Submission (#4539) Approved

Elnin: ELN2137 | https://worldofeyre.com/character/ELN2137
Regional Affinity: Kyendi
Word Count: 1056

so my friend Staarbits and i kind of brainstormed a small scene together for our prompt, and then wrote our entries independently (so i wrote all of this one myself) but made them match to tell a full story ;w; we hope that's okay!!

Sohail wasn’t quite sure if he liked Kyendi very much. The jungles full of thick foliage, the cumbersome hills, the troublesome insects. Bugs weren’t a fear of his - he wasn’t afraid of anything, of course - but they were a nuisance. They seemed bigger here than anywhere else. He didn’t know if that was actually true, but it sure felt like it, and he hated it. Not even the natural wonder of the floating islands was enough to soothe his disinclination to be here.

He picked his way through the plants and dirt, grumbling words of annoyance with every step. Why was there so much? He couldn’t even see the sky above him with how thick and tall the canopies were. He hopped across a river, using the smooth rocks poking out above the surface as stepping stones, shaking off the spray from the waterfall that fed into the stream once he reached the other side. Eventually, he came upon an interesting group of ruins nearly completely overgrown with moss and vines. Some of the broken marble even had the roots of trees growing straight through them. He briefly wondered what kind of civilization used to be here, and what happened to them now. 

By happenstance, he noticed a tiny opening between some of the roots covering fallen pillars and loose bricks. If he brushed away some of the foliage, it looked like he could just barely squeeze his way in. So, he did, because why not check it out? 

The hole was a lot roomier than it looked from the outside, and went deeper into the ground that he expected. Someone could probably live down here if they needed to, he mused. He made a mental note of the location before slipping back out and continuing on his way.

A while later, he was pushing a particularly large palm out of his face when he heard something in the distance. Voices. Now who could that be deep in the jungles of Kyendi? 

Slowly, carefully, he made his way to them, doing his best to stay unseen and unheard. He always wanted to be the one doing the surprising, not the other way around. It was just always better to be in control of one’s entrance. Eventually, he could see a group of kittoms through the gaps in the leaves. All of them familiar, but his gaze honed in on one in particular: the kit with a pelt of dark ombre fur and a bored look in his eyes.

Hazard.

He couldn’t stop the toothy grin that pulled at the corners of his mouth. It had been far too long since he last saw the hot-headed kittom. What a good way to brighten his dreary time in Kyendi. After a bit of watching, it became clear that the group was starting a game of hide and seek. How childish. But then an idea slithered into his mind on how to mess with his precious red-colored friend. It was Feyhallow, after all; the perfect time of year for pranks and tricks. He watched as Hazard closed his eyes and began counting while the rest of them scattered beyond the trees. Now, his plan can begin.

Step One: follow his sister, Halcyon. It was a little tricky to keep an eye on the kittom through all the undergrowth while also maintaining a safe distance as to not be detected, but her stark white pelt was a striking contrast against the dark greens of the jungle around them and made it easier to spot her. She finally seemed to decide on a patch of thick bushes hidden behind a large tree as her hiding spot. He quietly padded towards her as she was carefully arranging the leaves to provide as much coverage as possible. He didn’t expect to be able to get two scares in one today, but he wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity. So he continued to sneak up behind her, holding his breath and walking on the tips of his paws. Then, he quickly reached out and pat her shoulder with his paw.

She yelped and whipped around faster than he thought possible. “Oh! You scared me, Sohail,” she let out a shaky laugh with a paw pressed against her chest. Sohail refrained himself from telling her that was the point and allowed her to continue with exactly what he expected her to say, which was: “What are you doing here?”

“I was just taking a stroll when, to my surprise, I noticed you playing with your brothers and thought it’d be fun to join in,” he smiled that toothy smile of his that might look charming if the person seeing it didn’t know better. “Unless… there’s no room for one more?”

She blinked before quickly nodding her head. “Of course! Though, I’m not sure how Haze is supposed to find you if he doesn’t even know he’s supposed to be looking for you. But the more the merrier.”

Oh, Haze will find him. He’ll make sure of that. He feigned like he was lost in thought a moment before replying. “Hmm, how about we team up, then? I know an excellent hiding spot not too far from here. Your brother will never find you.”

Her eyes lit up a bit. “Really? I’ve never won when he’s seeking before, so I’d appreciate all the help I can get!” His smile grew, and he gladly led her back to that spot in the ruins he’d found earlier, far away from where Hazard and the rest of the group had been.

Now that that was taken care of, it was time for Step Two: collect the berries. He knew he passed a bush full of dark wine-colored berries not too far back, so he retraced his steps and plucked a hearty bunch of them into his basket. 

Step Three: make a mess. Taking care to make sure no one else was around, he went back to the spot where Halcyon was going to hide and started crushing the berries he’d collected, spreading the juices and making it look as gruesome as a scene as possible. He even made a path with dark paw-prints leading to another set of ruins that Hazard would - hopefully - come across in his search for his sister.

Now, the final step was to wait…