The Yei Forest was much prettier during the day, but Mei liked it better at dusk. 

She enjoyed hearing the howls in the distance, the snakes slithering somewhere in the darkness, and the distinctive song of night birds. Even if she didn't much appreciate any sort of heat, she'd also grown to like the sound of the fire crackling and the lull that always followed dinner. She liked silence more than noise, and, living alongside other four children, the silence was something she'd only had a few chances to appreciate in her short life.

She reclined on the damp grass, hands over her stomach, and sighed. She had already accustomed her eyes to the darkness, but it still scared her, in a sense. It was always a bit weird to think that there were all sorts of things lurking around and that she wouldn't be able to predict their movements even if she wanted to. However, she didn't worry too much about the possibility of being attacked. Not as long as she had Master Soul around.

Her hearing, somewhat overdeveloped for her young age, caught the sound of the Master standing up as soon as he did. Mei was able to distinguish the movements of each one of them, no matter how subtle they were. There was always something characteristic, which differentiated one from the other. She'd be able to find her siblings and the Master with her eyes closed, no matter the circumstances.

She lifted her torso to see him rising to his feet, hands resting on his knees. Master Soul was a tall man, thin and young-looking, although she knew well that he was far from it. Despite his youthful face, he had long straight gray hair that reached his hips. His eyes, the same color, were always serious and impassive under thick brows.

“I'll be going to sleep, kids,” He said "I suggest you do the same. We'll have a long day tomorrow".

Mei and the others wished the Master a good rest, and he lay down a little further away, on his side on the grass. Mei heard his breathing even out and assumed he had fallen asleep. She got ready to lie down and sleep as well, but then, she heard her older sister:

"Where do you think you're going?!".

She swallowed hard, afraid she was being scolded for something but soon realized that it wasn't her the other girl was talking to. Kenny was still sitting on the grass, but she was looking back over her shoulder, brows furrowed and mouth twisted. Mei followed her gaze and found what — or rather, who — she was talking to. Kyle and Matt, her older brothers, were at the edge of the clearing and appeared to have been caught in the act of slipping away.

Kyle rolled his eyes. “Go to sleep, Kenny".

Mei cringed a little, hugging her knees. She didn't like it when the older kids argued, especially when the argument was between those three. Kenny, Kyle, and Matt were the oldest of them, and the boys seemed to possess a definition of independence (or just rebelliousness) much stronger than anyone else, while Kenny had a strong sense of responsibility, even though she was only the middle sister.

Kyle was a tall boy, skinny but tall. He had long, eternally messy, almost-pink red hair and bronze skin. His blue, electric eyes never seemed to dull. Matt, even taller, however, had straight, dark black hair, black skin, and very green eyes. Mei had always thought he and Kenny could pass for twins.

“We're all going to sleep,” Kenny emphasized.

"No" Kyle snapped “, Matt and I are going crow hunting. You go to sleep".

"Master Soul..."

“Master Soul suggested that we go to sleep,” Matt reminded her. “Because we're going to have a busy day tomorrow. Kyle and I can handle ourselves. You kids are the ones who need to rest''.

Kenny huffed in exasperation and bit her mouth, probably holding back some curse. Then, she crossed her arms, stood up, and took Mei and Ryou by the hands, leading them further away from the fire, without dignifying a last look to the other two, who quickly disappeared between the trees. Mei let herself be carried away. Kenny, although irritated, laid them down as gently as ever on the soft grass and fetched blankets for them. She only then lay back down, checking yet again that the other two were safe and tucked in for the night.

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Her sister's pretty face looked even more elegant in the dim firelight. She waited until she was sure Ryou had fallen asleep to ask:

“Kenny? Do you think the boys will be okay?

The other girl opened her bright green eyes. Mei was a little scared when she didn't even hear her hesitate before answering:

"Of course, they will." She smiled a little. “Master Soul wouldn't let anything bad happen to them, after all".

A short time later, Kenny fell asleep too. Mei was left alone, in the silence of the forest, thinking about her brothers.

The next day, she was the second to wake up. Just after the Master. And she ended up waking Kenny and Ryou up as well with the exclamation she let out. Kyle and Matt were both sitting cross-legged on the clearing's ground, but far apart from one another. Master Soul was sitting across from Kyle. And the reason for Mei's surprise was the sight of her brother's eyes swollen and red as if he had...

"What happened?!" Kenny woke up with a start, pushing the blankets away.

"Calm down, please," the Master pleaded. "What seems to me is that your brothers encountered some obstacles in their endeavor".

Mei rushed to Kyle's side, worried, but he pushed her away, and she hit the ground with a thud.

“Matt pushed me into a nest of giant ants!" Kyle accused.

Mei turned her eyes to the other boy, who, she now realized, had a set of bruises on the left side of his face, and a bandaged ankle.

"I went to get them as soon as I heard Kyle's scream," Master Soul continued explaining, and Mei realized he was mixing something in a clay pot. "Unfortunately, the medicinal plants that make up the poison's antidote only open their flowers with the first rays of sunlight, so we had to wait".

"I didn't push anyone," Matt complained.

"You ran away and I tripped over your foot!" Kyle exclaimed. "It's the same thing!".

"It is not!".

'It so is! If you'd stayed put, this wouldn't have happened!"

"If I had stayed put, the ants would have killed me!".

Once again, Mei walked away slowly and discreetly. The brothers continued to hurl insults at each other, while the Master very diligently crushed what looked like a bunch of herbs with his knuckles. Finally, he placed a hand on Kyle's shoulder to stop him from moving and calmly applied the paste over the boy's closed eyes. Kyle had a thick, green, and gooey ointment smeared across his face from his eyebrows to the bridge of his nose.

“Kenny?".

The older girl ran to the Master's side. He fetched the little notebook he always carried with him and pointed to an open page.

“Those are the plants I just used, you see?" Kenny nodded. "I want you to fetch them for me and make enough medicine for the next fortnight. I'll teach you how to, once I have them in my hands".

"Yes sir".

“You'll also be responsible for applying it over Kyle's eyes and making sure he doesn't remove it from his face, okay?".

“I don't need her looking out for me,” Kyle protested. "I'm the eldest!"

“And, as far as I can tell, also the least able to take care of himself.” The Master glared, though Kyle couldn't see him. “Kenny will take care of you until your eyes heal, that's decided".

“What about Matt?" Mei couldn't stop herself from asking.

 “Matthew will be fine with a few days of rest. But he will not receive medicine. He must learn that a man's true courage is not tested by how hard his attacks are or the accuracy of his aim” The Master stood up, leaving the pot of clay in Kenny's hands. “But for his ability to protect those around him. Keep that in mind, Matthew. As long as you continue to run from your challenges and leave others to get hurt instead, you will continue to be the one sitting helplessly on the forest ground".

He wiped the paste off his hands on a rag. Kenny left to look for the plants, and Kyle and Matt sat as far away from each other as they could get. 

And Mei and Ryou followed the Master, for another day of training.