Submission (#8110) Approved

A bit tuckered out from the eel chase, Mizuki had found a nearby rock outcrop to rest on, and let out a sigh as she placed the glass bowl next to her. Biri seemed to have taken a liking to the bowl, and her pomu was sitting inside, munching on a manaberry.  She took the time to look over the items she had gathered. Golden petals, kelp, various bits of colorful coral that had naturally broken off... She was planning to use these to make various trinkets to sell, as they would surely catch the gaze of faire-goers.

Taking the time to unwind, Mizuki surveyed her surroundings, tail swishing idly as her gaze was cast upwards. Thick cumulus clouds hung above her, their plush white appearance making her wonder how soft and comfortable they would be to lie on. She envied the other subspecies capable of flight, and moreso so the faenins were their beautiful flight extensions. She would never openly admit it, and knew that envy wasn’t very becoming of her, but their ethereal translucent beauty was captivating to her nonetheless.

She let out a sigh, watching as bubbles formed from her breath, dissipating into the sky. It was well into midday now, and evening would fall soon. She hadn’t collected everything she had wanted to in preparation for Starfall Faire, but perhaps now it was time to-

Movement in the water caught her eye, and Mizuki thought she saw something shimmering in the water. And was that… starfish? She squinted. It looked like there was an assortment of colorful starfish and barnacles floating just beneath the surface of the water, and it was… moving towards her? Biri seemed to have noticed too as she was no longer snacking, letting out concerned chirps as she smacked her feather arms against the inside of the bowl.

Mizuki stood up, picking up the glass bowl as she hovered slightly above the water. She doubted she could outfly it considering she could only stay a short distance above the water. Should she try to outswim it? Before she could decide?, the seastars and barnacles seemed to leap out at her.

“Eek!”

She was greeted by the appearance of a reptilian-esque creature, their body seeming to be a host for said aquatic fauna. The shimmering blue markings they sported seemed to let them seamlessly blend with their surroundings, making one think it was only light cascading off the water’s surface.

Barely evading the beast’s gaping maw, it dove back into the waters, sending up seaspray. If it lunged at them again, would she be able to successfully dodge it? She had to make sure to keep her and her pomu safe, so would it be better to flee?

While trying to figure out what to do, the aquatic creature was already circling back, ready to lunge at the two again. In that moment, her pomu popped her head out of the bowl, a manaberry raised above her head.

“Po-mu!”

She tossed the berry in the direction of the creature, who leaped out of the water and snatched it in its jaws. As it dove back into the water, Mizuki only looked at the rippling waves with an incredulous expression. Was it just hungry? Was the berry enough to appease it? Maybe she should still-

A head popped out of the water this time, a pair of slit pupils seeming to eye her greedily as it opened its mouth. The undine flinched, thinking it was going to charge towards them again, but it only kept its mouth open, its bright yellow tongue lolling out as it expected another treat. She turned to her pomu, who tossed the last berry they had on them, and the two watched it munch noisily on it. Once finished, it swam towards them, ears perking up like a puppy begging for treats. She looked at her pomu, who only shook its head.

“Sorry, that was our last one…”

She wasn’t sure if it understood her, but since it didn’t receive another berry, it seemed to realize there were no more snacks, and its ears drooped, the sac on its throat deflating slightly.

Wait… sac?

Mizuki stared curiously at the creature. This… wasn’t what the local fauna looked like she was pretty sure, even with some evolved various features to help them adapt better to specific regions. If anything, this was probably…

“Are you… an elseworlder?”

She had heard that various portals often popped up all over Eyre, lending to outside visitors that were sometimes intentional, sometimes intentional. Most of the ones that came here with purpose were the humanoid ones, so could this one have arrived unexpectedly?

The snaptrap tilted its head, not quite understanding Mizuki. Ah, poor thing. Maybe it was just disoriented and hungry.

“If you come with us, we can get you some more berries if you’d like?”

It seemed to understand the word berries as it perked up, and Mizuki smiled, starting to make her way back to Nalnalo. While they travelled, she began to ponder why a portal may have opened up here, when a firework went off in the distance.

“Ah!”

The sun had now dipped below the horizon, and the stray firework had just reminded her it was Starfall Faire soon. She had seen vendors setting up stalls and had admired the decorations, and yet it had somehow completely slipped her mind. She was so invested in collecting the petals and various ingredients that she had completely lost track of time. Ah! That would also explain the appearance of the creature. There were surely a lot of outsiders who came to celebrate this event, and maybe they too had slipped through one of the portals as well?

As they arrived at the port, the sky was beginning to darken, and she could make out several lanterns already floating into the sky.

“Wait right here, I’ll come back with food.”

She left the snaptrap and went into the city, greeting various vendors as she picked out an assortment of food. Biri seemed to be having a blast, sampling bits and bites and would clap excitedly at the various festivities and performances.

When she returned, the snaptrap seemed to have already found some of the fallen manaberries from Yggdrasil, and was munching contentedly on them in the water. She smiled softly, sitting on the dock with the snacks she had purchased, which Biri was already helping herself to. Hopefully next time she’ll be more prepared for the festival, but for now, she would enjoy what she could.