Root Of the Issue (As the Lone Bird Sings)

The trek to Southern Vaseira was easier than you expected, admittedly, but the real kicker here was finding out what in the world could be causing the current crop drought.

You had expected to see Meadowlark somewhere nearby upon your arrival, but it seems you were the first and only Luminite to be found. Of course, you knew all you had to do was to investigate downstream for any oddities, but from what you could see so far, nothing seemed out of place.

Suddenly, a loud crack! pulls you out of your thoughts.

“...Meadowlark?”

Just as you were (albeit foolishly) about to approach the source of the noise, a small starbunny comes skittering out of the brush, running away with- hey- wait a second- That starbunny has a novapeach plant in its mouth!

This has to be related to the crop problem. I have to catch up!

Without a second thought, you sprint after the starbunny, propelling yourself forward with each step of your stardust paws, leaving behind a trail of twinkling shapes in your wake. The starbunny is fast, though, perhaps too fast, and you lose track of it before you even have time to process which direction it went.

“GOTCHA!”

Your head whips in the direction of the shout. That had to be Meadowlark’s voice-

“Oh, you’re here!”

-Looks like you were finally right for once.

“Ah, great. Thanks for chasing this starbunny right to me~” Meadowlark hums gleefully, gesturing towards the trap the starbunny unknowingly ran right into. Run from one danger right into another. Such is the life of a prey animal, you suppose.

“Ahaha… Of course! You asked me to help, after all!” You nod assuredly. Yes, this was definitely intentional.

“Pfft- Hehehe. No need to let your ego cloud your head. I know it was an accident. I had actually planned things to go this way from the beginning.”

Your ears flatten with a meek smile. Ouch.

“Right… Well. You were thinking the same thing as me, right?” You point at the novapeach.

“Yes, and…” She walks up to you with a confident strut. “I think I found the source of the problem.”