They had never stepped foot outside the barrier before. From here it looked like a confusing maze of wilderness. From stories told by the village elders, they knew danger could be lurking behind every tree. The shade thrown by the canopy leaves made the ground dark and eerie compared to the open air of the village.
Despite their immediate fear, the boys exchanged a quick, unsure nod, and dashed outside the shield. There were scattered trees and bushes between them and the herb, the lush overgrown grass slowed them down slightly. They were surprised by how quiet and serene the forest appeared. Without the haze of the shield obscuring their view, the green trees and underbrush seemed buzzing with life and freedom. Yori did not let his surroundings distract him and was the first to the herb. He collapsed to his knees with a thud while still scanning his surroundings before turning his full attention to the herb. With much enthusiasm brought on by the stress of danger, he began to uproot some of the plants as quickly as his hands would let him. Yori's pulse pounded in his head from the adrenaline of being outside of the barrier for the first time in his life. His fingers pulverized the ground, digging out the roots of the plants from the loamy soil.
If I can repot them and get them to grow then it will make the Handa's lives a lot easier.
Naoki stood watch behind him, his eyes darting at every noise, raising his fists in preparation for the worst.
Rustle, rustle.
A noise from behind them startled the boys as they both looked towards the noise. Their eyes widened. Staring unmoving at a green bush, the foliage blocking their view. A flowering ivy plant had grown through the bush's branches, leaving beautiful patches of pale pink.
"Crap, something's here."
Naoki's speech came out as barely a whisper.
….
A small creature with long ears poked out of the long grass. It's nose twitched as it nibbled on the flowered vine.
"Never mind, looks like it's just a rabbit."
Yori's heart jumped into his throat at Naoki's first whisper, but calmed upon the second. Their shoulders relaxed simultaneously. Although the outside world was home to monsters, there were also many animals, like rabbits, that called it home. Yori turned back to the task at hand and continued digging up the herbs.
As he finished plucking the plants from the dirt his eyes wandered back to the rabbit still sitting a few feet from them, seemingly unaware of the two of them looking at it. Yori nodded towards Naoki.
"Ok, I've got them. Let's get out of here…."
Yori squinted, and then slowly stood from his kneeling position in anticipation.
"Wait…. are those horns?"
The rabbit's ears twitched towards the boys, finally aware of their presence. The creature turned to face them with a quick twitch of its neck, head held in a now alert position. It looked much the same as a rabbit, but with one small difference… two short brown horns sat atop the creature's head. This characteristic could mean the difference between life and death. This was no mere rabbit, this was a monster.
"RU-"
Before Yori could even finish his word the jackalope sprung towards him, smashing into his shoulder before he had time to turn towards the barrier. The force knocked him off of his feet as he hit the ground hard below him. Yori attempted catch himself with his hand but it buckled underneath him. His heart raced while he scrambled backwards away from the creature.
What am I doing here? Why did I make such a stupid mistake leaving the town? I should know better not to leave without an escort. I hope Naoki can escape!
He felt powerless. This tiny creature, insignificant in the grand scheme of things was going to mean his demise. He realized that he was vulnerable on the ground and had no way to escape, aware that he could never outrun the jackalope. Closing his eyes, Yori prepared himself for death.
"Rawghh!"
The death did not come though. Instead, he heard a loud yell in a familiar voice and a thud. Arms wrapped under his armpits and he was lifted to his feet.
"RUN YOU IDIOT!"
Naoki yanked Yori to his feet. Yori quickly realized his friend had kicked the creature mid-jump and lifted Yori from the ground and began sprinting towards the safety of the barrier. Through sheer survival instinct, Yori listened to his friend and sprinted for the barrier as fast as he could muster. He had always been fast due to his slender build, outpacing his stalky friend as he caught up. Naoki was likely to fall behind.
I can't just leave him to fend for himself, but what can I do?
He stole a glance back at the monster over his shoulder as the creature lowered it's body into a crouch. As it prepared to pounce on Naoki, Yori locked eyes with it and shouted, waving his hands above his head. This worked in stealing the creature's attention and becoming its new target.
I can't let it get me again, my shoulder still hurts really bad from the last time it hit me. But I'm ready for it this time!
Yori pumped himself up with his thoughts as he turned back towards the creature just as the jackalope pounced, but this time its prey was prepared. He rolled sideways, taking care where he landed as not to injure his shoulder further. The jackalope was unable to change direction midair. It sailed passed them and bit nothing but empty space. A bit shocked that he managed to escape that attack without further injury Yori was momentarily stunned. Missing its prey, the jackalope flung itself directly into the barrier, landing face first with a sudden thunk. Getting back to his sense, the two boys saw their opening and dove across the barrier, Yori from the ground and Naoki from where he was standing on the other side of their attacker. The jackalope regained its senses, flicked it's ears and ran back into the forest. They both hit the ground face down on their chests. Naoki turned his head to the side so he could breathe better as Yori pushed himself onto his back, attempting to relieve some of the pressure on his bruised shoulder.
"You… still… in… one… piece?"
Naoki's words came out between gasps for air, managing to wheeze out a half joking question. He looked over his friend to make sure there were no major injuries sustained from the jackalope's attack.
"That definitely could have gone better, but at least I got this."
"Yeah, well it could have gone worse too. I can't believe I let you convince me that was a good idea."
Yori held a fist full of herbs straight up with his right arm. Naoki had sat up having regained most of his normal breathing back. They were grateful that he had not dropped the plants in the confusion. A near death experience and a job done was one thing, but a near death experience for no gain was another. Yori furrowed his brow as he thought of a potential issue.
"Umm, I just thought of something. How do we pass it by Mrs. Handa so she doesn't realize that we didn't go buy these herbs? She would freak if she found out where we got them."
Naoki grimaced.
"And she would tell my mother… Hmmm… What if we tried putting it into a tea bag, like how they're sold in the market? Those tiny hands of yours should be good at that."
"I should've left you behind back there."
Naoki smirked at his joke, but Yori understood that his friend was actually correct in his suggestion. Yori had always excelled at detailed work.
Putting it into a tea bag should be pretty easy. Then I can plant the rest at home. Hopefully my parents don't notice though. They'll worry…
Gathering their feet under them, the boys headed back to Yori's house to replant the herbs and make some tea bags. The sun was still indicated early afternoon, so they had some time. Yori popped his head into the kitchen, looking for his mother. The room appeared empty. He briskly walked over to the counter and grabbed a cutting board and a small knife. Handing it to Naoki, he quietly grabbed a needle and thread, as well as some sheer fabric from the living room out of his mother's sewing kit. Retiring to Yori's room for privacy, Yori began crafting some makeshift teabags while Naoki cut up some of the herbs.
A shrill, curious voice broke their concentration.
"Whatcha doooin?"
A small girl poked her head through the door of Yori's room, her red hair accentuated by her sleeveless white dress. The clean fabric flitted around her knees as Yori's little sister Nokoribi skipped over to them. She placed her hands behind her back and leaned over Yori's impromptu workstation on top of his night table. The boy gave Naoki an annoyed glance.
"Naoki! You were supposed to be on the lookout!"
"I was… I mean, I am. I swear that kid has got the Blessing of the God of Guile, not Fire."
Nokoribi, or as everyone called her, Noko, grabbed a strip of the cloth Yori was using to make teabags. She began dancing around the room, twirling the cloth above her head and humming a children's tune common in the village. After not receiving an answer she stopped and returned the cloth. Since she did not manage to get an annoyed response from her brother she placed her hands on her hips and furrowed her brow at Yori.
"Well, what're you two doing? It looks fun!"
Sigh. She may be annoying but she just wants to be involved in everything.
"Noko, please cut that out, I'm trying to concentrate here. If you've got to know, we're making medicine for Mr. Handa. But it has to be a secret, ok?"
Noko's eyes lit up.
"Ohh, a secret? But why?"
"Because we don't want Mrs. Handa to worry about how we got it."
"Oh reeeallly? How'd you get it?"
Naoki paused his herb chopping to give Yori an exasperated look. His eyes widened and he glanced quickly at Noko and back to Yori.
"Man, you have said way too much. You know your sister is too curious not to prod."
As if on cue, Noko hopped onto the bed and faced Yori, her hands supporting her as she leaned forward, eager for information. Doing this jogged the surface of the bed, almost knocking the herbs off of the cutting board.
"How'd you get it?"
"It's a secret."
"I like secrets!"
"Yeah? That's because you like telling everyone about them."
"I promise I can keep a secret! Won't you please tell me? Please! Please!"
Noko had raised her hands to to be clenched in front of her, begging for the details of her brother's escapade. Getting frustrated with her his silence, she turned her attention to Naoki.
"Come on, Kiki, where'd you get it?"
"You've got to get this information from Yori, I know you can't keep a secret to save your life."
"I can too! I never told anyone about that time Yori got chased home by one of the chickens."
"Hahahaha. You got chased by a chicken!?"
"Shut it!"
Despite all this teasing, Yori was going to miss Noko when she went away to school. It was best for her though, so he tried to make it out that he was excited for her, which was partially true. Noko was only six so she found endless enjoyment out of pestering her big brother. Noaki was always a fan as well since it gave him lots of fuel to harass his friend. Both boys knew though that she would likely not tell on them, she would just hold it over their heads for the rest of their lives.
Noko dropped the subject for more pressing matters.
"Can I come with you to see Mrs. Handa? I want some of her sweets too!"
"Well, you only get sweets if you help her out, so grab some cloth and sew in some herbs for her."
"Yay! Okay!"
No one ever had to ask Noko twice to help with anything. She eagerly grabbed a needle and thread and began sewing together some pouches for the herbs. Being quite skilled for her age since she had learned from her mother, Noko made the job go much faster. She also enjoyed helping her father around the farm with the animals, but they all knew she was destined for greater things than a simple farm life.