A Lost Friend

Never in a million years would this red-panda coated Lai find herself thinking of her past. She had tried so hard to let them go, because she was with her savior Thorn now living in the snowy northern regions of Elashia. She sat at the mouth of her cave sitting there letting the icy wind nip at her mane and tense her dense muscles. The scent on the wind, she could tell fall was near. Fall, her favorite time, everything turning a golden orange matching her coat and the air wasn't quite yet cold nor was it hot. Just thinking about the leaves made her think of her childhood, flashing images went through her mind as she sat there sinking into her conscience . Two young Lai's one older than her, with blonde fur, a brother figure she thought him as, yes, quite the character too. He was very protective of her and was the one who gave her shelter and love when she was such a young age. The other, a dear friend she remembered, a pink shaded Lai who smelled of lilies. A smile that could make any cloudy day light up or warm the coldest days during winter. Saica remembered she was the one who brought her out of her shy scared state and introduced her to the world that she was once so afraid of being in. The thought of her past made Saica give a heavy sigh, the memory of that day began to play.

It was fall, everything was turning a beautiful array of oranges, reds, and golds. The chill in the air could make any pup shiver, Saica had snuck out of her little burrow that she and Marduk and nestled in before he awoke. She ran out into the orange hued forest in search of her friend Trisha. The pink little Lai was waiting for her as she promised and gave her that heart warming smile in greeting. She then proceeded to explain a game she wanted to play, a game Saica would enjoy she was told. It was called, Hide n' Go Seek, one person counted while the other hid and waiting for the "seeker" to come find them. Trisha began counting and Saica dashed through the leaves causing them to crumple and crunch under her paws. She just ran and ran and ran until she was out of breath and stopped to take a breather. She whirled around in excitement to wait to see Trisha pounce playfully at her like she always did. However, upon turning Saica's happy expression turned to concern. She didn't recognize where she was, none of the trees looked familiar, and she could no longer hear the loud counting from her dear friend. Saica was lost.


Saica's eyes were shut tight at the memory replaying in her mind. She gave an uncomfortable grunt and stood up from her place, deep down something was telling her to go, go, run all the way back. But what stopped her was the thought of leaving her poor frail savior, Thorn barely cared for himself, without her he wouldn't be able to stand from lack of energy. And Saica had no clue whether her friend even still remembered her, would she still be in that same forest? Would she even know who I was or care even if I approached her? These thoughts plagued Saica's mind making her hesitant to leave. A tapping sound she heard from behind. Turning only to see Bolt, the little yellow bird was pecking at the leaf pendant still attached to Saica's tail. Beaten and worn she can't bring herself to simply throw it away, it was all she had left of her childhood from before she met Thorn. Saica gave a low growl and glared at Bolt to make him flutter away. She stared a moment at that pendant, remembering the day Trisha helped her make it. She loved how pretty the leaves were and wanted to be able to wear one, Trisha graciously made it for her as a symbol of their undying friendship. Whether it was still alive or not Saica had strong faith that even with their distance so far apart that she and Trisha were still insufferable friends.

She couldn't stand it any longer, Saica felt so dissatisfied that she went out for a walk. What harm could it do? Thorn was resting anyway after a long night of training his element. So concerned about hurting others with his power that poor Lai trained until he dropped. He and Saica's roles have now switched, she was now the caretaker instead of Thorn. Saica walked in the snow, the crunch sound of it under her now enormous, rough paws. She walked for a while in her own world before she snapped back to reality in the snowy pine forest that was near their cave. She continued remembering her surroundings, she has become much more aware of those since her puphood. Coming across a frozen pond in a slight opening of the thick forest, the dim light shown down through the upper branches and cast sparkling rays to fall upon the pond. Saica watched it sparkle ignoring the cold tingling up her toes, a snowflake landed on Saica's muzzle making her twitch and blink at the surprise it had begun to flurry. Slowly flakes fell through the canopy of pine trees, sparkling in those rays creating a beautiful image. She couldn't help but feel down and lonely, even though she had Thorn and Bolt it seemed to be absent from her mind at the time. She sat herself down in the cold snow and let it make her numb, hoping it would also numb these feelings.

"Trisha..." Was all she distantly mumbled for an extended period of time. Once again her conscience going into its own world. Her eyes had closed in her moment of thought and by the time she had come back it was no longer morning, but mid to late day. It was still snowing, her horns were covered and her fur was starting to freeze and clump with snow sticking to the iced fur. She moved not realizing how stiff she actually was, she stretched and groaned as her muscles shivered with the pleasure of stretching after all that time sitting. The iced fur began to crackle and break, the snow fell off her back and with such a simple movement her body began heating up making it melt as well. Feeling better she decided to head back, looking back at the sparkling rays of light and snow she made her way back home. The faint thoughts of Trisha still in the back of her mind.

Saica had been gone for so long the snow began to pile higher, her solemn walk had gone on the majority of her day. By know she knew Thorn must have been awake and wondering where she was, he always worried so much about her as if she was still a pup. The thought made her shake her head & roll her eyes, she wasn't a pup anymore, full grown and trained in the element of earth she was a strong adult now. She walked through the piled snow, it also still falling on her face through protected by her mask she could still feel the cold air as she breathed through her nostrils and heaved large puffs of visible breath in the air. She didn't mind the cold, but looking up at the pine trees as she walked made her miss the look of the orange hued forests of fall. Though she hasn't been anywhere else since she was found by Thorn and Bolt. Snow has always been in her sights, cold, white, grey all colors she's grown so accustomed to waking up to everyday. She sometimes wonders if she could get Thorn to go on an adventure with her one day, just for the heck of it. The sun was still up, it would be for another day or so, they were far enough north that sometimes there was even two days of sun or night, not that she minded Saica enjoyed them both. It felt like she was walking for hours, she probably had been she zoned out so many times she was probably just walking all over the forest.

Saica retraced her steps after realizing how long she must have been out and walking. She had gone too far, she couldnt quite make out her surroundings and the snow had been falling so much her tracks were becoming less visible. Her stomach began to growl and it dawned on her that she hadnt eaten anything all day. Before the snow got worse, finding some food was going to be crucial and quickly. And while she was at it she would try to get something for Thorn as well, since he was probably waiting for her back at the cave. She used her earth element to begin to feel for life around her, the slightest vibration in the ground and she would detect it, no matter the terrain or weather. She moved on to continue her hunt, but at a hastened pace for the snow was turning into a blizzard.