Tattered Sails & Sunken Ships

Shiki left the whispering caves in a sort of fright. The girl he had met there seemed very frightened, something called a 'lion' scaring her. He didn't quite know what a lion was, but he had eventually decided it would be safer to leave...reluctantly. He thought he had found a safe place to rest, but hadn't stayed there long and she seemed afraid to speak almost. Even though he had been exhausted from journeying across the lands, he had taken her advice...only after trying to persuade her. But to no avail. He felt sorry for her, why exactly he wasn't too sure. Maybe to save her from being afraid? Then again, what could he do? He was too small, to timid to do anything.

A little depressed, he left behind the caves. Thinking about maybe returning one day to see if she was still there. Still hiding...or waiting...or whatever she was doing. His thoughts left him as soon as scents hit him. Scents he had never smelled before. Looking around, he realized he had wandered into an area lush with vegetation, little snow sprinkled around here and although the sky was cloudy, the flowers and bright vegetation stood out against the landscape. He felt like a patch of dirt compared to the rest of it, and a sense of calm fell over him. He noticed a brightly colored blossom, a bright shade of red splashed against the deep greens. It drew him in, the scent that emanated from it a sickly sweet scent. Drawing closer, he reached out to get a better view. Stopping just a couple inches from the bright Amaryllis flower.

He thought about how his mother, Pamela, might like it as a gift. And so he'd close the gap and reach forward, grasping the stem just a few inches below the bloom to cut it from the rest of the bush. Although it was beautiful, he wanted his mother to look beautiful with this flower. He inhaled the scent, the deadly flower clamped in his jaws. His prize. His sweet, intoxicating prize.