Caia's head hurt. A lot. She sat up with a groan and scanned her surroundings. Fern sat next to her, grinning sheepishly while her eyes glowed an orange. They were still in a forest, but Caia noticed it was now day.
"Sorry, I'm still working on my portal aim." She grinned.
"What happened? What was that?" Caia asked.
Fern took a deep breath. Her eyes changed to a silver.
"You know how in Eplar there is a higher concentration than on Earth?"
"Yes."
"Well, that means the bugs are bigger. A lot bigger."
"All bugs?" Caia asked, a look of horror written across her face.
"Well, arachnids, as well," Fern said rather matter of factly.
Caia shivered and, this time, it wasn't because she was cold.
"How old are you?" Caia asked Fern suddenly.
"I am about 1,500 years old. I lost count around 800," Fern shrugged.
"Why do you look ten then?" Caia gaped.
"I can change my appearance at will. Except for my eyes, I'm stuck with them," Fern explained.
"Why do your eyes change color?" Caia asked, really hoping to get an answer. Her eyes were a mystery to Caia.
"They change color depending on my emotion. Quite unfortunate, actually. Pixies are unable to lie. Orange means I'm embarrassed, dark green means I'm nervous, yellow means I'm happy, silver means I'm being patient, usually explaining something. Pink means I'm relaxed, blue means I'm concerned, rainbow means I feel pure fear, and maroon means sadness. I am unable to feel more emotions than the ones listed."
"Oh," was the only word Caia could utter.
"If it makes you feel better, I'm about the equivalent of 12 in human years. I'm not that old," Fern said, the corners of her green tinged mouth curving upwards into a smirk.
"I asked a question earlier, about the war," Caia mentioned.
Fern's eyes immediately turned maroon.
"Were you captured?" Caia prodded gently, her sapphire eyes filled with concern and sympathy for her new friend.
Fern ducked her head, hoping to hide the tears that dripped from her eyes onto the cold, black stone that she was sitting on. Her white hair covered her face.
Caia made a move to comfort her friend- a comforting hand on Fern's shoulder. But before she could comfort her, Fern drew back like she had been slapped.
"Don't touch me!" She cried, her eyes now flickering to a rainbow.
"I'm sorry, Fern. I'm really sorry," Caia apologized.
"I am going to scout the area, make sure there are no birchers around," Fern said, standing up suddenly. She dried her eyes on her hand and composed herself.
"What are birchers?" Caia called after her.
"The big bugs," Fern called over her shoulder, not bothering to stop.
Caia sighed. This had been a hard day.
She thought she would never get to sleep on the frigid, hard rock, but she had felt the familiar tug of sleep almost at once. She gently shut her eyes and, almost immediately, Caia was no longer awake.