Joy was so lonely. He'd been avoiding everyone. Couldn't bear to meet others, to talk. It was too painful. He longed for his mothers, for his sister, but at least one was dead. His sister probably was too - he hadn't seen her since they were young. And Fira...He'd seen her, cycles and cycles ago. But now...Who knew where she was? What if she was dead? He didn't know. Would he ever know? Would he wander the caves, forever wondering if he was alone, his family all dead?

His head was lowered as he walked, his feet, webbed with claws, dragging behind him leaving lines. It was wet, but he barely felt it. He could hear the large waterfall, rushing into the lagoon under it, but he didn't listen. He used to talk all the time, whenever possible, but who was there to talk to? He was alone. He had nothing.

As the cycles went by, Amazon simply grew weaker and weaker. The seizure she had suffered only a week before had deeply disturbed her. It was as if it had marked a worsening period. Was she approaching the end soon? Was it just around the corner? What if she had another seizure...and this one she didn't recover from?

The worries and fears had driven her back into adventure. While she was much, much slower then she had been in her youth, she was at least still strong enough to move from place to place. It had taken her a while to get to Pisces. She had only been here once - she deserved a revisit.

The creature wasn't exactly hard to spot. Bright yellow against muted blues and grays made them stick out like a sore scale. She changed her course so that she was walking towards them. Thankfully, they were not walking in a direction away from her. Even at their slow pace, she would have lost them pretty quickly.

She opened her mouth to speak, only to find that she was out of breath. She tried to croak some kind of greeting, but ended up falling into a fit of coughing. Probably loud enough for Joy to hear.

@Joy

Joy had still been walking when something caught his attention. Looking down, he saw a small creature with a green gem sticking out of her head. He blinked, unsure what to make of this. He couldn't remember a time when someone had willingly approached him. His odd appearance generally kept others away, something he was always grateful for. It made staying alone easy.

He frowned as she had a coughing fit. Was she okay? Should he say something? Ask her if she was okay? The last time he had talked to someone...Someone who actually responded was when he saw his mother. That was so long ago...

"A-are you okay?" The words felt off, wrong. It didn't sound like him. What did he sound like? Did he even know? His voice was so scratchy, the beak on the top of his muzzle clacking awkwardly. He wasn't used to this. It had been too long - almost immediately, he felt the walls seem to close in on him. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and trying to keep these feelings at bay as he waited for the creature's response.

@Amazon

Thankfully it was enough for the strange creature to hear her and once her coughing was over, Amazon gave her head a little shake to clear it. She hated that she was like that - she couldn't even say a simply greeting without falling into a fit of coughing. And, of course, a first impression had to be her sickness. That was just frustrating. But she tried not to let it show.

She looked up at them and, despite them being not too big a creature themselves, towered over her like a mountain. "Yeah, I'm okay, sorry. Just a bit out of breath." Thankfully, she managed to get out this talk without much difficulty. Her breath was returning now that she was staying relatively still.

Her eyes glanced along the hybrid's face and body language as she tried to read them. Their voice sounded strange, as if he hadn't used his voice in a while. And he seemed that he was almost overwhelmed, just by the simple act of speaking. For the first time in a while, Amazon was more concerned about someone else instead of herself.

It might sound selfish, but she had a lot to be concerned about herself. She hadn't ever met anyone nearly as sick as her. Even Envy, who was obviously struggling to keep himself healthy, at least didn't have a upcoming death date, as far as she knew. But a stranger who could barely speak without being overwhelmed? That was something to be concerned about.

Her tail twitched and her eyes narrowed with concern. "And you? Are you okay?" Perhaps it was a bit forward to ask but Amazon was concerned. If it was her, she would rather have someone ask right out instead of dance around and guess if she was okay or not.

@Joy

At the creature's explanation for her coughing, Joy shifted slightly. It seemed like it was more than that, but he wasn't one to judge. He couldn't help but wonder if her gem had anything to do with it. It seemed to glow slightly and looked as though it were pressing into her head. He didn't know if it was actually growing...but if it was, would it cause her eventual death? Or even something else related to the gem? How many creatures were forced to suffer from unfortunate gem placements? Was his mother not enough?

These thoughts only seemed to overwhelm him further and he stumbled slightly before quickly righting himself as best he could, face flushing. When the creature spoke to him, it took him by surprise. Was he okay? ...Was he okay? He wasn't sure if that was something he could answer properly. He had no idea. He didn't even know what okay was.

"I'm...fine?" The words were hesitant. He didn't know. He was alive, which was something. But any more than that...he couldn't say.

@Amazon

Yeah, there was something wrong. Amazon's eyes narrowed with worry and she adjusted herself so that she was fully facing the hybrid. "I can tell something's wrong...you can tell me." Her voice, although small, was gentle and honest. However, a second later, Amazon snapped out of it and realized that she was talking to a total stranger and hadn't even introduced herself yet.

Her eyes blinked at this realization and they widened. "O-oh, I'm sorry! I'm Amazon. I hope I'm not being too nosy..."

@Joy

Joy instinctively tensed as the creature seemed to sense that something was wrong. He had no idea how to explain what all he had lived through. Did he tell her that his mother was dead, his other mother who-knows-where, and his sister probably dead? He'd just met her! He didn't even know her name-

Amazon. Amazon is her name. He hesitated before just deciding to go ahead and say it. "I'm...Joy. And you're...not being nosy." He shifted slightly. He hated his name. Joy? What joy did he have in his life? Everyone he knew and loved is gone. He had no one, nothing. He closed his eyes.

"My mom's dead." His eyes snapped open at the confession; he hadn't meant to say that. But now that it was out, he couldn't stop it. Couldn't stop the words outpouring from him. "And I have no idea where my sister is - she's probably dead too. And my other mom...I saw her cycles ago, but not since. For all I know, she could be dead too." He paused, and when he spoke again, his voice was quiet. "I have no one."

@Amazon

Amazon was a little surprised by the sudden confession but she was happy that Joy had the bravery to say it. If she thought about it, she wouldn't have had that same courage. She gently reached over and rested her claws on one of Joy's strange feet with what a hopefully a comforting touch.

"You have me," she said, without really meaning to. But it was something, at least, someone in the world who cared. Internally, she felt her heart cracking. Was this what Luster would be like when she was gone? Her beloved little daughter, alone, lost, and so very sad...no, she couldn't let that happen. She had to be a good mom. She would be a good mom.

"I understand, Joy, I do. Although I didn't lose a mother, I watched someone important to me die right in front of my eyes. I didn't have a mother or a father or siblings, but this creature could have been a sibling, if they'd even been given a chance to live. And I know that my child will be sad when I pass..." She stopped herself from saying too much but it was difficult. The words were flowing out of her without stop. "I'd like to think that my daughter would remember me fondly. Do you remember your mothers? Were they good to you?"

@Joy

@Joy

Joy didn't look at Amazon. He couldn't stand to, not after that confession. And especially not after what she said in response. His eyes closed at that and remained closed as she continued to speak.

Finally, he opened his eyes. Were his mothers...good to him? He frowned slightly at that. Fira hadn't been too close to them a lot, often out getting food for the family since Destiny was unable to. And Destiny...as the time her gem became too much got closer, she often spent her time in the river by their den.

"My mothers...One I never saw a whole lot. Whenever I did, she was always loving. But she was often getting food for us. And the other...In the beginning, she was always there. But as her gem continued to grow, she moved to the river by our den and often spent a lot of time there. I didn't see her much after that. Not until..." He stopped at that, a rush of memories flooding his mind. He hadn't known his mother was dying, truly dying, until it was too late. Until she was gone.

His eyes fell closed and he grew silent again.

@Amazon

Amazon nodded understandingly as Joy trailed off. Obviously, her mother had died. Well, one of them. It rang in her sadly, knowing that, one day, she would be gone. And she was Luster's only mother. Her poor little child...would she be this sad one day?

"I'm sorry, life has been very hard for you. It isn't fair...to lose your mother. Wherever the other one is, whether she's still alive or she's passed as well, I'm sure she still loves you and she wants to be with you." She didn't know what else to do to try and comfort Joy as emotions were swelling inside her as well. The conversation of death was always one that Amazon didn't quite mind but also dreaded with all her heart. Because she knew hers was coming, just over the horizon, and she feared for what kind of emotions she'd leave behind.

"Maybe you should look for her," she blurted out, without really meaning to. But she knew that she had said what she wanted. "Perhaps it will give you some closure to know. If she's still alive out there or if she's really...gone."

@Joy