Acadia Restoration

Chapter 13

 Max watched in awe as Lily shifted. A few moments earlier they had both been standing on the deck of the ship. The wind blowing through their hair. The afternoon sun setting their hair on fire. He had heard her curse before she went below deck. He followed her. She ducked into a room and began to peel away her clothes. He wouldn't have watched if he thought she'd be naked, he watched because he knew she wouldn't be. He wanted to see what her natural form was.

She was beautiful. He gaped at her.

"Max!" She announced, startled as she turned to face him. He walked over to her. She ran her hands over her petals in a flustered manner. It looked as if she were wearing an upside down flower. A lily. She stuttered as she tried to form a sentence.

"You're stunning," he said before she could speak. A blush crept to her cheeks as she looked away.

"I'm actually quite plain for my race," she avoided his gaze.

"Plain? You have to be joking," he grinned at her as he took her hands.

"I wish I was," she gave him a nervous smile. "It's been so long since the last time I was in this form,".

"Did you ever miss it?" he asked as they sat on a nearby bench.

"It was strange to get used to life without it. Especially wearing clothes," she gave a soft laugh. "I know it sounds crazy, but I never needed them before," she slid her hands over her flower dress.

"Sounds convenient," he chuckled.

"It was!" She beamed. He offered her his hand as they walked back up to the deck of the ship. Everyone stared at Lily's transformation.

"Do you guys see that?" Norah asked as she peered over the front of the boat.

"No," Leo replied in a serious manner, even though he was joking. None of the group knew how to react, except Luna who laughed. Everyone gathered around Norah who was pointing at land. Cristina cheered, this wretched voyage finally was over.

~~~~~

Lily tried not to shudder as the boat slid onto the shore. Everyone grabbed their bags and walked off of the ship. Lily had already informed them she had a place for them to stay. She'd be returning to her old house.

She tilted her head up as she let the sun kiss her face. She led the group through the forest to town. Cristina smiled as she held Leo's hand: helping to guide him. Lily may or may not have slipped her hand into Max's. She could see in her peripheral vision that he had given her shocked expression. She kept looking forward as she smiled, he returned her smile. She could feel the cracks in the sidewalk underneath her. She looked down at the stone pavement which had flowers breaking through it. Flowers. There were flowers everywhere.

"This place is breathtaking," Norah complimented her childhood home. Lily gave her a smile and a nod. The rest of the group looked around in awe. Lily knew they didn't know better, they didn't know who those flowers once were. Based on the amount of them she may have been one of the last of her species. She could feel herself connecting to the ground beneath her, all of its roots and rocks. She could still feel arrows that had been buried over time.

"We're here," she announced as they reached her old home. Everyone walked their things inside and made themselves comfortable. This section of the island, as far as she could tell, had been completely abandoned. With the mass massacre and missing Soomera, there was no reason to travel to this end. She had no idea if any of her species still lived in the southern part of the island. Perhaps they were all dead and she was living on borrowed time. She could see the golden light of dusk creeping through the windows.