A Mysterious Statue

The snow crunched under his claws, the cool air nice and crisp against his pink fur. His voice spilling in the air with quiet excitement. The lop walked next to him, listening, before smiling up at him.

“I’m very glad that you two came out of it unscathed. I would have hated knowing any of you on this expedition had gotten hurt.” She gently placed a paw on his arm, and nodded to his younger lop brother. “Is he okay? I see that his coat is shredded. I have an extra if needed?”

Gabriel shook his head. “Thank you for the offer.” His mouth lifted in an appreciative smile. “But Zyair brought extras. He may not seem like it to others, but he’s very diligent in everything he does.”

“Teles!! Teles! Could you help us up here? We’re not sure which way to go!” Gabriel glanced up at one of the many teams ahead of them. They were all looking over an old map, trying to find the spot Teles mentioned seeing in her visions.

“Coming! Sorry, Gabriel. See you at the top?” 

He nodded, watching her sprint off to help the others. Gabriel refocused working with his brother. Turning back to call him, he caught the tail-end of Zyair tripping and face-planting in the thick snow.

“Zyair! Are you okay?” He jogged back to help him sit up.

But Zyair stayed there and whacked the snow in frustration. He dodged Gabriel ‘s worried eyes. “Can’t we go back? I’ve already made a fool of myself multiple times.”

Gabriel tilted his head. “Zyair… It’s not like you to worry about how others may see you. At least not anymore.” He lifted his brother’s face, gently wiping away the snow clinging to his whiskers. “Are you worried about another attack?”

Zyair’s eyes teared for a second, thinking about the large dark feathered bird that had streaked towards him. “Not exactly.” He felt foolish. He had frozen, his brother, Gabriel, the one to push him to safety. The talons of the bird shredding the coat as it flew past them. It could have easily missed him entirely and greatly harmed his brother. That’s what he was worried about.

Gabriel smiled, seemingly knowing what troubled Zyair. He touched his cheek to his brother’s. “No worries, little Zyair. We are both safe, and will remain so as long as we’re together.” Zyair nodded his agreement.

“Now brother. What did you trip on?” Gabriel looked to where Zyair pointed. An oddly shaped stone poked out of a pile of snow. Helping his brother up, they went to the stone and brushed aside some of the snow.

“What is this? It looks like a creature of some sort?” Zyair mumbled with excitement.

Gabriel was almost stunned when they neatly uncovered the head of a statue. “I..I think it’s some kind of spirit maybe??”

As giddy as children with a new toy, they carefully brushed more snow away from the weathered stone, revealing a soft, but elegant creature standing amongst the bitter cold. Unfazed. 

“What do you think it is, Gabriel?”

He shook his head in response. “I’m not sure.” He glanced up. Their surroundings were quieter now. The other teams have moved further up the mountain. “But we need to catch up with the others. We can come back and sketch out the statue after. Then we can ask the Elders or someone.”

He quickly stood, reaching down to bring his brother up as well. And together they jogged through the snow to catch up to Teles and the others.