Pol could see the emotion in her sister's eyes, the elder treader surfing through the currents of whatever thoughts were tugging at her heart. "I cannot find myself to say that I am thrilled that we went through the chaos that we did. I can agree that we were able to learn more the way things happened, but who is to say that we wouldnt have gained that knowledge without the pain of losing mama... and each other... Though I can say that the things that happened were enough to push me to want to become the strongest medic possible." She murmured, glancing at her ruined fluke.
Pol smiled in response to the vows, her eyes alight with happiness as she gazed at Bella. "I agree. I want nothing more than to keep our lives intertwined as much as possible. I cant bear to lose you again. No matter what, we will be a pod together even if it is only the pair of us." She murmured, pressing her muzzle to her sister's cool flesh. The scent of the elder mare was a balm to her frayed mind, a way for her to feel centered and connected to someone for the first time in a long time. "And it isnt my fault you are challenged size wise. I just grew up and matured." She winked as she grinned at her sister.
Pol chuckled. "My darling sister, I am no more ghost than you. Just the odd stranger that finally found her way home again." She refused to call the pod her home. Bella was the closest thing to a home she had ever had, and one that she was loathe to give up again.
At Bel's reaction to her words about the bull, Pol found her nares flaring and eyes wide. "You met him?! He was the first being that I ever healed... The first one that was willing to let me try. When I found him, I saw not the shark attributes, but that he was bleeding and needed someone to step in. As he healed, I realized what he was. By then, I was no longer afraid of him. I knew him and called him friend. Made it easier to be close to him once I realized. And his stories were fascinating." She murmured, laughing as she thought about the vivid bull.
"I dont know that I am ready for that kind of love. I barely know how to be a sister, let alone someone romantic to another. I will just have to wait and see how life changes that feeling." She snorted, shaking her head and laughing softly.
The pain that seemed to lurk in her sister's eyes was like a knife to Pol's heart. Hearing her speak of Shard was painful, making her feel terrible. It was her fault that things had fallen apart between them. Her being injured, trying to live up to her sister's antics. "I am so sorry, Bella. I was too young to try to keep up and do what you did. I know that now. I cost you everything that you wanted. Everything you deserved. I am so so sorry..." She murmured, tears leaking from her eyes as she closed them tightly and turned her face from her sister.
With a watery smile, Pol gazed at her sister and laughed softly. "I am glad that you have her. I would love to hear her stories someday. To know more about who we are and where we come from. That has been missing in my world since I was a tiny pup." She murmured. Listening to her sister describe the glow that her people cherished, she dipped her head and glanced at her own pelt. Glanced at the glow that was barely visible. "I can only promise to try... It is odd to think of letting things that were hidden be visible."
I don't care what they're going to say, let the storm rage on the cold never bothered me anyway
There were so many thoughts running rampant.
Emotions that swirled through her heard, through her heart at this difficult conversation that just touched on some of the subjects she and her sister were owed to have together. It hadn't been an easy time - for any of them, but they were both getting stronger as time passed, and coming back together finally offered them closure they didn't know they needed. "I suppose we should be glad our fins were strong enough too swim through the wild currents. No point in focusing on the what ifs that might have happened, had things been different. We've made it through the whirlpool, and all that's left now is to rest our flukes and embrace having the steadinesss of one another to rely on." She stated gently.
She knew what-ifs were a one way ticket down a spiral.
The idea of her sister making her way down that spiral on what could have been had their lives not been put into the upheaval they had been in worried her to the core. She didn't want to imagine a world where her sister lived in a fantasy world, surrounding herself by the potential happier fantasies and letting the real world swim by her while she remained beached in a daydream. Nothing good came from those dreams, nice in passing, focus to hard and you feel as though real life is lesser in comparison.
Pol deserved happiness, not a world of daydreams.
Bel smiled at her sister's enthusiastic agree of keeping together, to not let them lose each other again. Bel's laugh was soft, twinkling as she smiled warmly, "I don't know if two make a pod, but I agree with the sentiment. We don't need others, as long as we have each other to swim with - but don't let those thoughts keep you from others. Who knows, you may find your own stallion to swim into the sunset with, after all." She teased warmly, nuzzling her little sister back, relaxing, before snorting at her sister's sassy words. She mouthed her sister's fin, gently tugging at it just behind her ears, "Hush you, such a mouth you have!" She retorted in play, "Hasn't anyone ever told you to respect your elders, hmm?" She teased back.
She couldn't help the warmth in her chest at her sister's words.
Home was where the heart was, after all, and more often than not, the heart was with those who made it beat. She just hoped that Pol had more on Novus to to beat for than just her. How was she settling into these lands? How well was she finding her way? "Well, hopefully you won't ever get lost again." She teased, nosing her sister, "I doubt you spend enough time in the ocean to learn how to be a wayfairer after all. Quick, which way is north?" She questioned in jest.
She wasn't expecting for the topic of the odd shark to come up.
Bel had to laugh, her ears perking with amusement, "I did meet him, odd fellow he was. I can imagine being able to see past his attributes for care - though. Plus, we tend to see only what we want to see, and you clearly have the drive to help others." She mused. As love was brought up - particularly the kind of love their people felt, their parents felt, Bel had not nod in understanding, "Sometimes life will point you in the right direction, just don't be blind to your own potential happiness."
But then there was Shard.
If ever there was a lasting regret, it was with the Treader that had been her best friend, her companion, and later her initial future. She had thought she had found her everything, only for her to realize his devotion to his father, to the old beliefs would always come first, and no amount of ideas would sway his opinion on what the Pod needed to do. Even she had been second best, second place, not enough. It was painful, the falling out, but if anything, Bel learned she didn't need to be second place ever again.
She deserved more than to be second in a lover's eyes.
"Don't apologize, Pol. We were young too, and I'm glad things changed the way they did. I was always going to be second to the council in Shard's eyes, and I wouldn't have been happy with that. I would have wanted an equal partnership, not a silencer if I spoke against the Council. If anyone should be apologizing, it should be Shard for letting the Council come between us. He could have come after me - he could have asked me to stay. He followed me when I left, called for me to stop. But he still refused to close the gap, refused to go any further away from the Pod, even the few short yards to reach me. You don't have to apologize for anything, Shard was responsible for his own actions."
And that was perhaps the hardest part to swallow.
She nuzzled her sister reassuringly, offering a soft smile, "Yuki is a true treasure, she's been a saving grace for me, just as I was for her. I'll tell you the stories someday, just as I'll spin you tales from our ancestors too. I'll make a proper Treader out of you yet." She teased fondly, before tilting her head at her sister and nuzzling her again, "Trying is all I expect. As long as you try, you will not fail in my eyes."
Pol listened to her sister, smiling gently as she did. She adored the elder Treader, and was much more open to her than she had been in their first reunion. That had been a terrible mess. "Resting our flukes and learning each other once again sounds like a good place to start. Caligo knows that my swimming patterns are probably so vastly different than yours and would make you die of laughter." She snorted, thinking of the more eel like movements that she had now with only half of her fluke remaining.
Pol laughed and shook her head. "Sometimes two makes a great pod because there is less chaos and annoying egos to break things apart! I dont know about finding a stallion to swim into the sunset with... but it would be nice to at least experience romance someday." She remarked with a grin. As Bella mouthed her sail and teased, Pol felt like her blood had turned effervescent. There was happiness bubbling through her entire form and she felt like the luckiest mare in the world. "Sorry... I never did learn that trick... Though elder definitely fits." She winked as she giggled.
The idea of becoming lost again made Pol nervous, though she tried to hide it. "Hmmm... North... Isnt it up?" She teased, lifting her muzzle to point straight at the sky. There was a part of her that was settling in, a part that had found the correct place for her. She was learning to help others and felt at home in the realm of Novus.
Pol snorted at her remark about Trey being odd. "I think odd is being nice. He is quite the strange figure. Past that, he has a huge heart and became very dear to me while we were together. I do hope that he made peace with his brother... That was something that he was worried about when we separated." She replied, her face softening as she smiled at the memories that she carried in her heart.
"I am not going to lie... The idea of seeking happiness for myself is terrifying. I dont remember how our people lived, but I vaguely remember that the bond between mates is strong." She commented, looking down slightly as she spoke. "The idea of a super strong bond is a bit intimidating." She finished, wondering how hard Bella leaving Shard had been.
As Bella spoke of Shard and the past, Pol found herself leaning closer to offer comfort. It was unconscious and served to soothe her as well. "Shard wasnt right... but at the same time... maybe he wasnt all wrong. In the water, I might not have healed and could easily have caused others to follow mama. I wasnt... safe... to have around." The words were broken, pain lancing through her at the admittance of it. She knew how enticing an inured creature was to predators.
The words that were slipping from her maw were painful and filled her heart as she was healing from the trauma. "I look forward to hearing the stories. I am missing a part of myself by not knowing. But I am finding other parts of me as I learn more about how to help others, as well as healing from the pain of the past." She murmured, pressing her cheek to her sister's shoulder. "I can promise that much... I will always try. I dont think I know how to give up..." She laughed softly as she beamed up at her sister.
I don't care what they're going to say, let the storm rage on the cold never bothered me anyway
The mare snorted in amusement at her little sister, "Oddly enough, I'd be more likely to die surprise to see you swimming in general from what you've been telling me." She teased in jest, before her expression softened, "But yes, there certainly can't be much that could go wrong with us enjoying each other's company and learning about where we are in life." She wanted to hear all about what had happened to her sister. Who had helped. Where she had been. All of it.
The idea of two being a pod, a pod of just them seemed to be a stretch though, but Bel had to admit the idea seemed nice, "Well, I don't know about 'great,' especially as half the pod would be freshwater, the other marine." Bel argued, with a playful nudge, before smiling gently at her sister, "You never know. But don't go searching for love too hard. You're still young, Polar, you have plenty of time."
Bel tilted her head, regarding her sister with a huff, "Please . . . tell you . . . you did not just ask that north was UP. I know you're not really that crazy!" She teased, nudging her sister's muzzle back down, even as she had to hide her laugh, letting the topic turn towards her sisters odd friend. Odd, with an apparent huge heart. Bel snorted in amusement, "It seems like he is a very good friend for you then. Trust me when I say, those friendships can be some of the best things out there. They make the nights less cold and certainly help fill you with strength when you have little left." She would know, she had a few friends like that herself.
The topic of be mate bond was a tough one, perhaps more so because Bel herself knew how strong it was, how difficult it was to break, to see it warped before you. She'd given shard every chance she could after all. "It's true . . . Shard wasn't all wrong. Water wouldn't have been safe for you to go into . . . but you were plenty safe to be around. We, females, might not have much in terms of fighting, and perhaps you don't remember the males, but they were built to attack. And at the time our pod was healthy and strong, more than capable of defending you and letting you heal on land. And . . . he broke his word to me, to give you more time on land. That was his fault. He let others sway him back from his word . . . and, if our bond had been strong and true, he'd have never done that to me." Even as she said it, she could still remember the desperate despair in his eyes, as they both begged the other to journey across the cavern. Bel back to his side, to the pod, Shard to her side and away from his father. Neither had moved, and perhaps that was the most painful of all.
But she knew now, she'd made the right choice. Even if it was painful to admit, and so once more she grasped onto her sister's words like a lifeline from the memories of the past."Oh, I'm sure you'll enjoy many of the stories, but perhaps not today, it's already getting late, after all." The mare stated with a laugh, looking up towards the sky before nuzzling her sister back, "And you'll hopefully find the stories Yuki has shared with me far more interesting than the ones the elders used as bedtime stories."
Pol joined in the amusement and laughed softly. "Gee... Thanks Bella... Just because I am more at home on the soil than in the surf." She teased back before pressing her muzzle to her sister’s shoulder. "I missed you so much... I feel like we have so much that we need to catch up on." She responded, her eyes soft.
Pol shook her head. "At least fresh water is mostly free from sharks... I will take safer waters over the hidden dangers from the depths." She snorted softly as she shook her head. "I honestly don’t know that I will find it. I am not one to give my heart away... I want something that I can trust... someone that I can rely on to be beside me no matter what." Not like Shard, though she kept those thoughts to herself. She didn’t want to reopen that wound.
Pol laughed and gave an innocent expression as her sister spoke. No, she didn’t really believe that up was north. But it was so easy to goad her on. "He can be relied on... that is something that means a lot to me. I left him and yet it seems that he had to find me." The idea made her smile, something left in her heart to flutter at the idea of the bull and the relationship that she had imagined having with him. Not that she really expected it any longer.
There was pain in her sister’s eyes, pain that broke Pol’s heart. She loved her sister and hated that there was that pain haunting her. Rather than speaking, she pressed her muzzle to Bella’s neck.
At the remark about the lateness of the day, Pol glanced up. The day had dissolved around them, the time passing quickly to make the world around them darken. "You are right... Funny how time flies." She said with a grin, pressed tightly to her sister’s side. There was a part of her that was loathe to leave, loathe to be separated from her sister after all that they had been though. "Promise me that we will keep getting to know each other again... I can’t bear to lose you again..." She murmured softly, tears threatening to well as she felt like she was that pup left on the ice again. "I love you Bella..." She murmured as she got ready to stand and head home.
I don't care what they're going to say, let the storm rage on the cold never bothered me anyway
The mare smiled innocently, eyes sparkling in mirth as she stared down at her little sister, "You can not blame me for teasing you for it either. Silly little land-shark." She teased her sister, even as she nuzzled her gently, "We have all the time in the world now, to catch up and reconnect. Don't despair." The mare chided gently, before tilting her head at the thought of fresh water being free of sharks.
"I'm not fond of swimming in fresh water, in general. It feels . . . odd when I'm so used to moving through the salt water. Besides, there are more than just hidden dangers leagues below. Secrets, and treasures. Lost knowledge and entire kingdoms that have sank to the abyss." Her eyes were sparkling as she spoke, her eyes bright as she remembered the secrets she had been privy of when she'd spent more time beneath the sea, than atop the shore. She did grin at her sister's dismissal for romance, "Well, just remember, that love bug has a way of biting you when you least expect it." She teased with a sassy smirk, even as she bumped muzzles with her little sister, "You never know when the right being will appear out of nowhere to whisk you off your fins and set sail into the sunset with you." She teased, with a laugh.
But the day was coming to a close, already starting to darken up. Bel's glow was starting to come to life, a very faint hue of cyan as her pelt transitioned to it's bioluminescent state as the world grew darker. "Oh, silly pup; we will definitely see each other again. You're not getting rid of me so easily." The older mare stated with a reassuring nuzzle, brushing her muzzle against the crest of her sister's fin, "So worry not, I'm only a realm away after all. If you ever need me, just come back over here, and you'll be sure to find me. Now, off you go. Before it gets too dark, you've got a bit of a trek to make it back to Denocte, don't you?" She stood with her sister, before embracing her tightly, her vapors rolling down her spine and over her sister's back with the softness of cool silk, "I'll see you again soon. I love you too, Polar. Now, go on, get. Travel safe, alright? I'll see you again before too long, promise." She wished her sister off, waiting until she'd no longer be able to see her sister's form before turning and heading back to the Swamp she called home.
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