Well, it was official. Mountains gave way to trees the size of skyscrapers and flowers as large as a horse, a jungle floor so buried in leaf litter and tree bark that it seemed the earth was hundreds of feet below. It was a beautiful, lush jungle that was very decidedly not at all where they had been trying to go.

Streusel, it would seem, was lost. 

Which… was unsurprising, if they were honest. With a sigh, they twisted around to extract their map, carefully pinning it to the ground with a clumsy hoof. “I could’ve sworn I was going north…” they muttered aloud, flattening their ears back and glancing up at the sky. Or what little of it they could see through the thick canopy of leaves. It was Loud here. Creatures of all sorts calling out to each other. The wind through the trees. The snap and crackle of branches and leaves. It made them nervous. Not to _mention_ the _heat_. The Singing Vale had been hot enough, but this place… this must be the Tangle? It certainly wasn’t the Bayan Plateau or Sunye Wastes… But it was Hot. Sticky and humic, with every drop of water in the air clinging to their fur. Streusel groaned and looked back down at the map, tried to find the exact mountain pass they’d gone through to get here. In theory if they just followed the mountains Left they’d reach the Plateau but… it was just as likely to just turn them back around into the Vale.
It was too hot. They extended their fins with a groan and settled down into the dead leaves under their hooves. Maybe they’d just. Rest until dark. That seemed a better plan than trying to navigate in the heat of day.

Or maybe they should find water, first? Their own supply was getting low…
They squinted at their map. Without knowing exactly where they were, it wasn’t the most helpful thing. There was plenty of water in the Tangle, but where to look? That was another matter. “...It’ll be fine, I have enough for another day…” they muttered, “I should be able to find a landmark by then…?” But what if they didn’t? What if--

Their worries were interrupted: “I can help.”
Streusel jolted to their feet and spun to face the voice. There, standing before them, a shimmering pink ketucari. Their eyes fixed, almost unfocused, through  Streusel. The stranger stood, barrel-chested, fully facing Streusel, and flicking their tail. Atop their head, gently curved horns swept back along their neck. Their frill was perked in a friendly way, and their tail up in a curious hook over their back. When Streusel met their eyes, they took a step forward and repeated: “I can help. You’re seeking something? I can help. I know the Tangle.”

“Oh.” they blinked. “That’s. Uh. Ah. Very…? Considerate?” who was this stranger and where had they come from??? Streusel sniffed the air. There was no scent? The stranger tilted their head, chirruping in their throat. “Who are you?” Streusel managed to ask, “Not to be rude, I mean.”

The stranger tilted their head the other direction, frill and feathers fluffed and ears tilted back as if they didn’t understand. “I am called Burning Cherry?” they offered. “You… are stranger. And lost.” lowering their head, as if to seem non-threatening. It didn’t help. “You came from the mountains that sing. Hian Lian’s lands. You are tired. I can help.”


That was. True. But trusting a stranger in Velukaelo… was that really so…
Then again, what was the alternative? It was _hot_ in the Tangle. Hot enough that Streusel was finding it hard to think. They needed to find water, at least…With a sigh, they toed their map back into a roll and carefully eased it back into its tube. “Alright. Alright. Thanks. I owe you for this. Name’s Streusel. It’s good to meet you, stranger.”