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"How are the pups?" You ask as Amala rubs her eyes with the bottom of her palms. She sniffles a bit.
"They're inside eating." She says before taking your hand. Her fingers barely manage to wrap around two of yours as she pulls you along towards the temple. You stand up and walk along with her, slightly hunched over as to not pull your hand away from her. Her grip was strong, the kind of strong that came from someone who was afraid and looking for comfort. The same kind of grip you've felt from Ming, Xin Lan, and Renshu when they looked to you for an answer or direction. It seemed to you like these situations were coming up more and more often.
The inside of the temple was brightly illuminated with various candles and torches. Surprisingly, the sconces that hung from the wall were quite well preserved and thus were being used as well. Miraculously, the soft light gave the inside a homely and comforting feeling. To further alleviate your anxiety, you sense dozens of fire sprites hanging around the flames. You quickly cast your attention to them and see that they are scurrying around, doing their best to keep the flames alive and welcoming. It was as if they were doing all they could to banish any sense of gloom that one could find in an abandoned building. Part of you wishes you could speak with them but merely knowing that there were sprites here was enough to ease your heart.
As you continue deeper into the temple, the density of people increases and you can see the various large rooms and halls filled to the brim. Various makeshift chairs and tables were laid out much like the eating area to give some kind of decorum to the place. All the people were mingling among themselves, despite their attire representing their past affluence. Once rich or poor, you see them all living with one another. Your mind wanders to the mother who had brought you to court. Was she still the same? Would she even want to see you? More importantly, was her son ok?
Amala makes a turn and leads you into a room filled with children. They all stop playing with their toys which simply amounted to bits of cloth sown together, sticks, and shiny stones. There were far too many kids here to simply be Amala's siblings but you're not sure if you want to ask who they belonged to. "Hello everyone." Amala says sweetly, suppressing all the sadness she had shown you moments before. "This is my friend, Mr. Tai Lung. He's here to help around so everyone be nice ok?" You expected a chorus of responses but before anyone could respond you hear someone else speak up. "Tai Lung?" The voice is a mixture of excitement and worry. Moments later a figure hurries over from the other side of the room. Covered in various stains of food and dirt, you come face to face with who you assume is helping Amala take care of the children. A familiar brown bunny with floppy ears. "Is that really you?"
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