Pin rolled his eyes. The pounding sounds from the front door were not what he needed first thing in the morning. Sleepily, he rolled to his side and pulled his ears in tight around him, attempting to shut out the noise. No use.
“Brother! Wake up! I found somebody!”
It was enough to make Pin finally shrug off his blankets and head to the door.
He opened it to find two kids gazing up at him. One, of course, was his younger brother Kippler. The other? Well… he’d never seen her before.
“Klip did you even pay attention to the weather before deciding to drag your friend here?” The sky above held some dark foreboding clouds, ready to dump out their load at any moment. For Pin, who lived in an elevated house just off the beach, it was the kind of weather that he kept an eye out for.
“I didn’t drag them here. I came by myself.” Klip smiled and flapped his ears around. One ear to be more precise. The other was only wiggling the tip ever so slightly so as to not hit the young chi next to him.
Pin grumbled quietly then looked over at the new face. Brown fur with hair braided down to her knees. She and Kippler almost looked like they had dressed to match. Overalls and suspenders on each.
“So, who are you?” he asked.
The kids' eyes suddenly filled with tears. Pin jumped back as she started crying. “What the heck? What’d I say?”
“I don’t know where my parents are,” she sniffled as she talked.
Pin looked out at the weather again. It really could start coming down any second now.
“Alright, well... for now, you guys should come in and wait here till the clouds clear.”
She shook her head. “I want to go home. I want my Pachi,” she cried.
Pin scratched his head and looked out again at the clouds. He then looked back at the kids. Big mistake. Those eyes just couldn’t get any bigger could they?
“Ugh, fine! You know where your house is right?” The girl nodded. “Alright, then we’ll have to walk quickly alright?”
Klip jumped and took the girl’s hands. “See, I told you my brother could help!” His little tail wiggled happily behind him
“And you are going home right after.”
“Aww… but-”
“No buts. It’s not safe for chiblings to be on the beach during a storm. Now, wait here while I grab my coat.” The windows rattled with the oncoming storm. It’s not safe for me to be out on the beach now either, but he kept that thought to himself. Drop the kid off at her house, then shelter at Seri’s till the rain lets up. Thunder rumbled not far away.
Pin rushed to grab his jacket and shuffled the kids out the door.
Unlike what he’d expected, the chibling, who still hadn’t given her name, didn’t lead them to a house in town. She headed off on a path deeper into the forest, and after 20 minutes of walking, the rain was getting closer. They’d probably not make it back without being soaked. Pin groaned at the thought of asking her xachis to shelter at their house, and worse, having to explain to Seri and his Machi why Klip was out so late.
The wind howled and rustled the trees. It was the only response he got. Pin turned around only to find the mysterious chibling was gone.
“Pin…” Klip tugged on his sleeve. “I’m tired.”
Tired was an understatement. He looked ready to pass out. “Did you see where she went?” Klip shook his head and rubbed his eyes. His butterfly-shaped ears flapped lightly with the motion.
Panic started to set in. Getting himself and his brother back safely but abandoning this girl…
“Hey! Where’d you go?” he yelled into the wind.
What little sky could be seen through the leaves lit up with a crack of lightning. Okay, they’d have to get help. He couldn’t risk Klip getting hurt.
“Come on, we’re going back.”
Klip nodded, even the lightning couldn’t wake him up.
Pin sighed. “Come here. I’ll carry you back-”
As he knelt down, a wave of nausea and dizziness swept over him. He stumbled back, body feeling heavier by the second. “What’s...“ Klip fell to the ground in front of him. “Klip!” A few drops turned quickly into a downpour, and Pin couldn’t do anything as a black fog filled his vision. He fell right beside his little brother.
