CYRENE .
per aspera ad astra
It hadn’t seemed possible for the festival to grow ever more raucous, ever more wondrous, in Cyrene’s brief absence—yet as she nestled herself back into its kaleidoscope of smells and shouts and laughter, she marveled at how rapidly it had spread its lantern-lit embrace across all of Terrastella. With a hearty inhale, a cheshire smile wound itself around flushed cheeks as the autumn girl weighed the particularly serious question of which booth to visit first.
Everywhere she turned, mouthwatering scents of sugared chestnuts, candied apples, and honeyed wine wafted about her like golden butterflies; each tugging and pulling and whispering for her to chase after their gilded, fluttering wings."You must be famished,” she hummed, golden eyes flashing thoughtfully towards the dove-feathered boy that trailed close behind her. Quickly, however, Cyrene’s fleeting gaze zipped away and perched upon a bustling booth just a few paces east.
"Over there—they sell the most wonderful honey cakes, I’ve not a clue how the syrup oozes out like it does, but you must try it—" Like a wine glass toppling over, she could not keep her zeal from spilling out as crimson wings gestured towards the stall with its buzzing crowd of eager festival goers. Yet as she looked back towards Saoirse’s emerald gaze, there was only air to greet her in the place he had stood moments before.
"What—where did he go?” Clucking her tongue, Cyrene sighed as she watched her glacial breath dissipate into the frosty night. "I lost him so quickly.” No matter—he would not have wandered far, and so she resolved to find him later, with delicious treats in tow. As she waited patiently—or as patient as Cyrene could manage—for the treats, her thoughts wandered back to the things that had transpired in their short encounter. Though the boy’s solemn words and discerning gaze had rendered him mature far beyond his years, the flashing spark of boyhood still glowed within his woodland eyes. She saw it in glimpses; a muted smile there, a subtle hush of excitement and lingering innocence there.
And in his soft grey feathers and playful, grumbling jabs, she saw Cygnus—startlingly clear. She could not help it. Too clearly did she see the ghost of her sister hiding in the shadows of Saoirse’s lithe frame. When she offered him cider, when she lifted him to his feet—a dark part of her had wished it was Cygnus. Her sister's death was an open wound in Cyrene's chest that refused to close; no matter what she did, how far she traveled, the sorrow would never unsheathe its blade-like claws from her bleeding heart.
"Saoirse!” She was certain that she had seen a flash of grey through the riotous crowd. Swiftly, Cyrene tucked her wings tightly against her side as she weaved and ducked her way through the labyrinth of drunken guests. As she emerged, breathless, lion eyes widened as her hunch proved correct. There he was, lost to the scents and the colors of the festival’s intoxicating grasp. "It’s quite something, isn’t it? The festival.” Sable curls rustled in agreement as she tilted her head towards him. "I managed to snatch the last ones, what luck,” the girl sang, as two oozing honey cakes floated deliciously in front of him, golden syrup dripping in sticky rivulets.
"Time to put that telekinesis to work if you want one.”
Everywhere she turned, mouthwatering scents of sugared chestnuts, candied apples, and honeyed wine wafted about her like golden butterflies; each tugging and pulling and whispering for her to chase after their gilded, fluttering wings.
And in his soft grey feathers and playful, grumbling jabs, she saw Cygnus—startlingly clear. She could not help it. Too clearly did she see the ghost of her sister hiding in the shadows of Saoirse’s lithe frame. When she offered him cider, when she lifted him to his feet—a dark part of her had wished it was Cygnus. Her sister's death was an open wound in Cyrene's chest that refused to close; no matter what she did, how far she traveled, the sorrow would never unsheathe its blade-like claws from her bleeding heart.
@Saoirse | notes: so sorry for the delay! D: ahh I adore them as well <3
