Lifting her stiff neck from the snow, Zera groggily watches little red dribbles freckle the ground. She spits the blood off her muzzle and glares through her haze. What kind of enchantment has been planted on her now? Her small black eyes scan the vividness of the artic sheet. Nothing for miles and miles but pure white and a few magnificent mountains in the distance, sparkling grand into an aqua sky.
"Leonardo! Nipal!" Her pitiful cries sprint only so far from her own mouth, and she chooses a direction to move instead, the right, and steers forward into the pearly blaze. Why does it feel like her ankles have weights on them? Each step is a struggle, even for her athletic standards, and her temper is growing thin at the frustration and confusion. It's too cold to be a dream, or a nightmare. She never knew this place existed; Anavrin's tropical climate doesn't allow any room for the cold and it vehemently rejects votes in the Crocus Ring every year. It's why she settled in Anavrin: warm temperatures, cool water, and the best coconut goldfish in the land; these thoughts keep her toasty inside, along with her frilly, silvery cloak and a snug earflap winter hat, protecting her sensitive ears. She inspects the clothing, not remembering where she got it from because she doesn't own anything like it or recalls stopping at a store. They're pretty and warm, but they weigh a ton!
"I have to return to him," Zera mumbles as the blizzard stabs against her cheeks. "I was a fool for fighting against a strong enemy alone. Forgive me, my Rook. I'll return and send you back to your family."
One boot drops into the snow, and she's stuck. It's already difficult enough to move. "Dammit!" she hisses, pulling against the force. "What is this? I'm not freezing out here! Get out, you stupid foot!" She growls and yanks harder until her hat zips into the wind. "Ahh! Come back!" Her ears flap around her face and blinds her momentarily. "I hate these stupid things!"
After squishing her ears against the sides of her icicled face, a huge presence rests in her field of vision. A giant paw clutches her hat and holds it out to her. "Did you drop this, my lady?" a gravelly but kind voice asks her. She is cautious, gently taking the hat and tugging her ears under it.
"Yes, thank you."
His face is recognizable now: a gray and white polar bear, which explains the size, and he doesn't look particularly mad, or hungry. "What is a young lady such as yourself doing here? No one comes to these parts." Donning a massive brown parka and boots big enough to fill twenty Zeras in, the polar bear leans over the smaller fox, blocking the wind from her face, which is a welcomed relief at least.
Her teeth chatters a nervous reply, "Lost my w-way. Thank y-you. G-goodbye."
"Please, my lady," his words, very warm and convincing as she tracks through the harsh weather and steadily leaving him behind, "I'll give you a roof and a map to help you. My shelter isn't far from here."
Zera slows and eventually stops, peering into the white abyss. His voice reminds her of a compassionate role model from her past swirling a deep fondness under her chest and stinging rather hard. She cringes and only half-turns towards him; the wind sizzles her eyes. "I ... can't..."
"But, little snow maiden, what good would your frozen body do wherever it is you're going?"
"No.." she whispers through her teeth. "Home.."
The friendly polar bear offers his wooly paw. "We'll get you there."
A soft, clarion melody arouses Zera from a hard sleep. Misplaced warmness fans her cheeks; she rises from slumber, eyes peering through frosted glass and taking moments before she can see clearly again. The storm had briefly killed her senses, and a shot of urgency rings through her body. Escape!, it pleads to her, and before she can stand on her two shaky legs, the melody stops.
"Maiden, I have fish for you." The polar bear samaritan and his grandfatherly voice, she remembers. Through mid leap, Zera peers at her graceful host, sitting behind a calm fire with an instrument in his steady grip. "Did the flute disturb you?"
She relaxes, but her eyes dart around the tight, icy cavern, taking in its snake-like construction and low ceiling. The polar bear host even hunches over, the tip of his parka swiping the roof, and his fingers glide over, upon closer inspection, a bamboo flute. From there, her eyes move across the fire and back to the cave's entrance, a hole just large enough for a big creature such as the polar bear to enter but it would need to duck. Every corner of the cavern is jagged and could pierce through the toughest cloth. She's surprised at getting any sleep, feeling an uneven ground under her wooly gloves, like suspended waves of a frozen terrain.
He breaks through her numb thoughts. "The wind sounds scary out there, doesn't it?" A sharp crackle from his turning the fish in the fire jerks her more awake. "I'm not sure how long this storm will last. I have enough to eat here, for the both of us."
"You are very kind, but I'm not hungry," she lies, blocking out the succulent smell and ignoring feisty stomach growls, "and I must go. Now."
"Maiden," his feelings a little bruised, apparent through a dry rumble in his voice, "you are flushed and dizzy. Please have some fish before you go." He holds up a worn satchel. "I have my special spices, and that's a rare occurrence!"
She stands on her feet, but the dizziness strikes between her eyes so quickly and her footing almost throws her into the fire. He catches her with one hand before she's injured and sets her down in the old spot, now chilled. Frustrated, Zera shakes off the hood and smacks herself a few times. "Not now! Come on... come on..." The self abuse intensifies an expanding migraine, and her anguish bubbles behind her eyelids. "I'm sorry... I want to save you, Leonardo, but my body is failing." Her words spiral into a hoarse whisper, and she leans against the uncomfortable wall.
"Now, now..." the host removes a piece of fish and places it in her anxious lap, smiling, "your body needs nourishment. That's all. Eat."
Aroma from the cooked fish viciously tempts her. When she lifts it to her mouth and gnaws into the flesh, the frightful wind disappears, and she only hears the sound of consumption. The fish is instantly devoured, and she licks the tiny bones for every last morsel. A fraction of her strength returns, allowing her a better view in the cave. Interestingly, her host has a peg leg, it resting against the wall beside him, and a moderate collection of tools and weapons in his possession, too. The fire's light arches over the weapons, but the rest of the cave is sprayed in darkness.
Zera turns back to the entrance, spitting out a bone and forlornly watching the storm, "How long can someone survive out there?"
He tosses the second fish behind her and peers into the storm with her. "Not very long at all. You need survival gear and adequate shelter. The coat you have on won't even protect you."
"I don't believe he has any gear," she mumbles, forgetting about the food.
"Then, his chances are very slim."
Her throat catches, "Yeah.. but he's strong. He'll find shelter and food. He's a survivor. If I found one, he could!"
The host raises the flute to his chin and positions his massive fingers on it. "This is the only cave for miles around, little Snow Maiden."
"Then he is on the other side," she idly dismisses as the flute trickles melody into the cave. "Rooks won't perish so easily, especially him..." She remembers his smile and confidence, and grins inside at the silly thought she always has of him being a lighthouse on the seafront, a night watchman, a savior for the weak, and the list of cheesy names goes on forever. She will never tell him that; there are some thoughts and feelings guarded specifically for her. These light hearted thoughts keep him close to her, despite any great distance.
The wistful music flowing through her ears muffles everything; a sound so familiar and revealing, Zera's strong grip against the wall loosens and she slides back to the ground, landing in a gentle heap. Her mind pulses warnings, low at first and then gaining volume, but as the music continues, a part of herself breaks and sinks into an old memory.
The dirty, haggard ceiling looks the same as it always did, whipping a pot of uncomfortable feelings. She studies the ceiling closer: each crack and mildew drop upon its familiar surface pulls her deeper, and she doesn't struggle. Remembering what happens when one tries struggling under that ceiling paralyzes her. Or, in all honesty, she is frightened of reverting back to a delicate, mindless young one. Seeing the ceiling again... will it reverse time?
No longer am I the buttered child afraid of ghosts. Be strong! She swallows a spoonful of fear and inhales deeply. My teachers trained me well, especially the fierce Doyen Gurion. He was strict, but fair when he could be, and I'm a better person because of his training.
Gurion's kind, electric eyes and impressive build blossom in her mind, distracting her from the cold wall. His superb black and white mane insured his top place in society; those enormous talons, she recalls, were vicious and deadly, slashing through opponents as easily as the wind. His students and career were his existence. Proud and assertive, Gurion never wasted his time on weak people and mundane causes; there was a never finishing line in his eye. He attained his perfect form shortly before death: a fighter on all fours, hulky eyebrows, whiskers, and ears, antennas of fur swimming in the same direction, talons ready for blood, menacing teeth, and eyes that lost deserted memories and focused only on the kill. She missed him as the teacher who made her stand up after a lost battle and as the man she admired for his devotion to what he loved the most.
Zera opens her eyes again, staring into the same filthy wall, and missing Gurion's stern yet relieved face whenever she got knocked the hell out from flapping her lips at the wrong person. The memory is enough to make her smile behind the anxiety.
Another set of eyes peer down at her. They aren't alien to her, but the deep brown eyes definitely remind her of another's gaze.
"My son.." the eyes blink. The voice is so gentle and smooth, she almost drifts back to sleep. "Stay awake, my son. Do not leave us again."
Is he calling her his son? There must be a mistake. She's not male!
A second voice barges through, intense and alarmed. "If you go back to sleep, I'll bust that pretty face! Now STAY awake!" Eyes belonging to that barbaric voice hover above her; a pair of golden eyes that are literally on fire and spitting on her face. She immediately fights back, but can't speak. She can't scream at the person who threatened her!
"He's moving! Raph, get out of the way!" A third voice, also alarmed but smoother around the edges. Blue eyes push the yellow ones away, and the brown eyes drifts into the corner of her vision. She doesn't want the familiar, pleasant brown eyes to leave her. Everything is so stiff, even her own eyes, and all she can stare at is the damn wall!
The next voice is a little lower than the previous one, slightly less alarmed, and the eyes are also brown and calculating. "All of you move! Sensei, I'm sorry, but excuse me." A bright burst of light jabs her and blocks out vision for a short time. "Pupils are reacting. I think he's-"
"About time he woke up!"
"Shut up, Raph! It's not his fault!"
"QUIET!"
She's fairly certain the first set of brown eyes with the gentle voice silenced everyone in the room, but she's too nervous to care anymore. Who do they believe she is? All sets of the distressed eyes float over her now.
"My son, your family is here and we miss you. Come, Leonardo. Return to us."
Flute noises abruptly halt as Zera jolts from her coma and scuttles around the ice cave, twitching and whimpering. The polar bear helplessly watches her snatch his peg leg and point it at him over the fire. The look in her eyes announces that she's officially insane.
"You put me to sleep, deceitful bear!" she warbles, removing her hood and displaying a full set of angry ears perched on her head. "What kind of voodoo magic do you possess?"
He drops his flute in mild panic. "I was only providing music for your slumber, maiden. This flute is just a normal instrument."
"Lies!" her scream tears through the cave and stops him from picking up his instrument. "It did something to me!"
"What did it do?"
"My soul was transported. I woke up in my friend's body!"
He blankly stares at her and smacks his lip. "It might have been the fish."
She frantically looks around the fire and his area. "Where did you get the fish?"
"Can you put my leg back, please?"
"FISH!" She lowers the leg into the fire, scaring him into submission. He chucks a bag of frozen fish on her side. "I don't need all of them," a touch of sympathy whimpers from her voice. "But thank you. Is this a breed of fish that causes one to hallucinate?"
"Yes, it's possible, given the current circumstances," he eyes her curiously, hoping the wild fennec doesn't drop his leg into the flames. "Are you sane now?"
"Never!" she exhales sharply, tossing the leg into his hands, and dives into the bag, slinging random carp and smacking a couple across the bear's shoulders. "This one looks questionable. I'll take it." She tucks the fish in one of her deep pockets and oddly peers at the bear. "You really are too nice. What was your name?"
"I am just a drifter," his soft drawl and horizontal demeanor returns. "There are already enough mean souls in the world. I find balance." He retrieves his flute and inspects it for damage.
"Sorry... about this," Zera mumbles, heading to the entrance. "I'm a scared fool."
"I have made mistakes too, all for another's sake," he says, arranging his instrument. "But the good news here is the storm doesn't look as rough now. Be careful, and I hope you find your loved one."
She nods, plopping her hood over her ears and tucking them tightly.
The flute trills a couple of notes as she steps closer to the entrance. The crushing snow and ice growl at her feet, and she swallows tight lumps, almost regretting her decision, but she's already wore out her welcome. The only choice left is to return to the harden frontier and find a way back to Leonardo Hamato.