After she'd rested a few moments Hugbell stood up, as others began to leave and be pulled away back to where they were before. She looked around at her home world. The youma, they had defeated it, and she'd have to run into everyone personally to thank them. However, for now.
She pulled out Barnaby from subspace and placed the ribbon on him. "I think we need to finish something we started." She said as she walked and he followed her. The former chibi senshi was looking her eyes set on the crystal fields. All her visions stopped there it seemed, became blank slates though she never ventured towards it being told that it was dangerous.
Maybe now, it wasn't. The time she spent on her home world with Scheelite. Seeing knights children running, playing. Happy, comforting. The sounds here though were different. Calming, serine, the waterfall. Ralph, his wife. Barnaby, the animals, the creations from these one magical stones.
There was one too many things that no longer lived. She took a breath as she walked, pausing at the edge. She'd been with Hygiea, followed the story book, followed the stories. Been to the Desert, the Snowy Mountains, the fields where windmills churned. Here. . . .
She turned to look, she was still in pain. She could feel the blood loss a little going to her head. Though she was tired. Looking back to where she'd found Barnaby's ribbon. The plush bear tugged softly at Hugbell's leg. She looked down to him.
"Of course I'm scared. I've never been able to walk past this point."
She paused, "We've never fought a battle like that on a homeworld. I didn't think it was possible." She said as she looked around her. The past, the wars she fought the struggles. She'd taken so much just to get to this point. To stay a live as a child fighting a war that should never have been.
It felt like the time was crawling as she gathered her courage as she stepped out into the crystal fields and felt something, "Barnaby, I'm not sure what we're going to face, but lets remember the small victories?"
Her visions danced as she watched herself pass out, again and again in the past. What was it trying to tell her? She continued to walk and the crystals were dully lit. Though they seemed stronger than the last time she'd been here despite not walking into the field.
When she neared one of the larger crystals close to her. She placed her hand slowly on it and closed her eyes as she stood there. She could feel something was happening. "I promise... I'll do my best to protect you." She whispered as she placed another hand and then her forehead to the crystal.
"There is no one else left. I have to. You have to let me, help me. I want to understand how." Hugbell said as she started to cry. "I just need to know how... I'm not sure I can do this alone. I couldn't beat him." She whispered as she dropped to her knees her arms felt as if there was a warm comforting sensation on them. Like someone embracing her, their forehead against hers, her arms and then slowly as if they were holding her shoulders and she pushed herself back looking. As she looked eyes wide feeling as if she knew, understood something. . . that there would be comfort in tending to the crystals. Working to learn how they worked.
Though as she looked at the crystal she noticed something had changed in the reflection that there was now. Instead of her Tiara there was an outline of a bear head. . . her ribbons on her arms were gone. . . . and around her neck . . . "I.... wow." She looked curiously as if it were war paint. She felt better, though only slightly.
Barnaby was standing there looking at her. "Barnaby. . . I think. . . . this is why . . . I kept passing out." She said slowly looking at him as if a mystery had just unraveled but was knitted into a new one. She stretched as she shifted to lean against the crystal. Barnaby crawling into her lap placing a paw against her wound. "Yes, yes I'll have it tended to when I get back to earth. For now lets just sit here for a little while."
She smiled softly though still a little weak. "It's like a phoenix Barnaby. I had to die a few times to find it, but everything's going to be okay. We'll bring this rock back to life. Surely Ralph left information in the tree house, we've just got to find it. Figure out how to read Hugbellion again."
The new soft glow. It was war paint, for she was comfort and comfort was to be here, to her home world again. While Hugbell knew she couldn't do it alone. She felt as if anything was possible with a little bit of comfort and a lot of hope.
