A/N: Shoutout to the people who left reviews on the last chapters! You're all amazing.
Also, it's weird but this chapter seems to fit with Things You Do by Griffin Stoll, so I guess music recommendations in the author's notes are back. It's like they never left.
Finally, the protagonist for the next WOF book is Snowfall! Yay! With that in mind, here's another chapter about her and Onyx after the last one.
[I write author's notes way before I publish chapters. They're usually the first things in the word document. So, I wrote that thing above. Then, three days later, something happened.]
Okay, I need to vent and this is the best place to do it. I'm in another country pursuing a degree in Physics and Astronomy because why not, but I'm still a minor. Like, significantly a minor. Which means that I can't make any decisions on my own. Why is this relevant?
Because with Covid-19 as bad as it is, I'm having to pack up and evacuate back to my home country. My parents asked me to, and though I'm not going to criticise them for it… I don't have to like it.
It is terrifying. I don't know how to put it into words. I know I'm prone to hyperbole- especially since I'm not exactly the most mentally stable person on this site- but packing up your entire life and literally fleeing the country before the borders close for an indeterminate amount of time is horrifying. What's worse is that I have only two days to pack all my shit up.
I straight up have a bookshelf. And books. And a piano. And did I mention books? Textbooks. Gigantic ones. Clothes, kettles, notebooks, writing utensils, my sketching tools. I'm leaving behind almost everything before I make a run for it. To put it into context; I arrived here with five suitcases. I'm leaving with only a pint-sized travel bag. There's no time for anything more. And I still can't be certain that I'll make it.
My first flight was cancelled today morning because my country announced they were closing their borders five hours before it was due to land. We lost about 300 dollars there, and I woke up at 6 in the morning to book another one. Jesus fuck. And now I have to stay awake all night before I head to my local airport, somehow give a midterm exam in the San Francisco International terminal and get across two oceans before the clock strikes Midnight on Saturday.
Cinderella, 2020; now with higher stakes. Call me, Disney.
And I'm running on three hours of sleep. That's not an exaggeration. It rained all day yesterday, and me and a friend had to rent a car and move all our shit to a storage facility because she's evacuating too. We got done at 11:30PM, and I still had to do homework. I got soaked and miserable and my only pair of shoes have mildew growing in them because we were running around in ankle deep water because drainage hasn't been invented here and I have to wear a stupid mask that fogs up my glasses each time I exhale and I packed up my blanket and pillows so I was literally sleeping on my hoodie last night and my cheap ass apartment doesn't have heating which didn't become an issue until yesterday because the temperature fucking dipped to below freezing and IT SNOWED. Do you know what it's like to sleep on a bare mattress while it's freezing and you're soaked with a hoodie for a pillow? And I have a cold and I'm scared. I'm just really, really scared.
And that's why you're getting this chapter.
Things are miserable. But they don't have to be.
Hyakkei - cause
As night shifted into day, the word suddenly came into chromatic focus.
Gone were the miles and miles of snow and ice, with nothing but a bit of grey mountain to break up the monotony. Here in the valley, the colours seemed to explode into his eyes. The green of the trees, the sandy yellow of wild grass, the navy blue of the nearby stream. Shades of vermillion caressed the edges of the numerous clouds even as the sun rose beyond the distant mountains.
It was summer.
It was warm.
And it was incredible.
As Bright walked, revelling in the feeling of his feet against the mushy undergrowth, birds of bright colours and flashy plumage took to the skies, the cacophony they made oddly comforting. Every tree had fruit growing out of it; voluptuous berries hung in clusters, interspersed with the occasional tamarin.
A smile wormed his way onto his face as he noticed a slightly out-of-place vine curled around one of the branches. For some reason, it was gripping onto the tree as opposed to draped over it.
"Found you."
Kiwi materialized, hanging down in front of him with a pout on his face. Though he was primarily green today, splotches of bright pink dotted his hide and a circle around his left eye was sky-blue. His tail was curled around the branch, striped with yellow.
"So, you did." he groaned, letting his arms hang limp. "I was hoping I'd be more in my element here, since… you know, it's a rainforest. Guess I was wrong."
Bright raised an eyebrow. "Are you just going to hang there sulking?"
"I might." the Rainwing swung hopeful eyes his way. "Unless you have anything to say?"
He stepped forward, used one talon to support Kiwi's head, and made out with him for a full minute. Tongue and all. When he stepped away, they were both breathing hard.
"Yeah." Kiwi panted in a semi-euphoric daze, eyes unfocused. "That'll do it."
And with that they moved off, Bright trotting along a path on the ground, Kiwi hopping from tree to tree with childish abandon.
Not that that was a bad thing.
The day passed them by remarkably quickly; taken up mostly by inane passtimes and ridiculous quandaries. They just… talked.
Bright told Kiwi about how pinecones roasted over a fire and boiled into a broth actually tasted incredible. Kiwi told Bright about his basic first aid training course, and how one of his classmates had accidentally broken a patient's ankle while trying to set it.
They went back and forth for hours, both perfectly content to let the world pass them by so.
"You know," Bright interjected eventually, throat hoarse from laughter. "This is a bit weird."
"How so?" Kiwi asked, pausing in his excited steps.
"Well, I've never really had… a proper friend." he admitted. "Most of this stuff is new to me."
"Well, I've never had a boyfriend before." The Rainwing grinned, lolling his tongue out the side of his mouth. "And I can't wait to see what all the fuss is about."
Bright felt the corners of his mouth curve up into an involuntary smile. This was actually fun. Not worrying about being captured, or their parents, or anything like that.
Just relaxing. Together.
He let his smile widen as the sun warmed his eyes.
~really makes you think~
While Tsunami continued to pull the boat along, Sunny relaxed.
She lay sprawled over the entirety of the boat, her arm hanging over the hull with her index finger skimming the surface of the river. Her other arm was shielding her eyes from the sun, which- it being midday- was really beating down on them. Some sort of evolutionary response caused her to be all slovenly around this time of day, though she couldn't complain. It wasn't like she had anything to do except get in Tsunami's way.
From a glance, her position in the boat seemed remarkably uncomfortable; limbs splayed over benches, snaked around bags, or awkwardly hindered by a protrusion of the hull. Tsunami, who was still dragging the boat along, decided to break the silence by voicing her concern.
"Sunny, that looks painful."
"Au contraire, my dear. It's quite comfy." The Sandwing shifted, bones cracking and popping.
Tsunami winced, flinching away. "Either that or your spine is deforming."
"Oh, most assuredly." Sunny responded. "I may never walk the same again."
Tsunami sighed, looking towards the shore. Currently (ha!) the banks were quite steep, which would make it difficult to ground the boat- especially since she wasn't sure if Sunny had packed rope. If she could just find a small cove…
Another mile later, she saw a relatively smooth bit of bank, and took the opportunity.
Beating her wings powerfully once, twice, Tsunami dragged the boat towards the shore. It scythed through the water gracefully; it may have looked like a heap of junk, but Clay had known what he was doing when he was designing the hull.
Sunny started, ill-prepared for the sudden change in direction and speed. Raising her head slightly turned out to be a remarkably bad idea; even as she tried, a few vertebrae slipped into new and interesting positions that were decidedly uncomfy.
"Ow."
"Almost there." Tsunami reassured. The bank was nearby; just a few feet more before the boat bottomed out, and she would be able to ground it.
"Ow."
"Just a tiny bit more…" with a jolt and shudder the boat ran aground. Tsunami stepped back, brushing her hands with the satisfaction of a job well done.
"OW!"
"Oh alright, you big baby." she walked alongside the hull of the boat, hooking her arms under Sunny and hoisting her up bridal style. They both whimpered.
"Have you put on weight?" Tsunami squeaked, straining under the unexpected weight as she trudged towards the shore.
"Shut up." Sunny groaned, eyes glistening. "Oh, how does it hurt so much?"
They collapsed onto a large path of clovers just before the treeline. Tsunami spread her wings wide and reclined, letting the sun warm her skin and the soreness fade from her limbs, while Sunny spent her time putting her bones back where they belonged.
After a particularly loud and painful snap, she appeared to be done, and gingerly lay back down.
They spent a few seconds in silence, listening to the sounds of the forest. The stream babbled playfully, birds chirped restlessly, and the wind whispered sweet nothings to the trees.
"…I have."
"What?" Tsunami rolled over so she was facing her friend, who was staring up at the sky; pensive.
"I have put on weight." Sunny admitted. "It's a bit harder to stay fit when your main responsibility is paperwork and not flying across the continent to save the world."
"True." Tsunami conceded. "It wasn't an insult, you know. Just an observation."
"Hmm."
Somewhere, a wolf howled. It sounded cute. Sunny passed Tsunami a handful of berries, which she consumed in one go. As she munched, Sunny stared at the ground.
"…are we old, Tsunami?"
"What?"
This time when she rolled over, Sunny was looking right at her.
"Are we old now?" she asked. "I mean, I'm getting lazy and slovenly, we can't relate with our students, I think I had an existential crisis last night…"
"W-w-" Tsunami was having a hard time processing this. "No! You're like twenty, get over yourself."
"It isn't about physical age." Sunny retorted. "It's about spiritual age."
"Are you listening to yourself right now?"
"Okay, no, hear me out!" she sighed, holding her hands up in a placating manner. "Look, when was the last time that you felt… good?"
"Last night, probably." Tsunami said. "I mean, there was this great-"
"What was the last time you felt excited?" Sunny pleaded. "Like, properly giddy? Like the good old days?"
"There hasn't been that much excitement in our lives, Sunny." Tsunami shrugged. "There's-"
It was then that she turned to look at Sunny, and immediately wished she hadn't. Her face was downcast, eyes bereft of the light she'd so often come to associate with her friend. Her entire demeanour seemed to belie a severe lack of hope.
"…Sunny, are you alright?"
For a second, Sunny hesitated. Then she looked off to the side, resting her hands on her legs.
"No, not really."
Tsunami pushed herself closer to her friend. "Do you have any idea what's wrong?"
"I feel like…" she sighed. "I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing, and that the school's suffering because of it, and that nothing has meaning anymore, and nothing makes me excited anymore. And… I think it's happening to you too, but it might not be, and I'm just in a really bad place right now."
"I…" Tsunami hesitated, unprepared for the confession. Then she scratched her face. "Well… I mean… I used to love spending time with Anemone, but recently, I just feel like I can't relate to her. And I thought it was because she's a teenager, but now that you mention it… that's not the reason, is it? Like… I feel like I don't care anymore. Everything's just boring, nothing matters, and… and I hate it so much."
For a split second, relief spread across Sunny's face. Then it was replaced with a dreary sort of resignation.
"Yeah. I don't know what to do with myself. I mean, we used to dream about stopping the war and being free. And now… now that we are free?"
She sighed. "It just isn't enough."
Tsunami nodded. "It sucks. I mean… somedays I feel as though I'm slowly losing my mind."
Sunny sighed, hugging her knees to her chest. "Same."
"And I can't do anything about it."
"Yup."
Tsunami lay back once more.
"…do you miss the old days sometimes?"
"Yes."
Sunny forced a laugh. "Yeah. When we were still… somebodies."
Tsunami was sketching in the soil with her index finger. "Who's to say we still aren't?"
"What?"
"You say we're nobodies, but …that's not how I see it."
Sunny propped herself up on her elbows, shielding her eyes from the sun. "…yeah?"
Tsunami sat up straighter, turning to face her friend. "We're responsible for Jade Academy, and by extension, every single student that goes there. We shape their lives, mould them so they can be the best that they're capable of."
As she continued speaking, she became more and more animated. "We're their teachers! Their- their outlook onto the world! We… show them the path, and then enable them to forge their own! We- we're vital to them. We're important."
She grinned, and abruptly, Sunny realised how long it had been since she'd seen Tsunami smile like that; the corner of her mouth lifted ever so much, with just a hint of white in between her lips, as though she knew something you didn't and was trying not to ruin the surprise.
"I… hadn't seen it like that before." she admitted.
With her soliloquy spoken, Tsunami collapsed back onto the ground, writhing as she curled up into a more comfortable position. The smile hadn't left her face, and… Sunny wanted nothing more than to hug her friend and show her that she understood.
"…you know how badly our caretakers messed up our formative years." Tsunami continued, a bit more softly. "It's not just them- my mother messed up Anemone, Qibli was absolutely decimated by his family… and don't even get me started on Winter. Is it really so bad to want to not do that to another generation? To give them a chance at a good life by teaching them what's right? Showing them that we care?"
"Not at all." Sunny stared off, contemplative. "You know, maybe that's why I'm so worried about the missing trio."
"Eh. They're resourceful."
"True." she leaned back. "Still, I can't help but worry. A lot. And it feels like I waited too long, and that I could've helped them but didn't, and-"
Sunny wasn't sure what she expected to happen next. It definitely wasn't Tsunami reaching over and wrapping her- wings and all- in a bone-crushing hug a boa constrictor would've been proud of.
"You're doing great." she whispered, squeezing just a bit tighter.
It was heartwarming.
And then something crashed in the undergrowth behind them, causing both of them to jump apart with a yelp.
Immediately, their 'we're in danger' instincts kicked in, and both dragons crouched close to the ground, facing the direction the crashing had come from.
"What was that?" Sunny hissed, making sure to keep her head low.
"How would I know?" Tsunami hissed back. "More to the point, did you pack any weapons?"
"…I'm not sure."
"Oh, that's brilliant."
"Hey, I'm better prepared than you were!"
Tsunami was about to respond incredibly intelligently when the rustling started up again. Holding a finger to her lips, she peeked over the ferns.
Is that a dragon? No, it's just a very tall plant. Damnit, there's another one. What's with all these tall plants?
Looking back to tell Sunny she couldn't see anything, she realised that her friend was rummaging through her saddlebags. Making as little noise as possible, she scrambled to her side.
"Did you find anything?"
"Almost…" Sunny grunted, tugging on something that was stuck in the bowels of the bags, "just… gimme… a… sec-"
The thing she was pulling on came free with a massive jolt, sending her flying backwards, arms windmilling to avoid falling over. After she'd stopped, she looked at her bounty- a stick about the size of her forearm.
"'Dear friends,'" Tsunami began, reading aloud a note that had been pulled out along with the stick, "'here is a more portable version of my most versatile- and, of course, only- weapon. Love, Clay.'"
She looked up, and they made eye contact. The emotions they traded within those few seconds couldn't be described in words alone.
Another, much louder rustling from the woods, this time accompanied by raucous laughter.
Tsunami held a finger to her lips, crouched close to the ground, and beckoned for Sunny to follow her. They advanced into the woods, heading towards the sounds of laughter.
Soon, they happened upon a hedge that both of them could hide behind. By now, they were close enough that they could make out what was being said. The words were off by miles, all janky and scrambled, but occasionally discernible….
"İ̷̛̪͆͑ ͔̖͇̬̯̓̅́̀͢d̨̯̐̍̈́̂́ǫ̡̛̲̑͑͆̅͌͋̒n̶̗̙͌́̆̊͝'̷̰̫̩̖̗̎̎͡ţ̘̩͈̱̻͎̟̤̹̒̓ͥ͌ ̸̛̬͈̼̖͗͌͡c̸̹̰͕̪̹͖̳̓̚a͍̞̩͕̤͚̯̝͌͋ͣ͠r̢͕̹͖̮͚̄̈͛ͦͮͥ͆̍e̴̼͓̞̪̘̩͑̓̍̃̕ ̵̤̞̤̗͚̉ͮ̚w̷͖̭͕͉͕̤͚̝̥ͭ͆̃̚͡ḥ̸͚͉ͭͯ̾̏̉ͫ̒̏o̖͍̘̦͙͒ͨ̋ͤ̌̄͢ ̒͒ͫ͒̓ͥ҉͍̩͇̺̤̯͟͝y̵͎̟̭̩ͫ́ō̘̫̣͙͂̀́̈u̞̮͗̃̊̾ͪ̾́ ̢̲̜͖̠̘̮̯̎ͪ͜a̺͈̤͍͆̓͑ͩͥ̿̾ͧr̷͎̖̦̜̞̮͓ͦͭͅe̢͉̐̑̀ P͞lu͞t͘o̸.W̳̟̟̋ͯͨ̏̽ͨ͠͝ḩ̭̻̖̦̭̓ͯ͑͊̈̇͂ͧè̒ͦ͛̓͏̶̝͓̼͍͈̜̲r̷̢͙̮̻͙̹̼̠͋͋ͮ̓ͦͧe̶͓̥̗̳͇̥ͪ͌̅͑̂ͩ̚̚͠ ̵̗̩̪̞̩̺̱̆ͅy̷̹͔̻̜̞͈̙̯̓͟o̜͍̤͂ͤ̊̏̄u̷̖̖̪̤̼̪̺̪̺̓ͭ̋ͯ͗̓̒'̧͖͇̜̖͙̩̫̉ͅr̶̮͈̰̦ͮ͐̀̊e̴̦͗͟ ̙̪̙̳̙͈̼̔ͤ͛̌ͫf̛͉̥̦͔̞̜̪͚̾ͪ̓͋̀̓͟ͅr͕̳̹̻̳̘ͪ̓̈́͐̑ͫo̴͓̹̳̯̱̲̻͎͉̓͌ͣ̔̇͌̀͟m͔̞̟̦̲ͨͤMo͜on. ̯ͩͯͣ̓̿̆̚̕Dͯ̄̈́ͣ͏͍̟̱͈̣̙̗o̡͖̜̦̥ͬͧ̊ͤṇ̨̫͗͋͌͐̈́ͭ̒ͣ̀'̵̤̤̹͈͇̮̳̲͉͒̾̓t̝͈̣̦̹̩͍̺͛ͮ̔̿ ̮̩͚͚̓ͣ͑̌̍̈́͐̒̎c̩̻͎̱͂́͑̊ͤ̔̀͟a̠̼̋̎͂ͤ̏̑͌͢ř̷͖͎̪̤̔e̥͎̪̣͔̜̝̎̏̍ͧ͋͑̑̆ͬͅ ̞̼̹̗̘͚̬̺͋͂̀w̘̤̩̬̦͔͂̈ͧ̎̓ͪ͌́̚͟ͅh̴̺̱̩̬̭̼̀͗ͩͭͭͦ͜͟a͎̖͇͌ͣt̡̹̺͓ͧ̒̄͑͌͠ ̷͈̆ͬyͫͧ̂͐̒ͦͧ͐͝҉͓̣̞͍ǫ͉̖̹̝̔͒̽ͥ̆̍̅ͪǔ̡̹̰̫̜̥̼͚͖̤͡ ̎ͮ̂͏̠d̶͈̻̭̋̐͌̕͝ͅi̭̘̗̼̜̮̜̔͆ͣ̊͆ͩ̿d̷̻̙̰̒͐̎̂͒ͭ de҉se͢r҉t ̷w̶in̢d. Ā̸̦̣͇̙͉̹͓̼̊̌̍͞s̸̙͖̪͕͕̀̒͌͒̒ ̴̫̱̦ͨ̇̎̚͜l̨̬͈͎̥̥̣̜͔̈́ͤ͗̈ͥͥ͑̔͠o̶̯̙̣͕͖̪͓ͬ͒̄ͨ͠͡ņ̙̱͙͐͆ͧͥ̃͒͘g̢͈̪͐ͧ͆ͯ́͡ ̝̠̖̲͔ͫ́̅̊̓ͩ̒̐͢ă̘̻̜̰̹͒̒ͤ̾͋̈́͂s̡͕͎͓̦ͮͧ͟ ̸̵̢̮͍̭͚̠͇ͩ̍̓̏y̞̤̘͈̯̤̟̳̋̍͊͌ͤͯͨ̊̈́ṍ̝̟u̸̝̞͚̥͙̅ ̉ͯ̐ͦͭ̾ͮ҉̵̺̹̟ͅl̜̰̼̦̹͈͍̀̌̓o̪̼̟͕̱͒̉̅͗͘v̨̥̩͉̰̟̳̉̂̓̅̏ͪ̀e̦̗̳͉̞̩͋ͤ͛ ̵͖̟̦̩̲̘͛̏͂͂̂̏m̧͎͓̩̻̽̂̽̈̓̃̕ĕ̡͈̩̓ͧͬ̄̄͗ͦ́ͅ."
Tsunami turned to face Sunny, whose face had gone sallow and pale.
"Desert wind… did he say desert wind? Qibli means desert wind, Tsunami! They… he must've taken them!"
She grabbed Tsunami by the neck, shaking her violently. "We have to get them back!"
"Sunny," Tsunami began, "think this through-"
But by the time Tsunami had even come close to finishing that thought Sunny had vaulted the hedge and taken off like a shot into the woods, stick in hand. Cursing, the Seawing followed stat.
She ran like the wind, dodging branches and roots and gnarled, ancient trunks to try and stop her friend from doing something stupid. Ahead of her, Sunny reached the end of a clearing- at the other end of which stood a vaguely draconic figure.
"HEY!"
She launched the stick with gusto. It spun end over end, rapidly approaching the stranger who was now slowly turning around-
The stick thudded into the tree next to the stranger; a dragon with incredibly lustrous yellow scales and a scavenger on his shoulder. It then fell to the ground unceremoniously, clattering loudly against the roots.
They stared at each other for a couple of seconds. The dragon seemed to be more confused than anything, the scavenger looked like he was considering his exit strategies and maybe regretting not updating his will, and Sunny was panting with rage.
"…you know," Tsunami began, "of all the ways this could've gone south, I genuinely didn't expect it to be this."
Sunny let out a feral screech and ploughed into the newcomer, tackling him to the ground. The scavenger hopped off his shoulder the instant she made contact, leaping into a nearby tree as the two dragons grappled.
"WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THEM, YOU MONSTER?"
Panic flashed across the dragon's face, and with a puff of dust, he disappeared.
