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Darkness.
That’s all she saw.
It was what she enveloped the world in, and now… she would leave in the same way.
A smile came to her face at thinking that.
I managed to save everyone. That must be worth something.
She was happy. She saved the world.
Now… she could finally reunite with the friend who understood her more than anyone ever could.
To be safe.
For the first time in a long time.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
That’s it?
White Lily’s eyes snapped open at hearing the voice.
She looked around. “Who’s there?”
No response. Then another call.
After everything… this is how it ends?
It sounded nothing like fear.
Or relief.
Not hers.
No. This voice was bitter. Not afraid… but disappointed.
And somehow… it sounded oddly familiar.
She turned to the direction where it came from, and paused.
There she stood.
Her worst enemy.
The manifestation of all of her despair.
Herself.
The figure let out a bitter chuckle.
Wait… this isn’t right.
She’s supposed to be dead.
“I know what you’re thinking. Don’t pretend that I don’t. We are one and the same, after all.” the former Witch chided.
White Lily’s formerly calm expression turned stern. “And what is it to you? Your time is up, Dark Enchantress. Now, you will never be able to hurt anyone ever again.”
Her counterpart’s eyes widened. “Yes, but… what about you? It appears as if I’m not the only one who has unfinished business over here.”
She was about to respond, when Dark Enchantress put her hand up. “Even after all this time… all you do is run.”
“I’m not running, I just — ” White Lily’s voice trailed off.
Dark Enchantress stared at her again, and at that point, her face changed. Her counterpart tilted her head forward.
Her eyes widened.
That face…
That was Dark Enchantress, no doubt. But at the same time… it wasn’t the look she knew and what she saw her as. Instead… her features were more delicate.
Desperate.
Similar.
In fact, all she could say about this new face was…
Is that… me?
She knew it was her.
But… she never imagined that they would look so…alike.
Like she’d put on a costume and was staring in the mirror.
“Don’t deny it. You ran.” Dark Enchantress said after a while.
White Lily almost flinched at the distortion of her voice, sounding less like another Cookie’s and more like her own.
“You always ran. We both did.” she told her with a bitter smile.
“Even if we had… different results, our motive is the same. To free all of Cookiekind from the Witches. So that we can all live the life that we deserve.”
White Lily wanted to retort, but Dark Enchantress’ words struck a nerve.
That is true. I wanted to help everyone… and after the Banquet, I couldn’t just stand by while we were all being eaten.
“You’re right. I did… at first.” she started.
Her counterpart frowned.
White Lily took a deep breath. “But after doing that for so long… I’ve realized that it won’t solve anything. All that I’m doing is denying what I did.”
She curled her hands, squeezing one with the other.
“That’s why… I vowed never to do that again.”
“And yet… here we are.” Dark Enchantress muttered, throwing her hands up.
Another realization dawned on her. “You… didn’t want to die, either.”
She nodded, and vanished. White Lily moved back, but gasped at seeing her face.
She didn’t look angry. Or resentful. No.
She looked… torn.
Longing.
And…guilty.
Like me.
Then to her utter shock… she collapsed.
White Lily kneeled down next to her, and she tilted her head up.
“Of course I didn’t. Who says I did?” she screamed, making her counterpart flinch.
“Well… that was what was meant for the both of us…”
“I’m not afraid of dying, idiot! You should know by now that I won’t be satisfied as long as my goal is fulfilled! Even at the cost of my own life!”
She sniffled, and looked down.
“All I wanted was… to be free. For all of us to. But… this isn’t being free! Not when there was so much for me to do. Both of us.” She rubbed her face with her arm, and for a moment, White Lily felt a sting in her heart.
“I wanted to move us beyond our destiny…and you…you only wanted to atone for the mistakes you made.” She got up, and dusted herself off, and turned to her counterpart with another, bitter, smile.
“But we can’t do that now. Not when the both of us are physically collapsed.”
It was for everyone’s good, she wanted to retort, but her throat clenched.
It was… but is this… what I wanted?
She wanted to achieve her goal. She wanted to redeem herself and reunite with her friends. And… she achieved it.
But not like this.
There were so many things she hadn’t told them. So many apologies she had yet to make.
So many new things to discover.
And… so much she wanted to tell him.
White Lily turned to Dark Enchantress’ trembling form.
Part of her wanted to think that it was fake. A ploy, just so that she could use her to wreak havoc on Earthbread once again.
But it wasn’t.
And somehow… it felt even worse.
For in here… she wasn’t an enemy. Nor was she a friend.
She was… herself.
All the mistakes she made.
Everything she wanted and more, though twisted by fate.
Maybe… it doesn’t have to dictate us anymore.
She moved towards her counterpart, and moved her head to face her.
Her eyes widened. “What?” she spat.
White Lily looked down, then back at her.
“I’m not going to deny that what we both did was wrong. But at the same time… I’m not going to erase the fact that this is not the ending that any of us wanted.”
Dark Enchantress stood up, and raised an eyebrow.
Her counterpart gave her a bitter smile. “Even if they deserved it… I never wanted it to end like this. I want to see my friends. I want to be a part of the future that we’ve fought so hard to build.”
She clenched her arm, which also started to tremble. “I knew the odds were against me. I did it anyway. But… at the same time… I didn’t want it to end here. I wanted to live. I still do.” Her reddish-pink eyes locked with her counterpart’s, who stared at her in awe.
“And so what if fate says that this is what must happen? What if it says that we need to seperate? I never wanted it. Neither did you.”
She extended her hand. “We’re the same. You and I. But we were both seperated because of what happened to us.”
Her smile faded, and she swallowed.
“So… how about we stop? Stop letting the world choose what happens to us. Stop running and face the things we need to. I need to face everyone… and you need to face me.”
She rested her hand in Dark Enchantress’.
And somehow… it felt like a hole inside her was starting to close.
“Let’s stop acting like we’re different. I want to know you… and I’m sure that you want to know me too, right?”
A chuckle was heard. “Yeah. I suppose there are parts of myself that I don’t fully know, either.”
White Lily returned her laugh.
Then closed her eyes.
1…
2…
Silence enveloped the void, as the pieces seemed to shift.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Two eyes snapped open.
Not four… two.
White Lily squinted as she moved her hand up to block the sun.
Then her gaze landed on it.
Her right hand… it was the same colour as before.
Except this time… vine-like tendrils cut across it.
She looked at her other hand. It wasn’t just pale brown.
Part of it was… but it was also purple.
Like how she was.
She moved her hands to her head, feeling her wings flutter in surprise. Her moon lily headband still rested on her head, and she paused to brush the petals of the flowers.
Resting above each one, however, was a smooth, hard surface. She traced her finger along it, only to realize she now had a pair of horns resting on her head.
Her gown was now white, and from the belt at her waist, two, delicate purple vines with small roses dangled. She moved her hand to her chest, where she found her Soul Jam. Except instead of a deep green, it now had a red half as well.
She glanced down at her hands, one more time, before glancing at her hair. It was still white, but with two braids. Each end resembled a lily in full bloom, similar to how she looked when she was Awakened.
A smile came to her face at realizing what had happened.
This is me. Here I am.
She was alive. Whole.
Like how she was always meant to be.
No more running.
She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.
For the first time… she didn’t feel like pulling away.
Not from the world, or herself.
When she opened her eyes, another smile graced her face.
Everything was clearer now.
Not because she fully understood…
but because nothing was divided anymore.
She looked at her Soul Jam, and placed her hand over it. It vibrated in response.
“Welcome home.” she whispered. Then she looked up.
And moved forward — beyond the horizon.