In the name of snacks (closed, Nirasi/Skjoldur)

_{((Click here for the party they're fleeing))}

Seeds are...outside.... was the last feeble announcement nearby guests heard from their host before Nirasi and Skjoldur dashed through the waterfall, the doppler of their whooping fading as they approached the pool below.

They crashed down in a fine display of utter gracelessness and made for the bank.

Adrenaline being what it is, in the few brief moments it took for his friend to surface, a torrent of thoughts ran through his mind - he hardly focused on them as they zipped through on repeat. While the waterfall couldn't realistically chase them, certain members within had plenty of reason to hunt him, and impressive ground speed to go with it.

He had to leave, had to get away from the cloying feel of everyone's breath around him, the din of conversations he couldn't quite make out, the sense of having been invaded despite that it was his very invitation that brought them here...and left them stranded.

He fidgeted, shifting his weight from one side to the other. Where are you? he considered bargaining with his reflection for the release of his friend. At least a second had passed and he felt his panic hit a new thrum in his ears.

Skjoldur hauled himself out of the pool and onto the bank next to Nirasi, shaking himself thoroughly and soaking the big blue psuedo-host. Plants twirled and whirled from his mask and around his feet, bursting with life and stretching for the sun, animated and accelerated as if they were strange creatures clamouring for space and light. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins and he felt a feral urge electrifying him - looking at Nirasi his mouth dropped open in a grin, tongue lolling, "I feel much better for that." He said, and with a huge leap and a bark he galloped into the woods.

For the most part, he didn't feel the same fear his friend did. While the party had partly been due to his encouragment, after the initial conception the idea had started cloying on his mind and becoming a major black eye: He hadn't slept the night before and it had taken him all day to work up the courage to enter the room; When there he was insensitive and acted hautily, rudly, and as a final poke in the eye to the guests, he had stolen Nirasi from them in a no-holds-barred escape through the waterfall. For now the fear was overtaken by his desire to run, and so that is what he did, racing his friend through the woods, plant matter bursting into life all around them.

His muscles were wound so tightly that his hindquarters wiggled like those of a cat. He bolted after Skjoldur, sending rainbows through the mist around him as his temperature rose from exertion.

While Skjoldur had the build and grace to gallop, the best Nirasi could manage was a dedicated lumber - he trampled the poor shoots in his friend's wake, crashed through small branches, tore clods of earth with each footfall. After half a minute of sprinting, his lungs were starting to burn and his pelt's ratio of fur-to-burrs was clearly favoring Nature.

He ran with his right side to Skjoldur, and the burrs there began to sprout their prickly grasses.

But they started to wither and sloughed off in the matter of several strides. Physical damage aside, Nirasi was inadvertently pushing the water straight out of the plants around him, and even Skjoldur's mask's sprouts were affected on his left side.

Something was wrong.

Skjoldur's liveliness had inspired reaction in kind, but Nirasi's unbeckoned power had started to affect even him - he felt parched, his eyes started to feel gummy on his left side, his lolling tongue stuck to his lips or to the roof of his mouth.

"Nirasi-" he panted. "Nirasi, you need to stop, you're-"

The damp blue 'lai lowered his head, found some last reserve of energy and kicked forward with a lunge that separated them by a few steps. He cracked through saplings and underbrush and ended up faced with a huge patch of brambles.

...it wasn't going to end well.

The brambles shrank back as if facing a forest fire, the water forced from them so violently that the ones closest to Nirasi's flank were ripped to shreds, but as he plunged blindly deeper the copse became thicker and hardier. Soon the growth of trailing creepers became great sprawling bushes with deep roots and entwining tendrils. Skjoldur was falling behind rapidly, panicking about his blurred vision and thrown off by the terrifying feeling of spiralling out of control. He frantically gulped down great lungfuls of air and tried to sober up but he was on a slippery slope.

The barbed ropes of bramble suddenly seemed to have sentient thought, spurred on involuntarily with vitality by Skjoldur but attacked viciously by Nirasi's element, and formed great tangled masses that shot across their path in a frantic, natural defense. Skjoldur's element was enlivening them, and Nirasi was terrifying them.

Huge thorned fingers grabbed Nirasi's feet, catching him mid-lunge and the momentum of the gigantic 'lai sent him crashing to the ground, throwing great clods of earth and weeds into the air. Bramble creepers shot in every direction, anarchic and deadly, tearing through Skjoldur's flanks and burying Nirasi under a pile of green, writhing tendrils.

Swiftly the intense exhiliration turned into horror as Skjoldur realised he was completely out of control, and this sudden drop in energy affected all of the chaos around them. The plants suddenly slackened and started to wither as Skjoldur cut off their power-source and Nirasi's inadvertant water repelling sapped them dry, but it was like standing next to a furnace and Skjoldur winced as he felt the water leech itself from his face. "Nirasi!" He cried in a sharp, yelping bark, "Stop!"

Spiky tendrils latched onto one foot, then the others, interrupting his rhythm grounding him with a brittle crackle of skeletal vinework. New growth thrashed into the air, over itself, and across the ground, living but threatened. As his chest and jaw hit the ground, even his thick fur didn't protect him from the spines - his power bleached them of any softness or pliability and sank cleanly into him like a massive, agonized burr.

Above him, vines zipped though the air and began to block the dappled light - but they interlocked and became husks, and the light returned as their leaves disintegrated.

Nirasi heard something over the ringing pulse of blood in his ears, over the wheeze of his breath. His panic was tunneling his vision and he felt his grip on his logical mind conceding to his reptilian brain. His eyes went wild and out of focus, his sides heaved great gulping breaths, stabbed each times his flank hit his prison. He flailed with his limited range of motion, and only tangled himself worse - any brute force broke the nearest vines and caught him in new ones.

"Nirasi!" His friend cried in a sharp, yelping bark.

But he heard something...what did he hear? A bird?

"Stop!"

Possibly an exceptional bird with language? Probably not. Not a bird.

No, this was familiar.

"Skjoldur!" Nirasi was thrumming with adrenaline and it made his actions shaky. He desperately tried to take stock of what was happening. He couldn't feel anything besides a static tingle down his spine, in his pawpads, could only see an angular lace above his head...his senses felt so sharp. His cage smelled like...like fear, like earth...like blood. He recognized the plants, and a dull pressure pulling his limbs in strange ways.

He brought a shaking forelimb up, staring at for the additional control that it lent his movement. Spikes and chunks of plant matter fell away from it. He leaned to one side, still not registering the pain he should be in. "Skjoldur," he wheezed. He was scared that it sounded so whiny, and was glad no one else was around to hear him be so weak. "I'm stuck."

A forelimb protruded from the crackling thicket and Skjoldur started, trying to leap toward his friend and free of the tangle he was in. His heart was still racing and he was too afraid of reawakening the onslaught if he tried to control any of the plants, so he tore himself loose of the brambles traditionally. As he lunged closer to the mound of bleached white sticks the air became static and snapped around his eyes, making his fur stand on end and tickling between his teeth. His mouth became dry, he couldn't swallow and he panicked again, lunging backwards, away from the pile.

"I'm stuck," came the muffled, pitiful voice.

His heart ripped and he stumbled forward again, panting and trying to reach the paw breaching the cage, but once again he was repelled by the force of Nirasi's raw power.

"I can't," he cried, "something's wrong!"

He was partly suspended in the mass of brambles as there was no room for maneouver, his antlers were getting caught in loops of thorns, but around Nirasi there was a clearing forming as tendrils dried and became brittle, snapping under their own weight and forming a blanket of splintering, twisted sticks. It served as a marker for how far the untamed element was projecting.

Looking around at the strange phenomenon Skjoldur shifted his weight and called out,

"Are you alright?"

"Are you alright?"

The outstretched paw went slack as Nirasi paused to consider the question. Then the toes wiggled again and he said "I think so. I feel sparkly," his words wavered - he was really out of it. "I smell blood, I think I hurt someone."

The area of influence had slowed its outward crawl and its edge stabilized. Within the dry material, it continued to dessicate and turned to powder around him. He groaned and withdrew his paw, shifting his weight back to his belly. He tried to life his head, and the plants began to allow him - a mercy because his neck was exhausted. Every movement turned the nearest sections to ash, but the spines held their awful little shapes and he couldn't find a safe surface to put his paws under himself. "It's...pointy," he tried to explain. "Why are you yelling?"

There must be some cause for concern. This was Skjoldur. Skjoldur didn't go around, wasting concern. Come on, he willed himself free of his state of shock. He glowered at the ashen latticework until it revealed its secrets.

Oh. Oh...no. No no no, his heart caught up with his realization. Get it together, Zee, his eyes darted around, focused on the death around him. I'm killing them, he realized, and strained to focus his control, to bite back on his power. He dug his paws into the earth until the spikes gave way to chalky soil and tried to stand, lifting his front half first. The vines were so dry they didn't even shatter; the only sound was something like spilled potpourri. His head broke the canopy and the spines tinkled softly to the ground. He saw his circle and quailed. He lifted his rump and winced as his feet found purchase, and at how his whole body seemed taut. He felt dizzy and lowered his head - and with it his gaze - and saw tacky patches of brown dotting the dust under him. Explains that, I guess.

He arched his neck to find his friend and his heart immediately sank. Tearing himself to shreds was one thing, but the absolutely last thing he'd ever want was to hurt another - and here was his best friend, strung up like some morbid doll.

"I...I've stopped," he sputtered, "What do I do?" he stepped absently back to Skjoldur, the vegetation greener the farther he got from his little spot. It began to yank at him again. "I'm...not..power, again," he trailed off, only some of his words making it to his mouth. "I'm okay now, you okay? Do you trust me? Hold still."

He was exhausted. He wanted to collapse, but somewhere deep he found the focus to isolate and dry individual plants, tapping them with his nose until they fell away. He had to pick carefully, so that one dead vine didn't abruptly shift Skjoldur's weight into a worse tangle or drop him entirely. "Hang in there," he winced. That was awful, who says that, Zee? Really.

Skjoldur stared as Nirasi extracted himself from his crumbling confines and felt shivers run along his spine as he saw the dark stains on his front. Nirasi wavered and looked around, slowly making unsteady eye-contact with Skjoldur. Shifting his weight again he saw the dust form little whorls and clouds around Nirasi's feet and realised it was over.

I...I've stopped... What do I do?

"Just keep upright for now," Skjoldur replied, starting to pull his legs free from the spaghetti of brambles he was caught in. The greenery waved feebly as Nirasi passed but it was too slight for it to be the same sentient attack as before. He kept his eyes on it nevertheless.

As he was slowly and carefully let down he found his footing on the ground and stepped gingerly out of the bush into the faintly crackling clearing. A huge darkness welled up inside his gut and grabbed hold of his throat: this was his fault, he had let himself get carried away and loose control of the situation, he had pushed Nirasi to run. His mind was so addled with confusion, unregistered pain and exhuastion that he couldn't form logical thought patterns and felt absolutely terrified.

He felt like he was going to be hunted for being so amateur and have his mask taken from him; he felt the families of the countless innocents he could inadvertantly kill were already in his concious, berating him for allowing his huge inadequacy to go unchecked; he felt like he had to get away from people, he had to disappear. He stared guiltily at his feet for a second or two letting these thoughts race through his mind, then turned to see Nirasi had sat down and was looking dangerously ready to keel over. He turned softly and sat close to him.

"I think we got a bit carried away there," he said quietly, after listening to the snapping, hissing noise of brambles slowly crumbling for a couple of minutes. He looked at Nirasi out of the corner of his eye, seeing his own flank and noticed he was shaking violently and bleeding. He was surprised to see the damage the tiny tearing thorns had done but as realisation dawned, so did the stinging, biting pain. It didn't register on his face other than his eye twitching once. Man up was all he could think now.

"...maybe. I don't know." Of course, he did know, and carried away was an understatement. He'd never felt himself succumb like that to such a smattering of unpleasant events. His hindsight told him everything had been controllable; every event from psyching each other up for the party, to his escape from it.

"I don't know...what happened," he said slowly, swaying. He'd had every opportunity to tell Skjoldur the shindig was hare-brained, and refused to bring it up now - blaming his friend for something Nirasi himself had begged for was no way to recover from what just happened. "I don't think I was ready," he admitted, "They were all so close, so many people showed up," and he groaned remembering Candy. "She's always been so kind to me, I'll never understand why," he said slowly. "I had to get away. I'm so...grateful to you for saving me with your little wooden bowl. Social protocol aside."

They sat for a moment, hunched in the dusty clearing. Breezes collapsed nearer sections, but they were still surrounded by a misshapen dish of offended vegetation.

Nirasi mistook his friend's silence for gentle reprimand. "I didn't mean to drag you through this. I should have just...no one attacked me. No one did anything to warrant my reaction. I don't regret leaving," he breathed, "since every time I replay events I'm stricken with the same nauseating feeling. But once I started running, I just...ran. I was literally deafened by fear, and the exertion spun me up worse," he continued to explain before he finally looked at Skjoldur.

Skjoldur seemed stiff. He was shaking and his pelt was dashed with scuffs and patterns of beading blood, matted in some thicker areas. Didn't seem like he had the presence of mind to act as a disapproving mentor right now, nope.

"Hey. Hey, look at me," Nirasi said. "We're okay now, we've got ourselves in check, none the worse for wear. Skin grows back, we'll be fine. Tell me what you're thinking. Those are the scars I can't close with my element," his tone was as stern as he could make it with his exhaustion, but there was concern in the gravel of it. "This? This was a blessed thing you did for me, or I'd never have stopped. You saved me back there, and you saved me again here, and I'm thankful for your insistence. Anything less and you'd have lost me to shock...or worse."

He stared at the ground for a minute, then up to the sky. Nirasi's words were comforting and he let them fill his conscious before turning to look at him. The ache of his horrible failure was throbbing in his chest as all the impending accidents loomed in front of him. Every possible bad scenario was running through his head, but foremost in his mind was how he had been unable to stop himself, how he had been carried away on a torrent of emotion.

Nirasi's face was a picture of remorse, but typical of him he was already thinking of others. Still in the ring of dead plants, still oozing blood and yet still selfless. Skjoldur wanted to hug him, but he wasn't sure how the big fluffy 'lai would take that right now, he also wanted to walk away from him, but knew he would avoid him and this part of Elaisha forever more if he did.

The adrenaline was long gone now and he felt deflated and dizzy. He couldn't think straight or focus on what Nirasi was saying, despite knowing it was comforting to feel his concern and hear his voice.

"I'm sorry I got carried away running," he said after a pause, looking down, "I just was so hyped by the jump I had to go as fast as I could, and I forgot about how hard it is for you. I... Get a bit feral when I'm overexcited... As you well know..." He looked up at Nirasi and a bolt of anguish ran through him again.

"I lost control. I just... Those plants... Plant manipulation is easy, I don't know why... " He was looking around the clearing in disbelief, "I couldn't stop... It's... Such a stupid thing... I could have moved them!" He trailed off weakly, "But... I lost control..."

He wanted the ground to swallow him up and had more than enough capability to cause it to do so, but was so petrified by exerting his Element again that he daren't even think about it.

"I didn't save you, Nirasi," he said eventually, "I almost caused a horrific accident here. If I hadn't got so hyped up, if I hadn't got carried away, if I hadn't pushed you so hard, there would be no need for me to save you." He needed space and shifted his weight to stand up but found his hind-legs were dead. "I have to go." He said tersely.

"None of that." Nirasi whuffed. He lifted his chin in disapproval, his eyes half-lidded but his brows up. He brought up one heavy foreleg and then the other, engulfed Skjoldur in a bear hug and rolled onto his back. "You're gonna talk to me. Not letting you go till you do."

Oh how his body ached, how his skin burned...! Luckily his mane pillowed his head and shoulders, and his tail completed his fluffy half-moon of confinement. Skjoldur was haphazardly balanced on his barrel chest and he anticipated indignant squirming at any moment.

"Maybe I'll talk first." he said. "It's not up to you to determine whether I felt saved. You're not in charge of how hard I run. You're also one of the most frustratingly measured users of earth magic that I've ever seen. The part of me that isn't bleeding is ecstatic to see you do something so...vibrant, and on such a grand scale. Look at this place, aside from what I've killed, it's beautiful in its vicious way," he paused. "In the future I'd like to see you dabble in...softer plants, though."

He hummed as he gathered his next thought, then said, "Plant manipulation isn't easy. I certainly can't do it. You discount yourself too much, friend. And you stifle yourself. Some think it's a good character trait to have control, but sometimes I'm just disappointed in your willingness to be satisfied with a swarm of gnats, or a sapling. Is that control, or are you castrating yourself?"

Chiding complete, he went on to explain his own blunders. "Don't try to ignore that I lost control, too. At least yours accomplished something - not much good came out of me this time around. Nevermind that I killed your mood in addition to all these vines - that's the worst casualty."

A wave of warmth and fluff took over Skjoldur's senses as he was dragged down with Nirasi. He was accustomed to bear-hugs from the 'lai but wasn't expecting this one and struggled to stop himself from falling, but Nirasi's adamant grasp was strong and he was exhausted. He relaxed in submission to this giant 'lai and sighed through his nose, blowing blue fluff from his face.

He looked at Nirasi indignantly with the mention of his gnats. "There's nothing wrong with my gnats, they're fun and attract birds." Struggling a little again he wriggled into a more comfortable position, sliding onto the ground and rolling Nirasi over with him. "Plant manipulation is easy compared to the other stuff I do. I really don't understand what happened just now, this sort of basic Elemental control is usually my forté."

Nirasi's gentle reprimands fell hollow on Skjoldur, he wouldn't even entertain the notion of letting himself relax with his Element. Gently he ignored them and bumped his nose against Nirasi's in a huff, their masks making a light clack, changing the subject.

"Your lack of control was incredible," he replied, "I had no idea you could force water to that extent. What do you mean, not much good? Not only did you show incredible potential but... We're both in shock, both tired, stressed and in pain and you managed to keep it going to get me out of that tangle. It just scared me a bit when I you were forcing the water from me."

He raised his head, rubbing his antlers in the sand. "I just... Don't understand why those plants attacked you. I have this sick feeling they were aware of us and how you were killing them... That I was giving them the means to do so. I don't know why the brambles did it and not the other plants though," pausing for thought he added contemplatively, "brambles always struck me as an aggressive plant."

Nirasi relaxed his hold and let Skjoldur go. He was too tired to reinforce his threats anyway. "Your gnats are great gnats," he said, "I just wonder what you could do with...locusts," no not locusts that's stupid, quick! say something smart again, "or maybe bees?" that wasn't much better, but...at least they pollinate... "Something...bigger." He was apparently out of insight for a bit. "What I'm trying to say is, you can do so much and no one even knows it. People should know you can do...things." He was describing his friend's element like a parlor trick...which could have been convenient for the party...no, he was being insulting and starting to trip over his words. Lest he wax hypocritical, he also couldn't talk Skjoldur into going big or going home without reminding himself of his own...success there.

He brushed an apologetic muzzle against his friend, "I could really take some notes from you with my own...zeal. There are obviously ceilings I haven't hit yet and I'll need someone...well-hydrated to help me figure it all out. Doesn't need to be now, or even soon...I just want to know you'll still be here when I need help." He curled his body around Skjoldur in a less restrictive hug, grinding his side across the spiky grit. "And I'll be here if you ever want to...branch out." Wow. Definitely time to stop talking.

"Plus if you storm off, I still can't get out without your help. I've...run dry."

His brows furrowed. "A swarm of bees? I don't want to be surrounded by a swarm of bees." He paused, "Although bees might attract bee-eaters..." He shook his head slightly, "I don't need to prove what I can do anyway, Zee. In fact I'd prefer it people didn't know what I can do. Showcasing that sort of talent often attracts unwanted attention."

As Nirasi hugged him again he realised he had completely relaxed, the terrifying thoughts of persecution pushed deep out of sight for now. He had stopped shaking and his thoughts turned to what next. "Nirasi...I don't want to go back to the waterfall. I have to walk somewhere, when I said I had to go I meant.. I have to have some space from people for a while. Some peace. I want to practice my Element to make sure this doesn't happen again - which means going over the edge intentionally but being somewhere where no one can get hurt."

He rolled onto his front, an idea forming, "I think what happened was because you were here, and if that sort of catalyst happens around other Shinlai using their Elements then obviously it's something I need to work on. You've seen it, you know what could happen, you know how to stop it... I know you're tired right now, but why don't you come with me? Escape for a while." He was warming to the idea but wasn't sure if Nirasi was, all he could read for now was exhaustion. "If you come I can summon some bees for you." He added, as a weak attempt at a better incentive.

"Yeah, swarm of bees...bad," he shrugged with a smile. "I've always felt like a 'showcase' would justify the effort people put into raising me, so I've always striven to show it wasn't pointless to concern themselves with me. I've always wanted to feel...worthwhile. I was so self-centered growing up, I feel like I have a lot of ground to cover to repay my village," he said.

The invitation to get even farther from his shame was a siren song. "I don't think I should go, not right now. I feel better knowing you're willing to include me, but...I've burned through a lot of energy, possibly bridges...I want to catch them before the flames get too high," his voice was starting to catch. "I have to go back," he whispered. Skjoldur was used to a nomadic lifestyle, but if the sun started setting, Nirasi wasn't prepared for much time in the wilderness, not in this shape. He also had to recover control of his own home before anything happened to it. Hopefully they'd be more forgiving of him if he returned, and less likely to run amok with his feeble supervision.

The important thing was that he felt less afraid that Skjoldur would disappear indefinitely. Nirasi had come to rely on his presence, and the freedom it granted him to experience the rest of the world. But ever-present was the chance he'd vanish into the woods - he only appeared in the first place because an Elder requested him specifically, for the task of improving Nirasi's home. He was used to the wilds, and relied on them, whereas Nirasi relied on him. He could leave and travel alone, but had absolutely no desire to do so. The color seeped out of the world without someone to talk to about the novel things.

More than anything he wanted to at least cool his friend's skin and close his scuffs, but he just did not have anything left. As for himself, he reasoned that nothing was life-threatening, and the pain kept him focused. He welcomed the clarity - he needed to keep feeling the consequence of his bad decisions, so that he didn't forget it before he could make up for it. Didn't take it for granted.

"I'm tapped out. If it's such a simple thing to convince these guys to move, would you mind doing so? I think it'd be kinder to them to ask permission, if they're really out to get me. I'm not the most qualified diplomat of our little envoy."

He still didn't feel ready to see Skjoldur go. He needed confidante as much as he needed practice, and he only felt mildly reassured that Skjoldur would ever come back. "Give me a few days? I don't want to go back, either, but I promise it'll be vacant if you want to come back later and...gather anything for your journey?" he ventured. He had no idea what his friend stashed in his room. "I can send you with some pemmican at least, or maybe even come with you - but right now I," and he felt that awful constriction in his throat, "I really should go clean up my mess. I'm not asking you to come with me...it's probably best that you have some time to yourself to collect your thoughts without me smothering you. But I'll admit I'm afraid of losing you. Please come see me in a few days."

Skjoldur nodded and licked his forepaw thoughtfully. He was disappointed Nirasi hadn't found the idea as enticing as him but knew that asking Nirasi, who had lived his life in one small area close to his home village, would be reluctant to leave his familiar, confortable surroundings.

"I'm... Not too keen on the idea of hanging around," He said quietly, "But... I will wait for you Nirasi. I'm really looking forward to travelling with someone for once," He confided softly, "Although I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else. I think you need this break as much as I do; it will probably be a long journey and I understand if you need to tie up your... social... loose ends..." He didn't understand the need for smoothing cracks in relationships but as he had spent his life almost exclusively in isolation he knew he was in no position to question Nirasi's methods or desires in that regard.

He shifted his legs under him then stood up, stretching stiff joints a little and keeping his eyes fixed steadily on the vines in front of him. He made an attempt to center himself and slowly began unravelling the mass ahead, taking care not to think about how upset he was that Nirasi was not coming with him immediately. He lived a very gratifying and free life, deciding where to go and going there as the whim took him - the concept of patience escaped him.

A path was soon cleared through the copse for the duo to leave unharmed. Skjoldur led the way, stepping gently on more supple spines and soon they were out and leaving the terrible, wonderful disc of energy behind. "I'm going to head off for now... North, upstream a bit. But... I'll see you soon, okay?"

He couldn't make eye contact with Skjoldur, so tentative was his faith in his decision. Any glance, any one thing, would shatter his resolve, and he knew he was just repeating the same blunder as he had at the party. Running away.

His stronger faith, however, was in Skjoldur's forgiveness.

Their friendship was unique in its simplicity...he'd never had to impress or puff up (though he did enjoy a good puffing) to feel like he was accepted. Much of what they had was built was built on silence, and understanding that came from different backgrounds with complementing personal drives. He'd been careful never to question what made Skjoldur so different, so easy to mesh with, but he'd also never tested the bond they had. He sincerely hoped he'd still have the privilege of his companionship when, if, they crossed paths again.

His entire reasoning brain wailed in dissonance with his whispered words, ".......please be careful."

He sulked slowly, head hung, relying on sounds to tell him their paths had split. His feet felt so heavy. He couldn't lift his head or his gaze. He concentrated on each footfall, moved gently, miserably, past the underbrush. He flinched with each snapped twig, but made his way back home through the remains of all the small lives he'd taken to get here.

Every footprint he came across was gouged out of the ground, heading in the direction he wanted to go, with the drive he wanted to feel.

".......please be careful."

"And you, Zee." He smiled weakly, every bone in his body saying this was bad. He went slowly, reluctant to leave Nirasi. He would find his way and would be much happier for saying what he had to say to move on... In the long run....

As he turned, his eyes immediately fell on a deer trail and he padded along it, soon engulfed by the forest. Walking on the slightly damp and musty ground cooled his paws but he was still burned by his recent lack of composure.

The trees gave way to a more coniferous terrain, the trunks of tall pines surrounded by soft blaeberry bushes and old pine-needles. He lay down under those silent, stoic sentinals and began licking his scratches and scrapes. As he methodically worked his way around his limbs he thought practically: where to go and how far; how to progress in his Element and if exercise was the key; if he could make Nirasi comfortable in the woods...

He nosed bushes, smelling the sweet berries hidden under verdant leaves and sucked up those delightful morsels, and as he shuffled around the hill he had perched on he smelt a smell that made his heart skip. Apricots - earthy apricots... Mushrooms! Specifically girolle. Small, straw coloured funghi with frilly undersides, totally edible and one of his favourites. He pulled himself forward on his belly, enjoying the feeling and heading toward a small patch of bracken. Here he found his bounty. It was like hunting for treasure under the older russet leaves, as soon as he saw a glimmer of gold it was gone, down his gullet.

There is no greater pleasure than good food and Skjoldur was thoroughly enjoying himself. Soon he had eaten his fill of girolle and blaeberries and as dusk settled in, he found the general ambience of his mood had improved considerably. He was looking forward to travelling again, exercising, and was convinced he could crack the mystery of those ferocious plants. He decided to soothe himself some more and closed his eyes to meditate a little, focusing on his breathing and feeling all of the tiny twitches of his muscles in the very tip of his tail all the way to the dull throb in his gut where a knot of nervousness was settled in deep. He fell asleep quickly, curled amongst the bracken like a faun, utterly exhausted from his incredibly eventful day.

He continued like this for a couple more days, meditating, eating, sleeping, grooming... He headed upstream just as he had told Nirasi and found the river delightful - cool, fast flowing, deep but not very wide. He spent many happy hours by the river watching fish, catching fish, enjoying eating fish, and felt his fears and worries washed downstream. Lying and watching the world was utter contentment to him and he very quickly lost track of time.

Two more days passed and Skjoldur had travelled further upstream, heading into deeper gorges and finding the trees more and more scarce. He was living on sights and smells and starting to loose himself, gnats around his head once more and distracted shoots germinating on his mask. Following a trail through some heather he was transfixed on the mountain range ahead - so many answers laid in wait for him there, he couldn't help but feel he was being called. Suddenly a flock of field-fares burst from cover next to him and he jumped like a scared pup, gads, I'm so glad no one saw that, he thought to himself, as he often did in these unscripted wild areas, although Nirasi would have thought that was hilarious, me jumping at birds... He smiled, then turned to look back, something he hadn't done since walking away from responsibility four days ago.

The view was beautiful from his mid-mountain perch, rolling landscapes dotted with rocky outcrops and blanketed by a large and wild forest.The edge of the woods gave way to great plains and when he squinted he could just make out the glint of the river. It headed straight through the conifers, winding more freely through the woodland and finally disappearing from sight on the lip of a clearing before reappearing as a hairline past the village and into the valley beyond. Nirasi's waterfall... He thought solemnly.

Without pausing for thought he turned and started walking back, tail hung low, ashamed at himself for forgetting his friend, for being caught up in the wanderlust. He scolded himself for a while until he started thinking about how so make it up to Nirasi and remembered his feast on the first day and decided food was the key to forgiveness for now. He didn't stop for long after nightfall and grazed on leaves and fish as he followed the rivers edge, finally reaching the top of the waterfall in the afternoon of the next day.

His mind had been filled once again with thoughts of Nirasi, the times they had shared together, the evenings in winter, jumping from the waterfall in spring... He could hardly contain himself as he trotted down the slope to the pool, eyes bright and body refreshed, ready to nag his friend until he caved to come on an adventure with him.