In the dark forest at the bottom of the Southern Black Sea, Princess Qamari sat on her silver rafter as she held the baby tiger in her arms, cautiously picking up a cracked coconut in an attempt to feed the little beast.
It had been quite a while since she took the baby tiger from the beast infested nest, but ever since she brought him away, the little creature refused to eat anything.
"Come on, baby tiger. I know that you want to be with your mother, but we cannot bring her back from where she went. You should at least eat and drink well to not make her worry. How do you think your mommy will feel if she finds out that you are starving yourself?" She gently coaxed.
But the stubborn creature refused to obey. Its clear gold eyes stared into the darkness, a forlorn, sorrow filled emotion flickering within the golden depths.
She knew that it knew it would never see its mother again.
She knew that it refused to eat because it was sad and depressed for leaving its mother behind. And she knew that somewhere in its heart, it felt responsible for its mother's condition. And it probably felt bad for not being around to accompany its mother tiger during her final moment.
But it seemed to not understand how to vent its feelings, leading it to its present depressed and emaciated state.
Princess Qamari did not know how to console the little creature since she herself had lost her parents in her childhood.
As an orphan, she understood how it felt for one to suddenly lose their dear ones. She also deeply understood the lose of a mother, but understanding was different from experiencing the pain and void by yourself.
And even though she understood the baby tigers pain, she could not share it with him.
Sighing deeply, she stared into the same darkness, her violet eyes flashing with the sorrow she concealed inside her heart.
"I once had a home, a father, and a mother as well. My mother scolded me while my father spoiled. I lived a carefree and simple live under their protection and care. But one day, everything changed. One day, they disappeared without leaving a trace behind. And that day, my life changed."
As she recalled the days gone by, a lone crystalline tear dropped from the corner of her eye. A slight breeze blew, making her lone figure unconsciously shiver from the sudden chill. Folding her arms tightly around herself and the baby tiger, she moved deeper into her makeshift shelter.
"Little tiger, I learned to live with the absence of my parents. I learned to love myself and take good care of myself, because I knew that that would have been exactly what they would have wanted and advised me to do, if they knew that they would be gone forever. They would have wanted me to live well, because only than, would they be at ease. You should also do the same."
Gently rubbing its white head, Princess Qamari bent her own, softly kissing it on the side of its head.
"Think about your mother. She would want you to live well because she loves you and would go to any length to protect. Even when she was on the brink of death, she did not close her eyes to rest, because she want to protect you. So, little tiger..." Pausing, she choked back the threatening tears with difficulty, before continuing.
"Live well and live happily, because only than would your mother be at ease. Take good care of yourself, because no one else would do so. And only when you treasure yourself and live your life, would your mother's soul be able to leave in peace. Understand?"
Picking up the tiny creature, she held it at eye level, deeply staring into its gold pupils.
Gold and purple connected and in the next instant, a rush of warmth flooded Princess Qamari's mind, body, and soul. Her vision blurred and everything turned hazy, and before she could react, her world turned white.
*
Princess Qamari panickily flung her eyes open, looking around her in uncertainty.
What entered her sight was a world of pure white and gold. This was a huge space with nothing in sight. No buildings, trees, plants, seas, sky, or land. It was a vacant wide void with only gold and white swirling and twirling about.
"Where am I? Is this another one of those visions?" She asked in confusion.
The visions she had seen or entered were either ones of darkness, blood and bones, or people she had never met.
However, this was different because there were neither blood and bones, nor the vile and sinister darkness. The place also did not seem real. It was more like a place of illusion where she was the only living being.
"You are here." The gentle voice echoed in the white-gold world, rousing her out of her thoughts.
Looking around, Princess Qamari saw a beautiful white haired lady clothed in gold, slowly walk towards her. The lady's golden pupils flashed with light as her gaze swept over her figure.
"You are a lot purer than I expected." The lady continued as she finally stopped before her, the slight smile on her lips brightening the gold-white environment.
As she stared back at the white haired lady, Princess Qamari suddenly had a strange feeling in her heart that she knew her.
"Are you, baby tiger?" She asked with hesitation, not able to believe even her own conjecture.
'The baby tiger turned into a lady? How is that possible? I must have overthought things after seeing her gold eyes.'
Convinced that she was over thinking things, Princess Qamari internally scolded herself for her absurdity as she continued scrutinizing the strange white haired lady.
"You recognized me right away? That was unexpected. Yes, I am the baby tiger, but you can call me Snow. That is the name my mother gave me." The lady casually smiled, not realization the impact of her revelation.
Princess Qamari was speechlessly stunned.
"You...you...you are the baby tiger?" She exclaimed in disbelief and astonishment, stammering as she forced the ridiculous question out of her mouth.
'She is really the baby tiger?' Her mind a mess, she stared in shock at the pleased lady who seemed to be enjoying the astounded princess's reaction.
"Yes, I am really the baby tiger. I am an ancient immortal beast spirit reborn into the body of the winged-white tiger after an unfortunate event. And this is my spiritual realm. The place where I can communicate with any individual who I wish to form a spiritual bond with." The baby tiger, Snow, said in a calm manner, her composed aura giving her the presence of an elder.
"Okay. So, you are not an ordinary white tiger but an ancient spirit. Great! But why am I here?" Princess Qamari was immediately on alert after hearing the lady address herself as an immortal spirit. She was not conceited enough to believe that this ancient spirit brought her here just to thank her for her consolation or chat with her.
She also did not believe that an ancient spirit would form a spiritual bond with her just because she was touched by her story.
'No, she definitely has another motive for bringing me here.'
She was firmly convinced that the other party had something else in mind.
'I do not care for what reason she brought me here. If she dares to provoke me, I do not mind clashing with her. So what if she is an ancient spirit? The fact that she is now in a white tiger's body is enough prove of her drop in strength.'
Thinking up to here, she immediately raised her head, staring directly at the lady, on guard and vigilant.
"Even though my soul is that of an ancient immortal spirit, my body right now is just that of a white tiger. And due to the incident, my soul sustained sever damage, resulting in the memories of my past life getting sealed. It was only when you looked into the white tiger's eyes that my sealed memories were unsealed and you entered my spiritual realm unobstructed."
"Excuse me? I entered your spiritual realm? Did you not just say a while ago, that you communicate with anyone who you wish to form a spiritual bond with here?" Princess Qamari was just about to rejoice over the fact that the spirit was now only a white tiger when she experienced another shock.
What did this ancient spirit's sealed memories had to do with her?
Unsealed after she looked into the winged- white tiger's eyes?
What did that even mean? That she unconsciously unsealed the spirit's seal?
That she had the power to unseal the memories of an ancient immortal beast spirit?
'No way! I barely unlocked my own magical abilities a few days ago. How could I possibly already have the ability to unseal the memories of an ancient immortal spirit? Moreover, I do not even remember using magic!'
Banishing the distracting thoughts from her mind, she focused her attention back onto the ancient spirit.
"Yes, this is my spiritual realm where only I can invite people into. However, not only were you able to unseal my memories and enter my spiritual realm unhindered without my invitation, you also formed a spiritual bond with me without my consent.." The golden eyes of the ancient spirit flashed, her white brow rising in confusion.