[AW] [Fall] Whispering goodbyes by moonlight

[Below Zero]

Below Zero

my frost philosophy will put no curse on me

The world seemed so alive, even as night had fallen and suffocated out the sunlight. The moon had taken her spot in the sky, giving light to those below who celebrated. Bonfires flickered, cast glowing embers into the air, and painting hides with soft hues of orange, yellow and red. Many might see the hues and colors of fall dancing from soul to soul . . . Bel only saw the red, red like blood. Her eyes closed briefly, her heart already aching with pain for the path she would be taking. Her heart wasn't in the celebrations . . . no, she was here for another reason.

She stood out against the darkness - her body glowing faintly with that cyan glow her people where known for, turning what might have been a silvered out body beneath moonlight to something . . . more. The glow cascaded over her dual-nature form, along her tail and fin, up her sides and neck, and totally encompassing her two sets of eyes. She likely looked like a sea monster stepped ashore . . . she currently felt like a monster. Her gaze turned towards the place of the alters, some already glittering and glimming with light of the candles - whispers and prayers to those dearly departed.

That was where she would go . . but it was not to be an easy distance to cross. Her limbs seemed to shake slightly, as if she were going up to battle against a shark with a thirst for flesh than the memories of those now gone. Her breath came out in tiny poofs of nervous air, congealing into a soft cloud of fog as her hot breath met cold, autumn air. The returned deep breath in brought the scent of the festivities, autumn air, cider, and it helped ground her, remind her that she was owed this closure as well, and she wasn't here alone.

Still her limbs shook as she moved into the quiet area for mourning. She paused by the candles, before silently picking one up with her mouth. She wanted to do this herself - no magic . . . she wasn't very good at using the magic anyways. it had no purpose in the waters. She carried one candle to a small alter, before following it up with a smaller candle to set beside it. From there it was a slow task, carrying a few careful picked items at a time, not once stirring up her magic that tended to lay silently with in her anyways. It was a taxing duty, crossing the space time and time again, collecting items and small trinkets, but slowly her alter, her shrine was built up. Tiny bits of coral, little seashells and bits of clams and oysters. Items of the sea, placed carefully around the large candle, and the slightly smaller candle next to it.

Bel lowered her muzzle towards the ground, and in one quick motion, rubbed her hoof against her nose, where a faint speckling of scales lay against her skin. A few flaked off, and she carefully picked those pieces up with her magic - afraid of damaging them and let the tiny scales settle among the pile of artifacts from the sea - all but two scales that is. The final two where placed against the body of the candles, one on each, a part of her to join her mother and sister.

It was only then did Bel finally allow the candles to be lit. A word hadn't been spoken in the process, and still she was silent as she stared at the two candles, their flickering soft and gentle. "Mama . . . Polar North." She glanced from candle to candle, suddenly unsure of what to say. A soft cree left her, a quieter version of a sound similar to that of a dolphin mourning, but distorted by the lack of water to carry the sound. "I . . . I'm sorry Polar . . . I should have . . . ." Wetness dotted at her eyes and the mare jolted, touching her face with a forelimb, surprised when the soft fur came back wet. "Why . . . are my eyes leaking?" She asked herself before shaking her attention back to the candles at hand. She couldn't let herself be distracted. This was her time to say goodbye, to fix thing, to make things better. To start to heal.

"Mama, it was terrible . . . Polar . . . looked so bad after the shark. So much . . . so much of her fin gone. The . . . the pod wanted to leave her . . . from the beginning. Papa and I fought them about it. We tried so hard. Traveling had to be slow, and Papa and I carried her usually. But the bleeding was never able to be fully stopped, leaving trails to be f-found. There were s-so many close calls, Mama. So many . . . so many . . . ." Her voice died, her eyes unfocused as tears fell down her cheeks unstopped, "Mama, I tried to defend her. To help her. I tried to get the wound to heal, but . . . but she couldn't swim proper . . . Polar . . . I'm so sorry Polar. I should . . . I should have stopped them. I . . . I should have . . . ." The aquatic creature shook her head, trying to banish the thoughts that were stirring up with out her control.

"That pup will get us killed! It's already slowed us down way to much! She can't even swim anymore. She was as good as dead when her tail was bitten off. We need to do the right thing. For the pod." Below Zero's eyes narrowed harshly onto the bull talking, her head held high as she met the fiery red gaze of Ice Shard. He was as cold as Vapor Treaders came, and he was always the first to voice an abandonment. She'd seen him walk away from his own mother when he decided that her leg wound wouldn't heal fast enough for the 'pod's survival'.

"We are not leaving my sister behind. Polar is trying - but we are moving too much too soon to even give her a chance to heal! She hardly bleeds anymore!" She argued, turning to look at her father in hopes he would help support her. After all Polar and she were all that they had left of her mother. Seascape had gone down from a shark in the same attack that had robbed Polar of most of her tail. Her father didn't say anything though. His eyes were on the ice at his feet. "Papa, surely you're not . . . you're not agreeing with them! Polar will be fine! She just needs time to rest and heal."

Ice Shard sneered at Bel, his gaze cold and annoyed, "Don't be foolish Below Zero," Bel made a face in return as her full name was used. Stuck in a world of tradition, Ice Shard refused to call her anything shorter, "Northern Caps knows what must be done. Polar North is as good as dead." Her father still refused to say anything, and Bel stood taller, straighter - ready to defend the tiny filly who was sleeping peacefully in the middle of the pod, "NO!" The word came out sharper, louder than she intended, and the rest of the pod glanced towards the small group meeting, most of the expression sympathetic. Losing a loved one was hard . . . . abandoning one, especially a young one was even harder.

"That's enough Bel . . . I know this is hard, but . . . but it's better for the pod. Less of a risk." Bel stared at her father in horror, her eyes wide and unbelieving, "What about what is better for Polar! We'd be abandoning her to the elements, to predators! It'd a slow and painful way to die!" She cried, her voice betraying her desperation for her sister's life. "We can't just leave her here." Her father looked at her sadly, brushing his muzzle against her cheek, "It's already been decided. We dive tomorrow. Polar will . . . stay behind . . ."

Bel stared in horror before sneering coldly at both of the males she was talking to. Her father looked dejected but accepting, but Ice Shard was sneering at her with clear pleasure at her pain. Truly a heart of ice. A cold wind rushed past them, causing both males to shiver even as Bel leaned into the icy touch, her eyes harsh, "Then you . . . father . . . get the pleasure of explaining to your child why you're abandoning he-"

"You're abandoning me?" The voice was tiny, frightened, and all three adults froze and glanced to the side where Polar North stood, her body gleaming with a soft pale lavender glow, her eyes scared and her mauled tail draped low against the snow, "P-please . . . P-please d-don't. I'll d-do better. G-give me a ch-chance! Please! D-don't leave me h-here to die! I-I don't w-want to die!" The little pup begged, her voice shaking and high, half of her words coming out as shrill whistles and crees.

Her father turned away, unable to look and Ice Shard glared at the tiny creature before roughly pushing past her, shoving the foal down. Bel rushed forward, helping her sister find her footing, trying to reassure her that they'd change Ice Shard's mind. Everyone's mind. That night, Polar and Bel slept cuddled together, refusing to be near their father who had damned Polar with his decision.

But when mornning game, Bel was forciably herded away from her terrified sister who begged and pleaded for reconsidering. It wasn't until her father nipped Bel that Bel was forced to accept defeat, and walked away from her pleading sister of her own free will. Bel glanced back and winced at the betrayal on Polar's face, "You promised Bel! You promised." One by one the pod was diving into the waters until only Bel, her father, Ice Shard and her sister remained. Her father dived with out sparing Polar another looking.

Bel stood almost frozen, lost in the desperate, betrayed gaze of her little sister, "Bel you promised! You promised! D-don't leave me! You can't d-do this! Bel!" Ice shard kicked snow at the tiny foal, nudging Bel forward, "I . . . I'm sorry Polar. F-forgive me." With the plea in the air, and Ice Shard's shoving, Bel was forced to dive, but the final accusing, defeated look her sister had given her pained her heart. The guilt was heavy . . . heavier than any she'd felt before . . . and less than a week later she had left the pod forever.

Bel stared at the two flickering candles with a heavy heart, her gaze locked soully on the smaller one, "Oh . . Oh Polar . . . I'm s-so sorry I c-couldn't keep my promise. I . . . I hope you were able to f-forgive me. I'm . . . I'm so sorry Polar. I'm so sorry." With that final apology, Bel hung her head, tears falling down her face as she mourned the life forced to end too soon. And her part in playing her sister's executioner.


Thoughts
Speech

Notes: Poor little Bel

i feel no cold, i feel no fear inside my mind
Now I'm full of energy