Perhaps He'll Come

[ryuukokoro]

Jaeilin sat on the large flat stones that surrounded the waterfall marking the boundary between Lysana and the Valley. The lavender Pykiin curled her long tail around herself, the big blue and yellow fluff on the end keeping her paws warm. She breathed slowly, enjoying the swirling air of her new grass-covered home. So unlike Lysana, she thought, glancing upward at the big blue bowl of the sky. But beautiful in its strangeness.

She had been sitting for several hours, and planned to sit here for the rest of the day, if that was what it took. She had seen, from a distance, something remarkable. She was not sure if even it was what she thought, but... Jaeilin had thought she had seen a large adult male Pykiin with the spiny fins of the Syrens on his body. Before she could approach him to find out if it was true, he had vanished.

The Syrens had not seen an adult male for many long, long years. It was the source of their troubles, that their adolescents grew no older and no new children were born. They had feared the end of their race. Now, here in the Valley, she had thought she had seen the impossible. Perhaps if she sat here long enough, she would see him again....

"Moooooom!" A puff of dust flew up as a small figure landed in the dirt around her rocky perch. The little male picked himself up and looked up at Jaeilin eagerly. Like his mother in many ways, the kiin was lavender in color with blue and yellow markings along his tail. Unlike his mother, he had a pair of delicate wings on his back, and was not of the Syrens.

Jaeilin sighed and smiled. The Dryad had helped the Syrens by enabling them to have offspring, and although Jaeilin loved both her sons, she had hoped they would both turn out to be like her people. Instead this one had taken on the traits of his father, a normal Pykiin...

"MOM!" yipped the young one loudly, annoyed that her thoughts kept drifting off. "Mom, you said you'd teach me to swim today!"

Jaeilin stood up and hopped off the sun-warmed rock. "I did. Come, this way, Jaeikki." She started walking toward the water.

"All right!" Jaeikki chased after her, little wings fluttering in the breeze.

[Cameron]

The two gawky male Syren bickered as they made their way back to the waterfall that divided Lysana and the Valley.

"I don't think that he will come." The forrest green 'Kiin stated.

"He will. I mean he hasn't met the rest of Lysana. He doesn't even know how he got here." The icey blue one stated in a whiney tone. "Plus he said he would."

The rush of the falls almost made it so they couldn't be heard but the childish tones could be heard regardless.

"I tell you he's not coming." Forrest said as he bounded to one of the nearer rocks. He watched Ike for a moment before looking at the bottom of the falls and the rushing water. Home sweet home. Forrest loved the Valley, but it could never replace Lysana.

In the mean time Ike scowled, "He is coming." He muttered not wanting to fight anylonger, but he knew that the male they found was going to come. He had to.

The two of them were so absorbed in what had happened that they didn't notice Jaeilin or her son who didn't look anything like his mother in the eyes of both the young syren. What had happened to his fins? They had been replaced by some frilly wings. That's what.

[ryuukokoro]

Jaeikki scrambled up on top of one of the rocks, to have the superior height so he could dive into the water. Jaeilin was about to tell him to get down (you did NOT learn to swim by jumping off a giant rock in the water), but suddenly the appearance of two young Syren males interrupted what she was about to say.

"Hey!" Jaeikki exclaimed, looking at the newcomers. "You two look weird!"

"Jaeikki..." Jaeilin said in a warning tone.

The little fluffy kiin slouched at the scolding. "Well they do," he muttered. He hadn't really met his brother, who was a Syren living with another Pounce, and hadn't thought that there would be boys that looked like his mother did.

[Cameron]

Forrest cocked his head, "I think you look pretty weird. I mean isn't this place for Syren?" He flicked his tail. He wasn't one to tollerate being made fun of. Even if it wasn't supposed to be mean he still didn't like it.

Ike shot a glance at Forrest. Why was he always so hard headed? Humm... Maybe he got it from his parents. Either way Ike couldn't help, but feel slightly embarrased by his outbursts. Ike looked at the other non-Syren 'Kiin and then at the water and then at the adult, "You learning how to swim?" He asked. Obviously this 'Kiin knew how to fly, swimming maybe not so much.

"Humph." Forrest sounded and he snubbed the thought of a normal Pykiin being able to swim half as well as himself.

Ike ignored him.

Meanwhile a large fluffy figure stalked the pond clearing while staying hidden in the woods. The two Syren he had ran into were there, but there were others as well and he didn't know if he wanted to meet them. It wasn't that he was shy. He just didn't like barging in on things.

[ryuukokoro]

Jaeikki felt a blush under the fur on his cheeks at Forrest's words. "This is the Valley! You don't have to be a Syren to come to the waterfall!" he protested.

The other male seemed a bit nicer, anyway, so Jaeikki jumped down off the rock and trotted up to him. "Yeah, I'm going to be as good a swimmer as my mom! She said someday she'll take me to Lysana, when I can swim." He looked at Ike's fins with jealousy. "I guess you're already a good swimmer, huh? How come you're not in Lysana?"

[Cameron]

A sharp glower shot from Forrest, but he wasn't in the mood to argue. Especially not with this little Pykiin. He elegantly ignored Jaeikki, and instead of using words he bounded from the ledge he was on and dove into the water's surface brely making a ripple. Something that even Ike found hard to do.

Ike rolled his eyes. He was somewhat reliefed that Forrest had chosen to bite his tongue. Last thing he needed was to be appologizing for the lugg. When Jaeikki approached him Ike curled into himself. Something about being this close to someone was nervewracking for him, but he nodded, though still doubting he could be as good of a swimmer. He has no fins. How does he expcet to keep up? And especially with those attachments? He looked at Jae's wings It was hard for even the water elemental Pykiin to cross into Lysana. He thought to himself.

Ike gleamed at the thought of him being a 'good' swimmer. Infact he was one of the best, well in his opinion any way. "Well me and Forrest like to explore the Valley during the day. We live in Lysana though."

Just then a sudden branch snapped causing Ike to quickly turn his attention. It was either the male he had met near the Dryad earlier or something scary. Still he couldn't help but be curious.

Thyron could feel that he was being stared at. Even if he couldn't be seen so he side stepped the bush infront of him and padded gracefully towards the clearing. His huge fluff of a tail swayed subtly behind him.

[ryuukokoro]

Jaeikki was prepared for a verbal battle, but Forrest didn't say a word. Instead the Syren disappeared into the water with such a smooth motion that Jaeikki had to bite his tongue to keep from saying something in adoration.

The little lavender kiin fluttered his wings. Just enough for his paws to lift off the earth and to come back down. In this slight bouncing motion, he hopped to the edge of the pool and looked down, searching the water for Forrest.

"So you two live in Lysana," he murmured, in response to Ike's statement. "That's amazing. If I lived in Lysana, I'd never want to leave!"

Jaeilin, sitting off to the side, held in a snort at her naive son's words. He wouldn't say that if he had visited her home at all. Not that it was a bad place, it had its own beauty and charm. But Lysana had grown stagnant and clouded, like water trapped in a tide pool. They needed the ever-changing life of the Valley if there were to survive.

Her eyes drifted away from her son and the young Syrens, looking out over the Valley. The female Syren let out a gasp and sat up straight. Her tail stuck out behind her, large bushy tail standing on end. "I-it's you!" she gaped.