*Note* I originally planned to have a bunch of dialog at the end, however I made it into its own section that will come later.
Wendir looked forward to this new life she has started for herself, a life of wandering without any particular goal in mind. As much as she liked living with Elook, this new feeling of independence just was...amazing. No schedule, no rules, no manners to follow by. All of the Square was ahead of her, full of adventures and new, strange things.
She didn't know whether it was the sweet aroma of lxi flowers or the warm morning sun through the blooming canopy of the trees that woke her up on that first day. Either way, a calm, relaxing feeling of peace flowed through her body, working its way up and down her back in sync with her breathing. But there was something else too to it, a kind of clip-clop in the background, accompanied by the sound of people yelling in high-pitched voices over the cool breeze.
Standing up from her spot under the trees, Wendir ran through the grassy fields to see one of the windy yellow roads before her. Traveling along was a group of silly short men wearing fezzes, trying their best to pull their stubborn red khamelks over a little hill. But something else caught her eye as well, a small red triangle poking up from behind the hill. Was it...no way. Like, what else would it be?
Wendir sprinted up the little hill, and lo and behold was a city unlike anything she had ever seen. White tall structures adorned with red roofs, accompanied by the small markets that lined the cobblestone streets, laced together by pretty paper lanterns. But what really grabbed her attention was the people, so alien compared to the square jawlines and bushy eyebrows. Instead, everyone had their hair done in buns, wearing their red tunics and white leather pants. Occasionally one would be wearing a helm of sorts, keeping a narrow eye on the streets, particularly on the fezzed merchants walking in.
However, the little children all had this look of excitement on their faces, a look Wendir never had the chance of seeing back in Bergolo. They ran right for the caravan, and promptly began to dance around singing some sort of song. Smiling, one of the merchants opened the bag of one of the khamelks, and started to hand out whirly fans to all the children.
While most of the little kids had ran off with their toys, one little boy had stayed behind, twiddling with his fan as he stared up at the merchants, more specifically his fez. "You want it, little lad?" the man asked, presenting it as if it were a holy crown. The boy snatched it from him, and slipped it onto his own head. Unfortunately for him, the hat was too big for him, covering his eyes as he tried to maneuver his way back to his friends. And before you could say "Kickoo Banoo," he had already faceplanted into the ground, receiving a lot of laughs from the children, the traders, and of course Wendir.
Which unfortunately was kind of a bad thing. You see, Vengirians have this distinct laugh that makes themselves sound like evil maniacs. In fact, the classic cackling "Muahaha!" is based off a common stereotype that had been around even before the Age of War. For Wendir's misfortune, she hadn't ever really laughed before, so she had no idea that her laugh in particular would draw all eyes to her.
An awkward silence fell across the street, as a mixture of confusion, anger, and fear washed across the faces of the people around her. She could feel all those stares piercing into her soul, those familiar cold eyes that she had seen her entire life.
Except for yet again the children. Rather than screaming and running away, a few of them ran over to her, one holding a large orange lxi. Kneeling like the traditions of her people, the child looked up into Wendir's pale eyes, and gave her the fruit. "Peace of the Xin-Xi people be upon you," she said, "and may your travels bestow upon you good luck."
Wendir, who was quite surprised by the offering, kindly took the fruit and asked, "Why didn’t you run away?"
"I like your hair," she replied, to which her friends started to giggle. But soon one of the older adults marched in and dragged the kid away by the ears, yelling something in their language. Meanwhile, the merchants kind of just looked at one another, as if they had seen something like this happen before.
The soldiers in their helmets, who had been watching the scene, slowly approached Wendir as if she was some kind of beast waiting to pounce. But she was just standing there, holding the lxi in her hand. She wasn't in the mood for that kind of nonsense, hence she simply waved and walked out of the town the way she came in.
From that point on, Wendir did her best to stay away from other people as she traveled the square. Over time, she made her way across the endless Suui desert, along the Kickoo coastline, and through the deep jungles of Quetzali. She didn't need anyone by her, for the new sights she saw were all that she needed to keep going.
But then came that fateful day, the day Wendir walked into Bardria. As soon as her foot crossed the line, she could already feel the cold bitter wind biting her fingers. The boots didn't do her any good either, as with every step she took, her feet got more and more miserable. Actually, that's exactly how one would describe poor Wendir at this moment: miserable.
As night fell and the snow began to fall, Wendir couldn't stop shivering, her entire body already suffering from the cold. In fact, she was almost crying from the pain all over, her tears freezing back onto her face as she moved forward. Oh, where had the warm autumn days gone? Why did she run away? What would have really happened if she stayed behind?
Her knees buckled mid-thought as she faceplanted into the snow, the cold burning her more and more...
