The Raiders' Return

[Firedance]

Danny's tongue hung out of his mouth as he panted frantically, trying to regain his breath after the raid in Hallow. He had known that he would be scared and had let his fears get the better of him, as he had run off on his own as the raid had begun. Now he felt confused and lost, and the others were nowhere to be seen. He knew not whether to run deeper into the forest and risk getting even more lost, or to try and retrace his pawprints in hope of finding the others and risk running into an angry Hallow member.

Danny whimpered and looked up at the sky as he stumbled in circles, wishing that there was some way out of his current situation. He had never felt so vulnerable and didn't know whether he would be able to find a way out.

As if his prayers had been answered, Danny sensed a familiar smell in the air. Could it be one of the pack?

[Shantik]

In a way. However, most would not see the Sheperd/Collie mix striding forward with half a smoked ham in her mouth to be much of a salvation. More often described as one of the most annoying and talkative dogs around. Second only to a few. But then again, Shantik was a bit of an ompitmist, and it usually took a lot of words to keep hopes up.

As the medium-sized dog (Small for her breed) came closer, she detected the scent of another dog over the strong smell of meat. She blinked her wide green eyes, setting her 'catch' down and looking around. There. That little...creature. Aw, he looks so scared...

"Hey, are you okay?" Shantik asked, coming up to him, leaving her ham behind a few steps.

[Firedance]

Danny's wagged his tail tentatively as Shantik approached, his eyes widening as he noticed what his packmate was carrying. The Synl dogs had had a hard winter and he was glad that the raid had not proved unsuccessful. He had always found Shantik to be a sunny, benign being and he was very glad of her presence right now.

Danny realised that compared to Shantik, he looked like a nervous wreck. None of the other dogs had seemed as nervous about the raid as he had, and he tried to hide his nerves as best he could.

'Shantik!' Danny put on a brave voice. 'I'm.. I think I'm okay, thanks.' He swallowed hard, realising that his act probably wasn't going to hold out. 'Weren't you scared? You could've been attacked.' Lowering his ears, he continued, 'But you did better than I did. I didn't get anything at all.' Danny began to feel a little ashamed of himself for running away when the going had gotten tough.

[Shantik]

Shantik might be gullible, but she grinned as Danny tried to sound like he wasn't more than a little nervous. Honestly, she couldn't tell who it was really from the back. But there was no mistaking Danny now.

Shan sat down with a thump, looking back at her ham sheepishly. Scared? Excited was more the word. "Well, sorta. But don't worry, Danny! Cheer up!" She turned back to him and nudged him slightly with her nose for comfort. Then she shoved the ham over to him a little. "Want some?"

[Firedance]

Danny smiled as Shantik spoke. He didn't know how, but the dog always seemed to have a way to cheer people up. Gingerly wagging his tail, he padded across to where the ham sat looking delicious on the leafy ground. Cautious as ever, he gave the ham a thorough sniff before making a mark on it. It seemed okay.

The salty ham tasted like it had been thrown down from the gods. Danny slavered as he chewed it, forgetting his manners somewhat. 'You have some, it's great!' Danny looked up at Shantik, the rightful owner of the food.

Danny looked up as his sensitive ears alerted him of a sound. Slightly alarmed, he twisted round whilst trying to locate the noise. Did you hear that?' Danny whispered.

[Shantik]

Shantik smiled, sitting back and scratching at an itchy ear, almost dislodging the goggles atop her head. She looked over at him, tongue lolling, about to reply about where the missing half of the ham had gone when she froze.

It didn't last long. Her nose twitched, taking in the unfamiliar scent with a tilt of her head. Slowly setting her hind leg back down on the ground, she turned her head around, curiously flicking her big ears and cocking her head from side to side.

"Yeah," She replied to Danny, just to sort of reassure him. Then she got to her paws and looked around with that big smile on her face. "Hello! Anyone there?"

[Nisse]

What was all this then?
The scruffy mutt of a dog had gone for a rather pleasant stroll (lasting a measly two weeks) and returned to find his packlands vacated. He had paced through in his usual laid-back manner only to have his suspicions confirmed. The trees were as wine-red as ever, but there was not a soul in sight.

It was on his second relaxed round, mottled scarlet leaves rustling beneath his feet, that he heard the chatter of younger dogs. Ahh, packmates. And what was this? The unforgettable salty-smokey scent of perfection in edible form. He drooled at the mere thought of it.

With a little more speed, it was easy two find the two exchanging pleasantries.
Nisse made no effort to hide his presence. He strolled out from the trees, stuck in their perpetual autumn, with the same cockiness he always held.

As he drew close, he dropped his forequaters in to a stretch. He rose with a toothy yawn, before finally fixing his gaze on his companions. It was quick, however, to travel down to the ham…
“Have I told you two ‘bout the new border tax?” He asked cheerily. A sloppy grin rolled about his face, revealing the playful intent of his words. Of course, if Kahvie had overheard him talking to the pack members in such a way he probably would’ve gotten a cuff to the head and a few stern words. That wasn’t to say he wouldn’t enjoy a nice bit of ham, what with the thin season the pack had had. Out here the cured meat was a rare luxury.

He clicked his tongue in mock scolding. “I can’t believe you’ve been running around causing all sorts of mischief without me? Why, I’m hurt!”

“That where everyone else is too?”

[Shantik]

(I'll have FD go first, cus Shan'll go crazy here in a sec. )

[Firedance]

Danny's suspicions had proved right- another dog was approaching, one that looked and smelled very much like Kahvie's prodigal brother-

'Nisse!' Danny exclaimed. Nisse was fond of his little outings and to see him in their packland was a rare treat. Tail quivering with nervous joy, Danny listened closely to Nisse's words. The sheltie may have been a pretty intelligent soul, but he was also slightly gullible and didn't know whether or not to take what he said as the truth. Sure, Nisse was a joker and a clown, but Dan didn't blame him for feeling left out.

'Sorry..' Danny began. 'I didn't hear Kahvie saying 'bout that. But you're welcome to some ham if you want.' Danny glanced at Shantik for reassurance.

[Shantik]

At first, Shantik was absolutly sure this was Kahvie coming their way. Had she come back? She was about to leap forward in joy when she realized it was most certainly not Kahvie. But someone almost as good. "Nisse!" She giggled almost at the same time as Danny.

At his sarcasm about taxes, she laughed half-heartedly, knwoing full-well when someone else was being sarcastic. In a rare show of actual intellegance, she reached forward and pulled the ham away from the scraggly dog, grinning. "Say the magic word." She teased playfully, giggling. As for them running off...

"Well, ya could've come with! We brought everyone we could. Who all have you seen around lately?"

[Nisse]

As the other two greeted him energetically, Nisse simply glowed, lapping up the attention. Not one for formality himself, he simply flashed them his grin in reply.

'Sorry..' Danny began. 'I didn't hear Kahvie saying 'bout that. But you're welcome to some ham if you want.'

Nisse paused to give Danny a critical look, trying to decipher if the sheltie was being serious. He knew little about the pack members, and even less about those who had joined after Synl became its own. Unfortunately for him his wanderings granted little time to pick up on the little - he only had the small snippets of description Kahvie had given him. But surely Danny he couldn’t have been that gullible? Still, compared to some of the rogues he’d run into beyond pack lands, the innocence was refreshing. Finally, he gave a laugh – not at Danny’s expense but at the thought of Kahvie letting such a thing as ‘border tax’ fly. Not in a million years.

"Say the magic word." Shantik teased playfully, giggling.

Nisse smirked, flicking an oversized ear. “Abracadabra?” He could’ve just piped up with the bit about being a beta, but no. He wouldn’t hold his title over them. Nah, that sounded like something that Fellen‘s stupid brother would’ve done. But he wasn’t one to flaunt his title. Well, maybe a little. But he wasn’t one to be rude. Or maybe that was just his sister?
He raised an eyebrow expectantly at Shantik. “Well, go on then! Divvy up the goods!”

"Well, ya could've come with! We brought everyone we could. Who all have you seen around lately?"

“I havn’t seen anyone. Boring, really.” Nisse gave another giant yawn to emphasize his point. He flumped his scrappy form down, lifting a hind paw. Eyes closed contently at the pleasant feeling of a good scratch, he piped up again. “So what has been happening ‘round these parts?”

[Firedance]

Danny wasn't usually one to speak out, but right now he felt the need to pipe up for the pack's and Kahvie's sake. He knew Nisse was young and had an adventurous spirit, but he couldn't help but ponder on all the things that could have happened to the dog whilst on his trips away. These indefinite absences worried the little Sheltie and he felt sure that if he was worried about Nisse's safety, his sister would be doubly so. Ignoring his question, Danny spoke in a small voice:

'Nisse, you know we worry about you when you go away. Don't you realise what could happen to you? If you were hurt, or... or eaten by a wolf, there'd be no-one to rescue you.'

Danny trembled as he spoke- this was the first time he had chided a fellow pack member like this and his shy disposition wasn't coping too well.

'Just, well.. Kahvie worries about you- we all do, and are you sure that it's safe? For you to go off like you do? We'd be sad if anything happened to you.'

The sheltie hadn't meant to sound angry or unfriendly, and he prayed that he hadn't spoken out of turn. He just felt that his concerns were ones that ought to be voiced.

[Shantik]

Shantik grinned at Nisse, happily on speaking terms with him. She'd never really seen anyone with an outlook in the least like hers, and it was fun to be able to get along with Kahvie's brother. In response to his question, she shrugged. "Nothin' much. Like you said, it's really boring, and I've not seen much of anyone if forever..."

She trailed off, glancing at Danny. He looked about ready to cry. Aw, he was so cute! She smiled sadly as he started to speak, shutting up long enough to hear his words. Her bottom lip quivered at the little Sheltie, feeling so very proud of him; she was really starting to admire the little dog, for sticking up for his beliefs and opinions, and caring so much for the others of his pack.

When he was done speaking, she sighed and leaned over, nuzzling him slightly before licking his cheek. Then she turned to Nisse, tilting her head. Well? What'd'you have to say for yourself?

[Nisse]

((Eek, sorry, been super-busy with real-life stuff D: Will probably continue, as well.))

In response to his question, she shrugged. "Nothin' much. Like you said, it's really boring, and I've not seen much of anyone if forever..."

Nisse gave a rather over-the-top exasperated sigh. Typical. Didn’t anything happen around here? The dynamics of a pack like Synl had the potential to be something interesting, something exciting. Of course that something never happened. He had to get his kicks from slinking around Sallin with the daughter of Kahvie’s arch-enemy. “Pfft! No wonder you guys all headed off to Hallow. Duu-uuull!”

'Nisse, you know we worry about you when you go away. Don't you realise what could happen to you? If you were hurt, or... or eaten by a wolf, there'd be no-one to rescue you.' Danny trembled as he spoke.

The addressee’s attention fell to the smallest of the trio, surprised to hear the little dog speak up. The shealtie needn’t have worried about any annoyance on Nisse’s part – his look of confusion was quickly replaced with his usual care-free smirk.

“Ah, Danny boy, Danny boy…” The collie-mutt’s tone was dismissive, the kind of tone that accompanied a pat on the head. “Did Kavs put you up to this?” He rolled his eyes briefly. It sounded like something she might do. Shirking his responsibilities. Bah, she was one to talk. “My sister dear is no proper little guardian angel herself, you know – where is she now?” Probably off wandering on her own.

Nisse flopped to his belly, the motion of such causing the mane of scraggly fur around his neck and his over-sized ears to flop about. He ignored the disapproving glances. “Anyway, I’m fine aren’t I?” He held out a fore limb, offering it for inspection. “See?” he asked, a cheeky sparkles glinting in his eyes. No, he liked the mischief of his little adventures and he would not be giving them up easy. “Think of my little expeditions as… Scouting trips. I’m doing my duty for the pack, see.”
Giving little chance for either of his companions to butt in, he stretched out his forpaws, reaching for the ham. “’Sides, I’d be too much of a hassle to eat – I’d give them too much of a fight. I can look out for myself. Is it dinner time yet?”