clarity, paint me bright like stars in the dark of night
And like that, she was back.
Whole, alive, freed from the grips of Time and adventure that he had placed her on. The world around her came back into sharp relief, and it was if she had never gone anywhere. The forest immediately began to move around her, alive and rustling with movement; her eyes widened and she swung her head around as if looking for Time, for Her. But they were not there, and her heart broke slightly at the thought of it.
However, despite that momentary ache, there was also a soft glow, a warmth that spread throughout her and lit up the inner workings of her heart. She had succeeded—she had helped them find their way back to one another. Loved had conquered all. In that moment, adrenaline surged through her and her heart began to race, pounding in her chest as she remembered all that she had done, all that she had seen.
She couldn’t wait to tell her family all about it.
But she didn’t return to Tephra—not yet. Instead, she closed her hazel eyes and lifted her head upward to the canopy of branches above her, the soft snow that began to fall around her, dusting the pale curve of her haunches. It was good to be back, but it was even better to be back with adventure tucked away in her chest. She would never forget what she had experienced—the supernatural things that she had seen. It had changed her. If she had thought she thirsted for adventure before, it was a thirst that had grown two-fold.
Now she knew what it meant to fight beasts, face fears, feel the brush of death. She knew what it meant to look into the great beyond and make choices that affected not only your fate, but the fate of others. Her lips spread into a content smile, eyes still closed.
She would have more adventure soon. She would see to it.