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Nothing meant more to Ferry than family. A century went by and names disappeared from her memory, but faces and stories of fun adventures on an island enshrouded in mist—they would run and play, hiding and getting up to mischief on a cliff that may have overlooked the village below if not for the heavy fog that clouded their whole world.
She often wondered what the open skies looked like through her sister’s eyes; were the fluffy white clouds and shining sun as overpowering and unreal to her? Or, perhaps, were they all that she could remember seeing? Did she cling onto memories of their shared childhood, or did the bits of her youth slowly fall away, piece by piece, until the only world she’d ever known was as bright as her smile?
No. Of course not. Ferry’s sister was a stubborn little thing. Even bedridden and sick as she was in the final months they’d spent together, the specter remembered the fire in her eyes. Maybe she’d forget little things, but that didn’t mean that she’d completely forget about her big sister. For Ferry, names and certain details were clouded over with the fog of her homeland after so much time had passed, but her sister’s warmth couldn’t ever be obscured.
Neither of them would forget, and Ferry knew that her little sister was out there, waiting for her amidst the endless sky.
She refused to believe anything else.
Somewhere far beyond the world that Ferry had left behind, her sister and family was waiting for her. They’d welcome her with open arms and bright smiles, and call her name in a variety of ways. She’d never forget it again so long as she lived.
This was her rebirth, and she owed it all to Gran, Lyria, and their entire crew. Even as they traveled from island to island, they gave her new happy memories of a “family” that wasn’t linked by blood. It didn’t temper her desire to meet those that she was related to, but it gave her a sense of belonging.
The nameless ghost that isolated herself from the whole world no longer existed.
In her place was an adventurous Erune that worked alongside the living and the dead; monster spirits offered her companionship, and they helped to calm her when anxiety flared up over slip ups and embarrassing situations.
Her sister would be proud of all the stories she could tell now! Sure, Ferry still had her timid moments, but she could overcome them without her baby sister around to hold her hand. Sierokarte had convinced her to take to the stage in the hopes that her voice would reach out across the skies to her sister: letters to her long-lost family in the form of music and song. She’d even recruited Drang to their cause, and he’d taught her so much about music in such a short period of time.
It had been nearly a century since she’d touched a piano—as a child, she and her sister used to sit side-by-side on the bench and they’d make up songs together. Really, they were just the random keystrokes of two amateurs, giggling to each other over the painful mixture of sound.
Learning from Drang felt similar to being right by her sister’s side, simply fiddling around with the keys for fun.
“I’m… not sure how this will help me learn to play.”
Their eyes met as the ghost girl’s frown deepened, but his eyes seemed to sparkle while his lips tugged further up. It might have been irritating, if it didn’t remind her of the way that her sister’s expression would light up just as a new idea dawned on her.
Laughter filtered through the air, breaking up the sudden silence before she received an actual response.
“Such skepticism! I learned from the very best—Granny always used to say that it’s most important that you feel the music!”
There was no sheet music when they practiced. He taught her fingers to dance across the keys, his hands gently pressed over her own as he guided her through simple melodies. There were moments when his eyes would fill with sadness, and Ferry couldn’t help but wonder if Drang saw someone else when he looked at her.
Aside from those brief moments, his joy was infectious—the spirit girl could hardly keep up sometimes! It made her feel like the child she appeared to be; mischievous and free as the times when she and her sister hid among the fog to escape from parents that wanted them to complete chores or take lessons like proper little ladies.
In some ways, it frustrated her. Despite being an agent that had traveled across the sky, Drang didn’t seem to have it in him to take anything seriously. He’d suddenly switch up the melodies, playing different parts than the one she remembered while expecting her to keep going!
Of course, it turned out that he wanted them to overlap, harmonies that would only work out if they both focused on their own section without being caught up in what the other was playing. If he’d only been forward about it…!
Ferry could almost understand why his partner, Sturm, would always poke holes in him. Despite the highs and lows of his emotions, and the overdramatic statements he’d make, she couldn’t understand him. He didn’t seem particularly honest about anything.
Sometimes Sierokarte would sit in on their sessions and accompany them on her drum set. She found it amusing, and keeping up with both of them? Impossible.
Once the shopkeeper started up with her puns, Drang would jump in with his own attempts.
She felt alive.
It was complicated, learning piano and then guitar after they decided on the proper instruments to accompany her lyrics, but more fun than she could remember having in a long time.
She shouldn’t have been there.
This was private. Drang liked to be mysterious, and he kept so many secrets.
Weeks had passed since their first appearance on stage, and the Grandcypher crew had been plenty supportive. They traveled between several islands, and Drang had insisted that their tour end on this one specifically.
It seemed odd for him to care where they had their finale, but Sierokarte had seconded the idea. It really was too easy to get swept up in their energy, so Ferry had agreed; it wasn’t as if she had any better ideas for the order of their tour! She hardly knew anything about music before they began, let alone managing a band.
He snuck away after their performance and took his bass with him. They were meant to have a party with the crew to celebrate the end of their tour, and Ferry thought he’d enjoy that kind of thing. Lots of different games to play and all the spotlight on him (alongside Ferry and Sierokarte, of course).
They always performed after dark, which made following him difficult; of course, it also made it possible for her to go undetected. Once they’d left the village, both Erune traveled through a forest until they reached a bluff that overlooked the endless, dark sky.
It reminded her of the cliff on the mist-shrouded island, except there was no fog to set the scene. Only darkness and the stars overhead to light the world. It was a simple little place with only a small gravestone.
“Granny, I went on another adventure with her.”
Drang had mentioned her before in passing, and she could have sworn she came up before their first performance. Who was “she” though?
“Traveling with Sturm has always been satisfying, but all those music lessons with you finally came in handy! Your big sister couldn’t remember how to play piano, so I taught her from scratch and we wrote you a song. We played it all across the sky, just for you. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if I gave you a private concert.”
He meant her. Ferry didn’t belong here, and yet she did. This was her sister; she had passed on before they could meet.
“It won’t be the same without her lovely voice, but that’s okay, right?”
Ferry felt right to her because it must have been her actual name. Her sister remembered her and told stories to her grandson. He never was searching for Celeste’s treasure; it had just been an excuse.
She heard the opening chords from his bass, which ripped her from her thoughts. Here was an opportunity, laid out before her.
The ghost girl could have a real family again. Her great nephew probably kept their relationship a secret to protect her. How could he explain things without making it clear that her little sister had passed on before they could meet again, when her hope had just been renewed?
Ferry left her guitar behind when she followed after him, but the other Erune did mention that it wouldn’t be the same without her voice. She waited for her cue, and then both their voices rang out in the cold winter air—briefly, at least.
The bass playing faltered after all, and she lost his voice for several moments as she approached and kept singing. It almost made her laugh, seeing the way his jaw dropped as she left the trees behind to bask in the pale moonlight by his side.
He took the hint after a few moments, and together they sang to her baby sister even as tears blurred her vision.