November rain
Sapphire held the umbrella closer to her head and listened to the splatter of rain. She shivered and looked both left and right. The rain and the encroaching night made it nearly impossible to see anything beyond the yellow pool of light at her feet. The street light struggled, but it just wasn't strong enough. Sapphire knew how it felt.
She shivered again and her coat grew heavier. At least that was one consolation. She could adjust her clothes to fit the moment. Why she was sent to stand at an abandoned bus stop was a mystery to her.
A man rode by on a bike and she narrowly avoided getting splashed, looking anxiously after him.
"Be careful," she snapped, but the man was already out of earshot. Again, she was alone with just her umbrella and the rain.
The wind plucked at the hem of her skirt and Sapphire again looked up the road. Still, nothing.
"Steel, what would you do?" She reached out to him mentally, but there was still no answer. That was… disturbing, but no doubt part of this exercise. Lately, they seemed to be less in contact with each other. Frequently it was when they were in the same room.
Pulling the umbrella ever closer to her head, she stared out into the darkness. It had been Their big plan. They wanted Elements to go out on their own, prove themselves as independent agents. Sapphire had initially agreed. This would give each agent a chance to see what they were made of. It was too easy to rely upon Steel's force of nature approach, Silver's sly, foxlike cunning, or Lead's easygoing strength. It also gave her a chance to prove her mettle as an Agent.
So, here she stood, in the November rain, cold, wet and fairly miserable, and she still didn't have a clue what she was doing there.
Someone was approached with slow measured steps. Sapphire could hear the heaviness of each step and frowned. Lead walked like that, but that would Lead be doing here?
She turned and gasped. There was a large mass of gray moving towards her. Sapphire's first impulse was to run, but where? Instead, she lowered the umbrella closer to her head. She held her ground and it came to stand beside her.
She could make out furry legs and long lethal looking claws at the end of massive paws. Summoning up her courage, she peeked out from beneath the edge of the umbrella.
A large creature stood there, staring straight ahead, as if Sapphire was invisible. Then its gaze swiveled in her direction. Sapphire held the gasp building in her throat and retreated back into the safety the ribs of the umbrella afforded. The creature's eyes were so blue, just like Steel's.
A small bubble of loneliness welled up inside her. She missed her partner so much. Most of the other Elements found him abrasive, but she knew his kindness and intense loyalty and his no-nonsense approach right about now would be welcomed.
She carefully weighed her options. Obviously if the creature had wanted to attack or kill her, it would have done so by now. She could also transport away in a wink of an eye if it acted untoward.
Yet, there was nothing really threatening about the creature. It was merely standing there in the November rain, a bright red umbrella above its head, staring off into the night. It was almost as if it was awaiting a bus and she smiled slightly at the thought.
"What are you?" She asked quietly, more to herself than anyone else. At first, she thought the creature belched. Then it repeated the name, low and guttural.
"To –To –Roooo," it bellowed and Sapphire instantly took a step away. Its eyes narrowed and softer it repeated, "Totoro."
"You are a totoro?" The head nodded slowly and Sapphire gave it a smile. "I am pleased to meet you, Totoro and it's nice to have someone to be out here with. This locale is very quiet at night." She studied the creature a bit more closely. While its head was dry, the gray fur around its shoulder was dark from the rain. "Although you do smell a bit… damp." Totoro's eyes narrowed at her comment and Sapphire laughed. It was a relief to laugh. "I didn't meant that unkindly. It was merely an observation."
Sapphire frowned and the blue of her eyes intensified as she accessed the memory bank. It didn't really surprise her that there was no mention of the name in the alien's file. Instead she found a vague reference in myths and legends and began to read deeper into the mythos surrounding it.
Totoros are forest spirits or trolls that are believed to live inside trees. They are helpful to travelers and are fond of the rain. They frequently appear to the young, but adults are incapable of seeing them.
"Incapable? He seems pretty visible to me."
"Who's visible to you?"
Sapphire jumped without meaning to. Standing there was Steel, his arms behind his back. The rain had just stopped, judging from the wet stains on the shoulders of his gray overcoat. The night had grown alive with sounds and the air smelled fresh and sweet.
"Steel!" She was over-joyed to see her partner, even if his appearance did come as a surprise.
"Yes?"
"Did you see it?"
"See what?
"The Totoro?"
"Sapphire, what are you talking about? You were all alone when I approached you."
"It was a large gray creature. It was right here… standing beside me." She lowered the umbrella and looked around anxiously, trying to see through the dark. "You have to believe me, Steel."
"I do." He gave her a gentle smile. "Perhaps it was the purpose of this test, to see how you would handle the appearance of something that couldn't possibly exist. We must be prepared to deal with anything that comes across your path, even a whatever you called it."
"But I didn't…" Sapphire sighed and then shook her head slightly, her hair bouncing with the effort. "You might be right. Why are you here?"
"We are needed on an assignment." Steel gestured and Sapphire sighed. She started to walk, vanishing after a few steps.
Steel smiled and took a deep breath. Shape shifting was not an easy thing for him and it always left him just a bit light headed. He tossed aside the red umbrella he'd had hidden from view and then paused to sniff the sleeve of his jacket. Damp, indeed. And with that, he followed after his partner.