OTHER / FRIENDS

that      familiar      voice.      the      only      one      she      had      known      before      the      garden.      the      only      one      other      than      ,,,,      hers.      her      perfect      voice.      the      voice      of      her      friend.      her      best      friend.      NO.      she      was      never      a      friend.      she      never      cared      about      her.      she      was      nothing      to      her.      NOTHING.      nothing      but      some      play      thing      she      could      just      throw      away      whenever      she      didn’t      have      a      need      for      her      anymore.      and      pearl.      she      hadn’t      even      noticed      she      was      GONE.      never      cared      enough      to      ask      her      diamond      where      her      best      friend      had      disappeared      to.      or      had      she      known      more      that      her,      even      at      that      time.      had      she      known      all      those      millennia      ago?      that      she      was      nothing      but      an      object      to      her?     she      loved      her.      SHE      WAS      LOVED.      of      course      she      knew.      pink      told      her      everything.      pink      never      told      her      ANYTHING.

                     “  tch   —   sorry ,   sparkles  .   ”    snide   remark   through   sneer   in   split   &   dry  lips  ,   nudging   magenta   creature   with   a   boot   caked   with   mud  .    “   maybe   yer’   friend   shouldn’t   be   so   selfish   —-   learn   not   t’   TAKE   what   isn’t   HERS  .   ”   yes  ,   he’s   heard   of   .  .  .   gemkind  ,   he   supposes  .   they’re   a   major   contender   for   the   empire  ;   &   he   suspects   a   soon   to   be   tool   for   their  vicious   imperialism  .

“I mean, yeah.” SHE DOESN’T EVEN TRY to surpress the laughter bubbling up her throat. There were some wacky people (and wacky sightings) in Derry, but nothing like this. This was just funny. A joke. “You come up to me, skin all pink, and you tell me you’re a GEM? Like, come on. Did your parents even LOVE you?”

      Wings of water carry the lapis to great heights,       and she smiles as she hovers in front of the other gem,      golden eyes wide and twinkly.         ❛   Did you make this yourself?   ❜      She asks with a gasp,      hands coming up to her cheeks as she gapes in  SURPRISE  before she lowers herself to stand on the top.       She stumbles a bit,      flailing her arms to regain balance as her bare feet plant on the smooth surface.          ❛   This is so cool!   ❜