Hinoka wasn't one to wait around for others, much preferring to charge in and get the job done. Despite her significantly smaller stature, this aspect of her personality hadn't changed. Grabbing the broken arrowhead, she scuttled to the tree. She could see many potential footholds in the rough bark of the tree. It was an odd tree for Hoshido she thought, looking more like the sort found in Nohr. Though she did not hesitate, she felt nervous about her climb. This tree was gigantic to the tiny princess, she couldn't afford to fall. It was hard for her to tell which spurs in the bark were strong enough to support her weight, but her choices were sound. She wondered how light she was now that most of her size had been stolen. Her minimized mass was proving to be an advantage in this situation.
Before long, Hinoka had reached the first branch. She climbed atop it and sat down, grateful for some brief respite. Many skeletal twigs filled the sky above her head. She pressed on, determined to free her retainer before it got dark. When she neared the level of the net she could feel Setsuna's gaze on her back. Seconds later he heard a giggle.
"Lady Hinoka, you're like a little monkey." Setsuna commented.
The tiny princess flushed with heat in embarrassment, struggling to concentrate. "You're not helping!" she reprimanded her retainer. Setsuna didn't seem to listen, quietly giggling throughout the climb.
Hinoka finally reached the branch that the net was strung from. Briefly stopping for breath, she then carefully walked down the branch towards the rope. The branch was quite thick, so walking along it wasn't too difficult, but a mistake would probably be the end of her. She crouched down when she reached the rope, bringing the arrowhead near. She tried not to let the big teal eyes watching from below distract her as she sawed through the rope. Much of her strength had left her when she shrank in size, so Hinoka had to work quite hard to have any effect on the rope. She was making progress however, more strands breaking with each motion.
"Almost there!" Hinoka called out, "Be ready to fall!" she warned her retainer.
"Okay, tiny lady Hinoka." Setsuna replied. Inwardly Hinoka questioned the need for a new prefix to her name. She was still the same person, even if she wasn't the same size! She also noticed that her retainer seemed to be doing nothing to prepare herself.
"At least brace yourself or something!" Hinoka squeaked.
"Of course..." Setsuna replied, but still didn't do anything. The last of the rope broken, the net unfurled as it fell to the ground. Setsuna fell with it, gazing up into the sky. Her landing looked painful, square on her back on the forest floor, but she didn't react for a few seconds.
"Setsuna! Are you all right?" Hinoka called down to her retainer.
"Oof..." Setsuna replied. "I'm okay. I think..."
"Good." Hinoka then realized she hadn't thought of a way back down the tree. She could ask Setsuna to catch her, but what if she missed? She decided it would be best to climb back down herself, heading back to the trunk of the tree. Going down was easier than climbing up, but she had to be careful not to go too fast and fall.
It didn't take long for Hinoka to make most of the way down the tree. Without warning, fingers wrapped round her body and she was lifted from the bark.
"Wow." Setsuna cooed, turning her tiny liege round in her hands. "I've always wanted to hold a squirrel."
Hinoka struggled against the giant hands. "I'm not a squirrel!" she protested.
"Sorry tiny lady Hinoka." she sang absent-mindedly. Resting Hinoka's body in her palm, she grabbed the right arm of the princess between the index finger and thumb of her free hand. Hinoka yelped as Setsuna squeezed a bit too hard.
"Hee hee, you've got such tiny little arms." Hinoka pulled her arm free, only for Setsuna to lift up one of her legs instead.
"Ooh, such tiny boots..." Setsuna commented.
"Stop playing with me, and think of a way to get me back to normal!" Hinoka commanded, kicking at the prying fingers.
Setsuna stopped. She looked around, the usual vacant expression on her face. Confused, Hinoka stared up at the giant archer. Was she thinking? She eventually looked back down into her hand. Her eyes widened slightly.
"Oh, lady Hinoka." she said, like an odd greeting. "Where did the rest of you go?"
Hinoka sighed loudly. She shouldn't have expected Setsuna to come up with anything.
"Hee hee, your tiny voice is cute." Setsuna commented.
"You're no help. Let's head back to camp, someone might know how to change me back."
"Okay..." Setsuna agreed, clearly not understanding. She slowly turned on the spot, looking around all 360 degrees of her surroundings, before stopping.
"... You do know the way back to camp, right?" Hinoka asked.
Setsuna waited for a few seconds before lying unconvincingly. "Of course, lady Hinoka."
Hinoka sighed again. "Put me on your shoulder, I'll show you the way back."
"Oh! You're so helpful, lady Hinoka!" Setsuna enthusiastically agreed, placing the princess on her right shoulder. She nearly fell off when Setsuna bent over to retrieve her bow.
"Go that way!" Hinoka pointed. Setsuna began walking.
"It's so nice having a little helper." Setsuna mused aloud, "It would be nice to always have a tiny lady Hinoka around."
"Please, I don't want to be stuck this small." Hinoka disagreed. She didn't want to rely on her unreliable retainer, but she had no choice. She could only place her trust in Setsuna, and hope that she didn't get stuck in any traps. Perhaps that was too big of an ask, Hinoka thought...
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