Wings of Fire as Humans

Beads and Brackets

**INTERMISSION CHAPTER**
Hello all, I am back from the dead again! I announced this chapter as a sort of intermission in between the main story because it doesn't directly relate to the current plot points with Morrowseer and the others, etc (don't worry, I'll get back to that soon too) and instead it focuses on Turtle and Kinkajou's relationship. Just the fact that I made two characters start dating and the kinda...phased them both out of the story altogether annoys me so much that I knew I needed to write a chapter to provide all that extra exposition and closure, or else I'd go insane with second hand embarrassment. Anyways, excuse the lack of dialogue and humor, this is entirely made to put my mind at peace and make this story less of a mess. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!

A rainbow of various colored beads spilled on the floor of the craft cabin, startling the students inside as the tiny objects spread all over the floor, rolling under tables and chairs. Turtle sighed, leaning down to pick up a handful of them when a particular thought struck him. He stopped himself, pushing the idea down, as he continued to pick up the craft beads. She wouldn't like it, he reasoned to himself. She deserves better than some cheap homemade bracelet anyways.
But the idea just didn't feel like leaving him alone. It made him feel all fuzzy inside, imagining an idealistic scene in which Turtle would offer Kinkajou a lopsided bead bracelet that he'd tried his best to make and she would still smile brightly and wear it with pride. Even more so, he simply couldn't imagine himself thinking such enthusiastic thoughts prior to meeting her- or, actually, meeting any of his current friends, it was as if he'd become a totally different person. It didn't matter if he tried his hardest and was still absolutely dreadful at jewelry making, or if he didn't make anything for her at all- he knew that, truthfully, she would still smile and care about him either way.

And that was a problem.

See, Kinkajou was an amazing friend. But sometimes it felt like that was all she was to him. They'd kissed, he'd asked her out, everything had seemed perfect, and Turtle was happier than ever- but not that much had changed in their dynamic at all. She'd still look back at him from her desk in class and flash a smile, she'd still pass little notes decorated with neon pen doodles, and she'd still speak to him in that excited tone full of such genuine affection— but none of that was new. With how much both of them had improved over the course of the year, maybe he'd just expected more of a drastic change in their interactions once they'd started dating. After all, just by looking at her, Kinkajou seemed like an entirely different person as well. Most notably, the long, straight blonde hair she'd sported at the beginning of the year had been replaced by darker, more textured hair, cropped just below her shoulders- it had been a gradual change, the hair dye growing out over a few months following that fateful (and still very confusing) day when Kinkajou had come to school with an uneven cut and the saddest gray clothing he'd ever seen her wear. Neither of them talked about what exactly happened then after Kinkajou's sister, Glory had returned home, and it seemed as if the topic had simply...faded from importance, over the months,
At first, Turtle had been heavily worried that she was faking being back to her normal, happy self. He wasn't much of a talker when it came to burdening other people with his issues, and it didn't take long for him to realize that Kinkajou wasn't that different from him either. But, even though reacting that way was a bad thing for him, which took him a long time to fall out of habit with, it seemed to be the opposite for Kinkajou. She depended on other people's approval for her achievements, but preferred to deal with negative feelings herself. And that was totally okay- after all, everyone copes differently.

However, it did present the issue Turtle was grappling with at the moment. Kinkajou hid her deeper thoughts and emotions behind a blindingly bright smile, but that left him always doubting if she actually recognized him as her...boyfriend (?). The word felt odd even thinking of, considering he hadn't ever pictured himself having a girlfriend before. In the absolute worst case scenario, maybe he could ask Anemone for advice- his sister had been having remarkably good luck in her relationship with Tamarin, considering that the two were in different grades, had been dating for a long time without any issues, and the fact that Anemone was as stubborn as a plastic bottle cap screwed on too tight. 'I'm not stubborn!' Anemone would probably say. 'I'm just really good at being myself!' How in the world poor Tamarin put up with someone as blatantly unadaptable as her, Turtle would never know. But that was beside the point. As much as Anemone irritated her brother sometimes, and as fun as she was to tease, she did give good advice. About one out of a hundred times, that is. He'd have to remember to ask her for tips about Kinkajou when he next saw her, after the Craft activity was over. But now, once he'd finished picking up all of the pesky rainbow beads spilled on the floor, he still had one job to do.

"Hey, Moon?" He called out to the girl standing on the other side of the room, who was expertly weaving colorful pipe cleaners into a necklace of sorts. "Do you have any twine I could use? I think I wanna make a bracelet for someone."

Why am I just now realizing that the last Turtlejou-centric chapter took place on New Years...and that's when I'm publishing this right now...
Ah, I'm an idiot! Anyways, Thank you so much for reading, don't forget to vote/comment, let me know your thoughts on this chapter, and have a very happy New Years!!