Fox hated jungles. Or at least, if he didn't before, he did now. The tangled vegetation, the poisonous insects, the horrible stench, and the humid air was enough to drive anyone not used to it boinkers.
Fortunately, it didn't take long for Fox and the pink reptile to arrive at a lone hut, left deep in the jungle. Miya wandered to the front door of the tiny home, and peeked inside.
This should be it. I wonder if he's home.
'Who?'
A friend of mine.
After a few loud knocks on the straw wall, the pink Yoshi got someone to answer the door. It was another Yoshi, of course, except this one had black skin. Fox blinked in surprise. He hadn't seen such a color of Yoshi before. Then again, he hadn't been on this planet long enough to know that such a Yoshi existed.
Miya was prompted to come inside, and both Yoshies disappeared into the hut. Fox was about to follow, when he received a message from the pink Yoshi.
Stay outside. I'll tell you when you can come in.
After deciding not to question that order (for once), Fox silently stalked across the ground over to the hut's outer wall and leaned against it. He hoped, maybe, he could listen to what was going on inside, even if he couldn't understand a word of the Yoshies' speech.
"You did WHAT?!"
"Look, I know it sounds bad, but-"
"No, no, don't even try to re-explain. I heard enough. How can you even get yourself into messes like these?!" the black Yoshi angrily lectured while lifting up a cup of orange-colored tea and carrying it along with him as he paced across the floor of his hut.
"Well, it gets worse..." Miya mumbled.
"How? What could possibly make this situation any worse?? Running away from home on the day of your acceptance is bad enough. Dragging Meekachu along is even worse, and now you've got an entire tribe looking for you," the black Yoshi pointed out. He held the cup of warm tea to his lips and took a gulp of the strange liquid to try and calm himself down.
Miya quickly messaged her friend outside. You can come in, now.
'Thanks,' was the only reply.
The black Yoshi took another sip of his tea as he awaited Miya's answer. The pink Yoshi stepped backwards toward the hut's door and peeked outside. She reached out and pulled a tall, bipedal fox into the room with her.
The black Yoshi's eyes bulged at the sight of the fox, and he instantly spit the tea in his mouth all over the floor. "WHA-?!"
The fox gave a slight grin. 'I take that as happiness to see me?'
Hardly.
"Miya, who, or rather, what, is THAT?!" the black Yoshi queried.
Miya restrained a snicker, and gladly introduced the fox to her black Yoshi friend.
"Harot, meet Fox. He's been traveling with me."
The black Yoshi blinked.
"Look, it's all a VERY long story, and I think it would be best to just sit down and talk about it over a meal, okay?"
Harot considered this for a brief moment. He eventually nodded to Miya. "Okay... but it better be a spriffin' good story."
Miya chuckled. "Don't worry, you're in for a treat."
The black Yoshi instructed Miya to sit down and wait for a few minutes while he set up a small lunch in his kitchen. The pink Yoshi gladly took a seat on one of the finely-crafted chairs composed strictly of dried palm leaves. Surprisingly, it was very sturdy. Miya got herself comfortable and scanned her surroundings, casually observing the hardwood table in front of her, the abstract painting suspended on the far wall, and the rug on the dirt floor that seemed to be of the same material that was used for the chair Miya was sitting on.
The pink Yoshi's attention shifted to the doorway, where the fox was still standing around like a moron and blocking Miya's view of the jungle outside. She smirked.
You know, you make a better door than you do a window.
The fox, who seemed to be in a strange daze, immediately snapped back to awareness and gave Miya a puzzled look. 'Huh?'
Miya snickered. Quit standing around like a doofus and take a seat.
The fox quickly found the nearest chair and sat down. His eyes soon started to wander around the room, taking in everything with a sense of bewilderment. Miya raised an eyelid at the sight, but decided not to ask what was going on. In a way, she didn't want to know. Instead, she tried to start a conversation.
You hungry?
Again, the fox acted startled. 'Say what?'
I asked if you are hungry. Miya clarified.
'Oh... Well, no.'
A second later, Miya heard the sound of a stomach rumbling. She snickered, and the fox grinned shyly.
'Well, yes.'
I thought so. Harot is preparing a meal for us.
'Is that your friend?'
Yes, he is.
'He seemed a bit, well... surprised to see us.'
Miya sighed. He's not very happy. I'm not supposed to be here. I'm supposed to be back with my tribe. I was going to be accepted.
The fox remained silent for a few moments. 'Sara told me about that. If I remember correctly, she said that you didn't want to go back to the Mulhollens. Is it true that they give you a job that you have to do for the rest of your life?'
Most of the time, yes. A council of the wisest members of the tribe usually succeed in picking out the most appropriate task for the right Yoshi.
'Then why were you worried?'
You're awfully nosy.
'I'm just a curious person.'
Miya leaned forward in her chair and rested her chin in her hands, trying to think up an answer. I just... didn't like the idea. It's the principle of the matter, you see? Never having the freedom of choice. You know what I mean?
The fox growled something, obviously to himself. 'Actually, no. Where I come from we have many freedoms. I guess I've just taken them for granted.'
Lucky fox.
"Um... come and get it," a nervous voice sounded from the next room.
Dinner's ready. Miya leapt from her chair and bolted for the kitchen, thus ending the conversation and leaving Fox to follow her lead.
Dinner didn't turn out to be much. Mostly just sliced fruit, including a few apples, and a large melon. Fox guessed that these Yoshies lived primarily off a fruit-based diet. No problem to him. At least it was better than that glowing green slop he had back at the academy... or Peppy's scrambled eggs.
Miya and her friend Harot were almost immediately engaged in conversation the moment they sat down at the table. Neither Yoshi touched a piece of food. Fox however, not wanting to miss out on a good meal, and with nothing to say anyway, decided to take his fill of apple slices. The pink reptile was kind enough to allow Fox to listen in on what the Yoshies were saying.
I'm only going to do this once, because it's hard to keep up a mental link like this.
'What are you going to do?' Fox asked her while biting into a fresh apple.
Just listen. I'll let you hear what we're talking about.
Fox remained silent, and a second later, he could hear the voices of both Yoshies in his head. It was a strange experience at first, but gradually the Lylatian adjusted to it.
"Miya, you okay? You kind of fazed out for a second."
"Huh? Oh, I'm fine. I just have a lot on my mind."
"I'll say. So what are you going to do now? I don't know how long I can hide you here."
"Don't worry, Harot, I won't be staying here for very long. But I do need a big favor from you."
"Oh?" The black Yoshi leaned back in his chair and eyed Miya suspiciously. "And what would that be?"
"I need to borrow the warrior's stone."
"You WHAT?"
"I know it's a big favor, but I'll try to get it right back to you, and I only need it for-"
"Whoa, whoa there. What the spriff for?"
"It's a really long story, but if you'll-"
"I've got time."
Miya smirked. "Do you really want to know?"
"Of course. I wouldn't miss this for all the melons in the cove."
Then the explanation began. Slowly and meticulously, the pink Yoshi explained every detail of her adventures, right from the day Fox and his friends crash-landed on the island, to the incident with Marawok and the Piewa tribe. Harot sat back and soaked in every word.
"Hmm..." he began once Miya had finished her tale, "Let me tell you, that's the biggest piece of crap I've ever had the privilege of hearing. You feeling well?"
"I'm fine! And it's the truth, every single word. Your proof is sitting right there," the pink Yoshi growled while pointing a finger to the vulpine at the opposite end of the table. Fox swallowed another bit of apple and waved a paw to the black Yoshi.
Harot raised an eyelid at the fox, unsure of what to think. "Exactly where does the warrior stone come into this scenario?"
"It's simple. In order to repair the dimensional tear in Ni and send this fox back to where he came from, I need the three special stones. I've already gotten two, and I need the last one before the spell will work. You have to help me, Harot. Please..." she pleaded.
The black reptile stared into the fox's eyes for a long moment, considering his options.
"I just want to go home," Fox spoke up. Harot blinked, then turned to Miya. Fox suddenly realized that he had lost his mental link with the pink reptile, because the Yoshies' speech once again turned into unrecognizable babble. He waited as they talked amongst themselves.
Harot will help us, the pink Yoshi finally confirmed. Fox sighed with relief.
'So, what now?'
Harot got up from his seat and began to walk off into the next room. Before leaving, he glanced back at the table, threw out his long tongue, and swallowed a melon whole. Fox made a face.
'Eww, gross.'
When Harot returned, he had with him a small, polished black stone. Miya grinned at the sight of it.
"Is that it?" she questioned the black Yoshi.
Harot flipped the stone into the air, then caught it with his palm, much like a coin. "Yep. I want it back, though. This better not be some kind of scam."
Miya jumped from her chair and snatched the rock from her friend. "Nope. You can trust me," she reassured her companion while holding the precious stone up to the sunlight to inspect its quality.
Harot simply rolled his eyes and wandered away into the next room. "Yeah, whatever."
Miya nearly jumped for joy. Now that she had the last piece, she could finally complete the task her father had requested of her. The Yoshi grinned broadly, content with the thought that things were finally starting to turn her way. Miya faced the fox, who was still sitting down and waiting for his next order.
Time for action.
'bout spriffin' time,' the foreigner chuckled as he thought.
Don't use that word too much. It's not nice.
'What, it's only for grownups?' The fox shot her an incredulous look. 'Do you want me to start exercising my vocabulary with a few words of my own??'
Thanks, but no. Com'on, we need to head outside. And with that, Miya closed her fingers over her new stone and waltzed out the door towards the jungle. Fox bolted from his chair and followed, eager to do whatever he needed to so he could go home.
After being stranded on a strange island, attacked by monsters, captured by lizards, dragged up to a volcano, nearly killed by a shower of rocks, dumped into the ocean, and forced to watch your friends slowly die off one by one, you'd do just about anything to escape and go home, too.
Fox patiently stood still as the pink Yoshi delicately constructed a circle of small stones in the sand around him. Amidst the ordinary riverstones Miya placed three crystal-like gems; one green (the one she got from Marawok), one black (the one she got from Harot), and one red (Fox wasn't sure where that one came from, but Miya had been keeping wrapped in her hair where the ponytail tie was), in a triangle-like formation. She then took three feathers, each of a different hue, and matched them with the stones. The feathers were placed outside the circle next to the stone of the same color, with the dull end pointing outwards. The pink Yoshi took her finger and drew into the sand another circle inside the circle of stones.
'Explain to me what all this is for again.'
It's all part of the spell. Be patient. I'm doing the best I can.
'Have you ever done this before?'
Well... um... no. But it's sure to work, if I remember everything right.
'Great...'
Miya backed away from the fox and carefully scrutinized her work. This should be right. Now I want you to stay quiet and keep your arms at your sides. Close your eyes and don't move. This won't take very long, and you'll know if it works when it does. Trust me.
'So, this might be it?'
Yes, now silence. I'm starting...
With his eyes closed, Fox couldn't see exactly what Miya had 'started.' However, he did hear her voice. From what he could tell, she was slowly pacing around him, and chanting the same verse over and over.
"Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi yish yo Yoshi. Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi yish yo Yoshi..."
She continued in this manner for over a minute. Fox could suddenly hear something other than Miya's chanting. It was high pitched, and very soft. It gradually grew louder.
"Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi yish yo Yoshi..."
The sound was stronger now. Fox could feel something, now. A glowing warmth would be the best way to describe it. It also grew stronger as the chant continued.
"Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi yish yo Yoshi..."
There was no doubt about it; something weird was happening. Fox refrained from opening his eyes. He was told not to, but as the warmth increased around him and the squealing noise grew louder, the urge to see what in the world was going on was getting hard to ignore.
"Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi yish yo Yoshi..."
There! He could feel it. Light. Strong, intense light. He could feel the light! It wrapped around him like a cloud and caged him in from the outside world. What was going on?
"Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi Yoshi yish yo Yoshi..."
Miya's voice was slowly fading away. He could barely hear her now. Until, that is, a voice in his head broke through.
You can open your eyes now.
He did, and Fox gasped at the sight before him. A shaft of pure white light enveloped him, and two of the three stones that Miya had set in the sand were glowing very brightly and hovering slightly above the ground.
"Holy... crap..." he muttered.
Miya giggled out loud. Surprised?
'I, well, um... Yeah! What's happening??'
The pink Yoshi reached toward the fox, gently deposited something small into the pocket on his jacket, then stepped away.
Keep that, and remember what happened here. Don't worry about sealing the dimensional tear from your world. What I just gave you should handle everything.
Fox peered into the large round eyes of the reptile before him. A look of utter disbelief spread across his face, which was especially apparent in his eyes.
'So... This is it?'
Miya bowed her head forward the slightest measure, confirming this with a nod. She quickly pushed away her thoughts and feelings of loss for her newest companion, one which she had barely even known for a week, and delivered her parting words to the vulpine.
Goodbye, Fox McCloud.
Before Fox could respond, the strong white light melted into a blue glow that consumed the fox's vision. He suddenly couldn't move. The fox experienced the sensation of being lifted into the air, then the feeling of weightlessness, and then everything went blank.
END OF PART FOUR