am scared?" she laughed bitterly. "No, I would rather die knowing I tried to achieve my dream than just wander about the galaxy in this dark, cold expanse."
Komand'r was quiet. "You realize that if you go through with this that the power to rule the galaxy will fall to me, do you not?"
She only laughed and replied, "Komand'r, the throne was never my desire. You may have it. This dreary space is not something I wish to rule anyway."
"So are you really going to go through with this?"
"My dear sister," Koriand'r said seriously, "I have never wanted anything more in my life."
"Do you know when?" her sister asked curiously.
Koriand'r shrugged, sparkling happily. "Not now, but I'll know when the time comes."
…
The time came one fateful night when the moon was a gleaming silver crescent in the sky. Despite the fog that gloomy night, the moon was still able to shine brightly through. That was another thing she loved about the earth. Its diverse weather patterns had no equivalent in space. Raven had also mentioned that there was also something called rain on earth, where droplets of water would sprinkle down from the sky. Koriand'r had always wanted to experience rain but the last time she had expressed this wish to her friend the Sky Witch had looked so horrified that the star remembered to keep such desires silent. Raven had later calmed down long enough to explain that even in firefly form, the star's form was not fully transformed, and the rain would be enough to extinguish her fire. This memory made Koriand'r flap her wings harder. When she became a full fledge human, she would no longer have to worry about her flame going out.
She had managed to fly far enough away from the watchful eye of the raven. She'd only done so a couple of times before and was always pleased when she was able to avoid her friend's careful surveillance, an impressive feat considering how good the bird's eyesight was. Sure, she was a young star but she could take care of herself! Besides, she's been on earth plenty of times before.
The star reached an expansive field at the top of the cliff. The fog was still rather thick but she didn't mind it at all. This was probably what flying through a cloud was like, she thought as she felt the cold against her body. It made her wings tingle with delight. The fog made her light seem to shine even brighter. She was a luminous orb, shining rays down on the dew dropped grass and making them glitter.
She almost saw him too late, the boy wandering alone on the cliff by himself. Koriand'r nearly crashed into him but was able to flutter pass him. She saw him turn his head to look at her curiously and this made her flush. Her light blinked its usual starry-pink glow and she had to remember to calm down so she could return to the normal yellow light of a firefly.
He was wandering alone on the cliff. What a dangerous past time for a child. He must have been confident in his knowledge about the cliff if he was walking around by himself in the dark. Still, it was dark and dangerous and the fog was obscuring anything that was only a few feet away from view. She watched his silhouette stray on the grassy plain. He seemed to be seeking the edge, treading carefully and looking down at his feet a lot. Still…
She saw the edge. He was teetering too close, she thought. The fog was so thick now that no normal human being could see anything. He took a step too close to the edge and she heard part of the cliff break off. No, no, no, she thought. You cannot die. You have barely lived. You have not yet experienced the beauty that is earth. The star flew up in front of the boy, a couple of feet away from his face, and lit up like a miniature star. Her rays extended from her to the boy and he could see how perilously close he was to falling. She was happy when she saw him stand back and she let herself get dimmer. He was safe now.
She flitted back toward him, hoping to get past him and back to her friend Raven. What things she had to tell her! This was probably the closest she had ever gotten to a human and she had practically saved his life! Why -
Black. Total absolute darkness like one of those dreaded black holes that stars had always been told to stay away from lest they wanted to be sucked in and have their light source depleted. It was the one thing that frightened Koriand'r beyond belief and now she was here. So this was death. At least, she thought, I got to die in a place I loved.
A crack opened above her and she saw a big, blue eye blinked down on her. It was the exact same color she always thought the sky would be. The crack opened more and she could see the boy's entire face. Previously she had only caught a glimpse of it but now she could observe it more freely. He had pale skin and such dark hair. His hair was an inky black, not like Raven's feathers but more like the darkness of the galaxy she was so used to gliding around in. She had been caught in this beautiful boy's grasps and for a second she thought about how warm his hands were.
"Hello, firefly. You saved my life, didn't you?" It wasn't a question. He stated it as a fact. He was still growing, on the cusp of adulthood, like when stars were first beginning to receive their first bright glows. He smiled at her and she saw him light up like a star. Perhaps humans and stars weren't all that different. "You're beautiful."
You're beautiful, she thought and it wasn't until the boy had gasped, letting her go free, when she had realized that she was returning to her original pink glow. She recollected her senses, brushing the boy's compliment aside, and went back to the yellow light of a firefly.
"Thank you," he whispered to her.
And as she flew away, that's when she knew it was the right time.
…
Koriand'r flew hurriedly to her friend's abode, barging in without any greetings. "Raven! Tonight is the night! You must change me! Make me a human!"
The Sky Witch twirled around, her cloak swishing about her. A dark aura began to collect around Raven, black tentacles creeping from under her dark blue cloak. Her eyes glowed a dangerous red. "Make you a human?" she growled, but it wasn't her voice. It was a million monstrous voices, voices that Koriand'r had never heard before. She'd never seen her friend this angry before. "Koriand'r do you even realize what you're asking of me? Do you know what you're doing?"
Koriand'r didn't sway. "I am asking you to make me a human. You can help me, can you not?"
"Koriand'r, please!" screeched the Sky Witch. Her tentacles had disappeared and the black smoke surrounding her had gone. Before the star was a kneeling girl, looking up at Koriand'r, large blue eyes pleading with her to stop everything. "Please."
"Raven," Koriand'r said. "Please."
Raven looked at Koriand'r and seemed to sense the deep longing in her friend. She approached the star. "Okay. I'll do it for you."
…
There were three conditions. One: she could never speak of her transformation with anyone, not now not ever. Two: she had to discard her old name. Her name was in the language of the stars. If she wanted to become human, she had to adopt a name that was in the human tongue. Raven helped her choose a rough translation of her original name – Starfire. And three: she had to receive love from another human.
"Love?" repeated Starfire. "How do I get love?"
"You'll learn," Raven responded, not looking at the star. "Anything will do. Any symbol of love. A kiss would be best."
"A kiss," Starfire echoed. A kiss. It sounded so simple and sweet. Surely something so simple would be difficult to get. "I'll get a kiss from that boy." She had already explained to Raven what had happened, why she needed to turn into a human as quickly as possible. Her friend had only nodded numbly. Starfire wondered if she was really listening.
The transformation was just as painful as Raven had said. It wasn't at all like turning into a firefly. Turning into a firefly only had Starfire compress all of her heat and energy into one tiny orb. Turning human required her to cool down remarkably. Starfire was sure she would never feel warm again. Her gaseous form stretched in such a painful way, forming long slender limbs. She held in her screams as she grew all of these human appendages. She had asked for this. She would endure the pain.
By the time the transformation had finished, Starfire's eyelids were heavy and the last thing she remembered was Raven whispering, "Good luck," as she fell from the night sky.
…
She woke up feeling cold, the wind licking her face. Koriand'r – no, it was Starfire now – never knew that humans were so cold inside. She shivered. The girl gathered her dress around her, holding every part of herself as close as she could so she wouldn't lose any heat.
She heard someone clucking her tongue and soft footsteps against the sand approaching her. Starfire looked around and saw another girl coming her way. The girl didn't look like a normal human girl. Instead, she shared the same magical aura as Raven had. Not only did this girl share the same gray skin as the Sky Witch, but she also had a similar mysterious gleam in her eye. However, that's where the similarities stopped. The girl's bright pink hair swooped into two horns at the top of her head. A permanent pink blush seemed to dust her cheeks. Perhaps the strangest things about her though were her eyes. They were large, pink, luminous, and looked remarkably like the eyes of a cat. When the girl saw Starfire's expression, confused and somewhat terrified, a large grin stretched across her face. Starfire didn't know whether or not the smile was supposed to be comforting but it only sent chills up her spine.
"Well, aren't you a hot mess?" the mystical girl said, observing the pile of glass surrounding Starfire. She snapped and a bright pink spark sprung from her fingers. The shards immediately dissolved back into the sand like they were never there at all. "You're Starfire, aren't you?" She held out a hand for Starfire to take.
Starfire nodded, grabbing onto the extended hand that the girl had offered. "Who are you?"
"I'm your guide in this crazy, mad world," the girl responded, shrugging as if this weren't a big deal. "But you can just call me Jinx."
A/N: Special shout-out to juliette01 and magicmadnessheavensin for being so incredibly sweet! Your reviews were very lovely. I'd also like to thank everyone who favorited and/or followed my fic. I'll probably have the next chapter up some time in December after my quarter is over. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!