Shimmering light dappled with the shadows of rustling leaves flickered into vision and tickled her ears. A spot on the pillow was slightly damp. A stray, lingering tear rolled off onto the damp patch as she slowly sat up. Ah, I’m still here. Essairyn leaned back on the headboard. Dreamy images of a cabin family getaway from years past faded away in her mind’s eye. The woody aroma and uncomfortableness of being in an unfamiliar bed stayed. A strained smiled traced her lips. Good morning.

Peering about the empty room, she hastily wiped her moist eyes, flung the covers over, and hopped off the bed. At the door, she paused while gripping the handle. Then, she gently opened it ajar. Glimpsing Akari curled up in a cloth with droopy ears, Essairyn watched the soft rise and fall of her body. She opened the door halfway.

“Good morning, Akari.”

One of the fox’s ears twitched, and her nose wriggled. Essairyn glided over to the groggy fox on the table and bent down. “Good morning~” The girl whispered, staring closely at the little fox.

Akari quivered in a waking motion. She lifted her head and peered through slitted eyes. Seeing the girl startlingly close to her face, Akari jolted up on all fours and bristled. “Why the heck are you so close?! Watching me?! So creepy!”

Essairyn smiled brightly. “You’re rather energetic in the morning.”

The fox turned her head and just glared at her from the side. “Sheesh. Way to shock someone awake…”

Essairyn straightened up and stretched her arms. “Hmm~!” She murmured contentedly. “You ready to leave the woods today?”

Akari was stretching in a downwards bend. “Yeah, I’ll be glad to be gone from this hellhole!”

Suddenly, the treehouse trembled faintly, and both girl and fox froze.

“…What was that?” Akari hissed, crouching tensely.

“I don’t know…” Essairyn heedfully headed toward the window and parted the paper screen. Peeking outside, she saw two curved horns atop a titan awaiting vigilantly at the tree’s base.

“Oh, it’s Orin.”

The fox made a confused “who?” expression.

“A night guardian.”

Akari repeated Essairyn’s words blankly and padded over to the window ledge to see for herself.

“A nightstalker?!?” The fox yelped, nearly propelling herself off the ledge. “What the hell is that thing doing here?!?”

“Huh?” Essairyn glanced at Akari, perplexed. “What’s wrong? It’s just Orin. Maybe it came to say good bye since I’m leaving today?”

Stunned at the girl’s nonchalant manner, Akari could only gape. Chuckling, Essairyn waved the fox over and exited the treehouse.

“Good morning, Orin!” Essairyn called out from the porch. “What brings you here today?”

The murky figure blinked with sunken eyes glimmering with small stars that seemed to shine from far away. Its mouth yawned open as it tipped its head slightly to the side. While unquestionably horrifying, the nightstalker had a somewhat dumb way about it that made it look oddly endearing to the girl.

“Hm? You want to take me somewhere?” Essairyn gestured to herself as the nightstalker extended its arm, offering a palm for her to stand.

“I’m going to be leaving the Spirit-Demon Forest today, though.”

Orin nodded in understanding, but the weight of its moon-shaped horns made its head bobble more than nod.

“Oh, do you mean to take me to the forest edge? Toward As’pyze?” Essairyn pointed north, and Orin nodded again.

Belatedly registering that Essairyn was conversing with the beast demon, Akari squawked under her breath. “Are you nuts?! What’re you doing talking to that demon?! Do you have any idea how dangerous those monsters are?!” Lowering her voice, she ominously added. “In my day, they terrorized villages and…”

“But they’re different now.” Essairyn argued as the fox crept warily around the open door. “They’re guardians of the forest like the solh’vunds.”

“Tch. Those uptight spirit hounds? Of course they’re still around, however long it’s been since my past life.”

“Anyway…” Essairyn turned back toward Orin. “Let me get my stuff ready, and I’ll be right down!”

Jolting back with a leg raised up in shock, Akari screeched lightly. “Are you crazy?! You’re crazy!! You’re going to go with that demon?!”

“Haah…calm down, Akari. It’ll be fine.”

“Fine my ass…”

In spite of her mumbling, Akari reluctantly followed Essairyn onto the nightstalker’s outstretched palm after the girl had packed all her supplies inside her magic cache. Once on the nightstalker’s hand, Essairyn thanked Orin who gave a smile that wrinkled its decrepit face. Seeing this rather creepy smile, though to no purposeful fault of the nightstalker, Essairyn laughed nervously inside before setting aside her trepidation.

On top of the palm, Essairyn inspected it curiously while Orin plodded through the forest dutifully. The hand looked as if it was made of thick roots encased in hardened soil and covered in a thin veneer of transparent ash. But despite nightstalker's dilapidated appearance, no dust fell from its solid body.

After a few paces, the nightstalker picked up speed. With its tremendous height and long strides, the forest flew by in spurts. And soon, they found themselves a short distance from the forest boundary. Surprised by how quickly they had arrived, Essairyn was grateful to her nightmarish chauffeur.

“Thank you, Orin!” She beamed appreciatively while stepping off the hand bent to the ground. Akari clung to her shoulder, in a mute tizzy about what had just happened.

Waving to the nightstalker as it trudged away, Essairyn’s smile didn’t fade. Never expecting a demon to carry her through what would have been half a day’s run to the forest fringes, she reflected on Orin’s benevolent farewell expression, or as benevolent as a five-story skeletal monster could make.

“See, I told you we’d be okay. Look how far Orin took us! I can see the opening just up ahead! Finally, we’ll have a new view other than just tree trunks everywhere!”

The fox rolled like a deflated balloon to the ground from the girl’s shoulder. “…whatever you say… let’s just go…” She murmured in exhausted defeat. I can’t believe she even made friends with the nightstalker… No…since when were they night guardians? I can’t believe how the state of the spirit and demon world has changed… What else is different? But the fox hardly cared, merely curious. Once she was out of these woods, she’d make a beeline for–– Wait. Will it still be there? I don’t even know how long it’s been. Troubled, Akari frowned as they walked the remaining stretch of forest.

But just as they reached the end, light-footed animals streaked through the brush toward them. Traveling so swiftly, they could only be discerned by a soft phantom glow that smudged the air behind them. Startled, Essairyn squinted her eyes in concentration, trying to pick out their features.

“Human.” A familiar voice rumbled from within the blur of bodies halting.

“…Errol?” Essairyn experienced another surprise. “Oh wait!” The girl hit her head; the solh’vunds' appearance had suddenly reminded her of something else.

“I totally forgot about giving D’yrwin her gift because of Orin this morning!! But I can’t go all the way back now…” The day would be over by then, and her travel plans delayed. She also couldn’t expect Orin to ferry her back and forth superfluously.

At that opportune cue, a silver flash whizzed out from behind Errol’s ear. “Essairyn!”

“Diwi!” The girl opened her arms in greeting.

“Now where’s this gift you’re supposedly giving me?” D’yrwin giddily went straight to the point.

Winking, Essairyn pulled out her wood carving. “Here, I free-styled it. While I don’t think it came out too bad, I didn’t feel like making a statue, model, or something, so I just carved some flowers I really liked from the forest.”

Gasping, the faelyte burst in a shower of dazzling sparks. “I love it!!” She grabbed the piece from Essairyn and twirled around, dancing airily. “I feel so inspired! All this time, I’ve been making animals and people when you can just do this instead! What a revelation!”

Essairyn raised her eyebrows at the exuberant reaction, thinking that Liukell might’ve been right about D’yrwin’s wood carving if this was the first time she considered making a random design rather than a model of something.

“Such a beautiful design, how did you do this? I must attempt to recreate it, maybe with the erhinde claw? It could look quite gorgeous in black, heheh…”

Giggling at the fairy mumbling excitedly to herself, Essairyn explained. “I know you asked for a carving when I return, but I don’t know how long that’ll be, so I wanted to give you something more immediate to express my thanks for all your help.”

Dew bubbled up along D’yrwin’s silvern eyes. “Don’t say that like you’ll never be back!” She stowed the carving away and zoomed to Essairyn’s face, hugging her cheek. “I’ll wait to hear your stories, so thank you, and see you soon! Be careful out there!”

Cringing from the tickling sensation, Essairyn assured the fairy that she would return one day before addressing Errol waiting patiently. “Are you also here to say goodbye?”

“Am I what–? No.” The solh’vund immediately spurned the notion, turning his head away. “The faelyte whined she had missed you when she heard Orin escorted you. So, I just offered to give her a ride since we’re faster. That’s all, human.”

Raising an amused brow, Essairyn nodded. “Well, it’s still nice to see you again, Errol. Take care!”

“Hmph.” The solh’vund glanced at the girl and Akari lingering by her feet. Spying the the spirit fox, he narrowed his eyes and growled. “I do not know why she is with you, but heed your companion, human. In her past life, she has destroyed many homes, spirits and demons alike. Even to this day her deeds ring throughout our history.”

Akari’s eyes glinted at his remark, and Essairyn looked at her from the corner of her eyes. “I would leave it your kind to remember such events from long ago…” Akari voiced with a trace of disdain. These guardian animals were always the lackeys of the spirit gods which had pursued her with their code of right and wrong. Victors were the ones that wrote history.

“Of course, the solh’vunds were one of the first spirits to have existed.” Errol coolly replied.

Akari huffed. I wasn’t asking for a response, spirit hound. But the fox was concerned about the human’s reaction and peeked hesitantly up to see her expression. Essairyn was not looking at her.

“Thanks for the advice, but I’ll be fine. We’re parting ways here now.”

Akari deflated inside but didn’t let her disappointment outwardly show. What is this anyway? You don’t need anyone, Akari. How can you when everyone is… The fox’s hazel orbs dimmed in remembrance.

“Oh? That’s good to know, then. Good choice, human.” Errol’s face twitched as he resisted a smirk at the fox’s expense. He knew she was upset by the girl’s words even if she didn’t show it.

Smiling, Essairyn waved goodbye and approached the cliff with the fox slinking quietly behind. Seeing the steep drop to the rolling hills below, the girl considered the best method to get down. But a sudden daredevil thought popped whimsically inside her mind, prompting her to softly snicker.

Pricking her ears as Essairyn unexpectedly backed up past her, Akari watched in horror as the girl did a running start and leapt into the open air. She’s actually crazy. Panicking, the fox wavered before darting in a tight circle and then springing off the cliff herself. And I’m equally crazy. Akari sighed inwardly before a soundless scream ripped away any ability to regret.

Upon watching the two free-fall, Errol erupted in laughter and repeatedly smacked the dirt with his paw. “That spirit fox––!! She really––!! And the human said they’re splitting apart––!!”

D’yrwin chortled at the stoical solh’vund who was uncharacteristically guffawing. She had expected Akari to follow after the girl, but the sight was still amusing since no one had anticipated Essairyn to jump instead of fly down.

Hearing the fox’s strangled cries, the girl smirked. She also knew that Akari had no where else to go except to jump off the precipice after her. So, both as a test of trust and a little ‘harmless’ teasing, Essairyn thought it would be quite entertaining to see the so-called great spirit fox panic.

Extending her leg to break her jaunty free fall, Essairyn gradually gained stability as she began walking through the air. Although she could use a magic circle to fly securely, she found that gliding down was much easier than moving up from her prior practices. It was also more enjoyable and liberating, and subconsciously, also an attempt to prevail over her initial fall into this world.

However, as a precaution, and also to save Akari before she fell a great distance, Essairyn conjured a magic disc and caught the fox. Feeling a solid surface beneath her paws, the fox hunched flat onto her stomach, holding on for dear life. Once she felt a little safer, Akari whipped her head in Essairyn’s direction to deliver a disgruntled glare.

Feeling the fox’s eyes boring into the back of her head, Essairyn turned to meet Akari’s sharp gaze with an innocent smile. Wordlessly, they exchanged a conversation with their eyes before Essairyn returned to focusing on stair-stepping down.

Upon reaching the bottom, Akari jumped off onto the grass, muttering countless obscure profanities.

“Whew!” Essairyn breathed as she alighted. “That was exciting!”

Akari responded with only a scathing glare, making the girl chuckle.

“Looks like this way leads to the nearby town,” Essairyn said, pointing at the wide, dirt road a few paces away. “I’ll be going this way, so see you!”

Staring at the girl’s back as she waved and walked away, Akari sighed deeply. I’m stuck with this crazy girl, aren’t I? But am I the crazier one for willingly staying? Shaking her head in exasperation at herself, Akari tromped forward after the girl once again.

Noticing the spirit fox follow, Essairyn suppressed a snicker and playfully goaded. “I believe I said I was only going to help you out of the forest.”

The fox snorted vaguely and quipped, “I’m just heading in the same direction.”

“Pfft!” Essairyn touched her belly. “If you say so.”

“Hmph.”

In this manner, the two strolled briskly on their way. Rather than quickly flying to the town, Essairyn conserved her energy by deciding to walk on foot. Additionally, she could protect her magical abilities by only using them when in danger.

Before long, a medium sized wagon appeared from behind the bend of the cliffs. It looked to be made of cherrywood and was drawn by four stout horses. It had an arched roof, a shuttered window on the left side, and a windowed door on the right. Green curtains draped across a window in the front, and metal accented doors closed the back. It soon caught up with the two wanderers as the morning melted into the afternoon.

“Hello there, young miss,” greeted the middle-aged driver, slowing his wagon down to match their pace. “Oh? A fox spirit?” He noticed that the creature walking beside her was not a small dog as he had thought from afar. “Why’re you traveling the roads on foot with a fox spirit, miss?”

Clamor arose from inside the wagon after he spoke, and a little head popped out from in-between the green seat-curtains. It was a young boy with tousled, mousy hair who looked no more than eight years of age.

“Huh? A girl? And a fox spirit?” The inquisitive boy observed. “What’re you doing with a fox spirit?”

“Now now, don’t be rude, Gerran.” A gentle voice from inside corrected the boy who scrunched his face in dissatisfaction.

“It’s Jerry, not Gerran, mother!”

The woman laughed and parted the green curtains. Her son disliked his given name, but she knew one day he’d prefer it over his nickname as an adult.

“Oh my, what’s a pretty young lady doing out here in the middle of the roads by herself? And what’s this? A fox spirit indeed!” It was rare to see spirits and demons outside of their usual habitations. Like the human and elemental civilizations, spirits and demons also had theirs besides dwelling freely in the forests and wilderness. But it was even more bizarre that one would travel with a human.

Essairyn smiled politely at the family, and Akari rolled her eyes. She was too used to this kind of treatment from humans despite spirits and demons being originally born out of human thought and emotion.

“I have a name you know,” retorted Akari, startling the woman.

“Oh, I’m sorry. You two are…?”

Essairyn glanced from the father to the son and back to the mother again. They seemed like an ordinary family. Maybe she could get a ride to the neighboring town if she was friendly. “Essairyn,” she replied. “And this is Akari.”

“Akari?” The man echoed thoughtfully. “That name sounds awfully familiar for some reason.”

The woman shooed away her husband’s remark. “Essairyn, if you’re going to the next town, why don’t you and Akari travel with us in the wagon? It’d be much quicker and safer than walking. And I wouldn’t feel right leaving a young lady like you out here to fend for yourself.”

Essairyn smiled gratefully. “That’s kind of you to offer. Thank you.”

The woman smiled genially and went to open the side door. The two stepped up on the door ledge and entered the cozy space. The mother and son were sitting on green cushioned benches that lined the driver’s side of the wagon in a L-shape. The other side was a wall with a door that partitioned the sitting room from the storage room in the back.

They introduced themselves as the Andelrin family. The mother and father were Chona and Banran, and they were traveling spice and perfume merchants. They had left the agricultural town of Cerinalle that was known for its ability to grow a host of specialty crops. Cerinalle was situated at the eastern tip of the cliff range where the Spirit and Demon Forest gave way to rugged terrain before sloping down to shallow, flat, and fertile land. The aromatic flowers that grew in this valley town were Sol’h’meyr’s finest. The Andelrins were one of the key transporters of Cerinalle’s highly demanded spices and perfumes to the rest of As’pyze and were heading to the nearby town that Essairyn had seen from over the cliffs.

“This is As’pyze, right on the border of the Spirit and Demon Forest.” Gerran circled where they were on a slightly worn map spread across his lap. “And over here is As’iyse, the land of cold, across the Barren Lands in the center.” He tapped northwest. “And below that is As’eryt, the land of earth, across the Eeuriyos mountains separating us and the elementals. And this,” he said, moving his finger south, “ is As’fyre, the land of warmth. The pictures from here are super cool! They got these big, flat red rocks and exploding mountains, can you imagine that?!”

Essairyn presumed he was talking about plateaus and volcanoes and smiled at the boy’s enthusiasm as he gestured widely and bounced in his seat. “And what about here?” She pointed behind the Spirit-Demon forest, curious about the misty place she had spotted from the treetops.

“That’s As’rien! We went there once! The rain elementals were nice and pretty. They’re the only ones who aren’t mean to humans.”

Chona smiled softly at her boy’s words and turned to Essairyn, clarifying, “The rain elementals were originally humans blessed by the rain goddess, so unlike the other elemental kingdoms, As’rien welcomes our race onto their lands.” She chuckled, adding, “Although, we rarely travel there despite Cerinalle being the closest town in As’pyze to their capital.”

Intrigued by As’rien due to having rain powers herself, Essairyn listened intently.

“Usually, we make round trips to Reisparte and––”

“––that’s where we’re going right now!” Gerran boisterously interrupted.

“Don’t talk over your mother, Jerry,” Banran gently scolded from the front.

“Sorry sorry, I’m just so excited to eat more of Leia’s candies! It’s been so long!”

Chona chuckled, patting her son’s head. “It’s only been a month, honey.” Smiling apologetically at Essairyn, she said, “He’s our only child, so he travels with us everywhere. We go to Reisparte often because it lies the closest to all of the elemental kingdoms, so it’s a popular hub for traveling merchants like us. Leia’s Candy Parlour is a shop we frequent there.”

“Reisparte is a bustling market town, so you’ll have fun shopping there for whatever supplies you need on your journey.” Banran informed jovially. “But be careful, if they know that you’re a traveler, they might try to scam you, miss.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, thank you.”

“I would offer to accompany you,” said Chona regretfully. “But we have to deal with business as soon as we arrive.”

“How much longer until we’re there?” Gerran asked, fidgeting.

“By now?” Banran squinted his eyes, estimating. “About less than a third of a day left. But evening will be falling soon, so we’ll settle down for the night and continue our ride early in the morning in order to arrive before noon.”

“Oh man! I wish we could just be in Reisparte now! Stupid demons!” The boy pouted, crossing his arms.

“You know there’s nothing we can do about the nightly demons, Jerry. But we’re close to town, so we’ll be in Leia’s shop before you know it!”

Upon consoling her son, Chona suddenly recalled that Essairyn wouldn’t understand the situation. “Ah, I keep forgetting that you told us that you’re new in this world. You found yourself at the top of the cliff, correct?” At the girl’s nod, she tutted and remarked, “You’re lucky that you hadn’t arrived deeper in the woods. The demons would have surely caught you.” She shook her head tragically at the thought.

“However, it’s a shame that it was at the top of the cliff instead of the bottom so that you didn’t have to dirty your only clothes. But, at least you found a friend on the way down. Luckily, you came across a spirit instead of a demon.”

Akari scoffed silently to herself at the convenient story that Essairyn had fabricated in order to conceal her magical abilities and three day survival in the Spirit-Demon forest. While it was a prudent decision to make because of how shocking it would be otherwise, she pondered about the role she had been given in that story. A friend, huh?

“Anyway,” Chona carried on, “Demons prowl around at night and like to play tricks on anyone still out on the roads. While most of them don’t cause much harm, it considerably slows down progress. So, it’s better to stop for the night and set up protective barriers.”

Bobbing her in understanding, Essairyn continued chatting with the Andelrins until Banran pulled over to park the wagon on the side of the road. After they exited the vehicle, Banran retrieved a rolled up tent from an enclosed compartment underneath a seat and carried it a dozen or so meters away from the wagon. With Chona’s help, they set it up in a matter of minutes.

He then surrounded the tent with protective poles struck into the ground a few feet away from it while his son and Essairyn watched in fascination. The poles were imbued with a magical spell that warded off demons and phantoms of the night. The wagon had a similar but weaker spell imbued within its frame. Gerran then helped his father arrange the inside of the tent while Chona cooked dinner in a pot overhanging a fire in the center of the encampment.

“Is there anything I can do?” Essairyn offered as she watched Chona heat up broth for a stew.

“Oh don’t worry, honey. You’re a guest, so just relax while I make dinner.”

“Okay.” Essairyn smiled as she plopped down on the retractable bench seat brought out from the wagon.

“Oh, I know! Why don’t you try these new perfumes I made while traveling? I haven’t yet gotten a chance to get a young lady’s opinion on them. As you see, I don’t have daughter yet.” Chona exclaimed with a clap and a regretful sigh as she rushed off to fetch them.

“You make your own perfumes too?” Essairyn asked after she returned with an uncovered box of perfume bottles.

“Yes, I have a line called Choerin, after Chona and Cerinalle. Here.” Chona uncapped a deep rose colored bottle. “Smell this.”

Essairyn tentatively inched her face forward to get a whiff of the perfume. A warmly dulcet and lightly tropical scent suffused throughout the air. She twitched her nose, trying to pick out the familiar fragrances. She smelled what seemed to be rose, honeysuckle, lavender, wisteria and plumeria, balanced with sandalwood and cotton flower for an underlying comforting and fresh feel. Altogether, it was an enchanting yet relaxing aroma, like being on an exotic beach in a high-class resort.

“Wow, this is amazing!” Essairyn gasped, thoroughly impressed. “You really made this?”

Chona beamed in pride. “Yes, I enjoy experimenting with different scents. Cerinalle has the most magnificent assortment of fragrant flowers and plants!” Chona capped the bottle and placed it back before handing the whole box to Essairyn. The girl enjoyed smelling the handmade perfumes and offered her opinions while Chona cooked. And several minutes later, the meal was ready, and they all began eating.

The Andelrins made light conversation with Essairyn and described Reisparte, which was like their second home outside of Cerinalle, in greater depth. The family’s happy chatter and the fire’s cozy warmth made Essairyn pleasantly nostalgic. Her thoughts wandered, and she looked up at the night sky. It was a starless sky, devoid of a galaxy, outside of her universe. Yet it was softly lit with glowing drifts of languid light that bobbed airily above the world. The similarity of the sight to Earth’s stars made her feel at ease. Perhaps, now and in the future, she would continue to search for familiarity, for some solid ground in this strange world.

After dinner and cleaning up, everyone prepared to go to bed. Chona and Jerry headed inside the tent, and Banran went inside the wagon to sleep while watching out for thieves. Essairyn lingered outside the tent door and gazed up one last time at the magic lights. Each illuminated the dark like a nightlight.

“Akari,” she whispered almost soundlessly, “I’m glad…” The fox perked up her ears and peered inquisitively at the girl in the dim light. Essairyn smiled wistfully. “…that you’re here with me.”

The fox turned away bashfully, not expecting sudden tenderness from the girl. “H-huh, what are you saying? Come on, let’s sleep.”

The girl gave an inaudible chuckle, and the fox gave a sheepish huff as they entered the lamp-lit tent. No matter Akari’s real intentions, Essairyn was truly grateful for the fox’s company. The Andelrin’s were lovely people, a close-knit family that reminded her of her own, but it was exactly because of that Essairyn felt a distance that couldn’t spanned. At the very least, the girl and the fox were in the same boat, more or less.

Inside, Chona was readying Essairyn’s covers, and Jerry was already half-asleep beside his mother. She patted the pillow and gestured for Essairyn to sleep on her other side. The sight warmed the girl’s heart, and she settled into the covers. Akari nestled on top by her side.

“Good night.” Chona murmured, extinguishing the lamp.

“Night.” Essairyn murmured back. “…Good night, Akari.”

“…Night.”