The Sun & Moon

11

 The next day, Iridessa returned to the river as promised. Only a few minutes passed before Juliet came tiptoeing out of the bushes. The girl's face lit up as soon as she saw her.

"You came!" she exclaimed rushing over.

"Of course," Iridessa nodded smiling.

Juliet's face fell a bit. "I told my mother and father about you. They thought I made it up. I thought maybe I'd dreamed you."

Iridessa's eyes softened. She reached out and took Juliet's hand in hers. She guided it to her cheek.

"You can feel that can't you? My skin against yours?" she asked.

Juliet nodded giggling. She held the girl's hand in front of her mouth and blew on it lightly. Juliet laughed jerking away.

"That tickles," she squealed.

"Oh, so you can feel that too?" Iridessa gasped.

She started to poke the girl's side making her squirm and laugh even more.

"And that? And that? And that?"

"Stop it! Stop it!" Juliet laughed, holding her sides.

Iridessa backed off, her smile growing as the little girl caught her breath.

"It seems to me I'm real," she then said decidedly.

Juliet laughed again and nodded. She then grabbed Iridessa's hand and pulled her up to her feet. She led her over to the shallows o the river and hopped on to one of the rocks. Iridessa followed her. The two spent the rest of the day playing in the river, catching minnows and counting tadpoles. At sunset, Juliet's father called her home and she went. But the very next day, as promised, Iridessa was there to play.

The other Eternals were quick to notice the shift in Iridessa's mood. First it was the way she'd leave for hours and return with flowers or grass in her hair and/or mud on her skirts. Then it was her bringing little trinkets with her whenever she left. Druig kept it a secret that she was meeting with a little human girl but it wasn't that many asked anyway. They were just happy to have their cheerful Iridessa back.

Ajak began sending her out with the others again and each time she returned, she told Juliet all about her adventures. The little girl soaked up every story, her curiosity never-ending. She loved hearing stories of the Eternals, of other lands, and other time periods. She had thought they were all fake at first so when Iridessa began bringing artifacts to show her, she was truly amazed. The two spent hours pouring over old manuscripts and carvings. Iridessa taught her to read every single one.

Once when she was about to leave with the Rosetta Stone, Makkari caught her. The speedster appeared in a blur of gold and red, stopping her from exiting the gate. Iridessa didn't even have time to try hide the stone tablet. It wasn't like there were many places to hide it anyway. It was pretty big after all.

"Where are you going with that?" she questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Just down to the river," Iridessa answered simply.

Makkari narrowed her eyes at her.

"You spend a lot of time at that river. And how's the Rosetta Stone going to be useful?"

Iridessa sighed. She glanced around then leaned closer to her.

"Do you really want to know?"

Makkari's suspicion grew at the question but she nodded. Iridessa took her hand with a giddy smile and the two set off for the forest. Makkari was taken a back a bit by the gesture. She couldn't even remember the last time Iridessa had been like this. It brought a bright smile to her face as she followed after her friend. They reached a river soon after and Iridessa gestured for Makkari to wait. The other girl gave her a confused look but did as told.