Submission (#8040) Approved

Ice had been here in Ealei collecting manaberries for a hot second, but they had only seen the light storm the ONCE so far, and while it was scary at first, they were obsessed with seeing it again. They had brought their pastel oil and chalk with the intention to draw it the moment they saw it again. Sometimes they traded the manaberries for currency and sometimes they brought them to an artisan who would use the berries to create her art supplies that seemed to be a much nicer quality than the supplies she got back home on the mainland.

Of course, they went down to the docks every day and collected manaberries but every day they went back home disappointed. She didn't know how much longer she would be in Ealei and as far as the kittom knew, this was a unique event that only took place here on Ealei. It would have been so disappointing, and the white kittom with lava markings sat on the end of the docks looking out at the sea with a forlorn expression. The big, puffy clouds were the same with no sign of a storm. The sea was calm and the rocks poking out of the water didn't appear any different than usual.

There were still many manaberries gathered around the edges of the roots that twisted and grew all around the rocky island and Ice collected them without much a fuss, but she was only here for another month, maybe? She wasn't entirely sure but not that much longer. What if that was a once in a lifetime event? What if she would never see it again? She moved long net that that she used to collect manaberries around, back and forth, collecting nothing as the water passed through it.

She looked defeated, and she sighed. She gathered up her things and began collecting them under the tree roots she had taken shelter under before so that it would be easy for her to leave. She tied up the basket of manaberries so that the lid would stay on and the rope would act like straps for a backpack.

Each day it didn't storm, Ice still sat down under the roots and drew something. Her sketchbook was becoming quite full with drawings of the sea, the rocks, the docks, manaberries, roots and even some of the canopy cities that were spread around Ealei. At the front of the book was a sketch from when they had sailed in, a rough drawing of the eldertree itself and what she was able to see from a distance of the island. Big, puffy clouds were in most of the drawings, certainly a staple background for this place.

Of course, none of them showcased the light storms. Ice had asked around the island about it, and locals had spoken about it but no one seemed to know THAT much about it.

What would she draw today to bookend the day? She pulled out her supplies and began sketching things. That's when something serendipitous happened... the light storm began. She was already packed, already under cover, and with her sketchbook out. She squealed, she screamed, and her pomu began rushing around her and pulling supplies out of the shadow and dropping them near her.

This was it! She could see them! Lights falling from the sky, all glowing with shades of pastel motes as they hit surfaces.

A pink one.

A blue one.

A green one.

They were beautiful and sparked so much inspiration and joy in the kittom that her paws were moving wildly as she drew what she saw. It was balls of colour, streams of light, clouds in the background, soft waves and manaberries all in a wave and burst of life.

This was a once in a lifetime event for her now. A captured moment in her sketchbook. A fleeting moment that seemed to fizzle out before she even knew it. If she hadn't already been packed up and ready, she would have missed it.