Woodlands Search [Saki + Invite]

[Grath]

Grath had not been able to get that poor young otter out of her head, and as she traveled, more came to light concerning N'tashi's cruelty and depravity. In the end, she had stayed merely a couple of weeks at her family's holt before heading downriver once more. She'd weathered that terrible nor'easter with her family, but as soon as the skies dawned clear she was making good time, this time in a light one-creature canoe.

Now she was walking. If she recalled correctly, Camp Moss was around hereabouts, but never actually having been there was was unsure if she was even on the right stretch of river-land. She turned, walking farther inland. At least the snow had not piled up too high yet.

[[This is before Chagrin, but not by much.]]

[Rakko]

Major Rakusagi, or Saki as he preferred to be called, was an odd young…creature, to say the least. I won’t go too far into his back story because, well…you’ll find out soon enough.

The lone…otter? Hare? Whatever… trotted down the wet path (it had snowed recently) carrying his halberd, the only personal item he ever kept, apart from the small gold dagger that was found with him as a pup. Despite the weary look on his face and the fact that his pants-bottums and paws where soaked through, he kept his head high and the staff of his weapon off the ground; his long travels would not break his life time of honour and poise. Raised as a Salamandasteron hare, you learn many things, among which two of the most valuable are marching and eating.

He barely noticed the water seeping into his fur or the whistle of birds in the trees. All he saw was the road in front of him. His eyes focused, his mind on the journey, he didn’t even see the otter-maid (is she a maid?) who found her way in front of his path. He stumbled as he ran into her a struggled to regain his balance. The otter-hare failed miserably and landed face-first in the snow.

He righted himself, muttering his apologies but stopped as he looked at her. He looked utterly ridicules, spmpleatly wet now paw to nose with his floppy leaf hare-ears hanging over his eyes. Regardless, he gave her a large toothy grin and bowed. “’allow mate! Sourry ‘bout that bloody collision, wot!”

[Grath]

"Ack!" Grath, standing on a patch of ice, went slipping and sliding forward. And although she managed to avoid complete disgrace by catching herself on paws and knees, she ended up face to face with one of the stranger creatures she had ever seen. At first glance she had thought it was a hare, but now at this close range it was sure that he was an otter.

“’allow mate! Sourry ‘bout that bloody collision, wot!”

"Ah... no, it be all my fault, mate. Ah be ashamed, for not looking where Ah be goin'." She winced slightly in embarrassment. To be brought low by a measly patch of ice!

"Shiver me timbers, matey," she looked him up and down, "But ye be soakin' wet! Ye will be catchin' pneumonia for sure!"

[Rakko]

Saki bowed his head to the lady. She was quite a beauty to behold, he had never seen anything quite like her in the mountain and he wasn't quite sure what to say. "Naw, ay 'aven't had pnumonia ever, missus ahn ay ne'er will, wot! I'm a flippen rock of immunity!" Not five seconds later, he sneezed.

With a sheepish look on his face, he held out his paw to help her up.

[Grath]

"Naw, ay 'aven't had pnumonia ever, missus ahn ay ne'er will, wot! I'm a flippen rock of immunity!"

"Even rocks are worn thin by the wind'n'rain." Grath observed, taking his hand and shaking it heartily. "Grath Swiftfletch be at'yore service, sir! Ye do not happen to be knowing where be Camp Moss?" She bent and picked up a couple of stray arrows.

"Would Ah be wrong t'be supposing yore from t'fire mountain?" She asked, curious to know why he was dressed up as a hare, complete with 'ears.'

[Rakko]

Saki took her paw and shook it heartily. "Nahce ter meecha, Grath. Ah'm Major Rakusagi of da Long Patrol, bu' Saki's plen'y easyer." He bowed bring her paw to his snout to kiss it in a gentlemenly fashion.

In regard to he question, he stood back at his full height (which was indeed quite tall, especially with te ears) and looked both ways. "Ah shure do, wot! Ah'm a martster o' these woods and the mou'ans. Thiz blinkin' way, mate"

[Treble Tiderunner]

"Nahce ter meecha, Grath. Ah'm Major Rakusagi of da Long Patrol, bu' Saki's plen'y easyer."

"Tch!" She removed her paw from his grasp, but was secretly pleased to see at least one otter she met on her travels had been raised a gentlebeast! "Long Patrol, bah! No wonder!" She winked, her air of co-conspiracy dissolving into an easy grin, such antics she hadn't seen in a long time. Everybeast in these woods was so grim. It almost made her doubt her resolve to return to check on the situation her. Almost.

"Ah shure do, wot! Ah'm a martster o' these woods and the mou'ans. Thiz blinkin' way, mate"

"Be leadin' the way then, matey." She said in her tribe's odd-speak, following the hare-otter.

[Rakko]

*You posted with the wrong account *

Saki grinned as he stepped back onto the path, slightly re-routing his journey. He glanced back every once in awhile, making sure that the pretty but gruff otter was following him. After a few minutes of walking in silence, he spoke up. He sounded like a completely different creature now, tapping into his more serious, otter-side. "So wot's yer story, miss? Why're yew out 'ere all alone?"

[Grath]

[Yeah, I noticed. ^^]

"So wot's yer story, miss? Why're yew out 'ere all alone?"

"I wandered through here in the summer, met a young otter." She put her bow in its holster on her back, wiggling her toes just slightly in the powdery snow on the trail.

"Could not get t'lad outta me mind, matey. 'e seemed so miserable, all of them did, e'en th' vermin. I had to come back."

They walked in silence, going deeper into the woods, the trail petering away into a one-beast tract. "Where do we be goin', Saki? I thought Camp Moss was near to the river..."

[Elicia]

Raucus' breath caught in his throat. He had found where the hares were all hiding! He had! He knew it! He had been running for ages, it seemed, and his breath rushed in and out of his chest at a frantic pace. His black eyes darted from left to right, and his tiny paws- all four of them- skittered across the ground. He was running on all fours for speed, aiming in the general direction he thought they were hiding.

Suddenly, Raucus dug his hind feet into the ground, pulling himself to a shrieking halt. His ears pricked upwards; he heard voices. Slowly and carefully, the pine marten crept towards the two creatures.

His eyes widened. He couldn't see much of them, but he did see a pair of long ears and he did hear the words 'Long Patrol'. A cruel smile spread across Raucus' face, and he rubbed his paws in anticipation. A hare, at long last! The grin grew wider, and, had his brother Daily been with him, Daily would have known to back away from the other marten.

Raucus' eyes glittered as he followed them closely; his nose twitching, his eyes darting, his ears swiveling to pick up each and every sound the two made. They were going to Camp Moss. Good, good, that was good! Good for Raucus! He bit down on the air hard, acting out his confrontation with the hare. He did it twice more, and chuckled. It was good that he had found a hare at last! Good! Wonderful, even, because that hare was going to lead Raucus right to his camp. Where there was one hare, Raucus reasoned, there were more. There had to be more. His crooked smile grew ever wider as he followed the pair, but dropped from his face when, focused on his quarry, he stepped onto a bed of dead leaves. It crackled loudly, and Raucus tried to scamper off of it, but the leaves only flew up in the air and made more noise. The marten cursed to himself, dragged himself off of the pile of leaves, and curled up into a tiny ball behind a bush, hoping that he would not miss his chance- a chance, at last!- to give the hare what he was due.

[Rakko]

Now, Young Rakusagi had never been good with directions. Sure, he knew exactly where the camp was but getting there was a completely different story. And it didn't help that the young otteress had been detracting him with her story and radiating beauty. When she spoke again to ask where exactly they where going he stopped dead. Looking around a few times he relized that he had no idea where they where.

Sheepishly, he turned to look at her, his leaf-ears drooping over his eyes making him look like nothing more then a pathetic ball of goof. Then his ear(his real ear) twitched a bit as he picked up the sound of water rushing over rocks. With a perky look in his eyes, he twisted himself around to follow the sound. "Righty-ho mah-deer, Ah was jus' flippen testink ye wot wot!"

[Grath]

"Righty-ho mah-deer, Ah was jus' flippen testink ye wot wot!"

"Hush!" Her bow was off her back and restrung in mere moments, her keen ears strained for the hint of a sound. She didn't bother hoping the creature was friendly, if it were friendly it would not be lurking about in leaf-piles.

"Just my blasted luck..." She muttered, advancing cautiously towards the origin. "Take those blasted leaves off and come be of use!" The otterlass was not overly concerned with niceties when it came to dealing with a possible foebeast, in fact, she became quite curt and taciturn.

"Come out, come out, whoever ye be..." She said softly, watching.

[Rakko]

Saki had been so focused on listening for the sound of the water that he had missed the beast that had been following them. Cursing his luck, he stepped into a defense position behind the other otter. Slowly and quietly he strung up his bow and grabbed an arrow. He notched it and stood with his back to the other otter so they could cover all directions.

He was about to speak, to back up her request for vision but thought off it, deciding that, in the slight chance this was a friendly beast, they might spook him.

[Elicia]

Raucus' nose twitched in annoyance. Leaves. It was no hare he was chasing, merely a beast with fake ears. "Hellgates." He cursed to himself, and for a moment was lost in a fit of shivers. Disappointment and rage clouded his vision, and his breath flew in and out of his chest faster with every moment.

Then his heaving chest stilled, and he was silent again. His twisted logic took hold, and he closed his eyes. Why had he worried? It was a hare, that was certain. It WAS a hare. Maybe.... It was a hare who had had his ears cut off by something! Yes! Yes, that was it! It was a hare after all-it had been all along!- who just didn't have ears any more, so he had to wear fake ones! Yes! That was it! Fake ears! For a moment, relief choked him and he couldn't breathe; he could only lie there and struggle to inhale.

Then the excitement of the hunt rushed back into Raucus like a tide filling a hole in the sand. He gasped, and rolled over on his stomach, sucking in great gasps of air as he pushed himself up on his feet. He looked, with hazy eyes, at the hare-with-no-ears and at his companion. TWO hares-with-no-ears! TWO! He smiled recklessly, and bit down hard on the air. A low growl came from the back of Raucus' throat, a feral noise warning of the creature's intentions as he stared down his quarry.

"Run." He husked. "Run to your little camp. Run, or I kill you now!" His eyes were wide, and his grin grew wider-was that possible? It was already stretched wolfishly from ear to ear-and Raucus bit down on the air again. "I see you, I kill you!" He stood for a moment, swaying, then scampered up a tree before they could attack him head-on. From above, his harsh whisper sounded. "'Ide an' seek! 'Ide an' seek! Run, me buckoes, run!"

[Grath]

Grath’s eye’s fixed on the marten as he stood up from his hiding place. Any niggling doubt--of which she doubted she’d had any--vanished instantly. This creature was clearly insane. And he wasn’t doin’ too well on the physical side either, panting and heaving his chest as he was. Then the creature growled. It was unnerving and she took a half-step back instinctively.

"Run." He husked. "Run to your little camp. Run, or I kill you now!"

sssstt! An arrow buried itself in the tree, slicing the air just past the marten’s neck. “Jest ye be tryin’ t’kill Grath Swiftflight, me bucko! My holt-clan be not easily kilt, not by scum like ye, scour me we ain’t!”

"I see you, I kill you!" He stood for a moment, swaying, then scampered up a tree before they could attack him head-on. From above, his harsh whisper sounded. "'Ide an' seek! 'Ide an' seek! Run, me buckoes, run!"

“I see you, I kill [/I]you.[/I].” Grath said, another arrow on string. “I never be runnin’ and I never be hidin’!” Done with the niceties, Grath tracked her target, loosing off several arrows with great accuracy as he took to the trees.