Backdated to late November

Adria had spent a lot of time dreaming of what his homeworld might look like, but he'd talked himself out of it time and time again. Maybe it was dangerous--maybe it wouldn't live up to expectations. Maybe he wasn't good enough. Maybe he'd get lost or trapped there.

Maybe it would be the most amazing thing he'd ever seen.

He held his senshi phone in his hand, rocking on his heels as he hesitated with pushing the button. It had already been nearly fifteen minutes of debating--and that was just after he'd powered up, just after he'd already spent all day, all week, with increasingly demanding thoughts about going.

It was time. He was as ready as he'd ever be.

Adria closed his eyes and pressed.

The sensation itself was strange; he couldn't tell if he was hot or cold, if he was moving or standing still. He knew he wasn't breathing--that much was obvious when his lungs started to burn and he started to get light headed.

You couldn't breathe in space, everyone knew that.

But then, everyone knew that aliens didn't exist and magic wasn't real and monsters were just stories, too, and look where he was today.

Even with his eyes closed, he could tell it was brighter here; he held out until he couldn't anymore and sucked in a deep breath in the same second he opened his eyes.

If he'd had any breath in his lungs it would have been knocked out of him at the sight.

In his whole life, he'd never seen anything more beautiful. Two suns hung low in the sky, casting a radiant golden glow over everything. He was standing in a field of golden grass that was so tall it tickled his midriff. Before him, a sandy beach that glistened like someone had sprinkled glitter over it. The water lapped at the shore peacefully and he could smell salt on the air. The water looked clear from what he could make out, but his eyes kept going to the sky: purple and red and orange and pink, all blended together so stunningly that he forgot to breathe. Again.

When he did, he inhaled a sweet fragrance--undoubtedly the pretty white lilies that were growing a bit to his left. Adria stood still, waiting for the world to crumble down--for a monster to pounce from the tall grass.

Nothing came. For fifteen minutes he braced himself and then he couldn't stand still anymore; he walked towards the water with tentative steps, relishing how the sand shifted languidly beneath his feet.

When he reached the water he dipped his fingers into it--it was cool. Nice.

He flopped onto the sand, digging his heals in and running his fingers across the strangely smooth surface.

He wanted to explore but the longer he sat on the warm sand the more he just wanted to lay back and take a nap. It felt like he could breathe again. The temperature was warm and the entire time he was there the suns never moved in the sky. He didn't know how much time had passed, only that he was transfixed by the beauty of the world before him.

He was tired, drowsy; he always wanted to take a nap when the sun started to set but now he didn't know if it was because of the stillness of the day or because it felt like all of his worries were finally melting away enough for him to breathe. He closed his eyes, let the warmth of the suns wash over him. There was something oddly cathartic about being alone out here. He'd heard rumors that all other worlds were lifeless, and he had first thought that it must be a lonely, cold world waiting for him.

But this? This was a little slice of heaven. He hadn't been to the beach since he was small, and the last time he was there he'd gotten sunburned and nearly drowned so this? This was a huge improvement.

...This was something he couldn't wait to share.