Ciri
Ciri was lost without her stars. It was starting to seep into the very cracks of her being, sucking the marrow from her bones and pulling each string of insecurity that had burrowed deep beneath her scarred dark skin. Who was she if she couldn’t connect to the fiery balls of gas and magic above? Had they abandoned her? Was this a punishment for every foolish mistake she had made during her ignorant youth? Seeing the ones that had swirled around the girl in the forest had been a dagger to her heart. Perhaps she wasn’t worthy of their love anymore, perhaps they had banished her forever, a star-child that had fallen out of favor with her ethereal ancestors and had now lost her inheritance.
It had happened so fast, when light rampaged over the world and blinded them all. It sent the dark scurrying and they had all been left blinking upwards, straining and wincing with the pain of the fiery rays above them. It was the first time she had felt a flutter of hope in a long time. Others were reveling in the returned warmth, dancing and frolicking beneath bright yellow beams. Rejoicing daylight while she.. She eagerly waited for the night to fall again. And when it did… Oh when it did…
The threat of tears rim the lines of her silvery eyes as the first dots of twinkling stars line the twilight sky. The night is clear, not a single cloud can be seen. And with all her might, remembering how she drew her power over and over again to no avail, she calls to them. She sings to them and her shield explodes around her with such force it sends the roosting birds in nearby trees to erupt in a flurry of feathers and flight. The noxious balls of gas and starlight form around her and now she is sobbing, sobbing freely with relief. It flows through her body as she sags with it, the release of it. They hadn’t left her. They hadn’t abandoned her after all. As if in response, there’s a soft voice that seems to float through the breeze, that echoes in her head, that pirouettes through her shield because it’s part of it already. “We never left you silly girl. We are always there even when you can’t see us. Remember Ciri. Never forget where you truly come from. A reminder that in the darkest of nights we are always with you.”
There’s a softness against her cheek and as her shield fades around her, the stars themselves seem to fall from the sky to embrace her. It is quick, a snap of the fingers, but when the stars part… Some are left behind. They hover above her tangled mane, sparkling gently down her neck and back. Never quite touching her but she can feel the soft brush of starlight soothe her clammy fur. The stars that had hovered over that girl in the forest had now settled on her as well. They glitter and spark as someone comes into view. Ciri turns her tear stained visage towards them, pulling herself together even as she reveals in the return of her beloved stars, of her power.
all of time and space, everywhere and anywhere, every star that ever was
Open to any <3