Previously: Evil-Lyn found out the hard truth that Skeletor was dead. The Evil Warriors then met Skeletor's evil ghost: Scare Glow! Of course, the faithful reader knows that Skeletor isn't really dead at all. He is in deep space with Shadow Weaver... Adora had to say some sad goodbyes to her family on Eternia before returning to Etheria. Lost and confused about her life, Adora was not really sure where she would be finding her "home." Members of the Great Rebellion got used to new changes. Perfuma couldn't get over Mantenna being on the side of good... Mermista and Frosta sort of repaired their friendship... The Star Sisters were busy getting used to everyone... Catra and Entrapta went house hunting in the Valley of the Lost... and Madame Razz was finally ready to visit the love of her life: Light Hope. Fearing her life at the end, Madame Razz asked She-Ra to take her to the Crystal Castle to see light Hope one last time...
And now...
Adora's Search for Honor
Part 3
Chapter 60
She-Ra and Madame Razz slowly approach the doors to the Crystal Castle. The old witchy woman pauses at the sparkling front steps, "Dearie, I don't know that I can do this." She-Ra grabs hold of the woman's hands and softly says, "Of course you can Madame Razz. It will be ok." Madame Razz nods slightly looking up towards the towering castle before them. She-Ra walks with her as they make their way inside, Madame Razz drags her feet slightly.
"Ok dearie, this is where I stop." No longer ready to go any further, Madame Razz crosses her arms before taking in the glorious sights of the Crystal Castle. She-Ra turns, "But Madame Razz, Light Hope is just beyond those doors. I'm confused, you can't just stay in the main hall." Madame Razz nods, "Of course I can! You run along dearie and find out if Light Hope even wants to see me. I'll wait right here." She-Ra makes a face, "If you insist." Turning away She-Ra heads towards the grand empty ball room.
Madame Razz stand there alone, taking just a few more steps. Her hands reach out to touch the crystal walls. The beauty of the castle astounds her, she feels tears begin to form in her eyes. She wonders if Light Hope knows they are there.
She-Ra walks into the grand ball room that seems to glow from within. The lighting dims and brightens. The sounds of her boots clicking on the crystal echo about. Looking around, She-Ra's eyes narrow as she spots the familiar image of Light Hope. The human form of walking light turns to her, "Ah! She-Ra! You are here."
Smiling, She-Ra walks towards him, "Hello Light Hope. It has been awhile." Embers of light dance off his form like flames, "Yes. Your brother took care of things though in your absence. You still have been greatly missed She-Ra." Continuing to smile, because there is nothing to do but smile in the presence of Light Hope, She-Ra sighs, "And now I'm not so sure what to do. There do not appear to be any more threats on Etheria. I'm beginning to think my work is done."
Light Hope shakes his head, "Your job is never done She-Ra. Even if evil is gone, it can always return. Of course, regardless of evil, you still bring hope to so many people." She-Ra hangs her head before looking up at him, "I suppose I do that. I hope that is true." Light Hope chuckles, "Of course it is. Never forget who you are."
Nodding, She-Ra goes on, "Right. I can do that. But aside from wanting to see you after all this time away, I do have an important reason for being here. I brought someone with me." Light Hope turns, "Oh? Who?" She-Ra looks at him and says simply, "Madame Razz."
There is a silence in the air. She-Ra is not used to seeing Light Hope so still. "Where is she?" He asks as if he is afraid it won't be true. Before She-Ra can say anything else, Light Hope glides past her and heads towards the hall. She-Ra turns in time to see Light Hope fade into the doors.
Madame Razz stands in the hall looking around, still amazed to be standing inside the Crystal Castle, when she sees him. Her heart freezes as the love of her life appears magically as if out of no where. He glides towards her. All she can do is fix her hat and hope she is put together. Light Hope stands before her, beaming radiance, "You are really here." Madame Razz looks up at him, "Yes."
Light Hope reaches out to caress her cheek, but his light image glides past. He can no longer touch her, but he can see her, and hear her. "Razz, I never thought you'd be here. I'm so happy to see you." Madame Razz shakes her head, embarrassed, "Oh dearie! I'm so old looking now, I can't believe you are happy. I'm just so old." Her hands travel to her face as she realizes that he is looking at her wrinkles and creases. Light Hope continues to beam, "You don't look old to me. All I can see is the woman I've loved so much." She-Ra listens from the side. She has tears in her eyes.
Madame Razz tries to reach out to Light Hope, but can't. "I was so scared to see you. But I can feel it in my bones, it is as if no time has passed." A great deal of time has passed though, and Madame Razz does her best not to think about older times. Light Hope nods, "Yes. I wish it was different though. I let you all down." Madame Razz shakes her head, "No dearie! You can't say that. You fought for Etheria. You gave your life for all of us." Light Hope stands before her, "Yes, maybe so. I do wonder all the time what it would have happened had I survived. How is Kowl? Does he miss transforming into a large soaring bird? And what of the others?"
Holding her chest, Madame Razz raises a hand up, "Slow down dearie! Your noble Kowl is wonderful. He knows everything. As for the others, I'm the last surviving one. The others have faded away with time." Light Hope nods recalling the brave women and men that fought with him during the Long War. Light Hope looks at Madame Razz and grows concerned, "Your head. I can see something. Something is wrong."
Madame Razz brings a hand to her head, "Oh this. It's nothing dearie, nothing at all." A quiet She-Ra speaks up, "It is more than nothing Madame Razz. She suffered an injury at the hands of Hordak." Madame Razz shakes her head, "It was nothing really. Not a big deal dearie." Waving her hands away in the air, Madame Razz tries to change the subject. Light Hope won't budge, "It is not alright. You are dying my love."
He knows her so well. Madame Razz has tears in her eyes, "Yes. My journey is coming to an end dearie. It's why I am here, to see you one last time. For when I die, I won't be like you. I'll be gone." She chokes back a sob, "And I just had to see you, one last time." Light Hope caresses her cheek again. She so wishes she could feel his touch. Light Hope turns his back to her, "Follow me Razz. I will take care of you." He glides towards the grand ball room and asks She-Ra to wait behind.
Madame Razz is motionless at first, but then takes her first footsteps towards her love. She has no idea what is waiting for her, but she knows she can trust him. She-Ra stands behind as they both enter the grand ballroom. The doors shut softly and She-Ra stands there waiting to see what happens next.
***
Inside Bright Moon, Mermista is catching up and becoming friends with one of the Star Sisters. Tallstar and the mer-maiden sit in the dining area. Mermista is amazed at Tallstar's appetite. There is a large plate of fruits and bread in front of her, and Tallstar is planning on eating it all. Mermista remarks, "I guess all that time trapped in the comet left you hungry."Tallstar swallows her bite-ful before speaking, "Oh you have no idea. We were frozen inside the comet, but our minds weren't. It was crazy to be motionless. I feel like we have all missed out on so many things. For instance, what is this?" Tallstar holds up a large round red piece of fruit with a strange stem at the end. She takes a bite before speaking, "I can't stop eating these! We never had these on Etheria before the comet." Mermista grins, "We call it a Crapple. It is a mixture of two different fruits. We have technology designed to make all kinds of new fruits and other types of foods." Tallstar wipes her mouth, "And I intend on eating them all." The two women laugh.
***
Far away from Bright Moon, Netossa and Spinnerella still visit with their families from their old village. There is much room for celebration and excitement now that the Eye of Fire is in the correct place. However, the two close friends know they cannot stay. "Spinnerella, I feel like they want us to stay here." Netossa is weaving a net as Spinnerella is trying to help, "What should we do though 'Tossa? We've been welcomed back." "I know. This is not easy, but we have to return home. There must be some answers. I need to know why Sea Hawk took the Eye of Fire." Spinnerella tilts her head, "We aren't even certain though that it was Sea Hawk." Netossa nods thinking about her friendship with the pirate, "I really do hope that he had nothing to do with any of this, but it can only make sense that it is him. His is the only band of pirates I know, and having been a part of the crew, I know that he doesn't always make the best decisions." Netossa secretly hopes that there is nothing to worry about.
Spinnerella gives up trying to weave the net, "I don't know how you do this Tossa. Anyway, so ok, we go back to Bright Moon for answers. Assuming Sea Hawk has returned back from Eternia..." Netossa softly interrupts, "It doesn't matter if Sea Hawk is on Eternia or Etheria, the portals are open. We'll find him." Spinnerella nods, "Ok, so we find him. What then? Tossa, this man is a friend of ours. If he did anything wrong, what are we going to do?"
Netossa thinks on this. She isn't sure what any of them should do, "I have no idea. I just want to know what he did." Spinnerella nods understanding Netossa's position and even feels the same way. The two friends continue to talk. They are trying to understand so many things. Especially in regards to where they will ultimately be living. A large question looms in the air, do they stay in the village that they have grown up in? Or do they leave their families behind to forge their own new lives in Bright Moon? Neither women know the answer to that, but they both know that they must be leaving soon. They need answers from Sea Hawk...
***
High atop the clouds, She-Ra and Madame Razz fly on Swiftwind back home. She-Ra calls back, "Was everything ok with Light Hope?" Madame Razz is grinning from ear to ear, "Oh dearie, I can't thank you enough for bringing me to see him. I feel like whatever happens now, happens. I will be ok." She-Ra nods and wonders just what happened between Madame Razz and Light Hope. The need to know though is not all-consuming, because She-Ra notices a change in Madame Razz. A nice change. The witchy old woman seems lighter and more hopeful. She-Ra wonders if this means that Madame Razz is dancing on the edge of her journey. Trying to wash away those thoughts, She-Ra holds back any tears, she is not ready to lose Madame Razz.As they fly closer to Bright Moon, Madame Razz brings up the distinct issue of She-Ra's love life, "What are you going to do dearie? You surely can't have both of them." She-Ra nods, "I know that Madame Razz. I don't know what I am going to. However I think this is a problem that Adora will handle." Madame Razz cackles out a laugh, "Oh don't think you can escape that problem so easily dearie. You are Adora and Adora is you. Don't let that shiny tiara fool ya."
"Oh I know Madame Razz. I know. It is just a scary decision to make. I don't want to make a choice, because in doing so, someone is going to get hurt." Madame Razz holds onto She-Ra who is so much like a granddaughter to the old woman, "Dearie, stop making this about them. You need to listen to yourself. You know what you need to figure out, and you can only do it for you. Those two are grown men. They can handle whatever happens, trust me." She-Ra laughs, "I guess I should trust you, huh?" They continue to soar in the air, Madame Razz holding onto She-Ra tight. The woman who is the closest thing to She-Ra's grandmother, closes her eyes softly.
Swiftwind makes a nice landing in the Whispering Woods by Castle Bright Moon. She-Ra sighs, "Our trip has come to an end!" She-Ra prepares to get off of Swiftwind and asks Madame Razz if she needs help. There is silence. "Madame Razz?" She-Ra turns as Madame Razz is quiet. The witchy woman falls off of Swift Wind and lands hard on the ground. She-Ra panics, "Madame Razz! Madame Razz!" Hopping off Swiftwind, She-Ra sits Madame Razz up, "Madame Razz? Please, come on, say something. Please hear me!"
She-Ra is shouting loudly, her heart beating fast. She-Ra begins to cry, "Oh Madame Razz, come on, wake up!" The princess of power shakes the witchy woman a little. Madame Razz makes a grimace, "What is all the noise for dearie?" She gives off a strange look to She-Ra. Tossing her head back in a laugh, She-Ra wraps her arms tightly around Madame Razz, hugging her close, "Oh you are alive! You are alive!"
"Of course I'm alive dearie. I'm not dead yet." She-Ra sighs, "Well with all this talk of your journey ending, I just assumed that you were done for." Madame Razz fixes her hat, "Humph! I'm on my last leg, but Light Hope helped me. He saw the pain in my head and he fixed it. I'm still gonna be around for a while longer dearie!" She-Ra can only hug Madame Razz tighter. She is grateful for Light Hope, "I'm so happy he saved you." Madame Razz nods, "Yes, he really did. Thank you for taking me to him She-Ra." Wiping tears from her eyes, She-Ra smiles, "Of course Madame Razz. Of course."
***
Right outside of Bright Moon, Sea Hawk hoists a crate over his shoulders and brings it up to his air ship. The pirate is beyond thrilled to be reunited with his ship. Sea Hawk continues his work and looks down at his pet mouse, "Looks like it is just going to be me and you little buddy. Apparently my crew wants to stay here, in the woods." Sea Hawk shoots a disapproving look to some of his crew who are helping him, "Sure you guys don't want to leave with me?" Sea Hawk's head crew member Lir steps forward, "Sorry Hawk. But we like it here. We're tired of chasing the sky."Sea Hawk shakes his head, "Fine. Suit yourself. My mouse and I will just find all the treasure for ourselves." The pirates go back to work helping their boss before he takes off.
She-Ra is back to her identity as Adora. Madame Razz is taking a moment to rest some. Adora checks in on her one last time before heading outside. She can't help but notice the giant airship looming at the castle's entrance. She wonders exactly what is going on.
Traveling towards the entrance, Adora notices a group huddling out front. Adora spots Perfuma and Mermista in the small crowd, "What is going on?" Perfuma turns with a big smile and hug for Adora, "Oh Adora! Sea Hawk is getting ready to leave us!" Adora stands still, slightly surprised that the pirate is leaving, she points towards some of his crew members, "What of his crew?"
Mermista shrugs, "They are staying behind." Adora shakes her head, "Wait a moment, he is just going to fly off on his own? That seems so strange." Perfuma sighs, "He won't be alone Adora. He has that really cute pet mouse with him. What is that mouse's name again?" Mermista can only shrug, shaking her head, "I don't know." Perfuma nods, "Hm. Well, we'll just have to come up with something..." She turns to see Adora walking off, "Where is Adora going?"
Adora marches through the small crowd with a purpose. The group of people are there to see an air ship fly off, an occurrence that does not happen often. Some children run around the group pretending that they themselves are flying in an air ship.
Continuing to walk, Adora spots Sea Hawk still standing on the ground. The pirate is talking to his crew member Lir. Adora stands behind them with her hands on her hips, "Excuse me Lir, I need a moment with Sea Hawk." Lir looks at them both and shrugs, before walking off. Sea Hawk turns and that handsome face of his nearly makes Adora swoon. She quickly composes herself, "What are you doing?" Sea Hawk crosses his arms, "I'm leaving princess." Adora shakes her head, "For how long?"
The pirate shrugs, "Not really sure. I'm going to see where the skies take me." Adora glares at him, "You are running. And that is not ok." Sea Hawk shakes his head, "And just what am I running away from?" Adora looks around, "All of this. You have a home here Sea Hawk. I thought we already went through this. There are people that care about you. It makes no sense that you are just going to leave all of that, by yourself." Sea Hawk looks at her, studying her, gazing into her eyes, "So there are people that care about me here?" Adora tilts her head, "Of course there are." Sea Hawk takes a step towards her, very close, "What about you? Do you care about me?" He looks at her, almost pleading for an answer, though he would never admit that. Adora just looks at him.
To the side, Mermista and Perfuma whisper to each other, "What do you think they are talking about?" Perfuma shrugs, "Who knows. I just don't understand why that mouse is running around without a name." Mermista shakes her head and looks over at her friend.
Sea Hawk is waiting for an answer. Adora looks at him, unsure what to say, "I don't know what to say. I do care about you, but I don't know just how much. And if you run off I am going to be stuck with an unanswered question." Sea Hawk steps closer to her, close enough to kiss, "What do you mean by an unanswered question." Adora looks at him and her heart beats really fast, "You know what I am talking about. You know that there is something between us." The pirate nods, his stubble looking beyond sexy, "I also know you share something with Bow too." Adora nods, "Yes, thank you for reminding me of my complicated and messy life. You can't go Sea Hawk. We need to figure things out." Sea Hawk looks away from her and out into the crowd. His mind is racing. There is so much he wants to do right now, and so much he is scared to say. He looks down at her, "Come with me."
"Excuse me?" Adora stammers. Sea Hawk grabs her hands, "Come with me. On my ship. Fly away with me. We'll figure things. Together." Adora stands there in shock. She isn't sure if Sea Hawk is being serious or not, and then she realizes that he is indeed being very serious. He wants to leave with her. Adora looks back at Bright Moon and her friends. Mermista and Perfuma stand there as a few others join the group. Glimmer and Frosta whisper to Mermista to find out what is going on. Flutterina flutters to the group with an ever growing stomach. Adora wants to stay with them, but she also wants to shed everything and just get away.
Pausing for a while longer, Adora looks at Sea Hawk. Is this really the man she is meant to be with? Does any of that really matter? And what of Bow? Her heart and mind is getting foggy.
High above the commotion on the ground, Bow and Kowl are sitting in Bow's room. The archer is working on some new music, trying his best to focus. He looks over at Kowl, "I hear a lot of talking outside, what is going on?" Kowl flies over to the bedroom window and looks down, "I believe that pirate named Sea Hawk is preparing to take off soon."
Bow grunts out, "Good riddance. I'm glad that asshole is leaving. He doesn't belong here." Kowl listens to Bow and looks closely, "Oh my, oh my, oh my. What is going on down there?" Bow doesn't pay any attention, and instead focuses on some music...
Sea Hawk tilts his head, "Well princess? What is it going to be?" Adora sighs, "Hold on one second." The pirate can only watch her walk away. She runs towards her friends. Perfuma looks at Adora, "Is Sea Hawk leaving? He can't just yet. I might have a name for his pet mouse." She is very serious, but Adora shakes her head, "Not right now Perfuma. I need your help." She looks at her friends. Glimmer, Frosta, Mermista, Flutterina, and Perfuma both listen in surprise as Adora says simply, "I'm thinking of travelling with Sea Hawk." Frosta smirks, "Go get him darling!"
Mermista looks at Frosta and back to Adora, "But Adora, if you leave with Sea Hawk, what will that mean? What about Bow?" Adora looks at her friends, "I don't know what any of it means. I'm trying to figure things out and make sense of it all. I need your support. You are my friends, I need to know if this is crazy or not." Frosta rolls her eyes, "Hop on it already darling. You know my thoughts on this." Mermista gives the icy empress another look. Frosta throws her hands up in the air, "Stop giving me that look Mermista! Adora is clearly torn about two men that I personally do not see what the big deal is, but I applaud her efforts to shake things up and figure it out."
Adora tilts her head, "Thank you Frosta. I think." Glimmer looks at everyone and reaches out to Adora, "This is really your decision Adora. Of course we will be there for you no matter what. But this isn't up to us." Flutterina nods, "Follow your gut." Frosta looks at the winged woman, "Speaking of guts, what is going on with all that?" Frosta points towards Flutterina's stomach. Flutterina's face grows red, "I don't really. Know."
Mermista waves her hands in the air, "Ok, enough. Enough. Adora, I think you know the answer to your question. Am I right?" Adora looks at her friend and nods, "Yes. But I'm afraid this is going to be crazy, I mean what am I doing?" Mermista hugs her friend, "You are figuring it out." Adora nods, "I wish Peekablue was here to peek into the future or something." Frosta rolls her eyes, "Oh no darling. Don't get that crackpot involved in this." Adora shakes her head and prepares to walk off, before Perfuma grabs hold of her hands, "Adora?" Adora turns expecting Perfuma to say something profound, "Yes Perfuma?" The flower maiden smiles, "Try to get him to name the mouse." Adora shakes her head with a smile, a bit of laughter certainly helps.
Sea Hawk stands still as Adora approaches him. "Well princess, what's it going to be?" He looks at her, unsure of her answer. In all honesty, Adora is still unsure of her own answer too, but she just blurts out the first thing she can, "Yes. I'm going to leave with you." They both look at each other, both curious as to what will happen next.
Kowl continues to look out the window and gasps, "Oh my. Oh my indeed." Bow looks up from his work, "Kowl, let's get back to some work." Kowl looks over at his friend, "I think you might want to see this Bow." The archer shakes his head, "I don't want to see any of it. The faster he is gone, the better my life will be." Kowl hangs his head, "Adora is leaving with him."
"What?!" Bow stumbles up from his desk and runs to the window. His heart sinks as he watches Adora and Sea Hawk on a rope traveling to the top of the ship. Bow shakes his head in complete sadness. He feels gutted. Kowl looks over at him, "I'm so sorry Bow."
Heartbroken and angry, Bow charges into his room and grabs hold of a gilded shiny piece of paper. Kowl looks on, "What is that Bow?" Bow looks down at the special song he wrote for Adora, "Something I never should have taken the time to write." He dangles the sheet of music with his love song on it for Adora over a candle flame. Kowl panics, "Bow, you can't do that!"
Bow doesn't listen and watches the music burn away. "Adora has made her decision, and now I am making mine." The sheet of music is gone, nothing but ash. Bow storms out of his room as Kowl looks down at the bedroom floor, at all the charred pieces of a great song telling the perfect love story, gone forever.
Up Next!
Adora travels the skies!
Catra continues to read and plot!
Hordak finds a new home!
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