[Thunder]

"I guess that's a downside to wearing a mask," Firehail sighed. "If you're a nice person, no one can tell that you are!" One of the Felloxes back at the pen, Aoi, was...questionable. He always lurked around in the shadows and kept talking about some ancient power. But the other, Sorami, seemed softer, though it was hard to tell.

"We've known each other for a while," Paryth responded, shifting his unblinking gaze from Firehail to Ryen. "We were both two of the earliest residents at our pen...a long time, indeed. But there are others who have lived there even earlier than we..."

"Oh, yes," Firehail chirped. "There's another Hollowheart who was there when I arrived...I don't know him well. He seems a bit scary." Her feathers flattened a bit. "There's also an old Garudor named Aero. He said he used to be a soldier."

[SpringsSong]

Ryen inclined his head slowly as he said, "I was one of the first at my pen.  There were maybe... ten other pets living with us at the time, not including my mother and... sister." Here, Ryen's voice suddenly changed as he mentioned the word, "sister".  An image of the once-Calamikuhna flashed across his mind; she was sitting in the corner, her head lowered, and there was a coat of ice over her.

"But since then, and since the war, there have been many more that have come to live with us..." he said, the tone of sadness still in his voice.

[44.1]

[Thunder]

Firehail blinked. Upon mentioning his sister, Ryen's mood seemed to become gloomier. "Is...is something wrong?" she stammered. "I- I hope I'm not intruding too much...I- I just don't like to see my friends down." Paryth tilted his head and lied down on the heated soil, tucking his claws close to his chest.

"I am curious as well, too..." he said. "Has something happened to her?" He hoped they weren't pressuring the Disease Kuhna too much. It was all out of concern, but if Ryen truly felt uncomfortable, they wouldn't push any more.

[SpringsSong]

Ryen sighed as he said, "No, you're not intruding at all... not in the least." He shook his head as he flicked his tails lazily.  "My sister used to be a Calamikuhna, but one thing she always did was, whether angry, sad, or just plain... not happy, she would do one of two things: freeze herself, or use something--or someone--as a punching bag with her ice powers.  Since I rarely ever spoke out against her, I became the frequent punching bag."

Here, he shuddered as he continued.  "Somehow, she got into Fire's Keystone stash, and she took 1500 KS.  Next thing we knew, we had not Wyra, but an Avalanche Panzer who called herself Wyra, walking through our door with two kits."

[44.2]

[Thunder]

Firehail's eyes widened with fear at the story. "P-panzer?" she stammered, her small size seeming to diminish even further. "They're s-scary...there's a Panzer named Asuka back at our pen, and she's r-really mean..." Paryth reached down and gave her another comforting touch on the top of her head. Firehail shuddered and buried herself in Ryen's fur. "I- I can't possibly imagine a Panzer taking care of t-two kits..."

Paryth sighed and gazed down at Ryen with sympathy."That is most unfortunate," he said. "Do you know why she did that...?"

[SpringsSong]

"I attempted to ask her why she did that." Ryen said, shaking his head.  "She gave me the coldest glare that I've seen any pet, whether their primary element was Ice or not, give, and she said, I wouldn't expect you to understand.  After all, you didn't understand when I lost my daughter.  You told me to move on.  Well.  Here's what 'moving on' is for me.  And you'll have to live with it."

He shuddered as he said, "I took in her kits after a while.  They came to me and said they couldn't stand that their mother's element is the exact opposite of theirs; they are Infernal Kuhnas." He shook his head as he remembered the scared faces of the little kits when they'd come to him.

[44.3]

[Thunder]

Firehail and Paryth both blinked at Ryen. "She...she lost her daughter...?" the little Matches whispered. "W-what happened...? I'm sure you didn't want to sound mean when you told her to move on..." Upon the mention of the clashing elements, Firehail looked down at her own body. She was named Firehail for a reason, being a Matches, and a Glacial Matches at that. Could elements really cause that much conflict between pets?

Paryth pondered the situation in his mind, contemplating it. The Hollowheart sat in silence and did not say anything. There was too little that he knew thus far to make a suggestion. After a bit, he finally said a few words. "It must be hard for you," he murmured softly.

[SpringsSong]

"In this situation, 'lost' had the meaning of 'got traded to another owner who then put her back up for trade and ended up going to another trainer who then turned her into a guy'.  Fire tried her best to get her daughter back; the other trainer refused her offer, though." Ryen said.  "So, when she ended up keeping the two Infernal Kuhnas from her last litter, she figured that she didn't need me as her punching bag anymore; she could just use her own children whose fiery element reminded her of the little fire that her daughter had had in her spirit..."

[44.4]

[Thunder]

"T-turned her into a guy?!" Firehail gasped, her eyes widening. "H-how do you do something like that?" She shook her head and sighed. "I...feel a little bad for her...but it's not right to treat others like punching bags..." Suddenly, Firehail felt rather dizzy, and if she didn't flap her wings to keep her balance, she would have fallen off of Ryen. Paryth took note of this and extended a wing so it shaded Firehail from the sun.

"It seems that the heat is overwhelming her," he said, looking around for some shade. "Perhaps we should move elsewhere." He was warming up quite a bit too, as his stony scales retained a lot of heat. "Is there anywhere we could cool down at?"

[SpringsSong]

Ryen shrugged, but then, looking from Firehail to Paryth, he thought for a moment.  "I actually know of a spring that is rather sheltered--granted, it's a hot spring, but the heat from the water is strictly geothermal.  It is... in this direction." He said, pointing to the east.

He turned back to Paryth and Firehail and waited for a reaction.  He really didn't know if there were any other spots away from the sun, but he knew that this one was rather good.

[45.0]

[Thunder]

Firehail blinked. "I don't really like getting my feathers wet, but I guess I could just put my feet in."

"I'm sure it will help," Paryth said. "Just be sure not to step your whole body in all at once, or else you may find it too warm."

"Alright," Firehail sighed. She hopped onto the top of Ryen's head and looked down at the Kuhna. "So where is this spring? I've never bathed in a hot spring before..."