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"Ghost!"
The red, nimble figure of Hornet made its way across the courtyard to where Ghost waited for her, sitting on the edge of a giant memorial statue.
She came to a halt in front of them, patting them on the head once to get their attention.
"Ghost, I have aquired enough supplies, we will depart the city shortly," she informed the small bug, offering a hand for them to take.
Ghost raised their head to look up at their sister, eyes big and curious, before grasping her offered hand in their's.
Hornet helped her sibling jump down from the small ledge, their little feet making a splash on the wet ground.
While Ghost got ready to leave, Hornet looked back at the statue, and the epigraph beneath it.
Memorial to the Hollow Knight. In the Black Vault far above. Through it's sacrifice, Hallownest lasts eternal
Hornet suppressed a scoff.
"Ghost, where is our sibling?"
Scanning the courtyard, the large, imposing figure of the former Hollow Knight was nowhere to be seen.
Ghost only locked up at her again, cocking their head slightly, but staying silent, as always. Sighing, Hornet started to walk along the edges of the stone platform, searching for those large forked horns she had grown to know so well.
She found them on a platform not far off from the courtyard, sitting on the edge of the stone, feet dangling downwards, almost touching the rushing torrent of rainwater below.
Hornet thought about calling out, but stopped.
'Hollow', 'Vessel', 'Knight', 'Savior' were the terms her sibling had been referred to previously, but none of them felt right on her tongue.
So instead, she just let go of Ghost's hand, signalling them to stay put, before jumping across the gap between platforms.
Her feet moved through the puddles silently until she reached her sibling.
They seemed to be lost in thought as Hornet sat down next to them, gaze fixed on the stone ceiling above.
"What are you doing," she asked, looking up at them.
Seemingly ripped out of their thoughts by her voice, their head turned to meet her eyes.
In a low, rumbling voice they asked:
"Sister, you are back. Are we leaving?"
Hornet's chest warmed a bit at the term.
It had taken a while to teach her older sibling to speak.
She didn't know at which point they had gained the ability and using their vocal cords had seemed to hurt in the beginning.
And while they could understand her relatively well, after spending so many years alone they had forgotten much of Hallownest's language, so Hornet had made sure to explain as much as she could about the meanings of words they heard.
Now though, they seemed quite good at talking, even if they didn't do it often.
"Shortly. We will wait a little while longer. I would like to know where your mind wandered."
The cold rain falling from above hit her shell and she squinted to keep the droplets from hitting her eyes.
From the shine on their coat Hornet could see that it was soaked, which did not seem to bother the larger bug.
Their head turned back upward as they answered her.
"I was remembering. This place brings back memories."
They paused as if to weigh whether or not they should continue speaking.
"I find myself...unsure."
Hornet leaned forward, tilting her head.
The cold started seeping into her own coat and she pulled it tighter around herself, holding back a shiver.
"Unsure of what?"
Their quiet voice was slightly shaky as they answered her.
"Of my place in this world.
I thought I knew what my purpose was.
I was content to fulfill it. It was what father told me I had been made for and what earned me his love.
I... wanted to make him proud."
Hornet felt a sting in her chest. It was such a natural desire. That want, that little desperate grasp for affection and love of a parent.
Love. What had their father ever truly loved? His kingdom? His queen? The children he doomed to spend eternity in the Abyss?
She too had been desperate for his love once. Like she had been desperate for her mother's.
Now she was certain her mother had loved her. Enough to give her life even if she could not be a part of it, but her father...
She wanted to think that he had held some kind of affection for his children, but that hadn't kept him from sending them away. From using them as a sacrifice.
No cost too great.
He had sent her away, and while Hornet could never regret growing up with the Hive, it had also pained her to never truly know either of her parents.
And she would be lying if she said that she didn't hold resentment towards her father for taking away the only family she had ever gotten to know.
Hornet was pulled from her thoughts when her sibling spoke again.
"Now I...I have failed my purpose and I am unsure if father ever really loved me. If I would have had a place with him had I not been his vessel."
As she listened to their words quietly, Hornet's heart ached for them.
She remembered during the brief time she had spent in the white palace, how proud their father had seemed of the vessel's progress.
How he had told them about their great task. About how they would be the one to save the Kingdom from ruin.
He had paraded them around the kingdom, to show every bug the face of their "savior".
Of course they had been certain of their purpose then. But what was a cage to do when the thing they were intended to keep locked away was gone?
"I'm afraid I cannot give you the answers you seek.
Our father- I think he loved us all, in his own way, even if that wasn't enough, in the end."
They let their head hang low,
the rain dripping from their face down onto the hand lying in their lap.
"He never even gave me a name."
Hornet had never been good with feelings. She wished for something she could say to make them feel better, to take away their pain and uncertainty.
She had finally gotten a part of her family back and she was desperate to keep it.
As she wracked her brain for the right thing to say, an idea came to her.
"Then let's give you one now."
The large figure turned to her in surprise.
"I don't know how to choose a name. What do I look for?"
Hornet thought for a moment, tilting her head.
"I like to think that names have meaning. I was given mine not by Herrah, but one I consider my mother just the same. I carry it with pride.
What has meaning to you?"
Her sibling looked contemplative for a moment.
"My memories..," they began," they were my only companion for so long. They kept alive the things I missed. "
"What did you miss most?"
"I missed father, and mother. I missed the palace, our kingdom. I missed you and..."
Their hand lifted, catching the droplets and gathering a small puddle in their palm.
They stared at it wistfully for a moment, before saying, "and I missed the rain."
Hornet lifted a hand to rest on the larger figure's arm.
"Then, in honor of remembering the things we miss, let us call you Rain."
Her eyes met theirs and she could swear they seemed a bit brighter than before.
"Rain...Thank you sister, I will cherish what you have given me."
Hornet gave them a warm look, before standing up and offering her hand.
"Well then Rain, let us not keep Ghost waiting much longer. It is time to depart for our next adventure."
Rain took her hand eagerly, rising up to their full height, nearly double that of their sister.
Both bugs made their way back to Ghost, who had found entertainment in jumping into puddles and watching the water droplets fly though the air.
Upon seeing Hornet and Rain arrive, they quickly fell into step beside their sister, who once again took their hand in hers.
Together, the three siblings headed for the exit out of the City of tears, ready to face whatever would await them on the path ahead.