The sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of amber and violet. The group settled in a clearing for the night, their campfire crackling to life in the center of a makeshift circle of logs and stones. The warmth of the fire illuminated their faces, its golden glow dancing on Lyra's vibrant red hair as she sat among the comrades.
Renard leaned back against a log, arms crossed, his expression soft as he watched his comrades relax. Lyra sat between two of them, her knees pulled up, her smile wide as the group bantered back and forth.
"Alright, let's settle this once and for all," one comrade, a tall wolf shifter with sharp eyes and a mischievous grin, said as he pointed at Lyra. "What's the weirdest animal you've ever healed?"
Lyra giggled, brushing ash off her cloak. "Weirdest? Hmm…" She tapped her chin, feigning deep thought. "Oh, I know! There was this hedgehog once. It got its quills all tangled up in some sort of magical vine."
"A magical vine?" the comrade echoed, leaning in. "You're pulling our tails now."
"I swear!" Lyra laughed, raising her hands in defense. "The poor thing was completely stuck. It took me hours to untangle it. And when it finally waddled off, it left a little trail of glitter behind."
The group burst into laughter, the sound filling the night air.
"Glitter? Now that's a hedgehog I want to meet," another comrade, a petite wolf shifter with a wild mane of silver hair, said. She nudged Lyra playfully. "Maybe it'll grant wishes if you catch it."
"I wouldn't recommend it," Lyra said, grinning. "That hedgehog had a temper. Almost poked me in the eye when I got too close."
The group laughed harder, their camaraderie infectious. Anna, sitting a few feet away, chuckled softly at the story, though her voice was barely audible over the others. She hugged her knees to her chest, her smile faint but genuine as she watched the lively exchange.
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One comrade leaned closer to Lyra, his eyes glinting mischievously in the firelight. "Alright, your turn to ask. What's the strangest thing you've seen on your travels?"
Lyra tilted her head, thinking. "Strangest thing…" Her smile widened as a memory came to her. "Oh! There was this one time I found a fox sitting on top of a deer."
"A fox on a deer?" The silver-haired comrade's jaw dropped. "You're making that up."
"I'm not!" Lyra insisted, laughing. "They were just... hanging out. The fox looked at me like I was interrupting some secret meeting."
"Maybe they were," another comrade chimed in with a smirk. "Plotting something."
"Or gossiping," Lyra suggested, her eyes sparkling. "Probably complaining about how nosy humans are."
The group dissolved into another round of laughter. One of the comrades pretended to mimic the fox, crossing his arms dramatically and raising his voice in a mock tone. "Oh, deer, did you see what she was wearing? Absolutely tragic!"
Lyra doubled over, clutching her sides as tears of laughter streamed down her face. "Stop! You're going to make me choke!"
Even Renard cracked a small smile at the antics, his usually stoic demeanor softening as he watched the group bond.
As the laughter subsided, another comrade shifted closer to Lyra. "Alright, Lyra. Serious question this time. Why do you wear that red hood? Is it, like, magical or something?"
Lyra blinked, her fingers instinctively brushing the fabric of her cloak. "It's not magical," she said, her voice softer now. "It belonged to my grandmother. She made it for me when I was little."
The group fell quiet for a moment, their usual teasing replaced by genuine interest.
"That's sweet," the silver-haired comrade said. "Your grandma must've really loved you."
"She did," Lyra said, her smile tinged with nostalgia. "She always said the red would keep me safe, like a beacon of light in the dark."
Renard nodded thoughtfully. "A beacon of light. Fitting."
The group murmured in agreement, their admiration for Lyra evident.
Anna, sitting slightly apart from the group, smiled faintly at the exchange. She adjusted her position on the ground, brushing dirt off her skirt as she poked idly at a loose thread on her sleeve.
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The silver-haired comrade turned back to Lyra, her playful energy reigniting. "Alright, I've got another question: if you had to be an animal, which one would you choose?"
"Oh, that's easy," Lyra said immediately. "A bird. Definitely a bird."
"A bird?" one of the larger comrades asked, feigning disbelief. "You could've picked something fierce, like a wolf, and you go with a bird?"
Lyra grinned. "Think about it! Birds can fly anywhere. They're free. No boundaries, no borders."
"Fair point," the comrade conceded. "But what kind of bird?"
"Probably a sparrow," Lyra said after a moment's thought.
"A sparrow?!" The silver-haired comrade threw her hands up in mock despair. "You could be an eagle, a falcon, something cool. Why a sparrow?"
"Sparrows are small, but they're resilient," Lyra said with a smile. "They can survive in the harshest places, and they're always moving forward, no matter what."
The group exchanged glances, their respect for Lyra deepening.
"I like that," Renard said quietly, his voice carrying a weight of approval that made the group fall silent for a moment.
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Anna's gaze flicked between the glowing fire and the group. She reached for the hem of her shirt, folding and unfolding it as though it were a nervous habit. Occasionally, she laughed at the jokes, her voice soft and unsure, as if she didn't want to intrude on the moment.
As the conversation wound on, the fire burned brighter, its crackling warmth a stark contrast to Anna's growing solitude. Though her smile never wavered, the distance between her and the group felt palpable, as if the very air around her was colder, heavier.
When the laughter surged again—Lyra teasing one of the comrades about their terrible sense of direction—Anna glanced up at the stars, the flickering light reflecting in her eyes. She rested her chin on her knees and let out a quiet sigh, the sound lost in the joy surrounding her.