Survival Island

Wisp started leading Griff back as she answered his question, walking while talking. "Well, we found this stream, and then Scroll, at least I think that was his name, said he saw a village. We went to explore it and Dusk and I found a bunch of neat stuff there. Then we came back and Dusk caught some fish for us to eat..." Wisp trailed off, her face scrunching up a little in disgust. "I found out I don't like fish very much," she said while making a 'bleh' face.

"I don't either, in my unicorn form.." Griff said and extended his tongue in disgust. "But other forms.. I kinda enjoy meat. Mostly the reason why I'll be staying in my other forms rather than unicorn one while on this god darned island."

Wisp nodded in understanding, but didn't offer a reply past that. After all, a pony changing forms wasn't something new to her. At least he doesn't turn into a full monster, she thought to herself as they continued on back.

"Also, uhh, don't know if you've heard it, but I found an old ship wreck under the sea near the island during my nightly swim. I could try exploring it to see if it has anything useful, maybe even a map. I wanted to during night, but it was almost impossible to see because of the darkness, so I could use a source of light." Griff said as they continued walking back to the beach.

The prospect of exploring more things sounded neat, and while she knew what a ship was, she didn't have a clue what a ship wreck was. "Co-could I come along too?" Wisp asked as she looked curiously towards the shape changing pony.

"Depends.." Griff said and chuckled, remaining in his sabre-tooth tiger form for now. "If Dusk is going to be fine with it.. aand if you're ready to dive into deep water. It's not exactly warm down there. Also, will you be able to hold your breath?"

"Hold my breath?" Wisp repeated somewhat confused by the statement. "What do you mean?" she asked cocking her head to the side as she continued walking back towards the beach. The white sand was coming into view now, and Wisp was looking close at the water with curiosity. Why would ponies put a ship under the water? she thought to herself.

"Well, the ship wreckage is rather far from the island, and deep in the water, that's why you should hold your breath... So you don't drown." Griff says and chuckles slightly, slowly approaching the beach. "Unless you can breathe underwater..."

"I-I don't know if I can," Wisp responded thinking back to what she could or couldn't do. Though she wasn't even really sure what it meant to breathe. Still, Wisp was curious and wanted to check it out. "Let's see if Dusk wants to come along too though," she said as her innocently happy smile came back. Once they stepped back on the beach though, Wisp looked around until she spotted Dusk laying on the rock out in the water a short ways.

With a smile, she unfurled her ethereal wings and took to the air to reach the rock faster. "Hey Dusk, can you breathe underwater?" she asked happily when landing beside him.

Dusk wasn't paying attention to when Griff and Wisp were getting back, so Wisp flying over to him and asking her question was a bit of a surprise.

"Can I breathe underwater? No, few ponies can, and even then they use a spell that allows them to breathe underwater. You, however, should be fine considering..." Dusk didn't really want to go much further since Griff was around, even though he wasn't that close to them yet.

"Is there a reason why you ask?"

"Griff said there's a boat at the bottom of the sea. I was going to go exploring it with him," Wisp replied happily as she looked out towards the massive expanse of water. "I don't know why ponies would put it there though. If breathing underwater is so hard, then why would they leave their boat under all of this water?" she asked throwing her hooves out to the sides to exaggerate her point.

"No pony meant for the boat to be underwater. It sank, probably like the boat we were on. Might even be the same boat we were on for all I know," Dusk said. He was a bit sad that he'd be left on the beach again, but he figured he'd find something to do while they were gone. "Well, looks like I'll still be here, since I don't know a water breathing spell. But... before you go, can I ask a question, about last night?"

Wisp 'o'd' at the explanation Dusk gave her, still looking out at the waters. Gradually she started to slip back into that distant look again before Dusk spoke again. Almost startled, she looked back over to the other pony curiously. "Sure Dusk, what did you want to ask?" she asked back, while settling down a little more onto the warm rock. Even she had to admit that the smooth and gently warmed stone was comfortable to lay on.

Dusk was starting to get a little worried that last night didn't mean what he thought it meant. Still, he had to know. "I, um... when you snuggled with me last night, I... Do you like me, and I mean more than friends?" Dusk literally facehoofed after he said that. He sounded like a young colt talking to a crush.

Wisp was looking back with wide curious eyes. "You can like someone more than a frie-" Wisp started and then trailed off as her expression shifted to very distant. Memories flashed into her mind, not ones before the blank in her mind near those first days she could remember but of the more recent ones that made up the majority of her known experiences. Images of ponies embraced in various forms, holding hooves, lying next to each other, sharing a kiss, these and more flashed through her mind and finally became associated with a single word, love.

Wisp's eyes refocused, but that didn't mean her expression returned to normal. No, her purple face first matched than passed her red mane as she finally realized what the prior night had actually looked like and meant. Eyes wide, Wisp went rigidly still because of her embarrassment and the onrush of memories that flooded her mind. "I-I...uh...I," she stammered as she sought an answer that continued to elude her.

Dusk at least caught that she understood what he meant, but that was only a minor comfort for him, since she didn't seem to have an answer. Besides, he knew he was going to regret what he was going to say next, and he was going to say it anyway. "If you need time to think about it, I understand. I know it's not something that'll come out of the blue, most of the time."

"B-but I- I don't know," Wisp started then after thinking about how Dusk might react, she expanded upon that. "I mean I don't really know what- or how- or..... Dusk, how do you... like someone more than a friend?" Wisp replied with genuine confusion mixed with the concern about potentially upsetting Dusk. "I- I don't know...how, or what, or why, or...." Wisp trailed off gradually making herself upset with her general lack of knowledge on the subject. Sure she remembered the word, and what the word sort of meant, but that didn't mean she had any idea about what SHE should feel or do or anything really surrounding such a feeling.

Okay, she knows what it is, but not how to tell she is in love, Dusk thought, but it still didn't help him emotionally. He figured she'd believe anything she told him at this point, so he made sure to be clear and concise to ensure she didn't misunderstand something. He felt he shouldn't say too much yet, but enough that she had the idea.

"Well, first off, what some call love, isn't love at all. The big thing about love is that it's selfless. You should care about the other pony. And... one way you can tell if you do love somepony is that you'll be thinking about that pony, sometimes for most of your waking hours. I don't know how helpful that is, and I could say more, but I only know what I've been told."

And felt, Dusk silently added. He knew he shouldn't confess his feeling to her now.

Wisp listened with rapt attention, but despite the new information, Wisp was still rather clueless about the whole thing. She still nodded her head in understanding at the explanation though, and then took a minute to review her own feelings, as foreign as they were.

"D-Dusk, I'm not sure how I feel, or how to know what I-I feel," Wisp started with a mix of shyness and upset sorrow filled frustration. "D-do you like me?" she asked with no clue how that could be, given the previous reactions she'd earned from what she was.

Dusk almost went with the generic, "Of course I do," but he knew that wouldn't help. I have to do this now?! I've only known her for a few days and.... No, I know how I feel about her. Quick or not, and even though I don't know why I love her in particular, I can't deny it. ...Okay, here it goes.

Dusk then opened his mouth to speak, but soon closed it again, unable to find the words. Once he had some, he went with it. "I do like you, and honestly, more than a friend ever would." Again, he felt he didn't need to say much more. This was already putting himself out there a bit.

At that moment, Griff was pretty close to them already. "God darn, this is one wide beach... takes forever to get from the forest to the camp, heh." He gave a small chuckle as he picked up his pace and eventually stopping by them. "So, are you ready, Wisp?" Griff asked with a wide grin.

Wisp had no idea how to take Dusk's admission, or why she suddenly felt extra warm and unable to come up with something to say. She also didn't know why she was so glad for Griff's appearance and the distraction it represented. Turning to face the shape shifting pony, she gave a hesitant nod to say she was ready.

Something didn't feel right though, leaving Dusk there without any real answer. Since she was still fumbling over words though, Wisp did something she hoped would convey what she at least thought she felt. With no more hesitation, Wisp embraced Dusk in a tight hug, nuzzling a little into the motion as well before letting him go and offering a hopeful smile that was almost hidden under all the uncertainties of what she was doing. Wisp wasn't even completely sure the hug was the right thing to do, but she didn't know what else there was.

Then turning back towards Griff, Wisp gave another nod and jumped into the waters. For a few moments she just hopelessly bobbed and floated in the gentle waves, but gradually she began to sink as bubbles escaped through the small but still present cracks in her one foreleg and water rushed to fill the void. Eventually, she was standing at the bottom of the surf, looking around at the new world she now found herself in.

After Wisp hugged him, he kinda stayed where he was, and a lot of that was because Griff was around. Inside, however, he felt like he could dance for joy right then and there if he wanted to.

"Well, you'd better not keep her waiting, we don't want her to get lost down there," Dusk said to Griff. He was still bummed that he wouldn't be doing much of anything, but he thought a private time would be good.

Griff nodded in a grin and dashed off, sprinting towards water. Just before he reached slightly deeper water, he jumped in the air, transformed into a shark and dived into the water after Wisp, swimming in front of her.

Wisp walked after the shark that was Griff, completely unaware that just walking along the bottom of the sea wasn't normal. As her form fully filled with water, she had no trouble just walking along the water, occasionally using her wings to give her a little push even though under the water they were almost invisible.