Broken Antler Fen Cattails dancing in the light

Maia's conversation with @Teya had left her aching. She hadn't realized how much she missed the fen, or how long it had been, until it reminded her.

She told @Eljay that she was going to visit Wraen and Ibis, but she would be back before it got too late. She'd reassured him that she would be fine and didn't need him to come unless he wanted to. Something felt right about making the moment a private one, and he could spend the time with the children.

A complex wave of emotion struck her as she passed beneath the familiar, thickly drawn trees. It was mostly happy but there was a definite, unmistakeable bittersweet taste underneath. There were the "dragon dens" where she'd joked about her new title as dragon tamer. There was the dip where the snow piled so much they'd almost disappeared while playing in it.

She visited Watcher's Stone first and sat on top of it, looking at the two trees for a while and thinking about Terance and Sarah. Arcturus too, and how often he would sit in the same place she was now. His disappearance wasn't worse or better, really, and she thought maybe the stone itself could be for him. Terance and Sarah would have liked him - she liked the thought of them all being together now.

Next was Wraen. What could she say? Maia stared at the place where they'd buried them, first @Wraen, then @Ibis.

I miss you. You probably already knew that, but I wanted to tell you anyway. I'm sorry it took so long for me to come. Maia scooted closer, so she sat between the two. She had always liked the idea that they were up among the stars now, but she felt them more here than she had expected to. Her eyes started to mist.

Ibis, your babies grew up to be amazing. I'm so sorry I couldn't be everything they needed, but I know you are watching and taking care of them. I'm really glad I got to know them, but I wish... I wish I knew you more. They should have had someone who did. She was already crying. Maia hadn't even realized how much guilt she'd been carrying for that. I did the best I could.

From what she knew of Ibis - playing with her when she was small, talking with her when she'd grown and experienced more than her aunt could imagine - that would be more than enough. Maia took a slow breath, then let it out as she turned towards her sister's grave.

I still think about you almost every day and wish things could be different. I wish you could see your nieces and nephews, and teach them to fight giants and make crazy poems. Nothing ever felt too big when you were here. Her voice finally broke. I just had to talk to you and you'd say something that would prove that nothing would ever be as big or as strong as us.

But I know I'm okay, too. All of the stuff you said, and all the stuff you taught me, it's all still here. Every time I tell them a story, or teach them to fight giants, you're always there too. Maia stopped to take a shuddering breath. Despite her tears she was smiling. I like thinking that someday, one of them will tell one of our stories and we'll both be there, listening together.

She stood up and stepped over, then lowered her head and pressed her forehead gently against the ground. I love you. Then she looked again towards the other grave. Both of you. I know you're taking care of each other. Say hi to mom and dad, and Sarah and Terance too. Tell them I miss them, but that things are really good here. They don't need to worry. She really was going to be okay.

It almost felt as if she could feel something watching as Maia walked away, back down the hill and beneath the trees that grew up along its base. It was the kind of feeling that comes with warmth instead of a shiver. She brushed a paw over her muzzle and smiled.

She would spend a little more time here, walking among the quiet trees in the company of her favorite ghosts, before she went back home.