"Ezi! Oh my gods! Jake, something is wrong with him!"

Ezi groggily opens his eyes as his glow returns after being absent during the night. The moment his does so, the sky through the canopy of the clearing begins to brighten. His sight can't properly focus yet, still too tired, making the light from above blurry. He rolls onto his other side, trying to go back to sleep and making the world dark once again.

"Jake, I'm really worried! I can see right through him! He's not even breathing!"

"Oi, Amanda, Ezi's fine! If anythin', we should be worried about you wakin' the poor thing up early."

Jake? Ezi lets himself smile softly. Such a nice voice to wake up to, he thinks.

His light snaps back into place when his form is suddenly covered in warmth. He gazes up into the glowing blue eyes of Jake without turning to face him. He's hyper aware of how close his face is to Ezi's cheek, perfectly still. Being so close to Jake wakes him up faster than anything else likely could and his form becomes solid and the sky bright.

Jake sits back up. "See? Ezi's fine! Right, little angel?"

"Please don't call me that. I'm a Spirit."

"Right, right! Anyway, he's okay, the sky is bright now - probably a little early but whatever - and everything is right in the world!" Jake laughs, still on top of the smaller Spirit.

Amanda's voice goes from scared to curious. "That's neat. Hey, Jake, aren't you crushing him?"

"Pfft, no! I would never do that!"

"I would like it if you got off, though," Ezi murmurs.

Jake obliges, even helping Ezi sit up. They both wait a few more moments for the Light's feet to fully form before Jake helps him stand. He ruffles up his white locks. They stand in the small clearing with the now shattered boulder, Amanda having taken over Ezi's "bed" of soft things he's gathered over the years while Ezi himself slept on the grass. His sleep hadn't been affected by the lack of a bed at all, thankfully. Jake had watched over them to keep other, prying Spirits away. It was nice having him around all through the night, even if Ezi isn't fond of how he was awoken.

"Anyway, Mandy - can I call you Mandy? - you haven't seen much of the Spirit Valley yet! Ezi and I can show you around," Jake says.

"Why me as well?" Ezi inquires.

"Wait, no, you can't call me Mandy!" Amanda pipes up. By now, Ezi can hear other Elementals in the forest. Even though Jake had effectively banished everyone, it sounds as if the others are waiting to meet the human that so fascinates them. There are too many of them. It's too much. Ezi tries to drown out their babbling thoughts by escaping inside himself, into his own world. It's blank and empty.

The noises of the Elementals moving around the trees becomes nothing more than white noise. Even his sight seems to blur and he's only vaguely aware of his feet taking him somewhere, following Jake.

Left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot... It takes no thought.

He's startled at the hot touch of a Fire Spirit, Jake's eyes bringing him back to the Valley. How long was that? Ezi wonders. Long enough to get us out of the forest, at least...

Ezi follows as Jake leads the human girl around, but he lags behind without commenting as his mind feels as though it's floating away. Even when Jake prompts him to speak, he keeps quiet. There isn't much to show the girl anyway. The realm of the Elemental Spirits is tiny, easy to walk from one end to the other in less than a day. Ezi hears the girl complain about how this place is hard on her eyes, how everything is too fuzzy and indistinct compared to her mortal realm. Nothing feels as solid. Everything seems to shine or shimmer, as if it's just an illusion.

It's funny, Ezi has always found the living realm too defined and too real to be comfortable. It's strange to hear the opposite opinion, but he supposes he shouldn't be surprised Amanda feels this way.

Jake shows Amanda all the different areas of the Valley. The volcano and eternal flames for the Fire Spirits. The clouds above for the Winds. The mountains and their caves for the Earths. The sea that appears endless for the Waters.

Nothing for Cyn and I. Well, maybe the forest. Was it made for us? Maybe for Cyn, especially those darker parts, but not me. Never me, he thinks sadly.

Amanda seems impressed by everything - even with that weird "fuzziness" - and Jake is just as excited to have someone to show it all off to.

They come across other Spirits and many of them crane their necks to get a peak at the mortal. A few try to help show the human around, but not many speak Krazden well enough to do so. Amanda just ends up confused.

"So, why are you all speaking different languages? How can you understand each other?" Amanda finally asks.

"Aw, that's an easy one!" Jake laughs. "Y'see, all us Elementals are mentally linked. Sorta. It's a casual connection though, so we can't, like, read each other's minds or nothin'. But we can share thoughts that we want others to hear! Our speech is a thought that we all just kinda share without thinkin' too much on it. Comes naturally!"

Amanda's eyes spark in interest. "Wow! That's so cool! But why speak human languages at all when you have that?"

Ezi watches the mood shift in Jake's face. "Well, uh," he hesitates. "It's complicated! I know that's a shit answer, but it really is. I dunno how to explain it!"

Ezi speaks up. "Amanda, it's better if you know as little about us as possible. Trust me." He smiles warmly at the human.

Amanda looks like she may reply, but then covers her stomach with her hands as it makes a rather grotesque noise. Both Spirits cock their heads at her.

"Are you alright?" Ezi asks.

"I'm so hungry! Isn't there any food around here? Like, a café or something?" Amanda complains.

Jake and Ezi look at each other, Jake murmuring, "I kinda forgot about that."

"Is she dying?" Ezi asks casually.

"No, she needs food."

"Food?"

"Food," Amanda groans.

Jake nods. "Let's find Lilo. She's our newest Spirit, right? She'll know what to do."

Amanda looks confused, scrunching up her small face. She then leaps to her feet to follow her ethereal companions when they walk away.

"Jake," Ezi mutters, "how long as it been since Lieselotte appeared in the Valley?"

"Year, I think?" Jake replies with a shrug. "Somehtin' like that. Either way, she's real new, newer than anyone else I'm pretty sure."

"Where was this person before here?" Amanda questions.

Neither Elemental answers.

"You want me to show you where to get some grub? Sure! I can do that!" Lieselotte's hands flap in excitement, bouncing up and down. "I know lots of good places! I used to steal food all the time!"

"Oi, Lilo!" Jake cuts in. "Stealin' aint right! You shouldn't be actin' so proud of that."

Lilo's bounces stop, making Ezi's smile fall a little. Her bounces always cheer him up.

"Sorry, Jake. But we can't help being thieves, can we?" Her green eyes are wide, deep enough to feel like she's examining one's very soul despite never looking anyone in the eye. "We steal lives."

Jake looks downcast at that, Ezi pulling on his hair. Jake is the one to reply. "Lilo, don't talk like that, alright? Not like any of us enjoy this."

"Enjoy what?" Kamiko glides up, giving Ezi a cautious glance before speaking to Jake. Ezi tugs on his hair harder, making himself squeak. He stands some distance from the group, observing.

Jake doesn't look back, just reaches behind himself so Ezi can grab his hand.

"Don't matter, Kami!" Jake grins, though it doesn't fool her, her ears twitching.

"Kami! Kami! We're going to feed Meatsack! Wanna come?" Lilo's bouncing starts again. Amanda looks baffled, unable to understand the majority of the conversation.

Eventually, they all manage to decide what to do. They'll be taking Amanda to Lilo's country - J'klai - to find her some food from a place Lilo was apparently quite fond of. They all decide to accompany her, just in case. Lilo makes the portal the moment this is decided, not leaving anyone anymore room for preparation or discussion. The others are forced to follow along before the portal closes.