Burning Star

Amelia once read in a book that the human mind went into a form of stasis if they experienced a significant shock. Therefore, it came to no surprise that she couldn’t do anything but stare at Vega, stumbling to find anything to say.

“B-but… Y-you…. I…” she tried to speak, but to no avail. There was no chance of any coherent sentence forming inside her mind. Instead, she watched the leather-clad woman laugh heartily. Heat rushed to Amelia’s cheeks, but she couldn’t take away her eyes.

Vega took a seat on the grass beside Amelia. “Don’t look at me like that,” she said and nudged Amelia in the side, softly, with her elbow. “It’s just me.”

“Are you real?” Amelia asked. “I mean, is this actually you? Not some sort of illusion.”

Vega padded down her own body and grinned. “I feel real.”

While Amelia had a suspicion that Vega wasn’t trying to mock her, she still couldn’t stop the feeling of embarrassment. Solem, her face must resemble a tomato by now. She shook her head and asked, “But how?”

Vega smiled. “Because of you.”

“Me?” Amelia gasped, pointing at herself while staring at Vega with wide eyes.

“Yeah.” Vega nodded. “You are a special young lady, Amelia.”

“Is it because of my father?” Amelia asked, and then realized she’d planned to keep it a secret.

“Your father?” Vega cocked an eyebrow.

“You know…” Amelia fiddled with her hands. “Rigel…”

“Ahh!” Vega smiled. “I wasn’t sure if you knew about that. The reception has been somewhat funky lately. It happens when Black Holes are near. Did you know… that we couldn’t see what they’re up to when we’re in our star form? It’s so annoying.”

Amelia smiled, and then jerked over to embrace Vega. “I’ve missed you so much, Vega.”

Vega returned the hug, squeezing lightly. “I’ve missed you too, Amelia.”

There was no way to express the feeling of relief that flooded through Amelia. She didn’t know how, and she didn’t know what their next task would be, but she knew that Vega would find out. Her prayers had somehow been heard, and here was their salvation. The thought alone made Amelia feel lightheaded.

The best part was when Joshua would see—

Joshua… oh, darn… She’d forgotten all about Joshua and Eric. She jumped to her legs, startling Vega.

“What is it?” Vega asked. “What’s wrong?”

“We have to find Joshua and Eric—they were taken.”

Vega rose from the ground and placed an arm around Amelia’s shoulder. “There, there. Tell me everything, and we’ll figure something out.”

Amelia agreed, and tried to relax. She told Vega everything that had happened. From her and Eric arguments, to how she sneaked out and followed them.

In the middle of the tale, Vega gestured to the forest, and they started to walk. Amelia didn’t stop her story. Instead, she rambled on about the cave, and the oracle. With extraordinary glee, she told Vega everything about her powers, and how she used them to save the Tome, well almost saved it.

“So you can manifest things?” Vega asked.

Amelia nodded. “I thought it was just a silly party trick. I showed it to Eric and Garnet back at the temple.”

“And now these bad guys have taken our boys?” Vega held a branch back, gesturing for Amelia to pass.

Our boys… Amelia liked the sound of that. Vega always had the right thing to say.

After a few minutes of travel, their footpath changed into a much narrower and overgrown territory. Amelia could see the signs of someone being dragged this way, and a sense of dread filled her up inside.

“Vega?” she said. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Vega answered, making sure to jump over some of the thickest branches. “What’s up?”

Amelia wasn’t entirely sure how to word her question. Part of her feared the answer and another part simply needed to know before it wanted to cooperate.

“Come on.” Vega stopped and looked at her. “You can tell me. What’s bothering you?”

“Do you know what exactly happened to my mom?” Amelia finally asked. It was something that had nagged her for an awful long time, and there was no real way to get any answer—except for Vega.

Amelia had always just believed that the Black Holes killed her mother, but she wasn’t actually certain of the truth.

Vega hesitated before answering. “Your mother was a very special woman—much like yourself.” She ruffled her red hair. “Rigel had granted her protection, and the ability to protect you. However, a relationship between a Star and a human is… complicated.”

“How so?” Amelia frowned.

“Well. If they… ehm… consummate… their relationship—“Vega blushed beetroot red—“then they form like dependent bond—not like Joshua and Eric formed—but a much deeper one. They share souls.”

“That’s beautiful.” Amelia smiled.

“And, as you probably know, the Stars thrive of love…” Vega stared walking again. “And the human emotions are strange. They don’t thrive on just one emotion—they thrive on many.”

“What does that mean for my mother?” Amelia asked, carefully trudging along with her through the forest. A strange feeling settled in her stomach, and she couldn’t help but to hold her breath as she waited for Vega to answer.

“When the bond between a Star and Human is formed, the human starts to change.” Vega kept her eyes firmly on the ground. “He or she may become too dependent on love, and in some rare cases, they waste away if the Star isn’t near. And that’s what happened to your mother.”

“She wasted away?”

Vega nodded. “In a way. Yes. Your father couldn’t stay on earth. It would put you in too much danger. As the daughter of a Star, you can have certain… abilities… and many of them can be transferred if desired.”

“Transferred?” Vega frowned.

“If you died in a certain way, your murdered would have your powers to manifest.” Vega shrugged. “I don’t know why it works that way—personally, I think it’s stupid. But I’m not the boss of it. Solem is…”

“Why would she make such a way to abuse children of the Stars?”

Vega sighed. “Stars tend to be the good of all. Their children happen to take after them. However, if the human part of a Star child takes over, the consequences may be fatal.”

“So it’s to protect me from my bad side?” Amelia frowned. This made next to no sense at all.

“You could say that.” Vega bopped her head. “I wouldn’t phrase it like that, but each to their own.”

Amelia had nothing else to add to the discussion. Instead, she opted for following Vega in silence. As they walked on, the scenery started to change. At first, Amelia didn’t notice it. She was lost in thought, her mind focusing on her parents and their love. There was no way, she’d ask Vega, but Amelia couldn’t help but to think of Joshua. Of course, Amelia didn’t know if Vega and he had consummated their relationship, but if they had... What would happen to Joshua?

“Ohhh, rapples!” Vega exclaimed. “I’ve missed those.”

Amelia watched as Vega ran over to a bush and plucked the small fruit. The rapples were a delicacy from Astronia, and Amelia knew of them from Eric’s stories and from Garnet’s addiction to it. Personally, Amelia wasn’t particularly fond of the small fruit—she found it too excessively sweet to be enjoyable.

At a second glance, she noticed how the oak trees and the lush green forest now were replaced by a jungle-like wilderness. They must have crossed the border between the old country and the new. Amelia hadn’t spent much time in Astronia since her rescue from the realm. Moreover, even before that, her time spent among the living had been spare.

“Ohoooo,” Vega said and giggled. “I’m going to be so silly.” She turned to Amelia and smiled. “I apologize in advance.”

Amelia reacted too late to stop Vega from biting into the fresh fruit. She knew that the small delicious fruitiness would have a euphoric effect on her friend. “Solem, help me,” she muttered.

The change was evident. Vega became energized at once, and she started to ramble about everything and nothing at the same time. Amelia wasn’t one to portray disrespect, but Vega’s giddiness made Amelia roll her eyes.

“Have you ever—“Vega tapped her chin—“wondered why so little words rhyme with Amelia? It’s hardly fair.”

“I’ve never noticed,” Amelia muttered.

“No, but really. There is the word Regalia, but that can’t be used properly,” Vega rambled on. “Of course, there are all the words ending in -philia, but they’re just icky most of them. And all the other words that even slightly resemble a rhyme often mean something with a plant.”

Amelia didn’t know all of this, but she wasn’t one to interrupt a crazy person. It was much safer simply to play along, and try to steer them on the right path—a task that was somehow made harder since Vega hadn’t planned anything for them.

“It’s not like Vega, either. You see, in my name there’s mega, and bodega. Not the two most useful words, but at least they can be used in a normal sentence.” Vega frowned. “Kind of, at least.”

Amelia had nothing to say. She shook her head at the silliness and fixed her eyes on the ground.

“I miss him so much, Amelia,” Vega said quietly.

The change of voice volume made Amelia glance toward Vega. She knew whom the ’him’ in question happened to be, and she couldn’t offer any comfort.

“I’ve missed him every day since I left. Any time I could find the time, I would check in to see if he were managing on his own.” Vega stopped and turned to Amelia. “It was hard seeing him alone, heartbroken and struggling to move one.”

Amelia reached out a hand for comfort. “I’m so—“

“The hardest part, though,” Vega interrupted. “Do you know what the hardest part was?”

Shaking her head, Amelia remained still.

“The hardest part was the moments where he was happy.” Vega averted her eyes to the ground. “I loathed myself for hoping he’d miss me every single second.”

When Vega raised her head again, Amelia spotted unshed tears. It was obviously hard for Vega to talk about this, and Amelia didn’t know what was expected.

“I don’t think you should hate yourself for that,” she muttered.

“Why not?” Vega laughed. “I left him. With nothing more than a simple letter. I have no right to demand his affection.”

“He loves you, though,” Amelia said. “I know that much.”

“And how would you know?” Vega started walking again. “I’m not trying to be rude here. But you’ve seen remarkably little of Joshua these past years. I’ve watched him every time I could.” She widened her eyes as if a realization just hit her. “Solem, I’m that person.”

Her words confused Amelia. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m that crazy person who watches the one I love.” Vega panicked, tangling her fingers in her red hair. “I’m despicable.”

“Don’t say that,” Amelia argued. “You’re beating yourself up for no reason. Stop it!”

Vega opened her mouth to say something, but stopped and stared at something behind Amelia. “Who are you?” she asked.

“I’m Thomas Scar Son,” a deep male voice said.

Amelia jerked around to face him, and she almost jumped on the spot from pure glee. He had survived.

“My apologies for interrupting your talk,” he said. “I do wish you’ll honor me with you presence, though. We need your help.”

“Okay!” Amelia agreed. “Vega, we have to help him. He saved me.”

Vega didn’t look convinced, but she trudged along. Secretly, Amelia was happy for Thomas’ interference. She didn’t want to be mean, but Solem, Vega could talk for a long time. It wasn’t that Amelia minded, but she couldn’t relate to this self-loathing, and negative attitude—it wasn’t what she needed.

Right now, all she needed was to have hope, and she’d be damned if it didn’t stay with her.