Akko carefully steps across the fallen trees and vine-covered paths. Every now and then, he looks over his shoulders to see if Thai is still following behind him, which he is, and then his gaze returns back to the road ahead. Road is a strong word, though, most of the path has long faded or been overgrown, covered in the underbrush of the jungle. Though that hasn’t ever stopped the two kobolds, and it won’t do so now either.

“Are you sure this is the right way, hun?” Thai asks, looking around.

“Absolutely not”, Akko replies, stopping and reaching for the folded map in his little knapsack.

Thai sighs, shaking his head and chuckling. “I told you, silly, we should’ve gone left at the branching path.”

Akko studies the map closely, before realizing he’s been reading it rotated by 90 degrees. “Huh. Well… that does explain some things.” The seafoam-green kobold says, putting the map on the jungle floor, and the gray-and-beige scaled kobold scoots over right next to him.

Thai points at the marked path, estimating that’s where they had branched off, and traces the wrong path they followed. “So… we’d be about… right here!” he says, pointing at a specific part of the map. Akko nods in agreement, rolling the map back up and stuffing it back into his knapsack.

“Alrighty! Back to the road where we came from then!” he says, standing back upright and leading the way again. “Do you still trust me to be in front, hun?” the green kobold asks. Thai chuckles. “Of course, you goob.”

As they retrace their steps, Akko fails to notice something blocking the path near his ankles and stumbles over it. At first, he thinks it’s just a fallen tree, but as the kobold scrambles to get upright again, he hears an unfamiliar slithering noise.

Thai freezes in his tracks as he points out that the branch where Akko had just stumbled over has started moving, slithering around and disappearing into the thicket. “Uh, you saw that too, right Akko?”

There’s a few seconds of silence. Akko doesn’t answer Thai’s question. Instead, Akko can’t help but stare at the origin of his fall – a long python that had slithered away and made its reappearance right in front of him. He’s periscoped his way upwards, keeping his eyes directly at eye-level of that of Akko, who is wholly unable to look away from the python.

“Akko?” Thai repeats, wondering why the kobold has gone silent.

The python ignores Thai’s inquiry, making sure to keep firm eye contact with the other kobold. His eyes have started swirling in an enthralling dance of colours, rings of yellows and cyans and purples pulsing in and out in a soothing pattern. Akko can’t help but blink slowly and unevenly, feeling his consciousness sink into the floor out of his footpaws, as the colours of the python’s eyes start reflecting into that of his own.

Akko continues to stare deeper into the python’s eyes, completely hypnotized by the swirling and spiraling pattern. Thai’s voice is the only thing that pierces through the fog, but it is distant and weak – whereas the python’s eyes are strong and potent.

Thai finally sees the reason of Akko’s silence and is quick to act, reaching for the knapsack on Akko’s back and firmly grasping it in both paws, before swinging right at the python’s head. It’s a perfect hit, and the python hisses in a displeased manner. Thai doesn’t care though, unthreatened by the snake, fully in the protective mode. A second swing and hit discourages the python, who quickly slithers away back into the jungle.

Once the coast is clear, Thai rushes towards the other kobold and places his paws on his shoulders to shake him awake. However, just as he’s about to do so, a thought pops up into his head. Why [i]should[/i] he wake Akko up already? After all… who’s to say he can’t have a little fun while his kobold boyfriend is nice and mindless like this?

“Hey hun, can you hear me?” Thai asks.

“Yeah…” Akko responds weakly, his voice soft and his facial expression a woozy smile.

“Good. Those clothes of yours are [i]very[/i] uncomfortable, aren’t they?” continues.

Akko can’t help but agree.

