As she was lost in her thoughts, the gentle quiet of Lystern Village lingered in the small cabin, soft voices, wind chimes, and the creak of wooden steps outside. It should have calmed her, but the fox's heart beats unevenly as she rests against the blanket.
A new world pressed in around her. Unfamiliar. Too gentle to trust, and maybe too peaceful to feel real.
She lifted her head, testing her strength again, but her body still felt heavy, yet compared to earlier, the fog had thinned. She could breathe without her ribs screaming and move without collapsing.
Aria noticed immediately.
"Careful," she said, scooting closer but not touching her. "The healer said it'll take time for your mana veins to recover. Whatever you did out there… it pushed your body past every limit."
She growled slightly, since she wasn't sure it had been her choice. The system had moved her. Carried her and forced her. She remembered the unnatural clarity, the mechanical strength, and the raw energy bursting from her tiny frame.
She remembered the shard cracking between her teeth and the moment she lost control.
Her gaze drifted to Aria's bandaged arm. The girl followed her eyes and huffed a tiny laugh.
"This? It's nothing. I've taken worse falling out of trees." She paused, then added more quietly, "It doesn't hurt as much knowing I didn't lose you. You are a stranger, yes, but the connection from earlier feels strong."
The fox looked away, unsettled by how warm her chest felt at those words.
Before she could try and respond, another presence approached the house. Heavy steps. They were stronger and seemed older.
Aria stiffened slightly. "That's Elder Rean… She wanted to check on you herself."
The fox's ears lowered instinctively and her eyes narrowed as the door opened with a soft groan.
Elder Rean entered with the same quiet authority she had in every movement—silver-streaked hair braided tightly, dark green robes marking her as someone of rank, someone used to guiding others. Her eyes, sharp and deep-set, found the fox immediately.
She didn't smile, but she didn't seem hostile either. Just wary.
"So the little one wakes," Rean murmured, stepping closer with the gait of someone who saw through more than just flesh and fur. "I have heard quite a tale."
Aria quickly rose. "Elder, she's still recovering—"
Rean raised a hand, silencing her gently, then knelt beside the fox's mat. Not too close and she did not touch her. But close enough for her scent—sage, ash, and pine, to drift through the air.
"Little creature," the elder said, voice low, "Lystern owes you a debt. Aria owes you her life. But I must understand what you are before we can trust and let you be free here."
The fox tensed at her words, so it was just another cage after all, one crafted by the fear of the unknown, but she understood. Rean studied her for a long breath, eyes tracking every tiny movement, every twitch of ear and paw.
"You are no ordinary seedling," Rean said. "No fox in these woods possesses such light. Or survives a Rootmaw's strike."
Aria stepped in defensively. "She didn't ask for attention. She just needs time."
Rean's gaze didn't shift. "I will not repeat myself. Time is a luxury we do not have and if the forest spirits begin whispering."
The fox blinked, these things were still new to her and she knew she would have to try and get used to them. But spirits? Whispering?
Aria frowned. "The spirits said something?"
Rean nodded slowly. "Only fragments. Distress. Change. Something awakening where it should not."
After hearing that, she felt a cold rush through her fur, maybe whatever she carried was not meant for this world.
Rean stood, her robe brushing the wooden floor. "I will not harm you, little one. But understand this, Lystern is a village sheltered by balance. If your presence threatens that balance, we must… prepare."
Prepare. Not attack, not exile, prepare... But what does that mean for her? The thought was slightly unsettling.
Aria's tone sharpened. "Do not treat her like a criminal. She hasn't done anything wrong."
"Not yet," Rean replied softly. "But dormant storms are still storms."
The fox lowered her head, not in submission but in fatigue. She could barely manage her own body; she wasn't planning to harm anything.
Rean observed her another moment, then stepped back.
"She needs rest," the elder said. "Food. Quiet. And Aria…" Her eyes softened for the first time. "You, more than anyone, must watch her closely. If change comes, you will see it first."
Aria nodded, though tension pulled at her shoulders. She had no choice but to listen. Before she could utter another word, the elder left without.
The door closed, sealing the quiet behind her.
Aria let out a long breath and sank back onto the floor. "I am sorry; she is not a bad person. I knew she'd be cautious," she muttered. "But she didn't say no to you staying. That's… good."
The fox thought about it, despite feeling judged, she knew the elder was not wrong, she was just doing her job. What mattered for the time being was that she had a place to rest and heal. A village that looked peaceful enough despite its rules and wary elders.
She didn't belong here, not truly. But she had nowhere else to go, which meant she had to find a way and gain their trust. She forced herself to stood up and at the same time, a sudden noise outside startled them both—a shout, distant but urgent.
Aria jumped to her feet. "What was that?"
The shout came again, this time the voices of children, and people could be heard running.
A moment later, a small figure burst past the window. "Aria! Aria, come quick! The barrier, something's happening to the barrier!"
Aria's face went pale, the fox didn't know what their barrier did, but she knew danger when she felt it. Her body responded before thought, fur rising, a pulse of heat deep in her core.
Not again. Not another attack.
Aria grabbed her stuff with shaking hands. "Stay here. I'll be right back."
The fox stepped in front of her, shaking her head vehemently, refusing.
Aria blinked. "You… want to come?"
She did not move; for some reason, every bone in her body screamed caution. Seeing her determination, Aria swallowed, torn between worry and urgency.
"...Alright. But stay close."
They rushed outside together, into the open village and toward the first rippling sign that something was wrong with the area around them and that her presence may have awakened more than just fear, maybe, she was not supposed to be here in the first place.