It was late afternoon by the time Mizuko and Lilligold finished helping Inari-sama write his love letter. Satisfied that the contents would woo Celestia, they said their farewells to Inari-sama and made the trek back down the mountain. The sun was nearing the horizon by the time they returned to town and resumed their journey to the nearest cherry blossom orchard.
“This bonsai plant is in amazing condition despite being two millennia old,” Lilligold said while lightly stroking the plant’s branches, relishing in their sturdiness. She set it upon her back and cut off her telekinesis, before turning back to Mizuko. “I’d love to know Inari’s secret for preserving it.”
Mizuko didn’t return her gaze, instead watching where they were going, but still she smiled. “I’m sure you can use your expertise to decipher the secret,” she replied.
Lilligold felt a little heat build in her cheeks. “You really think I can?”
This time, Mizuko spared Lilligold a friendly glance, letting the unicorn see her genuine smile. “If you set your heart to it, you can.”
“... You’re right.” Lilligold turned to face forward, her face now brimming with confidence. “And I will do it.”
At one point the two mares found themselves passing over a bridge that crossed a large river. Down below, the water flowed at a calm and relaxing pace, but steadily grew in intensity a little ways down as more rocks blocked the water, creating small rapids. A group of foals were gathered a little ways down, splashing and playing like foals were want to do.
Memories of her youth flitted through Mizuko’s thoughts while passing over the bridge. Her younger self loved to hop up onto the bridge’s railings and jump down into the water, always trying to dive hard enough to touch the bottom. Her eyes took on a faraway glint as she smiled in remembrance.
“Mizu-tan!”
Her smile went south.
The two mares stopped as a series of scurrying hoofsteps approached them from behind. Lilligold turned around first, followed by Mizuko after a second of hesitation. The smiling naive face of Yadame stared back up at them. His hooves were wet and matted, like he’d just been wading in the river.
He lifted a hoof and pointed it at Mizuko. ”Let’s have a race!”
Mizuko blinked. ”... What?”
Yadame hopped up onto the bridge’s railing, flashing her a cocky smile. ”Do you think you can beat me to those rocks?” He pointed to a cluster of rocks a little ways down the river. ”Or are you out of touch with your talent?”
Lilligold looked back and forth between them. “What’s happening, Mizuko?” she asked.
Mizuko sighed. “Nothing bad, don’t worry.” She fixed Yadame with a mixed expression of worry and stern forthrightness. ”I don’t have time to race now. Please get off the railing.”
Yadame’s grin widened. ”You’re afraid that I’ll win, then?”
”I’m afraid that you’ll get hurt.”
Yadame puffed his chest in a show of pride. ”I have a lot of practice. It’s okay–AH!”
A single haphazard step was all it took to send Yadame toppling over. His head banged against the wood with a hard thump before he fell over the side, to both Mizuko and Lilligold’s horror.
“Yadame!” Mizuko shouted as she climbed onto the railing. She peered over the edge just in time to see Yadame splash, quickly disappearing beneath the water’s surface. “I’m coming!” She took off her coin bag and set it on the bridge, before hopping up onto the railing.
“Wait, Mizuko!” Lilligold said.
But Mizuko ignored her cry. She leapt off the bridge, outstretching her fore legs and angling her body slightly forward as the river rushed to meet her. Her impact was graceful, and she shot below the surface in a flurry of bubbles, but wasted no time in propelling herself up toward the surface, breaking the water with a gasp.
Up above, she could faintly hear Lilligold shouting something to her over the sound of the churning rapids up ahead, but didn’t make an attempt to decipher her words. Up ahead, she saw a little speck of green amongst the rocks, gently floating down the river and over the rapids. She wasted no time in paddling as fast as her legs could propel her, calling upon all her years of swimming and all the strength she had accumulated in her legs from it to get to Yadame.
It wasn’t until she could finally fully make out Yadame’s floating body that Mizuko suddenly remembered a very important detail about the river. A detail that made itself more apparent by the sudden increase in the current’s speed, coupled with the distant sound of falling water. A knot formed in her stomach, and the adrenaline practically rang in her ears as Mizuko picked up her pace, summoning every last ounce of power she had in her legs.
By the time she finally reached Yadame’s body and hooked a fore leg over him, the entrance to the underground reservoir was in sight just up ahead. The sound of falling, churning water rang loud in her ears, and the knot in her stomach tightened with the realization that the current was too strong to swim against, made clearer as her adrenaline high settled down and her strength began fading.
“Mizuko! Mizuko!”
She turned her head, spying Lilligold running on the hill alongside the river, holding their stuff aloft in her magic.
Mizuko tried to open her mouth to tell Lilligold to go get help, but between her exhaustion and the roaring water steadily approaching, she couldn’t. Realizing she had no choice, Mizuko shifted Yadame’s body onto her back to keep him above water level.
Lilligold’s cries were eventually blocked out by the time Mizuko reached the edge of the waterfall. As she took in as big a lungful of air as she could, Mizuko silently prayed that Yadame would be alright.
She went over the edge.