fumes of lust

She was close now, almost home. She could feel it in the way the heavy heat clung to her coat, the familiar weight of the humidity in her lungs. They had gone in search of a cure for Midas's seizures and while they hadn't found a remedy, the condition was at least under control

Fuji had left him resting, hoping she would catch one of her brothers in the area, someone familiar to pass word along to Tori that she was on her way back. While it would be easy enough to send her ibis ahead, she wanted to linger just a little longer, explore the world beyond the bamboo just a little more before retreating back into the sanctuary it provided. Besides, the grapevines overhead posed an interesting opportunity. If she could gather some, dry them correctly and store them away, perhaps they could be used as a poison down the track? And these maples, though devoid of leaves and strangled by vines, could they be tapped to draw out the syrup within? She knocked a curled horn against one of the trunks, knocking against the greyish furrowed bark. Perhaps an investigation for another day, if the bristling of Kenta's tail was anything to go off.

"speech"