Had crystals not started to grow out of his face, maybe he would have realized that he was walking in circles and actually closer to home than he'd really like to be. Of course the place smelled familiar, but he couldn't see it so it made the most sense to him that some places just smelled the same as other places. He could smell the trees of a forest, so he assumed he was just in a forest somewhere, not a forest near his old home. It was beyond painful to grow crystals out of your face it seemed and Raure couldn't bring himself to try and remove them, as that only made them hurt even more. Instead, he was left to wander around in hopes of finding someone that could help a poor kid out. Maybe someone else knew what was going on and could help him, or even just give him a bite of food. His hips were starting to become visible through his dull coat, maybe the combination of problems would help. "speech"

Ugh...what a headache...he wasn't quite sure how it happened, but one day he had woken up with the worst headache ever, and over the next few days, crystals had begun to grow from his ears and even his eyes...small ones were growing from his left eye, and it hurt like hell whenever he touched it. He felt like he was practically blind in that eye, barely able to see past the formation. And blinking? Forget about that! His eye was permanently open until he figured out a way to get these damn things off of him, but until then...he was trying to be more careful with touching the crystals.

He was vaguely aware of his surroundings, the youth squinting through the darkness with his somewhat good eye. When he felt something trickle from it, he wiped it with his forepaw and found that there was some strange, blue ooze on his face. Well...that was new..."Great..." He muttered to himself. Another thing to worry about. Nose as close to the ground as he could get it without shoving the already forming crystals further up his nose, he slowly walked on until he swore he heard a noise up ahead. One crimson eyes looked around, and he soon spotted a small, dark figure not far from where he was. It appeared whoever it was had also met the same fate as him. Curious, Ifrit started to walk towards the other, and as he got closer, he swore the stranger appeared to be familiar.

While he hadn't spent a whole lot of time socializing in the pack, he was sure he'd seen this boy at their last meeting before his father had let the pack go. "You're infected too, huh?" He commented, stopping a comfortable distance so neither of them accidentally touched one another without hurting themselves.

"Speech"

Raure was too focused on where he was going to pay much attention to what was going on around him, especially since he couldn't see it and could only barely hear it. Someone wouldn't have to sneak up on him to scare him, they could just walk right up. And someone did. He nearly jumped from his skin when he heard someone speak, whipping his body around quickly to face the direction in which the sound came from. He couldn't see whoever was in front of him, but they smelled like home. Were they staying there now or had they been a part of the same pack before it fell? He wasn't sure, and without eyes he wouldn't be able to tell. It took him a moment to answer having been startled. "Uh, yeah... I guess so, if you have crystals growing out of your face." His tone was more sarcastic and sassy than it needed to be, clearly annoyed with the situation. "speech"

He hadn't meant to surprise the boy, but perhaps he had gotten a little closer than he thought initially. He blamed the crystal fucking up his vision, of course. It was hard enough to see in constant darkness, and even harder now that his eyes were leaking molten ooze and with crystals growing from one eye. He flicked an ear at the boy's words, wincing as the small, natural action made his head throb. "I do, and I hate to say it but I'm glad I'm not the only freakshow around here!" He shot back.

He shoved his face a little closer to the kid in an effort to get a better look at him and noticed that crystals were growing from both of his eyes. How unfortunate...while he wasn't one to really care about some random stranger, the light clicked on when he got a somewhat decent whiff of the boy. "It's Ifrit. I'm your cousin, but I forget your name. Looks like the loner life hasn't exactly treated you nicely," He commented, noting with a squint that the boy appeared pretty bony. Where were his parents? Shouldn't they be taking care of him? Or did they abandon their kids the moment the pack dispersed, too?

"Speech"

The other agreed that they also had the same infliction. Covered in crystals too, it seemed. At least he wasn't alone, and his new friend seemed to think the same, too. He wondered how many others were walking around like them, and what was being done with them. Did they have to worry about those that weren't infected? Were there any that weren't infected to begin with? Raure worried what came of his siblings then, only to snap back to reality when the other spoke again. They introduced themselves, and thankfully they did because he would not have recognized him by voice alone. Immediately he remembered the other red and black boy with horns, although not well enough. "When mom and dad died, I decided to find a new home for myself..." he responded, though it was clear that he wasn't doing a very good job. Maybe if he could see, he would realize he wasn't going to find any home for himself around here. Not one that he wanted, anyway. "speech"

"When mom and dad died, I decided to find a new home for myself..." Both ears perked up this time, which only caused him to wince further as well as close his good eye for a moment with the reaction. "Dammit..." He muttered under his breath before taking a moment to himself. He really, really needed to be careful about that...turning his good eye back to the kid again, he almost felt sorry for him. Almost. He supposed he didn't completely have it in him, but the kid was his cousin and he was looking like shit, what kind of person would he be if he just left him out here to die? Would his dad be mad if he did that? He thought about it for a moment, and quickly came up with the conclusion that yes, Ignis would be upset. This was his beloved brother's child, after all. Did his dad know Casso and that timid little healer were dead?

"Hm...sorry to hear that, kid. How's finding a new home going? You're pretty close to the old one. My father let it go for a reason, but we'll get a home again, you'll see." His father had his reasons for letting the pack go after all. A quiet pack was as good as dead, and he knew his father wanted to start with fresh, new bones. Or perhaps he would...after all, out with the old, in with the new, right? Taking a deep breath, he cleared his throat and stepped back from Raure. "You look like shit, and you look like you could use a meal. I still have an uncrystallized eye, why don't you stick with me in the meantime? In return, I can help you get food. Crystals stuck to your sockets or not, the world isn't easy for a kid, y'know."

"Speech"

Raure

The sickness deepens... You get a blinding headache as if something is trying to grow through your skull.

Firefly Shoppe- Ifrit

The sickness deepens... You can feel something under your skin. You have to get it out. Whether by stick or teeth or surgery, you WILL get rid of the crystal under your skin, lest it grow through on its own. Either way, it's remnants leave a roundish scar 1/2 inches in diameter.
You gain:  

• A Scar- A circle-shaped scar around 1/2 inch in diameter, in the location of your choosing.
  

Your attention blurs and refocuses. It feels as if you are in a dream as you find yourself alone in the mist. Fireflies gather and light the way to a table with a figure waiting behind it. On the table lay three items, with their prices beside them. "Choose w̶̢̧͉̥̻̟͈͙̽̉̆̿̈͒͋̓̇̍͌̇̎͠͝ì̵̢̝̄͐́͆̓̚ṣ̶̛͙̟͎̤̞̤͎̹̙̭̪͔̓̐̾̂͆̄͆͌̈̈́̏̚͜͝͠ȩ̴͔̱̗̜̾̉̀̓̀͆͛̊̂̍̕̚̚̚ͅl̵̢̦̲̼̠̖̜̺̮̜̺͋̈́y̴̧̨̧̪̗̥̘͇̾͑͗͜͠, and only choose o̷͕̭̊̃̌̊̏̀ņ̸̼͚͉͔̒͐̊e̵̮̯͛̔̀̑͜," the figure says, looming over the table as his eyes seem to peer into your soul. Are they... moving? "If you can afford it, that is. Beware, however, for there are many d̷̡̯͉̎̊̈́͐͠á̴̬̪̣̝̞̅̀̈́̄ṉ̸̢̠̤̹̥̙̜͋͆̚g̷̛͍̹̣̬̙͖̝̘̃̈e̷͓͕̖͓̝̤̿͐͐͜͠ŗ̵̤͚͔̟̹̳̽̒͝ş̸̛͓͔̩̥̦͛̊̈̾̐̒̓ ̴̺͔̃̇̆ahead." He does not seem like he's in the negotiating mood...


I̵̜̖͎͓͒̑̕n̸͓̗̘̫͉̗̻͐̔̿̊͆̋͝v̵̦̹̠͉̖̼̮̎̌͆ȩ̸͕̦͔̳̩̈́͜n̶͍̝̙̯̣̹̫̩͋t̶̟͈̟̲̜̙̣̋̿̓̆̅͊͝͝ŏ̶̼͊r̶̖͎̙͔̥͎͙͈̊̍͝͠y̴̧͔̭͒͆̉̕͝:

• Pungent Potion- 2 /
  This tiny bottle contains a green globby liquid, the label claims it was made from local mushrooms.
  
• Potion of Perception- 3 /
  This bottle of silvery liquid has a pair of glasses etched onto it… whatever that means.
  
• Serious Steroids- 1 /
  The cloaked figure assures you it’s not really steroids but he does say it’ll make your body more resilient, he won’t tell you what’s in them though.
  

He suddenly felt like something was under his skin, and it felt really, really weird. He felt like he had to get it out, and without thinking, he began to gnaw on the spot on his left foreleg where he felt it. Before he knew it, he had managed to get rid of the crystal or whatever it was, but in its wake was a small wound that he was sure would scar. "What the hell..." Shortly after, his attention started to blur and eventually refocused. He was alone in the mist, his cousin gone and in his stead, fireflies had begun to gather. They drew his attention to a cloaked figure behind a table. The strange firefly apparition instructed him to choose something, and Ifrit quietly approached the table and looked at the items. He didn't understand what any of them were for, but this whole thing was just...strange to begin with. He picked up a bottle of silvery liquid and placed 2 mushrooms, & 1 crystal on the table in exchange.

Thanks, stranger." He wasn't really sure what to make of it all, but with everything going on, he supposed stranger things were bound to happen sooner or later.

Ifrit purchased potion of perception

Firefly Shoppe- Ifrit

The wolf chooses and item and thanks the creature. He nods in response, soon vanishing into the mist with your currency, but leaving the item behind.


You gain:

• Potion of Perception- This bottle of silvery liquid has a pair of glasses etched onto it… whatever that means.
  

You lose:

• Currency (x3)- Used in Firefly's Shoppe, and perhaps elsewhere...