The Green Stone

[renardsage]

[glow=red,2,300]

After running for some miles, the sounds of the dogs started to fade from his ears. He had been running for hours, no small feet for his tiny paws. They caught his sent back at the farm and started the chase at the house. After all, it was he who wanted to run away from all his problems, and running he was.
Ever since his father yelled at him he had wanted to leave, but this was not quite what he had in mind. He was on his own now and would need to be responsible for his actions.
Slowing down now, he finds a quite place to lay down, almost unbelieving what has transpired this night. Maybe he will wake up and the whole thing will of been just a dream.
Curling up he thinks again of the glowing stone right before all of this started, and he drifts softly to sleep. Unknowing the dogs only a field away.

The Bowling of the dogs wakes the young fox and he knows they just struck a fresh trail. He starts running again, after a minute realizes that they are going the opposite way.
Questions start puzzling his thoughts, "why would they leave my trail to follow another unless it was another fox.
Little did he know a strange white fox had ran over his trail and led the dogs a different way all to make sure he would be safe.

Still running he slows as new smells spring to his nose, a smell like a dog but a bit different. There was a wolf near by.

[/glow]

[Squire]

Russel had just set off to find the other pack he knew to be in the area when the baying in the nearby field caught his attention. That was not from a wolf. No, that was something different entirely. It was canine to be sure, and he had smelled it before. But where had he smelled it before?

Only a few seconds had passed when the realization hit him hard like the swipe of a bears paw: it was the smell of domesticated dogs. That could only mean one thing, humans. He had been sure that there were no humans in this area though. Unless of course they had chased something. Perhaps a pack he knew nothing about had drawn them here because of some mischief they had caused, or perhaps, if luck was on his side for once, it was just a pack of domesticated dogs without the humans. Strays? He couldn't be sure, but he knew in his injured state he needed to find a place to hide.

Limping as fast as he could, Russel set off toward the stream he'd drank from not even ten minutes back. Wading through it he went upstream for a little ways with the hounds barking and howling still audible in the background. After a minute he spied a small rock outcropping which contained a crevice just large enough for him to squeeze through, and with the trick he'd just pulled by wading in the stream the dogs, in theory, wouldn't be able to find him as easily.

Hurrying over to the crevice he was, just as he suspected, able to squeeze inside. The area on the inside of the outcropping of rocks was bigger than what he had imagined, and deeper as well. Going to the back he curled up on the hard rock floor and turned his attention to his injured leg. The least he could do while he hid until the dogs passed was take care of that leg. He just hoped those dogs didn't find his sister, wherever she was.

[renardsage]

Slowly moving and still tired he knew he would need to find a hiding place.

Looking forward he notices a small cave on the other side of the river. Knowing dogs had a hard time tracking through the river. He ran away from the river leaving a trail toward a old tree. Once at the tree he dug a small hole, not big enough to live in or stay safe in, but only big enough to make the dogs think they would have him trapped in the hole.

With the hole finished he backs up walking backwards in his original path a few meters the then jumps 30 feet away from his trail and jumps again and again until making it upstream into the river. Now in the river he wades his way back down to where the cave was and shakes off the water before heading inside.

As he enters and moves toward the back he knew he maybe in some major trouble.
"Oh CRAP!" the words come out with a bit of fear as he sees the wolf laying in the already claimed cave.



(what will he do? will he run? or is it too late? it all depends if the wolf is friend or foe, tune in next time)

[Squire]

Having been more concerned with his front right leg, Russel had not heard the small young fox enter his hiding place, but with the fox's exclamation of surprise his attention snapped toward the entrance of the cave and the fox who had cried out. From the sound he had made, Russel knew the fox was scared and had probably had no idea that he was walking into an already occupied cave.

Without thinking Russel stands up quickly and winces visibly as pain shoots through his front leg. Unable to hide his pain he simply lies back down and licks his leg once."What do you want kid? Obviously you ain't here for a social call cause you didn't even know I was in here till you came in. Are you hiding from those blasted hounds? If you are, I hope you hid your trail because I'm in no shape to fight off a pack of mongrels." Russel growled his words, part from the pain and part from annoyance at the fox possibly having left a trail to the cave for the dogs to find."Well? Did you hide your trail or not? If you didn't then we both need to get out of here right now.

[renardsage]

Martin didn't have time to to be surprised that the wolf could talk and with what all has happened nothing could surprise him now. "Yeah." he was a bit nervous still. "I made a false trail leading away from here and only doubled back after hopping back to the stream and coming back in it" the young fox was calming down now feeling proud of himself.
"Besides they ended up following some other animal back a ways. I know that cause they changed direction and headed away from here barking."

Noticing the wolf's leg, Martin offers a deal. "I couldn't help but notice your leg. And wonder if we could make a deal."
The cave was cold and quiet. "If I can help you out with your leg, do you think I could stay with you for a while?"

Martin knew there was a white willow not to far from here and that the bark would help with the pain and any inflammation. Helping the wolf and getting on his good side would be more beneficial then getting on his bad side. Besides if everything worked out at the very least he would have a new friend.

"My name is Martin by the way, I'll be right back with the medicine"
Out of the cave he ran and found a white willow. With a few small branches he rushes back into the water hiding his sent and then back down to the cave.

"Just chew on these and you will feel better in no time" after dropping the sticks in front of the wolf.

[Squire]

Russel looked at the sticks and sniffed them. He was skeptical about what the fox was saying. Afterall, these were just sticks right? He had chewed on sticks before as a distraction from other things, including minor injuries, but none of these sticks had ever made him feel better, so why would these be any different? Yet, the fox, Martin, seemed so sure and so positive that it would work. What was that word that Martin had used? Medicine? The word was foreign to him. Perhaps this was what foxes called sticks, but honestly he really didn't care at this point. He was in pain and he was willing to give it a shot. "Kid...sticks have never helped me before, but if you're right then you can stay. If not...."he clamped his jaws down hard on the air. He hoped he had made his point. If this failed the young fox would be made to leave because he was in no mood to be fed garbage.

With a snort, and without waiting for a reply, Russel turned his attention back toward the sticks from the willow tree and began to gnaw on them. The taste was bitter and the stick was moist with sap. These were freshly torn from whatever tree they had come from. Giving Martin the benefit of the doubt, he chewed on the sticks in silence for around an hour, and surprisingly, the pain did begin to ease off. It didn't fade completely, and he was sure that it would still hurt a little if he used the leg, but not as much as before. Strange and curious.

Turning his attention back to where Martin lay on the cave floor, he sighed,"Alright...Martin, was it? You can stay. I don't know why these sticks helped, but they did. Took awhile, but my leg is feeling a tik better. You gave me your name, so I shall give you mine. I'm Russel." he tipped his head slightly in a sign of respect to the fox, similar to the one a wolf would pay a fellow packmate."Say, that animal that the hounds started following back there, any clue what it was? It wasn't another wolf was it?" Now that his head was on straight, his thoughts had turned to Lyra. He hoped that it was not her that the dogs had started chasing.

[renardsage]

Martin bowed when Russle tipped his head, as if in reverence toward the wolf. With a bit of hesitance the young fox admitted it was he who the dogs where after. "I don't think they would go for a wolf when they started after a fox."
He continued, "they have been chancing me for hours and what I know of dogs is they are trained to stick to the same animal as long as they can." Now sighing a bit "I do hope the other fox that crossed my trail got a way." Laying down he lets out a sigh. "Its been a long day."

After a long while Martin asks "where is your pack and how did you get hurt?"
Once the words had come out he realized he should of known better then to ask a stranger about his past. It was none of Martins business but he was still learning tact.
"I'm sorry," a small tear rolls down his furry face realizing he had lost his old life and the sorrow was finally taking its toll. He remembered the days before how he had forgotten to check on his sick mother to make sure she had some medicine before bed. The next day she had died and his father blamed him worst of all his father was right.
Bitter tears streamed down as he quietly laid there in the grey shadows of the cave.

[Squire]

Unaware of Martin's internal distress, Russel looked at the young fox with uncertainty. To him, a simple question had been asked, and one that was not too private at that, but Martin was crying. It made no sense to him, but he didn't wish to see his current company cry. "Hey....hey...I don't know if you violated some sort of strange fox social norm or not, but we wolves don't mind answering personal questions.... Usually, so stop that cryin' alright? I'll answer your question." Russel wouldn't get into too much detail, but smoothing over the truth a bit couldn't hurt. "About a full two seasons back I lived in an area far, far to the north of here. Some members of my pack decided that the strange looking deer that the humans keep in their fields were easier to hunt than the deer in the forest, and without a doubt they were indeed easier, but the humans didn't like us killing those strange deer. My pack was hunted. My sister and I are all that is left. Fearing for our own safety we left our lands to the far north and began to travel south along this mountain range. Eventually we ended up here. I left her in a secure location, or at least as secure of one as I could find. Then, I left her there to look and see if one of the packs here would take us in. Two wolves alone...it is not good. Our entire lives are based around the pack, and without one I am unsure if we will be able to survive." He nodded slightly as if to lend more credit to his words. "As for the leg...The last pack I talked to didn't take kindly to my trespassing onto their lands. I was chased out, and in the process ended up having to fight one of the more persistent lower ranking members. I suppose he was looking for a chance to move up. I'm unsure. The rest is something you can figure out."

Russel didn't even normally share this much with even Lyra. It was odd to talk about, but if it got the fox to stop crying then he'd gladly do it. Looking back over to where Martin lay he tilted his head curiously to see if Martin had stopped crying, or if he had even listened at all.

[Silver]

A loner has no one to look out for but himself.

Nestled high in the branches of an old oak tree, a cream coloured wolf sought refuge. The low swinging branches of the tree made it possible for him to climb so high, using only his powerful back legs to jump from branch to branch as well as strong muscles and balance to pull himself up. He lay curled up in the bow where the trunk of the tree split, giving a little bit of a cradled surface. He could sleep peacefully here, with nothing but the squirrels and owls to bother him. They didn't pay him much heed, though. He was dominant when all four of his paws were on the ground, but in the tree he was at a disadvantage. They saw him as an equal.

He leans back his head in a yawn. It seems as though something has disturbed him from his sleep.

Being lazy gets you nowhere.

Alonso perks his ears as he hears baying hounds in the distance. One on one they were no threat, but in a pack... it was a different story.

He leans over the edge of the trunk and looks down into the stream. Yes, he seems to be thirsty now. A drink sounds good. He got up and leapt down from the tree onto the soft muddy bank of the stream.

[renardsage]

Still sniffling the small youth speaks, "You mean people killed your whole pack?"
A few more sniffs then he continues, "you probably hate all humans now."
Eyes now full of sorrow, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Please know that not all humans are that horrible."
He pauses for a moment. "I lost my mother before I ran away. You see I should of given her medicine to her at a certain time but I fell asleep and when I woke she ..." He sniffs and cries again. " I killed her by not giving her it."
A stream of tears flow from the little furry child. "If you knew what I was you would hate me too." After a few minutes Martin stops and sits quietly in silence, wondering what the wolf would do if he found out what Martin really was. "I shouldn't stay here." Now getting up and heading toward the entrance he runs out. "I'm sorry I'm so sorry."

[Silver]

This yellow wolf kept to the shadows of the trees as much as he could. Sadly, though, he was at a disadvantage. His fur didn't do well concealing his presence. This had always made hunting quite difficult, as he stood out among the dark green and brown of the forest. His cunning, speed, and sneak were the only things working for him.

He was used to openly strolling through the forest as the wildlife around him screamed about his presence. He liked to think about it as his own personal symphony.

[Squire]

Russel was dumbfounded. The fox had said 'If you knew what I was you would hate me too.' What had he meant? Did he take Russel for a fool? Of course he knew what Martin was. He was a fox. Anyone could see that. Sure, wolves didn't usually like foxes, but so what? The kid had helped him out. The pain in his leg had eased off and it was bearable for the moment.

He was torn. Should he go after Martin, or should he stay right where he was? The kid had seemed so confused about a lot of things, and yet rather knowledgeable about other things, things that no one else Russel had ever known to understand. The knowledge of the dogs being trained to go after one scent and follow it as long as they could. Stupid dogs. Even wolves gave up on something after awhile because they had the sense to know when to quit. Also, Martin had used that strange word, 'medicine.' Martin was a strange fox for sure, but he had helped, and it seemed to Russel that, despite not having actually uttered the words, Martin needed help too. Martin was just a fox though, so why care? Because Martin was a scared and frightened kid. Oh his conscience would eat him alive if he didn't go after the poor boy.

With an aggravated sigh Russel got up and exited the cave, sniffing the air to follow Martin's trail. Hopefully the kid hadn't gone far. Limping only slightly for the moment, Russel set out after Martin at a slow run.

[renardsage]

[glow=green]Running at a trot now, the full impact of his mothers death finally hitting him so hard that holding it in was not an option any longer. When everything happened he was too in shock, to react. With his father yelling because of the loss and pain, the boy had temporary lost touch with the world.

He remembers finding a strange glowing stone outside the cabin and picking it up, then nothing until growling sounds woke him. Then it was time to run. Something in him knew he had to run from the sounds, call it perception or instinct but what ever it was, it saved his life.

Before his mother got sick the two of them had gone to the local Cherokee tribe to learn more about herbs and their ways. Mom had always wanted him to learn a bit about his grandfathers people.

Chief Whisper, was like a grandfather to Martin even though he had only been going to see him for a few months.
Martins father didn't like the Cherokee way of life and didn't like Martin learning it.

Martin wondered if he could tell anyone what had happened. He couldn't go back home, because the dogs would find him and rip him apart. He didn't know the way to the Cherokee trip as his mom would always take him a different way, and if he did know what could he say? They wouldn't just let a fox walk right into the tribe, he'd be shot on sight.

Now stopping he curled up under a large tree.

He didn't know what to do, he felt alone and afraid.
[/glow]

[Squire]

As Russel noticed Martin's scent growing stronger he slowed his pace a bit. Martin must have stopped. Good. This would make things a lot easier. He was still puzzled as to why Martin had run though. He had done a complete 180, going from asking for permission to stay to fleeing in tears. All over what? Russel wasn't sure. All he had done was answer Martin's question.

Finally, after about five more minutes, Russel came upon Martin curled up underneath a large tree. From his breathing Russel could tell the kid was asleep. Whether from exhaustion or from crying Russel wasn't sure about either, but he had found the kid and that's all that mattered. Walking slowly up to the sleeping fox Russel looked down at Martin for a few seconds staring. He looked back up then scanned his surroundings. At first glance everything looked clear. Oh if his parents were still alive they would laugh at the sight of what he was about to do.

Shaking his head slightly to clear his thoughts Russel dipped his head down and picked the still sleeping fox up by the scruff and turned slowly back to the direction of the cave from which Martin had run. This was going to be a long walk back.....

[Silver]

The stream trickled beside him and he matched his pace to it. Alonso plodded along, not really knowing where he should go, but following the stream. He heard the noise of the baying animals fading now, not like he had been afraid of them in the first place. No, not at all. However, he did cringe at the thought of what would happen when faced against a dozen dogs at once. It wouldn't end well.

He continued along the bank when he thought he saw a flash of fur ahead of him a ways. He stopped to sniff the air. Another wolf... and a very young fox? He wasn't sure. He came closer and noticed the wolf pick up the fox and turn around with it. The wolf was favoring one of his legs, he looked to be in pain.

Why would a wolf bother a fox? Both species generally kept to themselves.

A thought crossed his mind, what if the wolf was going to take this fox and... he was weak, after all... maybe he couldn't catch his own prey with that leg...

No. A wolf would never do that, well... that he knew of, anyway. Wolves and foxes mostly respected each other, and looked the other direction. They were both predators sharing prey, and though the wolf has more brawn, the fox has more wit.

Alonso decided to follow the strong looking wolf.