We'll Sit and Watch the Sky Fall Down

Although the world was still seeming to come apart at the seams and the sky was falling down around them, Kumiho didn't let the darkness and fear distract him from two very important events that had come with the changing of the seasons: his birth season and Kitsune's birth season. How ironic, both of them being born in the spring just a year apart! This would also be his first birthday celebrated away from his family, so suffice to say, Iho was feeling a little blue as the spring crept across Boreas, especially not knowing how his family was faring with the end of the world. Were they safe? Had the plagues not reached them? Had they succumbed to the sickness? It was a lot of heavy thoughts on his mind, and Iho did his best to unpack them and think about anything else.

Though the sun still did not rise, the weather had begun to warm up and the snow and ice had finally finished melting away. It was bizarre, but so was everything that was going on, and the seafarer wasn't about to start questioning things like astrophysics. With the warmer weather, Iho was feeling his wanderlust coming back as well. He hadn't intended to make staying in Boreas a permanent thing, and already his feet were itching to travel again. Except this time, he wanted to bring his special companion along with him. So Iho had waited until Kit was feeling better and the mushrooms had begun to recede from her skin. When he knew she wasn't dying, he offered a surprise trip for her, a little picnic on the beach, and off they went, with Iho carrying a couple fur blankets and a satchel of dried meats and berries.

Iho had heard that migratory dolphins often passed by the eastern coast of Boreas during the spring, and so with their destination kept a secret, Iho led the way for the two across Boreas to the eastern coast. Kit, who was by now much more her full size than when he'd met her and distinctly an adolescent, would have no idea the surprise he had in store. "C'mon, keep up, Princess!" he called over his shoulder to her as he trotted briskly through the mangrove forest to reach the ocean delta just beyond. Emerging from the trees, the sound and smell of the ocean became immediately apparent. Kumiho grinned to himself, glancing over his shoulder every now and then to make sure he hadn't lost his friend in the thicket of trees.

"Aaaaand here we are!" he declared proudly as he led the way down the strips of sandbars and beach. Under the pale blue moonlight, the ocean seemed to glow. Bright auroras painted the sky in bands and streaks of rainbow colors. The gentle rhythms of the waves lapping at the shore kept the world from being unnaturally quiet. All in all, despite everything going on, it was quite a rare and beautiful sight. But their true reason for being here was the dolphins, of which he still had yet to spot. "Why don't you find us a nice spot to set up at and have our snacks?"

"Speech"