Pepper took a deep breath of the fresh morning air. Little drops of dew flicked playfully off the blades of grass as her bare feet scampered through the forest. Running, flying, soaring through the woods. With the songs of the birds tickling her ears, and the crisp scent of pine poking at her nostrils. She ran, and ran fast. Away from the village, away from her troubles and persecutors. 

When the pleading of her lungs at last convinced her feet for a break, she rested a hand on a nearby thick trunk of oak. The magnificent titan supported her as she sucked in fresh breaths of the morning air.

This was her home. More than any building, or even the waters for which her skin embraced so longingly. In the water she was just another shai-el, no one special. But here in the forest, she was especially unique.

Pepper slid down to her haunches, trailing her fingers down the rough bark of the tree. She closed her eyes as her breathing settled and listened to the gleeful trill of birds above. It harmonized well with the buzzing of insects below. 

“Great mother Eloya, thank you,” she murmured to the sky. “Thank you for your embrace, and your care.”

Pushing to her feet, Pepper trekked deeper into the forest. Her footsteps became delicate, gingerly brushing through the fresh grass and avoiding nervous flowers that bravely broke out of the foliage.

She knew them well, like kin of her blood. Bright and different, bringing something unique and special to the world around them.

Her feet stopped again as she came to a little wilted stem, with flower petals barely hanging on. Pepper slipped down to sit beside it and ran a finger over the soft leaves.

“The world wants to step on us both, it seems.” She reached into the folds of her skirt, slipping out a small pair of shears and a little glass vial. Very carefully she measured down the stem of the flower, before snipping it cleanly and lifting the little plant up.

“But we’re not alone, you and I. Eloya cares for us, and we can care for each other.” She popped open the vial, smiling as the golden honey within released sweet fumes around her. Carefully she dipped the base of the stem into the vial and let it sit a moment.

“Now, to find you a new home.”

She did not have to search far before she came across a little creek. Tiny gardens of flowers decorated each side, with soft soil ripe for another. Pepper selected the perfect spot to replant the wilting one, then tucked away her tools.

“Grow well, little flower. May we both bring someone joy today.”