Paradise With Playful Pals - The Depthstriders: Part 3

Paradise With Playful Pals
The Depthstriders: Part 3

   After Vericia managed to catch her breath after the hilarious sight of Eli’s new appearance, the Depthstriders took a closer look at the masterwork she completed on Wardac. Of course this was followed by a round of praise and compliments, especially from ornaax himself, which made Vericia feel a great sense of pride. When Eli had playfully fought off the last pup trying to add something else to his already vandalized coat, he now noticed the new additions on Vericia’s back and sides. As Eli was carefully looking at her, Vericia’s spider senses started to tingle, which made her swiftly turn to her brother. Seeing him looking at her back, she only now remembered and noticed the work Ornaax had done on her. As Vericia couldn’t see the full thing, she eagerly turned to the leader of the Depthstriders.

“Oh, I wanna see! Ornaax, do you have any mirrors around, by chance?”

   Ornaax confirmed it and pointed towards the edge of the arts n’ crafts room, where an edge of a reflective surface could be seen. Vericia ran there and Wardac, together with Eli, decided to follow her so they could also see some of the details hidden from their usual visual range.

   Vericia gasped in awe when the reflective crystal surface revealed her new look. Wardac stepped next to her and was impressed by the artwork covering his neck, face and back. When Eli appeared in front of the mirror, Vericia and Wardac couldn’t help but to snicker at his reaction when he saw the flamboyant mustache painted on his snout and squiggly fish doodles decorating his neck. Ornaax kept close to his guests, still smiling happily as he was enjoying the time with them just as much as they did. Vericia noticed his reflection from the mirror, so she turned around, beaming with happiness.

“These paintings look amazing, Ornaax, thank you so much!”

   Ornaax chuckled in response as he was too flattered by the compliment to say anything coherent. However, Vericia’s attention was already on something else behind the flustered Haedian.

“What’s that over there?”

Wardac, Eli and Ornaax also turned to look at what Vericia was referring to. Behind one of the orange curtains, a part of a moss-covered table could be seen which held a number of various items, probably meant for crafting. Ornaax got excited over the sight like a little puppy and immediately encouraged the topsiders to follow him there. When he pulled the curtain out of the way, it was indeed a crafting corner, with one Depthstrider sitting behind the table, looking at the newcomers with a surprised face. Seeing it was Ornaax, the Hae relaxed, smiled, nodded a greeting to the Vayrons before they quietly continued assembling a beautiful coral piece necklace. In a way, it felt refreshing to see at least one introverted Haedian existing in this clan. 

“You guys would look even better with some of our jewelry. Here, let me show you!”

   Ornaax grabbed some thread, swiftly attached it to a thin stick made of fishbone and picked out three colorful slightly glowing pieces of coral from the basket in the middle of the desk. He then showed how to get the pieces on the thread, after which he handed it to Vericia to try. She had no problem with it, and seemed to enjoy it.

“Can I start making my own?”

“Of course! You don’t need to ask for permission, just do whatever your heart desires. That applies to you all!”

   Ornaax nearly bounced around like a kid with a sugar rush when Vericia chose a spot to sit down and started planning her next masterpiece. Wardac decided to sit next to Vericia in hopes to get some guidance from her, as he was still utterly impressed by her work on his coat. Or if the Puller was too focused again then he’d just observe and copy what she did, that was also a solid plan. Eli, however, didn’t seem to share that great enthusiasm with the others as his attention was more on the quiet Haedian, so he went to them, sat down nearby and admired the finished necklaces on the table. Ornaax joined the fun side of the table, keeping near Vericia and Wardac to finish making the necklace he started.

   Eli started chatting with the crafty Hae, who seemed to enjoy his company. She effortlessly continued her work while listening and talking to Eli about life on the surface, while Vericia had already finished a quick test bracelet, which she insisted on wrapping around Ornaax’s wrist. He obviously didn’t refuse, as he was admiring the gift with sparkling anime eyes when Vericia already started the next one. Wardac wasn’t that fast as he was still trying to figure out the color palette he wanted to use, rearranging the coral beads on the moss to find the right combo. Their attention shifted to Eli, when he spoke with them.

“Look, I am even more fabulous now!”

He was sitting, forepaws raised and extended to his sides as if he was going to flap them like wings to fly away. Instead of that, this enhanced the display of numerous necklaces he was wearing around his neck, on top of his head and some wrapped diagonally from his shoulder to the opposite armpit. Not to mention the ones wrapped around his forepaws, truly giving the impression as if he was trying to cosplay a Christmas tree with Christmas lights. Vericia was the first to burst out laughing loud again, followed by Wardac’s and Ornaax’s entertained giggles. Eli wasn’t wrong, those necklaces all over him did indeed make him worthy of walking the most prestigious catwalk in all of Reos.

   Having calmed down from this commotion, everyone returned to their own projects. Ornaax gifted the necklace he made to Wardac, and the colors he chose went really well with the paintings adorning his body. Vericia seemed to have the same idea, so she added another around Wardac’s neck to add the swag to the already swaggy guy. With a little help from Vericia, Wardac managed to finish up his piece. As Vericia already suspected from the color palette Wardac chose, he indeed gifted it to Vericia, helping her to wrap it around her neck multiple times as he made it really long. She ran back to the mirror to have a look, and after finding herself gorgeous, she returned to the others and even gave Wardac a thankful hug, which the Runner seemed to enjoy. Eli observed the sight with a raised eyebrow, as he hadn’t seen his sister act so sincerely happy for quite a while. Ornaax placed his hands together, looking at the topsiders with a devious smile.

“So, all that’s left now is a small fun race. You can temporarily take the necklaces off or leave them on, that’s up to you.”

   Wardac’s expression shifted to reflect the worrisome thought which crossed his mind when Ornaax reminded them of the watery race they owed him.

“But won’t the paint wash off when we go back into the water?”

   Obviously he and Vericia didn’t want to ruin the artwork decorating their bodies, but the news they received from energetic Ornaax relieved their fears.

“Oh, not at all, it’s completely waterproof and won’t wash out for weeks.”

   Eli, however, seemed to be shocked as he was so sure he could wash the silly scribbles off whenever he wished to. The thought of having to walk around like a vandalised bathroom wall in a public toilet made him freeze in the spot, staring with eyes widened from horror at Ornaax.

“Wait… what???”