side stories for my kalons 🌷

[christina.]

hello! i was thinking about writing a story for how some of my kalons met eachother, so i’ll be posting that here! enjoy c:

i. contents

🌷 - chapter one
🌹 - chapter two
💐 - chapter three

[christina.]

i’ve touched the sun



she had never considered leaving her cottage before. it had always been her form of comfort—the welcoming solitude of her home, and the memories attached to such—and even leaving for a small period of time to go foraging or the like had always left her feeling dizzy and restless. since the death of her mother, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to go out alone. she had always considered herself independent, but after her mother had left, she realized that her thoughts had been nothing more than myth. she had convinced herself that she was independent, but her mother had always been close to her side. she was never truly by herself, and even now, she remained dependent on her memories of her mother.

she had been wanting answers for a long time, and when she heard about the witch they called claudia, something clicked in her mind. for some reason, she had felt it was her destiny to meet this claudia. she felt that she needed to go to her for something, and she told herself that something was answers. the villagers had mentioned claudia having powers, and in a desperate need for closure, she conjured up the idea that claudia could give her what she needed to know about her mother. it didn’t sound right, but it was all she could hold onto. she had never been so desperate before.

she held her basket tightly against her chest. could she trust claudia? she stood at the mouth of the forest. her paws were just barely touching the trail she had walked for years, but she was terrified of crossing over. her heart was racing in her chest and her paws were trembling. what if things went wrong? what if her mother was still out there, and had simply abandoned her in the forest? she couldn’t fathom it, but her thoughts continued to race with the worst outcomes.

she swallowed down her fears and started her journey to claudia’s cottage. her fur was still standing on edge and her heart was racing madly in her chest, but she pressed on anyway. she had already prepared for the journey, so she couldn’t turn back now. if fate presented itself so clearly, why turn back and refuse it? she couldn’t pass up this chance, however much it scared her. she had to do this, or else it would drive her crazy beyond belief.

she followed the stars and the milky moonlight, just as the villagers had said. in some strange way, she found peace in the heart of the dark forest. she ignored the thoughts racing in her head, and continued down the moonlit path. her paws seemed to move without her mind telling them where to go, and soon she was in the middle of a lavender field, and she could see the moon so clearly in the sky. she could feel the moonlight on her cheek, and for once, she was completely at peace.

the lavender flowers tickled her stomach as she headed further down the path, but she paid them no mind. there was a cottage just ahead, and she could tell there was someone there by the puff of smoke coming from the chimney, and the herbs hanging in front of the doorway.

suddenly, her stomach was in knots and her fur was standing on end again. the opportunity was right in front of her, and yet, she was frozen in place. she couldn’t move, couldn’t even breathe. for a moment, she wondered if claudia had cast a spell on her or something, but then the cottage’s door opened, and she could breathe again. she swallowed down gulps of air as she picked up her basket and stepped into the cottage.

“how may i help you?”

she made a sort of squeaking sound out of surprise, and nearly knocked down an entire shelf of glass jars as she stepped back out of fear and pressed herself against the wall. she took in a long, deep breath and let it out slowly. “i’m so, so sorry. i had, um, i had heard about you having powers from the villagers, and i thought maybe you could help me—“

the kalon laughed quietly and shook her head. she pushed her unruly hair out of her face, and started heading up the worn-down, creaking stairs. “shut the door, will you? i’ll make you some tea.”

olivia’s jaw nearly dropped to the floor in shock. she was really doing this!

[christina.]

falling to pieces, and picking them up again



olivia silently sipped the chamomile tea she had been offered. the warm tea in her belly had significantly calmed her down, as well as claudia’s calm and relaxed demeanor, but she still couldn’t quite shake off the anxiety that was quickly rushing to the top. she hadn’t expected claudia to look so beautiful. at the mention of “the village witch”, she had immediately pictured an older kalon with matted, graying fur and missing teeth. instead, claudia had appeared to her in the sense of a goddess, and spoke to her in a voice as smooth as honey. if olivia didn’t know any better, she would have assumed claudia was a god of some sort.

“so,” she lifted her mug of tea and took a long, drawn out sip. “what have you come to me for? you must have heard some interesting stories from the villagers.” she grinned, and olivia nearly fainted at the sight of her gleaming canines.

“y-yes, well—“ she started, but then she realized that her story was quite ridiculous. she was expecting too much from claudia at once, and it was completely unrealistic for her to have set the bar so high. she was being completely irrational, and yet, she couldn’t stop herself from telling claudia everything that had come to mind.

she started with her mother, and how she was often left in the field for most of the day, until her mother came back in the dead of night to get her again. after that, she told claudia about how her mother was often frightened when she came back to get her, but she never questioned it. she was too young to know any better, and she hadn’t yet entered the reality of the world. she started to cry as she reached the part where her mother never came back to her, and how she laid in their bed of brambles, waiting for weeks for her mother to come back to her.

she covered her face with her paws and hid her puffy eyes from claudia. she had never had a chance to let everything out, and hadn’t even thought about the incident since she had moved into the cottage. she sobbed quietly and pressed her nose into the fur of her front paws. “i’m sorry. i’ve never...i don’t even know what to do. i just thought—“

claudia smiled sadly and rested a paw on olivia’s shoulder. “i promise i’ll do what i can to help you find the answers you need.” she ignored her own strict set of rules, and leaned on her shoulder as a form of comfort. “you can stay here for a few days, if you want. i know you must’ve travelled a long way.”

she held onto claudia’s paw and hiccuped as she sobbed again. “i’m so, so sorry—“ she whispered through her soft sobbing. she had to admit that she needed to let everything out in a healthy way, but this was not that, and it was so embarassing to cry in front of someone like claudia. how could she ever be the same again?

claudia gently squeezed olivia’s shoulder. she wasn’t so used to comforting others. those who came to her often cried when they spilled their problems, but they never asked for comfort, and claudia had made it a rule of hers to keep a professional distance. but today, she broke that rule. maybe it was because she had a soft spot for someone as beautiful as olivia, or perhaps she needed that comfort herself. she didn’t know, but being here, with olivia in her arms, was peaceful, even as her sobs echoed throughout the cottage.

[christina.]

my wax wings have melted



”i have breakfast ready, olivia!”

claudia hummed to herself as she set out her guest’s plate first. she had given olivia a generous helping of scrambled quail eggs and steamed vegetables, and in turn, left herself a decent serving. she knew olivia would need her strength for tonight, when she attempted to find out what exactly had happened to olivia’s mother. it was a horribly draining ritual, and she knew her dear olivia would be filled with dread even if they found her mother safe and sound.

“oh, i love quail eggs! how did you know?” olivia sat across from claudia. she immediately started to dig into her food, having gone the entire journey on nothing but rations of nuts and berries and the occasional mushroom. she had never even thought of preparing a warm meal like this, even in her own cottage.

claudia smiled and took a seat at the table. “it’s my favorite meal, too. i haven’t had it in awhile, actually, so i hope my cooking meets your standards.” she took a small sip of her morning tea.