It was a strange thing, this feast other animals were inviting the wolves too, but it certainly wasn’t the first strange thing Kotori had ever seen or heard of.  The horned wolf recalled the snows of his birth that his family had to explain was abnormal, as were the giant wolves and cats that had come with it.  There had been the strange darkness with fireflies and crystals that had happened over a year ago now.

Kotori glanced at Fang, the little mongoose hardly visible, but the glowing blue in his fur standing out through seems green brush.  The mongoose didn’t seem to care much for Aia which made sense.  Fang was a grumpy thing and Aia was the polar opposite with her cheery disposition. Whether it was that simple Kotori had no idea.

Now, apparently, statues had come from nowhere and were strangely affecting terrain in some locations.  Kotori was curious, and happy to enjoy festivities but couldn’t shake a bit of wariness at something strange once more happening in the land.  For now, though, this was another chance to get out with Aia, and give her some new experiences.

The mangroves were lots of fun for a pup, at least they had been for Kotori.  This place had just about everything one could want in Kotori’s mind for creating a decoration.  Various branches and roots, all manner of plants, and any other number of mysteries for a curious pup to find.

“Have a look around Aia.  The strange animals said those coming to the feast should bring either food, some type of drink, or decorations.  Explore, have fun but see if you can’t find something to take for the feast while you are at it.” Obviously, they could find everything needed in Valta’s turf but part of this was letting Aia explore and learn of lands besides just home.

Kotori noticed Fang’s faded light wasn’t visible now, the tiny predator had probably gone to find food of its own.

"Kotori Fatalis"

Any time that her uncle was willing to go and explore with her, Aia was ready for it. She loved hanging out with Kotori and taking these little trips was doing a great deal for her stamina. He didn't insist on carrying her everywhere like papa did, so Aia was building up a nice bit of muscle under her dusty purple coat.

Being so young, Aia still had little knowledge of how the world worked, so when the adults spoke of strange statues and animals popping up, the child just went with the flow. They were on a mission today and the girl had her focus going. They were to collect items to decorate something important. Kotori's words met her ears and the girl nodded, blue eyes peeled as she looked for something suitable.

Meandering through the mangroves, Aia was careful not to stray too far from her Uncle's side. As she moved about the landscape, she had to hop over many of the winding roots that stuck up out of the ground. At one point, she hung over the edge, looking down into the water. There were things in there and she could see them moving, but wasn't entirely sure what they were. It wasn't like they could collect them for decorations anyway, so she pulled back and continued on.

A sweet smell hit the girls nose and dark ears perked. Aia followed her nose through the trees and found a batch of bright orange and gold flowers that looked almost like flying birds. "Look at these, Uncle Kotori!" One little paw moved up to gently touch one of the flowers. "These would be very nice to decorate with, right?" She looked to him for approval.

"Aia Indarra"

Kotori hadn’t spent a ton of time with kids since he had grown up.  He’d given a lesson or two to younger members of his family but those were the rare moments instead of a normal affairs.  Mostly he had tried to avoid them.  Aia was one pup and she didn’t annoy him as others had.  Of course, the sight of other kids had been irritating to Kotori in his teenage years.  They took time out of his selfish schedule.  Now, this little one was part of Valta’s future and a continuation of the same blood that flowed in Kotori’s veins.  

It was important that such children were molded well, taught how to be strong, taught to behave properly, and become a wolf that any other wolf of worth would realize they deserved respect.  Clearly, Aia would always be small but the size and intelligence or abilities were not the same things.  She was willing to work and even had a good attitude about it all.  

Now, as Aia called him uncle Kotori, she even got an almost tender smile from the earth-toned wolf.  “Those look excellent.  See what else you can find that might go well with them.”  Kotori stepped a bit closer, scenting at the flowers, “those should go well at a feast.  A pleasing smell will make the food taste that much better.”  Some wolves probably wouldn’t care how things smelled and only focus on the food itself, to be honest, but some would notice and appreciate it.
 
“Don’t go too far east,” Kotori lifted his head, nodding to what seemed mostly like a clump of moss and twigs floating in the water.  “It’s young but theirs an alligator over there.  It’s ignoring us so, this time we can ignore it”  Alligators weren’t as fun to fight as bears and such, nor was this the time.  Aia wasn’t ready to hunt large predators and he wouldn’t put the child in danger today, not when they were working on different learning experiences.  Still, it was good for her to know of them. “Most of its under the water, but part of its snout and eyes are above the surface.”  

"Kotori Fatalis"

When Kotori approved the flowers that she'd found, the little purple child beamed with pride. Gently, she began removing the flowers, trying to keep a lot of the long stems attached. Maybe they could tie things around them to hold them all together? She wasn't quite sure, but it seemed like a good idea in her head. Her uncle told her to be on the lookout for other things and Aia nodded, her blue gaze already scanning their surroundings once more.

A warning was given and Aia's eyes went wide for a moment. She looked to where he indicated, back towards the water where things had been floating within. Now that he pointed out the snout and eyes, she could see them. The girl nodded and backed away, dragging the long stalks of the flowers with her. They probably should have brought something to carry things in. Oh well.

Aia continued through the mangroves, her nose lifted to smell the scents and her ears perked to listen to the plethora of birds that sang and squawked. As she rounded a particularly wide tree, the girl came upon an interesting sight. A gasp pulled from her and she hopped backwards away from the scene. A wild cat had been feeding on the corpse of a peacock and she had startled it enough so that it fled quickly. "Uncle Kotori!" Once she was sure that the cat had actually gone, she stalked up to the dead bird, leaving her flowers neatly on the ground. "These long feathers would look neat with the flowers, right?"

"Aia Indarra"

Kotori had no intention to let anything happen to his charge, keeping a careful gaze on the surrounding area as Aia looked around for something else to add to the present they would take for the feast.  Aia should be proud of herself.  Kotori had brought her here but other than Kotori keeping an eye out for her safety the young child had done all the work on her own.  

When she turned around a tree and called for Kotori he was quick to jog over, scenting the cat quickly and getting ready to rip into it but once with her he noticed the cat seemed to have fled.  Hah! Small as she was had Aia scared off the cat?  His eyes glanced down to the kill.  He nodded, “Peacock feathers are flashy.  I doubt anyone else with think to grab them either."

Kotori took a few steps forward, scenting the ground again and just making sure it was very that little Aia wasn’t the only wolf who had just stolen the cat's kill.  If it had any second thoughts of fleeing before he wanted to squash those.  Glancing back at Aia, “When we get this made we should show your parents.  I bet Indy and Asla will be impressed with this.  Then we can deliver this to the feast.”

Kotori was quite interested in what was going to come from all this.  He couldn’t decide if strange statues and animals were really a good thing or would mean trouble in the end but he wasn’t a child this time.  If strange things became dangerous he would be the one protecting his family instead of a child in need of protection.

"Kotori Fatalis"

With Uncle Kotori beside her, Aia wasn't afraid that the cat would return. The earthen man had her utmost trust. He would protect her if anything happened, she knew it. His words about the feathers brought a smile to the purple girl and her tail lashed back and forth in happiness. It made her feel good to please her uncle like this. It made her feel proud, like she was contributing in some way, even though she was just finding items.

Kotori suggested that they show her parents when the decorations were finished and Aia nodded eagerly. "I think they would look pretty tied together with string maybe. Do you think?" Again she looked for his approval, which was quite important to the girl. Collecting the feathers from the dead bird, she was careful to not grab bloody ones. Holding the long quills between her teeth, she hoped that her uncle might grab the stack of flowers. She was so small that she couldn't carry all of it.

With one last look around the tall, reaching trees, Aia began to move back towards home where they would begin the preparation for the feast decorations together. She was terribly proud of herself today.

"Aia Indarra"