A lone Pearlcatcher named Locum wanders through the Sunbeam Ruins.
He is disgraced and lost, thrown from his clan after a fearsome accident caused him to lose his pearl.
Feeling hopeless and alone, he finds a small rock to curl up beneath.

That's when a Gaoler tumbles into view, big and fluffy- with an egg clutched in his paws.
He notices the Pearlcatcher, happy to have found someone who might be friendly.
"Howdy!" He greets, though the Pearlcatcher looks far from happy to see him, "I'm Mug, it's nice to meet you!"
"...What are you doing out here all alone?"
Locum is silent, at first- cowering beneath the curious gaze of an ancient.
"...I could ask you the same thing."

The pair became traveling buddies after that, and more was revealed as to Mug's past.
A young warrior in a strict clan, he was always being chastised for how slowly he learned compared to his peers.
One day, he was thrown out- with no ceremony nor goodbye.
He was just told to leave rather sternly, and chased out with his tail tucked between his legs.
It was somewhere along the route to a new home that he found a smaller-than-average egg... and so, he gained his first companion.

He wasn't sure what the egg would turn out to be, but he was excited at the thought of having a hatchling around- he quite loves hatchlings.
Locum was less enthused, but took to carrying the egg in place of his missing pearl.
It offered him comfort to have the weight in his hands- a purpose in place of the void his pearl had left.

The two eventually developed a bond as lovers, and when a small white Gaoler popped his head out of the egg, they named him Bean.
Nowadays, the pair are no longer travelers.
They reside in The Alcove, where they know Bean will be safe to grow up among the soft grass and pastel flowers.

It's been a long time since Locum first hung his head beneath the blazing sun, thinking his life was over...
When laying with Bean in his arms and Mug curled around him, he feels like it's only just begun.