Still so Far

Amissa woke with a start.

She took a moment to reacquaint herself withe her surroundings.

She was still with the caravan she had been traveling with for the past two months. She felt the wagon sway as it was pulled along the path through the grasslands.

She relaxed. It had been years sense she had thought about that day. She found herself playing with the necklace she wore around her neck.

"Are you alright, Miss Amissa?"

She jumped slightly and turned around to see a gray earthpony mare with a ruby mane and golden eyes sitting next to her.

"I'm fine Bells. Thank you.", she replied, trying not to sound shaken.

"You're crying." Bells continued to look concerned.

Amissa, wiped her cheek. She was crying.

"It's nothing."

"Are you sure?" Bells asked, refusing to simply brush it off.

"I'm fine," Amissa insisted, "Just a... bad dream."

That seemed to satisfy Bells, as she finally changed the subject. "We're approaching the northern fork. I suppose that means you'll be leaving today." She was clearly trying not to sound disappointed.

"Yeah..." Amissa simply glanced out of the wagon at the rolling landscape of grass and wildflowers.

"I do wish that you'd come north with us to Halstien. It's such a lovely place, and they could most certainly-"

"I'm not going to Halstien." Amissa interrupted.

Bells sighed. "I know, but I had hoped. I have enjoyed your company these last months."

"I know." Amissa put a hoof on Bells shoulder. "But I have to keep going."

The caravan came to a halt, as a stallion's voice called from outside. "Bells! Is is Miss Amissa awake?"

"Yes, she's here!" Bells called back. "Looks like it's time for you to leave." She said with a slight pout before Amissa pulled her into a hug.

She smiled

Amissa let her go, and climbed out of the wagon.

The other ponies in the caravan were waiting there.

The oldest stallion spoke up first. "It's been good to travel with you these past weeks. We've prepared what we could for you, though I'd like to ask again for you to come with us." He spoke as he hoofed her a bag of supplies.

"I can't" She took the bag, and gave a weak smile. "But maybe we'll meat again someday."

"I doubt that Miss." He said in his thick accent. "You have a long way ahead of you."

"So do all of you."

"But not half of what you have." He waved to the others, to signal them to get ready to leave. "We'll all miss you."

"And I'll miss all of you. Thank you all." She said, as the others all got ready to leave.

A gray stallion with safire mane walked up. "Here."-he hoofed her a small bracelet-"This is yours. It's from me and my sister."

She took the bracelet. It was made from both metal and grass, with small polished stones woven in between.

"Thank you, Strings." She looked back up to see him already leaving, along with the rest of the caravan. "Good luck to you all!" She called out, as they departed.

They all waived as they left up the northern path of the north fork.

Amissa stood waiving back as they slowly disappeared from sight.

She stood there for several minutes, until she couldn't see anything.

Once again, as for most of her travels, she was alone.

It was in this moment that she decided to take note of her situation.

She slipped the bracelet onto her hoof, and began looking through the supplies she had been given.

Two loaves of slightly stale bread, some wild fruit, a small curved steel blade, a canteen of water, and some twine. It wasn't much, but it would keep her alive.

For now at least.

She gave a mild sigh of approval, tied the bag around her neck, and began surveying her surroundings.

She spread her wings, and took to the sky. In doing this, she realized just how open the area she was in happened to be.

Trees were scarce. It was mostly grass and the occasional bush or patch of flowers. Looking closely, she could see rabbits and prairie dogs running about in the grass. Looking north, after the caravan, she could only see a road that seemed to stretch forever. She looked back east, the way they had come, to see mostly the same thing.

Finally, she looked to the northwestern path of the northern fork.

That was her path. Her winding, unending line to follow.

She had a long way to go.

So she flew.