Nalli danced in the hot summer sun, ignoring the blaze and losing herself in the music and dance. She spun and twirled until she was dizzy and then she spun some more, the sun bouncing off the blades of her swords. At the end of the performance she gave her bow and collected her money before heading toward her caravan. She was anxious to get to the next town, for she had a good friend there that she met with every season she went. She also liked that town’s forest, providing shade so she wouldn’t crisp up in the summer.

 She greeted the caravan leader, a kindly woman in her late sixties, and hopped in her caravan that she shared with other dancing girls her age. The others were already there. They were all orphans who were found by Phillie, the leader, and raised to be acrobats, dancers, musicians, or other kinds of performers. Some also learn medicine and carpentry and cooking to help the caravan itself, not just earn money. The group grew constantly and so did the caravan train with the orphans who grew up and started families, but wanted to stay with their family of orphans. Some did leave, but it was rare, they were a close knit family. The caravan started moving, being driven by the twenty year old Syla. The girls started chatting while Nalli took out her swords and sharpened and polished them. “Why do you say you dance when you're kind of dancing can be acrobatics?”  One of the younger girls asked.

 “And why do you use swords? Why do you have them?” another girl asked.

 Nalli smiled at them both and replied, “I call it dancing because even though I flip and tumble, I still move my body like a dancer more than an acrobat. And I use swords because it is unique and different and has the danger element that awes a lot of people. And I have these blades because they were made and given to me by a friend who lives in the next town we’re going to.” She gazed at the beautiful swords that were a gift on her twelfth birthday, six years ago. In her reminiscence, she lost track of time and fell on her back when the caravan stopped. At first she was confused, but then she saw that the sun had set as Syla opened the back to let everyone out. As the other girls shuffled by her, Nalli sheathed her swords and headed out to join the others in making their home for the evening. She went to collect wood for fires while others unloaded food, dishes, clothes, and bed rolls. Some of the guys went off to hunt, and with her skills in the wild, she could have joined them, but she hated the thought of killing an innocent animal that was minding its own business.

 She turned head back to start her own campfire when she heard a strange growling noise. “Probably a wolf whose home I got too close to,” she thought, unconcerned. She always was able to talk animals, feral or not, into leaving her be. She continued on her way and had the camp in her sight, with the campfires sparking to life, and was attacked! She dropped the sticks and twigs in her hands and reached back at her attacker, throwing him over her shoulder to find that it wasn’t a wolf, but a boy around her age. To add to her shock, she found fear and pain in his golden eyes as they met her silver eyes. Not the malevolence she was expecting.

 “Are you okay!?” She asked, genuinely worried. She did a quick inspection, or did her best of one since it was getting dark. She found a bump on the back of his head and freaked out, threw him onto her shoulder and ran through the forest toward to medic tent at camp.

 “Avin! Avin!” she called. A handsome man in his thirties with long, black hair rushed out of the tent with concern plastered on his face. He nearly got trampled by Nalli as she rushed in. “IwasinthewoodslookingforfirewoodwhenIwasattackedbutIthinkhewasjustscaredandIthoughthewasawolfbuthewasn’tandIthoughhimandhebumpedhisheadandpassedoutandI-”  

 “Whoa! Slow down Nalli!” Avin said. “Now, take a deep breath and calmly tell me what happened.”

 “I was in the woods looking for firewood when I heard a noise. I thought it was a wolf whose lair I got too close to and so I decided to head back. Next thing I know, I’m attacked, I throw my attacker over my shoulder, and instead of an angry wolf, I see a terrified kid my age with a bump on his head because I threw him! I brought him here as fast as I could and now here we are.” She paused to catch her breath again while he processed the information she just gave him. Without another word between them, she watched as he dressed the strange boy’s wounds. When he finished he shooed her away saying that the boy needed to rest.

 Nalli wandered back to her fire to see her whole group glare at her. “Shoot! I am so sorry!” She exclaimed when she realized that they would have had to send someone else to get the firewood since she practically abandoned her job for the boy. “I was attacked by a strange boy and needed to take him to the medic tent!” Some of the new, younger girls looked skeptical, but the ones who knew her better knew that she doesn’t lie, at all. Words have power and Nalli hated the thought of speaking falsely. They ate, laughed, and danced the night away; knowing that the next town was a day away and they could sleep in the caravan. They packed up and were off just as the first ray of the morning sun turned the sky violet. As she slept Nalli dreamt of living happily in a forest with a golden dragon with eyes the color of a blazing fire. She saw a girl that looked similar to her talking to animals and learning and teaching herself magic. She saw an entire lifetime that felt distantly familiar even though it was someone else’s life.

 She woke with a start as the caravan hit a bump in the road. A single tear crawled down her cheek, her dream ended with the girl dieing, using her magic to make magic roses, but she didn’t know what for. The caravan stopped for the midday meal, so Nalli woke the other girls, so lost in the remembrance of her dream that she didn’t notice the alarmed looks on their faces when they saw hers. She strapped on her swords and headed toward the medic tent to check on the boy, hoping he was awake so he could tell his story. She walked in and gave Avin a quick greeting as she glided over to the boy’s cot. He stirred and gazed into her eyes, releasing a startled gasp at the same time she did. Last night his eyes were light brown, like chocolate in cream, but today they looked like the eyes of the dragon from her dreams. “Your eyes are different than what they were last night!” he said. His voice was like the cheerful roar of a fire. She looked at him weirdly because she would have noticed if her eyes changed color.

  “Your eyes are the ones changing color” She said as she walked over to the looking glass to prove him wrong, but was shocked to see that instead of her usually dark brown hair and grey eyes she had hair the color of raven wings and deep violet eyes with silver flecks. She looked like the night sky, like the girl in her dream. She was so enraptured by her own reflection that she jumped when she finally noticed the boy standing right behind her, with the same shocked expression as she did. His hand grabbed at his wavy golden hair and his reddish orange eyes were locked with their reflection. He looked up to catch her staring and they held their gaze until there was a loud, forced cough. They both jumped out of their skin at the sound, but they were glad it sliced through the tension, though it didn’t touch the strange sense of familiarity. They turned to see Avin standing there, feeling very much like a third wheel.

  “We need to ask, who are you?” He asked the boy. In response he sat down on his cot and shrugged. Avin exchanged a confused look with Nalli that she returned. Noticing their confusion, he finally spoke up.

  “I woke up in those woods with no memory. I’m surprised that I know how to speak. It seems that even without my memory, something about the woods triggers my survival skills. When I saw you,” he indicated to Nalli, “Something felt familiar, you wouldn’t happen to know who I am, would you?” His eyes clinged to the hope of finding out who he was, and Nalli hated that she had to crush that hope.

  “I’m sorry,” She said. “I have no clue who you are.” At the sight of his hurt eyes she quickly added, “You do feel familiar to me though. Something about you rekindled a dream that I haven’t had since I was a child!” She was expecting a small smile at her attempt to cheer him up. Instead, he took her by surprise.

  “Was your dream about you and a dragon? In a forest? A happy life, ending with sad, young deaths?” He asked. Her eyes widened with alarm. He had just explained what has been on her mind since she fell asleep, in three sentences!

  “What are you doing in my head!” She accused. She was really freaking out now. A strange boy attacked her, invaded the caravan, and now he was reading her mind!

  “I’m not in your head, I had that dream too! Ever since I woke up in that forest!” He said as he shook his head in amazement. “You look just like her!”

  “Like who?” Avin asked. “I thought you had no memories”

  “She looks like the girl in my dreams.” He said, staring at her. She wanted to deny it, but she couldn’t. Nalli turned to the mirror again, trying to turn away from the boy’s intense stare, but instead their eyes met. Holding his gaze, she saw something familiar.

  “The Dragon!” She exclaimed, startling the guys who were surprisingly quiet. “You resemble the dragon in m- erm- our, dream!” She was starting to get worked up by all that was going on. “You look like the dragon in human form!” As she finished her sentence the earth began to shake and a whirlwind whipped through the tent, sending medicine and paperwork to the ground. Everything stopped as suddenly as it had started and the silence that came after it was deafening. It took a moment, but after they all got reoriented they noticed another girl there, a girl who was almost identical to Nalli! Behind her was a golden dragon with eyes like the boy’s. They were slightly translucent. Shades. Nalli moved toward the girl, and the boy toward the dragon. The girl reached out to Nalli, and Nalli to her. As they touched Nalli felt her breath forced out of her as she felt a spinning feeling and she was having the dream again, but instead of the usual outsider’s point-of-view she felt like she was Heidinala. That was the girl’s name, Heidinala! Soloren, the dragon, her best friend, a friend that died with her instead of worrying of his own species survival. She spun back to the present, a single tear crawling down her face. She quickly wiped it away as she sat up on the cot she was laying in and looked around the tent for Heidinala, but met a worried Avin instead.

  “Are you okay?” concern dripping out of his very being. “After that freak earthquake, you and that boy took a few steps then collapsed!” His extreme worry wasn’t uncalled for since Nalli never got sick, not since they found her and took her into their caravan twelve years ago.

  Looking around Nalli asked, “Where is Heidinala and Soloran?”

 “Who?” Avin replied.

  “The witch and dragon that were just here.” She said.

  “I think you hit your head, there was no witch or dragon, you know they have been extinct for a century! I’m going to go get you some herbs to put you t sleep so you can heal.” Avin brushed Nalli’s hair off you face and left the tent, heading toward the forest.

 “I am not crazy and I don’t have a concussion.” Nalli murmured.

 “I believe you.” a voice said from the next cot. Nalli jumped, forgetting that the boy was there. “I remember our previous lives and my present life.” he said.

 “Our previous lives?” She echoed in wonder.

 “Yes. You are Heidinala, aren’t you? You saw the true reflections, our true, past selves- didn’t you?” He asked, worried that he was wrong and he still can’t find his dear friend.

 Feeling- No- knowing that his words were true she looked at him in wonder and spoke up. “Soloren?” she asked, tears blurring her vision. He smiled.

  “My name now is Ronel.” He replied. The reunion was as unexpected as the memory return, but they didn’t care, even though there were gaps in their memories. Nalli let loose the tears and ran to her dear friend with a joyful smile on her face. They hugged each other and Nalli thought her previous lives. She remembered having to relearn certain powers, but she didn’t remember why. She looked up at  Ronel, she couldn’t remember why they haven’t met until now. She couldn’t remember her purpose. The purpose for her memory’s return. They both opened their mouths to say something, but there was a crash at the entrance of the tent.

  Nalli and Ronel turned to the noise to see a girl around their age standing there, blushing a deep red. They realized what their hugging would look like to others and immediately broke apart. Nalli cleared her throat loudly to break the awkward silence that hung in the air.

  “Keila! It’s been so long!” Nalli rushed over to her friend and gave her a quick hug. As she retreated, Nalli was nervous. There she stood, in between her two best friends who never knew of the other’s existence. “Keila, this is Ronel, he is a new addition to the caravan and a childhood friend that I forgot about until recently.” Nalli said, avoiding the truth while still telling it. Ronel bowed from the waist. “And Ronel, this is my best friend, Keila, the greatest blacksmith in the kingdom.” Keila grinned at the compliment and turned a darker shade of red. She returned Ronel’s bow with a small smile and a little bow of her own. Nalli released a sigh of relief and glanced at the ground at Keila’s feet. There, on the tent floor, was a beautifully crafted spear.

  Keila followed her stare and remembered the reason she came. “I came to greet you because I made this for you.” She said and she bent down to pick up the gift. “I thought that the dual swords would be worn and dull after all these years. I am happy to see that isn’t the case, you have taken great care of those blades. I can find another person for the spear.”

  Nalli looked at the beautiful spear made especially for her and at her beloved swords that almost never left her waist. “I’ll take the spear.” She responded, the feeling bitter-sweet, like she was leaving old friends behind for something more exciting. “I adore my swords, but my routine has needed something new for awhile now. If it is alright with you, though, I’ll keep the swords, they’re like a part of me.” Keila smiled, pleased that after all these years Nalli still cherished the swords. Nalli smiled back, glad she came up with a good compromise. Nalli reluctantly took off her swords and traded with Keila, she felt naked without them, but she wanted to try her new spear. They walked out of the tent and she immediately began to twirl the blade like a large baton. She grew up learning about different blades and their nuances, but this was a special spear made just for her so she wanted to test everything. The weight was surprisingly comfortable in her hands and considering it’s six foot length, it was easy for Nalli to maneuver it around her body without risk of cutting someone. This type of spear generally wasn’t pretty, it’s ascetics were actually quite boring, but Keila took the time to carve vines and leaves and flowers all over the shaft, small enough not to disturb the balance, but large enough to be seen by spectators. Nalli inspected the blade itself closely. She could tell the metal was steel, a metal that was once common until the selfish Queen Anistalla forced the miners to give her everything they mined, leaving very little left for her people. There was an engraving on the spearhead, a small charm, written in runes used only by the few people who still believed in magic. It was an everlast charm meant to keep the weapon from dulling, chipping, or breaking.

     Before Nalli wouldn’t have been able to read the runes, but now she was also looking through Heidinala’s eyes, and remembered how. Looking at her reflection in the blade, Nalli realised something, her memories were Heidinala’s, but her body wasn’t. She didn’t have the control over her powers as she used to centuries ago. She realised that she shouldn’t share her past life with anyone but Ronel and, if she could re-summon her, Heidinala.

   She felt horrible for not being able to tell Keila, her best friend in the present, about any of it, but at best she would be in disbelief, at worst, she would lose her friend and Keila would go around telling everyone that sensible, truth-speaker Nalli was saying she could cast magic spells. No, she couldn’t risk the negative possibilities of her secret being let loose.

   To pretend that everything was normal, Nalli asked Keila what the runes meant. “Oh, those runes are an everlast charm, it'll keep the spear from breaking or growing dull!" Keila said, all excited.

   “Boy! Nalli! What are you doing up! You should be in the tent resting!” Nalli, Keila, and Ronel all turned around in surprise at the sound of Avin’s voice. Nalli had forgotten that Avin had thought they hit their heads. While Keila’s back was turned Nalli reached for Heidinala for a little amnesia hex, a negative hex that she hated to use, but knew it was necessary to avoid suspicion.

   “Aisenma” she murmured under her breath. Avin blinked a couple of times, a little confused. Keila blinked too.

   “Boy! What are you doing up?” Avin asked.

   “Hey, Nalli, what happened to your hair and eyes?” Keila asked.

    Shoot, Nalli thought, I can’t control Heidinala’s powers yet. I should have guessed that the spell would have gone wild. I should be more careful next time.

  Nalli started to panic, she couldn’t lie to her friends, but before she said anything Ronel came to her rescue. Looking Avin in the eyes he spoke. “I apologise, I heard the girls talking and was curious.” Turning to Keila he said, “I vaguely remember her munching on a mushroom before in the woods. It isn’t dangerous, it just affects the color of the skin and eyes, it is so rare that she wouldn’t have known what it did.” Avin and Keila both seemed to approve of his explanations. Nalli just looked stunned at Ronel’s back as he was being led back to the medical tent by Avin for a check up.

  “Wow, he’s cute! Where did you find him?” Keila asked. Nalli just looked at her friend like she sprouted wing. Kiela sighed. “Say no more,” She said, “I’m heading home. I can’t wait for your first performance!” She turned to leave.

  “Bye, Kiela!” Nalli said to her friend’s retreating back. She went back to the medical tent.