We took our sweet time in the garden before we left. The sun was already high then. We enjoyed ourselves so much we forgot time!

We sneaked out the way we went in. It was strange how we saw no one throughout our stay there. I thought that the place was a haunted, abandoned palace, that maybe the royals living here were murdered in cold blood. Well, Hera said otherwise, though.

Hera escorted me out to the open, to the nature I had seen yesterday. It was still as green, as mesmerizing.

Hera walked ahead of me, to a river that flowed not far from us. She put her hand in the water. I followed and did the same, feeling the stream across my fingers. The water was chilling, felt nice in my hand. I put my other hand, splashing the water to Hera. I was yelling like an excited little kid. That was a fun moment. We splashed water at each other like five-year-olds, laughing and screaming. To be honest, even now, I still cherish that moment. Even until this second, even until I am here, I hold it dear in my heart.

That was a moment I never regretted.

We played enough, I guessed. We both left the streaming water, drying ourselves under the heat of sunlight. It was a rather pleasant weather, that day. I laid down on the grass, and she sat next to me. We rested.

“Where shall we go?” Hera asked. I looked at the clear sky decorated with sprinkle of clouds. I wondered. Our time in the castle was extraordinary, I didn’t think anywhere could top it off. But, we could walk, and we could think. We could go anywhere we want, and we could be anywhere we want. And then, we could decide. We had all the time in our life, no need to rush.

“Let’s go back?” I suggested, in the end.

Hera scrunched her eyebrows. Perhaps, she didn’t like the idea? But, when she nodded, I knew she was in with whatever stupid ideas I had.

And, we went on our journey again. Back home.

The sky, blue. The grass, green. The river, a mix of blue and green. The tree stumps, brown. The flower, colorful. The butterfly, colorful. I listed whatever it was around me, like a little kid I was. Everything was clear, and I felt like I was an adventurer in a journey to find the treasure.

And, maybe, the treasure was by my side all along.

We weren’t far from home when the sky turned cloudy gray. Thunder boomed once, indicating the rain was about to pour. Strange. The morning was clear and warm, and suddenly it was raining.

I looked up the sky, and a droplet fell on my cheek. One droplet, two droplets, and suddenly a downpour of rain was soaking us.

“Hurry!” Hera cried, blocking the rain with her arm—which was useless, truly. The sudden downpour was quick. We didn’t have any mean to protect ourselves from the rain.

So, we dashed. We laughed, while we ran. We were just two stupid people doing stupid things, laughing at stupid stuff. We were just two people in a cruel world, enjoying every bit of happiness allowed to us.

It wasn’t long before we arrived home. The home we left just as was the day before. Cold, but unbothered. It was just a day, but it felt like awhile ago since I came back to this tiny little nest. A place so small and cold. A place so cramped we had to squeeze in ourselves. A place so cold we had to hold each other to warm ourselves.

A place I called home.

“Didn’t you say that you hate it here?” Hera asked, handing me a towel to dry myself.

Yes, indeed. I hated being here weeks ago. I hated being here, since my friends left me alone. I hated it here, when I was alone.

But it was different. Hera was there with me. I got to meet Hera, because I was living here. I got to be with Hera, because of this modest life I led. And so, I thought, maybe this place wasn’t so bad at all. Maybe this was my home, after all.

So I answered, “I did,” as cheerful as I intended. “But not anymore, since you’re here with me.”