To Chase a Dream ⇾ Aloy

three: a brother in love and a treasure lost

"Flek, I'm going to kill you!" Lorea sprints out of the water, completely soaked from head to toe, straight at her brother who's doubled over from laughing. As soon as her words register though, he runs as fast as he can, praying to All Mother that he will survive the wrath of his sister. He probably shouldn't have pushed her into the water, but it was too perfect not to.

He passes by a bewildered looking Varl and an even more confused Vala, since she doesn't get the 'pleasure' of dealing with the other pair of siblings often. After the initial shock has faded Varl merely shakes his head in amusement. Those two are something else.

As they settle in on the river bank Lorea finally catches up to Flek. She tackles him to the ground and whacks him on the back of head. "Do you have any idea what I was carrying in my pocket? Weeks of work washed away, literally!"

The older sibling mumbles something under his breath. He attempts to get her off, by pushing himself up but his stubborn sister isn't going anywhere. With a sigh he relents. "Fine, I'm sorry," he looks up at her to the best of his ability. "We good now?"

"Ugh fine, but only because your boyfriend is waiting. I will never be able to consciously make him unhappy." She stands up and slowly makes her way over to Vala and Varl. It doesn't take long for Flek to pass her and attempt not to look too desperate to get to his boyfriend. It doesn't work. The two males greet each other with a quick kiss and sit down to chat.

Lorea reaches Vala and sits down beside her, throwing a warm fur around her shoulders to protect her wet clothes. Together they look out at the water, hair ruffling in the soft breeze. It's a peaceful afternoon the sun is bright and warm, the water cold but refreshing and the snacks Vala brought delicious and plenty. A content sigh leaves Lorea's lips, it's not often that she can relax and right now is as close to being fully relaxed as she can be. Some nagging feeling in the back of her head will always be there to remind her of all the things that could possibly go wrong, but she's a professional at ignoring it.

It's not long before the last of the group reaches them. Bast joins them followed closely by Talara and Teb. Talara is fully dressed in her hunting attire, while Teb only carries a simple bow with a few basic arrows.

The teen can't help, but wonder what they're doing here. Talara sees her questioning look and clarifies: "Teb needs Boar hides and I'm helping hunt and Bast was headed in the same direction."

Lorea nods in response. With that question answered it doesn't take her mind long to focus on other matters.

Talara turns to Bast and puts her hands on his shoulders. "Don't be a complete turd and don't die," she instructs her little brother, searching his eyes for conformation. After three heartbeats of silence and her not letting him go Bast sighs and mumbles an 'ok'. With that taken care of Talara and Teb wave and take their leave.

"So," Bast starts dragging out the word. "Want to do something fun?"

"Sure," Vala replies and springs up. "You coming as well?" She asks Lorea.

The explorer looks up and shakes her head, bringing up her hand to shield her eyes from the sun. "No, you two go ahead I prefer to stay here."

"Your loss," Bast replies before taking off to the waterfall with Vala.

Lorea lies back down and closes her eyes. She hears the waterfall rushing down and the wind rustling the leaves. She can smell the plant life around her and the scent of freshly roasted Boar. A loud growl comes from her stomach. And there went the peaceful moment. She pushes herself up and rummages through the bag of snacks.

"Lovebirds!" She yells to attract their attention. "Do you guys want food as well?"

Varl yells something of confirmation back while Lorea continues to stall out the food. The two mates join her and she gives them a quick smile before going back to the food. She chooses to start with some sweet berries. Keeping the crispy baked turkey in her mind for later.