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Later that night, a certain peryton could not for the life of him fall sleep. The pitter pattering of tiny feet was too quick for his liking. Horrible images conjured up in his mind. A giant spider? No, it must have been giant centipede. Those abominations had a hundred legs supposedly. The mere thought of a giant insect roaming around in the same room as him made the fur on his neck stand on end. 

He reluctantly lifted one dreary eye lid to see Cara. What could she be doing at this time of night? Curiosity piqued, he crept and observed what she was doing at what he deemed was a safe distance. He was not going to lie. He found her appearance unsettling; the way her creepy crawly legs moved and her sharp fangs that gleamed in the dying light of the campfire, a droplet of venom patiently waiting for its next target. Every cell in his body was screaming at him that she was a dangerous beast out to get him. Distracted in making sure he was not stepping on any silk, he failed to see Cara’s gaze was fixated on him. When he finally realised this, Morpho jolted having been caught in the act. Her head tilted in confusion. 

It didn’t take long for her to realise why he was so startled. 

He was scared of her. 

He had made up his mind about her and at a loss of what to do, she sat there, gutted. 
Morpho flew into a frenzy seeing her little face scrunch up, fighting back the tears.

M: “Ah! No no no! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to upset you! I just…have a fear of spiders and literally anything that has more than four legs. Its nothing personal! Honest!”

His eyes darted all over the place, desperately thinking of what to say. What could he possibly say to fix it? What am I supposed to do? But in the end he gave up. He sighed and stared idly at the ground. Saying nothing, he allowed his racing thoughts to come to a standstill. His eyes shifted back to Cara’s unfinished tapestry. In the centre appeared to be five entities framed in the shape of a heart. A simple image, yet it carried more meaning than he has ever experienced before.

M: “Did you make this?”

She nodded abashedly, too shy to look at him in the eye. Morpho was all too familiar with that look of inspiration, all the while trying to hide it for fear of being criticised.

M: “Well, take this from one creative soul to another, you’ve got the skill and the passion to match! You’re sorted for life if you ask me! ~”

M: “And…” he sighed.

M: “I can’t help but envy that. I’m a full grown buck who hasn’t got the slightest idea what I want to do with my life. I guess that’s why I’m here; to find myself and to accept who I will become”. 

Cara’s eyes sparkled and she approached him for a hug, but an outstretched hoof stopped her.

M: “How about we settle for a hoof shake instead, squirt. No hard feelings? ~”

Her eyes began to tear up again, relieved, it was advice she needed to hear. His hoof, whose much bigger than her own, quivered in her grasp. His fears were not ready to be laid to rest. One step at a time, he told himself. 

One step at a time.

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Scorched Earth Blurb:
Under the guise of discovering new herbs, Hope and four others escape from their overworked life of Home Village, excited by the prospect of adventure. But when one of her crew goes missing, Hope refuses to return home without them. On their mystical journey they discover new locations, characters, cultures and make a very powerful enemy. Can they uncover Hibernia’s darkest secrets and save their friend in time? See their story here!

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Art (c) me
Cara and Morpho (c) me