The elders say we sing for the ones we’ve lost, both in body and in spirit. Every waning moon I’ve heard the voices carrying the desperate notes of longing across the valley.

“_Two go in, one comes out.” _

The scarred ones say we sing for those who they have lost; for remembrance, and to mourn. I can recall the visceral feelings of deep sorrow in thier anguished cries. The sounds alway pierces my very being, and tears inevitably stream down my face.

“_Mourn the ones now lost to time.” _

Though, for most people here, there’s a far more important reason we gather every cycle. They, would say we sing to keep everyone safe. The blunt ones among them say It’s a warning for those who are too curious for their own good.

“_A sacrafice of blood for clout.” _

It’s true, whatever THEY are they seem to be always searching, always calling to those who find themselves straying too near. So, as my father would have said: we sing as a reminder for us all, to never forget. To always be watchful.

“_Two go in, and one comes out.”_

I’ll be honest though, forgetting isn’t something I think will ever happen, not for me at least. The song itself is but a small part of it. For centuries now we’ve engrained these teaching into our daily lives. They’re intricately woven into our vary culture. We know all the stories, we’ve been told them countless times by concerned wet nurses, and mean stable hands who attempted to scare us as children.

In truth, it’s been two decades since we’ve lost anyone. And not much less than that since the Returned One was last spotted.

“_Fear the others left behind.”_

But no, I didn’t take up singing to save lives through warning. I’ve never told anyone this, but when I go out on those crisp evenings to sing with the others, It’s not just a song to me anymore. I sing to plead with the gods. To beg for you to stay. Because I know you; I’ve always truly known you. And there’s something about you I’ve realised I’ve tried to ignore all these years.

I see what haunts you, motivates you, and It fuels your eagerness to leave our home. To out in search for the Returned Ones. This realization, it’s… It’s created something in me. An uneasiness I cannot shake. I hear it when I look deep into your blue eyes. When you smile and tell me everything will be alright. It speaks of what you might choose to do, in spite of everything we’ve ever been told growing up. I fear what you might become if things go wrong.

So I pray to the gods they hear me. I sing as loud as I possibly can. Tearing the very lining of my own throat so that they do hear. Because they must hear me. So that not A life is saved, but that YOUR life is safe. Safe here with me.

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_“Two go in, and one comes out._

_A sacrifice of blood for clout. _

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_Mourn the ones now lost to time._

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_Fear the others left behind. _

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_Two go in, and one comes out.”_