Chapter Text
Six years.
It's been that long since Raya has last set foot on the Heart lands. Six years since she's been inside the enormous volume of Heart palace and six years since she’s visited her father's room.
That amount of years, however, felt like an understatement. Facing a period from her childhood to teenagerhood to adulthood, Raya didn't just leave home for six years. She had to grow up and learn how to survive by herself without anyone teaching her, starting from a very raw age to when she turned eighteen years old. She has to pick up pace and learn things faster unlike most people would. So rather than six, Raya felt like she had lived ten more years ever since leaving Heart.
But somehow, standing inside her father's room staring at her Ba's mask inside his closet, there's a sense in Raya's heart that made her feel like she was twelve years old again. The overwhelming sense of nostalgia.
Raya can vividly remember the time when her much younger self was running around the halls, attempting to hide under her Ba's bed as they played a little game of hide and seek. Raya was good at the art of hiding and remaining still. But her father is a trained guardian of the Dragon gem, and ultimately he knew his daughter so well so he easily picked up that younger Raya was beneath his bed.
But her Ba didn't make Raya feel completely lost over her defeat. He poked fun before he peeked under his bed. "Now where could be my little Dewdrop hiding...? I've been searching for a long time... oh, there you are Raya."
Young Raya giggled as she crawled out to reveal herself. "You're too good!" She retorted with a laugh.
That was her Ba. He just knew how to make Raya happy.
She missed her Ba so much.
He would've been by her side all this time, would have witnessed how Raya grew up to the woman that she is. But he's been a solid statue for six years and counting, and that was just because she trusted someone she shouldn't have. Raya has trusted Namaari.
The sour taste in her mouth was foul like acid.
Six years flowed by, but the feeling still remained in Raya’s heart.
But that aside, Raya still has a sliver of hope.
She's currently clinging to this last chance of bringing her father back. Her Ba wasn't completely gone. Time just momentarily froze for him. He can still be saved if she could just find Sisu, the last dragon.
Sisu would be able to vanish the Druun once and for all and bring back her Ba.
But in order to do that, first things first... a disguise.
Raya lifted her father's mask from the shelf with both hands.
Her task was to retrieve the dragon scroll from the land of Fang.
Raya has been searching the end of rivers of each land to find Sisu. But without any guide like a scroll, it was difficult for Raya to spot which rivers left that she hasn’t been to yet. The dragon scroll shows exactly what Raya needed. A complete detail of the rivers of all the lands.
She was desperate. Raya didn’t want to visit the Fang palace but she had to.
For extra precaution to easily sneak past Fang's defenses without anyone remembering her face, Raya decided she should cover the entirety of her face with the mask.
She slipped it on her satchel being carried by Tuktuk.
Tuktuk was lost in eyeing her father's room all the same. The animal's eyes were sad as it wandered the dusty place. Tuktuk gave a sad groan to Raya.
"I know. Time to go buddy." Raya murmured, throat raspy from trying not to cry.
Tuktuk sneezed when the dust became too much and Raya chuckled lightly at that.
Raya paid her respect to her Ba as she and Tuktuk made their way to the lengthy bridge connecting to the Heart's main land.
Standing in front of her father's still frame, she lowered her head and formed a circular shape with her two hands as a gesture of respect.
"I'll bring you back." Raya addressed to her father. "I promise."
Raya offered a sky blue flower she gathered earlier on her way to Heart, gently setting it on his open palm.
"We'll spend a lot of time together once you're back,” Raya took in a heavy breath, “we'll check on and greet our people like always, cook our favorite meal... I'll tell you all the stories I've encountered that you had missed." Raya looked down before she finished.
Tuktuk rubbed his head against Raya's side in soft strokes to comfort her.
Raya appreciated the gesture and held Tuktuk close, her only companion in the last six years. "We should go Tuktuk."
And so Raya climbed on Tuktuk's back, Tuk tuk waiting for Raya to settle before rolling away. Raya sneaked one last look before she faced forwards.
The Heart land grew quieter as its two remaining alive inhabitants left the scene.
There was a reason Raya chose daylight to do her mission.
At night, that's when the guards expect someone to infiltrate the Fang palace the most. But Raya decided to play this game in reverse. Barely anyone would expect someone to steal a dragon scroll in the broad morning which can ease the tight security. The exposed sun was a huge disadvantage for the thief, so Raya decided to pick this time of the day.
Despite considering it was a rough setting to pull a heist, Raya knew what she was doing. Six years of surviving on her own has unintentionally trained her for this. Raya had to be fast, light and blend in as much as possible.
She chose corners and hidden pillars to move from point to point. She ran to switch places whenever the breeze blew on the leaves and banners in order to blend in with the movements of the wind.
It was lunch time. That lessened the guards stationed around the high walls of Fang although Raya remained cautious.
As two guards passed by, she knelt down behind the shadow of a pillar.
"I feel some gas in my stomach. I think it was the food I ate. I can feel a burp coming." One of them said.
Raya decided she didn't need to hear that.
When their footsteps grew to silence, Raya dashed away to climb up the empty stairs. She made sure to be agile and weightless as a leaf.
Raya had two guesses on where Fang's dragon scroll was hidden. One is where Fang keep their other treasures, a luxurious dungeon under Fang's palace. It was a tip provided to her by a stranger she met on Talon. Her other guess came from her own deduction- Namaari's room.
Raya had many hints to decide from. It was an item first introduced to her by Namaari, her friend turned enemy, and a fellow dragon nerd like Namaari would surely tuck a prized object about the dragons close to her. So for this one, Raya planned to go for her second option.
The Fang leaders have their bedrooms at the highest parts of the tower. It was the same with the land of Heart. But she already expected beforehand that there would be a good amount of guards stationed on the hall leading to Namaari's bedroom so Raya didn't choose that tower. She chose another tall building in order to access the unguarded window of Namaari's room.
Fang just had a festival last night where they celebrated their prosperity from the sustainability they've created.
There were Fang's banners and lanterns of festival decoration everywhere. Several strings were attached on the roof Raya was kneeling unto. It was connected to Namaari's room, and she checked with a pull of her hand to see if it was tight enough to support her weight momentarily.
She launched her extending sword to hook to the other building and let herself be pulled.
Some people were tired from the buzz of last night, so the people on the grounds were fewer than usual, and the two people walking by who were present didn't notice the blurry figure of Raya passing through from roof to roof. They just mindlessly thought it was the banners moving.
Raya kicked her foot against the string and leapt a huge step before lightly landing on the center tower.
Her next steps were quick, Raya jumped up to enter Namaari's window and stationed quickly behind a large vase in Namaari’s room.
As she expected, Namaari was nowhere to be found. She’s probably having lunch with her mother. Raya left her position and searched for the dragon scroll.
She was careful not to misplace anything to not arouse suspicion. Raya noticed that Namaari's bed was huge, and it reminded Raya of her own bed back at Heart. She shook her head to shake the memory away and focused on searching.
When Raya got to Namaari's bedside table, she found the dragon scroll on the first shelf.
Raya smiled in victory underneath her mask.
She stored the scroll inside a small pouch, turned around to leave and froze.
There was another person who entered the bedroom. A woman, someone who was taller than Raya, stepped out of the bathroom.
It was Namaari.
Raya's breath got caught in her throat.
The woman was really Namaari, but the changes she has now compared from years ago entranced Raya. There was something familiar about her and different at the same time.
Raya used to be the taller one but now Namaari overlooks Raya. The sleeveless top she was wearing showed the more defined outline of Namaari's curves and muscles, which Raya assumed came from years of training. The undercut hairstyle was still there, but instead, a sharp face was present, lips parted open and striking eyes that were surprised seeing Raya.
Namaari suddenly felt intimidating to Raya somehow. Raya can't believe she was looking and standing in front of someone who she hasn't seen for years.
Raya found herself unable to move. That is, until Namaari spoke.
"What..." Namaari was lost for words.
That one word got to Raya.
Raya had no time freezing over the fact that Namaari's voice was now deeper and more mature.
She made her run and escaped through the open window.
Namaari shouted. "Give that scroll back now!"
Raya didn't stop and kept going on, jumping back to the other tower she came from. She peeked while running and saw Namaari chase after her.
Oh Toi, Raya grumbled in her thoughts.
Raya picked up her pace going down the building. She jumped for a shortcut on the stairs cascading below and landed safely on the bottom.
In no time, Raya has reached the palace grounds. But as she glanced again, Namaari was still tailing her nearby. The princess of Fang surely took her time in those six years to master her physical craft
Raya's muscles were growing numb in exhaustion and she knew she needed a more thorough plan to escape.
Raya saw that the waters surrounding Fang's land were getting closer. She smirked.
Raya immediately knew what to do. Once near enough, Raya skipped to the air and dived to the water. The cold water sent a thrill to Raya’s body but she ignored it.
Namaari wouldn't go to lengths of chasing her in the water right?
Raya looked back while swimming.
The binturi followed her.
Just great, Raya thought sarcastically as she huffed and continued swimming.
Raya was thankful she left her cloak with Tuk tuk, who was waiting for her behind the trees across her current location. The cloak would have worn her down although the mask was giving Raya a lot of trouble, with the water seeping through the spaces.
She did her best to keep her head elevated as she swam to the other side.
When Raya finally reached the shore, she was drenched wet and drained.
"Tuk tuk..." she gasped heavily.
Hearing Raya, her animal companion quickly rolled near to her.
"Stop right there!" Namaari ordered.
Raya went to brace herself. She twisted on her heels and brandished her sword to the woman who was approaching her.
"Stand back." Raya remarked.
Tuk tuk growled at Namaari.
Namaari stopped, but maintained a fighting position. "Stealing Fang's dragon scroll in daylight, that’s so bold of you. But why?"
"Well, I just wanted to." said Raya.
"Binturi." Namaari spat. Namaari surged forward and kicked Raya's sword out of her hand.
Raya lost her grip from the weapon due to numbing exhaustion. In an instant, Namaari pushed Raya backwards to lock her body against a tree, her arm spread across Raya's collarbone and shoulders.
Raya gritted her teeth. "Is this how you greet your guests at Fang? Very welcoming."
"Only to thieves." said Namaari, edge in her voice.
Namaari was leaning so close to Raya, so near that Raya hoped Namaari wouldn't notice how familiar Raya looked with her exposed eyes.
But then a chill went through both Raya and Namaari's skins. They knew this familiar feeling, and what comes with it
Before they could react, a wild cloud of Druun rose from the ground.
Both of them yelped in surprise. Raya almost tripped as she stepped back but regained her footing and hurriedly went to Tuk tuk to grab the dragon gem piece from her bag.
Before the Druun can get any closer, Raya shoved her arm forward, the dragon gem piece tight in her hand. The blue light crowded the space, gradually overtaking the Druun to vanish away.
When Raya looked back at Namaari, Namaari had picked up the dragon scroll Raya dropped and was looking at her in shock.
"That's... That's a piece of the dragon gem." She said in disbelief.
Raya stared at the dragon gem piece in her hand, and inwardly groaned.
She just accidentally revealed her ownership of a dragon gem piece to Namaari, her enemy. Everything was turning out perfectly.
Raya knew she had to improvise.
"There's only a few pieces of that. Who are you and why do you have a dragon gem piece?" Namaari asked again.
"I'm just someone from Tail." Raya lied.
"Sure you are." Namaari said, eyeing the colors of Raya's clothes that's so significantly Tail's. A clash of earthy colors of yellow, green and brown. “And the dragon gem piece?”
"I stole this from the Tail Chief." Raya told another lie.
Namaari frowned. "How did you know about Fang's dragon scroll?"
"I heard from someone on Talon about one of Fang's most treasured possessions and what it contains and I knew that's what I needed."
"Risking all the way from the other side just to grab a scroll I keep closely?" Namaari was supiscious of the masked woman.
"And that fact that Fang is keeping the scroll so much just made it more tempting." Raya said. "That, and how it contains a one of a kind full info about the mighty Sisudatu."
Namaari raised an eyebrow, "Sisu? Why are you interested in a 500 year old legend?"
"Too many questions, Princess Undercut." Raya said, and joked. "What do you want to know next, who's my ideal type?"
"And you seem to know too much." Namaari noted. "You haven't answered my question."
Raya contemplated.
Would it be alright to tell Namaari about how she wanted to bring Sisudatu back? Raya knew Namaari is interested in dragons as much as she is. But whether or not Namaari wanted to see Sisu back to life again, Raya needed the scroll.
Raya decided she’s got nothing to lose. “I’m currently trying to find where Sisu has gone. I want to bring her back.”
Namaari looked at her incredulously. “You’re really looking for Sisu?”
“Yes, Sisu can help bring back someone dear to me. Someone I’ve lost from the Druun.” Raya told her the truth.
Silently, Namaari studied the dragon gem piece in Raya's hand. Raya tightened her grip on the item.
“You want this, don’t you?” Raya teased.
“Fang is running out of room, and we can’t exactly expand without more dragon gem pieces.”
“Okay,” Raya began, inhaling deeply. What she's going to tell Namaari was a huge risk, but she need to go for it. “How about a deal? I’ll give this to you, and in return you’ll give me the scroll. But, I’ll only hand this dragon gem piece to you after Sisu comes back and vanquishes the Druun away.”
“If Sisu is ever brought back and the Druun is gone, then I don’t think I’ll be needing the dragon gem piece anymore.”
“Doesn’t the lands believe that the dragon magic inside the gem brings prosperity?” Raya pointed out.
Namaari considered what she said. Namaari just observed Raya, thinking in silence.
Gradually, Namaari has eased and that’s when Raya knew she was finally convincing the Princess of Fang.
“Fine.” Namaari nodded.
Raya felt less tensed.
“I agree to this deal, but I’ll come with you to search for Sisu. I’ll be the one keeping the dragon scroll while we're on this quest.”
“No complaints there.” agreed Raya.
Out of all the outcomes Raya thought of, Raya wasn’t expecting it would end up with a deal over working together with Namaari. But she has no choice now that Namaari spotted her stealing the dragon scroll, chased after her and saw the dragon gem piece. This was the best among the least.
Raya extended her hand, and Namaari took it. Together they shook their hands to seal the deal.
"If you're not here by sun down then I'll assume you were not given permission." Raya told her.
Namaari nodded and left.
Raya wasn't so sure if Chief Virana would let her one daughter take part on this quest. Namaari was the only person next in line to the throne, Chief Virana’s only child, and going on with this mission can be dangerous, especially when they're travelling far away from Fang.
With that in mind Raya had low expectations. She used her time sitting on the grass to devise new raw plans to steal Fang's dragon scroll, writing and drawing on a paper.
It’s completely fine with Raya if Namaari will not join her. She could just go for the item she needed once again on another day, even if Namaari would probably hide the scroll in greater difficulty than it was today.
Just in case, she still waited with TukTuk until the sun was close to fading from the sky.
When the sun had finally set, Raya got up from the grass and brushed her legs, ready to leave when Namaari appeared, a bag resting on her shoulder.
Raya was quite surprised.
"The chief gave me permission." Namaari said. "Only three weeks. After that, I'll come back home to Fang whether we achieved our goals or not."
This was it. Their mission will begin and Raya will have to conceal her identity the entire time of working with her rival.
"You got it, Princess Undercut." Raya picked up her sheathed sword.
Namaari nudged her head towards the dock lining Fang's island. "Follow me. The chief will let us use one of Fang's boats."
Raya placed a hand on Tuktuk's shell. "Come on Tuktuk, just as Princess Namaari said. Let's follow her to the boat."
Tuktuk whined, having to move from his resting spot. The animal walked instead of rolling to match the two princesses' pace.
Namaari found their transportation near the very last edge of the dock. The boat wasn't too decorated. The structure looked strong and stealthy. And it looked enough to support a lengthy travel with two persons and a huge animal like Tuktuk on board. Raya thought it was just right.
"This is perfect." Raya commented.
"Functional and doesn't attract attention." Namaari was mirroring the same thoughts as Raya.
It was Namaari who first entered the boat, followed by Raya and with a heavy groan, Tuktuk. Namaari dropped her bag and sack of essentials inside the boat. She went to start steering and prodding on the boat to move, and Raya helped her in doing so.
When the boat gained speed and Fang was just a mini figure far away from their sight, Raya and Namaari took their places to rest.
Each of the two took the opposite sides of their ride, distancing apart from each other. Namaari sat near the front of the boat and Raya sat behind, her back leaning on Tuktuk's shell and her body facing the waters.
The silence that washed the atmosphere was awkward.
It was one of their first quiet moments together, and Raya wasn't used to it. Thankfully, Namaari broke the silence.
"Since we're travelling together for quite some time, you can just call me Namaari in the meantime. No need for the title." she told Raya.
"I will," Raya pondered for a moment. "...Namaari."
Namaari shuffled, the boat creaking with her movement. "And what should I call you?"
Raya considered it.
It should be a nickname familiar to Raya that she’ll respond quickly when Namaari calls her, but at the same time something related to her that Namaari doesn’t know about.
“Dewdrop.” Raya finally settled with it.
“Alright,” said Namaari. I’ll call you Dewdrop.”
A blanket of uncomfortableness settled on Raya's stomach. Hearing an old friend who has betrayed her say the nickname her Ba calls her rose many emotions in Raya at once, sad, angry, hopeless and most of all the undeniable feeling of missing her Ba.
The sensations weighed her whole physical being and Raya sank deeper against Tuktuk's shell.
She hugged her knees to her chest.
Namaari spoke once more. "Get some sleep. I'll take the first watch and steer the boat."
At least Raya was relieved to hear that. She doesn't know if she was in the mood to stay focused on their surroundings. "If you ever tried to remove my mask or touch my bag, I'm warning you, I'll make sure you'll never get the dragon gem piece and I'll steal the dragon scroll away from your hands. Forever."
"I won't remove your mask. I promise."
Raya just can't simply trust Namaari. But she was feeling exhausted, and they'll be journeying together for a couple more days. This would be the first test Raya will be handing to Namaari.
Raya just decided to go with it and rest first.
The mask felt stuffy, she was on a quest with her enemy, finding Sisu was proving so difficult. Everything seemed down to Raya. But she has survived countless things. These were just another obstacle she'll go through.
The final obstacle... the last one, I hope. Raya thought dearly as she closed her eyes to take some rest.
She was just glad that Tuktuk was there with her, like Tuktuk have always been her whole life.