I woke up earlier than usual. Maybe because it's 3 days before my sister needs to leave the tribe and go to the Shrine of the Gods. I was trying to spend as much time as I could with Tsukuyomi. I was scared of how long I wouldn't see her when she left, so I had to get as much time with her as I could. Tsukuyomi and I arranged a trip into the forest to enjoy a meal at the waterfall. I was currently packing all the food that was made last night for today then Tsukuyomi entered the room.
"Ama! You should've asked me to help if you were packing food!" Tsukuyomi wrapped her arm around my shoulder, making me stumble forward a bit.
"Tsukuyomi… You are going to leave soon, at least let me take care of you before you leave." I said with a hint of sadness in my voice.
Tsukuyomi pouts and pokes my cheeks before speaking in a sarcastic tone. "Oh, yes, let me just let my sister do all the hard work by herself." She continues to poke my cheek again and again.
"Sis, s-stop teasing me!" I gently grab Tsukuyomi's hand and push it back then speak again, "I just wish to take care of you. To pay you back for all the times you've taken care of me."
"Oh, Ama, you can't be ridiculous. We are sisters, we are supposed to take care of each other. To be there for each other. Let's enjoy these next 3 days together. Just you and me." Tsukuyomi places her hand on my shoulder and smiles at me.
I tear up a bit before smiling back, hugging Tsukuyomi. "Yes, sister. Let's do that. Together. Just us."
After we finished packing all the food that was prepared, we left the house and began walking down the path towards the forest. An awkward silence filled the air as we walked down the path. Usually, my sister would be the one to break the silence but this time, it was me.
"Aren't you nervous?" I said, trying to break the silence, and seeing what I believe is a nervous expression.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Tsukuyomi tilted her head to the side and crossed her arms. She was trying to be oblivious.
"For the High Priestess selection. You will be leaving the Eclipse Tribe and diving head first into unknown territory." I couldn't hide the worry I had in my voice. I didn't know how long it would be until I would see my sister again. If I even see her again once she leaves.
Tsukuyomi laughs and playfully punches my shoulder. "Jeez, you make it sound like I'm gonna die." Tsukuyomi grabs both of my shoulders and has me look at her. "I'm gonna be fine, alright? If I become High Priestess, I'll have to move you into the Shrine of the Gods with me. And if I don't, then I'll simply come back and nothing will have changed. Nothing to worry about!"
I chuckle a bit and rub the back of my head. I probably was worrying too much. "Haha, yeah sorry. I'm just a worrier. You're extremely talented. Nothing could hurt you."
Tsukuyomi smiles and pats my back then speaks again. "That's the spirit! Just wait for me, OK?"
"Yeah! I will!"
Me and Tsukuyomi talk back and forth for a while before getting to the waterfall. We set down that blanket we brought along with us and begin unpacking the food. It doesn't take too long and we begin to sit down and eat. This reminded me of when we were younger. We'd always eat together during school lunch, lunch during the weekend. Whenever we could eat together, we would. But now, it was unclear when we'd eat together again. I want to enjoy this as much as I can. 3 days of meals with my dear twin sister.
We chat back and forth, talking about the days of when we were younger, how different school was back then compared to schools now. As we were about to begin wrapping up the meal, a loud, menacing roar echoed around us, sending chills down my spine. Tsukuyomi got up and looked around, seeing if she could spot anything.
"W-What was that, sis?" My voice trembled in fear as I spoke and my body wouldn't move.
Tsukuyomi looked over at me, trying to stay calm to keep me calm. "I don't know, but whatever it was- Ama! Watch out!"
I looked up, frozen in fear, a scaled bear jumping right at me, its claw slashing down at me. I close my eyes tight before being shoved out of the way, opening my eyes to see Tsukuyomi, charging up a fireball, but about to be hit by the scaled bear. Tsukuyomi launches the fireball, but the collision afterwards makes me cover my face with my arm. When the dust settles, and I uncover my eyes, the scaled bear is dead. But the chilling feeling didn't fade.
A wave of relief washed over me seeing the scaled bear dead, and spoke out to Tsukuyomi. "Tsukuyomi! Oh thank god you killed it. Don't you know how dangerous…"
My eyes widened, looking over at Tsukuyomi, her body limp and unresponsive. "Tsukuyomi!" I felt sick, I felt terrified. I ran over to her and checked for any signs of life within her. She still had a pulse. I picked her up, leaving everything that was brought behind and ran as quickly as I could back to the town. Racing against the clock.