Submission (#394) Approved

510 words

Normal shards:
+8 (prompt)
+5 (500+ words)
+1 (Small companion)

= 14 shards
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Having gotten to the lake was a, well, while not a miracle, at least an interesting anecdote to recount for the future. Weisheng was sure that he'd get to tell Xiaovi about it, and the larger wool would listen. However, no amount of putting aside the issue was going to be able to distract him from the fact he'd gotten strangely attached to the kiritsune in his arms. As it was, however, it was not correct to keep it; the herd was there, and it clearly belonged to it. Titan had gone off to the side, clearly noticing he needed a bit of time to himself, and to say his goodbyes with the creature in his armns.

His Lumiar, had perched on his shoulder, and remain nestled against his neck, clearly offering comfort when it sensed its owner was having a difficult time.

Wei had never been good with words. Emotions in general were a touch... difficult, and one of the reasons he had trouble getting along with others. Silence was often misinterpreted as intimidation or scorn when he meant none of that, and often time, instead, what happened to be going on was more along the lines of him having a hard time putting thoughts into words correctly. Still, as he pondered what to say, if anything, the lumiar cooed softly into the air, rubbing its feathers against his fur, opting for comforting its owner by grooming the few strands of hair it could reach from its perch.

Letting out a sigh, Wei gave the kiritsune a small stroke along its back, and finally, carefully put it back down on the ground. He took a step away and watched.

For a few moments nothing happened, and then the kiritsune looked at him, no fear on its face; after all, it had gotten comfortable enough with him throughout the journey, so that was not exactly a surprise. The surprise, however, came when it stepped closer to him, instead of away, nosing the side of his leg, in what appeared to be a comforting manner, matching up with lumiar on his shoulder, that remain ever diligent in its actions. It was quite clear to Wei the small creature appeared to be offering comfort in whatever small way it could, "Worry not, my friend, this is the right thing," the words were offered softly, and after another few moments, the kiritsune stepped away from him finally. After one last look back at him, it turned and made its way to the herd in the near distance. The adults had been watching the interaction, but had opted for staying away for the time being, apparently. Having decided that Wei was not a threat, some returned to their food, to the drinking, frolicking, or whatever they had been doing prior to their interruption.

Only a small few drew close to the small kiritsune; its family, Wei figured, and once it had been accepted back into the herd, he signaled slightly at Titan and both of them began their march back down from Crescent Lake.