A Matter of Family

Chapter Six: Tragedies of the Past Lead to Treasures of the Future

*note to readers* Long chapter name, right? Lol! Sorry it took me so long to get the next chapter up. Things are gonna start getting busy for me this upcoming week, but I'll try to keep getting a chapter of this story out each day when I can. Anyways, hope you're having a great weekend and enjoy!

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The night was long, but sleep had managed to come and soon Keith's eyes were blinking open to a crisp morning air. Unfortunately a heavy fog had settled around the camp due to an unexpected but not unprepared rainfall from the night before. Keith had been safe and dry under his well constructed hutt, but he was rather cold because he had not made some kind of roof to protect his fire against the rain. He had wrapped himself in a cocoon of warmth with his cloak, but was hesitant to move despite his discomfort for fear of letting any warmth slip out.

The growling and sudden cramping of his stomach reminded Keith that he had gotten nothing to eat the night before and was as such very hungry for breakfast. He knew he'd have to get up and get moving eventually despite his want to stay warm, and his hunger soon overcame that desire to stay warm. With a burst of movement, Keith sat up and embraced the cold morning air. Instantly it rushed to greet him, making him shudder. Keith hadn't woken up that way in a long time. He remembered the times he had tent camped back on earth. While waking up to the cold wasn't the most pleasant, it brought back a sense of familiarity which Keith welcomed all the way out here and far from home (the one he remembered at least). Keith gathered up his cloak into a ball and made sure it was safe and dry in a secure spot in his hutt. Then, standing up, he began to move out of his shelter.

His shoulder unintentionally bumped a post holding the hutt up and the sudden bump caused all the water trapped up on the roof to drizzle down in at least a small cup's worth. Much of it doused Keith's head and he froze as the cold water ran down his back and dampened his shoulders.

"Really?" He asked aloud in irritation.

Keith did his best to shake off any lingering water and proceeded to figure out in which direction to head. His stomach growled again, cramping in its need for energy, making it difficult for Keith to think. He tried to ignore the distraction and looked around the forest and trees. Each direction looked the same, with no way for him to determine in which direction civilization could be. He didn't even know what he was looking for on this rock!

"What am I doing here?" Keith himself as he ran a hand through his (now damp) black hair, sighing.

Should he have listened to Shiro and waited back inside the castle before leaving? His memories seemed to have been coming back to him as he kept moving forward, so there was no telling what would have happened if Keith had stayed. He wouldn't be here if he hadn't left, and whether that was a good or bad thing, Keith didn't know. He sat down on the damp ground to clear his head for a moment.

The only thing he could really do at the moment was keep heading north and hope to find something that would help him. He would have to take each step at a time, but always be looking ahead. Keith wasn't sure what he would find here, but there had to be something. He stood up, and turned to start pulling up camp when he suddenly jumped to find a small being standing not far away from him. He hadn't even noticed it's presence until he had turned about halfway around. It was very small, no taller than two feet, and it had gray skin with wrinkles marking great age. A small and rather round head sat above the shoulders.

With a small but square chin, small nose, slightly hollowed cheeks, white hair tied back in a bun, and two squinted eyes, the little creature didn't seem to be much of a threat; though it still made Keith jump with a small shout, drawing his blade in instinct. The little creature, dressed in an old robe, held a small cane in its three fingered, clawed hands. With a round, frail body and small arms under drooping sleeves, it was difficult to imagine it being very dangerous. The creature looked at Keith with a seemingly delighted smile.