Dragoncrest Cliffs Arapaima

Raindrops had swept in on grey clouds, overtaking any sunlight that had previously granted Swordfish with a peaceful napping place. When the first droplets had fallen onto his snout, the boy had awoken with a small start. He blinked, glancing around where he rested. There were no signs that Stingray was playing a prank on him, at least none that he could see immediately. A yawn parted his mouth, and he tasted the sprinkling of further raindrops.

A sour expression crossed the boy’s face. He had been enjoying the heat of the sun and the sound of the ocean so close to their home. Swordfish wasn’t interested in moving. He wasn’t interested in anything more than finding himself lost in dreams. The last of them had been curious and confusing. He tried to close his eyes tight, hoping to conjure them back to his head. The rain fell in heavier drops.

Swordfish sighed and pushed himself to his paws. He blinked against the water falling on his face and turned to glance back over his shoulder at where the family den was.

chacal was fat to bursting. mireille knew nothing about children, but she had watched her maman hitch around a heavy belly long enough to understand the basics.
she headed for meerkat's den, intent on finding an hour or so for the pups she regarded as her little siblings as well. she found swordfish out of doors, caught in a trickle of rain.
mireille shook out her ruff. "bonjour, swordfish. you not be likin' de rain?" she asked, sticking her tongue out to catch a drop or two.

Someone had come to visit him. Swordfish turned his head to catch the vibrance of her coat and the familiarity upon her face. She knew him by name, but he did not believe that he knew her name yet. If their mother had introduced them, he didn’t remember. As she drew closer, he found himself mesmerized by the freckles that adorned her face. He was not shy about staring at her.

No. A simple answer to her question. Swordfish did not think that he liked the rain at all, in fact. It spattered upon his face and made his eyes feel funny when it got inside them. The boy shook his head until his ears smacked against his skull. He gazed at his visitor with a pout.

Make it stop.

"ah, but de rain be good." she circled closer and held her brilliant fox-red tail over his head. "now. you tell sè ou what you be hatin' about de rain."
the drizzle would eventually she cease. she hummed for the present however, lifting her face into the mist and blinking as raindrops broke across the bridge of her nose.

She moved to cover his head with her bright red tail. Swordfish glanced up at it with blinking eyes. The girl seemed to believe that the rain was something to be pleased about. Had she ever laid in the sun? If he had more words, he might have used that argument. Instead, the boy put on a pitiful face and shifted his attention to her eyes. 

It hurts my eyes! 

The boy’s voice was a small whine. He frowned. The rain also made him wet, which was not an enjoyable experience thus far in his life. Swordfish wondered what she would say to that.

"well, it be hurtin' mine too when i look up at it!" mireille chuckled, taking the opportunity to cuddle closer to him. "tell you what: after de rain, we will ask your mot'er if you can come wid me to de big tree. we will sit under it an' talk about de rain."
she did not think meerkat would mind if she took the boy over there now, but wanted to be sure and careful. it came with eldest-sister syndrome.
"what weat'er do ye like, swordfish?" mireille inquired a moment later.

The boy wasn’t opposed to such closeness. In fact, with her frame next to his, he did not feel so threatened by the rainfall. She said that when the rain had finished, they would speak to mom, and they could go sit beneath the big tree to talk about it. Swordfish peered at her face with jaw agape. After a long pause, he nodded his head in agreement. That did sound nice…

The fire red woman asked what kind of weather Swordfish did like. The boy licked his chops before glancing at her chin. The boy hadn’t been alive long enough to experience the full weather variety. He knew that he didn’t much care for the rain because it fell in his eyes and made them sting. However, he knew that there was a phenomenon that he adored.

I wike the sun. So warm. So warm!

Swordfish stretched out his front legs as if basking in it.

Wot you? he asked her next.

"mmmm," she hummed to herself, ears flicking. "a monster." mireille clacked her teeth on the empty air and then laughed. "no. i be your sister, mireille. you like de sun, eh? well. soon you can come to de beach."
"i like de rain. but i also like de sun. an' i like snow. you are not old enough to know what dat is." she laughed and kissed his forehead.

A monster? No!

Swordfish’s eyes grew wide for a moment before her words erased his fears. The boy laughed nervously, uncertain if it was appropriate to giggle. She stated that she was a sister. Swordfish was pleased to hear that he had another sister and one who was so big. He wondered what she might be able to teach him.

Wha’s snow? Is nice? You can nap with snows?

A soft wag of his tail followed this inquiry. Swordfish peered up at his sister with curious eyes and an expression that showed he was ready to learn anything.

she laughed. "snow is very cold! brr," she shivered, showing him how the snow would feel when it came. "but you can sleep in it, oui. and you can even build little dens from it."
she shook her hackles and glanced around. the rain was beginning to lift. "why don't we go an' find your maman? maybe she will say we can go to de big tree."
mireille bumped him with her nose, then unfurled her pelt from around the boy.

Cold didn’t sound good, but she was quick to appeal to him with the promise of sleep and the making of dens. Swordfish figured that warmth would come with both of those activities. Snow could not be all that bad, if it led to comfort.

At the mention of mom, the boy glanced around in hurried search. He thought she had come looking for him, that he had gone too far. Mireille just wanted to find her and discuss going to the big tree. Swordfish accepted with an eager nod. He nudged at Mireille before he took off at a bound in search of the familiar loving expression of his mother.