Little did the girl think of his words of gratitude, genuine as they may have somewhat sounded coming from him. Little, too, did she make of his simple decision to save the token for later as opposed to indulging himself now. In truth, she was in no particular rush to return home - no particular rush to hurry anywhere for that matter, and so she had intended to allow him whatever time he needed before he was ready to depart. Perhaps he thought himself doing her a favour, or perhaps he simply wasn't hungry. Either way, it was an irrelevant matter she would not think to question.
His next words were answered with an almost shy nod of her head, the girl's every animation reserved and lacking in energy - a demeanour that may be perceived as unusually soft for the huntress and more alike to that of her more tender-natured sister. Following the boy's lead, albeit with some slight difficulty, K'nahli mounted her chocobo with no further words shared between them before quietly guiding her loyal companion by the reigns back in the direction of the road to lead the long trek home to Drybone.
[...]
With the early hours of the morning placed well behind them, the pair had long since passed Blackbrush, the last bastion of outsider civilization standing between them and home - and the last which they would have to suffer for some time to come. The midday sun burned ferociously upon it's perch high above, resembling that of funeral pyre set adrift in the clear sea of cerulean above. Such heat was unforgiving in it's dominance with even the most native of the land's inhabitants brought to heel beneath it's intensity, though luckily something to be considered of lesser concern to those of Seeker breed. That was not to say that any respite offered by the lands would go unacknowledged, however, and shade and water both would not be too distant a hope as both miqo'te journeyed toward the large watering hole that lay between them and the more barren lands of Drybone.
".....nn.."
For K'nahli, however, even the sweet comforts offered by such a thought were rather far from mind. By now, it was difficult to continue muffling the weak protests humming away from the depths of her throat, the slightly harsher breathing that had harassed her already-parched lips... and the wary fatigue that slowly ate away at her ability to sit firm and upright in her saddle. As a young child struggling to keep awake in the late hours of the night, her vision began to fade into intermittent darkness, her posture gradually easing to one side, until finally, the girl slipped completely from her saddle and landed as an unmoving heap upon the dusty, Thanalan floor.
His next words were answered with an almost shy nod of her head, the girl's every animation reserved and lacking in energy - a demeanour that may be perceived as unusually soft for the huntress and more alike to that of her more tender-natured sister. Following the boy's lead, albeit with some slight difficulty, K'nahli mounted her chocobo with no further words shared between them before quietly guiding her loyal companion by the reigns back in the direction of the road to lead the long trek home to Drybone.
[...]
With the early hours of the morning placed well behind them, the pair had long since passed Blackbrush, the last bastion of outsider civilization standing between them and home - and the last which they would have to suffer for some time to come. The midday sun burned ferociously upon it's perch high above, resembling that of funeral pyre set adrift in the clear sea of cerulean above. Such heat was unforgiving in it's dominance with even the most native of the land's inhabitants brought to heel beneath it's intensity, though luckily something to be considered of lesser concern to those of Seeker breed. That was not to say that any respite offered by the lands would go unacknowledged, however, and shade and water both would not be too distant a hope as both miqo'te journeyed toward the large watering hole that lay between them and the more barren lands of Drybone.
".....nn.."
For K'nahli, however, even the sweet comforts offered by such a thought were rather far from mind. By now, it was difficult to continue muffling the weak protests humming away from the depths of her throat, the slightly harsher breathing that had harassed her already-parched lips... and the wary fatigue that slowly ate away at her ability to sit firm and upright in her saddle. As a young child struggling to keep awake in the late hours of the night, her vision began to fade into intermittent darkness, her posture gradually easing to one side, until finally, the girl slipped completely from her saddle and landed as an unmoving heap upon the dusty, Thanalan floor.
![[Image: ecec20e41f.png]](https://puu.sh/xvMxb/ecec20e41f.png)
Characters: Andre Winter (Hy'ur) / K'nahli Yohko (Miqo'te)
