La nuit des fées

The sun was slowly sinking into the deep blues and purples of the ocean, near the Vulpix Isles. The sky and its clouds were forming a beautiful gradient of red, orange and yellow. As she was admiring the sunset, Claire noticed a bright pink streak, reminding her of her pelt. She heard footsteps behind her and turned around. Aries, a young blonde vulpix who she was friend with, was approaching quickly. "She seems really excited", thought Claire. The alolan vulpix couldn't believe what she was about to show her friend: one of her best kept secret... until now. She knew that once Aries would be aware of this secret, it would only be a matter of hours before she told another vulpix. And then everyone on the island would know about this place... Claire sighed. She really wanted to share this secret with someone, and knew Aries would be as excited as she was about it. The blonde vulpix almost fell at Claire's paws, tripping over a hidden rock in the sand. Claire gasped.

- Are you okay Aries? asked Claire, worried.

The small vulpix snort and sat down, licking her chest to try to get rid of the sand that was caught between her fur. She yipped when she realised sand would stick to her tongue. Claire laughed a bit, stepping forward to help her friend to get rid of most of the sand. Once it was done, Aries stared at Claire straight in the eye.

- Soooo, what did you want to show me? You didn't ell me anything, so I imagined SO much stuff! You have no idea what my brain is capable of. Please tell me! I need to know! said Aries in a pleading tone.

- Alright, alright friend! Follow me. You're about to see the best thing ever! It's in a clearing, not too far from this beach!

Aries was so excited that she almost ran in front of Claire, but as she remembered that she was supposed to follow her friend, she slowed down and waiting for the alolan vulpix. It was getting dark, the sun was almost completely set. They needed to hurry up! Claire stopped for a second, looking around. Was it this way or...? She couldn't remember! This part of the island, a forest with huge stones peaking through the green foliage, looked the same in every direction. She started panicking. Aries noticed and landed her paw on her friend's shoulder.

- Are we lost Claire? You should try to think of what was on the path to where you're taking us. Like the way home: one swirling stone, then the hugging trees and lastly the purple plains! That's how we get home!

Claire smiled. Her friend just had a great idea. She tried to remember the way to the clearing. There was this orange dirt path with shiny stones embed in it. But before getting to this path, she crossed... a rivulet! That's it! Claire listened carefully to her surroundings. A few birds were still singing, and she could even hear them flying above her head, ready to go back to their nest for the night. The wind was calm and the surrounding leaves were slowly moving. Suddenly, she heard it. The sound of water slowly weaving between rounded rocks and drops falling on the nearby leaves and grass. Her heart started racing. She turned around to face Aries, a big smile on her face.

- We need to follow the nearby rivulet! Quick, follow me! she said, as she started running toward the sound of water rushing through rocks.

Aries followed her friend, carefully staying behind her this time. She was humming a song, which she always does when she was excited - whether it was for an adventure or for food. The two friends followed the rivulet back up, playing with the water on their way to the clearing. Suddenly, a faint light coming from behind a tree intrigued them. Claire knew that they had arrived at the right place. That was it! The clearing was right behind that tall tree and these bushes. There was no way to skirt around the greenery, they were forming a strange circle around the clearing. It seemed almost magical. They had to go through one of the shrub. Some of they had thorns hidden in them and Claire had to be very careful when choosing the right one. Once she was inside the clearing, on the other side of the bush, she yelled at her friend:

- It is safe to pass! Come join me, Aries! It's beautiful here!

Aries eagerly passed through the foliage, getting a couple of berries and leaves caught in her fur. The clearing was as beautiful as Claire had said it was: there were fireflies everywhere. The faint light they had seen earlier was much more vivid here. The fireflies were forming moving constellations around them, tickling their snoot when they were curiously approaching the vulpix. The ground was made of moss and soft grass and it was so soft to the touch that the two friend decided to lay down. Looking up to the sky, which had turned completely black now, they laughed. The bright stars on the dark sky were almost hidden by the amount of light the fireflies were producing. It was quite warm in this closed clearing, probably because of the moss that was containing the warmth, and Aries started to yawn.

- You were right about this place, Claire, it's magical. How did you discover it?

- I was hanging out with Olive the other day and she hurt her paw on the beach. She must have slipped on a conch or some kind of sharp shell. I went into the forest to get some moss to tend to her wound, I was hoping it would help her! I followed the rivulet, hoping the water would have grown moss near the river, but there was none. It smelt like moss in this clearing and when I entered I saw all those fireflies... I knew I had to take you here with me! cheerfully answered Claire.

- You didn't take Olive here? asked Aries.

Aries was trying to hide her anxiety after mentioning her sister. She knew Claire and Olive were close, almost as close as she was with Claire. She didn't want to be replaced... Maybe Aries wasn't even the first person Claire took to this clearing. She scratched her right forearm without paying too much attention to it.

- I didn't, she was injured, and we headed back to camp immediately. Your sister kept screaming that she didn't want to lose her paw, you know how she is when she hurt herself, Claire added in a sigh. I never told anyone about this place. Except for you now.

Aries' only tail started wagging. She was the first person to know about this place! A big smile appeared on her face. She rolled on the side to look at Claire.

- Thank you for trusting me, Claire! I'm so glad you took me to this clearing first. You're my best friend!

Claire was still on her back, looking at the blonde vulpix from upside down. She laughed.

- Of course I trust you! You're my best friend too, Aries!