"For a little over 6,000, us Zankutsu warriors have been in a brutal war with the beasts that live on our islands: Wisp Breath. Even someone like me doesn’t know the exact origins of what sparked the war; I only recall that, after decades of living in peace with them, the beasts suddenly turned against us. Under the cover of the night, they swarm our village and steal whatever they can get their paws or talons on. . .even the lives of our warriors. Attempts to solve things peacefully were in vain and only increased the death toll. As you can see today, we’ve fought back with just about everything we’ve got. Nowadays, our entire village is built around killing beasts: There’s a week dedicated to beast slaying ceremonies for people of all ages, traps littered around our forests, the heads of fallen beasts are to be kept as trophies, and much more. Despite how grim things have been for such a long period of time, I still believe there’s hope somewhere on the horizon. That one day, this horrible war will end and the Zankutsu tribe will be at peace once again. Now, what exactly will cause that peace is still a mystery to me. But you seem to have an idea, don’t you Tsurara?"

“In fact I do.”

"Well then. . .perhaps you can enlighten our fellow friend here."

2: Chapter 1 - The Beast Raid

Tonight was another one of those nights where hundreds if not thousands of beasts attacked the Zankutsu tribe and robbed them of their possessions. One of the houses in the village had already been set ablaze and beasts were already getting taken out of the area with harpoons, spears, arrows, and bolas. Both groups fought fiercely with one another.

Among the tribe were two beefy men: One with a large beard and a small but fluffy mustache and one with a medium-length beard with a long mustache. They stood at nearly 10 feet tall and biceps about as thick a watermelon. Both were wearing body armor but only one of them wore a horned-helmet. The other lacked any sort of head-wear. Both had semi-long white hair. Their names were Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard the Almighty. Blizzard Chest was the one who lacked the head armor while Snow Beard had head armor. The two looked very similar from a distance and with reason. Snow Beard the Almighty is the father of Blizzard Chest.

Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard played very important roles in the Zankutsu tribe. Blizzard Chest was the military chief of the tribe, being in charge of training tribe members to fight off opposing groups of people and beasts. Snow Beard on the other hand was the leader of the Zankutsu tribe. He was in charge of foreign trades, peace treaties, and many other tasks. The two were very strong men so it’s no doubt that they would have their high positions in the tribe and be able to main them successfully.

Blizzard Chest had taken down a 36ft long beast for his father to kill. He sat on the beast’s back and forced its head into the ground, preventing it from escaping his grasp. Snow Beard had an ax in hand, ready to slay the beast one and for all.

Snow Beard bent down and narrowed his eyes at the beast. He snorted in disgust. “A Dream Catcher, eh?” He said with a very strong Irish accent. “You won’t be catchin’ anymore of me cattle, plants, and dreams you devil.” He held his ax high and the air and prepared to slam it down on the beast’s head.

“STOP!!!!!” A young girl screamed.

Just before he could bring his ax down, Snow Beard was tackled by a pale, three-and-a-half foot tall girl with long white hair tied up in a ponytail and light blue eyes with white irises. His armor couldn’t even protect him from the power this girl had.

“URRGHH!!!” Snow Beard yelled as he was tackled so hard he flew to the left. He dropped his ax once his face came in contact with soil in the ground.

The young girl, who only had a gown made out of the skin and fur of a mammoth. that tackled Snow Beard stood up straight and looked down at him. She clenched her fists in regret. “Sorry Grandad. But I had to.”

“Errrghh...Tsurara....” Snow Beard groaned as he aimed his sky blue eyes in the young girl’s direction.

Tsurara was the girl’s name, just like Snow Beard had stated. She was the daughter of Blizzard Chest and the granddaughter of Snow Beard. Despite her small, frail appearance, she packed quite a punch. She was the shortest among her tribe and also one of the most hated. Unlike most other people in her tribe, she opposed the idea of killing beasts. Only one other person agreed with her. She felt that beasts weren’t what they seem, especially after reading the first tribe leader’s journals on beasts that claimed beasts to be intelligent and loving creatures if treated right. However, despite the evidence she had, only one other person agreed with her. As a result, she’d often be isolated from other members of her tribe as they’d leave whenever she was around them.

Tsurara’s beliefs have led to her attacking her own tribe during beasts attacks to protect the beasts. That included the hefty tackle she gave her grandfather not that long ago.

“Tsurara!!!” Blizzard Chest snapped. He lacked an accent, unlike his father.

Tsurara turned to look at her father. “I’m doing what’s right, Dad!!” She said.

“Hurting your grandfather, the chief of this tribe, is not right!!”

“Neither is hurting innocent beasts! Dad, we’ve been over this already!”

“They are not--”

Soon, a young boy with long brown hair and purple eyes and peach skin climbed up Blizzard Chest’s back and poked him with a stick. “Hi sir.” He said in a neutral tone.

Blizzard Chest sighed in slight frustration. “Hello Note.”

Note was Tsurara’s only known supporter. Though he wasn’t as violent as her, he did do some things that tampered with the killing of beasts, such as distracted tribe members to enable the beasts to escape and rearranging traps so that either tribe members would get caught or nothing would get caught in general. This gave him the same reputation as Tsurara, though, like Tsurara, he doesn’t care. The only thing that kept him from getting exiled from the tribe was Tsurara’s threat: If Note was kicked out, she would leave with him. Tsurara’s guardians couldn't afford to lose her; they already lost their son, Tsurara’s brother.

The beast Blizzard Chest had trapped managed to escape Blizzard Chest’s grasp after Blizzard Chest took the time to say hi to Note, which frustrated him greatly. He took a very deep breath and stood up. “Why must you two always interfere?" 

“Sorry sir. But your daughter and I are trying to--” 

“It was rhetorical, Note. I know why you two keep interfering.” Blizzard Chest said. 

“...sorry sir.” 

“CODE BLUE TSUNAMI HORN!!!!” A man yelled through a large horn.

The roars of a massive beast could be heard over all the commotion being caused by the battle between man and beast. Energy balls cloaked in water were being launchedat catapults and a medium-large wave of water crashed down the shores of Wisp Breath's beaches, taking out the large torches that lit them. A large figure was flying over the village at over 160mph, though it was hard to see in the dark sky. All that could be seen was a dim glow from the various markings on its body.

“Tsunami Horn!!” Snow Beard stood up and grabbed a nearby hammer. “I’m killin’ this one, this time!!”

Tsurara and Note gasped. “Tsunami Horn!”

Blizzard Chest threw Note off and grabbed a nearby spear. “I’ll come along too, father.” He looked at Note, who was on the ground. “And sorry Note.”

Note was flat on his back. He raised his hand and waved it around a bit. “It’s okay sir.” Again, he responded in a neutral tone.

Snow Beard and Blizzard Chest looked at each other briefly before nodding and rushing towards the center of the village. 

Tsurara breathed hard and grabbed Note. She began to drag him across the ground a bit, eager to get to the beast before her guardians. “C’mon Note!!”

Note stood up quickly and ran alongside Tsurara to apprehend the beast known as the Tsunami Horn. “Right!”

Snow Beard looked behind him as he saw his grand-daughter and her friend follow him. He stopped for moment as tribe members began to run past him. “Hey!!!”

The tribe members stopped in their tracks and stared at the chief. They awaited Snow Beard’s command.

“Hold Tsuara and Note off! Me son and I are going to take down the Tsunami Horn!!”

The tribe members nodded and ran towards Note and Tsurara. Snow Beard caught up with his son to take out the Tsunami Horn once and for all.

“He’s turning the tribe against us again!” Note said as he saw the angry group of tribe members rush towards him an Tsurara armed with maces, axes, spears, and hammers. 

Tsurara narrowed her eyes and looked around for a weapon to use. “Grab the first weapon you see! We’re fighting back!!” She said, stopping to grab a hammer that was nearly twice her size. 

Note grabbed a spear the was lodged into the ground and rushed towards the tribe members with it. Tsurara ran towards the tribe members alongside Note. Once they were close enough, they began to attack them. Tsurara swung the hammer into the chests of people, knocking them left and right while Note hit people hard in the head to render them unconscious so he could pass through. Some tribe members were wearing helmets however, rendering this strategy useless against some tribe members. Luckily, he had Tsurara to deal with them. The chest armor they were wearing could not defend them from her mighty hammer swings. Once they cleared the barricade of people, they were able to see Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard in the center of the village, preparing to take down the Tsunami Horn.

“There they are!!” Note said, pointing at them.

“OH NO YOU DON’T!!!!” Tsurara yelled, dropping her hammer and running towards Blizzard Chest.

Snow Beard watched the sky very closely while Blizzard Chest aimed a bow into the sky, ready to shoot his spear. However, Tsurara pounced Blizzard Chest, causing him to accidentally shoot the spear into the opposite direction. Snow Beard on the other hand threw his ax in the same direction as Blizzard Chest shot his spear as he originally planned. He was then pounced on by Note, though Note didn’t bring Snow Beard to the ground like Tsurara did with Blizzard Chest.

“TSURARA!!! GET OFF!!!!” Blizzard Chest yelled, trying to grab Tsurara off his back.

“NEVER!!!”

Soon, a very loud yelp was heard. Everyone looked up, only see the Tsunami Horn gone. It wasn’t flying around the village anymore. Once the yelp was heard, the beasts left in a hurry. They didn’t have anything to take with them this time however, much to everyone’s joy.

“...the chief took out the Tsunami Horn!!!” The same man who called out the Tsunami Horn yelled.

Tribe members who remained conscious during the attack began to cheer except for Tsurara, Blizzard Chest, and Note. Snow Beard did a little dance with his cheer.

“HA!! I knew I’d be able to do it and I finally did!!” Snow Beard said.

“No...” Tsurara got off of Blizzard Chest and looked at the sky.

Note jumped off of Snow Beard and ran to Tsurara. He held onto her shoulders to try and calm her down. “Tsu-Tsurara. Just stay calm.”

Blizzard Chest stood up and looked at Tsurara and Note. He sighed in disappointment. “Note. I think it’s time for you and Tsurara to go home.”

“But...” Note looked at Tsurara, concerned about her.

“She’ll be fine. I promise."

“...what about me?” Note knew that the tribe would target him too as he was involved in the attack against the tribe as well.

“...I’ll see what I can do for you. I don’t think they’ll care for the “If he goes, I go too” statement anymore. . .not like the did before anyways. . ."

 "Right. . .she's only here because you announced that. . .never mind."

"Anyways, it's best you get going. All I can say is stay indoors. And protect yourself from those who glare at you."

“Okay...bye Tsurara. I’ll see you tomorrow hopefully.” Note walked away slowly from Tsurara, still looking at her. He ran off when Snow Beard stared at him to hurry up.

Blizzard Chest picked up Tsurara, who was stunned by what just happened. She was frozen in place and didn’t react to Blizzard Chest holding her until he began walking away with her in his arms.

“PUT ME DOWN!!!” Tsurara yelled, pounding her fists against her father’s back.

“No. I think you’ve had enough fun for the day.” Blizzard Chest said, approaching his house.

“Dad!! I’m 13 years old, I demand that you put me down this instant!!” Tsurara began to kick her feet a little bit.

"And I’m over 40 years older than you. I’m in charge, not you.” Blizzard Chest carried Tsurara all the way to her room and set her in bed.

“I need to go back out there!!”

“No you don’t. You need to rest my little Icicle.” Blizzard Chest moved Tsurara’s hair out of her face and looked out the window as the tribe members began putting out the fires left by the beast with buckets of water and a series of ladders.

“I don’t need to rest! I need to save that beast!! The Tsunami Horn!!"

Blizzard Chest began to tuck Tsurara in bed, though Tsurara resisted for a short amount of time. “Tsurara. We’ve been over this already. Beasts are enemies, not friends. They are a danger to our lives. Including yours. Do not go after the beast.” 

“You don’t understand! You didn’t read Wild Chest’s journals! He says beasts are intelligent and loving creatures if you give them the love and respect they deserve! You, along with everyone else in the tribe, don’t do any of that!!!”

Blizzard Chest managed to get Tsurara tucked into bed. “Wild Chest lived in a time different from ours. We may not have changed much ourselves Tsurara. But the beasts? They changed for the worst. They don’t deserve any form of respect.”

“You wouldn’t know. . .you’ll never know until you try!!”

Blizzard Chest hushed Tsurara. “It’s time you go to bed Tsurara. I wish to not discuss this any longer.” He looked around Tsurara’s room before grabbing a stuffed animal. “Here. Your Tsunami Horn teddy that Breeze made for you when you were little. Remember? Little Whirlpool?"

Tsurara, hesitant at first, grabbed the Tsunami Horn stuffed animal and hugged it. “...I’m still not happy with you.”

“I know you’re not. But at least you’re calm. Now rest. You’ll need it for tomorrow.”

“For what? Dealing with more insults from the tribe and cleaning up the blood in the Beast Stadium?”

Blizzard Chest sighed. “If you only sided with us.”

“I can’t.” Tsurara lifted her blanket up a bit to cover the lower half of her face. “What you guys believe in is wrong. I just know it. . .”

Blizzard Chest didn’t contribute to the conversation after that. He simply kissed Tsurara on the forehead and left her room. “Goodnight Tsurara.”

“. . .goodnight.” Tsurara sighed and turned away from her bedroom door, looking out the window as her tribe attempted to repair the village. Part of the upper half of her elf-like ears drooped backwards. She stared at her Tsunami Horn teddy and hugged it tightly before holding it close to her chest.

“I really wish you didn’t leave, Breeze. . .we really need you here. . . .I need you here. . .” Tsurara slowly drifted off to sleep afterwards.

3: Chapter 2 - Not Everything Can Go Your Way

The next day, Note and Tsurara were forced to partake in another beast training session in the battle stadium, where both man and beast fought for glory. Today, they were to learn how to attack, and hopefully kill, a Dream Catcher. Zankutsu members managed to catch the same one Blizzard Chest had caught last night and had it thrown into a pen until the time was right to release it. Note and Tsurara’s tutors were the chief himself and Blizzard Chest.

“Today, you will be executing a Dream Catcher.” Snow Beard said as he paced slowly back and forth with his chest out and his head held high.

Tsurara had her arms across her chest. In one hand, she had a spear while the other was empty. “I’m not killing a beast.”

Snow Beard let out a snort and glared at Tsurara. “We don’t always get what we want, especially if you’re only askin’ for it. You have no choice.”

Tsurara rolled her eyes, causing Snow Beard to sigh in frustration and continue with his lesson. “You will be using the strategies that we showed ya’. Succeed and you’ll be fine. Fail...” Snow Beard looked at Tsurara once more. “...fail and ye shall provide the entire tribe with food for an entire day.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing. Are you insisting that Mom’s job is terrible?” Tsurara asked with an eyebrow raised.

Snow Beard let out a snort. “Maybe for her it isn’t. But being the two most hated people in the tribe,  I’m sure it will be.”

“He has a point there, Tsurara...” Note said softly.

“I’ve dealt with worst.”

“Release the Dream Catcher!!” Snow Beard yelled, looking away from the two young teens.

Suddenly, the door to the pen flew open and the beast flew out of it. It was the same one from the beast raid the previous night; The Dream Catcher. It was a cream colored beast with a light blue mane starting from the center of its head all the way down to the edge of its tail. On the very tip of its tail hung an ornament that consisted of a silver hoop with small and shiny but cracked black pearls and a small feather than matched the color of the mane. It had small red triangles right beneath its golden narrow eyes. It’s body was elongated and somewhat similar to that of a fox.

The magnificent beast hissed at Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard before making an attempt to escape the stadium. However, the roof to the stadium was made of steel, sturdy wiring. When the beast made a break for it, its snout struck the wiring. It pulled it out but fell harshly to the ground. Its snout was now riddled with bloody scratches. It was even more scared than it previously once was.

Tsurara gasped. “Poor thing.”

“He’s a Dream Catcher though. . .they’re capable of teleporting themselves out of places like this. Why can’t he teleport?” Note asked, looking at the Dream Catcher worriedly.

“Oh, ye didn’t see his tail?” Snow Beard asked, pointing at the Dream Catcher’s tail. “The pearls; they be shattered! Er, well, cracked anyway. I slammed my hammer on them so that they would break but those things might as well be stronger than the armor I wear on me.”

Tsurara released an even louder gasped and ran to the beast, She rested its head on her lap and stroked its mane gently to calm it down. “Have you no mercy!?”

“What?! At least I did it while it was sleepin’ away in its pen!”

“Breaking the pearls of a Dream Catcher is like breaking the bones in a human! Painful, traumatizing, life-threatening even!”

“Oh relax. He’ll be alright.”

“It can’t go back into the wild like this!!” Tsurara was shouting now. “It eats flying things like birds and fruits high in the tree like Sugar Berries! Its limbs weren’t made for climbing and it can’t chase a bird on foot forever. How do you expect it to be fine when you literally took away everything it needed to survive in the wild?!”

“Lower your voice, Tsurara. I may take your ‘talk-backs’ to adults well but I do not want ye raising your voice at me.”

“He’s right,” Blizzard Chest said, stepping into the conversation finally. “Plus, you’ll be killing the beast anyway. It doesn’t matter if it can survive in the wilderness or not.”

Tsurara took deep breaths as she remained stroking the Dream Catcher’s mane. “I’m not killing it,” She said with her voice lowered significantly.

“Tsurara--”

“I said I’m not killing it!!” Tsurara snapped at her father.

Note was feeling uncomfortable with all the tension between Tsurara and her guardians. He simply stood quietly and listened to them exchange sentences and words to one another. However, once Tsurara snapped, he spoke up. “Umm. . .sir?”

Snow Beard looked at Note. He was clearly upset with Tsurara’s sour attitude towards her elders but he refused to express it in front of them; especially Note. “Yes Note?”

“U-u-ummm. . .” Note was turning red. Never had the chief stared at him eye-to-eye before. He looked away and twiddled his fingers. “Are-are-are we still killing the be-beast today?”

“Note!!” Tsurara looked at her only friend, shocked to hear what he had said.

“Yes. You are,” Blizzard Chest replied. “It may not be right now but it will happen today.”

Note nodded. He gave the Tsurara “I’m sorry” eyes in hopes Tsurara will forgive him for the question he asked. Tsurara was still clearly upset, now at Note. She looked at the injured beast resting in her lap, who was now calm.

“Tsurara. Release the beast this instant," Blizzard Chest said.

Tsuara didn’t budge. Instead, she kept petting the beast.

“Tsurara,” Blizzard Chest said again.

Tsurara made no eye-contact with her father, nor did she respond to him when he said her name again.

“...TSURARA!!! CAN YE HEAR US STILL?!?!” Snow Beard yelled.

Tsurara winced and held her right ear. She stared at her grandfather, clearly angry. “Yes!! I can hear you guys!!”

“Then why won’t ye respond? It gets me worried when ye do that, whether if you’re being rebellious or not.”

“Because responding won’t do me any good! I’m better off staying silent than trying to tell you that I refuse to kill a beast.”

“. . .she’s got a point,” Snow Beard whispered to Blizzard Chest.

Blizzard Chest pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. He then grabbed the Dream Catcher and held it over his shoulder.

“Put it down!!”

The Dream Catcher squirmed and hissed as Blizzard Chest handled it roughly. It looked at Tsurara in fear, worried that she would try to kill it like her father wanted but also begging her for help.

Tsurara jumped up on her father and held onto his bicep until he let the beast go. “Let it go, Dad.”

“I’m the one in command here, if anything. You should be listening to me,” Blizzard Chest said, now sounding angry.

“I would, if you actually took the time to listen to me and allow me to show you that beasts aren’t monsters.”

“I’ve just about had it with your smart mouth, young lady.” Blizzard Chest flung Tsurara of with a few arm swings.

Tsurara fell to the ground with a thud and a grunt. She shook off the mild pain and stood up to look at her father with angry eyes. Before she could say a word, her mother stood in front of her.

“Honey,” Her mother said softly to Tsurara, having been bent down since she too was taller than her daughter, though not as significantly as Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard were. “What did I tell you about addressing you father and grandfather?”

Tsurara’s mother, named Wind, was three feet shorter than her husband, wasn’t anything like Blizzard Chest or Snow Beard. She was only the cook of the tribe; she didn’t really play a huge role in the tribe as they mostly cooked for themselves. At least, that's what she assumed. Her hair was black and tied up in a loose ponytail and she was somewhat skinny rather than being bulky. Her eyes were emerald green instead of dark blue like her husband’s or sky blue like her father-in-law’s. She only shared a few traits with her spouse and father-in-law: They had long hair, they had peach-toned skin and, like all Zankutsu tribe members, had somewhat long, pointed ears.

Tsurara let out a sigh and looked down, away from her mother. Unlike her father and grandfather, she never argued with her mother or talked back. “To speak to them with respect and honesty. To not talk back to them no matter how wrong I think it may be.”

Wind patted Tsurara on the head. “Good.”

“I swear, she must be a mix of Juno and Aphrodite!” Snow Beard whispered to Blizzard Chest.

“I can understand the Juno part. But why Aphrodite?" Blizzard Chest whispered, staring at his wife with his arms crossed.

“Well, ye do be goin’ on about how beautiful she is.”

Blizzard Chest paused for a moment before nodding. “That is true.”

Wind was whispering to Tsurara for a bit before whispering to Note as well. Eventually, she stopped whispering and stood straight. She turned to Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard with a soft grin. “There. I have things settled now. Are you two hungry?”

“Starving!” Snow Beard replied, patting his considerably large belly.

“You know I can’t eat when I’m upset,” Blizzard Chest said, looking at Tsurara and Note once again.

“Oh honey,” Wind said, walking to Blizzard Chest. She rubbed his chest armor and stood on her tip-toes. “Are you sure?” She began whisper into Blizzard Chest’s ear.

Whatever she said made Blizzard Chest’s face turn red like a cherry. He remained silent the whole time Wind was whispering to him and for some time once she finished. She was grinning like a mischievous child who had gotten away with yet another wrongdoing. Eventually, Blizzard Chest cleared his throat and spoke.

“Well then. . .I will be eating.”

Tsurara giggled at the sight of Blizzard Chest blushing while Snow Beard was confused on the events that just took place.

“. . .what in the name of Aphrodite happened?!”

Tsurara began to laugh loudly when she saw her grandfather’s expression while questioning what just happened. Note simply stared at him.

Blizzard Chest watched as Wind left, swaying her hips a little. Still had her big grin and he still had his red face. With a sigh, he took off his helmet and looked back at the teens. “Right then. . .ummm. . .”

“What did she just tell ye!?” Snow Beard wasn’t angry with Blizzard Chest. He was simply extremely curious to find out what Wind had said to his son that made him become red.

“You. . .don’t want to know.” Blizzard Chest’s eyes slowly drifted away from Snow Beard.

Snow Beard stepped closer to Blizzard Chest. “Oh, but I do.”

“No Father. You...really....really don’t.”

“Son. I ask that ye tell me what she said.”

With a sigh Blizzard Chest turned to his father, who was standing very closely to him. He whispered into Snow Beard’s exactly what Wind told him, word for word. When he pulled away, Snow Beard had the case of the red face.

“Sweet anchovies!” Snow Beard put his hand on his forehead and pulled the skin on upward a bit, causing his eyes to appear somewhat more wide open than they already were. “She said all that? In front of the kids!?”

“Teenagers.” Tsurara corrected.

“Still! Yer a bit too young to hear what she had said to your father.” Snow Beard removed his hand from his forehead and shook his head whilst sighing. “My goodness. . .the mind and mouth that woman has! I would’ve never expected it from her!”

Once again, Note finally spoke up. He looked as if he were using the “puppy eyes” trick. “Does-does this mean training’s over?”

Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard looked at each other before responding to Note. In unison, they replied. “Yes.”

“Alright! Go Mom and her whispering magic!” Tsurara said with a small jump and her fists in the air.

“But don’t think we’re not coming back to this! Tomorrow we’re touching base on this and ye will kill a beast!!” Snow Beard said.

Blizzard Chest nodded in agreement. “He’s right.”

“Fine,” Tsurara said, clearly not happy that she still had to kill a beast. However, she didn’t make it seem that way; in fact, she said it as if it were nothing. Just like her mother wanted her to.

Note simply nodded and began to walk away at a relatively fast pace. Tsurara followed and grabbed his hand when she was already passing him.

Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard stood in the stadium, still flustered from before. They looked at one another before preparing to leave the stadium.

“. . .I just realized something.” Snow Beard said, breaking the odd silence between the two.

Blizzard Chest put the Dream Catcher back in the pen it was once in and ensured that the Dream Catcher couldn’t escape from it. Once he was sure there was no way for it to escape, he began to walk towards the exit of the stadium. “And what is that, Father?”

“. . .ye be doing all those things with her!”

Blizzard Chest’s face was as red as it can get. He could no longer keep eye contact with his father. He couldn’t even respond to him! He simply left the stadium without a word and waited for Snow Beard to come out. Once the stadium was empty, he pulled a lever that made the wired roof of the stadium separate and eventually become hidden, making it appear roof-less. He locked the caged door to the stadium before walking away from it alongside Snow Beard. Again, he could not look at him.

Snow Beard was staring at Blizzard Chest constantly, contrary to what Blizzard Chest was doing. He was still stunned about what Wind had said and constantly thought about his realization. “My own son,” he thought. “I would’ve never expected such a thing from him either.”

4: Chapter 3 - In the Moonlit Hours, We Study

The sun had fallen and a glowing full moon was now out against a clear dark blue sky. Normally, Note and Tsurara would attempt [and usually succeed] to free whatever beasts Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard held prisoner in the Beast Stadium. But because the beast trapped was unable to survive in the wild, they decided it was best it stayed put. That it would be put out of its misery, now that it was able to go back home and live its life. Instead, they were planning something in Note’s candlelit bedroom.

“If my arms are going to be the wings, I think the wings themselves should be the same length as my arm.” Note said, pointing at a piece of paper that had various wing sketches and measurements.

“It makes sense. But if we’re going for webbed wings, your fingers would be the...well, the fingers, which would therefore hold the membranes. And you can’t have your arms stretched out because that would imply that your wing is broken and we wouldn’t be able to place the necessary membrane that’s attached to the shoulder and the wrist.” Tsurara explained.

“Well, what other wing choice do we have? Sure, feathered wings get the job done but that would require a substance that can endure any natural phenomena like rain or hail to hold all the feathers together. Plus, we’d have to find away to flap the wings because I don’t want feathers glued onto my arm like a human chicken.”

“But your arms would have to be like this with webbed wings,” Tsurara held up her arms and bent them a little over half way. She tilted her wrists to make her hands point sideways and spread all of her fingers. “Like I said, fully extended arms imply that the wing bones are broken. And I know you don’t want to fly like this.”

“So how are we going to make the wingsuit then? I can’t fully extend my arms or else the anatomy for the webbed wings will appear broken and we don’t have the necessary material to make feathered wings.”

Tsurara paused for a moment. She studied all the papers scattered around Note’s bedroom, more specifically the ones with the anatomy of wings and the wingspan of potential wing designs. She gasped and beamed at Note. “I think I have a plan that just might work!”

“Go for it.”

“First, the wings will need to be a little longer than your arms. Your hands will act as the fingers still but there will be a mechanism that allows you to control artificial fingers for the wing. Of course, these artificial fingers will be clawed for self-defense and maybe even climbing if you’re stuck in a situation where you can’t take your hands out the wingsuit.”

Note nodded. “Continue.”

“Your arms can be fully extended. Your arms will be sort of like a pole for the membrane that attaches to the shoulder and the wrist. There will be an artificial wing bone made obviously, which will be somewhat thicker than your arm.”

“But how will I fold them for when I’m not flying?”

“Hmm...true. I didn’t think about that part. I mean, the bones would bend but not to the point where it can look “put away”.”

“Yeah....geez, making a wingsuit is hard.” Note scratched his head, looking at all the sketches he and Tsurara had made.

“Well, of course. I mean, humans weren’t born with the anatomy to fly so it’d obviously be difficult to develop wings for one.”

“But here’s the thing. We do have the anatomy to some extent. We have the fingers and we can even put our arms in the same position a Dusk Tailer’s would be. It’s just our arms are built differently.”

“Exactly. Have you noticed Dusk Tailer’s can barely grab anything? Their claws prevent them from doing so.”

“Yeah.”

Tsurara sighed. “You wanna take a break?”

“I would like that.” Note stood up. “Are you hungry?”

“At this time?”

“Yeah. Melody won’t mind. After all, she eats at this time every now and then. I don’t say anything about it because even I get hungry at this time occasionally.”

“Oh. Umm...I wouldn’t want to eat your food.”

“Please. I insist. Of course, if you don’t want to...”

“Well...I suppose I could go for something to eat. What do you have?”

“I have some ham left from dinner a few nights ago.”

“Sounds good.”

Note nodded and left his bedroom. He walked downstairs to the kitchen and removed a clear lid off of a large ham that had already been cut into. He grabbed the entire ham and carried it back upstairs and to Tsurara. “Here you go.”

Tsurara looked at the ham. “You don’t expect me to eat that entire thing, do you?” She laughed a little.

“Not if you’re unable to. Of course if you can, I won’t mind at all.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t be greedy and hog it all. We can share it.”

“I like the sound of that. I should probably go get the knife.”

“No need. We can use my dagger.” Tsurara pulled out a dagger that was nicely polished with a shiny, smooth, dark red handle.

“Sweet.” Note sat down in front of Tsurara and set the ham between them.

Tsurara began to slice the ham into somewhat thick slices. She handed two slices to Note and served herself two as well. She ate it straight off the dagger however. Note ate it by hand.

“Say...your guardians don’t mind that you’re here, right?”

“Of course not. If anything, you’re probably the youngest person they trust me to be around.”

“Probably in your mother’s eyes. Your father and grandfather must find me a disgrace because I follow your beliefs.”

Tsurara stopped eating. She set her dagger down and looked at Note with a stern face. “My beliefs? Why do you say it like that?”

“Well, I mean--”

“Tell me, Note. What exactly are your beliefs?” Tsurara crossed her arms, awaiting a response.

“Well...they’re pretty similar to yours except...”

Tsurara closed in on Note. “Except?”

“Except...re-taming the beasts. I think it’d be a horrendous idea to try and tame such dangerous creatures.”

Tsurara backed away from Note. “You’re starting to sound like my father.”

“Ah ah. Didn’t say I wanted’em dead. I still want them to linger about on Wisp Breath. But I don’t think it’s safe for us to keep them like pets. I mean, look at beasts like Sagittarius and the Dream Catcher! They can play mind tricks on you...literally! And there's Scorpios. Flightless and terrible swimmers but the venom in their stingers can leave you paralyzed for who knows how long!”

“Beasts won’t attack those they trust. You know they’ve been attacking us because we’ve been attacking them.”

“Yeah but--”

“And plus, Wild Chest tamed beasts himself. He had over five beasts! And two of them were Tsunami Horns! And last I checked, Tsunami Horns were just as dangerous as a Poseidon's Fury with the wings, brute strength, and speed of an Aerodeath.

“Not to mention the stealth of a Dusk Tailer.”

“Yeah but there glow gives them away. And if it’s not their glow, it’s the bright colors of their markings and horn...horns that blow their cover.”

“True....but back to my point--”

“Your point has been debunked. If Wild Chest can tame beasts, so can we.”

“...but Tsurara--”

“No buts. I’m stubborn on this. And when I tame a beast of my own, I know you’re going to want to tame one too. So I know this is only temporary.”

“And if you don’t tame a beast?”

“Well then I’ll keep trying until I succeed or die. Whichever comes first.”

“Sounds fair enough.”

Tsurara nodded. “We all have a little bit of Wild Chest’s blood in us--”

“With you having the most since your his great great great great great great great...so many greats granddaughter.”

“I know. Back to what I was going to say...oh yeah. We all have a little bit of Wild Chest’s blood in us. I know that, together, we can tame beasts and reunite them with mankind. Hopefully for eternity.”

“Just like he would’ve wanted, right?”

Tsurara nodded. “Yep. He loved the beasts. It says so in all of his journal entries regarding his life with the beasts, plus in the very beginning of the Beast Book. It’s no doubt he wanted the tribe to co-exist in harmony with beasts.”

“Too bad they turned against us out of the blues.”

“Not long after Wild Chest died to be a bit more precise. It’s quite strange but I’m not worried on finding out that mystery just yet.”

“Mystery? I don’t think it’s a mystery. I think they deserted us because we’re not Wild Chest. We’re not a compassionate old man with a staff at hand and painted markings on our faces.Whatever Wild Chest had, we don’t have anymore. Now, I think they turned against us because we started to expand our village, taking away their home even more then we already did back then. That, or they just really hated us for not being as good as Wild Chest.”

“Note, can I be frank with you?”

“I think I already know what you’re going to say but go ahead.”

“That was the worst explanation I have ever heard come out of your mouth.”

“Yep. Saw it coming.”

“You don’t really believe that, do you?”

“Well....a little.”

“That’s it. Tomorrow, we’re cleaning your brain somehow. I think it’s gotten a bit rusty with all the work we’ve been doing.”

“My mind’s not that dirty.”

“....you do realize the joke in that, right?”

“Yes, I do. But it’s not dirty in that context either period.Maybe when I’m older it will be.”

“I seriously hope not. I don’t want to walk in on you--”

“Okay, okay, okay! That’s enough Tsurara.”

“Sorry.” Tsurara finally resumed eating.

“”The fact that you would even think of me doing that makes you a bit dirty-minded yourself.”

“Well, it’s kinda hard not to think about when your parents are...ya know...” Tsurara’s face and the tip of her pointed ears began to turn red.

“....yeah. I guess....ummm....things just got a little awkward, now didn’t it?”

Tsurara nodded and looked away from Note briefly before looking back at him.

“...anyway, I don’t think my mind’s that dirty. It’s still working properly for the most part.”

“For the most part. I want it to be working entirely, not mostly.”

Note yawned. “Okay Tsurara. Whatever you say. We’ll clean my mind tomorrow somehow. Hopefully not early in the morning because it’s pretty late.”

“It’ll be in the afternoon.”

“Good.” Note rubbed his eye and headed toward his bed. “I’m tired. I’m going to sleep.”

“What about your ham?”

“You can have it. Melody never eats leftovers anyways.”

“What a waste.” Tsurara placed the ham on a desk Note had in the back of his room. The desk was covered in dust and a few papers with ineligible writing and hard-to-recognize drawings. “Thanks.”

Note was very close to falling asleep. In fact, he could barely keep his eyes open. The only reason he managed to keep them even partially open was because of Tsurara. “Your welcome. Now, come along in the bed. I know you’re tired too.”

“A little.”

Note scooted aside for Tsurara and patted the empty space he made for her. Once she sat on the bed, he moved his arm and rested it on his belly with a sigh. “Goodnight, Tsurara.”

Tsurara laid in the bed on her back and scooted a bit closer to Note. “Goodnight, Note.”

Note began to drift to sleep when he thought about something. He opened his eyes all the way and stared at the roof. “Do you think you’ll be okay without your stuffed beast?”

“I have him with me. He’s in my satchel.”

“...it’s cute that it has a gender.”

“That’s because Tsunami Horns look masculine to me. So I automatically made my plush a male and I named him Whirlpool.”

“Cute name....aren’t you going to get him?”

“I want to...but I’m too comfy. I think he’ll be okay in the satchel.”

Note sat up and stared at Tsurara’s satchel, which was hanging off his doorknob. He climbed over Tsurara and staggered to the satchel.

“Note, what are you doing?”

Note didn’t respond and only looked through Tsurara’s satchel, catching her attention. She watched him carefully as he moved things around before taking out something and closed the satchel. He staggered back to the bed but this time he fell flat on his face.

She gasped. “Are you okay?!”

“...ow....I think I’m fine. My face just really hurts.”

Tsurara climbed out of bed and helped Note up. She first sat him on his bum and checked his face for any injuries. He obtained a bloody nose, with blood pouring out of his left nostril. “Oh no. You poor thing.” She left for her satchel and pulled out a moist cloth. She walked back to him with the cloth and continued to aid him, covering his nose with the cloth to prevent anymore bleeding.

“Mmm...thanks Tsurara.”

“Be careful next time please? I can’t have you lose your nose to the floor.”

Note nodded slowly, once again trying to keep his eyes open. “I’ll try.”

Tsurara sat Note on the bed and pushed him gently back to the side he was once on before getting in the bed herself. Once she was on, she quickly put the cloth over his nose again. “What made you get up anyways?”

Note pulled out something he was holding in his armpit and held it up to Tsurara. “Whirlpool.” He began to move the Tsunami Horn plushy around her to entertain her. “Rawr.”

She giggled and got a hold of Whirlpool. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“I did. I don’t want you to have nightmares.”

“I have you for that.”

Note blushed and widened his eyes. “U-u-uuhhh...ummm....cool.”

Tsurara giggled and kissed Note on the head, making him blush even more intensely. “Arigato.”

“D-d-dōitashimashite.”

Tsurara laid snug with Whirlpool in her arms. She closed her eyes and sighed. “I can’t until tomorrow.......I have so many things planned for us.” Afterwards, she fell asleep.

Note grinned slightly before falling asleep himself. He had his back turned to Tsurara, though even eventually turned over so that he would be facing her instead of the wall.

5: Chapter 4 - Beast Confrontation

The following afternoon, Tsurara and Note managed to sneak past Blizzard Chest and Snow Beard to avoid having to slay a beast against their will. They knew they’d be caught eventually but not for a while at least. They left the village and into the lush forests of Wisp Breath.

“Tsurara,” Note said while tip-toeing alongside Tsurara. “Where are we going?”

“Shh!!” Tsurara hushed Note.

“....sorry.” He whispered.

“I told you it was a surprise. You’ll find out when we get there.” Tsurara whispered.

“...why do we have to be so quiet? Aren’t we far enough from the village to be able to talk normally again?”

“We are. But you don’t want to startle it, do you?”

“Startle what?”

Tsurara stopped in her tracks and looked at a trail of destruction that laid before her. Trees were knocked over, the ground looked as if something attempted to tunnel through it, and even a few boulders were shattered or cracked. “Note, look!”

Note approached a fallen tree slowly, astonished that such a large thing was knocked down. Then he knelt down to the dirt trail, only to fall in it since it was so large. “Wow....this is...huge. Almost like...” Note gasped. “.....Tsunami Horn.”

“Exactly. Let’s follow it!” Tsurara stopped her tip-toeing and jumped over fallen trees to avoid pieces of shattered rock.

“Tsurara, wait up!!” Note followed Tsurara hesitantly, not wanting to go through with Tsurara’s plan. But he didn’t want her to get hurt either.

The trail was very long. There were many fallen trees and a few more broken boulders. There were even a few golden splotches a few trees that were still standing and a few hand-like prints in the ground. In time, they made it to what appeared to be the end of the trail. If there was more, it couldn’t be seen; a very large tree that had fallen was blocking the path.

“...I’m afraid to find out how this one fell.” Note said, still frightened.

“This tree has always been down. I see it like this every time I come out here to study.”

“...I still can’t believe you’re going through with this. And in broad daylight.”

“You mean you can’t believe we’re going through with this in broad daylight.”

“Tsurara, I don’t think I’m going any further. This plan is crazy dangerous. And personally, I don’t think you should be going for it either. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“I know it’s dangerous. But it needs our help. We just can’t leave it for dead! You know what my grandfather’s been saying about the species.”

“...that it might as well be extinct.”

“Exactly. Do you really want to bail out, knowing that if you do you’ll be letting a specie of beast end completely?”

Note sighed and looked down. He knew Tsurara had a point; but he also knew they could both die doing this. Then he gasped and looked up. “But what if we die trying? Then, not only will we be gone but so will the Tsunami Horn.”

Tsurara let out a frustrated sigh. “Fine Note. Fine. You can go back home and kill that Dream Catcher Dad’s been telling us to kill or something.”

“Tsurara--”

“Don’t try to talk me out of this, Note. Sometimes you have to take a risk. Yes, there is a chance I may lose my life. But it’s achance. There’s also a chance I will come out alive. Just like there’s a chance that we will reunite the tribe and the beasts. And just like there’s a chance that we will fail miserably. That doesn’t stop us now does it?”

“....no. I guess not.”

“Alright then. So either you follow or you go back home.”

Note let out a sigh. “Fine. I’ll follow.”

“Good.” Tsurara leaped onto the fallen tree, though she couldn’t see over it still; the tree was so massive, she needed to climb it. She hung onto the side of the tree before slowly climbing it. Once she finished climbing the tree, she was finally able to look over it. “Oh my...”

“What is it?” Note asked.

“It’s a lot bigger than I imagined.”

“Let me see.” Note finally climbed the tree. When he reached the top, he sat on it.

Behind the tree was a very large, navy blue creature. One of its injured wings could be seen; the actual wing “bone” was somewhat arrow shaped with a sharp white claw a the upper and lower tips of it. It was navy blue like the rest of the beast’s body but its translucent membrane was grayish blue. The membrane was barely there; a lot of it was torn off and remaining parts of it were riddled with holes. It lacked hind legs; all it had were very muscular arms equipped with four, black, 6in. long, razor sharp claws. The gold fluid that was on the trees was on the creature’s chest and barely on its neck. It laid seemingly unconscious on its side.

“Look at all that damage...” Note whispered as he gazed upon the creature.

Tsurara glared at Note. “And you wanted to ditch it.”

“Tsurara. Get mad at me later. Right now, we have to do what you said and do what we can to save it.”

“Right. You have the medicine kit, right?”

Note widened his eyes and looked down. “Eeerrr...uuuuhhh....about that.”

“Note! I thought I told you to always have it on you in the event that A) I don’t have it on me, like right now and B) Someone gets seriously hurt, like right now!”

“I’m sorry! But-but in my defense, you did rush me to come out today so I didn’t exactly have time to grab it...”

“Now how are we going to fix it?”

“Looks like all we can do is analyze the seriousness of its injuries and come back later. Unless you want to make a quick medicine with the leaves and tree sap.”

“We don’t have a choice unfortunately. It’s either a quick medicine or risk its injuries getting infected. Or it’ll bleed out. . .which ever comes first.”

“And I know neither of us want to find out which would come first.”

“Exactly. Come on,” Tsurara pulled herself onto the tree and leaped off it towards the creature. “We have work to do.”

Note followed Tsurara in pursuit of the beast. Once they were both five feet away from it, the walked very slowly towards it; Note walked towards the creature’s lower half and Tsurara walked towards the creature’s upper half.

“I hope it doesn’t wake up soon.” Note whispered nervously.”

“Shh!!” Tsurara hushed Note violently.

Soon, the creature groaned loudly. It didn’t move at all from its position, let alone even roll over or adjust the position of any of its limbs.

“Poor, poor, poor beast. The pain it must be going through right now.” Tsurara whispered once she was very close to the beast.

“Yeah. Be careful, Tsurara.” Note whispered as he kneeled down to the beast’s stomach.

“I know. I will.” Tsurara got on knees and placed her hands gently on the beast’s chest. She rubbed it gently before examining the golden fluids on it. She narrowed her eyes slightly before become even more upset and letting out a sigh. “It’s blood.”

Suddenly, the beast’s eyes shot open. They were bright red but lacked visible irises or pupils. Its entire body became stiff as it realized humans were touching it.

“I thought it was urine. Never knew a beast could have golden blood.”

“Well, that’s a Tsunami Horn for ya. Sure, Wild Chest owned one and was up close and personal with it but he wouldn’t know the color of its blood. After all...he wasn’t a beast slayer.”

“...I don’t think he was a slayer in general.”

“Exactly. His heart was too pure for that sort of stuff. But now? I haven’t gone a day without seeing blood.”

“You haven’t killed anyone per se though.”

“I’ve witnessed it though. It’s painful.”

“I can only imagine.”

Soon, the beast took the opportunity to sit up and glare at the teenagers. It winced as one of its wounds began to bleed again.

“Tsurara. . .”

“Y-y-yes, Note?”

“. . .are we gonna die?”

“I hope not!”

The beast grabbed Note by the neck with its incredibly long tail and pinned Tsurara down. It took and deep breath to relieve it of some its pain before viciously roaring at Tsurara.

“TSURARA!!!!!!” Note yelled as he attempted to free himself from the beast’s grip.

The beast tightened its grip around Note’s neck, practically strangling him. Then it brought Note close to its face and roared angrily at him too before tossing him to the side like he was nothing.

“URK!!!” Note let out a loud grunt as he was thrown harshly to the ground.

The beast let out an incredibly loud snort before attempting to leap off, only to wince from the pain of its wounds again. It instead walked away slowly, not bothering to look again at Note or Tsurara.

Tsurara sat up and saw the ax that was used to take out beast lodged into its side. In addition to that, a spear was in the base of the Tsunami Horn's tail, almost going through completely. Before it could get away, she got up and pulled the spear out as quickly as she could. The beast roared in agony and roared at Tsurara again, though it didn’t get close to her. It ran away from her, again not looking back.

“...well, I got the spear out at least. The ax'll have to wait another time.”

Note was coughing and holding his neck. “I think we should bail...that thing nearly killed us!”

“Note, do I have to give you a lecture again on why I’m not bailing out and why you shouldn’t either?”

“...maybe,” Note coughed again before finally getting back to his feet. “After all, we were taught not to go near things if they nearly kill us.”

“We were also taught that beasts are demons. Do we listen?”

“. . .fair point.”

“We won’t chase it right now. It’s in too much pain and too scared to confront. But later on today or tomorrow, we have to come back. And this time, with the medicine kit please?”

“Fine fine.”

“Good. . .are you okay?”

“Tsurara, I almost got choked by a Tsunami Horn. What do you think?

“. . .somewhat okay.”

“Barely if you ask me.” Note mumbled.

“Come on. Let’s go back home. And don’t tell anyone about this; not even Mom or the Guru.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t know how they’ll react. They might tell Dad, or worst Grandpa. And you know how Dad and Grandpa will be if they find out we were trying to save a beast.”

“. . .what about Melody?”

“ESPECIALLY MELODY!!!!”

Note widened his eyes and backed away from Tsurara. “Okay, okay! No need to yell!”

“The fact that you mentioned her mad me yell. You know she’s a snitch.”

“Not all the time. . .”

“You know she’ll snitch on us, Note. Just to get the positive attention.”

“Well, who wouldn’t want to be given a “job well done” from the chief of the tribe? You know, not everyone is related to the chief like you are.”

“I know that. I understand that it’s important, and it feels great, to impress the superiors of the tribe. But we wouldn’t be impressing anyone. We’d be on the worst end of the stick; we could be exiled from the tribe. Possibly sent to Exisland.”

“That’s where the worst warriors go.”

“There's one there in particular. . .and his daughter is in our tribe.”

“. ..at least his daughter’s on our side, right? You were the one who sheltered her from. . .whatever.”

“We don’t know that for sure just yet. She’s too shy. . .too scared of what Dad and Grandpa’ll do to her to say anything. For all we know, she could be brainwashed into thinking beasts are evil.”

“Let’s hope not. . .in fact, why don’t we go ask her? It wouldn’t hurt to do so.”

“I guess not...let’s get a move on already. We’ll go to her instead of the beast stadium.”

“Fine by me.”

Tsurara began to walk away from the scene the beast was once located in with Note following her closely. She took one last look at the scene before ignoring it completely all together.

6: Chapter 5 - How We Really Feel

“And where have ye two been?” Snow Beard asked, narrowing his eyes at Tsurara and Note after stopping them from entering the village. He had his hands on his hips and he was bent over to look at them eye-to-eye.

“Enjoying the beauty’s of Wisp Breath,” Tsurara said with her arms crossed. “Now if you’ll excuse us--”

“Wait just a minute, Tsurara,” Blizzard Chest said, making his way over to his daughter. “You know you need to ask before leaving the village.”

“I asked Mom and she said yes.”

“Who’s yer witness?” Snow Beard asked.

“I am, sir.” Note replied.

“...MELODY!!!!!” Snow Beard called, standing up straight and finally away from the faces of Note and Tsurara.

A girl about Tsurara’s height made her way over to them. She had long, ebony hair and purple eyes. Her skin looked exactly like Note’s but it had a softer appearance and feel to it. She had on a simple brown shirt and blackish-brown leggings with sandals. “Yes sir?” She asked politely.

“Did ye see these two askin’ Wind to leave the village?” Snow Beard asked.

The girl, named Melody, looked at Note and Tsurara. Her joyful expression faded away quickly. “Umm. . .no sir. I’m very sorry. I’ve been helping the Guru all day so I haven’t really seen Wind yet. . .” She narrowed her eyes at Tsurara. “And I certainly haven’t seen her.”

Tsurara glared at Melody, making Melody glare back. However, Blizzard Chest stepped in between the two girls to stop them from going any further than that. “Okay. Thank you for your time, Melody.”

“Yes. And thank ye for doing the right thing. Helpin’ others. Makin’ sure everyone be okay. Unlike a certain someone. . .” Snow Beard glanced at Tsurara.

Melody was overjoyed that the military chief and the tribe leader himself praised her. She did a little hop and smiled greatly. “Oh thank you sir! You don’t know how much that means to me!” She skipped away happily.

“Look at that. So easy to please too,” Snow Beard got a full look at Tsurara now. “Why can’t ye be like that? Always so picky!”

“I’m not picky!”

“Yes ye are! Tsurara, ye want to help yer ol’ man out with the fields? “No Dad, I want to study the beasts!” Tsurara, ye want to learn how to run the tribe? “No Grandpa, that sounds boring! I want to be the beasts!” Ye are so hard to satisfy!”

“I’m only asking for one thing!”

“That one thing is impossible to get! And ye know it is!”

“No it’s not!! It seems hard because all you do is say no!!”
“No I don’t! I say yes. . .sometimes.”

“Only when it’s things like watching you do chief business, giving me chores, or having people mock and insult Note and I.”

“Tsurara, you have to understand--”

“No, YOU have to understand! You never give the beasts a chance! You never give Note and I a chance either! If you’d just listen to--”

“NOW YOU LISTEN HERE!!!” Snow Beard yelled.

Note whimpered and backed away from the chief of the tribe.

“I’M FED UP WITH YER BACK TALKIN’ NONSENSE!!” Snow Beard grabbed Tsurara and held her in the air. “SMACK TALK TO US ONE MORE TIME AND I SWEAR TO ARES, I WILL--”

“YOU WILL DO NOTHING!!!!!!” A woman yelled.

Snow Beard growled and dropped Tsurara. “Wind. . .keep yer nose clean and out of me business!”

Wind walked up to Snow Beard's back extremely livid. “You won’t be laying a finger on my daughter!”

“And why not!? I’ve given her more than enough chances!”

“Because you were the same way in your youth! And you know it!”

Snow Beard paused. He turned around completely to look at Wind.

“Always talking smack to your elders! Disrespecting your own father! Fighting other tribe members just to show off your strength! And here you are, threatening your grand-daughter for the same actions you did when you were younger!”

Blizzard Chest looked at his father while Snow Beard didn’t respond to Wind. He only gazed at her with regret and a little sorrow.

“You should be ashamed of yourself! ASHAMED!!!!”

“Wind, calm dow--”

“You stay out of this! You were being nothing more than a bystander!!” Wind snapped harshly at her husband.

Blizzard Chest widened his eyes and held his hands up halfway in surrender. “Okay. . .” He whispered.

Wind glared at Snow Beard again. “I expected better from the chief of the Zankutsu tribe!!” She wrapped her arms around Tsurara and held her very close. “I don’t want you laying A FINGER ON TSURARA!!!!!”

Snow Beard looked at Wind, then back at Tsurara. He gave Tsurara a foul look and mouthed to her, “Yer lucky yer mother is here to protect ye.”

Tsurara looked away from Snow Beard and pouted. “I’ve been hit before,” She mumbled. “In more ways than you could ever do to me.”

Wind was unable to hear what Tsurara said; she was too flushed in anger to focus enough to hear. Instead, she pulled Tsurara away her male guardians. “Come along, Tsurara,” She said. “I would love for you to help me in the kitchen.”

“C-can I come along too?” Note asked nervously, afraid of Snow Beard.

“I don’t mind.” Wind replied.

Tsurara shook her head and whispered softly to Note, “Go to her. I’ll try to catch up with you two later.”

“Oh. . .” Note looked away for a brief moment. “Umm...sorry. I need to do something. But I’ll try to go in later if I can.”

“That’s fine, Note. I appreciate your efforts,” Wind said with a slight grin.

Note glanced at Snow Beard, who in return gave Note the same foul look he gave Tsurara. He whimpered softly and bolted away.

“Hmph,” Blizzard Chest mumbled. “He’s such a wuss sometimes.”

Wind guided Tsurara into the village’s main kitchen and stood her in front of the stove. “Would you mind doing the cooking?”

“Yeah. . .not at all,” Tsurara nodded and reached up to turn on the stove. But even on her tip-toes, she couldn’t turn it on. “Umm. . .Mom? Can I have a stool please? Or can you turn the stove on for me?”

Wind grabbed a small wooden stool and placed it next to Tsurara. “There you go, honey.”

“Thank you.” Tsurara hopped onto the stool and was finally able to turn on the stove with the turn of a knob and a flip of a switch.

Blue flames spewed out of the burners but didn’t get high at all. They formed a fiery circle around the burner instead; the flames were only a few inches tall. Tsurara grabbed a pan and placed it on the fire circle and waited for her mother to give her things to cook.

Wind was humming a tune while happily chopping up vegetables.

“Umm. . .Mom?”

“Mmmm. . .” Wind hummed. Then she looked to her daughter through her peripheral vision. “Hmm?”

“About what happened earlier. . .”

Wind’s grin faded away almost entirely. She turned to her daughter with worry on her face. “Don’t think about what happened before. It was wrong. . .” She sighed. “Although, you shouldn’t have been talking to him like that. You know how he is.”

“. . .I prefer not to answer that.”

“I didn’t expect you to. I know your insight on him is far worst that what everyone else thinks.”

“I’m sure Note’s is just as bad.”

“His view is out of fear. Yours is out of anger,” She resumed chopping vegetables. “Who is Note going to see anyways?”

“Umm. . .Sogsag-im.”

“Oh?” Wind became intrigued and placed her cutting board, now full of chopped veggies, next to Tsurara. “And what for?”

“That’s personal. I’m scared to tell anyone. . .to be honest.”

“Even me?”

Tsurara nodded. “Especially you and other adults. No offense.”

“Hmm. . .I guess I understand. Okay. I won’t pry into your business.”

“Thank you,” Tsurara nodded and placed the vegetables into the pan. “I wish they were as understanding as you are.”

Meanwhile . . .

“Please let me in, Sogsag-im,” Note begged in a groggy manner as he rested his body against the door to a house across from his. “I can’t stand out here forever now.”

“I-I-I. . .uhhh. . .” A soft voice stuttered.

“Please? Tsurara wanted--”

The door Note was resting on flung open, causing him to fall before the feet of a small, pale girl wearing a white kimono with brown sandals that had silver straps. She had black hair tied up in a long ponytail. Unlike everyone else in the tribe, the tips of her ears weren’t pointed; instead, they were flat like the tips had been cut off. She had sky-blue eyes and a pair of pearl anklets. Around her neck was a shark tooth and pearl necklace. “Wh-wh-what did she want?”

“. . .ow,” Note muffled as his face was in the floor.

“S-s-sorry.”

Note rolled onto his back and sighed. “It’s okay I guess,” He dragged himself into her house. “Anyways, Tsurara wanted me to ask you something.”

“Y-yes?”

“What’s your stand on beasts? Are you a hater like everyone else or are you like us?”

“U-u-u-ummmm. . .w-well. . .I. . .”

“Sogsag-im?”

Sogsag-im began to pace around and look through her things. “U-u-uumm. . .”

“. . .if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s okay. Tsurara just wanted to see if you were persuaded into believing what just about everyone else believes in or not.”

“I. . .I can’t answer. . .” She stood still and looked down. “I’m scared to. . .” She whispered.

“I won’t tell anyone but Tsurara. I promise.”

“But what if she tells someone else?!” Sogsag-im sat down on a pillow in the corner of the main room of her household. “I-I don’t want to be kicked out of another tribe!”

“I’m sure she wouldn’t do that. She knows how terrified you are of the chief and the military chief.”

“I-I-I don’t know. . .come back to me later I guess. . .when no one’s awake.”

“I’ll let her know that. Sorry for distressing you.”

“It’s fine. I’ll see you guys later.”

Note dragged himself out of the house and closed the door for Sogsag-im. Then he sat up and looked towards the kitchen. “Welp, better tell Tsurara the news,” He stood up and made his way towards the main kitchen.

Note peeped through the ordering window, which was a large opening in the building that lacked an actual window, of the main kitchen before actually entering the kitchen. He could see a little bit of Tsurara’s arm, steam, and Wind’s back. He would’ve been able to see more if he was taller. He looked to the left and saw a small, silver bell. Then he gently tapped it, causing it ring.

“In a minute!” Wind said.

“Can I come in?” Note asked.

Tsurara moved to the side so Note could see her and vice versa. “Mom, it’s Note. Can he come in?”

“Oh, I thought it was a hungry warrior. Let him in for me please?”

Tsurara stepped off her stool and made her way to the entrance of the main kitchen, which was adjacent to the ordering window, and pulled back the drapes blocking the entrance. “Come in, Note.”

Note happily walked into the kitchen and watched Wind cut up pieces of meat and potatoes. “Thank you.”

“Mind washing and seasoning the meats, Note? We could really use the help. We almost burned some steak after trying to season some pork,” Wind said.

“Luckily, the person who wanted it didn’t care that it was a tad bit overcooked,” Tsurara added as she stepped back onto her stool and resumed cooking.

“Sure,” Note said. He strolled through the kitchen and stared at a hunk of cow meat sitting on the counter diagonally across from Tsurara. He made his way towards it and got to work by washing it thoroughly. “Tsurara, I talked with Sogsag-im today.”

“What did she say?”

“She’ll talk to us later on tonight.”

“Oh?” Wind once again stopped cutting food up. “Can I ask about what?”

“Just her position on beasts. Nothing magical or anything.”

Wind looked to Tsurara. “I wouldn’t mind if you were talking to others about that.”

“It’s more than that Mom. . .that’s just the start of it.”

“Are you sure I can’t know? I promise I won’t tell.”

“I thought you were--”

“I did, I did.” Wind collected herself and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I’m just. . .curious as all.”

“Curiosity is what made us realize beasts are good.” Note said.

“True. . .but I promised her I wouldn’t get my nose into things. . .even if it is tempting.”

“Mooomm.”

“Okay, okay! I won’t bother you no more.”

“Thank you. Note, did she say where she’s meeting us?”

“No but I have strong feeling it’ll be my house. After all, she’s terrified of your father and grandfather.”

“She’s not afraid of them. . .” Tsurara sighed as she put cooked veggies and meat onto a plate. “She’s scared of their power. One slip up and they might kick her out the tribe. And you know she’s had a rough life already.”

“Yeah. . .”

“If they didn’t have such high positions, she’d probably care less.”

“Maybe. . .keep an eye out for her at your house.”

“I’m not sleeping there. I’m sleeping at your place tonight, if you don’t mind me being another all-night guest again.”

“Not at all. I understand what you’re going through.”

“I’ll tell your father tonight so he’ll know not to put a lantern in your room,” Wind said.

“Thanks Mom. I don’t want him having a fit because he didn’t know of my whereabouts again.”

“I hope he doesn’t keep you on lock-down like he did a few months back. That was awful,” Note said as he flicked some water off the meat he cleansed before slapping on some seasonings and massaging them into the meat.

“I hope he doesn’t either. All I did was watch beasts die, people fight, and Grandad rule over the tribe. It was unbearable.”

“I thought you would’ve liked seeing him run the tribe though,” Wind said.

“That wasn’t the bad part. The beast slaying is what really messed me up. I couldn’t do anything. I felt helpless. Scared. Guilty.”

“Oh yes. I forgot about that part for a moment.”

“You can never forget when you look into the eyes of a beast as it is getting killed with an ax to the head, a swift chop to the neck, or being brutally punched and kicked until it was no longer moving or making a sound. . .”

Note and Wind halted their actions to look at Tsurara, who was thinking about all the beast deaths she was forced to see in her life time. It made her shudder and shake her head.

“That’s uh. . .really dark,” Note said.

Tsurara turned off the stove and stepped off her stool, looking down. “I’m stopping for the day. I don’t want my hatred to go into the food.”

Wind turned around and kneeled to her daughter. She lifted her head up gently with her finger and kissed her on the forehead. She slowly moved the hair from her face to look into her almost icy eyes. “Okay dear.”

Tsurara sat in the corner of the kitchen and watched Note and Wind cook for the tribe. She had her knees to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs most of the time. Towards the end, she sat criss-crossed. When it was all finished, Wind and Note cleaned up and began to close the ordering windows of the kitchen.

"Tsurara dear, we're heading out now. Care to come with us?" Wind asked as she made her way to the door.

"Yeah. I have to get my satchel and Whirlpool from my room before I head over to Note's," Tsurara replied.

"Oh, I'll get that for you. Just in case your grandfather is there."

"Thank you. I'll be outside Note's place then. And please, don't let him touch Whirlpool. It's all I have left to remember Breeze. . .that I can touch."

Wind nodded and left the kitchen. She was followed by Note, who was then followed by Tsurara. While Note strolled his house with Tsurara following him, Wind walked into her house. She looked around closely before slowly walking through the house. She saw Snow Beard in the kitchen, angrily eating roast pork. She glared at him for a brief moment before making her way upstairs.

"Hmph!" Snow Beard grunted with his mouth mouth, watching Wind carefully until she was no longer visible in his field of vision.

Wind made her way to Tsurara's room, only to see that the door was slightly open.

"Well that's weird," she said. "She never leaves her door open when she leaves the house. I wonder why it's. . ." Wind opened the door enough for her to enter, only to Blizzard Chest sitting on Tsurara's bed with Whirlpool in his hands. He was staring at it depressingly.

"Hon? What's wrong?"

Blizzard Chest sighed. "I. . .I. . .it's Tsurara. She's changed so much. . .I miss it when she was little a girl. So vibrant. Intelligent. I miss seeing her smile every single day like evil didn't exist in the world. Now. . .now she's always upset. Angry. Fighting with her elders. Fighting against her own tribe."

"Honey. . ." Wind frowned slightly and sat next to her husband. She gently placed her hands on his arm and back. "She's only doing what her brother would've done. You know that."

"I know. . but even Breeze didn't go as far as to to nearly kill a man during a beast raid."

"Of course not. He wasn't even nearly treated as poorly by everyone as Tsurara is. Your father is no help. He is just provoking her even more. And you know his help would've been crucial to her not being violent."

"How do you know?" Blizzard Chest turned his head and looked at Wind.

"Because he was there for Breeze and he came to be a peaceful protester. He wasn't there for Tsurara and. . .look at her. She has no choice. He virtually turned everyone against.her. It's good that she has Note and me to keep her in check, otherwise she'd probably be uncontrollable. A monster even."

"What about me, Wind? I was there for her."

"For so long. It was only a matter of time before you stopped giving her the reassurance she needed."

"Reassurance?"

"Reassurance that her family would support her no matter what. You failed to show her that. She almost lost faith in me, had I not shown her that I will be there for her no matter what."

Blizzard Chest widened his eyes slightly and stared at Whirlpool again. He squeezed it tightly before closing his eyes. "Maybe you're right. I have been a bad father. Helping my own father turn against my own kin when I could've stopped her from becoming this way."

"Your father played a huge role in this too. I think he's just making it worst. He's becoming more and more aggressive towards her and in turn, it's making her more violent. At least, that's how I'm seeing it."

"I understand. But you know how Father is."

"Incredibly hard-headed. I know."

". . .what did you come here for anyways?"

"Oh. Tsurara is sleeping with Note tonight. I thought it'd be best if I got her things. I don't trust what Snow Beard will do to her."

Blizzard Chest nodded. "Anything else?"

"She wanted me to make sure he doesn't get a hold of Whirlpool. She doesn't want him ripping what she has left to remember Breeze with that she is able to touch and hold close to her heart."

"Understandable. I told him not to come in here but it's good you came. Not everything goes in his head."

Wind got off Tsurara's bed and grabbed Tsurara's satchel from her pillow. "I didn't think anything stayed in his head. It seems like everything he is told goes through his left ear and exits his right!"

Blizzard Chest chuckled and handed Whirlpool to Wind. He stood up and held Wind close. "That seems to be the case most of the time, doesn't it?"

Wind giggled and nodded. "Well then. I best give this to Tsurara then. She might be getting a little chilly waiting for me."

"I will see you when you return."

Wind nodded and began to depart from Blizzard Chest. However, she stopped by his hand when he placed it on her shoulder. "Is there something wrong?"

"Umm. . .tell Tsurara that I love her for me."

Wind paused. She widened her eyes and looked around the room a bit before nodding. "Okay. I'll tell her."

"Thank you. I know she wouldn't want to see my face right now."

"I understand."

Blizzard Chest lifted his hand off of Wind, allowing her to leave the room. She walked right past Snow Beard as he glared at her with meat still in front of him.

"I heard what ya said about me," he said.

"You're just mad because I know the truth," Wind said as she opened the front door. She closed it before Snow Beard could counter her statement with anything else.

"Grrrr...HMPH!!!!" Snow Beard yelled, slamming his fist on the table.

"Is everything okay, Father? Are you "stuck" again?" Blizzard Chest asked from upstairs.

"No. . .I'm not even on the toilet!" Snow Beard began to turn red again.

Meanwhile. . .

Wind handed Tsurara her satchel and Whirlpool as she sat on a stair step to Note's house. "Here you. Don't worry, you grandfather wasn't in your room."

Tsurara hung her satchel over her shoulder and hugged Whirlpool tightly. "Thank you."

"Mhmm. . .I had a talk with your father."

"Oh? What'd you guys talk about?"

"Well. . .about you and your grandfather. And how he's been treating you compared to how he treated Breeze."

". . .yeah. There's a big difference. . .isn't there?"

"Then, I told him about how he treated you compared to how he treated Breeze."

Tsurara looked past Whirlpool's head and stared at the ground with her eyes widened.

"He felt awful. . . I found him in your room."

Tsurara gasped and looked at Wind. "He didn't mess with anything, did he?!"

"No. He was holding Whirlpool and remembered how happy you were when you were little. He said you smiled like evil never existed in the world. And then when you aged. . ."

". . .I hardly smiled at all."

"Right."

"And I still don't smile that much. . .I mean, I still do it but. . ."

"I know you do. It's almost as rare as an ancient treasure."

"Pretty much," Tsurara stood up and held Whirlpool at her side.

"And when I see you smile," Wind moved some of Tsurara's hair out of her face and gently placed her hand on her head. "It's almost like the gods shining their light on me. A ray of hope." She kissed Tsurara on the forehead.

Tsurara closed her eyes when Wind kissed her on the head and opened them with she pulled away. She didn't comment however.

"And before I go, your father wanted me to tell you he loves you," Wind departed from Tsurara and began to head home.

"Mom," Tsurara said.

Wind stopped in her tracks and turned to Tsurara. "Yes?"

". . .tell him I love him too."

Wind nodded and resumed going home. Tsurara sighed and opened Note's door. She closed the door behind her upon entering. She let out another sigh and walked towards Note and Sogsag-im.

Note was sitting on a wooden couch covered in mammoth fur around a table a few inches away from Sogsag-im. Sogsag-im was staring intently at Tsurara.

"Everything okay?" Note asked, noticing that Tsurara's eyes were mostly wide open.

"Umm. . .yeah. Fine. Could be better but fine," Tsurara replied, sitting in a chair across from the couch.

"Don't wanna sit on the couch?"

"Not tonight. It might be hard to put papers on the table."

"I can move, if you'd like," Sogsag-im said, getting ready to stand up.

"No, it's fine. You look comfy there. I don't want to take that from you," Tsurara set Whirlpool on the table and began to go through her satchel. "Now, let's get this evening started."

"Wait Tsurara," Note said, holding his hand up.

Tsurara stopped looking through her satchel and looked at Note. "Hmm?"

"What about the, uuhhh, "other reason" we're all here?" Note pointed his finger at Sogsag-im while she had her attention directed towards Whirlpool.

"Oh. . .right," Tsurara put her satchel next to the chair. "Sogsag-im."

Sogsag-im looked at Tsurara. "Yes?"

"What's your beast standpoint?"

"U-u-uummmmm. . .well. . .uuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhh. . ."

". . .I knew it. They corrupted her," Tsurara said.

"What?! No no no no! I'm not corrupted, I swear! It's just. . ."

"I won't let them exile you. I swear to the gods."

Note widened his eyes slightly while Sogsag-im looked away from Tsurara. She began to turn red but looked back at Tsurara. "O. . .o. . .okay."

"Please. Tell me."

". . .I am for the beasts. I hate seeing them suffer and it bothers me when they're abused to the point of death. It makes me wonder why we don't do this to our real enemies instead. Not innocent creatures. If we don't do this to the animals that can destroy our crops and cattle, we shouldn't do it to beasts."

Tsurara put her hands on her chest and took a deep breath. "You don't know how blessed I am. . .to hear you see that," She began to smile.

Sogag-im's entire body became a bright red as she watched Tsurara become flushed in joy. Note bounced back.

"Woah! You're red!"

"O-o-oh. . .sorry. . ." Sogsag-im looked at hands to see that they were bright red.

"Interesting skin you have," Tsurara said.

"Thanks. . ." Sogsag-im began to revert to her normal skin color again, although it was a somewhat slow process.

"Now that we have that out the way," Tsurara pulled out a notebook and various papers out of her satchel. "Let's go over our "notes", shall we?"

Note and Sogsag-im nodded and began to look through the papers Tsurara began placing on the table. Tsurara looked through the notebook, though she occasionally looked out the window behind her and at the night sky sky, which was full of billions of stars and a full moon. She sighed when she did this and usually went right back to looking at the notebook.