Tanza whistled to himself as he bustled around the kitchen, grabbing mixing bowls and the ingredients he’d need from their hiding spot. Today was the day his sister, Opal, would come home from her therapy schooling, and Tanza wanted to surprise her with a cake when she arrived. He wasn’t the best baker in the world, but he’d been getting some practise in while Opal was away just for this moment, so that he could put his best work forward for her.

He knew he had around an hour before she came home; the letter she’d sent the day before lay open on the kitchen island, the date and time circled in red ink. The Dragonflora wouldn’t miss it for the world—he missed his sister dearly, and the first thing he wanted to do upon seeing his beloved Opal was to give her a hug so tight it’d knock the breath out of her.

As he began to whisk together the dry ingredients for the cake, the necklace he wore clinked gently, its seven pearlescent triangle-shaped scales colliding gently. At times they seemed to glow a little, remnants of their former owner’s emotions stored within. These scales had fallen from Opal—in moments of extreme emotion, the energy of her feelings sealed away in just one scale. When one clutched the scales, they could extract the emotion from it as if it were their own, and so Tanza made the necklace as a reminder of Opal when she wasn’t around.

He knew Opal would likely call him a “dummy” and maybe even give him a punch in the shoulder, but he also knew she adored him for his sentimentality. He’d always been the romantic type, keeping mementos of people he cared about. It had benefited him in the past; two years ago, his and Opal’s parents had vanished in an unusual storm, and the only thing left of them was a pair of clay pawprints Tanza had asked them to make.

The whistling stopped as Tanza finished with the dry ingredients. He hovered over to the fridge and pulled out eggs, milk, and butter, and went back to his mixing bowl and added everything, whisking again before pouring the batter into a pair of round cake pans and sticking both in the oven. He set a timer for twenty minutes, then let himself lower to the ground and dashed off to make sure the house was spick and span.

***

Opal found herself unable to focus on the graduation ceremony at all. All she could think about was her younger brother, Tanza. Though she might have a sharp tongue for him, often calling him disparaging nicknames, she was deeply in love with him. She’d written to him every single day, signing each letter with an inky pawprint. And despite her condescension over Tanza’s sentimentality, Opal found herself keeping each of his replies, carefully binding them in a folder.

Of course, she wouldn’t dare let on to her brother that she’d picked up one of his habits. He’d never let her hear the end of it, and she’d just have to double down on calling him a dummy. Though, knowing Tanza, she’d end up calling him a dummy anyway.

At long last, Opal walked across the stage, collected her diploma, and then was free to leave the auditorium. She hurried down the halls of the school—the University of Araceda, a fancy place in New Goldshire’s Ky?iku District. It was a bit too grandiose for Opal’s liking; she much preferred cozier places that matched her size more closely.

The Dragonflora had to admit the wood-panelled walls and marble pillars of the university were quite impressive, however, and the architecture lent the whole place a scholarly vibe that seemed to make it easier to learn all on its own. Its faculty were caring and empathetic too, while also being knowledgeable in their subjects. Here, Opal had learned to hone her powers to help others with their mental problems, and with her diploma in paw had finally become a full-fledged therapist.

After navigating the winding halls of the school, she reached her dormitory and burst inside, rushing around like a pearl-coloured tornado as she packed everything into her luggage, taking care not to let any harm come to the folder of Tanza’s letters. With everything packed, she grabbed her luggage, turned tail, and dashed back out the door, wishing she had her brother’s gravity abilities so she could just zoom around without needing to tire out her short legs - Aquatic Dragonflora like her and Tanza were built for swimming, after all.

As a result of her eagerness to get going, she was the first of the newly-graduated students to make it to the bus waiting outside to take them to an Arch, a part of the magical gateway system that connected the world of Unitatem. The Arch system was one of the world’s greatest wonders - they had existed for thousands or even millions of years, and the identity of their creators remained unknown. Some had been destroyed during the Crystallic Wars long ago, and it hadn’t been possible to rebuild them even with modern technology. Regardless, Opal was grateful, as it meant she’d be home to Tanza all the sooner.

She tapped her paw on the concrete sidewalk as she waited for the other graduates to turn up, her patience waning fast. Before long, though, they began to trickle out of the university’s large, opulent entrance, moving at a maddeningly slow pace toward the bus. Opal wanted to scream at them to hurry up, and her scales even began to glow from the repressed anger at how cavalier everyone else seemed to be. Didn’t anyone else have family to go home to?!

After what seemed like an eternity, everyone lined up and began to file onto the bus, Opal sitting in the furthest seat in a huff. Then, at long last, the bus began to move, beginning the journey to the Arch located in the city’s capitol district, Shuy? District.

***

Tanza was upstairs wiping the last of the windows when he heard the timer go off, the beeping sounding quite distant. He dropped the cloth and spray and shot downstairs, nearly tumbling headfirst into the wall in his haste. He hurled himself into the kitchen, shut off the timer, and washed his paws before grabbing an oven mitt and wrenching open the oven, pulling out the cake one pan at a time.

He set them on the wire rack so they’d cool properly, then he got to work with the icing, whipping up what he felt must be the most wonderful vanilla icing anyone could find outside of the fanciest New Goldshire bakeries. Feeling quite proud of himself, he stuck the icing in the fridge to chill before heading back upstairs to finish with the window, checking the clock as he passed and seeing he had around twenty minutes until Opal would come home.

The Flora was starting to get antsy now. It had been three months since he’d last seen his sister, and he was hoping things would still be the same between them. On the last night they’d spent together, the two had expressed their love for each other—as more than just siblings. Tanza was still in love with her, of course, having kept every one of her daily letters in a drawer. He’d cherished the little inky pawprints she’d left on each one, and had responded in kind. Still, after so long, would she…?

Shaking his head, he pushed the thought from his mind. No time for that now—he had less than ten minutes to ice the cake and then make his way up the hill to the Arch near the house, where Opal would soon emerge. Moving as fast as he could, he pulled the bowl of icing out of the fridge, grabbed a spatula, and slathered icing over both parts of the cake before stacking them, and putting the rest of the icing in a piping tube with which to decorate the cake.

With the cake fully iced, assembled, and decorated, Tanza was ready for Opal. He sprinted out the door, forgetting to use his abilities, his stubby legs carrying him surprisingly fast. He shot up the hill to the large dais and archway, where he was greeted by the sound of the wind and the sight of the shimmering azure veil of energy. Either he was early or Opal was late—either way, Tanza was glad to be here waiting for her. And wait he did, pacing around the dais, waiting for the characteristic green flash that would accompany anything or anyone moving through the veil.

He didn’t have to wait long; after a few minutes, the veil moved as though disturbed by the wind, then it flashed a brilliant green and the love of Tanza’s life stepped through the Arch. Sporting iridescent scales that were a gorgeous pearl colour, Opal was beyond beautiful. The sunlight made her body shine like the moon, but what really stood out to Tanza was the warm, loving smile on her face. He teared up, joy flooding his body, and he dashed at Opal for the hug he’d been dreaming of since she left.

“Tanzaaaaaaaaa—oof!” Opal exclaimed, cut off by the impact of her brother’s body slamming into her full force and nearly tackling her back through the Arch.

“Opaaaal…” sobbed Tanza, embracing Opal and squeezing her tight. “I m-missed you so much….”

Opal began to cry a little too, the emotion of finally getting to feel her brother’s warmth against her again overwhelming. Her scales began to glow with happiness, her tail swishing.

“I missed you tooooo!” she told him, pulling back from the hug and touching her nose to his.

She giggled and pushed him away with an obligatory “dummy”. She opened her mouth to say something else, but her eyes caught on the necklace Tanza was wearing, which was shimmering slightly in the light.

“Tanza…” began Opal, pointing at the necklace. “What the heck is that?”

“Oh, this?” Tanza grasped the necklace. “I made it! What do you think?”

“Are those… my scales?” Opal asked incredulously.

“They sure are!”

“You… great… big… dummy!” Opal shouted, leaping at Tanza and hugging him harder than before, squeezing him and nuzzling him nonstop. “Dummy! Moron! Stupid sentimental fool! Aaaah, I love you!”

“I love you tooooo! I’m your dummy, always!” Tanza exclaimed in response, nuzzling her just as hard. “Now c’mon, sissy! Let’s get your luggage back to the house so we can properly spend some time together.”

He gave her a peck on the lips, then grabbed her luggage, extending his abilities so it was suspended weightless in the air. With Opal in tow, he led the way back down to their house, smiling the whole way, feeling like the happiest and luckiest Dragonflora alive. Once they reached their home, Tanza opened the door for his sister, letting her in first. She walked inside and gasped, looking around at how clean everything was. Neither Flora was messy, but they also weren’t the best at staying on top of cleaning, so it was always very nice when one of them did a deep clean of the house.

“Did you… clean the whole house while I was gone?” Opal inquired, looking around at her brother.

“I did! I wanted to make sure you came home to a clean home,” Tanza replied, grinning. “And that’s not all. Follow meee!”

The Dragonflora led his sister to the kitchen, where the cake was waiting for her. It still looked just as delicious as before, seeming as though it had just come fresh from a bakery.

“You… you! You dork! You dumb, stupid, idiotic dork!” Opal cried, spinning and gripping Tanza’s cheeks before pulling him close into a passionate kiss, briefly broken so she could call him a dork again and again.

At long last she released him, giggling. “Silly, silly Tanza,” she said, shaking her head. “Oh, what am I gonna do with you, my wonderful brother!”

“Hug and kiss me some more,” Tanza suggested hopefully.

“Nah, you got enough of that to last you a lifetime,” Opal shot back, flicking her antennae dismissively. “Now, let’s have some of that cake!”

Tanza grinned and pulled a cake knife from a drawer. He then hovered over to the delicacy and cut it neatly into six slices—three for him and three for Opal. As he removed a slice and put it on a plate, he saw how delightful the inside of the cake looked like; it appeared to be baked perfectly, its texture appearing spongy and soft.

He gave Opal her slice alongside a fork and waited for her to take a bite, wanting to hear her opinion. The female Dragonflora smiled at her brother, then cut off a piece with the fork and ate it.

“Mmmmmm!” hummed Opal, her eyes sparkling bright with joy. “That’s amazing! I thought you didn’t really know how to bake?”

“I’ve been practising,” replied Tanza. “I wanted to make sure you had the perfect cake for when you came back home!”

Opal stuck her tongue out at him before continuing to eat her cake, savouring the delightfully rich chocolate flavour, which mixed with the sweet vanilla of the frosting, making a wonderful symphony of taste that melted in her mouth before she had a chance to even chew. Simply put, it was the best cake she ever had, improved even more by the fact that her brother—and lover—had prepared it just for her.

Try to enjoy it as she might, Opal couldn’t help but devour her slice in record time. She had to stop herself from going back for seconds—it was simply that delicious.

“It’s… it’s amazing,” she told Tanza, a rare compliment. “My dorky brother’s a pretty good baker!”

“I’m your dorky baker,” Tanza replied, nuzzling Opal. “Love you, sis~”

"Love you too, dummy,” answered Opal. She wrapped her tail around his, a soft smile gracing her round face. “How have things been while I was away?”

“Lonely,” replied her brother, his face falling for a moment. “It’s awfully quiet without you around….”

Opal giggled, then turned and went toward the door. “Come on, silly. Let’s go for a walk,” she said. “I’ve missed walking with you.”

Tanza hurried after her, his tail swishing as he scurried. He shut the door behind him as he caught up, matching her pace as she went down the path that led around the lakeside. It was familiar ground beneath Tanza’s paws; before Opal left for school, the two siblings would walk this path every single night, even in driving rain. It was their routine they’d kept for nearly a decade, and one both Flora had sorely missed.

The sky above was grey and foretold rain, and the roar of distant thunder was audible, though still quite far away. The two would have enough time for a walk around the lake much like they’d used to do.

“Sooo… how were things while I was away? Anything interesting happen you didn’t mention in your letters?” Opal asked, looking over at her brother.

“Lonely… and, not much really. I mean, I worked more on my game… it’s almost done, and I got someone to do marketing for it. So that’s good,” Tanza explained. He was an amateur game developer and had been working on a game for the better part of a year, and it was finally almost ready to release. “How about you?”

“Really? Heh, that’s a pretty big thing to leave out!” Opal giggled. “Um, I covered everything in my letters, I think… school was kind of boring but I got through it. There wasn’t as much paws-on stuff as I would’ve liked, but I think I have the hang of my abilities!”

“Not as much paws-on stuff? You got to at least practise on someone, right?” Tanza asked, looking concerned.

“Um…” the female Flora looked a bit nervous. “No… just quick little sessions, but nothing like what I’d be doing as an actual therapist….”

Tanza thought for a moment, the beginnings of an idea forming in his mind.

“Opal… what if you practised on me?” he asked slowly. “I mean, I’m maybe not the best candidate, but if it helps…!”

Opal looked at her brother, her mouth hanging open a little as she was unsure how to respond. Her eyes sparkled with joy and affection. She knew Tanza was one of the sweetest, kindest Dragonflora ever, but this was going beyond even that.

“Y-you would…?” she asked hesitantly.

“Yeah! If it helps my wonderful big sis, I’ll do anything,” he answered. “I love you so much, and I’d do whatever for you.”

Entwining her tail with his, Opal pulled closer to Tanza, a tear of joy streaking down her cheek. She couldn’t think of anything to say, so she just stayed silent and close to her beloved younger brother. His presence was always comforting, even when neither sibling was talking. He always knew just how to make her feel better, and at times Tanza seemed to know Opal better than she herself did. That was part of why she loved him so much… the other part being that he was just so amazing, so lovable, and so silly. Tanza meant worlds to Opal, much as she meant everything to him.

“Remember when we first started walking around the lake when we were younger?” Tanza broke the silence, recognising the need for a change of topic. “You broke a branch or something and practically jumped on me.”

Opal let out a small laugh, her eyes twinkling mischievously.

“What about the time when it was super muddy and you slipped into the lake? And then you started panicking that you couldn’t swim?” she shot back, starting to giggle. “Aaaand then I reminded you that you’re an Aqua Dragonflora and it doesn’t matter if you can swim or not….”

Chuckling, Tanza gave her tail a squeeze.

“So many memories on this trail… it’s so familiar I bet we could walk it while asleep, and yet…” Tanza seemed to be looking far away, his eyes wistful. “It’s been almost ten years since the first time we did this, and I’d be willing to walk here with you for a hundred more.”

“Same,” replied Opal. “I… Tanza… I will always be there for you… I will always be yours.”

“A-and I’ll always be yours, my Opal,” Tanza said in response, his eyes glistening with tears. “Always….”

The two Flora stopped and gazed into each other’s eyes a moment before embracing each other and kissing passionately, each sibling’s tailflower grasping at the other, keeping the two locked together in each other’s comfort. Their love burned bright, Opal’s scales shining with emotion and illuminating the area around them like a miniature sun. For that moment in time, all else seemed to fall away, the only thing that mattered to each was the other.

Then, the kiss broke, and the two collapsed against each other. Tanza wrapped his tail around Opal, and she wrapped her tail around him as they sobbed, the emotion they’d kept bottled up all day let loose at last.

“I m-m-missed you s-so much,” Tanza cried, pawing at his sister as if she’d disappear without his touch.

“I m-missed you t-t-tooooo…” responded Opal, grasping Tanza’s paws and squeezing them tightly. “I… I’ll n-never leave f-for that long… e-ever again… I p-p-promise!”

Tanza hugged her tight again, nuzzling her cheek and making sure she felt his warmth.

“I know,” he told her simply. “Let’s get going back home, before the storm hits. Then we can cry some more.”

“S-silly… d-dummy…” Opal said without conviction, wiping her tears. “Y-yeah… let’s go.”

***

The two Dragonflora set a brisk pace the rest of the way home, arriving just as the first raindrops began to hit the earth. It was Opal’s turn to close the door after they entered, a strong gust of wind making it difficult to do so. With the two safely inside, both breathed a sigh of relief - they’d nearly been caught out in the storm. While neither had an issue with rain, they were wary of being out in a storm like this. The one their parents had vanished in had begun this way, before something changed; the lightning turned many shades of red and green and blue and violet, striking hundreds of times a second. They’d not seen a similar sort of storm since, but they always feared it’d happen again.

“Sooo… what now?” asked Opal, turning to her brother.

“Wanna do that practise therapy?” Tanza responded with a question of his own, his ears twitching.

Opal nodded, and Tanza led her upstairs to the room they now shared. He hopped up on the bed and gestured for her to join him, noting in the tightness of her expression how nervous she was.

“It’ll be okay, you’ve got this. It’s just me, alright?” he soothed, holding one of her paws in his own. “I’m here. Just focus and try to relax.”

“O-okay,” Opal stammered, a little uncertain. “Dummy.”

Tanza grinned—of course she had to throw in an insult. It wouldn’t be Opal if she didn’t.

“Alright, u-um… just try to relax for me, okay?” Opal said, trying to get into the therapist headspace she’d been taught to use. “Uh… let’s start with your name.”

“Tanza,” replied the Flora with a soft, reassuring smile.

“Okay. S-so… tell me a little about yourself,” she continued remembering she needed to get an overview of the person to better grasp their emotions.

“Well, I’m an amateur game developer. I like to cook and I love my sister Opal very, very much,” he began. “I lost my parents in a freak storm when I was fifteen, and I’ve tried to become self-sufficient ever since for Opal’s sake. Lately I’ve felt really lonely because she went to therapy school and I’ve been here all by myself.”

Opal nodded, trying to put herself in the position of being Tanza’s therapist, not his sister. She resisted the urge to kiss him and remind him that she was right there—in this moment, she had to be someone else or this wouldn’t work at all.

“So you’ve been feeling lonely, and that’s why you’re here today, right?” probed Opal, putting together her mental profile of her ‘patient’.

“Yep, that’s right,” confirmed Tanza. “I’m lonely and depressed, and I’d like help coping with that.”

“Understood. So the next thing I’ll do is squeeze your paw… it’s gonna feel a little weird, but just relax, alright?” the female Flora instructed.

Tanza nodded to show he was ready, and then Opal squeezed his paw as she said she would. Instantly, it felt like there were thousands of little tendrils poking at his head, and Opal’s eyes glowed bright, almost seeming to peer into his psyche. He could almost feel her gently sifting through his emotions, the tendrils seeming to touch memory and feeling alike. It wasn’t invasive or malicious; the touch was gentle and kind, intended to assist.

Reaching into her brother’s mind, Opal tapped through his head, not looking closer at anything she didn’t need to see, only focusing on what mattered—the feelings of loneliness he’d felt. There were other things there, too; insecurity and anxiety. Opal decided she’d ask about that in a moment, but first she had a job to do. Finally finding what she needed, she gripped it with her abilities, drawing it out into her own mind so she could examine it closely.

With a firm grasp on the relevant emotions and memories, Opal dissected them in her mind, looking for the precise bits that made Tanza feel the way he did. It didn’t take her long to figure out what caused those feelings, and once she did, she released Tanza’s mind from her probing.

“You’re worried your sister won’t love you as much as she did when she left,” Opal explained to him. “You think things won’t be the same, and what you had is gone forever. Does that sound about right?”

Tanza looked a little startled by how accurate her words were, but he nodded nonetheless.

“Well, why do you think your sister would love you any less?” Opal asked pointedly.

“I… I don’t know. I guess, with us being apart, I figured you—I figured she’d… rethink things?” replied Tanza.

“Mhm, that’s a fair assumption; after all, you two had no time to explore the new depths of your relationship. But think of it this way, she wrote to you every day, did she not?? ? Could it be possible she thought the same thing? She may be just as eager as you to explore this relationship further,” continued the Flora, winking at her brother.

“Yeah… you’re right,” Tanza nodded, smiling and winking back. “Hey, you’re pretty good at this, sissy!”

Opal blushed, her cheeks darkening. She looked away bashfully.

“S-stop it, dork!” she exclaimed. “There’s one more thing I wanna touch on!”

“Well, spit it out, then,” said Tanza with interest.

“When I was rooting around in here,” Opal began, poking Tanza in the forehead, “I saw… a lot of insecurity about something. I didn’t poke further because that wasn’t the topic you gave me, but….”

“Oh, right… that,” Tanza frowned, his expression darkening. “Um… I haven’t been feeling too good about my game. I mean, I’m happy with where it’s at, but I just feel like it isn’t gonna be any good in the end. Like I’ve got an overinflated opinion of it, you know?”

“Imposter syndrome, basically,” summarised Opal, shifting on the bed to get more comfortable. “You’re thinking you’ll never make it as a game developer.”

Her brother nodded, not wanting to verbalise his own insecurities. He wasn’t sure what to think—on the one paw, he was certain his game was decent, at least good enough to get him started in the field, but… what if he was wrong? What if working on it for so long had blinded him to his own faults and mistakes?

“Well, look at it this way. You’ve had people test it and give feedback, right?” Opal asked.

“I have, yeah,” came the reply.

“And what did they all say?”

“They all said it was pretty good, if unfinished.”

Opal nodded, leaning in to touch noses with her brother. “There you go, then, silly. Others are saying it too. And, I may not be much for video games, but I’ll play it too. And I know I’ll enjoy it,” she told him with a soft smile.

The purple Dragonflora returned Opal’s smile, his green-and-red eyes sparkling with joy. “Thanks, sis… I love you,” he told her.

“I love you too… so much,” Opal replied, inching closer.

The two siblings got ever closer until their noses were touching, then they shared a kiss, their lips connecting and their tongues entwining. They grabbed hold of each other and hugged, deepening their passionate kiss. Opal’s scales began to glow, and Tanza lost control of his abilities, making the two of them float. They felt more connected and happier than ever, their love flowing like lava. They truly belonged to each other, and that would never change—no matter what.

To Be Continued