Hello, Ori fandom!
I only indulged myself into the games barely a week ago, after having ignored it all this time. I just assumed it was going to be a quick platformer, with not much of a story or anything. I read nothing on it, or watched any videos of it, only knowing of it through passing phrases, like it being a "Metroidvania". But boy was I wrong! What a wonderful world the game created, nice and open for us authors to play with, too. And the music! A whole new batch of songs to listen to, added to my repertoire of music to write to.
And I won't lie, I've only ever cried twice before from a game, and neither had an impact as much as Ori did. Heck, it inspired me to start writing again, which is something I'm grateful for. So, for the past week, I've been reading up on Ori stuff whether from the wiki, headcanons, or the stories, comics and just browsing the fanart and animations you all made. Now, with my head full of ideas for the world of Ori, I feel I can get back into the groove of writing again.
Please, enjoy the story.
It was a peaceful day.
The sun high in the sky, not a single cloud to cast a shadow, giving it's full warmth to the ground below. In a small meadow full of fruiting trees, mossy logs and a small family, a glowing spirit is searching the ground for food for his sister. However, the quest for worms and caterpillars remain uneventful as the spirit continues its search, frustrated.
Under this rock? Behind this log? Maybe in this hole on a tree? No, no and no. Sighing in disappointment, he turns around to head back when a shadow suddenly looms over him. Looking up, he sees the familiar form of his adoptive sister, and the one he just lost a challenge to.
"Give up, Ori?" Ku asks, a certain smugness in her voice as she notices his empty hands. Shoulders slumping and ears drooping, Ori nods.
"I don't know how you do it, but I can't find a single thing you like! Not a single worm! Or caterpillar! OR centipede, and whatever else! There's nothing here! You didn't cheat, did you?" Ori accuses, squinting his eyes as he can imagine her sweeping the area before the bet, eating and hiding all those wiggling bugs.
"What? No, I would never cheat, because I don't need to! You're not a natural predator like me, so you don't have the touch for it." Ku gloats, taking a few steps while staring at Ori with that smug look in her eyes. Suddenly, she slams her face in the ground, causing Ori to jump in surprise. Moments later she pulls up, a juicy worm caught in her beak, causing Ori to gape at her.
"Wha? How?" Ori asks, utterly flabbergasted. Taking a moment to enjoy her quick snack, she imparts her infinite wisdom on the feeble and dim spirit.
"Eh, I can feel it." She nonchalantly replies with profound vagueness, even though it's technically the truth. A tick forms on Ori's head, a strained smile tensing on his face.
"Oh, you can feel it, huh? Well, how about can you feel this?!" He yells as he leaps, tackling her to the ground as she squawks in surprise. Not giving her a moment to respond, he quickly brings his wiggling fingers to her sides, causing her to squirm and giggle uncontrollably.
"Tell me your secrets, Keeper of Forbidden Knowledge!" Ori demands, smiling wide as he relentlessly attacks her weak points, Ku struggling to get out from under him, but he has her pinned!
"Ne- Hehehe~ Never! I'll never- Hahahahehe! tell the likes of you, Truth Seeker!" Trying to catch her breath and resist his unrelenting assault, Ku's will holds, as firm as a boulder against the terrible storm.
"Acting tough won't save you, I can already see you crumbling beneath my powah!" Ori proclaims, finishing his sentence with a maniacal laugh. Ku, struggling to grasp something with her claws, finally manages to get a grip of the ground, pulling herself over until she's atop Ori.
"Ha! Is that all the 'powah' you could muster, glowboy?" Ku taunts, her strong predator claws gripping Ori like a vice, making his struggling pointless. However, he struggles anyways, mostly due to the glowboy comment, gasping and grunting in exertion before finally going limp.
"Hah.. hah.. Uh, let's call it a draw?" Ori offers, nervously smiling up at his most advantageous sister. Ku looks up towards the sky, humming in thought for a moment before releasing Ori.
"Deal, but only because you asked nicely." She says with a wink, letting him get up and dust himself off.
"Man, I feel in a few years, we won't be able to do this anymore. You're just getting too big! It's not fair!" Ori whines good naturedly, shaking the slight numbing in his arms from her ever increasing grip strength. Looking down at him, then herself, she does have to admit she has a fair bit of a size advantage, so Ori does have a point there.
"Hmm, well I guess we'll have to get creative then! Like, I can only use one claw, or I have to close my eyes. Us owls have really good eyesight, so that's a big deal keeping them closed." Contemplating about future playing sessions, Ku tosses out her suggestions.
"You're mocking me, aren't you?" Ori questions, unamused as he folds his arms.
"What? No, I'm being serious! I think it could work out, either that or we can do something else when we play. Like racing, or doing challenges, y'know, fair stuff no matter how big I get!" Already thinking of some cool games they could try, Ku reassures her brother that they'll still be able to play in the future.
"Hm, maybe. Hide and seek might work, but no moving positions after you choose one! Otherwise we'd be going in circles forever." Ori tosses out a suggestion of his own, with added rules of course. They're both too sneaky for their own good, so simply evading each other when they're supposed to be hiding would drag the game on forever, and that wouldn't be fun.
"Ooh, I like it! You wanna play now?" Ku asks, but is slightly disappointed when Ori shakes his head.
"No, not right now. I think I pulled a muscle or something earlier, so give me a bit to rest first." Sitting down on the soft grass, Ori gives his answer as he looks for any clouds in the sky. Still none, which is pretty uncommon for Nibel.
"Oh, I see. I understand, I guess I did hold you a bit too tightly back there." Ku says, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head with her wing.
"Nah, I just tried too hard... hahh.. It's really nice out today, though." Ori comments, letting out a sigh as he lays back on the natural bed of the earth, hands behind his head. Ku watches him for a moment, before flopping on her back next to him, the both of them looking at the endless blue sky and treetops in all its radiance.
They share this moment together for the better part of an hour, talking occasionally about mundane everyday life things, the new spirits at the Spirit Tree, or a quick game of I Spy from time to time. It's so peaceful, leaving them without a care in the world, the both of them letting out content sighs every once in awhile. But, like most good things, it had to come to an end eventually.
"Alright, I'm getting kinda hungry. But what to eat, orange fruits or purple fruits?" Ori ponders, taking on a mock thinking pose as he sits up. Ku exhales as she gets back up, looking at the fruiting trees and their gifts laying on the ground, when she spots something she hasn't seen before.
"Hey... how about both?" Walking over to her target, she speaks in a secretive manner as Ori watches her, tilting his head in confusion.
"What do you mean? Like, a pile with both? I done that before already." Standing up on his hoofs before stretching, he responds to the supposedly rhetorical answer to his rhetorical question.
"No, I mean a fruit that's both. Come take a look at this!" A smile in her eyes, she nudges her head in the direction of her findings. Curious, Ori jogs the short distance over, looking at the ground she gestured to.
"A fruit that's both? Where?" He scans the many fruits that litter the ground like leaves, not seeing what she's talking about. Sweeping her wing forward, she pushes the side of a bush out of the way, revealing...
"Woah..." Ori exclaims in awe, hardly believing the miracle before him. Because in front of him on the ground, hidden away in a bush, is a fruit that's half orange, and half purple. Carefully reaching for it, he picks up the bizarre fruit, bringing it up to take a closer look. Feeling the fruit, the orange side is stiffer, like how the orange fruits usually are. Meanwhile, the purple side is more soft and squishy, much like the juicy purple fruits.
"It's amazing, right? How did that even happen? Were two fruit trees too close together, so they like... fused or something?" Ku asks, looking at the odd fruit in his hands. Ori glances at her, before looking around the area. There are no other half Orange/Purple fruits about, and looking in the nearby trees is much the same, either being full orange or full purple. A matter of fact, where this was found is directly under an Orange fruit tree. So did an Orange fruit tree create this by accident? Can a tree be confused about what fruit it's supposed to make? He thought they were different tree species...
"I don't know, but I kinda wanna try it. Should I? What if it's like the best of both fruits, the tang of orange fruits with the sweetness of purple fruits? That'd be amazing!" Smiling down at the fruit excitedly, he brings it to his nose to smell.
"Oauf.." Ori shakes his head as he softly exclaims, the extremely strong smell coming from the fruit too much for his sensitive nose. Ku looks at her brother in surprise, before looking back at the fruit with a skeptical eye.
"What's wrong? Does it smell bad? Maybe we shouldn't mess with it.." Ku suggests, eyeing the offending fruit with judgement. However, Ori shakes his head, laughing at her reaction.
"It's fine! It was just strong, that's all. It doesn't necessarily smell bad, just... different. Like, an almost too sweet smell. Weird, right? I mean, how can something be too sweet?" Letting out a short giggle, Ori brings the fruit back up to his nose, but sniffs it less intensely this time.
"Hmm... yeah, that is kinda weird... Oh! Does that mean it's going to be like, super duper sweet tasting? Maybe it's also super tangy, like... like a concentrated mix of both fruits!" Excited at the idea of finding some form of super fruit, Ku hops from one clawed foot to the other repeatedly to release some of her energy. Taking gentle sniffs this time, Ori hums in thought.
"Not... bad, I just never smelled a fruit like this before. But maybe you're right, it does have a really strong smell, so that means it must have a strong taste as well! Should we bring it back to Mom, or should I try it first?" Ori questions, eyeing the odd fruit with barely held excitement. Ku seeing this, gently nudges his shoulder with her wing.
"Try it! We can still bring it back to Mama, but I wanna see your reaction first!" Ku encourages, the both of them turning their gazes on the fruit. Nodding with a smile, Ori carefully brings the fruit to his mouth while licking his lips, making sure to bite in the middle between both colors.
It gushes.
Surprised, Ori slurps the juice spraying out so as to not let it stain his fur too much, a moment later the gushing stops, with Ori pulling back. His cheeks bulging, his mouth full of the strange fruit. Ku leans in closer, carefully watching his expression as it... scrunches up in confusion? Ever so slowly moving his jaw up and down to chew his food, he is unsure about the flavor and texture. Much like the smell, the taste isn't bad, it just doesn't taste much like the fruits he knows, with the texture being mushy.
"How is it? Is it sweet? Tangy? Both?" Ku asks hopefully, but doubt is starting to set in as she watches her brothers stock still form slowly chew the fruit, that confused expression not changing. After a bit, and what appears to be with some slight struggle, Ori manages to start swallowing the fruit, his face twisting into an unsure grimace. After a few strained swallows, he lets out a groan.
"Eugh.. it... was different? It was sweet, but... there's something wrong with the taste, and texture. It also left a tingling feeling on my tongue and throat, maybe I shouldn't have swallowed it.." Looking down at his belly and covering it with a paw, he speaks his thoughts about the experience, somewhat anxious about any possible repercussions. Maybe they should've brought it to Naru first..
".. You're probably right. I'm sorry, I didn't think it was going to be bad.." Ku mumbles apologetically, a twinge of guilt in her chest from egging him on. Ori shakes his head, smiling at her.
"Don't be, I wanted to do it just as much, so I'm more to blame.. I mean, I'm the one that tasted it, I should've spat it out. But, it should be ok, right? It's just a weird tasting fruit, that doesn't mean it has to be bad... right?" Ori asks, suddenly unsure of himself. Looking down at the fruit, the dark coloration of the flesh inside just as off putting as the taste, that uncertainty rising a few levels in his mind.
"R-right.. I think.. um, want to bring it to Mama? She probably knows what it is." Ku suggests, already stepping backwards towards their home, a somewhat nervous expression on her face.
"Yeah, that's probably a good idea. Let's go." Ori agrees, as they both take off towards home, slightly slower than they usually would as Ori feels his stomach rumble with a foreboding, odd sensation.
It only took a handful of minutes to get home, as they usually don't stray too far, arriving at the mouth of the cave. However, there's a problem: They don't see Naru, she's not at the cave. Getting slightly more worried now as Ori's stomach suddenly feels like he ate too much, grumbling in a way that doesn't come from hunger. That's when they notice Gumo, walking back with a few large branches over one shoulder. He notices them and waves cheerfully, before pausing as he sees their worried expressions, Ori gripping a fruit in his hand.
"Hmm? What's wrong, you two? If you're wondering where Naru is, she went to bring some fruit to the spirits as a gift. You know how she is, always trying to make everyone happy, bless her kind heart." Gumo informs them fondly, looking towards the Spirit Tree where he knows the spirits are enjoying her fruit. Ori and Ku look at each other worriedly, before Ori approaches Gumo who looks down at him with furrowed brows.
"Um.. Gumo? Do you know what this is, or if it's safe to eat or not?" Ori asks nervously, holding up the strange fruit that has a bite taken out of it. Gumo glances at the fruit with a bit of confusion, before quickly picking it up with his free hand to take a closer look. He turns it around in his grasp, noticing the coloration, before bringing it to his face and smelling it. Quickly pulling away, he holds the fruit at arms length as he grimaces.
"Whew boy, this fruit's gone foul! Looks like it fell quite awhile ago, Seeing the stage of decomposition it's in. Ori, you didn't eat this, did you?" Gumo asks with concern, but feels he already has his answer seeing Ori's paw on his stomach, and the dawning horror on his face.
"I-I didn't know, I thought it was... W-what's going to happen to me?" Slightly panicking, Ori grips his now twisting stomach, his question asked with a shaking voice as fearful tears well up in his eyes. Ku nervously fidgets behind Ori, scared for her brother, but not knowing what to do.
"Calm down, Ori. Nothing serious, I promise. You'll probably just get a bad belly ache, and maybe get sick later. Also.. sniff eugh.. you'll probably feel a bit... strange as well. This fruit's been fermenting, I can smell a hint of alcohol coming off it. Did it burn when you swallowed it?" Holding the fruit to the side, Gumo asks the somewhat relieved spirit, who pauses to think about it.
"... It tingled, I'm not sure if it burned or not. The taste was very distracting, so I wasn't really paying attention.." Ori awkwardly scratches the back of his head, relieved it's nothing serious, but somewhat embarrassed at his lack of foresight with the fruit. He really should've spit it out, why did he even swallow it? Gumo lets out a huff, before chuckling and shaking his head.
"Ah Ori, I don't know whether to call it reckless or brave to eat a fruit like this. But, oh well, you live and learn. Anywho, I gotta get busy with my building, daylights burning and I wanna get some work done. Oh, and drink lots of water, you'll need to stay hydrated if you get real sick. Naru should be back sometime soon, I'm sure she knows a few ways to help with this. Just hold on until then, 'kay Ori?" Gumo shares his advice with the poor spirit, smiling when Ori gives him a firm nod.
With that, Gumo carries on his way back to the cave after giving Ori back his spoiled fruit, dropping the thick branches on the floor to begin carving and sanding them down into smooth, usable planks. Placing the fruit on a nearby rock, Ori heads over to the stream, washing the rotten juice out of his fur and paws, before drinking deeply of the cool, clear water. Ku decides to join him, quenching her own thirst as well.
The water made his stomach feel worse for a moment, but then started to ease up until it was just a dull queasiness, Ori sighing in relief. He decides to wait for Naru by the stream in case he suddenly started feeling sick again, with Ku watching over him, asking how he feels every other minute. It didn't take long, about 15 minutes before the familiar shape of their mom could be seen walking from the Spirit Tree, a large empty basket under one arm and a pleased smile on her face.
Ori stands up, before suddenly stumbling. His head felt dizzy, like the world was tilting beneath him. Shaking the sensation off, he quickly makes his way to Naru, Ku following close behind. Noticing her children approaching, her smile brightens even further, glowing like the evening sun behind her.
" Oh, were you two worried about me? I'm sorry for not telling you, but I couldn't find either of you, else I would've invited you to join me. Oh, the young spirits were so welcoming and sweet, like little... Ori? What's the matter? Are you feeling alright?" A hint of concern in her voice, Naru places the basket on the ground, getting to one knee as Ori approaches. Awkwardly scratching his cheek, he looks up into her eyes, shame painting his face.
"I ate a spoiled fruit... and now my stomach feels sick, and my head is spinning. Can you help me, Mom?" Ori asks with a quiet voice, shame tinting it from his foolish actions. A look of understanding blooms on her face as Naru reaches out and embraces Ori, a sad smile on her lips.
"Oh, my poor child, of course I'll help you. I'm sad to hear you aren't feeling well, but I think I know just the thing to help. Give me just a moment, would you?" Gently placing Ori back down, Naru stands and looks around, before spotting a particular mushroom. Walking over to the rather large, wide mushroom, she reaches down and breaks a chunk off the cap. Looking to her right, she walks over and picks a few leaves off a strange, purple fern coming out of the ground.
"Ku, can you get one of the bowls inside and fill it with water from the stream? One of the stone ones, we'll be using it to boil with." Naru smiling when Ku quickly nods before running back to the cave, happy that she can finally help her brother, no matter how small a task it is. With that, she walks over to a fallen log, Ori watching her in awed wonder at the process. Carefully looking at the pattern of tiny leaves that make up the different moss's, Naru spots the shape she needs, grabbing a small clump of it and placing it in her tucked arm with the mushroom cap and fern leaves.
Ku, running back with a stone bowl in her beak curtesy of a small handle on the side, heads to the edge of the stream before dunking it under the water. Carefully holding the bowl in her beak, she makes her way back to Naru, who graciously accepts the bowl with a smile.
"Thank you, Ku. Now we just need a little heat to get the ingredients boiling. Ku, can you get a few sticks for me? Not much is needed, we won't be making a lot." Noticing her eagerness to help, Naru gives her another task, smiling fondly at the way Ku nods fervently before dashing towards the woods at breakneck speeds. Ori, feeling a bit left out, looks up at his mother.
"Can I help with anything?" Naru looks down at him in surprise, before smiling radiantly.
"Of course, Ori. Here, use this rock to smash the ingredients together. Keep mashing until it's a fine paste, I'm going to get Gumo to help start a fire." With that, Naru heads back to the cave where the sounds of thumping and banging is heard, Gumo hard at work fitting together another platform. Grasping the rounded rock with a flat end in his hands, Ori gets to work whacking and crushing the ingredients together on a large stone slate, nearly finished when everyone else arrives roughly the same time.
Gumo, taking a few sticks that Ku gathered, quickly starts a small flame with his skilled hands, building it up with more sticks into a small fire. Naru, after placing the bowl on the open flame, takes the pasted ingredients. Waiting a few minutes for the water to start boiling, she carefully scrapes the greenish tan paste into the water, stirring the contents together as an earthy medicinal scent wafts through the air.
Minutes pass by, Ori taking deep breaths as he feels his stomach turning, squeezing his eyes shut as he starts to feel woozy. But before he knows it, he feels a gentle hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he sees Naru smiling down at him, holding a wooden bowl out to him. Taking the warm bowl in his hands, he peers inside curiously. In the bowl is a small amount of a runny, syrup like substance with a pretty, pure amber color to it.
"There you go, Ori. Drink that, and you'll feel much better, I promise." Naru assures him, warmth in her eyes as she watches her child examine the medicine, a bit of confusion on his face.
"Why is it amber? Wasn't it green earlier?" Ori asks, taking a whiff of the concoction and shaking his head, the smell is very strong. Gumo is the one that responds, barking out a laugh.
"You must've been really out of it there, kiddo! Like Naru said earlier, the medicine will change to a beautiful amber hue when it is ready. Though, I don't think its beauty is going to change the taste much." Gumo shrugs apologetically, earning him a glare from Naru, making him shrink on himself whilst chuckling nervously.
Looking back down at the amber fluid, he closes his eyes and brings it to his lips, just trying to get this over with. A muffled gag is heard as his face twists up, the medicine tasting particularly bitter and earthy, a tinge of sourness as it hits the back of his throat. But he pushes on, raising the bowl higher and higher until only drops are left, splattering and tainting his tongue with its foul taste until they too cease. Naru smiles proudly down at him, gently rubbing his back as he coughs.
"Very good, Ori, very good! You are a brave and strong child to so quickly consume it, without even a little bit of fuss! With that, you should be feeling much better come tomorrows morning." Showering him in praise, Naru attempts to put his worries to rest with the time he'll be cured, but she only receives a shocked look instead.
"Wait, tomorrow? Not in a few minutes, or even an hour?" Ori asks in worry, causing Naru to furrow her brows for a moment, before realizing the misunderstanding.
"Oh, Ori. The medicine needs time to work, with it being most effective during a nights rest. I'm sorry to disappoint you like this but if you didn't take the medicine, you might've felt ill for a few days, maybe longer. A spoiled fruit is no joke, though while harmless to ones life, can make you feel miserable for a long while." Naru explains with a gentle, soothing voice with a hint of experience in it. Ori looks down at his hoofs for a moment, before nodding, accepting the wait.
The rest of the evening goes by in a blur for Ori. After stumbling over and falling on his face during one of his trips to the stream, his family carefully help him back to his bedding. Placing a large bowl of water next to him so he doesn't need to go to the stream anymore, Naru gently caresses his head and back, his eyelids getting heavier by the second through her gentle ministrations. Until finally, his eyes close, and he drifts to sleep.
Ori opens his eyes, seeing nothing but void all around him. A sudden dread overtaking him, he starts walking aimlessly in the darkness. Attempting to call out, he feels his throat clogged, unable to make a sound. Beginning to panic, he starts running as fast as he could, but it's like wading through water, a dragging exhaustion taking over his body. Tears sting the edges of his eyes as fear overtakes him, trying again and again to call out for help, only to not make a sound.
Running on legs that felt like jelly for what felt like hours, he suddenly stops when he hears a loud shattering sound. Looking towards its direction, he sees a crack in the void, light leaking through like a crack in a cave wall. Hope welling in his chest, he runs towards the crack as fast as he could, tears running down his cheeks as his fingers finally reach the path to his freedom. Only, nothing is as it seems.
His paws brush up the sides of the seemingly cracked cave wall, only for it to fold against his weight like a soft fabric, causing him to lose balance and fall through the opening. Looking up, he sees an unfamiliar nest that's more like a large cozy home, behind him being a doorway made of large leaves that he just passed through. Standing up, he looks around the room with a sense of loss. If only he was a little faster, if only he tried harder, then this home wouldn't have to be left empty. A deep sorrow fills him as he mourns the loss of... something.
Blinking suddenly at the confusing thought, he turns to the sound of someone calling his name.
"Ori, quick! Take my hand, brother! There's still time!" A large spirit calls, reaching down the cliff side as the rain and thunder beat on them both mercilessly. With a huff, he grabs hold of the damp arm, spirit staff in hand, determined to end this pain once and for all, for all the spirits and lightless!
Lifting himself up on the cliff, he cheers as he jumps in the air, throwing leaves and small seeds everywhere. In front of him is a surprised Gumo, with Naru and Ku next to him throwing their own handfuls of leaves, cheering.
"Happy birthday!" They yell with glee, bringing out a large bowl of fruit in their cozy cave. Gumo smiles as tears well in his eyes, before laughing with utmost joy.
"I can't believe it! You remembered me!" The creature yells, their bright yellow eyes smiling as they hug Ori, their tail swishing with joy. He happily hugs them back, glad to finally reunite with their old friend, A̵͚̔̕ȩ̵̭̄̏Ą̸̔̒͘Ö̴̺͈͎̣͚́͊̀͝ǘ̶͓͔̟̬͆͝E̴̯̼̳͑͗͒͝.
"Let go of me! Don't try to stop me, Ori, this is my decision! Please... please let me do this, let me atone for my mistakes!" The figure struggles to get out of his hold, but he clings on tightly. No more, he won't let anyone else suffer, he won't let anyone else throw their life away! He'll save them, he has to, he's the only one that can! Shoving the figure back hard enough that they fall, he stands resolute before them, staring into their eyes until they finally concede, slumping to the ground in tears. With a hateful glare he didn't know he was capable of, he turns around, ready to face the source of ę̸͖͎̀̎̌̈D̵̛͎̼ÿ̶̛̺̦́̀͘U̶̬̮͖̓͒͘e̵̛͉̝͚͐̂͗͜Ä̸̲͕͈́.
"Ah, there ye are, Ori! We were just about'ta start without'cha, glad ye could make it!" A large figure calls, sitting on the end of a long table when he entered. Lining either side is all the friends he made on his journey in their own respective seats, merrily chatting with each other and greeting him. Ori smiles, this is just what he needed, a moment to relax among friends during these troubling times. With a huff, he takes his seat.
"Your majesty! These are the traitors who stole the light, who attempted to doom us to darkness!" A spirit warrior calls, banging the butt of his staff of light on the ground. One of the accused shouts in dismay, pleading that there's a bigger truth to the world, and that the light hides the answer before being silenced with a cloth wrapped around their mouth. Ori tilts his head, squinting at the poor accused before him. What foolishness. He raises his paw, about to order for their execution, when he suddenly stops.
"Wait... something isn't right, was I really about to..?" He trails off with a look of disbelief, suddenly realizing that he found his voice again. Wait, when was it lost?
"Eugh... This doesn't taste right, it's gross." Ori complains, the fruit in his hand looking a bizarre shade of tan, the flesh inside like a million tiny reddish-pink spheres melted together, before hardening into this crunchy grossness. Looking around as everyone else is enjoying their food, giving him confused looks about what the problem is, he looks back down at his fruit in shame. He shouldn't be picky.
"Momma, look! I found food!" Ori shouts, holding a fruit up to his mother, who isn't responding.
"Momma? Come on, wake up! I found fruit! Open your eyes and see!" Ori calls out, shoving her unmoving arm, still unresponsive.
"M... Mom? Wake up, Momma, please. Please... We have food, momma.." Ori whimpers, tears in his eyes as he continues to shove her, trying to wake her up. She falls back, not breathing, not responding. A sob breaks past his lips, his heart tearing in his chest.
"Please... I can't lose you again.. Not again... Wait... again?" Ori blinks in confusion, suddenly remembering, before forgetting once more.
"Come on, Ku! We have to get out of here, this storm is too much!" Ori yells to his sister, desperately holding on to her feathers for dear life as he looks around fearfully.
Looking back at Ku, he notices she is suddenly much larger, flying through a storm towards the Spirit Tree. Turning her head around, absolute horror grips his heart as Kuro stares at him disdainfully.
"Get off my back you filthy spirit!" Kuro shouts with both rage and hatred, lunging her beak towards him. In a panic, he desperately tries to jump out of the way, but he's too slow as her beak pierces his gut. A terrible wave of pain courses through his stomach as his organs are obliterated, blood quickly rising up his esophagus before spewing out of his lips, his glowing life essence scattering to the wind as darkness quickly takes him.
With a heave, Ori vomits off the side of his bedding, the suddenness of it sending an electric shock up his spine. Continuing to heave until nothing more comes out, he pants heavily, a cold sweat covering his shaking form as he blinks blearily, slowly pushing himself up into a sitting position. He grasps his stomach, feeling that he still has a stomach, before sighing as the tension leaves his body. A dream, it was just a dream.
Glancing around in a daze, he can see that it's still about an hour before dawn, the barest of light shining over the horizon as early birds slowly awaken to begin their songs. He looks over when he hears a rustling noise making his heart jump to his throat, before realizing it's just Naru rolling over in her bedding, moaning a bit before letting out a yawn. Slowly, her eyes flutter open, her hand wiping the sleep out while she props herself up on one arm, looking over at Ori.
"Ori? What's the matter? Did you have a... oh." She pauses, seeing the puddle of bile on the floor, suddenly remembering the day before. With a grunt, she sits up the rest of the way, stretching out her arms with another yawn.
"Huahh.. Ah, are you feeling better now, Ori?" Naru asks, still in the process of waking up. Ori, now remembering the day before as well, feels around his stomach. Aside from the empty feeling of hunger, like he hasn't eaten anything all day, he does feel better. The queasiness is gone, his head is no longer woozy, and his arms aren't jittering anymore from sudden cold chills. He looks back up at Naru with a smile.
"I.. do feel better! Thank you so much, Momma! Though, I am feeling a bit hungry... now..." Rubbing his rumbling stomach, Ori stands up before realizing what he just said. Naru is also looking at him with a slack expression, before turning into a cheerful smile.
"Did you just call me.. Momma? You haven't called me that in years! Oh sweetie, did your stomach hurt worse than I thought it did?" Naru gets up, suddenly full of energy as she carefully makes her way to her child, careful of the mess she'll need to clean up. With a sudden urge to coddle him, she reaches up and pulls his abashed form into a warm hug, a loving warmth emanating off her. Ori lets himself enjoy her loving embrace for a moment, before frowning.
"... I had a really weird dream.. or, I guess it'd be more accurate to say it was a Nightmare..." Ori mumbles into her fur, his arms wrapping tightly around her as he tries to pull himself closer. Naru looks down at him with concern, a sadness in her eyes as she can see his drooping ears, before returning his tight embrace with one of her own, letting him sink into her soft body.
"A Nightmare... that sounds awful. But know that I'm willing to listen if you want to talk about it. If it scared you or made you feel sad, I'll be here to comfort you, always." Naru promises, pulling back to look into his sad eyes with her warm ones, showing she'll always support him. With a shaky breath, Ori leans back into her chest, closing his eyes for a moment.
"... Thank you..." He whispers just loud enough for her to hear him, causing her to beam with love. They stay like this for a few minutes, just enjoying each others company and warmth, before finally separating when Ori's stomach growls loudly. Letting out a soft giggle, Naru places Ori on her shoulders, before walking out of the cave as the sky slowly gets brighter to welcome the new day.
"A rumbling stomach on my watch? Oh no, no, no that won't do. The sun hasn't risen yet, but how do you feel about some early breakfast? I'll see if I can find some nice big juicy ones, just for you." Naru says, looking back up at Ori with a smile, which he returns after a moment.
"Thanks, Mom. I'd really like that." Leaning forward to hug the back of her head, they make their way through the woods. Naru carefully searching and picking only the largest, juiciest fruits she can find, handing them to Ori to fill his belly. It didn't take long before Ori stops eating, unable to finish his current fruit, though that's no surprise as that's his sixth one of these especially large fruits. Afterwards, Naru leans back against a tree, holding Ori on her belly as he lets out a contented sigh.
"... Um... about my dream.." Ori begins, sitting up on her chest with a nervous look on his face, looking anywhere but her eyes.
"Do you want to talk about it now?" Naru asks, gently rubbing his paw between her fingers, her full attention on him. Ori looks down at her hand rubbing his paw, swallows, then nods, finally looking her in the eyes.
"Um... W-well... First I want to say, it's a weird dream.. a really weird dream, so I'm not sure how much sense it'll make..." Ori says, rubbing one of his ears with his free hand. Naru nods along, a warm smile on her face.
"I understand, don't worry. I've had my fair share of weird dreams before too, you know. Just tell me what you feel like telling me, and if you forgot anything, that's okay too. I'm here to listen, after all." Reaffirming her support, Naru dashes away his worries, making him let out a breath as it felt like a weight lifted off his shoulders. Nodding his head a few times, he continues.
"Well... the first thing I saw was a dark void, there wasn't even any ground. I was scared, so I started running, and for some reason I couldn't speak or call for anyone, which made me more afraid. After awhile, there was this loud breaking sound, and this crack appeared in the void in front of me..." Ori begins his tale through his dream, piecing together all the parts he can remember. He thought he would cry if he tried retelling it, but the way Naru rubbed his paw made it all a little better, just enough to keep him on track and not break.
Neither of them knew how much time had passed, but by the end of it, they both felt closer to each other than ever before. A warm smile rests on both of their lips as they hug the pain away, leaving only warmth and love in their hearts, the darkness cast from their minds.
THE END
Man, what a rollercoaster, huh? This was originally going to be more of a comedy kind of story, but the more I wrote, the deeper it got until I was stuck making this wholesome mess.
Some of the bits in the fever dream may seem familiar, some more so than others. I wanted to fit a few references to the games in it, not much, but some. Other parts were just things I made up, no real meaning to it much like how a fever dream usually is. One part of it is actually a dream I had personally, except it was a sandwich rather than a fruit, with this weird, no bake cookie looking red stuff in it. I don't remember what it tasted like all that much, I just know it was gross.
And lastly, a few parts are possible stories I might write in the future, like little teasers. Not telling which ones, though! Oh, and if anything in the fever dream gave you an idea for a story, or inspired you to build off it, go right ahead! I'd be glad to inspire other authors to write more stories, because that gives me more to read! Ha!
This was my introduction story into the fandom, pleasure to be here and I'm in your care and all that. Until next time, adios!