With the water pouring from every crevice and a few of those golden brown Dear leaves falling to the wayside, one hand stuck out amongst the plethora of reds and islands that made a small forest in Orawood a strangely mysterious place.

One could talk about the obvious: the Overgrown Statue nestled below the small mounts and whatnot without an easy exit towards the bridges above. What interested Morio, or specifically the person who tasked him and Jyuzou to find it, was a small twig he couldn't quite reach.

The rare enkelis were home to disguises, as described in various witchtales. They resembled any other oak or birch if one grew close to one another, but one distinct element, except for the slight translucency of the leaves, was a small, discoloured branch right near the crown.

Stepping from one end of the oak, Morio squinted, ground his teeth and focused, as much as he could.

"Come on!" utters were sent to himself only, as he took another step, despite the wood shaking off even more leaves, as they gracefully flailed to the harsher stream below.

Morio looked down, which was probably the worst idea at the time. Not that he was scared of heights, but the sheer sight almost made him lose the much-needed balance. One puff and a heavy breath later, he closed his eyes, ready to take another step forward.

The stone, dull tip of Victis pressed itself against the bark, and that's when Morio put all he had into that notion.

Of course, he could've climbed the enkeli itself much earlier. Of course, he could've jolted up with Gloria, but then Jyuzou said something about keeping nature intact.

With a yell, he yanked Victis, as the so-called Angel Twig snapped and landed right in his hands, which also meant that Morio had to jump for his prize.

Descending at fast speeds with a shout, Talia found itself wrapped around another adjacent branch, before Morio took the smart initiative to promptly let go and crash into the river. Peeking his head, he took a big breath, before pushing himself against the stones of the deep bedding, moving with the stream.

One hand wasn't enough, and soon, he found himself leaping forward, pulling Gloria out of its new, long sheath and flashing through the air, with all the electricity pulsing through the liquids before disappearing in a small zap.

The Morian landed on a grassy shore, with a few heavy breaths to accent the trouble. However, he raised his hand, seeing the intact and dry Angel Twig resting in his grip. He chuckled, sitting up, before scratching his head.

"This part of Orawood has lots of these dangerous rivers. There's a high chance you'll tumble in if you don't climb the enkeli." Jyuzou fixed his glasses, as the two stood at the edge, with all the colourful crowns present.

"That's why I'll-"

"That's why I'll take all of your bags so our other stuff doesn't get wet!"

"Stupid Jyuzou," Morio muttered, sighing. "It would've been much easier if I followed my instinct instead of your rumbling."

He stood up, turning, as his eyes met something waiting on the other side of a shallow pool, with leaves paving the way towards a rocky entrance.

With a few steps against all the shrinking Dear nature and a hand tugging on the mounts of dirt, a statue revealed itself. Overgrown, as the name suggested, with the green vines and such ending right behind the egg-like structure it resembled. A face could be made out, barely, with closed eyes and a smile meeting the rather confused expression of the Morian.

Nevertheless, it was an idea to grasp, especially since Jyuzou was nowhere around, and Morio would've heard his screams or excitement over those rare flowers he sought.

Except for that, they were here for a reason, but with a good few more hours before it would get dark, Morio smirked.

There had to be something to that statue, after all. Maybe an untold story he was to learn if he managed to drag Atomu back into the depths of Orawood or if Jyuzou was kind enough to make haste.

Without a hunch though, he had to investigate further, and such led to him leaving the Angel Twig between a few small stones closer towards the exit.

Treading closer revealed a light wind moving through his clothes. Such was a bigger surprise since Dear meant rather stagnant air. Essentially, with the world getting ready for harsher temperatures, people spoke of a cycle where the flow stopped to keep certain places warmer and more habitable.

Orawood was one such case, so with the present huff, Morio adjusted the Talia. Both hands were now placed on the egg, as he tried to pry it open.

The wind blew even further out. Much like anything in this world, something as menial and seen almost everywhere hid an even bigger story behind its soon-to-be broken eggshells.

Morio struck with both Victis and Gloria, with the thunder clapping back into his body and a yell that sent the few already migrating birds flying further away. With a drop of sweat, he tried everything he had.

Chucking the few rocks to crack it, searching for a switch or even trying to force it out with both weapons at the sides.

All in all, that led to absolutely nowhere. Morio stood at the side, squinting in annoyance rather than exhaustion, before rolling his eyes and turning around.

Tapping his foot against the grass, he almost waited for an answer. He ground his teeth and bit his lip, before suddenly turning around and meeting... nothing.

"Damn it," he uttered, deploying the same strategy.

However, this time, he waited for more than some patient ten seconds. Twenty, to be precise, and with a swifter turn, he noticed a small pair of eyes peeking behind the darkness the egg hid.

"Aha!" Morio shouted, before shuffling over and trying to pull the egg out of the way again.

Ground teeth and fingers ripping into the sharp, stone side, Morio's eyes opened and widened.

A blueish hand reached out from the darkness, grasping Morio's open palm. A yell followed, as his body seemed to squeeze between the extremely tight opening, before everything flashed in black and white, at least a few times.

Then, he sank. As if there wasn't enough water last time, in the span of a second, his hands battled against an invisible tide, before his eyes got used to a strange kind of darkness.

There was no murk, but a few blue orbs shone from below the water, which he seemed to be heading towards or...

"HUUUUH?!"

The waterfall his body was being sent through moved upwards towards a rainbow-coloured prism. Beside him, white, translucent lights headed for the same prize.

Morio stuck both weapons out, as Victis barely made a dent in the liquid and Gloria's thunder deflected off elsewhere. His body moved at tremendous speeds and his eyes focused on everything else.

Lights kept moving from the Grims below, separated by a thin, watery surface, with silver cliffs overlooking the monumental sight. If he could zap through, he'd make it into remnants of safety, but even then, his body was stuck.

Sticking his leg out only led him to further ascending, and when the rainbow hue was to reach his fingertips, something else appeared from above the water.

The same blueish hand, which Morio immediately grasped. Soon enough, two bodies were sent flying from across the fountain and towards the rocks, rolling together before separating.

Morio coughed out, holding onto his chest and coughing out bits of blood, eventually stumbling, as his eyes locked with something else.

Behind him, sat a creature, carefully observing his every move. Its eyes were off the same pure blue he spotted, overshining their lighter robes, meeting with horns and small wings on their back.

The same hand slowly reached towards Morio, and the Morian responded with Gloria's tip pointing their way.

It stared in confusion, before standing up. He trembled, before readying an attack, and as suddenly as the other raised their hand, the katana tumbled, almost rolling off the cliff.

What Morio presumed to be a demon slowly followed that notion, as he stood still. Moving their finger closer, it met the fine blade of Gloria, before suddenly changing its shape, resembling the same, blood-woven, flesh-like innards of a demon.

An eye met the creature, before immediately closing, and changing form back into what it once was when their hand was lifted.

Morio gasped. Without trying to pry into the thought of a demon fooling him, he gulped.

"W-What are you?"

"Frisk," it answered, sitting down again and carefully sliding Gloria towards the Morian. Morio picked it up, staring at its outer, clean edge.

"What?" he shook his head. "How did you know my surname?"

The Frisk in question blinked, before turning around, with a terrified expression. Morio took a step, meeting them near the edge.

The lights kept travelling upwards before disappearing behind the rainbow.

"You shouldn't be here." the Frisk answered.

Morio cracked an unsure smile. "A hand brought me here, like the one I squeezed."

"But it shouldn't have. It's a story you shouldn't listen to. A wound that should never itch again. People don't see Frisks, yet..." they gulped, turning back to Morio. "I can sense you do."

"Is this some witchtale I know nothing about? Like, demons that can disguise their presence. I've seen a lot in Errarion and yet, I've never heard of a creature that shares my surname!"

The Frisk didn't answer, as if the words themselves confused them. Simply put, they only pointed elsewhere.

"If I didn't save you, you would've ended up like all the other lights," they uttered. "Flailing, until becoming one of us. Is that why you came here?"

"I was curious, eh?" Morio took a step back. "I can leave if that's what you want."

"What do we want? What do you want?" The Frisk stood, and Morio gulped, almost instinctively.

"I just...!" Morio raised both hands, beaming awkwardly. "For stories?"

"You're not ready."

...and as the words were uttered, the Frisk dashed forward, forcing its palm into the Morian's.

Then, everything flashed again, and with another bloody cough, Morio found himself right outside the Overgrown Statue.

Fists clenched, with something finding itself in one, he immediately eyed the statue.

Still, unmoving, as if nothing that had occurred was real. Even then, he doubted it for a moment, before finding another bloody cough, which he tried to stop with his other hand.

Then, when his palm opened, a sturdy, dark piece of wood was left lightly crimson, before the liquid seeped into its rather thick, yet light depths.

Morio raised a brow, before grinding his teeth and picking up the Angel Twig. Once again, eyes were glued to the probable entrance, but no wind came out. Much like Dear implied, everything was slow, with a few birds passing by, followed by footsteps coming from the paths above.

"Morio?!" Jyuzou raised his voice, before stopping near a few branches.

"Ah, hey!" The Morian stuck his hand out, smiling awkwardly.

"What are you beaming for, idiot?! How long ago did I tell you to get that twig?"

"A few minutes ago?" Morio brushed some dirt off his clothes. "Like..." he glanced up.

The few colours of the sky spoke of noon soon approaching. He raised a brow, before rubbing his chin.

"Strange."

"An HOUR!" Jyuzou jumped down from the slope. "Thank Shin I had the tools to find you." he stuffed something back into one of the two baskets he carried, putting a few freshly reaped helpings of the Devil's Leaf into another pocket.

"Ugh!" Morio flopped to the ground. "You don't have to time me!"