Talan walked behind Babs and Alyssa as he nibbled at his ice cream. They knew something was up, but didn’t ask him about it.

He told them that his friends and house sitter had left. They just didn’t understand how much they meant to him.

Babs and Talan went back to Alyssa’s house and cuddled for a while. Alyssa went out to get groceries, insisting that she didn’t need any help. So Talan simply stayed with Babs and wanted nothing more than to hold her. Babs surprisingly didn’t seem to mind. In fact she was receptive to the idea.

Talan sighed as his head would rise and fall on her chest, her gentle languid breaths coming and going at a steady pace.

“My parents will be home soon,” Talan said with a groan.

“Oh?” Babs asked. “That a problem?”

“No... well kinda...” Talan said. “We won’t be able to fool around at my place anymore.”

Babs stroked his head and smiled, “So? We still have Alyssa’s and mine.”

“I guess...” Talan said. “We should go swimming again soon.”

“Can’t go a day without seeing me in a bikini, can you?” Babs teased.

Talan grinned and rubbed her thighs up and down, “Guilty...”

Alyssa returned shortly and put away her groceries, then came in to join the cuddling. Talan’s face was soon at home between her large breasts, and his legs were hooked around her wide hips. Yet even with this, he felt an emptiness.

Talan got home later and invited Sunset over, to his surprise she came and produced a bikini of her own.

“Mind if we go for a swim?” she asked, a slight blush on her face.

“Sure... whatever...” Talan said, going upstairs to get changed.

A few weeks ago he would have been over the moon if she appeared at his house and asked him that question. But now? Just a big nothing.

Talan came downstairs and jumped in the pool. Sunset was already in, her body was breathtaking, similar to Sonata’s and Adagios...

“Sonata and Adagio...” Talan whispered to himself.

“So what have you been doing lately?” Sunset asked.

“Huh?” Talan asked.

“Any new games come out? Do anything fun or sexy with your lady friends?”

Talan zoned out and shrugged, “Nah, not really... just been boring.”

Sunset swam up to him, “Talan... look at me.”

Talan slowly looked up at the beautiful girl and frowned, “I’m sorry, Sunset.”

Sunset sighed and slipped around behind him. She wrapped her arms around his stomach and pulled him back with her into the center of the pool.

“You have to let go of this attitude, Talan. Seriously.”

Talan slumped against her and groaned, “I know... it’s just hard.”

“Are you lonely without them?” Sunset asked.

Talan nodded, “Yeah, I am. I mean I hang out with Babs and Alyssa, and that’s great and all. But waking up to a such a big house with nobody there. I’ve done it before, but I’m just so used to someone being there, you know? Someone happy, someone cheerful.”

Sunset shrugged, “I could do it.”

Talan turned around and raised an eyebrow, “What?”

“I could stay with you, with the house.” Sunset said. “At least until your parents come back. The guest room, right?”

“Uh, yeah.” Talan said. “But why?”

Sunset shrugged again, “It’s what friends do, plus I could use the company. Remember what I said about the other girls being mostly gone for the summer? Nobody to hang out with.”

Talan jumped on Sunset and brought them both crashing down under the water. Sunset giggled and tried to get away from him.

“You’re awesome, Sunset. But uh... by the way, you have to cook me dinner...”

“Oh?” Sunset asked, eyebrows raised. “You can’t do it yourself?”

“I can...” Talan said. “But Sonata still did it most of the time.”

“Well if a siren can cook a good meal... wait til you see what a unicorn can do!”

“Gonna use your magic?” Talan asked. “No cheating!”

Sunset sighed and flicked her finger toward Talan and sent him flipping through the air into the far end of the pool.

“Oops,” Sunset cooed. “Cheated.”

“You think you can just use your magic and get away with it?” Talan asked.

“Yeah, I do...” Sunset said.

“Then try it again...” Talan said, putting his right hand behind his back.

Sunset reached out to him again, but this time faced some resistance. For some reason her magic wasn’t connecting with Talan. It was bouncing off in different directions. Then she saw the sparkling gem as Talan displayed the ring.

“Uh oh...” Sunset said.

“Uh oh is right!” Talan said while tackling her and shoving her under.

Sunset and Talan played in the pool for the remainder of the day, laughing and joking around until they both got tired.

Talan eventually helped Sunset make dinner, then set up the guest room so she could stay the night. Sonata’s stuff was still mostly there, so he stacked it in the corner and decided to give whatever it was to Sunset. What she didn’t want could go to charity.

Later he decided to go down to the beach and walk around for a bit. The sunset was happening slowly across the horizon. He always enjoyed watching it. Time seemed to stand still the longer you were there.

Talan looked at the sky and remember what the sky of Equus looked like. Pastel and beautiful. With a moon and sun that sped across the sky with purpose. He wondered what other majestic things were waiting there, and he wondered when he would end up going, or if he would at all.

The gaping hole in his life left by the Sirens was starting to be filled, but it was taking considerable time. They really touched him, and every morning he would wake up and remember that he wouldn’t hear their voices again. The more he thought about it, the more it made him tear up. How ironic, he went through most of his life not knowing what true, good friendships were like. Then the moment he found three, they left as soon as they arrived. Even so, the lessons they learned and the forgiveness stayed with him.

Talan sighed and kicked some sand, “Wherever you are, Adagio, Aria, Sonata... I miss you.”

Just as Talan turned to walk back up the cliff, a flash caught the corner of his eye. Talan turned around and rolled his eyes. No way that just happened. In his desperation to see them again, he was imagining things. But it happened again, a sparkling flash out in the waves.

Talan ripped off his shirt, shoes, and socks, then dove into the water. He broke into the fastest swimming he had ever done, plowing through waves as they broke to shore. Talan went deeper and deeper, ignoring his fear of the dark below. Once he was about sixty to seventy feet out near a drop off, he saw something bright floating in the water.

Talan swam up to it and grabbed it, “A bottle?” he said to himself.

It was a bottle with a message inside, he couldn’t believe his eyes. Talan swam back to shore and stumbled across the sand. He collapsed to his knees and yanked off the cork. As he did, he heard the faint voices of all three sirens.

Tears formed in his eyes as he shook the paper out and quickly unraveled it. Upon further inspection it wasn’t paper at all, but something like really old parchment. It was thick, and there were symbols on it he did not understand. However, the parchment began to change color in several places, three... to be exact.

The shape of lips materialized on the paper. Gold, purple, and blue lips. Talan laughed, but silenced himself when words appeared below them.

“Keep swimming little one, and soon we’ll see each other again.”

“Your friends.”

XOXO

Talan ran his hand across the parchment where the lips and words were, and heard the sound of laughter. Three familiar voices.

Talan looked out at the sun and smiled, “Not so far away after all. Til we meet again, girls.”