653 Difèrne || Land Quests || First Land

Zealin paused, ears perked up at the bleating of sheeps. It had been a year since she saw Difèrne, the one that she owed. Of course, she was going to take Difèrne on a journey, now that she had the power to. Next to her, her phoenix familiar flapped her wings. Gone was the wolf that had accompanied her, replaced by the risen ashes.

She tapped twice on the door, backing away a few steps to not get hit if it swung open. “Difèrne?”

The door opened, revealing a dusty quirlicorn with a soap soaked cloth. The cloth slipped out of Difèrne’s mouth. “Zealin?” 

“Difèrne!”

The yellow mare leaped into the air and embraced Zealin with her neck. “I can’t believe it, you really came back. You’re here!” Zealin flinched back slightly, unused to the closeness between quirlicorns, and awkwardly padded the other’s back. “Daddy, come quick! Zealin is here!”

Difèrne stepped aside and invited the modern mare inside. Many quirlicorns cheered when they saw her enter the house and Zealin was immediately caught in a storm of snack offerings.

“No, no, I don’t- I’m not hungry,” Zealin excused herself, incredibly awkward. She cleared her throat as snacks were thrusted in her direction. I’m pretty sure that Difèrne’s family was not this gigantic last time. Ultimately deciding to phase back outside of the door, she focused on Difèrne. “In the past… You expressed that you wished to travel. Is this still true?” 

“More than ever,” the mare giggled with embarrassment, pushing one of her brothers aside. “Especially in times like these.”

Zealin wasn’t surprised. The commotion inside was enough to drive her away. She found it quite amusing that Difèrne hadn’t figured out that the former had used magic to escape from that crowd. “I have time now, and I should be able to protect you from most dangers. I have practiced with my magic. Are you ready to explore?”

Difèrne raised an eyebrow. “You mean you want to… Now?” She nervously eyed her parents who stood across the room. Her numerous siblings started chanting “go, go, go!”. Zealin could have sworn she had also heard a “if Didi leaves, can I have her bedroom?” She shook her head. The mare was definitely not making this easy.

“Yes,” Zealin stated in a matter-of-fact tone. “Unless… You are currently preoccupied?”

“I’m… not,” Difèrne answered hesitantly, after once again glancing at her parents. 

“Then let’s go,” Zealin firmly stated. She turned slightly before pausing. 

A smile crept on the yellow mare’s face. “Wait, I have to pack my things! Friend, come here, girl!” The sentence was punctuated by barking and pawsteps.

Zealin gave a slight nod. It was understandable for the other to want to pack her items, and Zealin refrained from mentioning that Difèrne would likely lose half, if not all, the materials she started out with. The quirlicorn waited for Difèrne to finish packing, studiously ignoring the questioning gazes thrown in her direction. 

When Difèrne finally returned with her dog and backpack, Zealin motioned her to follow. “Which region would you like to go to first? Any specific activities? I also forgot to warn you that the unexpected generally does happen, regardless of how well-prepared one is. You’ll learn improvisation… and hopefully survival skills.”

Difèrne tilted her head. “If I could pick, I’d head to the plains region. Can you imagine how vast of an open space that is? And the magics there seem phenomenal! Do you think we might catch a joust? Jousts aren’t normally held around here, but I’ve always wanted to see one. It’s the best way to quickly learn about magic, my uncle says,” the mare said in one breath. 

Well, Zealin thought, at least it wasn’t the Desert Region or I’d be tempted to use Memory Manipulation. Giving a slight nod, Zealin had her wings appear and unfurled them, before noticing the problem. “...You can’t fly… Can you?”

Difèrne shook her head. “No… not yet, at least! That’s alright, though: we can take the scenic route. How long do you think it would take to get there on hoof?”

“We’re taking the train,” Zealin stated. She sighed and had her wings disappear. Ember perched on her back. “This is my phoenix familiar, Ember. She won’t bite… unless I tell her to. The train is fast enough, though it might be a bit crowded since it’s the weekend. The nearest station will take half an hour to reach. Maybe less, if we trot fast. Or… we can slide down.”

Difèrne folded her map. “I was just about to suggest that,” she grinned, her aura shining brighter. 

“You… know how to slide down?” Zealin inquired. She initially thought that the other wouldn’t understand her words… No, it was impossible for the other to, considering the fact that she didn’t know her powers yet. “Or do you mean that in a more figurative sense?”

“We’ll see, there’s this thing my siblings and I used to do when we were foals… It’s much easier if I just show you,” she said with a mysterious smile.

Zealin narrowed her eyes. Of course, she wouldn’t give up the chance for knowledge and adventure. With a reluctant nod, Zealin spoke, “Alright. I do hope that it’s safe.”

The ancient mare’s method was rather archaic, for the lack of a better word. Difèrne and her trusty dog sat on the grass, eyeing the modern quirlicorn with a glimpse of amusement. “One, two… threeeeeee!” The quirlicorn and her dog raised their front legs and slid down the small hill the house was built on top of.

Zealin stared at the two as if they had gone insane. Actually, Zealin was rather certain that both of them had, and cursed herself for the lack of actually intelligent quirlicorns (then, recounting all of the adventures that she had partaken in, she admitted that several of her plans were… not the best). With a sigh, Zealin had water pool over the hill after the other two landed, and slid down, watering the grass at the same time. “Let’s continue moving,” Zealin said as though she had not just shown off an ability. 

Difèrne shook the water remnants off her hooves. “You did that? That was awesome! Is there a limit to how much water you can summon? Oh, oh, can you summon frozen water? Or steam?” The quirlicorn beamed. 

The other quirlicorn sighed, suddenly heavily regretting the decision to display her magical ability. “Let’s just go…” The two eventually reached the Plains Region after Zealin nearly had her ear talked off, and stepped out of the train. 

Difèrne finally fell quiet while they trotted across the train station. On the platform alone were more quirlicorns than she had ever seen. The delight on the mare’s face competed with her bright yellow aura in brightness. She glanced side to side, unable to focus on one area of interest. Finally, she closed her eyes and soaked the noise in. 

“This is wonderful, Zealin! Don’t get me wrong, I loved riding the train. But this… It’s good to finally be out of the mountains.” She took a deep breath. “Imagine all the great quirlicorns we’re going to meet! And all the good foods we’re going to taste!” She side-eyed a food cart. “What kind of activities do quirlicorns like to do here?”

Zealin hesitated in her response. To be completely truthful, she hated social interactions and avoided them unless she did not have any other choice. Realizing that Difèrne was waiting for a reply, Zealin flicked her ear and came up with a vague response. “Whatever quirlicorns usually do. The Plains Region isn’t that famous for games-” she stopped, stiffening. “Do you hear something? It sounds like a cry.” 

Difèrne looked around. She was unable to see whatever was emitting the cry, but she could hear a faint squeal amongst the crowd. “Sounds like a cat in pain.” And without further discussing it with her travelling partner, she cantered in the cry’s direction. Friend took off after her master, barking frantically.

“Difèrne, that could be a-” Zealin sighed as Difèrne started to disappear from her view, “trap…” She shook her head, slightly defeated. Then, the mare quickly galloped after her. “You should at least wait for me! Or better yet, discuss the actual situation beforehand…”

She found Difèrne nuzzling a cat which was lying down on a pile of wet newspapers. Its screams made Zealin cringe, but she still approached the animal, on the lookout for any quirlicorn displaying suspicious behavior in the crowd. Difèrne looked up.

“I think it’s having some trouble giving birth,” she said matter-of-factly. “Her waters already broke but none of the kittens seem to be coming out. Then again, I don’t know how long she’s been here, the poor thing.”

“Do you want me to splash her with some water, then? You already know that I can summon water.” Zealin gazed at the cat, almost boredly. She wasn’t one to care much about wildlife. “It doesn’t seem like a huge problem.” 

“No,” Difèrne laughed nervously. “That’s just an expression for a thing that happens in the birth process.” The mare stepped back and thought for a second. “Actually, can you summon boiled water somehow? We’re gonna need something to wash out hooves and sterilize anything that we might need to help this cat.” 

“Never tried it before, but I don’t see why not. It’s hot enough, anyways.” Zealin concentrated on hot water and manipulated her energy, circling water next to her. Ember helped heat the water with her natural flames, as well, focusing with a new vigor. “Is this enough? Or do you need more? And are you sure that we have to help this cat?” She glanced in a different direction. “We could be doing something else right now. Anything, really.”

Difèrne frowned. “What else could we be doing? The poor thing’s in pain. We can’t leave her like this. She could die, and the kittens too!” She looked through her bag and pulled out some scissors. She dipped them in the hot water, then proceeded to wash her hooves as well. She turned her back on Zealin, hiding the cat from her view. “This won’t take too long anyways, if that’s what you’re worried about.” Blood spilled on the platform, past the yellow mare’s hooves. Difèrne muttered some appeasing words to the cat. It had stopped meowing.

Zealin winced. She didn’t feel sympathetic to the poor cat, but there were easier ways to kill an animal. And she’s not even trying to kill it! With a frown, Zealin let the dirty water down in a different area of the land, and summoned more hot water. “Alright, fine. Do what you will.”

“Actually, I’m going to need your help.” Difèrne said quietly. “Can you get the first aid kit out and get some stitching and bandages ready? She’s going to lose a lot of blood so I’ll have to fix her up quickly. I don’t even have time to give her painkillers or anything,” she added sorrowfully. 

The quirlicorn quickly dug out a first aid kid and hoofed it over to Difèrne. Even if Zealin didn’t particularly care about the cat, it was clear that the other did, and Zealin really didn’t want to waste time bickering. Besides, it was rare for Difèrne to have such a serious tone. Zealin also did not want to betray her trust and companionship after Difèrne’s family took her in. “Anything else?” she inquired. “I can also summon lightning, but I… doubt that that’d be useful in this.” 

“Be ready to clean the kittens. The mother will be too tired to do it.” Difèrne pushed a wet cloth in Zealin’s direction. Zealin heard a weak “mew”. She flinched at the sight of the many bloody, naked kittens that Difèrne was pulling out of the seemingly small mother cat. Ember turned away, opting to stare at the skies instead.

“Will the mother die?” Zealin questioned, trying to not stare at the bloody kittens. “And should I soak them with water?” She didn’t know if the blood on their fur was healthy or not, but it was rather uncomfortable to look at. 

“No, simply rub them with this cloth. It’ll help their blood flow,” Difèrne answered, her teeth clenched. 

Zealin stared at the tiny beings curled up, “Are… Are you sure? They look soft. I might kill them if I rub them with a cloth.” Nevertheless, she took the cloth and stepped closer to the kittens, leaning closer to them but not quite touching them yet. 

Difèrne stitched the mother cat’s belly with fast, confident movements. It appeared she hadn’t heard Zealin’s question. 

“Difèrne! Are you sure that I should rub them with a cloth?!” Zealin repeated, raising her voice. 

Difèrne nodded. All her attention remained on the mother cat. She washed it with another sterilized cloth.

Zealin winced, but leaned forward. She gently started to rub the kittens with the soft cloth, not pressing down hard on purpose. 

“The mother is safe,” Difèrne breathed in relief. She caressed it with her muzzle. “Thanks to you.”

“Err… The kittens are still living?” Zealin returned. The cloth was rather bloody now. “Can I stop rubbing them?” 

The yellow quirlicorn studied the kittens. “Yes, you did a good job!”

“Thanks.” Zealin shook her head. “But, they lived because of you.” She almost added a ‘can we leave now’ afterwards, but stopped herself. Instead, she asked, “Will they be safe now? Without us here?” She hoped that they weren’t adopting kittens now. 

“I couldn’t have saved the mother without you though.” She looked around. “We might want to ask a staff member if they can keep an eye on them. The mother will be unconscious for a little while and they risk getting stepped on here.”

“...” Zealin glanced at the open field. “And… where exactly are we supposed to find a staff member?” 

Zealin received no answer: Difèrne ran into the station to find someone. She quickly returned with a quirlicorn in a uniform. Friend sniffed the kittens, tail wagging. She growled when the quirlicorns approached.

“-but otherwise they should be fine in a few days,” she informed the staff, who nodded his head. “I wish I could bring them with me, but it would not be safe,” she added sadly. Meanwhile, Zealin stood flabbergasted in the background. 

“Don’t worry, ma’am,” the quirlicorn said. “I’ll bring them inside where they’ll be warm and safe. Who knows? Someone might be interested in adopting them.”

“Thank you.” Difèrne smiled before turning her head towards Zealin. “Shall we continue on our journey, now?” 

“Let’s continue,” Zealin replied. “After all, there’s plenty left to explore.” 

The two walked out of the train station (finally, Zealin thought) with Friend galloping on their heels and barking excitedly as Difèrne spoke the modern mare’s ears off. There were so many things to see and do. Difèrne wanted to see them all and do everything. Zealin shook away negative thoughts. With Difèrne by her side, she hoped her luck would finally turn and that she could have a safe trip for once in her lifetime.