Hyakutake took a deep breath as the teleportation finished. Every visit to her homeworld just felt right. She’d only visited three times now, but just...something about it made her feel lighter. Feel more at home. She closed her eyes, running her hand over the smooth wood of a long-unused bridge. The materials she’d brought with her to start the shed she’d be using to help store things while she made repairs laid on the ground behind her, a silent piece of today in the middle of yesteryear. Taking a look back at them, the senshi smiled slightly before leaping onto the railings of the bridge. It was high time she properly explore her homeworld. Things could wait a little bit before she started in earnest. She had plenty of time, after all, since she’d taken the night off.

The bridge, despite its age, was sturdy beneath her feet, letting her wander to the other side with no issues, and it was with a little hop that she landed on the cobble-like road on the other side...and took off at a run. In her mind, the best way to start getting a feel for a place was parkouring through it. Despite the age of the place, the ruins held up fairly well to her explorations, and she found herself marvelling even at them. Even a thousand years old and nowhere near the beautiful glory they had been in the memory of her past self, the buildings and bridges and….everything were gorgeous. Everything was made to complement and accentuate the plants and scenery around it, and even crumbling it showed. She found herself stopping on top of the tallest mostly-intact building, a great thing built into the giant willow in the middle of the sprawling forest-city. The wind played with her growing hair, and for a moment, she wasn’t Kaida.

“Look at it all, Ni!” The voice was young, and female, and her. A boy her age [she was...young? only a few cycles old] laughed next to her, patting her bare leg. Both of them wore short yuqun that day, refusing to look anything like the ‘nobles’ they were. “The view up here is amazing! No wonder the priests love it so much!”

“Someday, I bet you’ll live in the Ancestors’ Crown! You’ve got an amazing voice, and Hideki is the heir!” She giggled, nodding.

“Mm! I’ll become a priest, and then we won’t have to sneak up here!” There was a yell from the inside of the building, startling Hyakutake out of the memory. Looking around in confusion, the girl looked inside the building, only to see nothing.

Oh.

Had that been...a memory? Like the one she’d had when she first arrived? Thoughtful, she looked up at the starry sky above her, then closed her eyes and taking a deep breath. Well...she’d have to try and visit again sooner. There was a sigh of wind that seemed to agree with her, teasing her hair and the willow leaves around her. And brushing something tickle-y across her feet. Opening her eyes, curious, Hyakutake found a tiger-striped feather resting on one of her feet. Odd thing. There’d been no animals on her world, not even bugs. Bending down to pick it up, she cocked her head to one side.

“Another forgotten relic of the past I’m trying to recover? Hmm...well, you can come with me. Maybe Albie knows what to make of you.” With that, she made her way back to her starting point, feeling a little closer to her once-home.

[Word Count: 595 words, according to Google Docs]