As Arashi ran away towards Cookie kicking up sand on his way. Cookie sat inside a bush whimpering a little as she wasn't sure what had happened... this was the first time she had gone out and been attacked by something... as she cried softly curled into a ball. Soon enough Arashi arrived at the place where they separated and began yelling her name, Cookie peeked out from between the leaves with a tear stained face, as she notices Arashi looking for her, her eyes go wide, then she jumps out of the bush and begins floating towards him, her arms outstretched, her eyes closed, and sniffling all he way to Arashi's arms

"That was so scary!!! it was big and I didn't know if you'd be alright and and..." Cookie sniffled a little Then Cried "Waaaaahhhh!" Arashi wasn't sure what to do, so he just pat her head a little "There, there, It's ok get it out of your system.." He hugged her carefully "I'm fine, and you're fine. I wasn't even hurt thanks to some friends over there! want to go meet them?" After Cookie stopped crying and began sobbing gently, she nodded as she stood back on his shoulder and grabbed his ear for support... Arashi began walking back down the beach towards Yasei, C'Leena, and Kou.

After a bit in which Cookie had stopped sobbing and collected herself, although her eyes were a bit red and her cheeks a bit tear-stained from crying, she seemed to be alright now... "Hey, sorry I had to leave like that! This is Cookie! I told her to hide when the crab began attacking that's why I left in such a hurry... I wanted to be sure she was fine and not leave her alone for more time than necessary... She is a very young wind pixie after all!" He motioned to her so she would present herself "Oh! umm... Hiii!!! I'm Cookie, and he's my dad!" Arashi still wasn't used to being called that... but he guessed from her perspective it might as well be the case... "Do you guys need help with anything? I can help prepare some of the meat, or the fire itself?" He offered his help to the group it was the least he could do after endangering all of them and running of without much explanation...

"You mean Sensei?" Yasei asked, raising an eyebrow quizzically at C'leena. She'd called herself a doctor, right? He was basically already calling her Doc, in a way. "Oh, I got it! You don't speak Crescent Islander! Sensei means doctor. Probably. Heh, I don't actually know my Common all that well..."

With a cracking sound, another crab leg was broken off of the rest of the body. With Yasei doing a majority of the work, separating all the limbs from the body of the crab didn't take long, but with how big the crustacean was, they'd have a hard time cooking the actual body. The claws and legs alone were more than enough to feed them all and then some, but Yasei didn't like the idea of just leaving the rest to rot and go to waste. Unfortunately, he wasn't very experienced with disassembling giant crabs. How much of the body was edible meat and how much was internal organs that they shouldn't eat?

With a shrug, he pulled out his staff again and gripped it in the center. With a small click, the staff separated in the middle and he pulled it apart to reveal the inside of about half of the eight foot long polearm was actually a blade hidden within a sheath. The blade shined with a thin aura of white light for a moment and, with a few slashes that seemed to extend farther than the blade was long, the crab fell apart into smaller chunks.

Yasei smiled in satisfaction. Yeah, some of these pieces should be good meat! They could just sort through them and pick out what was edible. Who needed proper technique when you could just brute force it? He looked upon his handiwork and nodded before turning to head over to Kou.

"Need any help with the fire? We're gonna need a real big one for all this crab meat!" He laughed. He didn't notice C'leena's discomfort at the mention of fire. He looked over his shoulder at her with an innocent smile. "Sensei, we should go get some firewood. Mm, but I don't want to leave you here alone, Obaachan. What if there are more crabs?"

At that moment, Arashi returned. Yasei's ears twitched when he heard the tiny Pixie call Arashi her dad. Before anyone could blink, Yasei was wrapping an arm over Arashi's shoulder and leaning in close with a grin.

"Ohoh, you didn't tell me you had a daughter! You should have told me! I was a dad too you know, I could have shared some fatherly wisdom with you." He started asking Arashi questions and teasing him for hiding that he had a child, forgetting about the firewood he'd been planning to collect. "A Pixie? Did you adopt, or did you..." He asked, finishing by raising and lowering his eyebrows rapidly.

It was a grandmother’s intuition that allowed her to catch the momentary discomfort on the young lady’s face at the mention of cooking. Did she perhaps not like crab? Or was it the flame that bothered her? It was not Kou’s business to pry, not into another person’s private business. But she wasn’t about to let someone be uncomfortable and sad at a happy celebration, no sir! Once the activity had died down for a moment, she moved over to C’leena and tugged at the hem of her pants, beckoning for her to lean in.

“Young lady, I have a special mission for you, if you’re willing to help. You see, I want to make seashell necklaces for everyone to commemorate this occasion; but I’m going to be busy with cooking, and bending over hurts my old back. While I’m cooking, would you mind terribly combing the beach for some seashells for me, love?”

There. That should get her on the beach and away from the pot for a minute while Kou went about preparing things. Pleased with her work, she shuffled back towards where she was setting up her station. The young swordsman, Master Arashi, was having a tearful reunion with the really little lady he was calling Cookie. While directing Yasei on the parts of crab meat that were edible and salvageable, she pat him on the shoulder. “You just leave Mama Kou to her work, and go gather what you need. I’ll be quite alright by myself - I’ve got my cane with me! It was a gift from my grandson you know!”

She let out a started laugh at Yasei’s insinuation about the blood relation between Arashi and Cookie. “Why, Young Master Yasei, think about the logistics of such a thing! I would think that a fairy and a human would be entirely to small to… oh, but don’t get me to say it! Go on, on with you two, and get some firewood! I’ll start preparing the crab meat.”

She playfully swatted at the two as if shooing them off before reaching for a couple glass jars of spices she kept in her bag for just such an occasion. One never knew when they were going to need to flavor a meal! She started pouring them into a small, wooden bowl, getting a rub ready for the crab meat.

C'Leena is very uncomfortable. She's doing relatively okay now, but she most likely won't be once the fire begins burning. She's ready to simply suck it up and keep her distance until she feels a tug on her leg. Looking down, she momentarily forgets just how short Kou is. Kneeling down to speak with her, C'Leena gets the feeling that there is a secondary motive for this, but it's a reason to get away from the area for a while.

"Yeah, I can do that. Too easy.. Thank you." She says as she begins walking away, then promptly freezes as she hears Yasei's insinuation. It takes a second, but she begins to laugh and laugh hard. It's not remedied by Kou's response whatsoever. She continues to walk off, laughing all the while.

After calming down, she summons two duplicates¹ and points them in various directions to collect shells. She has a vague idea on what shells are, but she's never actually seen or held one before. It takes a bit, but a good amount of shells are found, and C'Leena is looking at a particularly large shell curiously. She can't really feel it, but she knows who she should ask.

"Hey Kou? Weird question: Can you tell me how this feels? I've never actually seen a shell before and I can't feel it myself because.. well.." The illusory skin fades from her hands and arms, revealing steel plates and heavy inscriptions lightly glowing with aquamarine light. "..Hands are fake."

This is generally a question she'd ask Nephele, but her fiancé isn't here, upsettingly enough. And with Yasei and Arashi currently off doing something, Kou is pretty much her only option for figuring out shells and whatnot. C'Leena looks a bit embarrassed to be asking in the first place, but her curiosity got the better of her in the end.

---

1. Replicant

As Yasei wrapped his arm around Arashi and worded an insinuation, Arashi's face flushed, becoming quite embarrassed "N-no, I mean I guess I did adopt? I..." As Kou wondered on such logistics as she put it Arashi blushed even more "Not helping!" He said as Kou giggled and C'leena bursts into laughter. Cookie herself is a bit confused not sure what hey mean or what this is about but she thrived in making her 'dad' embarrassed, so she smiled and giggled everyone seemed cheerful and friendly so she was having fun!

"I found her egg and I took care of it... since I was the one who helped her hatch she does consider me her dad... I'm not sure I deserve such a title, but I don't have the heart to tell her not to call me that." as Kou Swatted them away Arashi nodded while still blushing a little "Cookie do you wanna come with us? or would you rather stay here at the beach?" She looked around back and forth a few times, she didn't want to leave Arashi's side again after the crab incident... but also she wanted to explore the beach and get to know her new friends! but as she turned from side to side she realized she'll probably have enough time to do that regardless. with a nod she began flying towards Arashi as him and Yasei went on their way to gather some firewood.

"Sooooo are we eating the crab?" Cookie asked curiously, she had never seen such a big crab so she was amazed that it could even be eaten. "We're gonna need a biiiiiiiig fire if that's the case!" she giggled "Well maybe not such a big one though, it was already broken into smaller pieces and we can do so even more, so while it might take longer even a campfire should suffice. besides sometimes a smaller cut makes for a better roast! since if it is too big it will burn on the outside and remain raw on the inside." soon enough they reached the entrance of the forest, "Alright, Yasei since you're the biggest and surely physically strongest person here... would you mind taking care of gathering the big branches and small logs? we don't need anything too huge, but you'd probably have an easier time carrying it... I'll gather a bunch of branches and big sticks." "What about me? how can I help??" Cookie wanted to help, but she wasn't sure how she could due to her being, well a tiny pixie. "You little one, will be having on of the most important tasks! You'll collect the tinder! you know dry leaves, tree bark, basically any small flammable things you can find are gonna be useful! The most important part is that they are as dry as possible, if you have any doubts about if something you found could work just ask me, alright?" Cookie beamed excited at the concept of helping with a crucial task. she nodded several times before jumping "I will!" she then flew out to start her search while yelling "Yaaaaaaay! I'm gonna find the best fire starting materials ever!!!" Arashi chuckled a little, he couldn't really help himself she was too cute and he cared for her a lot so seeing her excited and happy always helped him feel the same way.

Yasei doubled over, holding his stomach with one hand while his other arm was still wrapped around Arashi and dying of laughter at the reactions to his joke. Kou and Arashi took him seriously, stammering and stuttering over the ridiculous implications of a human possibly doing it with a Fairy and C'Leena laughed along with him at them.

"Ha! You two... HA! Your reactions... So good..." Yasei wheezed between bursts of laughter. Oh gods, his stomach hurt from laughing so hard. Or maybe it hurt because he was hungry and the thought of the crab hotpot was getting to him!

Yasei was still laughing as he walked off into the trees with Arashi to go get firewood, like Kou told them. Of course they'd need some firewood for the hotpot, so he just went along with what the lady asked for. She seemed like she knew what she was doing.

When they were away from the rest of the group and Yasei could finally control his laughter, he put a hand on Arashi's shoulder and gave him a friendly smile.

"Ha, sorry, I couldn't stop laughing..." He cleared his throat before continuing in a much softer, less boisterous voice than usual for the giant Koma-Inu. "I adopted my daughter too. I think you're plenty deserving to be called a father as long as your daughter is happy to call you theirs." He spoke encouragingly and gave Arashi a pat on the back.

His gentle demeanor immediately went back to his usual, loud and energetic one as he looked to the little Fairy with a big smile.

"The biggest fire!" He agreed loudly, nodding along, until Arashi voiced his ideas of making a smaller fire. Yasei pouted and gave Arashi an unimpressed look, clicking his tongue. "Tch.... Your dad's boring..." He not so quietly whispered to Cookie in a deadpan voice before cracking a smile and throwing an arm around Arashi.

"It's not all about what suffices, we're making the biggest hotpot ever! This is gonna be fun!" He playfully chided Arashi, shaking him back and forth a little before letting go.

"Heheh, you don't have to flatter me, but sure. I'll get us some big logs for the fire!" Yasei looked over his shoulder as he walked up to a tree. He held his staff in front of him and in a move that was too quick for most to see unsheathed it and cut the tree down in one slice before sheathing it again. The the tree creaked for a moment before falling toward Yasei who caught it in both hands and brought it down onto his shoulders.

"This should be enough, right?" He asked cheerfully, turning to the other two and swinging the tree around above their heads.

---

Hidden Blossom Blade
Bull's Strength

It was quite amusing getting to watch young master Arashi get flustered over a little light teasing. Perhaps he was shy about such boisterous jokes? Perhaps he was a lot more reserved than he looked… Kou had heard much worse from the sailors that frequented her establishment. With that, she shooed the two young men off to go collect whatever they were going to need. They sauntered off, both laughing and talking amongst themselves along the way.

Oh, to be young and full of vigor once more!

Kou chuckled to herself, turning her attention back to the work at hand. It looked like Miss C’leena had performed some kind of advanced magic, unless her eyes were playing tricks on her! Experimentally, she plucked her spectacles from her nose and cleaned them; but when she placed them back on, they were still there! Goodness, what a feat of magic. Kou’s own skills were nowhere as flashy… she already knew C’leena was skilled, but watching it in action was an entirely different manner.

C’leena was so absorbed in her task that Mama Kou was surprised, to say the least, to hear her own named called. She glanced up, surprised to see C’leena holding a rather large seashell. She set down the spice rub she’d been working on, grabbing her cane to shuffle over to the young woman. It was then that the magic concealing her artificial limbs dropped, and Kou got a proper look at them.

She’d known sailors and soldiers and mercenaries alike with missing limbs, replaced with limbs of wood and magical matter. This… was unlike anything she’d ever seen, but the schematics mattered little. Not when the pain was real, the longing etched across her face. Kou’s heart immediately shattered with the realization that something awful had happened to cause this.

“Oh, of course. Come here Sweetling, come here.” She gestured for C’leena to sit with her on the sand, cupping artificial hands with her own wrinkled ones - gnarled and weathered, scarred from years of wielding a knife in the kitchen and cooking with hot oil as they were. She guided C’leena’s thumb along the weathered edges of the shell, her hands warm and gentle and patient. It was not a substitute for the real sensation of touch, but it was what she could offer.

“It feels like…” Now, how to phrase this in common, “Have you ever touched the ancient stone of a home and wondered how many centuries it has seen? It’s written right here, in the coarse grooves. Touching it feels the way salt does on the tongue. Bitter, and not especially smooth, but as you hold it, you cannot help but wonder how far it has come to be here in your hands. Say hello to him on his adventure and wish him safe travels!”

An idea occurred to her; she stood then, brushing sand off of her robes and ignoring the twang in her achy knees. Before C’leena could protest, Kou shuffled through the sands, occasionally poking and prodding at her cane for something unknown… until she hit something and let out a satisfied hum. She came back with a rather large, hollow, cone-shaped shell in her hands, which she presented to C’leena with a proud smile.

“Here. If you want a secret… this is one of my favorite shells in the world. The conch shell.” She waited for C’leena to appraise it before continuing. “It has the same grooves and divots as this one, but its loveliness is not in the way it looks or feels. It is in the way it sounds. Hold the opening up to your ear.”

Assuming C’leena did, she would hear the echo of the ocean in her ears; faint, compared to the real thing next to her, but still present.

“You hear that? It’s beautiful, isn’t it? I’m sure it’s frustrating to desire to reach out but feeling like you’re just not quite able to connect with anything. But hear the ocean in your voice, listen to my words, watch the gulls fly over the sparkling sea… smell the delicious crab. The world will never stop reaching back to you. It will always let you know that you are cherished, and alive to witness these little beauties. I know not what you’ve been through, but I am grateful that you are here by my side to listen to the conch shells with me. No one will be able to take this moment from us.”

She beckoned for C’leena to bend down; planted a soft kiss to her forehead if she did.

“Keep the shell, love. My gift to you. Now… you sit your behind down and listen to the waves. Mama Kou has to finish up preparing the meat while the others gather the rest of the materials for the fire.”

Yes, tonight would be a feast to remember.

Asking Kou such a question was surprisingly difficult for C'Leena. The question makes her feel like shes unable to do basic things herself such as feel. Now, she really can't feel anything but it's surprisingly something that doesn't come up too often and she ends up forgetting that she can't feel things with her hands.

It's a demeaning question that her curious mind demands to be asked. As C'Leena waits for Kou's response, she swears she feels the moments slow down. A probing gaze at her, then down to the now-visible prosthetics make her body shrink in response. Has she made a mistake in asking? Surely something like this can't be seen as even remotely normal. A freakish melding of flesh, magic and steel to inadequately feign normalcy. C'Leena is about to retract her question when Kou finally responds after mere moments that feel like their own eternities.

Not expecting the name 'Sweetling', she hesitates before doing as she's asked and kneels in the sand. Her movements are fluid and careful - not quite what you'd expect from someone with prosthetics. C'Leena can't feel, but she can tell when something is touching her. It's like being told something instead of outright experiencing it. A divide between mind and body that drives C'Leena mad.

Her thumb is guided along the shell as she watches them slowly and gently roll over the numerous ridges of the shell. The coarse sound of metal running along a sandy shell. Kou's method of describing is unique, taking a more metaphorical approach as opposed to Nepheles literal description. Despite the roundabout way, it makes sense. When C'Leena was younger, there was a particularly old house on her street that she went by every day for her school. The fencing was old and weathered, having seen many years of constant heat, rain and hail. And yet it stood. Kou's description made that memory - that sensation push itself into the forefront of her mind. Perhaps it wasn't spot on, but that's okay.

When Kou stood up, C'Leena made no move to protest or stand herself, simply watching after her with a look of awe and curiosity. With each prod of her cane, C'Leena grew more curious. What was she doing? Was she about to cast something or just searching? Her answers don't take too long to arrive as she produces a very different shell from the sand. C'Leena tilts her head inquisitively as she watches the shell and Kou return.

She puts her own shell onto the sand and takes the conch delicately as if it were fragile glass. Doing as she was asked again, she places it to her ear and listens. Very quickly, her eyebrows raise and a small smile forms.

Had C'Leena given this any thought whatsoever, she could probably figure out why this happens. Right now though, her sciency-side has completely shut down in lieu of the curious, easily entertained part of her. She looks at the shell and turns it this way and that as she tries to discover it's secrets, the smile growing with each passing tick of her artificial heart.

She listens to Kou as she discovers every little detail of the shell. Kou's words strike many chords in her mind, creating an emotional symphony that makes her glad that she's unable to tear up. She's pulled from the shell and takes a moment to listen, sit and breathe. The gentle waves, the soft wind caressing what little skin C'Leena has unmarred and the frequent bird calls from species she cant even begin to name. Perhaps Kou can hear the quiet hint of mechanical labor mixed with her breathing in the infrequent beats of silence. Entirely possible considering her proximity.

C'Leena doesn't respond to Kou's little speech, but is quickly snapped back into reality when she feels her kiss C'Leena's forehead. Her eyes grow wide as she stares at Kou for a moment, struggling to process the act. It felt parental, like a mother soothing an upset child. It sets a feeling in her chest she hasn't felt in what feels like forever. A feeling that makes her wonder how her own parents are doing.

C'Leena nods absentmindedly as she continues kneeling there, holding the conch in her hands as Kou returns to what she was doing moments prior. A spice rub of some sort. C'Leena spends the next few minutes listening to her thoughts, wondering if she should keep her parents in the dark if she ever does return to earth. Would the truth hurt more in the end, or would the thought of both their daughters being dead be the worse of the two?

She doesn't know. C'Leena doesn't notice the rose petal flit by in the breeze.