What a horrid thought – to grow up and forget childhood and all its childish wonders. To forget the mermaids who splashed happily in the shallows, and the sirens who once tried to lure Coraline to her death. To forget the companions you once had, to include Oliver and Pandora. No, growing up was not an option. Growing old was mandatory…but not up. Never up. The filly was still mentally very young, though she was learning more and more by the day. She sought out her companions, desperate to make sure they hadn’t been killed in her absence. She couldn’t stand that thought.
The silver girl listened as Pan spoke of tasks and being active in the herd. Learning a skill. Doing something. She had wanted nothing more – to be someone that had responsibility. She wanted to take others under her broken wings and teach them…but she knew she couldn’t do that until she was old enough, or mature enough to not be afraid of everything. Maybe that was her new goal – to not be afraid anymore. Like a child who outgrows their nightlight. Maybe that’s what she needed…to find a teddy bear who could stay with her while she turned off her nightlight and proved to herself that she wasn’t a baby anymore. Yes, that sounded nice.
”What does a caretaker do? It sounds lovely.” She couldn’t imagine a better task for Pan, unless exploring was still an option that the leads wanted. He was good with people. She thought the word was “charismatic,” but she wasn’t certain.
Flora was there, then, and speaking, too. The magic here was quiet, and there were no bad things. That made the silver child feel better. She knew that there was no place truly safe from the evils of the world, but if they weren’t actively stalking the children, that was a good sign. She could possibly come out of her shell then, learn to walk on her own two…er…four feet, and not need to find someone to protect her. Not that she minded – it had been sweet how Mew wanted to protect her from the world…but she didn’t want anyone getting hurt for her again.
”What does an emissary do? It sounds very important!” Hard to believe that the girl who had Coraline wind flowers in her hair was so grown up to have such a big title. What was going on in the world? Were they being forced to grow up? Did they have to? Or was that the ‘magic’ of this place? They had no choice but to grow up or be left behind? Her mind began to worry then about Pan. He knew he needed a job, but was he ready to be the grown up? Would he be left behind? If that was the case, she decided, she would stay with him. Nobody should be alone!
@
@Pan
