[color=DeepSkyBlue]“You know, your fin is pretty funny to watch when you’re- ACK!”[/color] Not for the first time that day Kailani was once again interrupted. As Siobhan swam to her the darker skinned girl couldn’t help but watch the fin bobbing through the water behind her, being entirely distracted. Not that she was some great warrior with reflexes that could’ve saved her from being submerged anyway, as the redhead pulled her into the water.

Kailani’s head broke the water sputtering, dark brown hair plastering her skin. She glared at Siobhan, but the grin on her face was wider than ever.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Just for that, I [i]am[/i] taking a bite out of that fin of yours when you go to sleep!”[/color] She teased playfully, taking being soaked surprisingly well. No use crying over spilled Kailani! After all, she’d think it was hilarious if their positions were reversed. 

Siobhan’s next question, however, had Kailani sobering up quickly. As always, almost defensively, there was still a smile on her face, but it was small, even a touch sad. Wistful.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Mella’s my best friend. [i]Was[/i] my best friend. Which I mean, really, no surprise! She was the only person on the island with as big a wanderlust as me!”[/color] Kailani sunk slightly into the water, until her mouth and nose were submerged. She watched the surface, watched how Siobhan drifted on her back. Only when her lungs ached for air did the brunette lift once more, taking in a deep breath.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“She... died, two years ago, when we first tried to leave.”[/color]

[hr]

[color=DarkOrange]“Hey, wake up! Wake up, sleepyhead! Jeez, you’re lucky I covered for you, your mother would’ve been – are you still not awake?!”[/color]

Kailani yawned as a feminine voice continued to pierce her dreams, content to ignore her friend. When her ears picked up the sound of approaching footsteps the islander even rolled to her side, back to the shadow that now blocked the few rays of sun that trickled from the sky.

[color=DarkOrange]“Kailani! I know you’re awake! You never move when you’re sleeping – you’re a denser stone than the entire island!”[/color] A small giggle bubbled up from Kailani’s chest, but she playfully, stubbornly refused to rouse. A huff above her signalled the end of her companion’s indulgence and the Chieftian’s daughter let out a squeaky yelp as the other girl jumped her, forcefully rolling them along the wooden deck.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]”Me~lla!”[/color]

[color=DarkOrange]“Don’t ‘Mella’ me! You’re so irresponsible! Did you sleep out here all night?!”[/color] Kailani stuck her tongue out as the two finally stopped rolling, ending up pinned beneath her much stronger friend. Above her Mella was frowning, though the amused glint in her bright blue eyes let Kailani know there was no real anger to her words.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Maaaybe. What’s it to you?”[/color] Kailani blew air out of her mouth, a combination of her own dark brown and Mella’s black ponytail. The taller girl shook her head, finally sitting back to let her up.

[color=DarkOrange]“You better hope this works, you’d be an awful Chieftain.”[/color]

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“So I’m told!”[/color] Kailani bounced up, stretching her arms high above her head. A series of satisfying cracks sounded out as she loosened up, tilting her head to look to the sky. The sun was just beginning to peek over the edge of Ka Li’Ai’s cloudy wall, bathing the island resting in the eye of the great storm. The light washed over the wood beneath her feet, the deck of her and Mella’s ticket off the island – a ship that had crashed on the far side of the island, surprisingly intact. It was still pretty much a wreck of course, yet slowly but surely her and Mella had repaired it, even making a few improvements.

Of course, while Mella was helpful in lugging materials over, not to mention covering for Kailani when she ended up putting more time than was advisable into their ship, more often than not it was Kailani fixing the ship while Mella sat nearby talking of what life outside Ka Li’Ai must be like. A great warrior, a better friend, but awful with creating anything with her hands. That was fine though, Kailani enjoyed the company. Sometimes it was Mella urging her to stay late, actually – their wanderlust matched and fed off each other!

[color=DarkOrange]“We should leave today.”[/color] ... Which is why that didn’t sound as crazy as it should have.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Today?”[/color] Kailani quirked an eyebrow, tilting her head from the sky to instead look to the wings of their ship, the white material folded neatly and waiting to be deployed. [color=DeepSkyBlue]“I don’t know, the ship’s repaired, but there’s still a lot I wanted to do to it.”[/color]

[color=DarkOrange]“Please, you’d be content to tinker away at this making it perfect for the next fifty years! Come on, it’ll be rough but we’ll be fine – I brought some food, we have enough supplies to patch up anything on the other side, and besides...”[/color] Mella stepped in front of Kailani, into her line of sight. There was a confident smile playing at her face, and she lifted her tanned chin. [color=DarkOrange]“I trust in this old bucket, because I trust in you.”[/color]

Kailani met her friend’s eyes, brown to blue, and slowly her head tilted to the side as she considered. Her sun-kissed fingers rose, tapping against her bottom lip thoughtfully.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“... You’re not just trying to escape Kwati flirting with you again, are you?”[/color]

[color=DarkOrange]“Oh shut up!”[/color] Mella laughed, shoving Kailani. The latter grinned even as she stumbled back from the forceful shove that sent her a few paces back. Her friend was [i]strong[/i].

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Alright, let’s do it!”[/color] Mella blinked, apparently having been ready to argue. However her face immediately lit up, brightening the atmosphere as though Ka Li’Ai was never there.

[color=DarkOrange]“Yes! That’s what I want to hear! Come on, let’s get this ready! ... How do I get it ready?”[/color] Kailani rolled her eyes, jumping from the ship into the soft sand.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Come on, I’ll double check all the repairs are set and you can do a supply run – I doubt whatever food you brought is enough for [i]your[/i] stomach.”[/color]

[center]---[/center]

The sun beat down on a pair of dark skinned backs, water sloshing around their feet, then their knees. At that point Kailani jumped in, though Mella continued to push until the water was around her waist. Scrambling in after her Kailani gave her a thumbs up, before turning back to the wheel of the ship. Mella took point at the head, bright eyes looking forward.

The rock of waves was comforting, like a soft goodbye to the island they had grown up. The air was warm, the call of birds above them as they approached the great wall of black clouds.

Soon the light was engulfed.

Soon they were soaked through with rain, their ears deafened by thunder.

Soon all Kailani could hear was screaming, not able to discern if it was hers or her best friend’s.

Cracking. Crimson. Cold.

Mella’s fingers the last part of her to submerge, Kailani’s own clutching to a piece of splintered wood like a lifeline.

Darkness.

[hr]

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“I don’t honestly remember much, even after waking up. Everything is sort of fuzzy – I had a pretty bad head injury, and was nearly split in two,”[/color] Kailani tapped absently against the grooves of the great scar along her torso, a jagged, scraping path from her right shoulder to her left hip. [color=DeepSkyBlue]“It doesn’t help that most of what I remember is being in agony for the first few days. There was a lot of my mother yelling, I remember that – she was the angriest I’ve ever seen her. Not as angry as Mella’s family.”[/color]

Kailani’s lips pursed, and she let out a heavy breath. [color=DeepSkyBlue]“Ywa’n’s her brother. It’s why he hates me – he blames me for what happened. That’s one of the only other things I can recall from the first few days with the healers – him busting in, in a rage just yelling at me about how I ... well, I honestly don’t blame him for hating me."

“Anyway, my actions caused a lot of unrest. Mella’s family wanted me executed. It’s why the Tournament was brought forth eventually. Appease the people, put new blood onto the throne, all that good stuff. Of course I wasn’t going to let that happen – Ywa’n doesn’t understand, but I sort of feel like I owe it to Mella, to try again. See what was out there like she always wanted, not get shackled here for the rest of my life. This time I [i]made[/i] a boat, rather than relying on someone’s else design, so I was pretty confident too! Until, you know, a geyser broke it in half.”[/color] Kailani offered Siobhan a smile, it weaker than her usual beaming one but still there. She was always smiling, or at least trying to. This ... was probably more of the latter.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]“Part of me wants to believe, since her body never washed ashore, that she somehow made it to the other side.”[/color] A soft sigh escaped Kailani’s lips, though the smile didn’t falter, and she sunk further into the water, her eyes cutting to the side. [color=DeepSkyBlue]“I know it’s impossible. No one’s survived Ka Li’Ai.”

“... Well, no one but you.”[/color]