Xeiana Winning Entry

For a pet whose home was in the midst of stars, this ‘summer’ was not something she was familiar with. Sitting under the shade of a tree near a vast field, the Haruba, whose coat twinkled with stardust and constellations, nervously stared at the amount of pets who ran this way and that, catching balls and running around playing tag. The shy feline’s eyes traveled up to the sky, but was unable to catch a glimpse of the stars that hide themselves during the day. Something hit her forepaw and she jerked back, looking down at a small brown ball that had apparently rolled her way. Curiously, she poked at it, lowering her head to study it when four blue paws entered her peripheral vision. “Oh hey! Toss it over here!” A sky blue Ahbruis stood there, with several bright clouds floating around him. He crouched down, eagerly awaiting the ball, but when she only gave him a confused look, he tilted his head, staring at her with golden eyes. “The ball?” The wolf pointed towards the brown object at her feet. Understanding, she tapped at the ball with one paw and sent it rolling past the Ahbruis, where a small Cheran swiped it and swatted it past a Stignightus who was the goal. Curious on the strange cat who simply sat underneath a tree doing nothing on a fine summer’s day, the wolf walked over to her. “You can join us in a game if you’d like, my name’s Vayne by the way.” The stardust Haruba lowered her eyes slightly, peering around to see the others play with the ball. The only thing she did to pass the time that looked similar to that was spread stardust particles around and roll in them. “I’m Astrum… And I’m afraid I don’t know how to play.” Vayne was shocked, of course everyone he knew always played ball, but maybe she wasn’t from around here, at least that’s what it looked like. He nodded. “Then we’ll teach you! We can’t have anyone just sit alone by themselves. Come on, all you have to do is kick the ball like before. There’s two goals, one behind the Stignightus, Evergreen, and then the goal we need to score in behind the Gourix, Orion. The little Cheran we’re playing against is Yevon.” Astrum lowered her head and nodded, trotting behind Vayne nervously, entering the bright sunlight for the first time that day. The three pets welcomed the newcomer with smiles and cheer for another player. Perhaps this time Vayne could score a point? The sun rose high and began to set as the pets went back and forth, hitting the ball this way and that to score a goal. Little Yevon soon found himself having to watch out for Astrum’s speed when he had the ball, and she managed to score a few points, Vayne himself even managing the first one of the times they played ball. The two goalies had to take a break to congratulate the two. As the sky began to darken, Astrum felt herself begin to wake up more, as she was far more active at night. She stole the ball from Yevon, now knowing to not give in to his sad eyes, and began to sprint towards Orion, just passing to Vayne when something caught her eye. A flash of fire combined with the sparkle of stardust flickered in the forest nearby, diverting her attention from the ball. It was time to go. Her ears flattened in sadness as she slid to a stop. To meet such nice pets and having to go so soon when the night was young was disappointing, especially since they didn’t make any remarks on how strange she acted. She turned towards the Ahbruis. “Vayne, I’m sorry, but I have to go now.” Vayne, who had broken the rule on no catching the ball in one’s mouth paused, tilting his head in question. The little Cheran raced up and landed in a heap at Astrum’s feet, whining in protest. She chuckled, patting him on the head. “But you just got here!” The cheran pouted up at her, not wanting a new friend to have to go so soon. Astrum bent down and nuzzled the top of his head in comfort. “It’s alright, I’ll see if I can come back some time and play more!” She turned around to head off when Vayne called out to her. “It’s a summer promise then!” She chuckled, and nodded. This ‘summer’ they spoke of… It seemed she would be able to begin her own adventure with these new friends during it. Bounding off to where her adopted family waited to return to their sanctuary, a big smile lit her white eyes up. Friends… She had friends!