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“Miku, slow down! You know dad can’t possibly keep up with those frail, old, feeble legs of his.”

“Oh, surely he’s not that old. I bet he’s got a few good years left in him~”

While his daughter and her feline familiar shared a laugh, positioned just a few feet ahead of him, Ichida Li scrunched his nose at the two. “Oh, har har. Very funny, ladies.”

The duo - or, rather, trio - had decided to go on a stroll that afternoon, casually making their way through the forest at their own pace. Pointing out plants and other things of interest along the way, what had once been a regular father/daughter activity had now become less and less frequent since Kohana and her siblings had grown. A shame, really, but it was all just part of life and growing up in general.

All the more reason to enjoy this rare bit of quality time.

Noticing that his daughter’s attention was now elsewhere as she and Miku investigated yet another small patch of flowers, Ichida quickly picked up the pace, rushing towards the two. The stallion gave the impression that he was going to run straight into them, hooves kicking up dirt and thudding noisily against the forest floor as he approached. He then veered to the left at last minute, a mischievous grin on his face at the sound of their startled cries, Miku in particular letting out a yowl and flapping her wings in surprise. Ichida let out his own amused laugh this time around, his pace now slowed as he moved at a relaxed gait. “I’m not that old yet, clearly.” A raised brow accompanied his grin as he circled around the two, a look that silently dared them to try and challenge the notion again.

No objections to him still being in the prime of his life and in tip-top shape? No sassy comments? Nothing? Excellent.

“Anywaaays! C’mon, let’s get a move on. I know you two girls are curious as can be -”

“But dad, we -”

“But -” Ichida swiftly cut Kohana off, the knowing look of a father on his face as he pointedly locked eyes with her, “Buuuuut there are plenty of other interesting flowers waiting in the meadow we’re heading to.” He allowed them to mull over that fact during a brief pause that followed, his daughter letting out a huff as she made her way to his side. When Kohana went to interject once more, as she was so prone to do, Ichida cut her off again. “Flowers that we haven’t already stopped to see today. Twice.”

“Alright then, a race it is!” Winded laughter filled the air as father and daughter raced through the woods, carefully avoiding the obstacles that nature had set on their course. Despite her sudden head start, Ichida quickly gained speed and kept up with Kohana. No, scratch that, he outpaced her, always a few steps ahead - no more, no less. He’d let his daughter have her fun and win in the end, of course, but he’d make it challenging. It was a race, after all!

Ichida chanced a glance back at his young opponent, about to egg her on once more as they neared the edge of the forest, only to realize that she was nowhere to be seen. Had she fallen behind? Well, that wasn’t like her at all... “Kohana?” He found himself slowing down as he called out to her, momentarily putting a halt to their friendly race. No Miku in sight either, come to think of it. Wouldn’t the little feline have caught up at this point? Waiting for a reply, he took a moment to catch his breath.

Left only with his thoughts and the silence of the woods, an emotion he hated began to rear its ugly head: worry.

He called out her name again, louder this time. To hell with keeping the woods nice and peaceful, who cared if anyone else around heard him, where was Kohana? Where was his daughter?

Kohana made her appearance at last, bursting out from the nearby foliage, nearly taking a tumble in the process. She was flustered, clearly, her flower crown sitting crooked and clothing disheveled. The mare heaved a breath, glancing around frantically before finally realizing her father was there. “Oh, thank goodness! Finally!” She rushed over to him, pressing her neck against his and draping her head over him in a brief hug. Kohana then pulled back, ignoring Ichida as he began to bombard her with questions, allowing her father to brush away the stray leaves and twigs that had apparently made their way into her mane. “We were racing and everything was good until it wasn’t good and then darkness fell and -”

Catching herself mid-sentence, she took a few calming breaths (or at least tried to) before restarting. “I felt a little guilty and went back to fetch Miku. She strayed away from us while we were racing but managed to find her way over to the meadow. I found her just a few minutes ago.” Kohana gave a shake of her head, “Something isn’t right, daddy. It’s only noon and it’s dark out. Completely dark, like night has fallen, here and over in the meadow.”

A perplexed look came across her face then, and Kohana hesitated before deciding to speak again. “I... I don’t know what’s going on, but I think the sun is gone.”

By the end of Kohana’s explanation, Ichida had a true look of confusion on his face. “You found Miku, good! But you’re saying that the sun is... gone?” His voice was muffled, a leaf still held in his mouth from tidying up his daughter’s messy mane. He spit it out, allowing it to fall to the forest floor as he gave a tilt of his head. “Like, gone gone? Sweetheart, that’s... not possible.” Ichida gave a lighthearted laugh, reaching over to gently nudge some of Kohana’s mane out of her face. “The sun and moon appear each and every day. I’ve never known them to falter.”

When Kohana pulled away with a huff and stomped her hoof, Ichida yielded. “Whoa, okay! Alright.” He clucked his tongue, trying to brainstorm some ideas. “So it’s darker than usual and it’s only noon. Uh... Oh! Maybe there’s a storm and a whole lotta clouds rolling in?”

Kohana let out an exasperated sigh, shaking her head at her father. “No, it’s not a storm! There were barely any clouds in the sky.” Her ears twitched, straining to pick up the usual sounds of the forest, only to hear nothing. Absolutely nothing. No birdsong, no chittering, no breeze or the rustle of foliage.

The sun was gone, the land was cloaked in darkness, and the world around them was silent.

Something was definitely off.

“Look, I’ll show you! Over in the meadow.” Kohana bumped his shoulder with her own, motioning for him to head towards the well-worn path they had been racing originally. “Miku’s waiting there for us, probably freaking out still. Not that I blame her.” She grimaced a little, once again feeling slightly guilty for leaving her companion behind. “Trust me, something strange is going on. I don’t know what, exactly, but... I’ve never seen anything like this.” As the two began to head along the path once more towards the meadow, she found herself drawing closer to her father’s side. The act reminded her of when she was a foal, quietly seeking comfort and protection from her parents.

... ... ...

Reunited with Miku, the trio stood together at the very edge of the forest, safe (or so they hoped) beneath the cover of the trees as they observed the odd landscape that lay before them. They had all agreed not to enter the open field, fearful of the unknown.

“So, uh..." All that came from Ichida was a failed attempt at conversation as he struggled to come up with a response, an answer, something about the current situation. And boy, was it a situation. The meadow before them was dimly lit with hazy shades of orange and red, autumnal and very fitting of the season. The stretching fields were empty, not a soul to be seen - no predator nor prey, the only real movement being the occasional swaying of grass and flowers from a passing breeze.

It was almost dream-like, and it could have even been considered pleasant, were it not for the giant, incredibly ominous black orb blocking out the sun overhead. His daughter had been right, in a way. Something was wrong with the sun.

Was that dark orb the sun? If not the sun, then the moon? And if not the moon, then... what else could it be? Why was the land veiled in darkness? Why now? What did this mean? Was something of importance about to happen, or was nature simply messing with them?

What. was. going. on.

Clearing his throat, Ichida turned to look at his daughter and her feline friend. “I was confused before, when you first told me what was going on.” He glanced at the eclipse from the corner of his eye, a hasty observation made before he gave a deep sigh. “And... I’m still confused. Probably more confused than I was before. First time I’ve ever seen something like this, ha ha...” Filled with nervous energy, Ichida decided to slowly pace between the two nearest trees, hoping that some tidbit of past knowledge or experience would help him handle the situation in a fatherly fashion - that he could provide comfort and perhaps an answer in a time where they all needed it. And so he paced. Back and forth, over and over. The stallion was struggling to come up with something, anything. Maybe his mate would have some answers for them? Some sort of info? He would definitely have to toss some questions at Fuu later. After, y’know, trying to explain what they were all currently witnessing. Had this ever happened before?

Silence weighed heavy upon the trio, the only noise being the repeated pattern of Ichida’s hoofsteps.

Minutes passed and, based on the nervous observations of the trio, nothing had changed. The eclipse still loomed in the distance, ominous and foreboding. But that was all it was doing: sitting in the sky, just as the sun and moon always had.

Even still, they were all left unnerved by the sight.

Lack of answers was what scared Kohana the most. Fear of the unknown, fear of not knowing, fear of being unable to find an answer for what was going on.

“Dad, d-do... do you think things will return to normal? To how they were before?”

Lost in his own thoughts, Ichida stopped and looked over at Kohana, currently resting against one of the trees with Miku curled against her side. It was a simple question, but the look of concern on his daughter’s face conveyed her worry.

“I don’t know, sweetheart.” It was an honest answer on Ichida’s part, but not what Kohana wanted to hear at that moment, ears pinning back as she began to tremble. The wrong answer, clearly. Oh, damn...

Ichida quickly moved to rectify the situation, setting his worries about the eclipse aside as he approached his daughter. “Uh, but I hope so!” He added abruptly, offering a small smile to both Kohana and Miku. “I hope so. I really do.” He leaned down a little, gently pressing his nose to his daughter’s cheek and giving her a nuzzle, a comforting gesture in uncertain times. “What I do know is that I’ll be here and your mother will be here. Your brother, your sister, Miku.” At the mention of her name, Ichida heard the tell-tale rumbling of the feline’s purr. “You’re not alone.”

He only pulled away when Kohana’s shaking had finally calmed, taking a step back as she stood up. Ichida let out a relieved sigh, a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. “Maybe all we have to do is wait, like we do with the sun and moon. And we can do that waiting back at home, hm?” The stallion proposed, softly humming in thought before he began to move towards the field. “But I don’t think we should go back empty handed. We did come all this way..." He forced himself to ignore the unnerving presence of the eclipse high above, eyes scanning the grass as he focused on the task at hand. One flower, two, three. Kohana and Miku joined him, the trio sticking to one area, and soon enough they had collected a small bouquet of wildflowers, a mix of colors and different sizes.

“Home?”

“Home. I think we’ve had enough adventure for one day.”

“Yes, home! Today sure was... something. Not sure if I would call it an adventure, buuut it sure was interesting.”