Homecoming [ semi-closed, Hipparon Tribe RP ]

[Lyraciilee]

The trip from Drybone to the Forgotten Springs was mostly calm. K'luha spent most of her time completely knocked out from whatever the herb was K'haali gave her. No dreams, no thoughts, just a lot of sleep. However, to get from the Forgotten Springs to the tribe lands, it was a very bumpy Chocobo ride in the burning heat.

 

K'luha for one, was thankful for the heat. For the return home and for her chocobo K'yori to be waiting for her at their usual spot.

 

After the trio had loaded their remaining supplies onto their chocobos, well mostly Kweh and K'yori as Rhiki did yet have a saddle, they set off. K'luha couldn't take any more herbs as she would fall off her chocobo if she slept, but the ride was two days in the unbearable but comforting heat and excruciating pain in her hip that only grew worse.

 

On the eve of the second day K'luha was grateful to spy the tips of their tents out in the desert. She ushered K'yori on and for a moment, forgot about her pain and ceaseless fretting about the location of K'ile. She was just glad to finally be home.

 

Luha lead them to the edge of camp where a few huntresses were sitting, skinning and preparing the meat from a recent hunt. The familiar smells of home cracked a small smile on K'luha's lips as she half-fell and half-stepped off of her chocobo.

 

"Finally home..." Luha sighed heavily, glancing back to Tahj and K'haali. "We'll have to go to the elders straight away... but I think we can introduce Tahj to some of the girls, don't you think?" K'luha directed this at K'haali, but smiled warmly at her niece. "How are you holding up? It'll start cooling down soon. Almost the afternoon." K'luha tried to cheer her up, as Tahj had not initially dealt well with the intense heat.

[Izmina]

The chocobo ride through the boiling heat of the desert left the young miqo'te wilted and drained of energy. Tahj endured in silence as to not burden her aunt who was obviously in great pain from the hip injury. It was a vastly foriegn landscape for the young forest raised girl.

 

As the tents of the camp came into view, a multitude of different emotions assailed Tahj, she was scared, nervous, relieved, happy, and lost all at the same time. As K'luha half fell off  her mount Tahj scrambled to support her aunt's injured side. She smiled brightly at her aunt to assure her she was fine, as she didn't want to worry the woman.

[K'haali]

K'haali dismounted, reveling in the feeling of warm sand under her feet again as she sunk her face into her chocobo's neck, trying relax knotted muscles that she hadn't even realised existed until now. Upon hearing K'luha's suggestion she replied with a short protest; muffled by a faceful of warm feathers.

 

"Mmfff"

 

The elders would no doubt want to speak to the entire expedition; or, what remained of it. K'thajha inclusive, perhaps especially K'thajha; why would K'luha suggest they make a detour to visit the others? - Nevermind that K'haali wasn't exactly the most popular or sociable member of the tribe.

 

She concluded that perhaps K'luha wanted privacy, she was afterall hardest hit in every meaning of the word by the events of the expedition, and her reunion with the elders would probably not be a happy sight. After what what seemed like an eternity of careful consideration (And a while longer to prize herself away from her warm, feathery resting spot) she finally stood up straight, to the protest of her sore muscles, pulled a leather roll out from the harness and tossed it to K'tahjha.

 

"...alright."

 

 

Entering the camp proper, revealed a large, yet unlit bonfire, ringed by tents, a number of miqo'te busily going about their daily business; scouring a wurm hide from the last hunt, repairing weapons and sharpening the leather knives. In this hive of activity word of their arrival hadn't seemed to have sunk in just yet.

 

K'haali didn't announce their presence either, and instead made a bee-line toward a large rectangular tent that served as storage - apparently having a different plan than taking K'tahjha around introducing her to the daughters of the tribe. Predictably, a number of the other tribe members and huntresses noticed the new blonde haired arrival and began talking among themselves.

 

Taking the rolls of leather from K'tahjha and dropping the sack in the darkness of the tent, back turned to the outside world K'haali grinned a little and waited for the other tribe members to inevitably come forward out of curiosity and introduce themselves, saving her the trouble of a guided tour...

[K'nahli]

A quiet tune was hummed while the young miqo'te carefully sliced through the freshly-skinned meat. The raw odour invaded her nostrils and prompted a discomforting, feeling of hunger. The occasional, discreet growl from a displeased stomach made its presence known all too regularly and only served to remind K'nahli that she was growing even more hungry with each passing sun, regardless of how well she managed to distract herself in between.

 

The scorching, hot afternoon was like any other. She and a few others had been busy with skinning and preparing meat for later. In the past, in better days... she would normally have cut large chunks of meat and placed them in storage, keeping them preserved in sacks of salt for the next day and still have plenty left over to place toward the current day's feast. Those days were long gone however. Meager portions that could barely sustain the tribe were all that could be scavenged from the desolate sands as game grew more and more scarce as time went on. There was hardly ever such thing as "storing food" these days.

 

A sigh escaped past her licked lips as the final clack of steel colliding against the sun-baked rock mocked her. The portions were as small as ever; even bringing in larger game didn't seem to make enough difference. The absence of a few tribe members had remedied the situation a little, but now that small blessing was growing unnoticed. It still wasn't enough.

 

 

"Can we really continue like this...?" K'nahli lamented softly to herself as she stared through the plump and bloodied meat blankly, her mind wandering elsewhere in silent thought.

 

 

The girl's ears suddenly flickered a number of times as distant vibrations resonated through the stifling air and tickled the fine hairs on the tips of her ears. Perking up slightly now, they involuntarily turned towards the source of the sound as crimson eyes gazed sideward to behold the easing sight of returning kin.

 

"Ah... they're back.." was all that she could say as a modest smile formed across her face.

 

Its intensity gradually faded, however, as her relief to see her family return safe and well was slowly bested by the realisation that, once again, they'll be enduring even smaller portions. The girl blinked slowly as her eyes traveled downward to behold the miniscule portions once more.

 

Another sigh passed over her lips, softer this time and infused even more deeply with worry. How long could they last before they became too weak to endure the intensity of these pitiful hunts? The mere thought of this vicious cycle... "intimidating" was an understatement.

[Clover]

Among all the Miqo'tes who noticed the long awaited return of the expedition team, there was K'mih. That day, she'd been granted some free time after helping her mother with some chores, and thus she was found playing hide and seek with other younglings by the time K'luha arrived. Perhaps the situation her tribe was going through wasn't the best, but she'd always find moments to play with her half siblings as if nothing was actually wrong; it helped her forget about all the troubles.

 

"K'luha's back!" Was one the young Miqo'tes' voice, the word quickly spreading through the camp. Like many others, K'mih stopped what she was doing and ran to greet her family, with both a bright smile and a hopeful heart that echoed her siblings'. It felt like it'd been so long from the time the small team left to search for new lands, a new home where trouble wouldn't follow them. Such good news were what everyone was expecting to hear.

 

When K'mih found them, however, confusion clouded her smile. Something was wrong. She didn't want to worry or think negatively yet, but something was strangely uncomfortable. K'luha seemed hurt, and there was no sight of neither her sister K'ailia nor K'ile, no matter how many glances she took. Something else caught her attention in her search, though; bicolour eyes locked themselves to the unfamiliar figure of a Miqo'te that seemed to be around her age, staring at her with undying curiosity.

 

She didn't even have to ask, for eager questions quickly arose from the surrounding Miqo'tes. "Did you find anything?", "Where's K'ile?", "Where's K'ailia?", "Who's this?". None of them seemed to wait for an answer before throwing the next question to the just arrived explorers. The waiting had been long and there were many things they needed to know. K'mih waited patiently, her attention back to K'luha and K'haali for a moment.

[Lyraciilee]

With her hip being the pain that it was, K'luha was going to need to sit again soon. Normally she wouldn't have pulled up so close to the camp but, walking was simply an issue now. And it wasn't about to get better anytime soon it seemed. K'luha motioned Tahj to help K'haali as the other red haired miq'ote tossed things at Tahj and started unpacking. K'luha couldn't help, but at least Tahj could. Well rather, would have if the cries of the younger children hadn't been swiftly followed by a small swam of younglings around them. They couldn't have possibly known about K'ile and K'ailia... and K'luha did a very good job of masking how it stung to hear such eager questions. Instead, K'luha carefully knelt down to take pressure off her hip and smiled at the young ones.

 

"We did find things. We found some wonderful places with lots of food. K'ile went to do some very important things, okay? And he'll be back home in a few days." K'luha completely skipped over the question of K'ailia, hoping they would be distracted by Tahj instead. "And this is K'tahjha. She's my niece. She grew up a long way away from here. So you have to be nice to her, okay? She's going to be living with us from now on." K'luha smiled cheerfully and took over to Tahj. "Why don't you say hello?"

 

Off some ways in the tribe, a dark skinned Miq'ote male sat in a quiet meditation. The desert air was even drier and hotter than usual, K'yohko noted briefly. The winds blew soft but recognizable scenes towards him. K'luha... K'haali... and someone else? He smelt them long before he saw them. His head turned briefly to look at the group, and he watched the children swarm around them with questions. Good questions. Some he would have liked answered as well.

 

K'yohko Nunh pushed off the tent he was leaning on and stepped over towards the Elder's tent. It was best if they were given the news straight away. He respectfully pushed the flap open and stuck his head instead to look within.

 

"The scouting party has returned." Was all his words before he stepped away and let the flap shut. He remained by the entrance, looking out and watching with vague interest.

[Izmina]

Slightly overwhelmed by the incoming flood of unfamiliar miqo'te, Tahj fell back towards her aunt. Feeling somewhat more comfortable in K'luha's familiar presence, Tahj managed a small wave and very quiet hello, her tail was carried very low, but she made an effort to pick her ears up and look friendly.

 

Never has she seen so many of her people in one place and her surroundings were vastly different than she was used to. Scanning the area Tahj was still trying to process the large amounts of new information and people around her, but still found time to worry about her aunt who needed to have her hip looked at.

[Clover]

For a moment, the good news K'luha brought seemed to do the trick. K'mih didn't initially notice the information the woman was hiding; she was too excited watching her new sister with shiny eyes and an amazed smile. It wasn't everyday that her family would grow larger, especially if the new member was another girl her age. Unable to hold back her eagerness to talk to K'tahjha, the pink haired Miqo'te took a single step towards her to introduce herself.

 

"I'm K'mih Yohko! I'm happy to have you with us!"

 

Far from mere politeness, her words and tone were unmistakably genuine and warm.

[Izmina]

K'tahjha focused on the speaker a young girl with pink hair, about her age relieved to have something to focus on. She smiled shyly, her eyes lighting up warmly,"K'tahja Yohko, but you can call me Tahj." Remembering how K'haali avoided her handshake and not wanting to make some sort of mistake, she leaned forward to offer a hug instead.

[Izmina]

K'zhumi was cataloging reagents and supplies in her tent when the commotion came to her attention. She had been eating lightly to ensure there was plenty for the younglings, and her growling stomach did nothing to bolster her temper as she flattened her ears and strode out of her tent to see what the fuss was about.

 

Arriving at the outer edge of the gathering of tribesmen, her spirits were briefly raised by the sight of the expedition. But that slight lift of mood did not last long, as she scanned the returning members with a healer's eye. Her eyes fell on K'luha first and she bared her teeth faintly,"One huntress out of commission and needing fed." she thought, and where is that tia? Try as she might she could catch no scent of him.

 

Belatedly her eye fell on the newcomer,"an outsider." she thought sourly looking at the young girl's unfamiliar garb. Mood darkening by the minute she spat in the sand at her feet and turned to stalk back to her tent. "That one will likely need feeding too? I wonder if we should install fans and a raised bed in her tent." Returning to her dwindling supplies she let the tent flap close behind her.

[Clover]

 

Being the friendly creature she was, K'mih was more than happy to give her new sister a warm hug, eyes closing with a huge smile. She'd just met K'tahjha, yet the girl was already like a treasure for the pink haired Miqo'te. There were many things she wanted to know about her, many things she wanted to show her. She hoped that her new sister would be just as happy to meet her new family and embrace their way of life, and play hide and seek with them, and...

 

"Ah..."

 

A realization crossed her mind after pulling back from the hug. She might not be the first sister K'tahjha had the chance to talk to, was she?

 

"Have you met K'ailia already?" Her eyes travelled then to an injured K'luha, her smile replaced by something akin concern. "Where is she...?"

[Lyraciilee]

K'luha was glad K'mih was so friendly. K'mih was a good girl, always had been. To have her accept Tahj right away meant a lot of Luha, as it probably did to Tahj as well. With a warm smile, Luha watched them interact for a few moments. At least, until K'mih spoke up about K'ailia. Again, she could feel a lump in her throat and a throbbing in her chest. Why did they all have to ask about K'ailia....? She didn't want to tell them. Instead, K'luha shakily stood up, leaning to the left to keep as much weight off her injured hip as possible. Maybe this was running away, but she was going to damn well run for a little while longer.

 

"K'mih, could you please show Tahj around the camp? K'haali and I should go see the elders and give our reports, right away." Luha smiled again and started hobbling off towards the elder's tent. She always knew where they were as their tent was always the largest and sat near the center of camp. Much to K'luha's displeasure, K'yohko stepped forward as she approached the tent and wrapped a hand around her waist. He pulled one of her arms over his shoulder for support and helped her over to the tent. K'luha wriggled a bit to get out of his grip, but he didn't budge an inch. Not wanting to call attention to herself any further she simply let him help her and carefully cleared her voice in front of the tent.

 

"Grandmother? It's K'luha. K'haali and I are back with news from our scouting party..." K'luha called out tentatively. Hopefully K'mih wouldn't pester her for more information on K'ailia. She would tell the elders and that was all. She didn't think she could tell anyone else for the time being. Not even K'yohko.

 

A red hair huntress looked up faintly from her seat upon a heavy boulder that sat in-between tents. She was sharpening her axe for tomorrow's hunt, or perhaps tonight's hunt since so many returned home. K'iara clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, sharp blue eyes staring down Tahj, K'haali, and K'luha from a distance. Who was this new comer? K'iara caught her scent on the wind and frowned a bit. Like an outsider...

 

The movement from the medical tent caught K'iara attention, and she watched her sister Zhumi look irked before returning to her tent. This slipped a small smirk on the elder sister's face, and K'iara stood from her spot. She swung her axe over and hooked it into place on her back before ducking into Zhumi's tent.

 

"Zhu." K'iara called, her voice always a raspy breathy thing. She said no more for the time being but walked over to the center of the tent and peered at Zhumi's activities.

[Clover]

It was K'hula's answer -the lack of it- what stabbed K'mih's stomach and filled her features with more visible concern. The woman offered no chance to ask further; she just walked away, making it clear that K'ailia wasn't a matter she wished to discuss.

 

Something bad had happened, and K'mih's imagination wasn't exactly kind about it.

 

There was no attempt to stop K'luha with more questions, however. The always submissive Miqo'te limited herself to watch the woman's back with eyes that felt damper as seconds passed. They ended up traveling to her new sister, silently begging for any sort of an answer. Perhaps she knew, perhaps she'd met K'ailia...

[Twinflame]

The Elder's tent was opened by a thin hand, long fingernails, bones decorated with dark veins and black splotches. "We know." K'takka's silvery blue eyes shone like dew drops in the light, but her tattoos took on a much more sinister quality, looking like white cracks in her aged flesh. K'takka was not the grandmother that K'luha had been looking for, but she was Yohko's grandmother, and she gave him her graceful, dubious smile, "Thank you for helping her over, K'yohko. Now," her voice hardened, tight with age bitterness, "Both of you. Inside. Bring the others as well." She turned and vanished into the tent, leaving a breath of air that smelt of spices and herbs. 

 

Those scents were thick inside the strange brown shadows of the Elders' tent, almost overflowing with tapestries and fetishes, alchemical supplies and visible white curls of smoke from incense. As K'takka hobbled towards a pile of skins and brightly colored pillows from Ul'dah, she muttered to the other Elders, "I don't think they all came back."

[Naunet]

"It would be too much to ask," came a low, crackling voice from one side of the room, "for their simple task to be completed without complication." Yellow eyes frowned from within deep wrinkles of leathery skin blotched with dark birthmarks. K'jhanhi stood, but he didn't move from his spot, instead looming from the corner quietly.

 

"The Warden save us all," a smaller, hunched woman, K'deiki, muttered with a hint of amusement. Her fingers brushed through an array of bone beads she had spread across a small bowl as she spoke. After a moment, the third remaining elder, the grandmother K'luha had sought to call for, looked up towards her granddaughter and her nunh. Thin lips turned down. "You do not look well. Sit."

[Lyraciilee]

K'luha and K'yohko both recognized the hand which opened the tent's door. While K'luha felt a bit of dread seeing K'takka, K'yohko was glad for her appearance. If K'luha and K'yohko had something in common, it was that they both loved their parents and elders dearly. While K'yohko did not smile back at his grandmother, there was a small twinkle in his eye that she would recognize as his acknowledgement.

 

For K'luha, all she could feel was the impending dread of confessing her crimes. That and telling them she had lost both her daughter, and K'ile during the scouting party. More failures racking up on more failures. Although she didn't want to rely on K'yohko, she gripped at his shoulder for a moment. After a moment's breath she turned back and called for K'haali.

 

"K'haali. It's time. Come on. Tahj, I'll call you in, in just a moment." K'luha took another deep breath before allowing K'yohko to help her into the tent. It was dark yet still warm, a familiar and welcoming place to be. Even if the tent held dark memories, it also held bright ones. K'luha was trying so desperately hard to stay positive. It was easier here, now that she was home. As per instructed, K'yohko shifted K'luha down to sit on a few pillows. K'luha winced a bit but quietly thanked K'yohko for his aid. The nunh said nothing but turned and left the tent. It wasn't his place to remain with the meeting, but he took place standing just outside the tent should they need him.

 

K'luha looked from K'takka to K'jhanhi, to her grandmother. At least K'deiki didn't look like she was going to murder her... yet.

 

"It was... an... eventful trip." K'luha coughed awkwardly, glancing back and waiting for K'haali's entrance. "Should we start with the good... or the bad?" She offered a guilty and somewhat misplaced smile to the three elders, feeling like she wanted to sink through the floor a little bit.

[K'haali]

Hearing K'luha's voice she carefully pushed the tent flap wider; still hesitant to cross the threshold into the darkened interior. She'd rarely been before the elders personally, and never before in such circumstances that even the Nunh himself had not been welcome to preside over the discussion.

 

She shuffled her way to a spot near to K'luha, eyes glued to the floor, only half aware of what she was doing, overthinking K'luha's simple question.

 

'Good news first, and I can give them my report and be out of here quickly. But then the expedition will seem like a complete disaster. 

 

If I hold the good news til last, then it'll underline that the expedition was anything but a waste - however, that means..."

 

K'haali cuts off her selfish train of thought as she sat down, folding her legs and dropping the a small sack into the gap. K'luha was going to have a hard enough time, without her plotting to get out of there quickly and leaving her to explain all this by herself unsupported; besides. K'luha still hadn't given her the full versions of events either, and she hadn't wanted to push for the details...

 

"Let's get the worst over with, from there on it's all good news..."

[Izmina]

Tahj's ear twitched at the sound of her aunt's voice, a million butterflies exploding in the pit of her stomach. What if they said she couldn't stay? Smiling at K'mih she reached to give the girl a quick hug and spoke quietly,"K'ailia is fine, alive an well." leaving her with an encouraging smile and wandering slowly towards the large tent. Spotting the unfamiliar male outside the tent flap, Tahj stopped a respectful distance away and bobbed a quick bow and stood staring at her feet quietly waiting to be called.

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

K'zhumi was still quietly fuming and checking the levels of various herbs and healing supplies when she heard her sister enter the tent. She waved over her shoulder and growled,"Have you seen that outsider? They can't expect us to keep her can they? She probably faint dead away if she saw something's innards."

[Twinflame]

K'takka's rickety body knotted up upon itself, disappearing into the furs near the back of the room. She held that single, colorful pilled close to her chest and propped her sharp chin upon it. Her tail, crossed over her ankles, was missing patches of fur where horribly scarred flesh could be seen. Her tattered ears hung low on either side of her head.

 

Her gaze was focused on the entrance of the tent, through which K'yohko had left and K'haali had entered. She broke her stare, though, to look at K'luha and say with some announce, "Start at the beginning. Judge for yourself."

[Naunet]

Gesturing again to the sand in front of them, K'deiki squinted through the shadows her granddaughter searchingly. "That there is bad to speak of troubles me, but does not surprise me," she said, voice a scratchy whisper. The bowl she had been working with earlier was set aside, and she shifted on her skins so that she was facing directly towards K'luha.

 

Further back in the tent, K'jhanhi watched with a silent frown, his tail curling expectantly. His words tagged after K'deiki's at a natural pace, "I would caution you not to hide anything from us in this dire time."

[Lyraciilee]

K'luha looked to Haali as the other girl sat down. Where was the best place to begin? K'takka said it so simply. At the beginning, but where was the best beginning? So far, K'luha had not been the best judge of character... or action... or anything at all. Most of this discussion pained her to speak on, but there were things that had to be said. She glanced up to K'jhanhi and frowned.

 

"I would not hide anything from you all. I will tell all, but some less related things I would ask a private audience for... In any case..." K'luha cleared her throat and began to speak. She spoke up arriving in Ul'dah earlier and meeting the head of the Ul'dah Garden, a Ventus Zeurel. She spoke of her mistrust for him. She spoke about K'ailia's threat to leave the tribe and K'ile's timely arrival and subsequent patching up of their relationship. Then she spoke in detail about their search. How they scouted Thanalan for a place to find home. She went through all of the areas with potential, but spoke at length about Eastern Thalan's bounty and beauty. About its vastness and close locations. K'luha spoke of the Amalj'aa encampment nearby and her short scouting tribe with K'ile, though she mostly just glossed over the actual travel and did not mention their failure at hunting. That wasn't really relevant. She spoke briefly about the Ul'dahn Garden itself and its slight potential, although she seemed to dismiss the potential when she spoke upon her challenge to Ventus. There was a long pause before K'luha spoke about almost dying to Ventus's hand and K'ailia's abandonment. It was clear in her face that K'ailia's abandonment pained her greatly, and she gripped at her chest in an effort to somehow make it all better. She spoke of meeting K'haz, a former tribe member as well and how he had aided her briefly when K'ailia injured her hip. Pushing forward she spoke of a letter K'ailia had received before she abandoned and about her sister Maka's daughter, Tahj. She said it had been her idea to retrieve Tahj from Gridania, and that the girl was waiting just outside the tent.

 

"Tahj is a wonderful girl. It isn't her fault that Maka was exiled. She can't be asked to pay for her mother's crimes... And... Maka is dead now. She has no one to take care of her. She's still only fifteen. Tahj could be a huntress in no time. She will be an asset to the tribe, I am sure of it." K'luha spoke with conviction before slinking backwards lightly. "There are a few more things I have to confess but, I will let K'haali speak more in depth about her findings in Eastern Thalanen and such." And with that K'luha silenced herself and looked to K'haali to speak.

 

K'yohko, on the other hand, turned his head faintly to examine Tahj outside. She looked very familiar... and her scent was familiar too. Someone from a long... long time ago. But he said nothing to Tahj and turned his head away from her to stare out at the horizon.

[Naunet]

K'deiki swayed slowly as her granddaughter spoke, though the motion was so slight as to be almost unnoticeable. When a pause finally came, the old woman, former huntress and leader, mother, and elder, let out a long, wispy breath that seemed to steal all the strength from her frail bones and papery skin. K'makanee had not been the first of the tribe's family to cast themselves into exile, nor the last, and each one hung forever at the back of K'deiki's mind, their deeds and misdeeds constant reminders of the fallibility of their own lives. She had no regret for the exile, but she did regret their actions that led to it. They had lost so many in these recent years, and this loss made the reminder of earlier ones more poignant.

 

And now, perhaps, there had come a chance for K'makanee to redeem herself, in the form of her daughter.

 

"The girl would know nothing of our people or our way of life," K'jhanhi spoke suddenly, words harsh but tone not unkind. "She will be as a babe in these dunes, just like any outsider. And regardless of your confidence in her future as a huntress, she is one more hungry mouth and one more weight in the sand."

 

K'deiki winced inwardly, though her expression did not change. Instead she kept her clouded eyes on K'luha's form and followed the former nunh's words with her own after a brief pause, "We would have you bring her here before us, so that she may speak for herself and her abilities and aspirations."

[K'haali]

As they waited for K'tahjha to join them, K'haali took the opportunity to fill the silence with a quick rundown of her own findings. She quickly scanned around the bags and notes in the dark with her hands, seemingly both looking and trying to give a respectful bob of the head to the elders, in an obviously nervous fluster.

 

"Okay... findings... findings."

 

"Well, in East Thanalan we discovered a secluded grove on the edge of a huge gorge carved by Dalamud, around half a day south of Highbridge, at the heart of this grove-in-the-wastes was the husk of a dead goobue, from which all manner of flora had sprouted and covered the area."

 

K'haali omitting that the site was only found because K'luha had fled the previous evening into a pouring rainstorm in an event that still eluded explanation to her.

 

"There is both a small standing oasis close to the goobue, and also a large, fast-flowing river about half a day north-east, from the direction of the shroud. The soils there are more fertile than Southern Thanalan, and while we were there we witnessed a rain storm, so the area does have rainfall"

 

"While the others collected K'thajha I was able to spend a couple of weeks exploring the area; there's quite a wealth of useful minerals and the plains are home to huge herds of aldgoat. I also found a number of edible plants that looked easy to cultivate..."

 

"...and, I also found this."

 

K'haali carefully placed a small, but remarkably heavy pouch in reach of the elders. Allowing the pouch to unfold slightly, revealing a slight glint of gold in the dim light of the tent.

[Clover]

K'mih's eyes visibly lightened up at the news that her sister K'ailia was safe. The pain in her stomach started diminishing, and a thankful smile returned to her features. She didn't understand why K'luha had avoided the matter, but whatever had happened, it was a relief to know that it hadn't been serious. Perhaps they'd had any argument and K'luha was still angry, she thought.

 

When her new sister started walking to the big tent, K'mih followed her.

 

"I can keep you company until you're called inside," she said cheerfully, hoping to have the chance to talk more to her. K'tahjha was her new family, after all; there were many things K'mih wanted to know about her past life.

 

Her plans, however, took a serious turn when they approached the tent. The painful figure of her father standing right outside, waiting, had an immediate effect on the Miqo'te. K'mih's expression changed once more, from shock to a mix of uncomfortable and shy, and she timidly reached out for K'tahjha's hand. It was a mere touch, a way to get her attention.

 

 

"S-sorry... I have to leave... I hope I can talk to you later..."

 

With a quick, apologetic bow and no explanations, K'mih turned around and ran in the opposite direction.

[Twinflame]

Under her placid eyes, K'takka's small mouth twisted into a strangely sweet smile that sharpened her tattoos to razor lines. "K'haali, dear, than you for working so hard." The old woman moved forward on her thin limbs, holding the pillow in one hand as she inched forward to pry the bag open with her fingernails. She rolled out a stone, that shone in the sparse light, and exhaled, "Ah, is this gold? Treasured by Ul'dahns! Oh, K'haali tell me." Her silver eyes flashed up to the red-haired girl, and her frayed tail moved in truncated curls behind her. "Tell me that it's gold."