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Thunder cracked throughout the Shrouds, rain pattering down onto the grassy fields and the dirt roads. The rivers rushed quickly, daring a flood while water sprites danced around the coasts. Tucked deep into the southwestern portion of the Twelveswood sat a camp, tarp and tents littered throughout, covering barrels and crates and bags. Wood was cut for makeshift tables, chairs, and any other forms of furniture. A large tarp covered the entrance to a cave, where a cluster of Miqo’te slept. Most were huddled together with tattered blankets and tarps too small to hang, snoring softly.
A small girl sat at the entrance of the cave, staring up at the sky. She had dragged out a stool from the cave, sitting it in the mud that was slowly forming from the dense clusters of dirt. Her fur-covered ears sat flat upon her head as another flash of lightning landed in another part of the forest, bringing another loud boom of thunder echoing through the trees. She pulled her knees up to her chest, whimpering as she felt the ground shake beneath her.
“Rhaya, you’re still up?” Another Miqo’te approached her. He was not much older than her, twelve summers old rather than her eight. He placed a soft hand on her back as he knelt beside her. “You will get sick out here, gee-gee.”
She grumbled, nudging him away with her head. “Too loud. I can’t sleep.” Another crack of thunder, and she jumped before retreating into her own hold.
He clicked his tongue, his hand reaching around to pull her into a side hug. “You do know it is quieter within, yes?”
“Go away, Giah’a.”
“I don’t think I will.” He retreated into the cave for a moment before returning with a tarp, which he laid in the dirt before sitting upon it. His arm returned around Rhaya’s shoulders, tugging her off of the stool and onto his lap. “Have you seen any of the elementals?”
She nodded excitedly, pointing over to where they could hear the rushing waters of the nearby river. “Some water ones peeked out, and I think there were flashy ones?”
“Lightning.”
“Mmhm! Lightning ones, but they didn’t wanna come close.”
Giah’a leaned back. “Most do not. One day, we’ll venture out together and see them together, aye? How does that sound?” He stretched his hand out. “The entire wood, not just this corner. We’ll see all of the sprites we can. Perhaps even some other creatures out there. Antelope, hogs… even a goblin or something Mama calls a Kedtrap.”
“And we go after them?”
“No, we just watch. We listen, we sit and we hear them speak.” He placed his hands in her lap, straightening his back and looking out towards the forest. “Monoa, sister. We use it in our hunting, our work, our life. Though once used to listen to elementals, we now use it to heighten our senses. Which is why your ears must be so keen on picking up the sounds of the storm.”
The sky flashed with light, then a softer rumble brought a tremor through the ground. He felt Rhaya tense and bury her head into his chest. He frowned, resting his chin on top of her head. “Do you know what Mama would tell you if she saw you fear the storms?”
She nodded against his shirt. “I’ll give you something to be scared of, Ak,” she mumbled.
Giah’a nodded along with her. “And Ak means…”
“Dead meat.”
He let out a laugh. “Close enough. What I’m trying to say is that I am a son of Giah, but I am not Giah. So I will tell you this,” He looked back up at the sky, feeling the mist coat his face with rain. “You can be afraid of the storms. They are loud, scary, and if you find yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time, they are dangerous. At times, I am scared of them too. But truly,” He cupped a hand into the sky for a moment, then gently dropped a handful of rainwater onto Rhaya’s forehead. “It is just the water we drink, bathe in, and cook our stews.” He rolled his sleeve down to wipe away the water. “Do you understand what I mean?”
She shrugged. “Trust the water sprites and not the lightning sprites,” she guessed. He made a face and she tried once more. “Never tell Mama I’m scared?” His response was a grimace.
“We can all be scared, but we must use that fear. Make the fear help us – do not allow it to control us. We collect the storm water, we will use it, cook with it, everything. And with that, we sleep through the storms. Then when morning comes, we are greeted with a clear, sunny day.” He looked up into the sky once more. “There is nothing to fear when morning comes.” He pulled her into a hug. “And there is nothing to fear with me here. I’ve got you, Rhaya.”
They remained like that as the rain fell, and Giah’a thought for a moment that Rhaya had fallen asleep, but as a crack of lightning landed not far from them, she let out a shriek, huddling closer. He shushed her as gusts of wind picked up, getting them both a bit damp.
After a time, watching the rain slowly stop, Rhaya furrowed her brow, looking up at him. “Why don’t we talk to the elementals anymore,” she wondered.
He let out a sigh. “That is something I would rather not tell you until you’re older, alright, gee-gee? I believe Toto-Rak would come for the both of us before Mama did.” He leaned back. “You should find out soon enough, though.”
“Did Mama tell you?”
He shook his head. “No, gee-gee, I… discovered it on my own. Khuja should know soon enough. Mama found out at her sixteenth summer.” He reached his hand to the top of her head, scratching behind her ear. “Now continue your monoa, Rhaya. The sprites prefer haukke rather than your endless questions.”
“Haukke?”
“Hush, Sister. The sprites prefer their silence. They also prefer it when the young are tucked into their blankets and fast asleep.” He swiftly picked her up and stood, holding her over his shoulder. “Come now, I’ll get you tucked in with the triplets.”
Rhaya struggled in his hold for a moment, only being given shushes in response, so she ceased her fighting. Giah’a brought her back into the cave as the lightning ceased along with the rain. The winds continued, the skies clearing aside from clusters of clouds as he tucked her back in, cuddled with the younger set of triplets. He took the tarp and stool away from the entrance of the cave, instead electing to sit up against the nearby wall, watching as Rhaya’s chest slowly even out in its lifts and falls. A smile came to his face as he closed his eyes, letting the dripping of water off of the leaves lull him to sleep as he finished his own quiet conversation with the nature around them.