A month later

Only recently, had he managed to stop crying himself to sleep. Felipe sat in some grass, watching the night sky. His wings were wrapped around himself, and he was rather stiff. The empty patch of grass next to him, which had once been where Adelaide was. This happened to be the same patch of grass he and Adelaide had loved star-gazing in, but as he remembered this, old feelings came back, the swirl of memory. Then the stars were reflected in his tearful green eyes, he instinctively twisted his neck to pull out some feathers, but managed to stop himself.

Felipe had been tearing out a few feathers whenever he was overwhelmed by the resurrected agony of the memories of last month. It often happened when birds went through grief. More and more red feathers littered the kapoks; Felipe, under his wings where nobody would see unless he flew, had some bald patches. He was starting to do it less, the feathers growing back patchily, but the fire had still broken him.

"Adelaide, if you can hear me..." He kept his eyes fixated on the sky, but then paused. What do I say? "I'm sorry I never did anything right. I let you down... but why did you go to him?" This was the first time he'd really thought about Rojo, his mind fixed on Adelaide. He forgot that Adelaide had had a Spix's friend - he couldn't remember who it was, he wasn't even sure if his accusation of her having a secret friend had been true or not or him jumping to a conclusion. This didn't cross his mind, that maybe she went in there to save her friend. It would never cross his mind in years to come.

He didn't mourn Rojo. What was there to mourn? He was no father to Felipe, he never had been. Even when he was a kid, Rojo hadn't exactly showered him with affection. They'd despised each other. He could have denied it all he liked as he lay with a broken spine under the debris, even if it had been an accident, but Felipe knew Rojo had killed Adelaide. He would have been in agony as he died, and Felipe was glad he suffered. So why did he feel this way? Sadness, over someone he hated?

"You were all I had, Adie. First I lost my mother... then yours... you... and even Rojo. You were my family. And now I have nothing. Even Rojo was... something. Maybe that's why I feel like this..." Were Azalea and Juliana his family? It didn't feel like it, at least not now. They'd been rather absent from his life as a chick. Azalea out of moodiness and the fear that he'd take Adelaide away from her, Juliana being distant to anyone with her grief. Although, in the past month, he'd felt himself feeling more affection for the pair of them. He was grateful for Juliana bringing him food and water when he was too fragile to leave the kapoks, and for Azalea trying to reach out to him. They were the closest thing he had to family now.

"I wish you were here." He murmured, eyes on the stars. "I need someone to help me. It's hard... taking over. Especially without you." It was easy to forget he was now a leader. A teenaged leader. He was utterly unprepared and clueless, there had never been a leader his age before. It was a good thing the patrols were self-running; with Rojo's absence in the run up to the fire, the tribe had become more independent without the need for a leader to handle and organize everything. In time there would be some decisions to be made; hopefully by then, he'd be ready...

He missed Adelaide. It still hurt, brutally. The sight of her empty nest, when he woke up and remembered she wasn't there. But it was more bearable now. "See you in a minute."

Felipe just had one last challenge. He'd been meaning to do it for a while, but he'd resisted. But he couldn't do it alone. He got up, leaving the stargazing spot, and headed back to the kapoks. It still felt difficult, flying through the forest - out of the corner of his eye, he saw blackness, and although it was shrinking back as the forest started to heal, it still hurt to see. The smell of smoke seemed everywhere still.

"Azalea?" He asked, but her nest was empty.

"She's gone out." Juliana muttered, sleepily.

"Where?"

"To see Adelaide." She murmured, before her head nuzzled into the moss of her nest and she went back to sleep. He noted, with relief, how the despair had faded from her voice a month after Adelaide's demise. But then he took in these words. He swallowed hard; that was where he wanted to go. She was there already, and he'd come here to ask her for support as he finally visited the grave after the funeral.

He plucked a white orchid on his way there, realizing that his talons were shaking as he made his way toward the grave. They'd buried her in a place ordinary birds dreamed of being buried, a lovely spot by one of the streams, at the base of a beautiful tree cascading vines and pink flowers around it. Azalea had specifically chosen it for it's beauty and seclusion, near the Blue-and-Gold boundary, so this would always be a peaceful place. It came into view, bathed in silver moonlight. The stream passed, a quiet trickling sound.

Azalea was standing before the patch of soil, which was marked with a distinct creamy coloured rock. The sea of petals placed by each tribe member had long disintegrated into the earth, but moss was starting to grow, soft and thick, over it. It looked as though Azalea had left some flowers, too. Felipe looked at the grave, his heart sick, and he made himself look away.

"Azalea." He said. Azalea jumped, and spun round with shocked hazel eyes. He'd interrupted her in deep thought, startling her. "Sorry."

"It's okay." She said, looking surprised to see him. Azalea didn't know what to say. "Are you... okay?" She'd been asking him since he'd started appearing in public again whether he wanted to visit Adelaide with her, but it had upset him. So seeing Felipe here was the last thing she expected - what was his state of mind? It could be anything. Azalea studied his expression to try and identity it.

"Just thought I'd come and see her." Felipe looked at the white orchid he'd found, holding back his tears. He came forward, to the grave, and placed it in with the flowers Azalea had left, and she watched him, stiffly. His wing remained on the earth, before he rose to stand. Blinking rapidly, his emotions stirred inside him, as his tears threatened to spill. He turned to face Azalea, who shook slightly, her face creasing, tears making her eyes glossy. She wrung her wings and looked at the floor, reminded, of her pain. As her tears spilled, so did Felipe's. They hugged, bittersweet and purely platonic, as they shed their last tears over Adelaide.

They couldn't see Adelaide. Yet she looked on. I meant so much to them... I never realized.

Adelaide could see that something was going to happen, when the scars had faded. Juanita suspected, she'd been concerned by the prospect - but Adelaide didn't mind. The thought of Felipe and Azalea felt right, like a jigsaw that fitted perfectly. She knew it would take a while, but in time, they'd realize that it was meant to be, that she wouldn't mind. She knew how she felt about Felipe, purely platonic, as it turned out. Maybe it wasn't him she loved, she thought. She had loved someone... in the way she was supposed to love Felipe. But it wasn't meant to be, their paths were so different. It hurt, but she'd move on. Adelaide could meet someone, up there. There were plenty of spirits, alone and from other times, searching for what they hadn't managed to discover while alive. Maybe she'd grow to love one of them.

She missed them all. Felipe, Juliana, dear Azalea, and of course, Jewel. She'd tried to reach Jewel, but a mist had formed, shutting her out. Jewel was unreachable at this moment in time, but at least, a very long time from now, Adelaide would welcome her as a dear friend. At peace with this notion, Adelaide vanished, leaving Felipe and Azalea to mourn, but it was less painful. The first stitch had appeared in their broken selves as they separated, and left the graveside in its pool of silver light.

Dawn

A very long way away, so far beyond anyone's reach, a blue figure stood on the edge of the Amazon. The sun slowly rose, liquid amber, the sky a soft pink. It was comforting, reminding Jewel of the mornings she used to know. But they were never the same. They didn't exist anymore.

Sound had crept back into her ears a few days after she'd woken, her raft knocking gently against a metal surface, with swirly writing saying the S. S. Lucinda. It was a miracle she'd made the journey from her home to a city without her raft being torn apart, a sky predator plucking her, or one of the many boats in the harbour tearing through the debris that carried her. She'd been milling on the edge of Manaus ever since she'd arrived, torn between leaving and going back in. But now, she'd made her decision.

Jewel stood by a tree, where she'd been carving. Four names - Eduardo, Mimi, Roberto, Tia. And just a little way below, Adelaide. Jewel stared at the names, pain glazing her eyes, before she placed a wing over it. She clenched her beak, holding back her tears, before closing her eyes and forcing herself to turn away. Jewel had to leave. She didn't have the strength to go back in.

What was there now for her? Stella had said they were dead. She'd seen her tribemates motionless and burned in the grass. Her mother... she thought she heard the voice of Tia again, and she covered her face, tormented by what she thought was a ghost haunting, taunting her. She blocked it out, and looked again, at the tree trunk. I'll come back someday. For them, I'll come back.

Jewel flew fast, running away - she wanted the pain taken, so she wouldn't feel it anymore. She had no idea what was to come. Her heart would mend, but she would never tell anyone about her childhood. In time, she'd come to forget some of it. She'd barely think about her connection to Rojo and Felipe through Adelaide, which would be why she'd keep her distance when she eventually came back, why she'd never tell anyone about Adelaide, even if one day she would befriend Felipe and Azalea, as the tribes reunited thanks to somebody she would love. But she would always remember Adelaide. Their friendship was their secret, just theirs, and nobody could take that away.

"She won't let me in." A mournful voice Jewel couldn't hear. Where Jewel had stood, translucent and starry, was Tia and Perlina. Tia looked at her daughter, so far beyond her reach, and her heart broke. "What can I do, Perlina?"

"I don't know how to say this... but I think you've done everything you can." Perlina looked pained saying it. "She's so upset I... I don't think you can help her. Maybe... this is something she has to do on her own." Jewel thought Tia's attempts to reach her were ghosts coming to haunt her. The line had blurred between true nightmares and visions of Tia, meaning Jewel couldn't tell what was real anymore. It was too soon, too agonizing. A mist had formed around Jewel, around her family, who were suffering the same. They fled from Tia's voice too, including Eduardo.

"I can't leave her... any of them..." Tia whispered.

"You never will." Perlina tried to comfort her. Tia watched with a heavy heart as Jewel grew smaller. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew it was going to be a long time. Until then, all Tia could do was watch and try to heal her own pain. She felt the light pulling her away again, both her and Perlina. I'll return to you, my love. I'll be waiting until we're together.

"I'll be waiting." She watched Jewel grow smaller, until she was a drop of blue ink, then the size of a star, how far away she and Tia were from each other. Jewel disappeared, flying into an unknown world.

And... c'est fini. This rewrite actually made it to the end! At one point I thought I couldn't finish it... that's a relief. Again guys, I'm so happy you've stuck by me and left such wonderful and supportive comments, it's really helped drive me. I'm quite happy with this, it's certainly much better than the calamity that was the original. Thank you!

Now, I hate to say this... but this, I think, is a nice ending point. I am literally out of ideas for Rio, I've dedicated three years to my various Rio stories, and yes, not only am I out of ideas, but I think I've had enough of writing Rio after all this time. Of course I'm not leaving fanfiction - I've got a Melody of the Ocean sequel in the works, and of course I'm always here to answer PMs and comments. I'm just not doing another Rio story. Who knows, maybe I'll come back, if I'm passionate about an idea and miss all this. Thank you for three wonderful years of support and love.

I love you all, and again, thank you and feel free to ask me anything!

- Sorrel x