“It sounds like they’re still here,” Yam hissed to Bread, who tilted his head slightly, purple eyes wide. “No, don’t look at me like that. Can’t you hear them?”

It turned out that what Yam, in her paranoid, sleep-deprived state, had heard was Ari, Aey and Rolf’s breathing as they slept. Bread, who had had a restful night and was still rather groggy, hadn’t picked up on the minute sound.

“Well, I’d better go get them out,” Yam sighed, throwing off her blanket and swinging her legs over to the side of her bed. “You can come along if you want to.”

It took only a few seconds for Yam to confirm that, yes, Ari, Aey and Rolf were all still in her house. She marched over to the couch, only to see Rolf still snoring peacefully, propped up in a prison of pillows and blankets. Ari’s silhouette was visible through the tent’s thin material, so she was still asleep, too- but where was Aey?

Yam spun around at the sound of a muffled whisper and noticed Aey, who was sleeping upright on one of her bar-like island stools. Somehow she hadn’t fallen off yet, despite the stool having no back or arms.

“Oh my god,” Yam hissed. “They’re all still here. Pfffffffffffffff ugh ok.” She crossed to where Rolf was still sleeping, her small form curled up in a tight ball amongst all the soft and squishy things, and gently eased a blanket out from under the Gnome. She crossed the room again, blanket in hand, and chucked it over Aey’s back with absolutely no gentleness at all. Just as she was heading into the kitchen to make a start on breakfast, the tent behind her unzipped and Ari stepped out, looking well-rested and energetic.

“Hi Yam. Did you have a good sleep?” Ari yawned, stretching her arms behind her head. She took a cup from the drying rack and headed over to the sink. “I’m parched. I don’t know why. You don’t mind if I have some water, right?”

“No. It’s fine.” Yam ducked down and pulled a frying pan out of the cupboard under the sink, setting it on her portable stove and lighting it with a match. “Watch this, would you? I’m going to go get some food.”

“Oh, okay,” Ari agreed, finishing her drink and rinsing the cup in the sink. She stepped sideways and stared intently at the pan, watching it in silence.

Yam ducked out of the door and crossed the field next to her house, heading for the river that was her main source of water. It was, suspiciously, a freshwater river, which she hadn’t previously thought existed but maybe they did and she just hadn’t noticed or really cared before. All that mattered was that it was drinkable.

She took a minute to stare into the crystal-clear waters of the two-metre-deep river. It was deeper than she was tall, but she could swim and so it was ok. A flash of silver alerted her to the presence of her prey and immediately, she crouched down on all fours, ready to leap into the water the second the fish showed itself again. It only took a second before Yam was soaking wet, her fur heavy and dark, her clothes the same story. She could feel her tail flowing out behind her and she shuddered just thinking of how long it would take to dry herself later. But a plump silver fish was clamped in her jaws so that made it all worth it. At least the water wasn’t exactly cold.

She surfaced, shaking the water out of her face, and froze when she saw Aey crouching on the riverbank, smirking down at her.

“What do you want?” Yam hissed, but the hiss was muffled by the fish and so it came out more like “wh o oo wha?” She spat out the fish and grabbed it with a paw, glaring defiantly up at Aey. “What do you want?”

“Nothing. Just watching you.” Aey’s grin grew wider and she sat back on her tailbone, looking suspiciously comfortable and at ease.

“You’re aware of how creepy that sounds, right?” Yam clambered out onto the other side of the riverbank and laid the fish on the ground. She stared down into the water again, her keen eyes searching for any more bright flashes of silver.

“Ah, well, I’m a Tiefling,” Aey shrugged, whipping her pointed tail around. “We’re known for being creepy. It’s not very often you find one of us being… nice.”

“You were nice enough to Bread,” Yam replied nonchalantly, swiping out a paw and snagging another fish with her claws. Aey shrugged again, watching her lay the fish beside the first and keep looking.

“‘Nice enough’?” Aey teased, her smile now less mocking and more genuine. “I’m sorry that sacrificing my freedom and selling my soul to my patron doesn’t already count as nice eno- AH. I- I never said that. You heard nothing.”

Yam glanced up at her, taking a break from fishing. Aey had sold her soul to her devilish patron. That made sense. “Oh, right, you’re a Warlock, aren’t you? Sorry love, I’m not forgetting that any time soon.”

“W-well,” Aey stuttered, eyes wide. “Just don’t… tell anyone, ‘kay? I don’t want them to be afraid of me… again…” After pausing for all of three seconds, Aey perked up again, her usual cocky smile plastered back on her face and one eyebrow raised mockingly. “So, whatcha doing?”

“Getting- breakfast,” Yam huffed, stretching out a paw again. She’d already grabbed three fish and was going for another one or two. “Do you care to try?”

Aey shook her head minutely. “No, ah, I don’t really know how to.”

“Well, wait here with these and I’ll be right back.” Yam stood up, shaking out her fur, and marched off to her house again. There was a small shed behind it where she kept things like extra logs and a handaxe or two. Among other things.

She was looking for her fishing line and net, and luckily, the two items were within sight and reach and she grabbed them and ducked out again, locking the wooden door behind her. She crossed back over to the river where Aey was waiting, a vaguely worried expression on her face.

“What’s wrong?” Yam teased, setting up the fishing line and laying down the net. Aey fidgeted slightly, lips pursed, and reached down to the net. She picked it up and twirled it around deftly, inspecting the careful netting and whittled-down wooden handle. Yam threw the fishing line into the water, tying the other end around her paw. Aey watched in silent fascination as a few fish swam up to the end of the line and Yam grabbed the net. The Tabaxi hovered the net over the water, careful not to make too much of a shadow on the surface, and suddenly scooped up all four of the fish in one quick movement. It took her only a second to dig her claws into, and kill, all four.

“Easy,” Yam shrugged, tipping the bleeding fish out onto the pile. “Give it a try.”

Aey tentatively took the net and lined her throws over the river, imitating Yam’s action perfectly. If not for the empty net, the tiefling’s perfect posture when reeling in the catch would’ve earned admiring gasps from even the toughest, most seasoned fishermen. 

“Guess it wasn’t that easy for you,” Yam said with mild amusement at Aey’s expression of disbelief. She scooped up a handful of fish and started to head back to her house. “Better luck next time, Tiefling,” she chimed without even glancing at Aey, who was still frozen in the same spot. 

 “I… didn’t manage to catch anything. This… Something I am not perfect at from the start..? This is impossible…” Aey muttered to herself like a madman, while still glaring daggers at her empty net. If looks could kill, Aey’s net would’ve been dead a thousand times even if it’s scientifically impossible for nets to die. 

Back at the house, Ari was still staring intensely at the open stovetop. The pan had started to smoke and she could see the fire creeping up the sides of the metal dish. At exactly that moment, Yam burst through the house door carrying armfuls of fish, Aey following close behind. The Tabaxi glanced at the smoking stovetop and stared at Ari.

“Wh…at… is going on???????? Why’s there a fire in my WOODEN HOUSE??”

Ari blinked in surprise at Yam’s sudden appearance and whispered back in response. “You told me to watch the fire..? That’s exactly what I did. Oh, unless you meant to… make sure the pan isn’t burning.”

“Y…es? What… did you think I meant?” Yam blinked at Ari in disbelief. Sure, she was obviously a city girl, but did she really not know how to stop a fire from catching?? “I… ugh. Aey, take these.” She dumped the armful of fish onto Aey and the Tiefling stumbled to catch them all, lurching forward and flinging her arms out dramatically. Yam rolled her eyes and turned back to Ari. “Go… sit next to Rolf.” She waved a paw at the still-sleeping Gnome and Ari obediently sat down on the couch arm, blinking at her expectantly.

Yam groaned and reached over to the drying rack where four cups still sat upside down. She grabbed all four and filled each with water before pouring all the contents into the burning pan. The fire was promptly put out and the pan let out a loud hiss as steam spewed out of it in smokey gray swirls. Yam gestured to Aey, snapping her fingers briskly. “Come chuck this in the sink. I’m going to go wake Bread.”

Aey fumbled for a second, almost dropping all the fish, before laying them on the table and turning to the pan. She reached out a hand to grab the handle but as soon as her fingers brushed the pan, she hissed dramatically and sprung back, eyes wide. Yam spun around from halfway down the corridor, ears flat. She let out a disappointed sigh when she saw Aey hissing like a cat at the smoking pan.

“...the hell? What are you… doing?”

“It burned me,” Aey pouted, not seeming anything like her usual, cocky self. She edged sideways and rinsed her hand under the tap, evidently sulking. Yam stared at her in confusion.

“Aren’t you a… Tiefling… aren’t you used to fire??”

Aey blinked at her with mild annoyance in her eyes. “Yeah, but I- I have sensitive skin,” she muttered, still sulking. Ari stared at her, blinking.

“You… have… sensitive skin??”

“Yeah,” Aey pouted, still rinsing her fingers in the cold water. “Wish I didn’t, but I can’t do anything about it so… yeah.”

Yam sighed again and smacked a paw to her forehead. “Oh god. Alright. Move.” The Tabaxi crossed the room again and roughly shoved Aey out of the way, easily picking up the pan and depositing it in the sink in one swift movement. She shoved a paw under the water and directed the stream into the pan, where it began to hiss again. Aey jerked away, eyes narrowed and teeth bared. “Love, have you made enemies with a… pan?”

“No,” Aey snapped, still glaring at the smoking pan. “It started it. Get it away from me.”

Ari and Yam stared at the Tiefling, eyes blank. “It’s… an inanimate object,” Ari tried to explain, waving her hands around to demonstrate her point. “It… physically… can’t.”

“I don’t care.” Aey stalked across the room and pulled out a chair at the kitchen table, swinging herself around and plonking down on it. She sat there, arms and legs crossed and a pout on her face. Yam rolled her eyes and reached down to the table, snatching up two pawfuls of fish and throwing them into a new pan. They lay there, sizzling, and after a minute or two Yam flipped them over with a flick of her paw and waited for them to cook through fully. Aey stared at her in disbelief and confusion as she transferred the still-sizzling fish onto a serving tray and threw another batch into the pan.