"Uuu, I knew this was a bad idea!" Lamented Kaguya as the two kittoms hurriedly scurried into the looming ruin to seek shelter from the fierce weather. "I knew we shouldn't have gone this high up! Now we're all lost in this HORRIBLE weather, and we're gonna - EEP!"
The skittish kittom lets out a yelp as she stumbled over a particarly long tree root which had found its way through the archaic walls from a crack in the floors, having mistaken it for a wicked tendril at first glance with the gloomy darkness and mist obscuring her vision slightly. Her partner-in-crime's shocked expression swiftly changed into one of slight amusement as she bounded up to her trembling friend, who was obviously shaken by the harsh weather and the unfamiliar environment. Even though they'd both been born in Kyendi, Kaguya was hardly one to explore or seek new adventures, while Chi on the other hand, a bundle of joy and excitement, always wanted to comb through the thick forests and towering mountains in order to find a new experience.
"Geez, Kag." Chi sighed, smiling softly. "What're you being so scared for, huh? It's just a bit of - "
Another high-pitched scream comes from poor Kaguya as a flash of thunder cracks across the clouded skies, hardly able to focus on her friend's attempt to comfort her with the combined sound of the furious storm lashing against the structure's derelict walls and the furious flowing of the overburdened waterfalls. Petrified of any further noises, she scampered deeper into the abandoned temple, finding solace beneath a particularly large fern in a corner covered in moss and other small plants. It was evident this place had hardly remained touched in years with the way the lush green fauna seemed to try to reclaim it. Almost poetically so, there was the spooked kittom, shaking like a leaf beneath the shelter of one.
"Hey, hey, hey..." Noting the seriousness of Kaguya's predicament, Chi's tone turns to one of more concern as she followed behind, shivering as she felt drops of cold rainwater seep through some of the more fragile parts of the time-worn rocky ceiling. "What's the big idea, huh? I mean, yeah, the weather sure sucks..." She took a glance at the entrance. The mist which usually simply brushed over the mountaintops and rainforests was in full swing, almost completely obscuring their surroundings along with the pelting rain. "But I'm sure it'll clear up soon, right?" If not for the soft glow from her eyes and anima, the surroundings would be completely dark. Not wanting her friend to have another thing to worry about, she shifted right next to her, lighting up their surroundings a little. She could see the mortified expression on Kaguya's face, as well as almost indecipherable scriptures engraved on the walls.
Kaguya whimpered as she rested her head on her paws, body still tense and on high alert. Tears began to well up in her big, bluish-green eyes as her gaze shifts to Chi. "...But what if it doesn't? Even if it does, w-what if... what if it gets worse? What if this whole place crumbles around us? Uu, I can just hear it creaking... Chi, I don't wanna die... I wanna keep going on adventures with you..."
"Hey, now you're just being-" Chi cuts herself off before finishing her sentence. She takes in the pitiful state of poor Kaguya, the way her soaked-to-the-bone body is shivering frantically in a mix of fear and cold, the way soft, high-pitched sobs and hiccups escape from her, only barely audible over the howling wind and crashing rain, and changes her approach.
"...Kag, hey." The confident Kittom spoke up suddenly, the other jolting in panic at the sudden sound of her voice, fur bristling in panic.
"What is it? I...I'm sorry, I know I'm being a real a scaredy-pomu, I just..."
"Kaguya. It's fine, I promise." Chi interrupts her, but with a gentler tone. There's a reassuring smile on her face as she comfortingly settles a paw over Kaguya's, causing her eyes to widen in embarrassment momentarily. "I promise you won't get hurt, yeah? Not as long as I'm around, anyway!" She puffed her fluffy chest out in pride. "I'm telling you, I won't let any stupid monster or thunderbolt lay a single paw on you!"
Her mood immediately being brightened by Chi's confidence, Kaguya can't help but let out a dainty giggle which eventually turns into a full on laugh. Thanks to her friend's words, at least for a moment, she's left all her worries behind, and even the horrible weather outside or the long fall below doesn't seem so scary anymore.
"See? You're looking braver already, Kag." Chi grins, pulling her paw away before crossing it beneath her. "You're not a scaredy-pomu at all. You just need... a little push, is all."
"Thank you... for believing in me." Kaguya eventually speaks up, looking down - though there's obviously something still eating at her mind as she brushes her paws against some moss nervously. "But, what you said... about always being around...You... You mean that, right? Promise?"
There's a long, painful silence except for the rushing waterfalls and howling winds between the two of them as Chi begins to gaze at the fog-covered scenery below them as her mind wanders elsewhere - something far away. About someone else. She swallows dryly, not sure of what to say in response to Kaguya's armor-piercing question before she speaks up, her friend not noting the wavering in her voice.
"...Yeah. Sure."
