Soko's POV
Curse that crow! From that look in his eye, I could tell he'd done something to Yoko. He enjoyed torturing my fox friend, and he knew it infuriated me. But there was something fishy about this whole situation. I couldn't put my finger on it, but there was something… wrong. {What's that?} I felt a tingle on the edge of my mind. {Someone's trying to talk to me…} I opened my mind, reaching out to whomever it was that was trying to tell me something. {'He's lying! I don't know how I know, I just do! He's lying!'} The voice was familiar. {Like Mag's…} I looked at her. Her face said 'I know something, but I have to tell you secretly!' {She's talking about Karasu!}
So that's what it was. The idiot was trying to pull me into a trap. "You lie!", I state. The crow's glare shifts slightly. "Do I?", he says smugly. I smile. "Yes, and you're horrible at it.", I say. Karasu frowns. "So you say.", he says, his voice dangerously low. I glared and cried, "So I KNOW!!!" I attacked him, drawing a rose and transforming it into a razor-sharp whip. He dodged only barely, and jumped to a tree. I followed, really wanting to get rid of the nuisance. I finally landed a blow to the boy's thigh. I landed and smirked. "I'll come back, S. I always do.", the crow said, retreating into the darkness of the forest. "Well, that was interesting.", Xhi said, walking up to me and shaking slightly. I nod. "Yes. Let's continue, and hope that Yoko is alright."
We continue along the path,, having to occasionally push the plants aside. I stop at a large tree. "I think this is it.", I say. I use my energy to open a secret place beneath the bark. Inside lies my treasure: a golden mirror. I take it out and thank the tree. I turn to Mag and Xhi. "Got it.", I say, showing them my prize. They stare at it. I smile. "This is nothing. You should see the stuff at Yoko's place.", I say, walking off. Mag and Xhi follow me. "Are we going to Yoko's house now?", Mag asked. "Yes, but it's probably what you would consider a 'house'. Just… home.", I say. We walk for a few more hours before we take a break from our adventure.
"This is tiring.", Mag says, smiling and sitting on a fallen tree. Xhi nods excitedly. "It's fun!", she says. {I wonder how much sugar was in the maple syrup…} I lay down in the grass and close my eyes. {So is the life of a thief. Dangerous, tiring, painful, but it's worth it in the long run.} Instinctively my hand plays with the jewel about my neck. {I'm coming… Fox.}
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Xhi's POV
{Wow.} I sit down next to Soko. {One day I'm just a lonely little mechanical genius orphan, the next I'm helping a famous thief.} Suddenly something dawns on me. "Soko?", I ask. "Hm?", Soko asks, her eyes closed. "You said Yoko lives at a home, not a house, right?" "Yeah. Why?" "I just figured that… well… it's kind of like me." Soko and Mag look at me. "Yeah, I guess so. What brought that up?", Soko replies. "Oh, nothing. Just curious." "Curiosity killed the cat.", she said. "Hey!", Mag said looking up. "What? Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to threaten Hippo or anything." "It's okay.", Mag says. "Well," I interrupt. "Shouldn't we be going?" Soko nods and stands up. We follow her down a wide path. "You know, you don't have to follow me. You can walk next to me.", she says over her shoulder. "Sorry.", I chirp, skipping up to walk next to her. "Xhi," Mag says. "Yah Mag?", I answer. "This is the last time we're giving you sugar. I've never seen you this hyper before." "Sorry.", I giggle. {Wait, did I just giggle?! Oh no! Mag's right! I AM too hyper!!!} "It's okay.", Soko says. "You just need to calm down when we reach Yoko's place. I don't think he's used to a 4'10" fourteen year old who's extremely hyper."
"What does he look like anyway?", Mag asked. Soko smiled. "Well, he has long silver hair, silver ears, and a silver Fox tail. He's taller than me and has golden eyes.", she explained. "So basically like you except he's a boy, right?", I say. "Yeah. And he doesn't have a Jagan.", she said. "A what?!", Mag and I ask together. "A Jagan, also known as a third eye or the evil eye, is an artificial implant that allows the wielder to read minds, see over vast distances, master more difficult spirit techniques… all the telekinetic stuff… You get the idea.", she explains. "Uh huh.", Mag says, nodding slowly. "I've lost you, haven't I?", the fox says, smiling. "Yup.", Mag says. "I'll show you later.", she sighs. "Okay.", I say lightly. "So where actually does Yoko live?, Mag asks. "You'll see.", Soko says smiling mysteriously. We arrive at a tree. Not just any tree, though, a really big tree. A really big tree. "Come on.", Soko said. She led us through an opening at the bas of the tree. We walked up a set of stairs inside the trunk of the tree. We stepped out into a tree house hidden by leaves. "This is Yoko's home. There's also a den underground. He certainly likes to-" "Likes to what?", came a voice behind us. Standing in the doorway was a tall silver haired young man. "Likes to sneak up on people, don't you, Yoko?"
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Mag's POV
It takes my eyes a moment to get adjusted to the dim light. My head still pulses with pain from my black out but it was worth it; Soko got my message. Funny, it was like I was electrically charged, then someone closed the circuit and I blacked out. I am just glad that Soko got my message. Who knows what might have happened if she hadn't.
Now, standing here in this dim den, I see what I vastly underestimated Soko. Oh sure, 'help me go into the woods to stash my loot.' REALLY! How about, 'ahem… would you two mind accompanying me on my rather reckless escapade during which we may or may not be almost killed by mad, malicious and probably disease-ridden characters? Oh thanks. Jolly good!' Ha! But, I can't hold a grudge. Soko did save us. A small cough broke my concentration. I look up to see Yoko and Soko smiling at each other. I sense that something similar to a 'mental hug' is being shared by the two; a greeting. Unfortunately, the oblivious Xhi shatters this moment as she jumps toward Yoko and shakes his hand forcefully. I fear it might fall off.
Standing on her tippy-toes, Xhi raises herself closer to Yoko's eyelevel. {Gosh, it must be hard to be that short!} "Hi!", she says. "I'm Xhiko, but my friends call me Xhi. Well, I don't really have many friends, at least, not until I met these two." Ending her long string of sugar-high conversation, Xhi points back to us. Soko shoots a look at Xhi as if to say, "CALM DOWN! It's bad enough he thinks I'm crazy." Keeping his cool, Yoko smiles and says, "Um… nice to meet you." Xhi steps back. Soko thrusts a finger in my direction and says, "This is Magdalene O'Connolly, but we call her Mag." Nodding, Yoko replies, "It's my pleasure."
Soko suggests that we find somewhere to sit. As Xhi and I are led down a large chamber {Funny, this must be one BIG tree}, I notice that it is getting brighter and brighter. Suddenly, the light catches Soko's necklace, sending me into a fit of obsessed jealousy. Before I know what is happening, Xhi's eyes glaze over and she rams me into a wall. I am startled but instantly glad she did. A huge rock had crashed to the ground where I had been standing. Had I still been there, I would be dead. I smile up at Xhi, wanting to thank her, seeing as how I couldn't possibly have survived without her but… her eyes are clear. I start to panic. Soko and Yoko are immediately at my side, but it takes a while for Xhi to come to. Within five to ten minutes, here eyes have returned to their normal crystal blue. "Thank you.", I stammer, still trying to get over my near death experience. "Thank you…? For what?" Xhi looks honestly confused. Befuddled, she continues, "What did I do? And… why is that wall caved in?" She looks around. "Oh, Mag, did I knock you over? I am sooo sorry!" I blink. Xhi has no idea what just happened! Weird!
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