Having caught a breather early on their journey, the creatures picked themselves up. Their stop at the clearing was shorter than they would've liked, if only because Claire felt the need to keep going further into the forest. She led the way once again, walking back on the path.

"So, this is it, huh..." she says, readjusting her clothes. "If I recall correctly, none of us have gone beyond this point, so the only way to know what's ahead will be to keep checking our maps..."

The air turns hushed as Claire basks in the moment, taking a deep breath.

"...Isn't that so darn cool, though?!" She blurts out, which takes everyone else by surprise. "It's like, okay, we're finally exploring untouched lands, and seeing new sights and stuff, and we're doing it all together... oh, I'd been so hoping we'd get to do this someday! And now we are! And..."

Luke begrudgingly cuts her speech short. "Uh, don't wanna interrupt or anythin', but there's someone up ahead."

The rest of the absentminded group quickly dart their eyes forward, and among the thickening trees of the forest, they glance around to see who this figure could be. But Luke, with his keen eyes, had already noticed the creature, and rushed ahead.

Resting with their back against a large tree and several old books tossed to the side was a short ocelot they had already seen before. "Soraya?" Luke asked to himself, as she was fast asleep despite her uncomfy-looking position. A familiar old-book scent gave her away.

"It's our friend Soraya!" He then yelled at the group, forgetting that she was right beside him.

She swiftly jolted awake with a startled expression, wiping the excess drool off her muzzle. Seeing Luke stand in front of her seems to calm her considerably. "So much for my nap, huh?"

Luke is quick to apologize. "Heh, sorry 'bout that. You're kinda the first person we've seen 'round here."

The ocelot is helped to her stubby feet. "Oh boy, you and your friends are coming too, then? That's good, the folks in the new village kinda expect new faces."

Umbra seems a bit confused. "Wait, you live there? I thought you lived back in the old village..."

"Eh, I've been moving between 'em lately," Soraya responds. "Things have been busy on both fronts, what with the old one having visitors, and the new one waiting for someone or something. The fact that they're so far apart doesn't help much. My feet've taken a real workout lately, so I figured I'd take a quick nap before I went off again. Well, until SOMEONE got me outta dream land."

Luke expertly chuckles it off, but Claire's still curious about the new village. "How much further along is it?"

"Hmm, it's still kinda far from here," Soraya replies. "Assuming you pace yourselves... If you set up camp here and head off early tomorrow, you'll easily make it to the river once the afternoon rolls around. Then, camp out 'round there again, leave in the morning, stick to the path, and you'll reach the village by noon. Way easier than it sounds. There's just a lot of walkin' to do, still."

Claire makes a clear mental note of it all, but something else pops up on her mind. "Wait, are you coming with us? 'Cause we got more than enough stuff to fit one more in our group!"

Though their smile are very inticing, Soraya declines the offer. "Nah, no need for me to stick around. Besides, this is kinda like a jolly li'l trip for all of you, ain't it? Believe me, I can tell you four are already gonna be real busy anyway. Meanwhile, I gotta hurry up, here. We got stuff to do!"

Luke scratches her head, which elicits a combination of annoyance and bashfulness. "If that's the case, be careful. You're lookin' like you're barely tall enough to wade across the river!"

She reacts like she's heard this joke a dozen times now. "Always a master comedian, huh. You be careful too, though. Don't wanna see ya slammin' your noggin on the treetops or anything."

With that snarky remark, she packs her bags and hurries off along the path, though she still can't keep herself from waving goodbye with a wide smile.

After that meeting's over, Umbra's the first to speak up. "It is getting rather chilly, huh? I didn't even notice the sun was setting. I guess we should set up camp here after all."

Having already made great progress on their journey, the gang follow Soraya and Umbra's advice. As Luke digs into his heavy pack to fish out the massive tent, Claire checks through her own pack for something that will keep the night warm, even if there's no fireplace this time around.

For the first time in what has certainly felt like ages, she pulls out her trusty staff.