I've always wondered..., Do leprechauns bite?

[Xinra]

Xinra sat beneath the tree, her guitar leaning against the trunk beside her, her legs out stretched with Savannah curled up on them against her stomach. Hanukkah sat beside her patiently, a small clover leaf sitting safely in her mouth, a single hole at the end where it had joined to the rest of the plant.

Xinra pulled out a necklace, similar to the one that she had pulled out for Hanukkah, the only difference being that the one she pulled out for Savannah was slightly bulkier, and made of small metal balls, instead of a chain.

31

[Xinra]

The Avians fingers worked swiftly and silently, popping open the small glass locket with a talon-like fingernail, and slipping the clover leaf in, the pierced end up, before snapping it closed carefully, being careful not to let the leaf fold up over itself.

Slowly and carefully, so as not to disturb the Wotcher in any way, Xinra slipped the chain around Savannah's neck and clipped it closed, tightening it slightly to make sure it wouldn't come off, then straightened the pendant so it sat nicely on the tabby's chest.

32

[Xinra]

"Ther', yo," Xinra said with a soft smile. She had been meaning to find objects to place inside the pendants for her two Wotchers for a while now, but she was glad she had waited until now to do so. She could only hope that Savannah liked what Hanukkah had picked out for her.

"I thin' i's time we go' some m're sleep, yo," She said softly, closing her eyes, managing to catch a light glimpse of Hanukkah nodding before standing and walking back into the fields, continuing to watch the moon some more, occasionally dipping her muzzle into the clovers to sniff for bugs.

33

[Xinra]

Xinra squinted lightly as she opened her eyes, bombarded with the first lights of day peeking over the horizon. There was no weight on her legs, and no clear sound of her Wotchers, which meant they were out amongst the clovers somewhere.

Once her eyes had adjusted to the light, she switched her gaze to her lap, giving a light groan as she saw the state of it. It was covered in a light brown fur, obviously from Savannah and her moulting. Sighing, the Avian stood and began to brush the fur from her pants, watching out of the corner of her eye as the pair of Wotchers trotted past, Hanukkah's nose hidden beneath the clover heads, Savannah's above, both searching for something.

34

[Xinra]

"Who wan's food, yo," Xinra called out loudly, knowing that the single word 'food' would catch the attention of the Wotchers anytime. It was a good thing at times, but would probably be a danger at later points in time.

As the pair of Wotchers trotted over to the Avian, she opened up a small plastic container, similar to the one she had used the previous night, this one holding some form of mix of meat biscuits and calcium treats. Leaving the Wotchers to eat, Xinra made her way out into the green fields. They didn't seem as happy and cheerful as they did when she had first arrived the day before. Instead, the color seemed to have changed completely, making the clovers seem as if they were on fire.

Oh, wait. That was because of the sunrise.

Nevermind...

35

[Xinra]

Xinra gave a yawn. They had been wandering through the clovers since she had woken up, almost three hours earlier, and they had yet to find anything. They hadn't even been able to find the hill that had been there the day before, covered in the forests of the unnaturally tall clovers.

There was only one Wotcher in her company at that moment. Savannah was trotting at her ankles, nose running through the clovers, still searching. Hanukkah was curled up under the tree, sleeping in a bed of clovers, worn out from the day, and night, before.

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[Xinra]

Xinra crouched down in the clovers, running her hand through the plants, moving them back to see if there was anything hiding underneath. Their searching had been fruitless, unable to find anything. The Avian was beginning to think that the clovers that seemed to be lucky for everyone else were unlucky for her.

Savannah crouched beside her using her paws to help move the clovers, helping Xinra look for the bugs and Immuto.

37

[Xinra]

Xinra gave a sigh and stood, starting to walk further across the field, away from tree, stopping occasionally to bend over and brush aside a couple of clover heads enough so that Savannah could get her nose underneath then look up at the Avian, shaking her head lightly. Each time, Xinra would give a light sigh and the pair would continue on.

The pendant that hung from Savannah's neck swayed as she moved, reflecting the light of the full risen sun all around them, occasionally passing the reflection over the Avians eyes, making them turn red for a split second.

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[Xinra]

"I don' think we ar' gon' fin' anythin', yo," Xinra said, pausing where she stood, hands on her hips in an annoyed manner. "Why don' we head back t' th' tree and grab somethin' t' ea, yo." Savannah stopped nosing through the clovers, her eyes raising up to look at the Avian, and nodded, liking the prospect of food.

Xinra gave a sigh. "C'mon, th'n, yo," she said softly, heading back towards the tree where Hanukkah was just waking up, Savannah close on the Avians heels.

39

[Xinra]

"Enjoy ya sleep, Hanukkah, yo," Xinra said with a soft smile as she sat beneath the tree again, slipping out a small container and popping it open, pulling out a plum and taking a bite out of it. Chewing the fruit in her mouth, she tossed handful of biscuits onto the lid on the ground beside her for the Wotchers to eat.

The Avian took another bite out of the plum, looking out over the fields. She had decided that her earlier thoughts about the clovers was true. These things really were working against her, bringing her more bad luck than good.

40

[Xinra]

Xinra stood just outside of the shelter of the tree, the sun beating down upon her back. She moved her head, turning it to face to her left, quickly spitting out the plum pip in her mouth, sending it flying a ways away, then facing back over the fields, all in the blink of an eye.

Savannah and Hanukkah both lifted their heads from where they lay in a nest of soft clover heads, curled up around each other, napping off their previous meal as they waited for Xinra to decide to start searching again.

41

[Xinra]

"C'mon ya two, yo," Xinra said boredly, grabbing her guitar, slinging the strap over her guitar, strumming it lightly. She gave a light pout and quickly adjusted one of the tuning pegs until the note sounded right then began playing. The two Wotchers gave a light yawn each, then stood and trotted over to her, heading out into the field in different directions to start searching.

Xinra began to sing quietly, mainly using the music as a way to make the time seem to pass quicker, moving clover heads away carefully with her feet, giving a quick glance before continuing on.

42

[Xinra]

The sound of the guitar was no longer accompanied by the Avians voice as Xinra headed towards Savannah, who had called for attention. Xinra walked slowly and calmly, curious as to what the Wotcher had found, but not raising her hopes. She was sure it wouldn't be a bug. It would probably be something completely and utterly useless. Most likely something shiny.

"Why am I no' surprised, yo," Xinra gave a light laugh, crouching down. She watched as the Tabby Wotcher in front of her looked up at her with large, expectant eyes, a small pebble sitting in her mouth.

43

[Xinra]

Xinra reluctantly pocketed the small pebble, the last notes from her guitar ringing out across the fields, difficult to hear unless you were right next to the Avian due to the openness of the fields.

The Avian stood again, Savannah running off a couple of metres to start looking again. Xinra gave a light sigh and returned to where she had previously stood up. The wind was starting to pick up, blowing through her hair, making it wave and flare out behind her as she walked.

44

[Xinra]

As she began picking up the chords again, the Avians black eyes scanned the green field for her other Wotcher. When she couldn't see her, Xinra began to walk again, moving in a circle around the tree, finally spotting a golden blob in the distance which could only be Hanukkah. It was moving strangely, staying in one spot.

The Avian sighed. Her Wotcher was digging. That was something new. She gave a light laugh, her shoulders shaking lightly, before walking over towards the Wotcher, wondering what had caught her attention.

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