*Marie's P.O.V.*
_________________________
"Jojo, do you know the kids at the camp?" I ask curiously as I jump off the last bus arriving at the campsite, looking around and shoving a hand in the pocket of my knit black leggings as I fall into step with my blue haired cousin.
Most of the other kids on this bus, which is the one bus that decided to get lost driving around for an hour past the arrival time despite there being three other buses for the driver to follow, have already run off ahead of my cousin and I much to my relief, which leaves the two of us to make our way alone to our assigned cabins for the duration of summer camp.
My cousin, Joe Kido, is twelve years old and apparently he'll be the oldest kid at the particular cabin we're going to be bunking in. I'm one of the younger ones there, but thankfully even though some kids are closer to Jojo's age here, I know he won't ditch me and will keep me company regardless.
See, I'm a bit insecure... And kind of a clinger. In my defense though, I'm only eight years old and I only recently finished second grade. According to my aunt, it's okay for kids my age to cling to their elders- especially when they look up to them. In this case, that means cousin Jojo.
Jojo is really smart- albeit a bit nerdy- but I'm completely fine with that. In fact, I hardly care what he looks like. He's my favorite cousin and he's always taken good care of me whenever I visit him. He usually has on wide rimmed glasses, with the center nose rest taped to keep it from falling apart... I think? In all honesty, I think it's part of the price tag to the glasses that Jojo forgot to pull off. Jojo only got them before we hopped on the bus after all, and I wouldn't put it past him to forget taking something so inconsequential off.
His clothing currently consists of a white button up tee with a cream knit vest over it, sporting dark tan khaki shorts and finally red sneakers for the planned nature walks we'll be taking during camp. His hair, unlike mine, is a bold navy blue that matches the hair color of nearly the entire Kido family. He says it's a weird color, but in my opinion, I kind of like it.
I wasn't born into the Kido family like he was. Fortunately, Jojo's aunt and uncle- my mom and dad- adopted me into the family when I was three. I was being taken care of in a foster home at the time. They couldn't have children of their own, so they decided to adopt to try and have the dream family they always wanted. Turns out I was the lucky flower of the bunch, and I got to go home with them as a newly formed family.
I love my family, and I'm so glad mom and dad picked me out of all the other kids. Their choice might have been swayed in my favor due to the flower crowns I clumsily made them that convinced them to pick me. Hee hee...
...
"Marie, you don't have to worry about a thing. I only know a few of them, but it doesn't matter. I'll be right here with you regardless," Jojo says confidently, shooting a smile my way as I walk in step with him.
I pull my free hand out of my pocket again and reach out to grab onto his right hand, pulling myself to his side a little more.
"You promise?" I ask inquisitively, blinking my bright blue eyes at his dark irises as he pauses to crouch down a little to my shorter level. We're approaching the camp grounds, but we're not in much of a hurry really. After all, we're already late anyways to being with.
My suitcase is a bit heavy, but I let him stop me anyways because I want to make sure he won't abandon me. Last week, his brother left me alone at his friend's sibling's birthday party, and I felt so lonely and out of place... I didn't know anyone there. I definitely don't want to through that again...
Sure, Jojo's brother is nice and honestly didn't mean to get distracted entirely by his friends... But I feel like Jojo is somehow a little more empathetic than cousin Shuu. Jojo understands me better.
"I pinkie promise, Marie," he says, releasing my hand and raising his pinkie without breaking eye contact. Satisfied with his agreement, I giggle and take his pinkie in my own to seal the deal. "Now, come on, we're almost there!"
Jojo shifts his hand so that he's holding mine again, tugging me along towards the outhouses as we pass other kids and proctors as they adjust to the new setting. It isn't until we pass them all that we reach the furthestmost outhouse of the campgrounds, conveniently placed a good ways away from most of the other cabins. In fact, it's so broken off from the other cabins that the kids there hardly look bothered by the chaos of children celebrating their newfound freedom in the wild. There are no proctors in sight within this specific zone whatsoever.
Four children, two together and two doing their own thing, catch my attention as we approach the cabin. My blue eyes jump over the kids' faces quickly, and I shrink back closer to Jojo in an attempt to sap some confidence from him when their eyes flick in my direction curiously. I've never seen any of these kids before... I know some are classmates from home with Jojo, and most likely go to the same school in general, but I didn't attend the same school as my cousin. I mean... I lived in a different part Tokyo during second grade. After summer, I'm going to be in third grade. The idea of it is a bit overwhelming. Especially considering some certain events that have recently passed...
...
"HEY, JOE!"
A gasp escapes me as Jojo and I snap our heads upwards to find the source of the call, which appears to come from a kid standing up high on a thick branch in the tree above us. He appears oblivious to the confused looks scrawled across the faces of the other four kids in the vicinity as they look from Jojo to me and back.
I'm sure they have questions, as Jojo and I look close, yet physically appear to be complete opposites- which is a given since I have starry blonde hair, crystal blue eyes, and a pale complexion to my petite figure. The only other kid as short as I am is one boy with sandy gold hair wearing a weird green hat, but I don't judge based on style.
"Jeez, don't scare me like that, Taichi!" Jojo huffs up at the kid in the tree, glaring as the stranger grins down at us in amusement and promptly jumps down from the branch to greet us properly.
As he lands before us, I flinch and shift so I'm slightly behind Jojo, using his body as a source of protection from this unfamiliar kid.
This "Taichi" guy has wild brown hair half held back by a pair of goggles, wearing a blue and black headband under the tight strap and sporting a blue tee with an orange trim. Much like Jojo, this kid appears to have take a similar path in what he wears below the belt, because he has on brown khaki shorts and red sneakers much like my cousin's.
It's only once I look up at Taichi's smiling face again that I realize...
This boy is also very cute.
"Aw, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I had to! And hey, you don't have to get all formal on me or anything. I already told you, just call me Tai," the wild haired boy laughs before his brown eyes move to focus on me beside Jojo. Infatuated by his physical appearance, I become frozen with anxiety when he looks straight into my eyes and beams brightly in my direction. "And you are? I don't think I've seen you around before... Do you go to our school?"
W-what do I say? I can't speak! I think in horror, the sight of his smile aimed towards me practically turning my body into stone.
"Oh, this is my little cousin, Marie. My mom decided it would be healthy for her to tag along with me to summer camp- even though she's not from around our school area... Don't take her silence as anything personal, she's kind of shy with new people," Jojo explains with a bit of a chuckle while I turn away and play with the long end of my ponytail, struggling against the urge to stare at him dumbly and the fear of making eye contact with him again. In the end, my interest beats my fear out and I turn to peek back up at him momentarily.
He's really cute.
"...N-nice to meet you," I manage to murmur meekly, causing me to bite my lip and quickly look away again. Well, that couldn't have come out a bit bolder, could it? I really don't like how shy I am... Other kids had been teasing me about it before we left home. Unfortunately, it's not something I can just wish away with the snap of my fingers, much to my dismay. It is what it is now, I guess... Now if we had met before recent events, things would be much different.
Jojo seems somewhat pleased by my efforts to greet Tai despite my anxious state. Normally, I won't say anything when first meeting someone, but...
"Likewise, Marie! Hmm, you have a interesting name. Sounds French. I like it!" He suddenly comments in thought with a sunny grin, as if just realizing it.
Not expecting to get a compliment like that from out of nowhere, I feel my cheeks get unexpectedly warm and muster a shy smile as I play with the end of my ponytail some more to relax my nerves. "Thank you," I say, despite my lack of eye contact with him.
"HEY, GUYS!" Tai unprecedentedly shouts loud enough to make me flinch and turn, causing the recent blush on my cheeks to drain away as soon as I see that he's calling to the other kids. They're mostly minding their own business away from us (read: pretending they aren't curiously looking towards Jojo and I), but when they hear Tai call them, their heads all lift up like that of a meerkat pack. Realizing what he's about to do, I feel my nervous state rising once more and inch closer to Jojo. "Come meet Joe's cousin! She's new here!"
In what I swear is only seconds, the other four kids soon approach us with varying expressions of interest, two of the four strolling up to Jojo first with welcoming smiles. He must know those two too...
"Good to see you again, Joe," an older kid with gold hair who is also quite good looking says as he approaches my cousin, Tai, and I. Beside him is that other sandy haired kid that looks close to my own age, standing a few inches shorter than myself and bearing a striking resemblance to the older kid exchanging formalities with my cousin.
"Likewise, Matt," Jojo answers cordially, grinning like they're old friends. While he speaks to Matt, my attention falls on the younger blonde currently staring at me with a big smile bright enough to blind a person.
"Hi! I'm Takeru, but you can call me TK," the kid greets me sweetly, holding out a hand towards my startled form.
My eyes drag down to his outstretched arm with unease, a clock ticking in the back of my mind to remind me that if I don't grab it soon, I'll be painted as rude. After a second of swallowing down my fear, I release my grip on my ponytail and take his hand. It's warm against my palm and as soft as my own hand.
"I'm Marie..." I introduce myself as bravely as I can, pasting a nervous smile to my face as I shake TK's hand gently. Much to my relief, TK seems to notice my nervousness and releases my hand to return my personal space to me. I feel the tension in my muscles begin to ease up a smidgen by the gesture, smiling a little more.
"This is my big brother, Yamato, but it's easier if you call him Matt," TK says, pointing up to the taller blonde who then crouches down to my level respectfully so that I don't have to crane my neck to look up at him.
"Hello, Marie," he greets me, to which I shyly answer with a little more confidence, "Hi, Matt. It's nice to meet you."
"Aww, she's so cute!"
I peer past Matt curiously to see one girl with a light pink cowgirl hat and a dark pink fringed dress scurry closer, as if spotting a cute puppy and wanting to get a better look. She stares at me with a giddy and gleeful expression, eyes twinkling when my blue irises meet her twinkling gaze.
"She could be a living doll! My name's Mimi, Marie! We're gonna be such good friends, I already know it!" She promises with a wink of her brown eye, giggling when all I do is blink back slowly in confusion.
Me? This bouncy, energetic girl wants to be friends with someone as quiet as me...? I think in mild surprise, slightly trembling under her admiring gaze when she openly stares at me.
A second girl with short orange hair covered by a light blue hat that resembles a helmet shifts beside Mimi to give me a wave. "I'm Sora, Marie. You don't need to be shy, we're all nice here. If anyone picks on you though, just let me know and I'll go set them straight!" She says with a flashy smile, adjusting her yellow tank top and adjusting her aqua blue jeans of a similar color to my aqua denim tank top.
"Hm, well, I think that's every- Hey, wait a minute...! IZZY, ARE YOU STILL PLAYING ON YOUR COMPUTER?" Tai shouts back towards the outhouse as if offended, causing me to giggle and genuinely smile at his outgoing attitude.
Mimi's eyes glaze over at my soft laughter, prompting me to fall silent as her expression builds up with barely kempt excitement.
"So cuuttteee," our cowgirl dressed camp mate coos as she inches closer towards me past the other kids. I can already feel my muscles locking up again as she nears... Until her hand whips out to grab onto my wrist, startling a soft yelp out of me when she turns and starts hastily pulling me towards the cabin a little more roughly than I would have liked. I don't object though- I'm far too complacent to do that.
"W-wait...!" I hear Jojo stutter from behind as Mimi proceeds to drag me off, but he's evidently held back when Matt and the others surround him to begin asking questions about me, such as "where I live", "how long I'm visiting", "what my favorite hobbies are". Tai ends up following Mimi and I though, taking up my other arm to drag me towards the cabin along with her.
"If he won't come out to meet you because he's obsessing over his laptop, then we're just gonna have to take the party to him," Mimi declares haughtily as I look back at Jojo, only to find TK staring after me with an expression of longing as I follow Mimi's brisk walking pace.
"You said it!" Tai agrees with an easygoing grin, so busy speaking to Mimi that he doesn't even notice the fact that my cheeks are turning tomato red from him holding my hand. "Anyways, Marie, Izzy's the last of our group. His real name is Koushiro, but we call him 'Izzy' as a nickname of his last name, 'Izumi'. Blah, blah-bitty, blah blah blah..."
Tai is really cute... I think dumbly as his words turn to gibberish to my ears, taking the time to enjoy the feeling of his gloved hand in mine. It fills me with a feeling of acceptance.
"Hey, Izzy! Wake up, you've been on that thing forever! There's no way you're gonna get internet all the way out here," Tai exclaims as he and Mimi drag me into one of the cabin rooms, where a spiky maroon haired kid that looks to be just a bit shorter than me sits in front of a yellow laptop. He almost looks my age, but I'm smart enough to know that looks can be deceiving.
Who knows, that TK kid could be my age too...
The kid, Izzy, is wearing an orange button up and brown shorts, along with a pair of yellow gloves that your eyes drag to immediately as you stand between Mimi and Tai. Come to think of it... Quite a few of the kids are wearing gloves out there. I'm pretty sure the only kids who aren't wearing gloves besides me areTK and Jojo.
I decide to voice my query after this observation
"Why is everyone wearing gloves? Were we supposed to bring a pair?" I ask softly, making Tai and Mimi look at me in mild surprise when I speak up again.
"Oh," Tai laughs as he eventually registers my words, giving me a sheepish grin as he reaches behindto scratch the back of his head. "No, you're not out of a loop or anything. It's just a preference I guess most of us coincidentally decided to go with."
I nod in confirmation, allowing this information to sink it. Honestly, I don't understand why anyone would be wearing gloves in the summertime though. It's hot! Won't their hands get sweaty in those things? Weird...
"So. Cute!" Mimi chirps gleefully again, releasing my hand to gaze down at me with her fingers threaded into each other. "I wish I could take you home with me~!"
"Who is she?"
I glance forward in surprise to see that the maroon haired computer kid has finally returned to the real world, his dark eyes studying me while Mimi busies herself with fawning over me and touching my hair with a wide smile of contentedness.
"This is Marie, Joe's younger cousin. This is her first time here for summer camp and we wanted you to meet her with the rest of us, but you were otherwise occupied," Mimi suddenly says with a glare at the kid that kneels before his still opened laptop, the sudden about-face half stunning me where I stand.
Izzy seems more or less unaffected by her accusatory words.
From what I can see, it looks like he's trying to connect to the internet via satellite, but is having no such luck if the pop up that says "ERROR" is anything to go by. My eyes scan the laptop curiously for all the proper connectivity- as I'm relatively familiar with computer technology and coding from messing around on the internet so much. Everything looks well inserted and processed- save for a service card that I notice isn't even plugged into the computer whatsoever. It's just lying behind to the laptop, forgotten and collecting dust.
A laugh nearly escapes me, but midst my efforts to not offend him by laughing abruptly like that, Izzy speaks up again.
Well, I'm not anymore... Doesn't look like I can get internet up here. All I keep getting are pop-ups telling me there's some kind of error. Guess it's a lost cause to keep trying." Izzy stands up and turns to face me. He looks to be my exact height now that he's up on his feet, and the fluttery feeling of momentary amusement from his technical issue fades away, once again replaced with unease as he approaches us and offers me a calm smile. "Nice to meet you, Marie."
I nod to him shyly, looking down towards his laptop and gauging whether or not I should mention it.
"...Um... You likely could connect to the internet if you weren't forgetting to do something," I give in to the desire to mention the issue, using one hand to play with the end my ponytail as a look of confusion crosses Izzy's features.
...
Next thing I know, he whirls back around and sits at his computer hastily to look over everything like a madman.
"Aww, man... And just when we almost got him off that thing," Tai jokes in half amusement and half exasperation, reminding me of the fact that he's still holding onto my hand. Nervous by continued contact with him, I gently sneak it out of his grip and play some more with my hair, turning and exiting the room to take a look around outside of the cabin and find Jojo again.
I'm sure Izzy will figure out the answer to his "dilemma" on his own soon enough. No need to stand here like a bother...
"Hey, what do you mean by tha...?" I hear Izzy start to say, but he soon trails off- probably due to the fact that I've left the room with Mimi trailing after me.
"Don't worry about her, Joe says she's kind of reserved," I hear Tai casually explain to Izzy while Mimi followed me out.
"So, got any cool hobbies?" The wannabe cowgirl inquires as I take a seat on a nice green patch of grass, inhaling some fresh air now that we're all away from the big city. Initially, I didn't want to come to summer camp at all, until Jojo said he would be going... and the idea of being left behind by myself while his brothers busied themselves with their jobs and school... It made me uncomfortable.
My aunt and uncle are both very nice, don't get me wrong. They're just... They're just not the person I need at the moment.
I need Jojo.
"I guess... Jojo says-" I begin to say, until Mimi cuts me off with a squeal of delight, making me flinch at the high pitch. Mimi's nice, but... Also kind of scary. I didn't even know the human larynx could make a sound like that.
"That's so sweet! You call him Jojo? Aww,you really love him, don't you?" She babbles quickly, causing me take a moment to process her words before nodding in confirmation once I interpret them in my own, um, language. "Okay, I won't interrupt anymore, go on. Hee hee~!"
"Alright, well... Jojo says I sing pretty, but I don't really like singing. I like drawing," I comment, watching as Mimi's eyes sparkle with interest and curiosity.
"Ooo, that's cool! I can sing too- but I actually like singing. Maybe you could show me the art you've done sometime?" Mimi asks sweetly, making me hesitantly crack a smile and nod at her.
"S-sure!" I evidently answer, my nerves slowly dissolving in the presence of the bright smiling, bubbly dirty-blonde haired girl that seems to be absolutely taken with my soft looks and personality.
"Hey, Marie! We need to unpack our things." The sound of Jojo's voice behind us has Mimi and I turning our heads, where I see my favorite cousin dragging my forgotten red suitcase up to us.
Without a single complaint, I hop onto my feet and take my things from him with a content smile when he reaches down to stroke the back of my head and neck.
"Come on, you can hang out with Mimi all you want after we've put our things in our room. We'll be sharing a room with Matt and TK," Jojo informs me as I place my hand in his, pulling me along towards the cabin with an patient smile.
It's while I'm in the middle of digging through my suitcase for my sketchbook when TK makes his reappearance and accidentally sneaks up on me. Ten minutes in and my jumpy nature already shows- though I can hardly help it since I'm not used to the kids around. Mimi is definitely a more trustworthy one among the rest since she's at least sat down to talk to me, but I'm still uneasy even then.
Maybe I'll never get used to it again...
"Hey, Marie!" TK's voice cheerfully blurts out from behind me, resulting in a spectacular flinch that sends my skull banging loudly against the underside of the top bunk where Jojo would be sleeping. I don't like heights at all, so I was pretty grateful when he left me the bottom bunk.
...Based on the throbbing of my head as of now, however, I'm not so sure it's a good thing anymore.
An embarrassing yelp flies from my mouth as pain registers atop my head, causing TK's older brother to abruptly whirl around from the two bunks on the other side of the room. Jojo isn't here right now, because I made him leave me in the cabin to catch up with some of the other kids. I told him I'd be fine alone for a bit, but he seemed kind of guilty leaving me with my own devices.
Especially after recent events...
...
"Marie, are you alright?!" I hear Matt fuss as he helps me back out from the bottom bunk, guiding me so that I'm seated on the edge of the bed instead. My head throbs painfully for a good couple of minutes, until all that's left is a gentle annoying headache.
"Ah! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!" TK panics, looking horrified as he watches his big brother carefully probe the top of my head with his fingers and ask where it's hurting the most.
I'm a little peeved to be honest, but since I understand it wasn't his intention to hurt me, I offer TK a weak smile. "It's okay. I know you didn't mean to," I say, before flinching when Matt finally touches a raw area of my head. "R-right there."
"How much does it hurt? A little, or a lot?" Matt asks, gently pressing the spot some more for my verdict.
I don't want to tell him that it's given me a terrible headache and risk making his younger brother feel worse, so I wrinkle my nose only slightly at the pain and lie. "Just when it's pressed on."
Matt seems to buy my statement and sighs in relief, though he turns to glance over down at his little brother with a mild scowl. "So now we know not to sneak up on people, right, TK?"
TK's cheeks dust a reddish tint of embarrassment as he pouts bashfully up at his brother. "Right, Matt..."
He looks upset, I think, biting my lip before giving the younger of the brothers a smile. I reach out and grab hold of his hand so he shifts his gaze to me instead. "It's fine, don't worry," I reiterate for TK, watching him stare at me quietly... Before a smile extends across his face. At the sight, I relax a little more and feel my headache begin to dwindle.
"...Hm?" Matt, TK, and I turn when we hear the sound of someone opening our room door. As my eyes catch sight of Tai entering our room, I draw my limbs closer to myself. His face is an expression of confusion as he looks around our room curiously, before his brown eyes land on the three of us by my bunk. "Oh, there you are. What was that noise? Izzy and I heard something loud from here."
His sudden presence nearly has my body locking up anxiously, but I manage to relax myself after a moment or two. No need to cause another fuss by running off.
"I accidentally snuck up on Marie... And she hit her head," TK relays the events to Tai, his smile sheepish once more as Matt rolls his eyes behind his younger brother with a sigh of resignation. I didn't think I made that loud of a noise...
"Yeesh. Sounded really painful! It even managed to snap Izzy out of his 'computer mojo' zone," Tai comments with a small chuckle, before walking over towards us. "You okay?" He asks me specifically.
He's talking to me again, I register, heart jumping to my throat as I attempt to formulate an interpretable response to his query. I don't want him to think badly of me... I really want him to like me!
"I'm fine, it doesn't hurt anymore," I lie again, although I'm sure my words will be the truth sooner or later since my headache is continuing to decrease in throbbing.
"That's good to hear!" Tai says with a grin, before reaching over to pat the side of my face in a friendly manner, his bright smile infectious. I have to bite my lip to repress my smile, but only Matt appears to take notice of it. Tai, oblivious to my struggle of keeping a Mimi-like squeal of glee from escaping me, continues with, "You're a little toughie, aren't you?"
At this point, I'm like a sapling absorbing every little bit of his praising sunlight, nodding dumbly.
After that bit, Tai wishes the best for my head's recovery and leaves the room once more so I can continue searching for my drawing book- this time without my head being in the hazardous depths of the bunk bed.
"So... How old are you, Marie?" TK asks curiously after Yamato makes his way out of the room after Tai, leaving TK and I alone to converse while he deals with whatever conversation he wants to have with the brown haired boy.
"I turned eight earlier this year," I answer him, looking over my shoulder at the curious boy as he watches me sort through my belongings to pull out a small drawstring knapsack that I immediately swing over my back. "How about you?"
"Me? Oh, I turned seven this year... Guess I'm the smallest one in the group. I was hoping Izzy was maybe close to my age, but he's nine- only looks younger 'cause he's a bit short," TK says with a mildly crestfallen expression, looking down at his feet shyly. "I don't know if anyone would want to play with me since I'm so small- even Matt goes off on his own sometimes to be with Sora and Tai, so I'm usually by myself."
"Oh... I can play with you if they leave you alone," I say when I see the look on his face. He appears to have the same fears I have with our elders leaving us to ourselves, making TK look up in surprise.
"You will? Even if you're a year older?" TK cocked his head to the side slightly, as if he were confused about my statement.
"Why not?" I answered questioningly. "Is it wrong?"
"Well, no, but-" TK began, fumbling for words to answer.
"Then I see no problem with it," I said, getting off the bed after giving up on looking for my drawing book. I faced TK and smiled at him. "What do you wanna do first?"
...
"Let's go exploring outside!" TK declared, making me straighten up jokingly and salute him.
"Aye, Captain Takeru! I'll follow you, sir!" I declared with a grin, making TK grab my hand and drag me out of the outhouse in clear excitement.
"I found this really, really, really cool cave about ten meters from camp, and I wanted to show someone! Taichi was too busy though, so it'll be our little secret!" TK explains, my blue eyes locking with Sora- who stands by Matt, Jojo and Tai just outside of the outhouse. I give her a shy smile that prompts her to cocks her head in curiosity, but continue following TK despite the red flag that has erected in the back of my mind. Something tells me I should be worried about her saying something to Matt or Jojo, but... She'd only do that unless we were doing something wrong. This cave isn't too far from camp, is it?
"Matt won't get mad that we're straying a little far from camp, will he?" I ask curiously, making TK hum in slight thought.
"Not sure. But as long as we have each other, I don't think it's too much of a problem," TK answers honestly with a slight shrug, making me smile back timidly. I sure hope he's right...
I already know TK and I are going to get along very nicely.
"We're here, Marie- Oh, wait. Uh, I mean- we have arrived at base camp, Lieutenant Marie!" TK says proudly, straightening up once we reach a small cave near a jacuzzi sized pool of water with a waterfall as clear blue as a crystal.
"Whoa, Captain Takeru! That's a really pretty waterfall- I kinda wish I was wearing my swimming suit right now," I say brightly in response, the two of us walking towards the pool of water and kneeling by the edge to peer through the clear liquid.
"Hey, I see fish," TK comments in mild surprise, making me blink and squint to try and see them as well. Are they deeper in the water? Or is my eyesight just bad?
"Where?" I query in confusion, moving my head around to try and see what he's seeing. After a moment, TK laughs at my obvious struggle and lifts a hand to point at the center of the pool of water.
"They're tiny and gray- just stare at one spot and you'll be able to see them moving," TK states, right before turning to the water and dipping a curious finger in. I follow his instructions. After a moment or two of staring, I grin when I notice the vast amount of tiny fish swimming around the pond.
A gasp of surprise escapes me as I watch them squirm around, speeding around the small pool of water with movements my eyes can barely catch. "They look like tadpoles," I comment, just as TK stands up and grasps my free hand to help me up on my feet too.
"Okay, let's check out that cave now," TK cheers with a hyped expression of excitement. "I can't wait to see what's in there!"
TK leads the way, leaving me to follow beside him as we enter the cave and gradually walk deeper and deeper. The further we trudge on, the more the light starts to fade out on us and diminish into an inky darkness.
"Captain Takeru, I'm kinda scared of the dark... Could I hold your hand?" I ask softly after a minute of silence in the cave, causing TK to pause beside me in the darkness. I can barely see the outline of him at this point.
"Oh, uh, sure! But only 'cause you're scared. I'm not scared at all," TK responds, sounding more like he's trying to reassure himself rather than me. I decide not to linger on that detail though, and accept his confirmation.
"Thank you," I reply with a small smile of relief in the dark, searching for his hand and eventually latching onto it as we continue to go deeper and deeper through the cave.
After a while of walking, TK speaks again to brighten things up.
"Hey, Lieutenant?" He inquires beside me, our arms linked as we walk in the darkness together carefully. So far it's only been a straight tunnel, and the most dangerous thing we've come across is a misstep onto a rock that nearly had me and TK slamming into the ground face first. Thankfully, we managed to catch ourselves before anything could happen.
"Yeah, Captain?"
"What's second grade like?" TK continues after a moment of hesitation, giving me a moment to think up a short and overall descriptive sentence to answer him.
"It's not as easy as first grade, but I think the challenge is nice. I like what I learn," I decide to answer him with, just as we hit a wall and both squeak when we walk right into it.
"Oh... A dead end? That's a let down- we were walking for so long," TK mopes a bit while I reach out to feel along the wall until I find an empty area of air to our left.
"Hey, it keeps going to the left of this wall!" I say upon the new discovery, unable to keep the smile growing from my face. This is a lot more fun than I originally thought it would be!
"Really? Good work, Lieutenant!" TK applauds, the both of us walking along the side of the tunnel and using our hands to make sure we don't stray and run into any more walls. Well, I'm not sure if TK is doing the same thing as me, but I'm certainly using the wall of the tunnel as a directory. I don't wanna hurt myself in here and get stuck I'd TK has to leave me, bring help, and just so happens to be unable to find his way back to me.
"TK?" I ask out loud.
"Yeah? What is it?" He responds, causing me to bite my lip in realization.
We should probably head back so Matt and Jojo wouldn't worry about us...
"I-" I start to say until we begin to see a light ahead, making my words cut off at the sight. The end of the tunnel? "Hey, is that a light?"
"Whoa! It looks like it! Let's go check it out!" TK exclaims, skirting around me and running off so quickly that I barely have the time to grasp what's going on.
I want to call him back in case it's dangerous, but evidently release the wall and end up running after him silently- not wanting to be left behind either.
When I emerge from the tunnel after TK, I'm immediately blinded by the daylight, making me rub my eyes a little before looking up and gawking at the small woodsy area greener than even the greenest house on Jojo's house street... Which is actually our house, now that I was thinking about it.
That pond and waterfall from before seems to connect to this area too, as there's this large crystal clear lake of gold fish at the end with a small waterfall covering a small dome cavern behind it.
"Whoa! Isn't this amazing, Marie?! Who would have guessed this was back he-!" TK begins in astonishment until a voice cut him off from out of nowhere.
"TK! What did I tell you about straying too far from camp?"
"Gyah!" TK blurts out in surprise before the two of us whirl around to see Matt, Sora, Jojo and Tai standing right behind us.
"Uh... We didn't think this was far enough to count! I mean... Was it?" TK asks them innocently with a sheepish grin, causing Matt to cross his arms and glare at his little brother.
While looking at the brothers, I don't initially notice Jojo carefully walking closer to me, only catching his concealed and sneaky movements once he's within grabbing range. I spring back a few steps when I realize what he's aiming to do, much to the confusion of the other kids when they notice the anxious expression that's formed over my features.
No, don't tell me he's going to punish me with... That!
"I'm sorry!" I squeak fearfully upon the thought, making Jojo slip his bag off of his shoulder and shake his head at me.
"I don't think so, you're not getting off the hook that easily," Jojo responds matter-of-factly.
There's truly only one thought circulating through my brain in this moment.
I don't want Jojo to embarrass me in front of Tai!
Out of desperation, I spin around and charge for a tree, grabbing the nearest branch I can reach and pulling myself up it quickly just as Jojo makes a lunge to grab me and deliver... Punishment.
Narrowly avoiding him, I pull myself up on the branch and look down at my cousin below with a breath of relief as I climb a few branches higher just in case. I hear Jojo release a loud groan of annoyancr, "Marie! Get down here!"
I glance back down from the sturdy thick branch I'm sitting on and shake my head at him defiantly, despite my timidness. No way! I don't want to be punished in front of Tai! Being scolded like this in front of him is bad enough as it is!
I'm just about to say something in response when something cold lands on my cheek.
I make a face of confusion and prod at my cheek until I pull my fingers away to reveal a drop of water on my fingertips.
"Huh?" I question in confusion, looking up in time for another cold substance to flutter straight into my eye.
Surprised at the landing spot, I snap my eyes shut with a small yip of discomfort, flinching back and rubbing my eyes only to suddenly feel my body swing backwards as soon as I recline too far to bring myself back to balance on the branch.
"Marie!" I hear TK yell in alarm. Thankfully, Jojo is mostly used to this and doesn't even seem to be remotely panicked when he catches me in his arms with a sigh and a shake of his head.
"If you're gonna climb things all the time, the least you could do is learn not to fall out of high places and scare anyone else who doesn't know you well enough," Jojo scolds me, causing me to sweat drop in embarrassment.
"Whoops... Sorry," I say sheepishly, glad to see that the fall has at least placated his initial annoyance and urge to punish me further. "I was just surprised. It's starting to snow."
"Huh? Snow? It's summertime!" Sora says in disbelief as Jojo helps me straighten up and readjusts my rumpled hair.
Before anything else can be said, a blast of chilly air hit all six of us along with a hand full of white specks that are unarguably flakes of genuine snow.
"Whoa! Tell that to the weather! Doesn't seem like it got the memo!" Tai states dryly before gesturing towards the cave we'd gone through. "We should get back to camp, this isn't weather we should be in with the clothing we have on right now."
Jojo takes my hand and nods to Tai. "You're right! Come on, Marie," he says while TK, Matt, and Sora follow Tai, Jojo and I.
I take a final glance at the sky nervously.
Something's not right about this weather... I think, just before the cave walls creep over us to conceal the chilly gray sky above.
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End of Chapter 1