The stone glowed a little, sending a milky beam of light to wash across Daisy's face. Poppy pulled out her own stone, which sent a gleam of red across her skin. It moved a little in Poppy's hands, sliding towards Daisy's. The stones touched, and a beam of golden light filled the small cabin. The stones flew through the air, intertwining and shooting iridescant sparks. The sisters gazed up as the stones seemed to melt, spinning and spiraling into a rectangular shape. It sparkled with a fantasia of colors, and then landed at their feet along with several similar-looking shards. Poppy lunged for it.
   The thing was shaped like a map, a map made of precious eronite stone and inlaid with silver. It was a map of the Kingdoms, with a definite trail leading from their little hut to another small hut on the coast of the Paralin Sea. A small groove in the map had been filled with rubies, and the groove traced the path that they were obviously to take. A small emerald rested upon the hut, marking their location. Poppy looked at Daisy.
"I think we're supposed to go this way."
Daisy laughed, and a flush of color filled her cheeks. "Yes, we must go that way. But we must go alone. You cannot bring your friend, I think."
Poppy's eyes wandered over to Jeorge, who was talking to Jolin and eating a leg of turkey. She smiled ruefully. Some things never changed. She motioned him over.
"Listen, Jeorge. Daisy and I need to follow a path. Alone. I'd like to thank you for your help, and give you this."
She uncurled her palm, which was wrapped around a large chunk of shining eronite. "It's really rare and gorgeous, and I think you can achieve your dream with it."
Jeorge looked shocked by the thing in her hand. "I can't thank you enough. Can I give you a parting gift before you go?"
Poppy was about to answer him when he leaned forward and kissed her. Poppy was startled, but quickly recovered herself. A world of fragmented images swirled around her, and she felt like she was floating.  A smile crept across her face.
"Wow," she remarked, gasping for breath. "Well, goodbye, Jeorge. I hope to see you again soon."
He embraced her and walked away. A sob blossomed in Poppy's throat. She pressed it down, refusing to show weakness in front of her new-found sister. Her face grew rather red and she got a case of hiccuping coughs, but the deed was complete. The oncoming tears had been completely suppressed, replaced by loud hiccups and a strange desire to laugh.
"I-I just can't believe, that after e-everything we've b-b-been through, I'm just leaving," Poppy hiccuped.
Daisy sighed a little. "You're not leaving him. You're coming back, and you're going to be happy. Let's wash your face and pack our bags, and then we can leave. I can ride my horse Henna, and you can ride Tarran. We can make good time and be on the Paralin coast by next week."
Daisy stood and brushed the dirt from her simple brown farmer's robe. Poppy shakily raised herself and tried to undo the salt damage on her clothes. Daisy blitzed around the hut, gathering blankets and food, watergourds and, strangely, a roll of brown paper.
   She knelt and lifted the eronite map in calloused hands. It shimmered more in Daisy's hands, fine and beautiful. She lay it tenderly on the brown paper and then wrapped it up. She used a burned stick to trace the map onto another sheet of the thick brown paper. "If our map was stolen or broken, we have this one. We may want to use this copy anyway, but have the eronite map with us for its luck and magic."
"Magic?" Poppy was confused.
"Yes, magic," Daisy quipped tersely, adding another layer of quilts to a satchel. "How else do you think eronite is formed? It's made from tempered Ebitras crystal and Mitrian garnet. They have to be melded together by an incredibly powerful enchantment. If the enchantment isn't strong enough, you just get a Genten emerald. How do you not know this?"
Poppy looked daggers at her sister. "In case you forgot, I didn't get a proper education. I barely even know what a Genten emerald is, let alone how eronite is made."
Daisy looked slightly rueful. "I forgot. I don't know much about you. Tell me while we ride?"
Poppy ran outside to untie Tarran while Daisy said goodbye to her parents. When her sister came out, it looked suspiciously like tears had been running down her face. She reached for a gorgeous mahogany horse, presumably Henna.
"Come on. We don't have any time to lose."