Closure of the day
When they arrived at the pond, both of them entered the waters at once. The moon was steadily rising, and its light reflected off the waters. It was now high enough such that you could see it anywhere in the kitsune village. Other than the moon, fireflies illuminated the place. This was a partial reason why this plum hill was favoured by Miko. In the current spring time, trees of pink white, and orange hues could be seen covering the part where the kitsunes resided. The branches had a honey colour, and it rained petals every now and then. The fireflies danced around the water's surface, as their lights flickered occassionally. As Miko and Asura stopped chanelling their innate magic to their clothes, they dissapeared in a puff of light. The water was nice and warm, with a blanket of fog condencing at the top, hiding their bodies beneath. Both of them soaked in the bath and occassionally washed themselves, before they got ready to leave.
"Should we wear matching nightwear?" Miko asked.
"Hehe sure!!" Asura replied. Both of them condensed a white towel that wrapped around their bodies before exiting the lake, which was rather small. Then they faced each other and waved their hands, before their bodies were engulfed in white light. Purple wisps and asagao petals floated around Miko's body, while pink wisps, shiny white stars and glitter covered Asura's body. When the light had subsided, both of them were wearing the exact same outfit. A purple silk kimono robe that faded out to salmon pink at the bottom. It was adorned by stars at the bottom that shimmered at the right angle, and both of them looked absoulutely gorgeous in it, like two fairies that desended from the heavens. It seemed as though both of them already knew the outfits the other wanted, but just added their personal touch on it.
"Oooh nicee!" Asura smiled as she twirled around. The design of the dress was very much the same as the one they wore in the day, as the design was versatile, both for practical use and sleeping, although they were not needed then as they usually slept in their fox form. Both of them hurried over to Asura's house, so that she could quickly prepare a meal. Maybe it was because Miko was with her today, so Asura ended her day a little later than she would have prefered. Nevertheless, it was still a fun day out, aside from that human sighting, although it was fun to see realisation hit him.
Miko immediately whipped up a quick meal. If it were the past, Miko's affinity to fire would definitely have helped her, so she ended up finishing awhile after Miru and Ryo came back. She had quickly whipped up some sushi rice that was left over from before although it looked just as fresh, as well as soke vagetables and a side of fruits for desert. All of them quickly settled down to eat, before Miru looked at the fruits. Today, on the menu were strawberries and some sliced apples that Miko helped to cut. She helped as compensation for only tagging along. Actually, wasn't she just being a free loader these days? She felt bad as she realised all costs including her meals, were all accounted for by others, such as Ryo, Tashi, and now Asura. She could not keep relying on others forever; she would have to stand on her own to feet and be independent, whether she wanted it or not. Recently, her powers have drastically increased, such that she was at a bottle neck for the next stage already. Miko wanted to ascend tonight, under the moonlight, where she would gain additional power boost. As a moon fox, she fell under the heavenly fox umbrella, and benefitted from the moon. Tonight would be good.
Once dinner was over, Miko was accompanied by her brother back to her own tree. Once she was certain he was sound asleep, she crept onto her plum hill and continued cultivation. with any luck, she could ascend tonight.
Miko drew in the moon qi, condensing it into her heart apparature, the last step in first stage. She gathered it into a tight ball deep in her core, preparing to condense it after the tribulation. Once she had gathered all the qi wisps in her core and filled it to its largest capacity, thunder boomed in the distance. The bright moonlight soon dulled, covered by storm clouds. This was an emminent sign there was going to be a lightning tribulation. It might be a little early, considering most beast spirits took at least a five years or so on average to ascend to the second realm. Perhaps Miko was an exception, since she is technically just recultivating lost cultivation, so her body was already slightly more atuned to the elements.
Admist the serene, calm sky, more ominous dark clouds began to gather. It blocked out most of the moonlight, dulling the forest. Suddenly, a flash of lightning flickered across the sky. Although it was just for a brief moment, one could tell that it was not normal. It felt... more powerful - more strange.
This was nothing new to Miko. To ascend to her sixth stage where she previously was was no easy feat, considering she had to deal with such a tribulation six times. Miko looked up into the sky, preparing for its attack. Each tribulation is unique for each person, and comes in many forms. It was of paramount importance to stay focused and alert.
Thunder bellowed loudly, as if a warning that the tribulation wouldn't be easy, but Miko had enough experience to tell already. She knew better than to underestimate it. Suddenly, lightning flashed across the sky once again, except this time, it was directed at Miko. The tribulation had begun.