Tiki yawned despite the bright sun, her mouth stretching wide. Everyone she'd passed by that morning assumed she was simply tired due to her heavy sleeping habits. However, while she appreciated the lack of questioning, this sadly wasn't the case. Sadly, despite deliberating throughout the night she still hadn't found a proper answer to Myrrh's question.

But if Tiki herself - after all her years alive - had trouble with the concept of outliving her friends, how must that child feel?

Even if she didn't know what she would say to the younger dragon, Tiki still wanted to talk to her after the state she'd left her in. She wasn't in her room, nor in the mess hall. It was by chance that she bumped into Prince Ephraim in her searches, who told her he'd seen Myrrh flying into the woods.

"I only saw her from afar, but she looked quite upset about something. I don't know if she's in the mood to talk to anyone right now," he added.

"I see..."

Tiki thanked him with a small nod of the head and ran outside.

Oh, Myrrh...

She found Myrrh in the same clearing they'd spoken in the previous day. (Since the little girl could fly, it made sense that she'd be able to find the spot again, Tiki reasoned.) She was sitting on the same log as before, her head resting on her lap. Tiki tried to walk slowly but snapped a branch with her heel, causing Myrrh to jerk up.

"Easy! Easy..." Tiki held her arms out at the sight of Myrrh preparing to fly. The little girl paused for a moment before relaxing her wings, though she still stayed on her feet.

"Um...I'm sorry about yesterday," she mumbled.

"Don't be. It's a natural question all Manaketes ask in their lives," she tiptoed forward with her arms still outstretched as though soothing a wounded animal. "I wanted to apologise for not giving you a proper answer."

"It's okay..." Myrrh walked to one of the still standing trees and pressed her palm against it. She looked at its leaves for a while. "You know, back in my homeworld I live in a place called the Darkling Woods."

"Is that so?" Tiki straightened up and walked normally to stand beside her, looking at the trees around them. "What is it like?"

"I think most people would say it's horrible," began the younger girl. "It was cursed 800 years ago so that the trees are large and crooked and the only living creatures are monsters...but it's also my home."

"..." Tiki placed a palm on the tree too.

"I've lived there for as long as I can remember, and it's also where my father is."

"Your father?"

"Yes. His name is Morva. Well, technically he's my foster father. You see, my real parents died around the time the forest was cursed. We're the only dragons left in our world, so he's the only family I have left."

"So you and your father live there all alone?"

"Yes, because there's something we must protect there. But...I wouldn't say we're completely alone," Myrrh shook her head, the trace of a smile on her lips. "There's a small village to the southwest called Caer Pelyn and people visit us from there sometimes..." the smile faded. "But they treat us like...like gods. I know they mean well and they're very nice to Father and I, but I still feel lonely when I'm with them..."

Tiki ran her hand through Myrrh's hair. "Why are you telling me all this?"

"Hmm? Oh, I'm sorry; I got distracted!" Myrrh blushed. "I just wanted to say that you don't have to answer my question, because I'll always have a home and family to go back to even after..." she swallowed "...you know."

"But would that be enough for you?"

Myrrh's hand fell from the tree and she said nothing.

"You know, I had a father figure too," continued Tiki. "His name was Bantu and we travelled together for a long time."

"Oh?" Tiki nudged the younger girl and guided her to where she'd been sitting. "Did you see a lot?"

"Hmm..." She sat Myrrh down and took her own place on the fallen trunk with a smile. "I can't say we did. We spent most of our time in the countryside."

"But that's still fun, isn't it?"

"I suppose so," Tiki chuckled. "I still have fond memories of those days, despite the dark times." Something clicked in her head. "It's the same with Mar-Mar and all my friends too."

"...oh." Myrrh's face fell, but Tiki kept smiling.

"I miss them terribly. I always have and I always will, but that isn't the point." Myrrh looked confused, so she continued. "I still remember the moment I heard Mar-Mar - I'm sorry, Marth - died. I still remember the day Bantu died. I've outlived all of my friends and I miss every last one of them...but when I think about them, do you think that's what they want me to remember?"

"No..." the little girl shook her head.

"That's right," Tiki nodded. "I told you yesterday that I still hear and see Mar-Mar sometimes and I couldn't describe how happy I was to see him in the flesh again. That's all still true, but at the same time..." she placed a hand over her heart as her lip trembled "even before coming here I still had all of my memories of him, Caeda and even the ones who aren't in Askr - like Ban-Ban - in here. I still cry for them sometimes, but they gave me so much joy that when I think back it can't possibly compare to the sadness I feel in their absence." She wiped a tear from her eye. "Does that make sense?"

"I...I think so. But it's still..." she swallowed and whimpered the last word "scary."

"I know it is," Tiki gave Myrrh's shoulders a quick hug. "It was for me too. Wondering if the day would come when I'd never hear Mar-Mar or Ban-Ban's voices again? That terrified me." She thought for a moment. "Why don't you look at it this way?" She sat up straight.

"Hmm?" Myrrh looked at her, confused.

"You'll live longer than your friends. It's sad, but it also gives you the chance to carry on their legacy for them. Not only will you be able to fulfil their wishes, you will also be able to tell their stories to future generations. Mar-Mar - King Marth - for example became a hero and inspiration to his people for millennia; even today he's considered the greatest hero who ever lived in my world."

"Really?"

"Yes. And I dedicate my life to helping those around me to ensure the lands he protected remain safe and its people happy. It's my way of honouring his memory...though I never truly realised that was what I was doing until right this moment." She ended with another chuckle.

Myrrh was silent for a while. "...I don't know if I like that," she said at last.

"Oh?"

"I know you're trying to be kind and I know it makes you happy, but..." Another pause. "I don't...want any of them to...d - die in the first place," she trailed off, looking at the earth.

"I see." It made sense. Myrrh seemed a bit older than she was when adventuring with Marth, but the winged Manakete was likely still too young to process such things.

"I know that's impossible and I'm just being unfair..."

"Not at all. It's okay to be angry at the world from time to time. I've been there myself." Tiki ruffled Myrrh's hair, smiling at the child's half-hearted "I'm not a child!"

Myrrh was silent for a while longer. "You're right, aren't you? And I know it's the right thing to do too..." she fidgeted with her hands. "Can I have some time to think about this, please?"

"Of course! Take as much time as you need. I'm not going anywhere." She patted Myrrh on the head and the little girl got to her feet.

"I'm very sorry you came all this way and I'm sorry you had to talk to me so much yesterday when I can't even make up my mind about something..." she spoke to the earth again as her sandals burrowed into it.

"Oh, child..." Tiki stood up and pulled Myrrh into a hug, prompting a sharp yelp from the younger dragon. "You're such a wonderful little girl," she stroked her hair once more. "You're so kind and even now you worry about your friends more than yourself! I admire you." She pulled back and sank to her knees to look her in the eyes. "You don't have to apologise for anything, understand?"

A pause, then with a red face Myrrh mumbled an "O...okay."

"Now as I said, take as much time as you need. I'll support you whatever you decide," Tiki smiled and kissed the child on the forehead. "Okay?"

Myrrh's cheeks had grown even redder after her lips made contact, but she managed a small nod nonetheless. Tiki patted her shoulders and stepped back, giving Myrrh enough space to take off. For the second time in as many days she watched the young Manakete soar back to the Order's keep.

Only this time Tiki had a smile on her face.