and life will never be the same
without you by my side

The days were long, the nights sleepless, but Kaj soldiered on through his constant vigilance uncaring of the havoc it created inside of his body. He could not sleep for fear that Rue would somehow disappear from beneath the tight, protective canopy of his wing. Lost to him once more, a mere taunting memory and reminder of his persistent failure. Both of her and her mother. Though her weight physically was far from substantial, the continued bearing of it across the unforgiving, diverse landscape was hard on his body. Even as aches and pains spread throughout his frame, Kaj never ceased nor faltered. He would return Rue to her mother as speedily as his body could handle. Were he certain she would not fall, he would have flown her the entire way regardless of the length of the journey.

Though she chatted into his ear to pass the time, Kaj did not allow her mood to become too uplifted throughout their travels, always pressing upon her the wrongs she had committed and the worry she had subjected her family to. The Czar would not have her run off again, even if it meant hurting her a little, making her feel guilt and shame for her actions. They were the best teachers after all, and he would utilize them to their fullest capacities if it kept her safe and within the Falls while she was still defenseless. Kaj doubted he would ever stop regarding her as such, and the notion of keeping her border-bound was tempting. Resplendence would likely agree with him, he mused with a great deal of amusement.

By the time the Falls was within sight, Kaj was sore to the very bones of his chest, shoulders aching and pinched with his desperate attempts to keep Rue as comfortable as possible. Though he allowed her to walk whenever she found herself in need of expending energy (lest she drive him mad, too), most often he carried her, longer strides consuming more ground than his shortened ones could offer when he waited on her. The sooner she was within the borders, the sooner she was safe. Home.

Crossing them felt like a revelation, even when there was still some traveling to do. Resplendence had set up shop with great expediency, and Kaj was already aware of where he needed to go to find her. It was the first place he'd memorized, with how often he visited his gentle sister. Especially in the wake of Rue's (and Quilyan's, again) disappearance. They'd needed the support of one another, and both had been silently aware of it. They hadn't falsely comforted one another with words of hope. But Kaj finally had the evidence to secure it.

"Aardbei!" he called into the coven she'd claimed, her tent aloft and little furrows prepped for gardening. "Come quickly, zus!" He waited until he was sure she was approaching, and slowly knelt down in the grass, as fluid as he could manage to make it easier for his tiny passenger. Kaj made sure to clear any tiny flailing hooves as he awaited Rue's departure, standing and rolling his aching shoulders as he kept his eyes on where Resplendence was sure to be emerging. As she came into sight his eyes softened, wing descending to urge Rue forward from behind with an encouraging bump. Displaying her proudly. Perhaps Resplendence could finally stop crying.

"I found her," he whispered, just loud enough for the brindled mare to hear, but incapable of anything more. It was still an emotional reunion for him as well.

@[Rue] and @[Resplendence]