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Mystic Heart Odyssey

Part 7: Downtime

Chapter 4

Time to start some enchanting experiences in an enchanted-looking forest. But can a mysterious, magical forest compete with the potent magic the boys are already starting to feel within them?

-Llox

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When Kuna awoke the next morning, it was early enough for it to still be fairly dark out. As reluctant as he was to leave the warm comfort of being cuddled up under the blanket next to Lykou, his body seemed unwilling to let him go back to sleep. He was thirsty. And hungry, too, much to his chagrin. With a faint sigh, he reluctantly slid out from under the blanket and sat up, then stretched for a moment before crawling over to the spot near the firepit where they'd left their bags. He picked up his jug and took a sip, then sat there for a minute, squinting down at his food bag. He glanced back and forth between it and Lykou's thoughtfully, weighing his options with a groggy mind.

Lykou woke up a few minutes later and yawned a bit. When he noticed the empty space next to him, he sat up and rubbed his eyes. He then blinked a few times and spotted a familiar silhouette sitting a short distance away. He squinted in the dim lighting, but couldn't make out enough details, so he stretched a bit and got up to join him.

Meanwhile, Kuna had pulled Lykou's bag over and reluctantly pulled one of the dried, preserved fish out. After an internal battle with himself, he'd decided to give it another try, if for no other reason than to make Lykou happy. The diminished visibility helped some, but he decided he'd try and close his eyes as he raised the fish up to his face. Well, here goes, he thought to himself. Just pretend its a really weird, fleshy leaf of... something.

Trembling slightly, he brought the fish up to his mouth... and bit down. His brow furrowed and he tensed up as he slowly pulled away a piece of the meat and chewed it up. His face screwed up after he swallowed and he shuddered. He opened one eye and looked down at the missing piece with a mildly disgusted look. If this is what my body wants, why does it taste so weird? How does Lykou stomach this?

He sighed and closed his eyes again, preparing to force himself to take another bite. But just as it was nearing his mouth, a hand quickly bolted out and stopped him. He opened his eyes to see a familiar figure sitting by him, holding his arm with a mixed expression of amusement and concern.

"Whaaat are you doing?" Lykou asked.

"...eating?" Kuna replied, arching a brow. "I figured I might as w-" Suddenly, he froze and his eyes widened as his groggy brain caught up with his eyes. He wasn't looking at a sereva anymore. He was looking at a familiar konuul. "...fuck!" he blurted out, immediately dropping the fish as he frantically looked himself over.

Lykou quickly caught it and grinned. "I'm proud of you for trying, but maybe wake up a bit more before eating," he teased.

"Shit, I actually took a bite!" Kuna groaned, then sputtered and rubbed his tongue on his arm, as if to try and wipe away what he'd done. He quickly grabbed his jug again and took several big gulps of water.

"So you did," Lykou commented in amusement, making himself comfortable next to the sereva. He then took a bite out of the fish right next to where Kuna had done so. "Mm, good to be back to normal."

"I hope I don't get sick now," Kuna whined, bringing his palm to his face. "Can't believe I didn't think to check first. I should've noticed things felt different."

"Hey, relax, it was one bite," Lykou said, ruffling his hair playfully. "I'm sure you'll be fine. And now you don't have to worry any more."

"I guess..." Kuna said, then rested his hands in his lap and stared down into the lingering coals of the firepit thoughtfully for a moment while Lykou ate.

"Gonna get some fruit or something?" Lykou suggested between mouthfuls. "Should still have enough for t-"

Kuna suddenly cut him off by lunging over and wrapping his arms around the canid. "I'm sorry for being such an ass..."

Lykou blinked in confusion, but returned the embrace nonetheless. "Uh... you're fine...?"

The sereva glanced up with a guilty look. "Seriously, I was a stubborn jerk about the whole meat thing. I can't help still being bothered by the idea, but I'm gonna try to get better about it."

"Hey, stop worrying about it," Lykou assured him, then chuckled as he stroked the sereva's back softly. "We don't need to keep going over this. I'm not upset."

"Well you have every reason to at least be annoyed," Kuna insisted. "So I promise to try harder."

"Hey, just take care of yourself and that'll be enough for me. Speaking of which," Lykou said, then booped his nose lightly. "Get yourself some actual breakfast, mister."

Kuna smiled and sat up. "Mmkay," he said, then dug around in his food bag for something else to eat. "Definitely need to stock up soon though."

"Yeah, good thing that valley Zyn mentioned sounds like a good place to do that," the konuul replied, then took another bite. "Should be easier now that we're back to our normal selves, too."

"Thank goodness," Kuna said as he pulled a fruit out of the bag. "Although, other than the meat thing, it was definitely interesting experiencing that."

Lykou chuckled. "You were definitely an adorable overgrown puppy."

Kuna stuck his tongue out at the konuul, then poked his side. "And you were a handsome, but adorably jumpy buck."

"I definitely don't miss those nerves," Lykou said, then paused to take a quick sip from his waterskin. When he set it back down, he spotted a small clump of salt and picked it up off the ground. "Gonna go ahead and be jealous how good salt is with a sereva mouth, though."

"And I definitely won't miss getting fixated on every little critter I see in the forest," Kuna retorted, then smirked. "But I guess I did really like having that long tail, despite its treachery."

The canid smirked and wrapped his arm around the sereva again. "You know, just because you're back to that little stubby thing doesn't mean I can't still tell that you love attention."

"Lies and deceit," Kuna accused playfully, then took a bite out of his breakfast.

"Mhmm. Suuure," Lykou said, then tossed the little salt clump over to the sereva after he swallowed. "Think quick!"

Kuna blinked and watched the clump land in his lap, then shot the konuul a look. "What, think you can manipulate me into catching things? Doing little tricks for you?" he retorted with a mock-indignant tone. "Maybe I don't feel like salt right now." The act was undermined after a moment as he slowly picked the crystal up and popped it into his mouth with a faint smirk.

Lykou snickered. "You goofball."

Kuna giggled, then leaned over and bumped shoulders with the canid. "Takes one to know one."

Lykou smiled and took another sip of water, eyeing the sereva thoughtfully. "You know," he said after a minute, setting his food and waterskin down, then pulled the sereva into a big hug. "I'm proud of you."

Kuna blushed and giggled some more. "What, for taking a bite of your food?"

"No. Well, yeah, sure, that too I guess, in context," Lykou replied, then squeezed him gently. "But mostly just how far you've come since we first met."

"Oh... hehe," Kuna folded his ears back and nuzzled into the embrace some. He made a few false starts, but couldn't come up with the right words for a reply.

"I mean, look at you," Lykou said, smiling softly at him. "Joking around, trying new things, just... generally embracing life. You're more confident, and open... and I'm so glad I get to see it."

"F...fuckin'..." Kuna mumbled, practically on fire from the canid's compliments. He buried his face into the konuul's neck fluff, unable to stop grinning as the butterflies in his tummy returned with a vengeance. "You win already... stooop..."

"I'm serious," Lykou continued, gently pulling him back to look him in the eye. "I'm not just trying to fluster you. You've grown a lot in the last couple months. It's impressive."

"...w-well hey," Kuna said, smiling bashfully at him, then lightly booped his nose. "I've had the best teacher and motivator."

They both embraced again, relishing the closeness in silence for a minute, even if they each secretly pined for a bit more. Eventually, they released one another and went back to their breakfast, grinning and chatting away happily. Lykou's tail swished almost constantly behind him. And although it wasn't nearly as noticeable, Kuna's didn't stop wiggling either.

Eventually, after they'd eaten and the sun started coming up, they started to pack up and get ready to leave. Just as Kuna finished returning the foliage he'd used to form a barrier to something more like a natural state, Zyn appeared from the shadows at the base of some trees.

"Hey, you're back to yourselves!" the jarzin commented. "Congrats."

"Yup! Looks like that reverse order trick worked," Lykou said. "Thanks for suggesting it."

"That or it just wore off naturally," Kuna suggested, then shrugged. "Either way, good to be back to normal."

"I bet. Hope you at least appreciated the... 'perspective' though," Zyn said. "Not exactly an experience many people get."

"Unless you're a shapeshifting half-spirit, you mean," Kuna quipped, smirking. "You ever tried being a sereva or a konuul?"

"Well, no, can't say I have," Zyn said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Suddenly, he grinned and manifested a green glow, first on his hands, then across his body. In a bright flash, he'd transformed into a fairly handsome stag. "First time for everything, I suppose."

Lykou grinned impishly and winked at Kuna.

The sereva caught the look and immediately realized what the konuul was up to, and served as a distraction by walking over to a nearby flower and using his magic to alter it into a bigger, more complex plant. "I guess so. Be a shame though if someone were tooo..."

"-SPOOK YOU!" Lykou said, suddenly lunging at the jarzin-in-disguise after having used the distraction to creep around behind him. Much to his annoyance, Zyn didn't flinch. Instead, he just turned to eye him with a smug smile.

"Did I mention my transformations skip the whole pesky 'instinct' thing?" the false-sereva said.

"Of course," Lykou replied, crossing his arms with a pout. "I should've known."

Zyn chuckled. "It's just a surface level thing, the way we do it."

"I guess that makes sense. Wouldn't want a bunch of unfamiliar impulses getting in the way of all that meddling in peoples' lives," Kuna snarked, though he smirked as he said it.

"Exactly," Zyn replied, taking it in stride. With another flash of green light, he became a konuul, then spun around and swished his tail a bit. "Though I'll admit sometimes I'm jealous and curious. Not like we ever get any of those kinds of things growing up."

"What, jarzin don't have any innate instincts?" Lykou asked incredulously. "At all?"

"Not really. Not like most, anyway," Zyn replied, then shrugged. "The whole... you know, birth ritual thing pretty much eliminates any we might've had, I guess."

Kuna scratched his head. "Huh... hey, you know, now that I think of it, have any jarzin ever, y'know... not undergone that?"

Zyn frowned and thought for a moment, then shook his head. "...not that I'm aware of. And even if they did I'm pretty sure that'd be ultra-forbidden to talk about. On a much bigger level than any of the rules I've been dancing around or outright breaking."

"Fair enough I guess," Kuna replied.

"Does make me curious though," Lykou interjected. "When did you guys even start doing that? Must have been a time before you all became super-powerful secretive magic users."

"Heck if I know," Zyn said with a shrug. "Not exactly something that gets talked about. As far as I know, it's just always been a thing. I know it must've started somewhere, but it's so long ago, there might not even be anyone around that even knows anything about it."

"Not even any spirits?" Lykou asked. "I kind of got the impression you guys interacted with them more."

Zyn chuckled. "Yeah, on and off. It depends. Some of 'em actually kind of hate us, others love us. Most are kind of indifferent. Never thought to ask any of them about that though," he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Now you've got me curious. I might just have to ask one of them. Finding the right one to ask could be tricky though..."

"Well, while you're pondering that, we should probably get on the way to the next arch," Lykou said, throwing his pack on before picking up the axe. "Thanks for checking in on us though."

"Of course," Zyn said, patting the konuul on the shoulder. "Now that you're back to normal, I imagine you'll get there before noon, especially heading out this early. So make sure to take your time to enjoy that valley when you get there."

"Definitely," Kuna said, walking over towards the jarzin. "I'm looking forward to it." Suddenly, he hugged him. "And yeah, thanks again."

Zyn blinked in surprise, then smirked and wrapped an arm around the sereva in return. "Er, sure. No problem."

"He's kinda extra huggy today," Lykou said with a grin.

"No kidding," the jarzin replied in amusement.

Kuna giggled and blushed slightly as he stepped back again. "What can I say? I'm in a good mood, now that I've woke up a bit more."

"Well yeah, today's already off to the best start we've had in a while, for the most part," Lykou commented. "Nothing dangerous coming for us, no complicated messes to help people with, we're both in good shape- our own, normal shape, at that."

"And good travel company," Kuna added, moving over by Lykou's side and wrapping an arm around him.

Zyn squinted at Kuna for a moment and grinned. "Well, I'll leave you two to it, then. Have a nice hike. I'll check back in with you later on."

Lykou nodded. "See you later, Zyn."

"Bye Zyn," Kuna said with a little wave.

Zyn did a little salute and vanished in a puff of mist as usual. A few moments later, as Lykou and Kuna were setting out for the next arch, Kuna heard a faint whisper in his ear, "Your crush is beyond adorable, by the way." He immediately jumped a bit and instinctively swatted at the presence by his ear, then blushed and shot a glare at the thin air behind him as he heard a faint chuckle fade away.

"Hm? What's wrong, Ku?" Lykou asked.

Still flustered, Ku shook his head and did his best to regain his composure. "N-nothing, just... a um. A bug flew too close to my ear. Startled me."

*****

The hike through the forest went peacefully. And, true to Zyn's word, they arrived at the arch a while before the sun reached its zenith. It took them a moment to find it, though, due to plant life having grown up densely around it. Kuna had to use his magic to pry the various vines and shrubs away from it before they could even activate the thing.

Once they passed through the gateway, however, they were met with a grandiose sight. They found themselves on a flat patch on the side of a ridge, with a wide, seemingly artificial trail winding its way down into a beautiful valley that was unlike any they'd encountered in their journey yet. And they had a remarkably good view of it all from where they were.

The leaves in the trees were multi-colored and had a faint shine to them. Large vines hung between them in an almost artistic-looking way, lined with tiny white flowers in certain parts. Tall cliffs surrounded the valley. In the distance, off to their right, they could see a tall waterfall feeding down into a river that flowed over near the trail and into the woods.

But the most striking thing of all were the carvings. Enormous depictions of various wild animals were carved into the exposed rock, cradled in enormous hands of stone. Some of them were decorated with various gemstones. And on either side of the trail, just a few yards away from them, were a pair of spread hands jutting out of the ground, as if welcoming them to the valley.

"...wow," Lykou said simply, staring at the valley with wide-eyed wonder.

Kuna nodded slightly. "Yeah..."

"Zyn wasn't kidding," the konuul continued. "This place is amazing..."

Kuna closed his eyes for a moment, focusing. "...I can't quite explain it," he said when he opened them again. "But the energies here feel more... potent, somehow."

"Really? Hope that's a good thing," Lykou replied. "Well, let's keep walking. I'm assuming this trail is the way we need to go?"

Kuna nodded. "Yeah... I wonder if these are all more Sylthean ruins," he commented as they started descending the hill.

"They look different from the others we've seen."

"Technically we haven't seen anything but sculptures and carvings here yet," Kuna pointed out.

"True. But I still get the impression that whoever built all this was different from the... 'elnyr' that apparently built the ones we've seen before."

As they continued down into the forest, they marveled at the way the sunlight shined through the colorful, semi-translucent leaves in the trees. It bathed everything in various beautiful shades of yellow, orange, red, and green. There were even some patches with blue, purple, and teal leaves. The wildlife was mixed as well. While there were plenty of different birds, squirrels, and other small creatures that looked fairly mundane, they spotted some odd-looking, moderately-sized creatures along the way, too. Some bright yellow birds around the size of turkeys, with long legs and a long, narrow beak waded in the edge of the river. A mid-sized turtle-like creature with an extra set of limbs sat at the base of a tree, munching on some nearby shrubs. A strange pale creature with large eyes and long, stick-thin limbs reached up to pluck a low-hanging fruit off one of the trees, then turned to watch them pass as it munched away. The beasts were all odd looking, but seemed to be passive and non-hostile, much to the boys' relief.

They also passed more statues along the way. Most of them resembled wildlife that was either familiar to them, or at least ones they saw in the forest they were passing through, though there were some they just didn't recognize from anywhere. And there were always more stone hands around them. Most of the hands were holding the creatures in some way, lifting them up off the ground, or otherwise caressing them. The hands themselves were oddly smooth and devoid of claws or other notable features. All the statues were made out of solid, polished stone- including a lot of marble- and were in surprisingly good shape.

"Whoever made these really liked wild animals," Kuna commented, inspecting a statue by the trail as they neared it. "I can't imagine how hard these were to make, or how long they must've taken."

"No kidding," Lykou agreed. "Just think about those huge ones on the cliffs... how did they even do those ones??"

"With how things feel around here, I have a sneaking suspicion powerful magic was involved," the sereva suggested.

Lykou nodded. "That'd make sense."

"Hey, I should collect some of those apples," Kuna said, pointing to some of the fruit hanging from a nearby tree. He then set down everything except his food bag. "Mind helping me up?"

"Of course," the konuul said, setting his things down before walking over to lift the sereva up. "Here, hang on a moment."

"Wh-" Kuna started to ask, then let out a small 'eep' as he was picked up and set on the canid's shoulders. "Eesh, Kou... excessive, but thanks," he said with a faint blush as he carefully balanced himself. "I forget how strong you are sometimes." He then reached up and began grabbing as many of the fruit as he could reach and stuffing them into his bag. They were shiny, like the leaves on the trees, and had little multicolored stripes along their midsection.

"Helps that you're so light," Lykou replied with a smirk. He was straining slightly, but he was more than happy to put up with it for the sereva's sake. "Let me know when you're done."

"Almost... there. I think that's all I can reach from here," Kuna said, then carefully hopped down off the konuul's shoulders. "Which is just as well," he added, looking in his bag with a smile. He pulled one out and looked it over. "It's a pretty good collection. Wanna try one? It's lunch time."

"Sure," Lykou replied, then pulled out his knife as the sereva handed the fruit to him. "Here, let's split one to start with."

After they had the apple cut in half, each bit into their part and chewed for a moment. Kuna grinned. "Wow... these are good."

"Yeah, not bad," Lykou agreed. "I'm glad we can at least agree on fruit, generally."

"Me too," the sereva said, then took another bite. "...I should probably collect some other things though. Much as I like it, I can't live on fruit alone."

Lykou nodded. "I should probably restock, too. Let's find a good camping spot so we can make tomorrow a resupply day."

"Sounds good to me," Kuna said as they recollected their things, then resumed their hike, still munching on their snack.

The hours passed in relative tranquility. Eventually, late in the afternoon, they found an ideal spot to camp some distance off the trail, near one of the cliffs. There was an open, clear spot among the trees, with a rock overhang covering part of it. A short way away, a waterfall fed into a small creek that flowed down towards the river. Part of it branched off to the side for a short way, into a rounded pool nestled among some rocks, where the water was fairly calm and crystal clear.

They set their things down under the overhang and began their usual routine, with Lykou preparing the firepit while Kuna used his magic to add some organic walls to their shelter. But once the canid had collected the wood, he didn't start the fire right away. Instead, he waited for Kuna to finish with the shelter, then gently tugged on his arm.

"Hey. Let's go get cleaned up. That little nook in the water looks really inviting."

"...I guess we are overdue, aren't we?" Kuna replied with a grin. "You just want to play in the water though."

"Can't it be both?" Lykou retorted with a grin. "Shame you didn't get to experience that when you were a konuul."

"What, it's not just a you thing?" the sereva asked, curiously.

"Nah. I mean, maybe not all konuul, but most of the folks back home love to swimming at least a little."

"Huh," Kuna responded, arching a brow. "Admittedly now I do feel like I missed out. Shame I didn't jump in any streams while we were swapped."

"Hey c'mon, don't tell me you don't enjoy it too," Lykou said as he started taking his shirt off. "You always have a good time."

The sereva chuckled and shrugged. "I guess." He paused for a moment and bit his lip as he watched the konuul undress. But he quickly averted his gaze when the canid looked up. He distracted himself with removing his robe, then the makeshift shorts he kept as an undergarment.

"Hey, look at you," Lykou said with a grin. "Not so shy anymore, hmm?"

Kuna blushed and stuck his tongue out at him once he was stripped down, instinctively covering himself.

Lykou chuckled, then knelt down by the firepit and started arranging the wood. "Alright, go on ahead, I'll join you in a minute. I'm gonna get the fire started so we can dry off by it afterwards."

"Fire and water, your two favorite things to play with," Kuna teased, shaking his head with a grin, then turned to walk over to the creek.

The canid paused for a moment to watch him go. He couldn't help but eye the sereva's rump as he walked, and eventually had to snap himself out of it before he developed a certain inconvenient and embarrassing problem. Fuuuck he is too perfect, he thought to himself, blushing a bit as he got back to work. Cute, sweet, sassy, and drop dead sexy. If only...

He sighed once he finally got the fire started. After a moment, he glanced over at his pack and grinned. He reached in and pulled out a smaller bag from inside. Well, at least there's that...

With the bag in hand, he crept over to join his friend in the water. Just as he'd hoped, Kuna had his back turned and was busy cleaning himself off. He entered the water behind him as quietly as possible, then started taking out the bag's contents.

Kuna crouched down and dipped his head in the water, then flung his hair back and ran his hands through it, inadvertently splashing his companion in the process. When he heard some movement in the water behind him, he grinned. "Was wondering what was tak-" he said as he started to turn around, only for a pair of arms to wrap around him before he could. The canid stuck something in his hair, then backed away, allowing Kuna to turn and see what he was up to. There were a variety of colorful, previously-dried flowers floating in the water around them. He recognized them as some of the particularly pleasant-smelling and pretty flowers from the islands. There was also a large one in Lykou's hair, presumably matching the one he'd stuck in Kuna's. "What... the..."

Lykou grinned, a bit bashfully. "I remembered how much you liked them, so I asked Kani to bring me some," he explained, fidgeting a bit. "Figured now was a good time, since folks apparently like bathing with them. Plus after everything we've been through recently, I thought it might be a nice little thing to enjoy while we unwind." His anxious smile faded briefly. "Er, I hope you don't mind. Sorry, I guess I should have asked bef-"

Holy fuck I want to kiss you so bad right now, you sweet goofball, Kuna thought before interrupting him with an enthusiastic, tight hug. "You are the sweetest, sappiest thing the world ever coughed up, you know that?" he said. "So you know, if I still had a konuul tail, this water would be getting churned up right now."

Lykou giggled and happily returned the embrace, his own tail trying its best to swish around in the water behind him. "Glad you like it," he said, then glanced around briefly. "It's... not too much, is it?"

"Huh?" Kuna asked, confused. "For what?"

"N-nevermind," the konuul replied, smiling. "Don't mind me, guess I'm still a bit scatter-brained after the whole species swap thing."

Kuna gave him a gentle squeeze. "Well, konuul or sereva, you're all one big sappy sweetheart deep down and I-" he said, then cut himself off just as he was about to drop the L-word. "-r-really appreciate it. You're the best, Kou."

Lykou beamed and squeezed him back, then released the embrace so he could start start cleaning himself off a bit. "Gimme a moment," he said, then dipped underwater so he could clean some debris out of his hair. When he popped back up, he flung water everywhere as he shook his head off. "Ahhhh that feels good..."

"Pffft, watch it, you goofball," Kuna said, giggling and shielding himself from the spray.

The canid grinned and splashed him lightly, then moved to the side and reclined back against one of the larger smooth stones at the edge of the water. "Mm, you know, maybe I shouldn't have started the fire yet," he said as he looked up into the beautiful sky. The sun was approaching the mountains on the one side of the valley, allowing the first hints of stars to begin peeking out. "Now that I'm in here, I kinda just want to stay here for a while."

Kuna drifted over to join him, finding a spot on the rock next to him to lounge against. "For once, I think I agree. Wish the water were a little warmer, but it's nice to just soak a bit," he said, then bit his lip as he looked over the reclining konuul on full display.

Lykou glanced over at the sereva and grinned, then wrapped an arm around him, pulling him in close. "Well c'mere, I'll help keep you warm."

I bet you will, Kuna thought, blushing a bit as certain thoughts raced through his mind. I can think of some ways we can warm up and relax...

"You alright?" Lykou asked in an amused tone, noticing the sereva's adorably flustered, hungry look.

Kuna's blush intensified and he shook his head to snap himself out of his reverie, then shot the konuul a sheepish smile. "S-sorry. Mind's uh... wandering."

"So I can tell," the konuul said, arching a brow and grinning at him.

*****

After they finished cleaning up, Lykou and Kuna returned to the camp, both still blushing slightly but thoroughly relaxed- although the latter had a little bit of conflicted giddiness he was struggling to keep buried. Sure, he'd taken things with Lykou a little step further, but it was still under the veil of friendship, albeit a very special kind of friendship. His mind raced as he struggled with his emotions, but overall he felt amazing. Secretly, Lykou was battling similar feelings, but he did a better job of hiding it. Had he not been so wrapped up in his own thoughts and feelings, he might have caught onto the various hints in the sereva's behavior- the occasional longing glance, the slight bounce in his step, the persistent blush, and so on. In any case, they both felt much better and were more than ready to relax by the fire when they got back.

Due to their time at the creek taking longer than Lykou had anticipated, all that was left was a small hint of flame amid a cluster of embers. He immediately added some more wood and set to work building the fire back up, then stretched out and sighed contently. They ended up eating as they dried off, occasionally shooting little looks and smiles at each other, but otherwise just basking in the lingering afterglow and contentment. By that point, stars had fully filled the nearly-cloudless sky. Fortunately, even though the surrounding mountains accelerated the approaching nighttime darkness, they soon discovered that the forest had various dim lights of its own. Fireflies danced around under the trees, and some flowers seemed to have a silvery glow of their own, particularly around the various statues scattered around the forest floor. An owl called out in the distance, though it was a far less intimidating sound than what they'd heard in Kryckwood.

The boys couldn't help but feel that they'd found themselves in a dream-like wonderland, in a good way. Once they finished eating, Lykou took out his instrument to continue working on it, while Kuna just sat and basked in the beautiful ambiance. Neither was quite sure what to say after their special little time together, with both of them being afraid of making things awkward or otherwise destabilizing their wonderful mood. "I'll have to, uh...s-see if I can find some more string-like s-stuff to sew with tomorrow," the sereva said eventually, breaking the silence in hopes of striking up some casual conversation. "A-and some food that's not just more... uh, fruit."

Lykou's tail swished as he smiled over at the sereva. "Good luck. Did you happen to spot anything that looked tempting along the trail?"

"Not really, but I w-was kind of too busy just... admiring everything," Kuna replied. "Might have m-more luck away from the trail anyway."

"True, although I don't think it matters too much. From what Zyn said, we're probably the only people in this valley right now."

"Maybe. S-seems hard to believe, though, considering what good shape everything's in," Kuna remarked dubiously. He then paused to take a breath and calm himself before continuing, feeling reassured by the casual chatter. "...trails usually get overgrown before long, without someone keeping them clear."

"Sure, unless there's magic involved maybe," the canid pointed out. "Or who knows, maybe spirits are maintaining things?"

Kuna looked around, then shrugged. "Ordinarily I'd say that's unlikely, since spirits don't tend to care much about trails or other things mortals make, but it does feel like it'd fit in here."

"Maybe that's the secret," Lykou said. "Wouldn't it be something if all that stuff was made by spirits in the first place?"

"I suppose anything is possible. I don't know of any kind that'd be inclined to make such things," Kuna said, then smirked. "But this trip's been full of surprises and new things."

"Sure has," the konuul agreed. "Shame Zyn didn't know anything more about this place."

"Didn't know or pretended not to know," Kuna pointed out.

Lykou shot him a dubious look. "You're still pretty critical of the guy that helped save our lives, and your soul, back on the islands. Even I'm not so skeptical of him now. Something wrong?"

Kuna shrugged. "It's not personal. He's a good guy, when you get past the show-offy nonsense, and I'm grateful. Happy to consider him a friend, even," he said, then smirked. "But he's still a jarzin. He's openly said there are things he'll still keep secret, usually so he doesn't 'spoil the surprise'."

"Hmm, true," Lykou admitted.

"But hey, I trust him," Kuna said. "If we need to know something for our own well-being and he can safely tell us, I think he will."

"Fair enough," the canid said, then rubbed his chin. "I wonder if Aelana and Daisy would know anything about it?"

"Hmm... it's not Clovaria, and who knows how far we are from there," Kuna pointed out. "Still, couldn't hurt to ask, I guess. But hey, on that note, you should visit them tonight, now that we finally have a good chance for it."

Lykou glanced over at his pack, then leaned over and dug around a bit before fishing out the little astral charm. "Right. No more stalling on that. We're way overdue to check in with them," he said, then smiled anxiously, blushing again a little. "Should be interesting to experience the whole... 'astral realm' thing. Especially since I don't have the grasp on soul energy that you do."

Kuna grinned and giggled. "Mhmm. Just be prepared for some embarrassment. But hey, they're real good about that, especially Lana. I'm sure they're used to that kind of thing from newbies."

"Well, it'll all be inside my head, so to speak," the konuul said, looking the charm over thoughtfully. "And between me and them. And I trust them."

"Just try and focus on what you really want to say in the moment," Kuna suggested. "Otherwise it's just a matter of learning to not let your mind wander too much. Easier said than, done, I know."

Lykou chuckled. "Yeah. But I'll deal with it."

"Be sure to let them know I say hi, too."

"Of course," the canid said, then stretched out and stared up at the sky. A couple feet away, Kuna did likewise. Both of them were smiling contently, even as their hearts still raced a bit and they were battling tingly, warm feelings inside.

"Pretty night," Kuna commented, watching the sky.

"Sure is," Lykou replied, glancing over at the sereva briefly as he said it. He quickly looked away when he noticed his companion turning to look at him in turn.

"Wonder if we'll see any more flying stars," Kuna wondered aloud.

"Maybe," Lykou idly responded. "Seems like the kind of night for it."

The conversation fell into a peaceful lull as the two admired the night sky, occasionally shooting little glances at each other when the other wasn't looking.