Welcome to Gaia! ::

Kyril swallowed a curse as she carefully made her way out of the home. “This is hard when you’ve been laying in bed for a few days.” She admitted as she wobbled a bit before finally getting her stride with the walking stick. Her balance was still suffering from her injury and even though her ankle screamed if she misstepped there was at least some support there now. The bones had reconnected thanks to healing and potions, but they were definitely delicate. Kyril gingerly pressed a foot against the ground before relying on the walking stick once more to hold most of her weight. There was a part of her that waited for Jhin to dart to her side, something she had grown accustomed to over the last week, but another part of her leaned against the walking stick stubbornly. She did not need his help! Kyril gritted her teeth before finally managing a few more steps out into the clearing, her amber gaze widening as she finally got to see what the village looked like. “It’s impressive.” She managed as she glanced about at the huts decorating the trees, the rope bridges and hanging ladders reminding her of Neued and some of the leaf villages she had visited before. It was interesting to see how the houses blended in with the trees, the bigger ones stretching from the giant roots (most of which were bigger than her) and reaching all the way up into the canopy. Kyril couldn’t help noticing that Jhin’s home seemed bigger than most with a view that stretched above the whole village nestled into the heart of the forest, the emerald, teal and indigo crystal leaves casting a myriad of colors on the forest floor where some sunlight did manage to flicker through. No wonder he made me take his room. She could not even imagine making it up the stairs to the second level let alone the third one that made up his home!

[Kyril 1]

“It’s lovely, truly.” Admitted Kyril as she listened to Jhin. “So there’s families here?” She asked with curiosity. Now that she glanced about she did see several earthlings of various ages walking about, a lot of them from Tale or Sauti with some other foreigners mixed in, and there were children too. For some reason she had just imagined a bunch of rough rangers sticking it out together in the woods. Never before had she actually imagined that there would be a thriving village here with actual families living their normal lives within the heart of the forest. It made sense though since most would probably want to protect their families and not leave them exposed in town, especially when constantly fighting with outlaws who didn’t abide by much of an honor system when they wanted to find more ways to strike you down. Speaking of bandits, Kyril almost missed when a small shadow darted past and snatched something from her waist. “Eh?” Kyril blinked in surprise and almost fell when she attempted to pat at her waist, the delicate golden chain belt suddenly missing.

[Kyril 2]

He was warm and smelled of the forest. Kyril allowed herself to linger against Jhin’s solid body before slowly taking a step back and fixing the walking stick so that she was supported once more. “A game?” She repeated with a confused expression as she glanced about the area. Who had taken her belt and why? Jhin wasn’t chasing anyone yet nor had he shot an arrow after the thief so she wasn’t too worried, more confused than anything really. “What do you mean?” She followed up as she tried to glance about but so far it seemed like no one else in the area was really bothered.

[Kyril 3]

“Well then we have to catch them, right?” Kyril replied with a grin even though Jhin had tried to shake off the situation. “They can’t train if we let them get away.” The hybrid took a few wobbling steps forward and even dared to raise her walking stick to point the way. “Let’s go!” She grinned towards Jhin. “It’ll be good exercise for me to walk about so why not track down some mischievous thieves?” While she wasn’t completely worried about the belt, it was still a gift from her mother that she had treasured over the past few years while traveling. It had a few crystal pieces that she had worked into the design with her mentor’s help as well. Could Kyril remake it? Probably, but it wouldn't have the same sentimental value since it had been one of her first accessory pieces.

[Kyril 4]

Admittedly Kyril worried about slowing Jhin down but the ranger seemed content walking about and then circling back to where she hobbled after him. Every step was a struggle at first but eventually Kyril learned how to rely more and more on the walking stick, her balance finding some sort of footing as she leaned more on the support and kept from putting pressure on her injury. Perhaps her courage was fueled by the fact that Jhin was nearby to help her, but Kyril was also determined to just keep going forward. When had she ever allowed anything to stop her from doing her best? Kyril chuckled before seeing someone dart towards the left into a grove of trees, away from the houses. “There!” She called out towards Jhin, “Left!”

[Kyril 5]

Was she simply going to sit back and let him do all the work? “I can’t.” Protested Kyril before moving forward as well. If Jhin could chase them around then she could try to outsmart them! A grin crossed Kyril’s lips before she found herself opening and closing her hand, a spark of magic coming to life in her palm. It was a simple thing really to pull water from the air, but the mud she made with the small rain was plenty enough to startle the younglings as they slipped on the wet ground and fell into the mud. Despite all of that they simply let out a squeal of delight as Jhin rounded a tree and caught up to them.

“Good job, ranger!” Called out Kyril playfully as she carefully made her way forward and held out a hand for her belt. “If you would please. I hear they’ll reduce your punishment if you return the item first. Maybe only a few chores instead of a whole week’s worth.” She teased the girl before taking her belt back.

“It’s just a game really, miss!” The boy protested before playfully smacking his sister’s back, spreading more mud across her tunic, “You got us caught, Gil!” He accused her before laughing more as she pursed her lips at him. “We’re sorry, Jhin.” He added as the ranger approached them all.

[Kyril 6]

What cute kids. Mischievous but adorable. Kyril couldn’t help the grin that crossed her lips as she watched the interaction. Jhin was surprisingly good with the children despite how grumpy he could be and she saw the gentleness in his gaze whenever the twins darted away. He seemed to be a bit more of a soft hearted man than she had previously thought. Her thoughts stumbled to a halt though once he was only an inch away from her and Kyril found herself freezing.

“I’m fine.” Kyril murmured finally, her cheeks completely flushed as Jhin walked away from her side. For a second she swore she thought he was about to….no, surely not. Kyril shook her head before starting to quickly hobble after Jhin.

[Kyril 7]