It's night again.
My friend, who may or may not be a flower or a fish, rests nearby. As she lay in front of the fire, pulled into a ball, her two squat branches were wrapped around her lower limbs.
After much thought, I concluded that the two objects on her face were indeed eyes, not seeds.
Birds have eyes. So I know them. But the bird's eyes are black, soulless things.
-They are not trustworthy.
However, this means she can't be Himawari. Sunflowers have no eyes.
Maybe she really is a fish?
There lay my suspicious fish friend, lying on the rich soil. Her eyes were fixed on the fire.
Very good, right?
The soil here is very fertile. The fire is warm, I guess it's better than no sun at all. Hope you like it. But I suggest you do something about the leaking water in your home.
You're wasting nutrients. The soil is already moist, and if you water the eyes too much, they may germinate prematurely and may even rot.
-Do eyes sprout like seeds?
I have no idea.
I am a sunflower.
For now, however, there's no sun in sight.
How unfortunate.
Why are we in a dark place?
This is not good. I can't see the sun from here.
I am an unhappy sunflower. My petals droop, my leaves droop, my head droops. My stem hung almost limply from the body of my kidnapping friend.
Morning has come and the sun is shining brightly today. But we have left that path. We left the sun. I don't know why, but something seemed to freak her out. It seemed like something was behind us. I don’t know, I was just too busy looking at the sun.
She took me into the forest. She took me into a small cave.
As we climbed in, I hit my head on the rock. But I'm okay.
-[sunflower]-
HP:06/07
It's cold and damp here. I do not like it. But she didn't seem to listen to my quiet protests.
-Maybe there's a bird out there that wants to eat her?
This makes sense. I figured if I could move, I would hide from the birds too. Running seems like a useful thing to do.
very good. I am an empathetic sunflower.
Friends, please forgive me for complaining. It didn't occur to me that those birds would try to eat you too. Thank you for saving us.
I squatted down, sucked in the heat from her body and used it, listening to the sounds coming from outside and the sounds of things walking through the cave.
They don't sound like birds.
We are on a different path now.
My friend took me through the forest and I looked up at the sky, trying to find the sun. But I can't find it.
The greedy trees stole its light and claimed it all for themselves.
For what purpose? I cannot say. There is enough sunshine for all of us.
My fish friend was quiet, making no noise or showing any of the happiness I saw her in that day. She is as quiet and stoic as a tree. She carried me on her back, shielding me from the sun, and walked on a very dark path.
Is she selfish? Maybe she's a tree instead of a fish?
I looked around at all the trees. No. She's not like them. They have many branches, she only has two. They have a trunk that reaches the ground. She has two.
Maybe she's the wrong tree? A completely different tree?
I can't say.
I wish I was in the sun. Staying here makes me feel like it's night time.
How unfortunate.
She runs.
The forest winds were all around us and the trees were obstacles in our path as she tried to escape the birds.
I looked back and stared at the things. They don't look like birds.
They look like her, but they're uglier. They have grey-green flesh, similar in color to dead roots. Their bodies were similar to hers, only leaner and more muscular. They also have sharper features and long mole-like claws.
But they are not moles.
I don't like moles. They like to dig, which is good. But they sometimes hurt my roots.
-It makes me unhappy.
But it doesn't matter. I'm judging again. This is a bad habit for sunflowers.
The non-birds chased us, chased her, their long claws glistening in the blur of sunlight filtering through the thick forest canopy.
I wondered if they were trying to eat her eyes, like the bird was trying to eat my seed?
--Maybe.
That explained why she was running and why her heart was beating so hard.
I guess I didn't want her eyes to be eaten. That means I'm stuck here, in this forest, with no sunlight and no one to take me away. That would be the worst.
And, I would feel sorry for her. I think.
I am a sunflower. I'm not used to moral dilemmas.
oh. I think we're either going to make it or we won't make it.
At the end of the day, it's all the same, really.
I was in an uncertain calm.
it's foggy.
We have left the forest and come to the other side of the forest.
We had to hide a lot. There are many ugly non-birds in the forest. They all wanted to catch her. But my friend ran very fast. Through her efforts, we came out to see the world again.
I thought it was her fault that I was in such a place, but I didn't blame her for it. Maybe she's looking for sunshine, like me?
I turned my head and looked up at the sky. But I can't see it. The fog is too heavy.
I just hope she stops running away. The movements were erratic and made me feel uncomfortable. This is not good for my leaves, petals, and stems, they are all hurting.
She ran around a large rock and I stared at it in fascination. She slid off the side and sat there panting.
While she didn't dig a hole for me to rest, she did lay me down on the ground where my roots could at least absorb the surface moisture of the damp grass in the meadow.
Unable to find the sun, I had to look at her. She is such a mess.
You look rude, friend.
I leaned down and shook the petals. I look like the sun. Maybe if she saw me she would think I was the sun and decide to run after me?
-I am a naughty sunflower.
My fish-tree-not-sunflower friend stared at me. She's doing it again. Please don't waste water. It is precious.
What had been chasing us was gone.
She picked me up and started walking again, leaving the forest. Fog hid us and the humidity in the air was pleasant.
I didn't like the taste of the water coming from her face. It dripped down my stem, onto my clump of roots she held. This is not soft water. There's too much salt in this.
No wonder she looks the way she does.
After all, too much salt can make any living thing look weird.
Yes.
right here.
-[sunflower]-
you bathe in the sun
+ 1 exp + 1 Health-Poi
t
Experience value: 09/35 HP: 07/07
My petals stretch wide, my leaves stretch wide, I stretch myself as far as I can, lift my body as high as I can.
She chose another approach. She lay flat on her back on the grass, arms spread as wide as her legs.
The fog cleared.
The forest disappeared.
The pesky non-bird is gone.
Now, only the sun is here, shining on both of us, and we lie on the grass in the distance, enjoying its rich moisture and sunshine.
Considering she's spread out like this, maybe she's not a fish or a tree? Maybe she's a mushroom?
Mushrooms like to hide, usually under the soil, but sometimes in holes. They like to spread themselves around and rarely let themselves be seen. They don't like sunlight like sunflowers. However, I do like them. After all, mushrooms help us bloom, and we help them too.
They give us things from the depths of the world, from places beyond the reach of our roots, and in turn, we give them things from the sun, where they like to hide.
Trees and mushrooms do the same.
Mushrooms are everyone's friend.
But birds sometimes peck at them, mushrooms.
Is she a mushroom?
I stared at my mushroom friend curiously. She blinked, turned her head, and stared at my face.
——Incredible.
I couldn't believe I took my eyes off the sun for a moment.
I turned my gaze to the bright, intense midday sun, and she did the same.
very good.
-[sunflower]-
you bathe in the sun
+1 exp
Experience value: 10/35
