text: Aroa stared into the crimson sunlight as the glowing star ducked down into the water. It was evening, and she was tired. But that didn’t stop our heroine from crying her eyes out, as she had done each day for the past several years. Sometimes, she was happy, but for most of the time, she felt nothing but sadness and doubt. After everything that had happened to her, she knew her story was over, that there was nothing left to be told. That she would always be the villain in a tale that felt as old as time. Aroa cried harder, trying desperately not to sleep. When she slept, the nightmares came. They showed her her truth, as she saw it. How she had failed to to save herself, her family, her world. Not the world as she knew it, but her own little world she lived in, surrounded by the people she loved. She remembered the darkness of the poison as it went into her system, and the cold voice of her former best friend as it did. “You brought this on yourself, Aroa,” she remembered Katia saying. “This is all you.” Oh, Katia. Aroa’s best friend, once. In another life. She remembered Katia well. She remembered laughing together when they were younger, and crying together when they were older. She remembered sparing and gigging when they could defeat each other with ease. She remembered when they held hands at night as they walked towards the moon, hoping the glowing light would stay with them forever. Katia, her sister, her best friend, was gone, and it was all the fault of Aroa. Not dead, just gone forever from her life. But it was a fate worse than death, being haunted by the ghosts of her past mistakes forever. It was Aroa’s curse, to live on the edge of happiness for the rest of her life. Aroa sighed, thinking about this curse, and what it meant for her. How she’d never truly see her great friend in her life again. How she was gone, oh, she was gone, and it was all built up and thrown on Aroa’s back, forcing her to carry this burden for the rest of her life. She thought again about the moon, and how it gently rocked the ocean to and fro, calming down the storms of the world. How it lit up the night, accompanied by the faint stars in the sky. She thought about how it kept the sun in balance with the Earth, holding together the world. And she thought just maybe, for a moment, that things could be alright with her heart, her mind, and her old friend. But then she remembered the poison, once again, and its prickly feeling through her throat. “Katia-” she remembered whispering. “Help me.” But Katia didn’t help. She had a look of dread, a look of worry plastered all over her face, but she never helped. All Aroa could do in what felt like her final moments was cry, and it seemed that Katia felt the same, though she didn’t show it. Katia never cried. She bottled her feelings down so deep, they could never be found. When something brought them out, they ravished, however, and tore down her own little world. Aroa was different. She always had her feelings with her, and let them out too often. It was a difference between them that was always there, but never mattered, for Aroa would always understand Katia’s pain, and vice versa. The two friends would always be able to understand each other. Until, suddenly, they couldn’t. The pain became too strong, so strong that there was just no way for either of them to live in the same world. And so Katia tried to end Aroa’s life, just like back in the day, when the two would spar, but without the giggles of triumph. There was no triumph here, only layers and layers of sorrow, being peeled away to reveal raw emotion, emotion that could never be concealed again. “This is all you,” Aroa remembered, thinking about the last words directed towards her from Katia. The last words she might ever know from there doomed friendship. “This is all you.” And it was all her, in Katia’s eye’s, Aroa thought. She would always be the villain to Katia’s story, just like Katia would be the hero. But Katia would never be Aroa’s villain, because Aroa would always remember her by the old times, and she would always respect her, no matter everything she had done. She would always care for her best friend. Aroa would always respect her best friend, but she would never have closure, she realized, with a jolt. There would never be room in her life for Katia ever again. Or at least, she didn’t think so. Not after the poison. Not after Amelie. Amelie was Aroa’s real sister, not like Katia. She was sweet, kind, gentle - everything an older sister could ask for. She was a handful at times, but that was okay. It would always be okay, after she was taken away from Aroa, as well. Aroa had never seen Amelie again after the day of the poisoning, but she knew that it was her fault. She knew deep down that she was responsible for it all, just like with Katia. She knew it was all on her. Amelie had sided with Katia. She knew it, and she knew she’d never change her mind. Amelie had always loved Katia as a sister, as well, so naturally she had no trouble choosing against her own family. But it didn’t stop Aroa from caring. She would always care. She would always love Amelie, and Katia, as well. She would love them until the day she died, despite the poisoning, despite their falling out, despite whatever happened to Amelie. She would always love them. And with that, Aroa realized, it was time to make amends. After all that Katia had done, she could never forgive her, but she would always love her, so she needed confrontation. She needed to know why. With shaking hands, Aroa walked towards where Katia lived, sweating furiously. When the second girl answered the door, there was nothing but an awkward silence between them. Between the former friends, who had not seen each other in so long. Between two people who once loved each other fiercely and now only felt sorrow. Aroa once again remembered the moon, and how it rocked the waters gently. “Why did you do it?” she asked, tentatively. “Why poison me?” Katia was shaking now, too. With her trembling hands, she closed the door. But Aroa could hear her crying from the other side. Katia never cried. When she did, it meant something meant a lot. This wasn’t the closure Aroa wanted, but it was enough. She knew she meant something to Katia. That it wasn’t just hate, but somewhere, deep down, there was sorrow in Katia’s cries, and somewhere in that sorrow, there was love. The moon shined ever so slightly brighter as Aroa started her walk home, no thoughts of Katia, her dear former friend, weighing her down. For once, Aroa was free.