a very overdue request i'm sorry lol. i legitimately forgot about it. also this is really cliché but i don't have an ounce of creativity in me atm.

"Uraza, slow down!" Abeke called ahead to her spirit animal. Reluctantly, the great leopard slowed to a walk, allowing the girl to catch up to her. They were just heading back to Greenhaven Castle from a small adventure in the forests surrounding it. They did this quite often.

They emerged from the trees into the clearing. The castle loomed over them, some of the windows still lit up. Some people were restless. Uraza suddenly stopped, and Abeke almost ran into her. "What is it?" She asked quietly, looking over in the direction that the cat was pointing her nose to. A smile appeared on her face.

It seemed as though not all restless beings resided in the castle. Conor was laying in the grass, Briggan sitting beside him. Abeke motioned Uraza to follow, though she knew she didn't need to. Together, the walked across the grass to meet Conor. "What are you doing?" Abeke asked curiously when she was close enough.

The shepherd boy startled, looking over at her. It took him a moment to reply. "Stargazing," he replied sheepishly. "I thought the stars were pretty tonight." He paused, before running his fingers through Briggan's grey fur. "I'm sure Briggan agrees."

Briggan merely yawned in response. It seemed even Great Beasts got tired. Abeke suddenly felt the ache in her bones. Quietly, she sat down beside him, Uraza passing her to join Briggan. The wolf greeted her with a nudge. "I do too," the Niloan girl smiled down at him. And she did. The stars were like glitter dusting the night sky, twinkling brightly.

"Why are you out here?" Conor asked suddenly. "I wouldn't want you to miss on your sleep."

Abeke shrugged. "Uraza and I went out on a little adventure. It's so much more fun at night." As she spoke, Conor sat up.

"And more dangerous," he murmured under his breath. Abeke grinned, laughing a bit.

"Worried about me?" She teased him, nudging his arm with her elbow gently. Conor reddened, hands tightening together.

"No, no, I-" he cut himself off there, shaking his head. By the looks of it, he couldn't think up a good enough excuse. Abeke softened.

"It's alright," she reassured him, reaching over to grab his wrist. "Thank you." Conor blinked at her, before smiling. He had a nice smile, she noted. It was friendly and comforting.

"Want to join me for a bit?" He offered, leaning back on his elbows. Abeke couldn't think of anything she needed to do back at the castle. She supposed this was alright.

"Of course." With that, she laid down beside him, hands crossed over her chest. "Conor," she said after a moment. Conor glanced over at her, curiosity in his eyes. "Have you ever learned about the constellations?"

Conor thought for a few seconds. "No," he answered, "I couldn't have read about them either, obviously."

"Do you want to?"

"Yeah. I'd love to."

Abeke scooted in closer, whispering about her favourite constellations. Conor appeared interested, listening to every word and detail. "That up there-" Abeke pointed towards a patch of sky- "is Orion. Beautiful, isn't it?"

Conor nodded. "How many are there?" he asked, voice hushed.

"Too many to count."

Conor shrugged. "Let's just find as many as we can," he suggested. Abeke didn't mind.

"One down, a hundred more to go." Her tone was lighthearted, and Conor seemed to ease up. Eventually, they began finding the constellations littered across the sky. Of course, they'd have to complete the list in their travels, but to Abeke, this was a lovely start.

this is straight caca. like i literally pulled it out of my ass. but hope u enjoyed nonetheless lmfao. also this is unedited 🤓