Work Text:
Drift has finally had enough. She's leaving The Eternal Summer Realm. She arrives at the train station alone, and waits 8 minutes for the train. AJ on the other hand, finds out she's leaving, and is 10 minutes away.
Minute 1
"This Damn Train!"
Drift thinks while sitting on a bench, near her platform. She's wanted to leave for so long, but she was so afraid. She was on 30% now, after Juniper and the Stormravens attacked. But now she is leaving. And nobody could stop her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Drifts leaving? Like leaving the realm?"
"Yes AJ. Her train leaves about in 8 minutes."
"Have a good day Magpie, I have a train to catch."
"Good luck AJ."
AJ grabs Nico, and tries to fly with him, but decides to go flick-state instead. She flys, and flys, trying to beat the timer, trying to get to her. She knows she will be late. But she doesn't want to accept it. She would do anything to get to her.
Minute 2
"I wonder if any of them will miss me. Probably not. They didn't even come to wish me farewell."
Drift is crushed, as is the realization that nobody came to say goodbye, and nobody really cared like she thought they did. Not even her fake girlfriend showed up.
"7 minutes. 7 minutes till I can get away from here. Away from it all."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I can't let her go. I won't. She will still be there when I get there. She has to be"
AJ flies, as fast as she can hoping it would be enough. The trees are speeding away as she rises higher and higher. She needs to get there. She can't let drift leave. And she definitely can't let drift leave thinking she was alone.
Minute 3
"Can this train come ANY damn slower?"
Drift begs the universe, making her train come faster. She keeps getting looks from people. All she has is a small trunk with import items, Fern, and her locket. Her locket with her fake girlfriend in. The locket that still hangs close to her heart. She wishes that she could crush it, but she never could.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hang on Drifty, I'm coming."
Please stay at the station. Stay on your platform. Please. I want you here. We all want you here. AJ pleaded with drift, although she knew drift couldn't hear her. She held out hope that she would arrive in time. Just get there. Just be there. Get on the train if you need to. Just save her. Bring her home.
Minute 4
"Here to Crypt station, to Oakhurst, to Soluna, then Pity. Here to Crypt station, to Oakhurst, to Soluna, then Pity."
Drift repeats her route in her head, hoping to pass time, because her train couldn't come any sooner. She needed to leave. She couldn't be here anymore. All she does is ruin plans and die. They don't need a pitiful dragon rider like that. They don't need her. Thankfully, she is traveling continents away. Now she can leave without regrets. Well, maybe one. She didn't actually say goodbye.
~~~~~~~~~~
"She didn't say goodbye. Does she really still hate me?"
AJ's mind races with endless thoughts on why she would leave, and why she didn't tell her. Did she know that she would stop her from leaving? Why would she leave, is the repeating question in her head. Drift did nothing wrong, yes she died, but we all make mistakes. And AJ still loves her, so she won't let her go.
Minute 5
"3 minutes. Only 3 minutes till I'm gone. I can leave, live alone, and never bother anyone ever again."
Drift is so ready to leave. Because leaving means starting over. And staring over means she might have something good. Something good she won't ruin. Maybe she is thinking like AJ. All she knows is nobody can make her stay.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Send a Flick. Get her a flick now. Make her stay. Please."
AJ sends out another flick, in hopes it will reach her sooner, but of course, all flicks fly the same speed, and can't get to her any sooner than AJ can. AJ is 4 minutes away, she is making up time. But how long will Drift stay? After all, her train leaves in 3 minutes.
Minute 6
"No goodbye letter, gift, not even an in person goodbye. These people must really dislike me."
Drift finds herself thinking back on the topic of goodbyes, and how she got none. She left a letter for Scott, Megii, Shelby, Pyro, and AJ. But AJ never left her dorm. She knew once she was gone AJ would go into her dorm and find it. AJ always was looking at Drift's stuff. And she left some things for AJ to remember her by.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Can't we fly any faster? Speed potions? Blessings? Anything?"
AJ pleads with the universe to let her get there any sooner, because she knows drifts train leaves in 2 minutes. Surely AJ can fly fast, she has always been good at flying. She is getting tired. But she won't let that stop her. She needs to go faster. She needs to get to Drift.
Minute 7
"The train will come soon, you can leave this fucked up place behind."
Drift stands, and walks closer to her platform, waiting anxiously for the train. Nobody came, so nobody could stop her. She is about to leave. For good. She can be at peace. Leaving all her friends is hard, but she thinks they don't even like her anymore.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hold up the train for any minute. Please, I need to find her. I need her. When I let her in, I'm codependent, that's not me."
AJ knows she will miss the train. AJ flies anyways, exerting herself. She needs to get there. All she can think about is what if she left sooner, would she be there? She knows she is 2 minutes away, and the train is one.
Minute 8
A rumbling shakes the platform, the train has arrived. Right in time. Drift takes a deep breath,
"You can do this. You are finally free. Don't think about them. They are better now."
She steps into the train, and finds a small seat in the very back corner, next to a window. She sits down, and starts crying. She's leaving everything. But she can't go back. Maybe she will regret this decision. She feels the train jerk. It's leaving. She's leaving. And she can never come back. She looks out the window, and sees a Flick fall to the ground, and AJ stands next to it. Tears streaming down her face, knowing she can do nothing else, she puts her hand up to the window in a final goodbye.
~~~~~~~~
The station is right there. AJ lands, hopeful that she made it. But she sees a train pulling away, with a familiar girl looking at her through the back window. Drift is on the train pulling away, and AJ can do nothing but watch her leave. Tears fall down both girls' faces as Drift touches the window. The final goodbye. A reminder that AJ was always too late. And Drift was already trying to move on. But both girls know that they will never find peace without each other. But there is nothing that she can do now.
Minute 9
AJ is crushed. She was too late. And all she can do is walk back. Go back to the academy without her love. Without the person grounding her. What can she do? Nothing. She can do nothing. What will she say to Magpie? Will she speak at all? Should AJ leave as well, in hopes of finding Drift?
Minute 27
“AJ? Are you doing ok?” A voice whispers from beside her, as she looks up she realizes it's Scott.
“Drifts gone. I was too late. I was too late. I was too late.”
Minute 34
“AJ, do you know where Drift is?”
“She's gone. She left. I couldn't stop her.”
“What do you mean she's gone?”
“She left the realm.”
Minute 58
“AJ. It's not your fault.”
"Yes it is! I had been nicer, if I had been better, if I had-"
"AJ! It's not your fault! She will come ba-"
“Shut UP Magpie! It IS my fault. I should have been faster, I should have stopped her, I should have kept her close, I should have told her she was amazing every chance I could, I should have reminded her that dying isn't a bad thing, i-”
“AJ! Stop it. You keep saying the same thing! You can't change it now. She will come back eventually. Hold out hope. She still loves you.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crypt station. What a creepy stop. It only makes her think of her creepy fake girlfriend. Well, now Ex-girlfriend. She might never see AJ again. She's sure AJ will move on, and forget about her. She must do the same. She will never go back to The Realm of Eternal Summer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~