Topic: The Fox and The Hen

Amthyst Oak

Date: 2008-01-01 16:27 EST
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?I don?t think that will fit.?

Amthy glanced up from her bag and to her sister. Her nose scrunched. A grunt pressed passed her lips as she tried to force the rest of her dress into her valise. ??ve nearly got it,? she gasped.

?If you don?t mind a few wrinkles,? Cayt tossed out companionably as she settled comfortably on the edge of Amthy?s bed. Cornflower blue and pastel sky material puffed gently around her legs as she settled on the bedspread and half of one of her sister?s dresses.

Amthy gave a small shriek before pulling the garment out from beneath Cayt?s legs and backside. ?Aiie~ Be careful!? She clucked to the lean, silvery-blonde haired woman. Her dress was pulled across the bed and cradled lovingly to her chest as she checked it for damage. Once she was sure it had escaped unscathed, she returned it to one of the various piles around her bag.

?I think you have enough,? Cayt said as she reached toward Amthy?s bulging bag, and pressed a finger into the rebellious fabric that refused to be forced into her sister?s luggage. It was so firmly packed with clothing that it was like she had pried her finger into winter frozen ground. ?How long are you going to be gone, anyway?? Pale brows drew together and lifted in question as she looked from the bag on the bed and the several other matching pieces on the floor.

?Three days,? Amthy grunt as she wrestled with the fastening of her bag.

?Only??

?You?re right. I need another bag.? Amthy nodded. The motion sent her green hair slithering over her shoulders.

?Where are you going??

?I dunno.?

?Not a single idea??

?No? a?un,? she answered matter-of-fact. A triumphant note wound liberally through her words as she finally managed to close her valise. ?Ah-ha!? She preened and primped happily at her accomplishment.

Doubt colored Cayt?s voice as well as concern. ?Will you be all right? Will you be safe?? She tried to keep her words even. It had taken time for her to come to terms with Amthy?s unfortunate experience a few years prior. She hated to feel like the last year was only a lull before the storm.

?Most safe, I do promise,? Amthy replied earnestly. Her chin dipped and her eyes rounded with her enthusiasm.

?Neano is going with you.? It was a statement and not a question. Cayt wasn?t going to budge of that point. Amthy needed protecting, in her opinion, even if it was from her self.

Amthy nodded in a very round about way that was more of an indecisive maybe than a true yes or no. She scratched her ear. ?Okay,? she said as she tugged at her earlobe.

?Good. I?ll let him know.? Cayt?s smile was small and tight. ?He?ll want to pack, too.?

?Le?m know I must leave at moon rise.?

?So soon??

?I fear tha? I must. I need all the start I can manage if I wanna win.?

?Good luck.?

?Thank you, I do fear I will need it,? Amthy said resignedly.

Amthyst Oak

Date: 2008-01-01 17:04 EST
Sometime Later

?Huh.? Amthy paused and scrunched her nose. She scratched her finger lightly to her cheek. Lantern-like tsavorite hued eyes closed. The Wind was all around her. She only had to listen. Her Wind Sibs just didn?t have a lot to say. At least nothing constructive. Behind her, Neano huffed and puffed. His dark ears flicked forward and back. Before they had left Ardane, the Hishn had demanded that Amthy reduce her provisions. What remained were three straining bags, two of which were slung over the larger-than-average wolf-like creature. The strap of the third crossed uncomfortably between Amthy?s breasts.

?Aah?.? She let her voice trail off, and with it her thought. Amthy was tired. Her feet ached from walking in the snow and on the ice. All manner of pitfalls were disguised beneath them like rocks, glass, and holes. Not to mention the crested furrows of frozen mud created by wagon wheels that were less than kind on her feet.

Amthy had no real idea how long, exactly, they had been walking. It seemed like forever. Moon rise had past, and naturally, the twin moons appeared to have moved across the horizon. That or she had gotten herself turned all around -- again.

?Le?s go?this way!? She pointed wildly before wedging her fist to her hip. She struck a pose. It was meant to be heroic and adventurous, but a sudden chill ruined the effect. Amthy hugged her arms around her torso and bent into the icy gale. ?Or?not.? She squeaked as the Wind pushed her pointedly in the opposite direction as if she was nothing but a leaf, and sped her along on a westerly course.

Hawk Jahad

Date: 2008-01-02 14:28 EST
The turn of the moon had come. And with it, the hunt.

He pulled at the straps to his well worn leather boots, securing them tightly about his feet. It only took him a moment to reassure himself that he had all that he needed, still noticing the hollow spot over his shoulder where his sword's hilt would have resided. He had spent a restless night in his flat above the Forge, preparing and plotting, gathering what supplies he would need, and summoning what resources he had.

The cry came from high above in the sky as he stood on the wooden deck that surrounded the entrance to the Forge's living area. A screech sounded, and caused him to raise his eyes aloft. Wings stood out starkly against the barren light of dusk, the large bird circling slowly as it floated in its descent. He raised an arm encompassed in a brown leather bracer, and the red-tail hawk clutched it within his talons. "I am sorry my old friend. I have needs of your wings and sight." Arro dipped his beak to snatch a piece of dried meat from Hawk's other, mottled flesh hand. "I know not of where she has gone, but she is hiding. She could not have gone far." Arro seemed to be looking everywhere but at The Ranger, turning his head from side to side as Hawk spoke. "But you can travel faster and farther than I can. You should not be here. It is cold. I know." From somewhere Hawk produced another piece of dried meat and placed it as an offering before the bird. "All I ask is that you find what direction she is going, and to find Scar and his pack. I will need their help as well. Will you do this for me?" Hawk spoke as he requested this from his equal, and not a pet. Arro turned his head back and forth a few more times, then turned to face Hawk with one of his chocolate eyes. For a time the Ranger and the hawk stood staring at one another not moving or speaking. Arro moved first, spread his wings, and Hawk lifted the arm that was his perch into the air. The red-tail began a loud flap of his wings and lifted into the air.

Arro beat his wings against the sky as he ascended into the clouds and flew off into the light of the rising sun.

Amthyst Oak

Date: 2008-01-02 15:37 EST
Meanwhile

Amthy turned in a small, tight circle. The trees had thinned. Only a sparse scattering of evergreen and bare hardwood broke up the twilight tinted sky. Neano and she had broken from the merchant road sometime before. Bravely, they continued forward into the unexplored wild--at least to Amthy?s eyes it was foreign.

?Do you know this place?? She asked Neano. The dark colored Hishn sat on his haunches beside her. Her bags were resting haphazardly on the ground, which gave Amthy?s companion a much needed reprieve. Neano lifted his snout toward the sky and sniffed. His ears turned back before angling forward. His only answer was an indecisive woof that hung before his chops in a misty cloud of white. ?Woof,? Amthy repeated as she dropped her hand to his head and scratched between his ears.

Tipping her head back, Amthy looked up into the sky. It was a mimick of Neano?s gesture. The dry chill in the air stung her nose and burned her chest. Around them both, her ever-present Wind Sibs whirled. No longer a gale, they teased her hair and clothing with gentle, inquisitive fingers; both playful and affectionate as they kept her company. She tipped her head and listened. Amthy winnowed the suggestion of their voices spiraling through the breeze, and carefully picked the sensible (and on topic) from the inane (and completely random).

?Ooh!? Amthy crooned. The feather-like drop of puffy white specks captured her attention. ?Look!? She hooted to Neano, ??s begun to snow,? she said to her companion. Stretching out her hand, she cupped her palm toward the sky. Bits of freshly fallen snow fell into the bowl of her palm. Neano grunted in reply. Amthy waved him off with the toss of her hand. ?Dunn be such a killjoy,? she said in that special voice people reserved for animals and babies. Neano stook and shook out his coat. It was a clumsy gesture. Bits of snow sprayed from his hindquarters. He stretched out his back legs and groaned.

?You know,? Amthy began, ?would be easier iffin you did decide to walk with two legs.? She rearranged the way her bag?s strap rested across her chest. Neano only huffle-snorted in answer. Amthy rocked to the side in an exaggerated sway when he pressed his nose against her legs. When she didn?t move, he pressed his shoulder against the back of her knees. She yelped when her legs bent of their own accord. ?Okay, okay, ?m goin?.? Amthy grumbled as she rolled back her shoulders.

She took one step. Neano nipped at her heel to show his disagreement. Wobbling on one foot, she tested each direction until the Hishn ?allowed? her to proceed. ?Right!? She cheerily responded. Her expression earnest and colored with her excitement. The beauty of the snow had rejuvenated her, if only temporarily. ?Fa-li-Fa-la-da~? Amthy began to sing in an enthusiastic, but discordant, way as she marched purposefully toward the South.

Hawk Jahad

Date: 2008-01-03 13:22 EST
After dawn..

The sun was full within the sky, and he basked in its light. He had constructed the wooden deck he was standing upon, and the stairs that led to the alleyway between the Forge and it's neighbor. The steps were taken with confidence that allowed him to make a quick descent. As typical his boots made no noise upon the uneven surface of the familiar streets and alleyways that led to the forest.

The trees were barren of foliage and the sun cast warbled shadows of their naked boughs. Arro cried in the distance to alert his approach, and a second cry followed to mark the approach of another. The red-tail wheeled within the sky, pausing to hover high above Hawk's head. "Thank you, my friend." The Ranger whispered, and Arro flew off to the south.

Hawk's boots stopped the rhythmic traipse he made over the leaf covered forest floor. From the cover of the underbrush he heard a loud rustle.

"Hello Scar." The timberwolf strode out into the open, padding over to Hawk and thrust it's head underneath his left hand. Scar was much larger than most timberwolves, with a fine coat of gray that was spotted with white underneath his belly. A long patch of fur was missing that started in the center of his head and trailed all the way back over his thick neck to his shoulder blades. Hawk knelt before the wolf and raked his fingers through the thick fur at his neck. The wolf's snout was level with Hawk's forehead and the wolf gave his face a lick. "I have missed you as well. Today we hunt, my friend." Scar relinquished his massive weight to his haunches and sat.

The Ranger reached into a leather pouch at his belt and pulled free a small jeweler's case. He opened it to reveal a small bead secured in the center of cloth cushions. The bead began to sift through varying colors of crimson, blush, and pink, all cloudy beneath the glass like surface that contained the magic within the minuscule object. Cradling it carefully, he set it beneath Scar's nose. The timberwolf began to sniff at it closely, gathering the scent as he inhaled.

"Do you have it?" The wolf's only response was to tilt his head back upon his neck, thrust his nose into the air and howl. A series of howls resounded throughout the forest, echoing Scar's.

Pleased, Hawk placed the bead back into it's case and snapped the case closed, placing it back into the pouch at his belt. "Good." Hawk said with a smile as the howl's continued to echo in the distance. Scar lifted from his seat and stalked forward in front of Hawk, following the scent with his nose lifted to the air. The Ranger seemed to mimic his friend, and his nostrils flared.

She was at a disadvantage if she tried to hide in the forest. Hawk felt his pulse begin to quicken as the thrill of the hunt overcame him. He would have his prize in a third of the time she had given him to find her.

Amthyst Oak

Date: 2008-02-02 18:21 EST
Elsewhere

"Wha're we s'posed t'do now?" Amthy asked Neano. Her lilting voice was colored heavily with disbelief. Before her lantern-like eyes water stretched quiet and blue-gray with hints of green and brown. Ice had formed along the bank. It clung in chunks to weather withered grass and trapped pieces of rotting wood. Every once in a while, the current knocked bits of the ice free and they floated like paper boats whisked along the frigid flow.

Neano shrugged. The Hishn pawed at the water's edge. Ice-caked debris crunched beneath his claws. Sniffing, Neano shoved his snout against the ground and followed through to the river. The countryside had varied little since they turned their trip South. Aside from some whining from Amthy, the pair had been making good time.

Until now.

Amthy crouched down beside her companion. Lightly, she rested her hand on his back for balance as she dipped her fingers into the river's surface. A breath was sucked in through her teeth, and she dried her abused digits on her skirt. "Do we swim?" She asked, fearful of Neano's answer. Her lower lip pushed forward and up over her chapped upper lip.

Neano snorted and looked at Amthy. He conveyed as much emotion as his Hishn gaze allowed--which was to say that screamed that her suggestion was insane. Neano slid out from beneath her hand and headed along the water, following it closely. Amthy followed behind him, he could tell by the clomping, ungraceful progress she made through the dying reeds.

"Ack!" Amthy yelped, "wait for me!"

Neano woofed. At least she was carrying her own bags now, which was part of the problem. Two were crossed over her chest and she dragged the other behind. It made a deep furrow in the wet, soft soil. The ground wasn't as solid near the River. He hesitated a moment. It didn't hurt anything to wait a second. But they needed to find a place to safely ford the river. Neano yipped in an attempt to encourage Amthy along.

"Waiii--!" Amthy cried plaintively as she crawled over a fallen trunk half in and half out of the water. The bark was slippery with algae and ice, and her feet refused to find purchase. Splash! Amthy fell into the river. Her skirts a heavy weight around her legs. Frantically, she clung to a branch. Her body burned from the shock. "Neano!"

Unable to do anything else, Neano did what he had been avoiding since they had set out. He shifted from his wolf-like appearance to that of a man. His aggitation hid his concern as he moved to retrieve his Alpha's Aunt. "Clumsy," he grunt as he grabbed her numb hands and pulled her back onto the shore.

Hawk Jahad

Date: 2008-02-11 15:13 EST
Not too far away...

Scar's pack filtered through the forest, padding through the dry, near frozen ground out of view of the main path. Hawk's senses gathered every sound, every sight, and every smell, processing them to keep track of where the timber wolves went although he could not see them. Scar led Hawk down the path, following many paces in front of the Ranger, but behind the rest of his pack.

The large timber wolf stopped, pressed his snout down to the path, and began to follow an erratic line. A smile creased the Ranger's features, and he shook his head almost expectantly. There was no doubt that Amthy was here, and very recently. Although the dirt in the path was long dried, he still saw the imprints of her small feet in the road. He grinned deviously and with a quick whistle for Scar, he ran to the border of the path and pulled the cover of his cloak over his head. Both wolf and Ranger faded from view.

Silently Hawk stalked on the branches overhead while the pack of wolves padded beneath. Hawk balanced himself easily upon a thick slim bough, moving deftly from boot to boot, and launched himself to a parallel branch. Both hands held loosely to the branch, and he swung himself around, using the branch for support, and vaulted to the next, somersaulting once into the air before he landed silently and smoothly upon the forest floor beneath.

The pack stood completely still, the air misting from the tips of their snouts the only sign that they were there amongst the barren underbrush. Hawk stood hovering, kneeling upon a branch that supported his weight as he glanced down the path. Not far off was his prey, and her four legged companion.

The Ranger smirked, rose from his perch, and continued moving through the trees by leaps and bounds. The pack of wolves beneath him followed, running in exhilaration as they sought to finally reach their quarry.

Amthyst Oak

Date: 2008-02-17 11:46 EST
After Sundown

"But'm sleepy," Amthy whined in a long exhale of breath and sound. A trio of short, huffy sighs punctuated her feelings as she readjusted the strap of her sole remaining bag. After her unfortunate encounter with the river, and the subsequent change in attire, it had been deemed necessary by some parties (Neano) that she needed to move faster. Being in possession of an adequate imagination, the thought of how lonely and scared her poor darling clothing and charming luggage must certainly be had been cycling worryingly through Amthy's airy little head.

She couldn't help but imagine brigands parading in her finery and molesting her fragile tea cups, 'Arrr, yer purse o' yer life! Cuppa tea, gents? Does this crinoline flatter my figure? Hehehe, this blouse does accents my sabre.' Her lower lip pushed out exaggerating the pout that had become fixed on her mouth. She imagined her fine velvet bows in lank, filthy hair and how they would be crass enough to pair plaid with polkadots. Amthy had no doubt They probably wore crisp white shoes in the dead of winter, too.

Life, she decided, could be immeasurably cruel.
And so could Neano.

Amthy cast a longing glance backward before fixing her gaze once more on her companion's back. "But'm sleepy?" She tried again experimentally, in case a change in tone might melt the Hishn's heart. The sun had set, and it took with it the first day of her journey. Two more remained; that was if she was to win. By Amthy's reckoning, she should have been several hours ahead of Hawk. Neano was not as optimistic.

"No."

"Doesn' seem hardly fair," Amthy sulked, her shoulders sagging dramatically in dejection as she trudged onward.

"You'll have plenty of time to sleep," Neano replied as he pushed a branch away from the path he followed. They had followed the River for several hours before discovering a spot where it became fordable. Once he had taken Amthy across the water, he had backtracked across it and back down the River; retracing their steps to disguise their tracks. A feat considering his companion's indelicate manner. For being a woodland creature, Amthy, he found, was not all that concerned with stealth. Most creatures he encountered that lived most of their life in the Wild were at least a little sneaky and sly. Amthy, he decided, had missed the memo.

Deliberately, Neano had used Amthy's bags and clothing to make a false path away from the water's edge and deep into the adjacent wood. He had only felt a tiny twinge of guilt. She would, without doubt, get new ones. The downside of it all was that now, after nearly two hours of rest, Amthy's feet were swollen and she was cranky.

"Neano?"

He dug into his reserves and handed her a wax paper wrapped bundle. Neano listened as the paper was unwrapped and a sigh of delight spilled passed her lips.

"For me?" Amthy squeaked happily as she pushed the sugary chunk into her mouth and slurped happily upon it. Bebopping her head side-to-side, she continued to follow Neano away into the Unknown before them; content.

Wilderness trick #152: Song, it appeared, was not the only thing to soothe the savage beast.
Candy worked well in a pinch.

Hawk Jahad

Date: 2008-05-07 01:25 EST
That night?

There was no light within the cool, thick darkness. A cover of cloud had descended and blotted out the light from both of Rhy?Din?s moons. Neano?s ruse had been successful, Hawk and company had spent hours fruitlessly following a path of colorful garments strewn haphazardly about. The timber wolves were snout deep in Amthy?s clothes. Hawk scrutinized the trail of garments Neano had left and bent down to pick up a frilly piece for further examination.

Panic stricken, he turned to Scar. ?Peace, there is no way she would part with these willingly.? The Ranger said, tossing the sun-dress aside as he pulled the hood of his cloak back up over his head. ?Not even under threat of horrible torture.? To Amthy, willingly ruining her wardrobe was horrible torture. With a snap of his wrist a blade appeared, gleaming in his hand. ?We face a most terrible foe my friend.? Scar lifted his head to give Hawk a confused look, and a pair of Amthy?s panties hung from his snout.

They began their search in earnest again as they doubled back towards the river. Fortunately for Amthy, somewhere between the underbrush and the coast Scar had managed, with some effort, to remove her delicates from his snout. The same could not be said of the other members of his pack. They had all left with various bits of Amthy?s clothing clinging to them. The fine fabric was like a magnet to their coarse fur. But Hawk had not cared enough to notice. Amthy was either dead or dying. He had to find her.

They did not stop to rest that night. The forest was abuzz with rumors of the Ranger and his well accessorized pack of timber wolves on the hunt the next morning.

Amthyst Oak

Date: 2008-06-10 23:21 EST
A While Later

The sweet sound of Neano's voice as he tried to rouse Amthy the next morning was not as dulcet as the twitter of robins cuddling on a spring-heavy branch. It was more closely related, in her opinion, to the mating cry of the Wounded-Wing Cacophone which was found only in the rural reaches of Rhy'din's Golden Summer Foothills. A rare bird, it had been hunted near to extinction due to the fine, exotic nature of its plummage and the grating irritation of its call. It was a sound Amthy was well acquainted with as she kept one lonely--very lonely--male at the Chateau.

Amthy curled into a ball with a drawn out whine that would have done her young wards, Ariella and Audrien, proud. Her hands pressed against her ears. The air was cold and damp. Her skin stung beneath her clothes. Against her better judgement, one eye cracked cautiously open. Amthy's whine morphed into a groan. It was as she suspected--the sun was not yet up! It was a blasphemy, really. She didn't like to be awake any sooner than eleven marks on the candle. Yet, even aware of that, Neano was persistent on making sure that she was, indeed, awake.

"Stooop," Amthy drawled as she twisted from her side to her belly. Her arms crossed to cradle her face, and to protect it from the various things beneath it on the ground.

"Get. Up."

"Dunn wanna!" Grumble. Grumble.

Neano sighed with aggitation. "May I remind you that we are here because of *you*?" The last of his words took a biting tone as his annoyance colored with aggression.

He, of course, had a point. Amthy had to concede on that count as she roughly pushed herself up to a half-seated position. "'m sorry," she whispered apologetically. It was a fine kettle. Hawk was probably already upon them. He was a Ranger, and prided himself on telling her exactly how little sleep he needed. Which was all well and good, it made them perfect foils for one another when one considered that she adored sleeping and did so as much as nymphily possible. Nothing was more perfect than a good dream. Point in fact, she had been in the throws of just one such play of images that she wanted to go back to. Not that she could do so with the promise of Neano's blunt, bony finger proding her tender ribs.

Neano tossed her sole remaining bag onto the ground beside her. The material gave a heavy thump. She reached for the zipper. Neano's answer was to nudge the bag out of the way with his foot. "No."

"But I slept in these," she sputtered.

"And now you'll be walking in them, too."

"But I walked in them yesterday!" She squeaked in horror. Her chest heaved with panic. What would people think?! The thought was implied on her very expressive features and tainted the air with burnt cinnamon. Neano's only reply was to shoulder her bag instead of waiting for her to claim it. Amthy was faced with his back as he continued into the dark, no sign of the sun in sight as he headed in a easterly course. "W-wait!" She cried as she stood. She brushed what dust and soil she could from her dress as she scrambled after him.

They would have to stop for lunch. If only she could manage until then.