"I'll - try to learn to be more careful, but..." Shrug.

"Mhm. No rush."

Slight smile.

She smiles at him, and looks back at the viewing pool.

"What is there to see?" she wonders. "I've never been very far from the village before..."

"Show me... Karaille," he says to the pool.

The reflections clear, and the pool shows an aerial view of a tiny sparkling city surrounded by huge, perfectly clear glaciers that gleam blue and green in the sunlight. All the buildings are made of ice and snow, some of them sculpted very elaborately. It's stunning.

"Oh, wow," she breathes. "Is this a real place?"

"Yes. They call it the Frozen City. It's only livable because of magic; someone went there once and decided it was so beautiful that he dedicated his life to building a city there."

"That seems like a worthwhile pursuit," she murmurs.

He smiles. "Yes."

"What does the magic do?"

"Makes plants grow that wouldn't otherwise, and food appear in places where food is stored, and things like that. And keeps the glaciers clear, because that's what makes the place so beautiful."

"Yeah." She gazes raptly into the pool for a few more moments, then says, "what else is there?"

"Show me Akatirei," he says.

A volcanic island, its slopes green with life, perched in an emerald ocean. A busy port city sprawls across one sandy shore. Ships in a variety of styles sail to and from its docks.

"Wow," she breathes. "That's so much water!"

He giggles. "Never seen an ocean before?"

"I've never seen anything but my village, the forest, and the edge of the Valley before!"

"Well then! Tell me when you're done with Akatirei and I'll show you something else."

She grins and stares at Akatirei a little longer and then she tells him she's done.

He - does not hug her because he might crush her by accident -

"Sinthavaraina," he says next. This turns out to be a vast area of almost perfectly flat land, with an occasional dip or rise and even more occasional tree, but mostly just scrubby grass and flatness. It's not exactly beautiful, but it's a little awe-inspiring.

Awe: is inspired.

Tarakova giggles again.

"There are so many things!"

"Want to see another one?" he asks, swishing his tail happily.

"Yes!"

Rainforest, desert, tundra, savannah, taiga. Huge towering mountains. Bustling cities. Waterfalls pouring like curtains three miles across.