Driving through a sea of trees, I sat in the back seat in silence looking out the window. Rue was next to me talking to Jeremy about the campsite we were going to.

“You know this is the place where I met your mommy, Rue, Hana?” Asked Jeremy. I turned my head towards the front of the car. Rue’s eyes widened and she asked,

“Really! That’s so cool!”

I nodded my head but didn’t say anything. Ayaka started to turn red.

“Yep! We met there when I and your mom were little kids like you guys. Ah, I can remember it like it was yesterday. Our families had both come to the campsite for a summer camp out. Our campsites were on opposite sides of lake Skaneateles, but somehow, we met. She was so cute in her pigtails and her big yellow sun hat.” Telling this story made Ayaka turn even redder, but that didn’t stop him from telling the whole thing through to the end.

“Yep, I was there fishing when she walked up to me and said, “You’re doing it wrong!”. I looked at her in disbelief for a good minute. It’s true that I’d been fishing for a few hours and hadn’t caught anything, but that’s just fishing works. I asked her, “You think you can do better?”. She replied, “Yes I most certainly can!”. She takes the pole from my hands, reels in, and casts out. It goes out pretty far then she starts to reel it in again. As she does, she gets a bite, a big one! It’s so big she can’t reel it in by herself. So, I’m holding on to her and the pole as she tries to reel this monster in. The adults in our families come looking for us and see us bring in this monster. After a few minutes and the help of the adults, we bring in a twenty-five-inch lake trout! Water splashed up from us pulling the trout out of the water, creating a rainbow that just hung in the air around her. She was so tired, sweat was running down her face, but she stood proud and said, “See I told you so!”. I fell in love right then and there, several years later I met her again, though that might have been the power of the lake guardian.”

Once he’d finished his story Rue was wide-eyed and completely engrossed in her imagination. Ayaka was full of energy from being completely embarrassed.

“You’re sleeping outside tonight, Jeremy!” She said her face was redder than tomatoes. Jeremy laughed and said, “Worth it!”

I’d only started to listen about halfway through, but something about his story caught my attention.

“Lake guardian?” I had said my thoughts out load by accent. Jeremy and Ayaka were surprised. I’d always been a quiet distant child that rarely talked. Ayaka started to smile a little, she was getting hopeful.

"Yes, the guardian of Lake Skaneateles. Legend has it that a long time ago before the lake was formed, a war raged on between two tribes, the Pesadilla and the Sueño. The two tribes shared the valley that would become the lake for many generations, however, everything changed on the day that the moon refused to rise. You see both tribes worshipped the moon, but in their own way. The Pesadilla tribe gave offerings on every full moon. While the Sueño tribe held a festival on every full moon. They believed by doing so they could persuade the moon to give its blessings to their tribe. In doing so they ensured that the moon would return to them after it disappeared. One day after a whole month had passed the moon had not returned in full. This shocked the tribes, who had never failed to make the moon rise before. Believing that something terrible had happened they became fearful, and it didn’t take long for fear to turn to anger. They started accusing one another. Convincing themselves that the rituals of the other offended the moon chasing it away. Feeling that their tribe would be destroyed without the moon’s blessing the tribes when to war, hoping that the destruction of the other would appease the moon bring it back. In the blink of an eye, the tribes fought sewing destruction in their wake. To create weapons and fortify their villages they cut down the lush forests that colored the valley, leaving it bears. The fighting escalated and the animals fled, driven away by the violence, and night would come, but the moon would still not rise. Their war continued for a hundred days and nights, with no end in sight, but out of the destruction came love. The head priestesses of each tribe fell in love with one another. Each night when the fighting would stop the two of them would climb the twin cliffs that lie on the two farthest sides of the valley, one on each cliff. Once there they would pray, pray to the moon to rise and stop the fighting. They’d devoted their whole lives in servitude to the moon and never once asked for anything, till now. They asked for only one thing, for the moon to rise and stop the fighting, but their prayers went unanswered. Over time their voices carried on the wind reached the other and they began to talk, over time they developed feeling for each other. Before long their desire to together drove them to run away from their tribes. They promised to meet in the middle of the valley and run away together and on the last night of the month, they did just that. However, their tribes caught wind of their plan and tracked them down when the two met in the valley’s center. All of the tribe’s anger and resentment was now focused on the two of them. They decided that the moon’s disappearance was their fault. They got rid of them then and there, hoping that doing so would finally bring the moon back to them and it did. The full moon rose over the horizon. The tribes celebrated with glee at their silver protectors' return, but the moon was in no way happy, turning red at the sight of its beloved priestesses’ cold bodies. The moon had disappeared as a test to see if the tribes had true faith, but instead, they turned on each other and killed the only two who had real faith. Tears of sadness fell from the sky washing away everything in the valley and would have washed away everything if it hadn’t been for the priestesses. Whose spirits appeared before the moon and asked it to stop. Moved by their heartfelt request the moon stopped and as a reward for both their faith and purity they were given new life. The priestess of the Pesadilla tribe was reborn as a water spirit and the priestess of the Sueño tribe was reborn as a light spirit. Together they became the lake’s guardian.”

He finished his story, but I still don’t understand what these guardians have to do with anything. Rue had fallen asleep with a big smile on her face. Ayaka seemed to see the confusion on my face and spoke up.

“it’s said if a heartfelt promise, like the one that the priestesses made, is sworn at the lake then the guardians will come together in the form of a rainbow, giving their blessing. Insuring it comes true.” She explained.

“Yep, I promised I find your mommy again after I’d become a world-renown fisherman and it happened.” Jeremy when on.

I had mixed feeling about their story. It sounded like a fairy tale, and it made my guilt grow even more. As the actions I was about to take would forever taint this place and the memories they have here.

Hours passed and before I knew it we were all set up at the campsite and night had fallen. Rue and Jeremy were chatting by the fire, while I was in Akaya’s arms as we walked around the beach.

I looked out over the lake; the stars reflected on the water’s calm surface. I thought about the story in the car and can’t bring myself to understand the priestesses. They were betrayed by their god wouldn’t answer their prayers and their people turned on them when they finally found happiness. Yet, from what I could tell, they were angry with ether. In fact, I’d say they forgave them. I can’t understand how or why they did that. Over my many lives, I’ve never been able to grasp any happiness, but I know that if I ever did and it was taken from me, I’d never be able to forgive those responsible. Perhaps that means I’m not a kind person.

My eyes were starting to become heavy. Having a child’s body is truly inconvenient. I guess I’ll get some sleep for now. Tomorrow night I will finally put everything to rest.