Stellar

Chapter 23

Petra woke up to her mum opening the curtains. Petra groaned in annoyance and glanced at her bedside table where the picture of her, Ruby, Kai and Three lived. It had been a few weeks since the gateway was destroyed, and Petra still thought about Kai and Silva Hollow a lot. She wondered how her new friends were getting on. Whether there would ever be a chance to see them again. But all these questions would have to go unanswered.

Petra let out a huge sigh and sat up in bed. She held her hand out in one of the rays of sun that shone through her window, creating a golden light on the wall next to her bed. Hoping to feel something. Anything. But the cosmos was quiet. She hadn't felt anything since the gateway closed and she thinks it's the thing she missed most. The comforting home feeling. The moonlight in her veins.

She did her daily morning routine of trying to cast, attempting to move a nearby cushion using her powers. She focused, still holding onto a little hope that they would miraculously work. But nothing. Another sigh fell from her lips as the prospect of her powers returning slowly depleted. She felt hopeless and wondered why she even bothered to keep trying.

A small knock at her door pulled her away from her thoughts. Ruby's head peeped around the door, making sure Petra was awake before barging in and making herself comfortable on Petra's bed.

"Do you still miss it?" Ruby asked after noticing Petra looking at the picture on her bedside table again. Petra nodded. "Me too," Ruby replied.

"Do you think we could ever go back?" Petra asked

"I don't know." Ruby shifted so that she could put her arm around her sister and give her a quick comforting squeeze. "Come on, get dressed. Let's take Milo for a walk"

Petra paused at the bottom of the stairs, causing Ruby to almost bump into her. Ruby gave her a puzzled look as Petra brought her finger to her lips and quietly shushed.

"I really think you should consider moving to the community." An unfamiliar voice spoke. "You know it's what he would want."

The twin's mum sighed, "I know. It's just, I don't want to up route the girls, they're so settled here."

"There's great schools and you will be well looked after, everyone loved Oshi"

Oshi? What did their dad have to do with any of this?

"I'm not moving." Petra signed to her sister.

Ruby pushed past her sister and straight into the kitchen where their mum sat with coffee cups and cake strewn all over the table. A middle aged sat in the chair opposite. Crumbs covered the front of his grey shirt and as he moved a few settled on his lap. He ran a hand through his short, uniformed, blonde hair and looked at the twins with his piercing blue eyes.

"Oh girls, this is Peter. He's one of your dad's friends." Their mum began to fuss over tidying the table.

Peter stuck out his hand and the twins shook it tentatively.

"Hi?" Ruby said, releasing from the tight grip of Peter. "We were just about to head out for a walk."

"Oh okay, have fun."

The twins once again walked the familiar route into the woods. Over the past weeks it slowly returned to the Tarley wood they knew. No more purple leaves, strange clouds, huge trees or weird animals.

Click. The familiar sound of Ruby's polaroid camera occupied Petra's ears as Ruby took a photo of herself and Milo. Petra giggled as Milo wriggled out of Ruby's grasp and left Ruby alone with pout on her lips.

They climbed over the fallen trees from the windstorm they were caught in and they found themselves back in the clearing. Petra thanked Ruby after she had helped her over a particularly big tree.

The purple and gold bench looked dull and the lamp, smashed to pieces, was still laying by the side of it. Petra took a seat on the bench, Milo sniffed around, and Ruby sorted through the remains of the lamp, referring back to Kammie's notes as she did. She still held some hope that they would be able to fix it. Although Petra's hope had now disappeared.

Being here with Ruby and Milo, remembering all the adventures they had, a smile spread across her face. If she couldn't go back to Silva Hollow again and feel the energies, then being in this clearing was the next best thing.

A damsel frog appeared in amongst the trees. Petra went over to it and picked it up.

"Look." Petra said, smiling. She held up the damsel frog so Ruby could see.

"Now what are you doing here?" Ruby addressed the damsel frog earning a snigger from Petra.

"You don't think..." Petra's voice trailed off.

"It probably just got stuck here after the gateway closed"

A few raindrops started to fall from the sky and the twins decided to leave it for the day and walk home, damsel frog in hand. They disappeared into the trees as an unnoticed flicker of light appeared from the lamp.

The Damsel frog sat in a makeshift tank beside her bed. Her mum was surprisingly easily persuaded to keep it and even promised to take her to get all the stuff Petra would need for him.

"What should we call him?" Petra asked Ruby, who was led with her head hanging off Petra's bed.

"I don't know but he looks a bit like Hendry with that straight face, don't you think?" The twins both burst out laughing.

"He definitely needs a Silva Hollow name though" Petra thought for a moment. "I got it, what about Dim like dimcakes, Kai loves dimcakes."

Ruby laughed "He really does. Dim it is."

"Do you think they're okay?"

"You know Kai and Three, there's not much they can't get out of and even if they are in trouble, Hendry will be right there sorting them out."

"I wish we could see them again." Petra sighed, looking out the window.

"Me too."

Petra gazed at the full moon. A tingly feeling shot up Petra's back. A slight shiver and a feeling spread throughout her body. It wasn't the same as the cosmos she had grown to love.

She had gotten into the habit of looking up to the moon whenever she felt sad, or unsure of herself. Basking in the small amount of light made her feel comforted. She thought back to Harper's words. She knew things would be okay.

She knew the moon would light her way.

The End