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_MHO Chapter 32! Still kind

of a chill chapter, for the most part. Don't worry, there's

action coming soon. At least the boys are getting a nice

well-deserved break. Oh and yes, you may have noticed I dialed down

the accent a little. It was getting a bit much, so I decided to

moderate it a little more._

-Llox

___________________________________________________________________________________

After leaving

Moyra's home, Kuna was faced with the fact that he'd have to

navigate the village alone as it was approaching sunset. Fortunately,

he had his magic to guide him to Lykou. The drawback was that it'd

be tricky to do so without drawing even more attention to himself

than he already was getting for being a very different looking

outsider in a village full of lepne, most of whom were around a foot

or so shorter than him, on average. It wasn't that he felt

particularly in danger at that point, but he still didn't like the

attention.

He took a deep

breath and began walking, trying to avoid meeting anyone's gaze

while doing the best to hide the glowing mark on his hand. Even so,

and even trying to use the least-busy paths to get to where he was

going, he still encountered many fascinated villagers who stopped to

ogle him and whisper to each other. A few actually waved to him or

greeted him, to which he made some effort to return a friendly wave

while still trying to avoid getting caught up in a conversation. On

the one hand, it was refreshing being around so many people that were

so nice to him for once; but on the other, the attention was a little

much, and he wanted to be back with Lykou as soon as possible.

Finally, he arrived

at another larger building, with a higher roof than most of the

others in the village. But as he approached the double doorway at the

front, it flew open and Lykou, Grey, and a few other lepne came

walking out, laughing and carrying on. A couple of the lepne were

leaning on one another for support, clearly inebriated.

"Spark Night

soonds -hic- lik' a right crackin' time!" the chieftan said,

leaning on one of his least-intoxicated companions, then looked up to

see Kuna. "Ach, Kuna laddie, guid tae see ye. Ah hawp -hic- th'

druna bu'ness went weel?"

Kuna nodded and

looked at the assorted bunch with a mixture of amusement and mild

concern. "It was very ni-" he started to say, then paused and

thought for a moment before continuing, remembering Moyra's comment

about 'keeping up appearances'. "Er, very enlightening, yes."

Lykou wasted no time

walking over and wrapping his arms around the sereva. "Miss'd ya,

bud," he said, squeezing him gently. Despite the awkwardness of the

obvious drunkenness, Kuna smirked and hugged him back, just glad to

be reunited with him.

"Guid tae hear

it," the chieftan said, then clapped Lykou lightly on the back,

albeit only after missing twice. "'n' it wis brilliant -hic-

banterin' wi' ye, Lykou." He paused to wave over Rhagnaid, who

Kuna hadn't noticed standing by another building nearby.

"Rha-hic-gnaid 'ere wull take ye back tae th' lodge, ah best

'av dinner 'n' git tae kip mysel'. G'night lads!"

"G'night, chief

-hic- Grey!" Lykou replied. "Thanks again, it's been fun!"

Raghnaid began

leading them back to the lodge, and glanced at Lykou. "Dae ye need

any halp?" she asked the two, as Kuna helped the konuul keep

steady, with one of the canid's arms draped over his shoulder.

"I've got it,"

the sereva replied.

Lykou chuckled. "I'm

-hic- fine, really, I'm not that drunk," he insisted, then

grinned at the guard. "He's just using this as an excuse to -hic-

hold onto me."

Kuna smirked and

rolled his eyes, blushing slightly.

"Yer pure

steamin'," the guard replied with a smirk. "Some dinner 'n'

water should halp, though."

"Really, I'm

just -hic- tispy!" Lykou said, then thought for a moment before

giggling. "Tispy... tipsy... okay maybe -hic- m-more than I

thought..."

"Yeah, you're

ready to 'tisp' right over, you goofball," Kuna teased.

Soon they arrived at

the lodge. When they stepped inside, they were greeted with the smell

of hot, fresh food, and Clara was bringing some cups of some kind of

murky brown liquid over to the tables. "Welcome back, lads," she

greeted them. "Ah'll bring ye each a plate in a minute. Wull ye

be jynin' us, too, Ragh?"

"Na, ah shou-"

"Ach, c'mon,"

Clara insisted. "Yer always hidin' at hame wen yer aff duty."

"Weel..."

"Yeah, c'mon,"

Lykou chimed in. "We'll be telling everyone our -hic- story."

He wavered a little bit as Kuna helped him into an empty stool by the

table, bracing him against a wall carefully before sitting down next

to him. "Well, mostly him for -hic- now, I think," he added,

shooting an apologetic, yet playful grin to the sereva.

Kuna tensed up and

folded his ears as he sat down. "Really?" he mumbled quietly,

shooting him a small glare.

Rhagnaid shrugged,

then found herself a seat at the other table. "A'right, ah

suppose ah kin stay a li'l while. Grey wis callin' it a night

anyway."

"Great!" Clara

said, then went to grab some plates for the three.

"Seems lik'

someone's been tae the brewhall wi' the chief," Gavin said with

a chuckle. "Mak' sure 'e gets water, Clara."

"Aye, wull dae."

"'n' how wis

yere day, Kuna?"

"N-nice," Kuna

replied quietly, scooting close to his inebriated friend.

"Ye dinnae need to

be sae shy wi' us, ye ken," Ealar told the sereva with a friendly

smile, after taking a sip from his cup. "We dinnae bite."

Kuna looked up

briefly with a faint smile and rubbed his arm. "I know, just..."

Effie, who was

sitting next to the sereva, leaned over and rubbed his shoulder

softly. "Es a'right. Ah wis alwis a bit quiet, tae," she said

softly. "Anyone gies ye trouble, ah'll skelp 'em fer ye." She

winked at him.

"I-I'm sure that

won't be necessary," Kuna replied appreciatively. "But thanks."

"Some scran wull

probably halp ye relax, tae," Gavin suggested.

On cue, Clara

returned and set a plate in front of Kuna and Lykou. They both

thanked her, then began eating. After some of the lepne had finished

their food, Gavin turned to one of the others that hadn't been

introduced yet. "Oy, Finlay, wid ye mind gi'en us some choons?"

The other lepne

smiled and got up. "Nae problem, wis jest thinkin' aboot that,"

he said as he stepped over to one of the piles of boxes and bags on

the edge of the large common area, then began digging around for a

moment. Soon he returned with a stringed instrument and began tuning

it after sitting back down. Before long, he began filling the air

with soft, but cheerful music, much to everyone's delight. Another

individual pulled out a small flute-like instrument and joined in.

The music wasn't

very loud, but it helped everyone, including Kuna, relax a little

more. In fact, along with the food and the comforting warmth and glow

from the fireplace, he was starting to feel somewhat at ease by the

time he finished his plate. Lykou's tail was flicking and twitching

along with the music. At one point, Bhaltair arrived and joined the

group, greeting the boys as he set his bag down near the far wall.

"Bit o' bad

news, folks," the trade leader announced. "Ginnae hae tae delay

anither day. Soomhow, a stack o' blankets bound fer Whitlan were

misplaced, sae they're makin' a few more tomorrae."

"Mibbie Effie jest

miscounted," Dougal suggested, earning a glare from the smallest

lepne in response.

"Ah'll help ye

count yer teeth, ye mawkit bawbag!"

"Oy, settle doon

ye two," Bhaltair said. "Nae sense arguin', whas done es done."

The casual chatter

in the room carried on for a bit. After making sure Kuna was done

with his food, Lykou re-positioned himself to the floor, and

playfully pulled the sereva along with him. He'd started to sober

up a bit, but was still pleasantly buzzed. Kuna let out a small yelp,

but couldn't stop himself from grinning as he was pulled into their

usual cuddle position. "For the dozenth time, you can just use

words," he playfully complained, blushing and trying not to focus

on the attention they'd drawn from some of the lepne.

"Nah," the canid

replied with a grin. "Speaking of which though," he added, then

booped his friend's nose. "Story time!"

Kuna groaned and

folded his ears down again.

"Come on, it's

only fair after they've been so nice to us," Lykou half-whispered

in his ear. "Besides, I'm right here with you. I can even go grab

my blanket if you want."

"N-no, I don't

need to look even more like a baby, thanks," the sereva retorted

with a slight eye-roll.

"Aww!" Clara

cooed at the two along with one or two other lepne, then covered her

mouth and giggled as Raghnaid nudged her. "Sorry, sorry! Please,

dae goan then, Kuna."

"Aye, we're

itchin' tae hear yer story, lad!" Gavin agreed.

"Tell ye whit,

goan git started, ah'll fetch ye some liquid courage, aye?" Clara

offered.

Kuna wasn't sure

it was a good idea, but at that point, he'd be up for anything to

help ease his nerves. Finally, he sighed and settled back into the

konuul's arms. "F-fine," he said, then looked around a bit,

blushing from increasing attention. "I... guess I should s-start at

the beginning."

"Aye, tis how it

usually works," one of the other lepne responded with a chuckle,

earning a light slap from Effie.

"Well... L-Lykou

and I actually didn't e-even know each other w-when we first m-met.

I'll skip how w-we got into the situation," he said, shooting a

look back towards the konuul behind him before continuing. "But

basically we... got caught in a weird f-freaky storm and took shelter

in the s-same cave. We ended up s-spending the n-night there and woke

up... in some weird place f-far away. Turns out the s-storm was a

magical one."

"Oy, soonds lik'

powerful magic!" one lepne replied.

"Must'a bin a

spirit!" another added.

"We're... still

a little unclear on that," Kuna said, his eye twitching.

"Oh I'm pretty

sure she was a hounaka," Lykou said, looking a bit nonplussed at

the thought.

"Er, trickster

spirit," the sereva explained, upon seeing the confused expressions

on some of the lapines. "And we r-really don't know, but anyway

that's s-skipping way ahead."

"Certainly soonds

lik' a trickster thin' tae dae," Gavin said.

Kuna shrugged a bit.

"Maybe. But anyway, w-we woke up in this strange forest that w-was

different than we were used to. First couple of days were rough. We

only h-had Lykou's knife and the f-few things he had in his pack to

survive w-with. S-so we spent the first day mostly just trying to

f-find food for ourselves. Not exactly exciting." He rubbed his arm

a bit and looked away, clearly trying to dance around certain

details. "Eventually Lykou made a n-needle I could use to make the

bags we used to c-carry our food in, and l-later on a... mat-thing we

could lay on s-so we wouldn't have to sleep on the h-hard ground."

"And your clothes,

too! Not a good idea to wander a strange forest naked. You did a

great job, too, considering what little there was to work with," he

complimented, then immediately realized his mistake and smiled

sheepishly when he felt the sereva tense up. "Er, right, sorry Ku..."

"Ye wis naked??"

one of the lepne asked. A few others snickered.

"Were ye oot

bathin' or somethin' afore the storm?" another asked.

Kuna's eye

twitched as his blush returned more intensely than before. Luckily,

Clara showed up at that moment with a cup full of 'liquid courage'

and handed it to him with a sympathetic smile. The sereva quickly

brought it to his mouth and gulped down more than half of it in one

go before shooting a glare back at his friend. "Yeah.

S'gowiththat."

"Ah'll... fetch

ye a second, then," she said, stepping away again for a moment.

"Th-thanks,"

Kuna said and sighed. "A-anyway. After that we just s-sort of...

picked a direction and started walking. We passed this h-huge gorge

with these weird tortoise-looking things that h-had shiny colorful

shells and breathed fire, of all things. There were a c-couple

enormous ones down in the gorge f-fighting each other."

"It was amazing!"

Lykou chimed in. "They kept bashing each other and making these

colorful sparks and blasting each other with fire!"

"Breathin'

fire?" one lepne asked incredulously. "Ye sure they wasnae

spirits?"

"I... somehow

didn't even think of that," the konuul said and looked down at

the sereva in his lap.

Kuna shook his head.

"I don't think s-so. There w-were too many in one place, and I

don't think s-spirits usually fight like that. Plus, one s-started

to bleed, remember?" he pointed out to the canid.

"Oh, right," the

canid responded. "Good point."

"A-after that,

this w-weird spiny thing... which apparently is c-called a

'devilhorn' or s-something? Attacked us- well, me- when we were

distracted," the sereva said, folding his ears down and looking

away.

"Yeah, it charged

up and flipped him over itself. It had a big horn on its ugly face

and all these spines on its back. Poked all over poor Kuna's back,"

the canid said, frowning.

Kuna smirked up at

him. "And then you saved our asses."

Lykou grinned.

"True."

"Ach, details! Gie

us th' details!" one member of the audience insisted eagerly.

"You tell 'em,

it was... kind of a blur for me," Kuna told the konuul.

"Well... I kind of

danced around it a bit, until I was next to Kuna again. Then I took

off one of its big pinchy claw-arms with my knife."

"Jest a knife?!"

Ealar asked incredulously.

"Oh he can be a

s-scary good fighter, believe me," Kuna said, rubbing the konuul's

arm.

The konuul blushed

and smirked. "Yeah, but that only pissed it off, so I grabbed Kuna

up and ran over to the edge of the cliff, then tricked it into

charging us and running off the edge."

"He grabbed a vine

and s-swung us out over the edge to do it, too," the sereva added

with a grin, then reached up and tussled the canid's hair. "This

guy's crazy in the best way sometimes."

"Soonds lik'

it!" Gavin said with a chuckle.

"Quick thinkin'

lad!" another lepne chimed in. Several others echoed the sentiment.

Lykou grinned and

squeezed the sereva gently.

"After that we

s-set up camp for the night so h-he could patch me up. Luckily I

wasn't hurt too bad."

"Physically,

anyway."

"Shh! 'Kou!"

Kuna quickly shushed his friend, his face flushing a bit.

"Right,

sorrysorry!"

"Aye, pride hurts

bad when et's injured, dunnit?" Ealar commented with a

sympathetic smile. "We all bin there."

Kuna sighed and

rolled his eyes up for a moment. "Yeah..." He paused to think,

then took another sip of his somewhat bitter, but comforting drink.

He could feel it starting to take effect after having gulped down so

much so quickly to start with. "...and it wasn't exactly healthy

to begin with, I guess," he finally admitted, then sighed. "When

Lykou first found me, I... had a lot of, um..."

"Demons in your

head," Lykou interjected.

"...yeah, that,"

Kuna replied. He smiled up at the konuul. "Let's just say this

fluffball saved me in more ways than one that day."

There was a faint

round of 'aww's from a few of the lepne, including from Clara,

who'd just returned with a second cup. She set it on the floor next

to him, then sat down nearby. Lykou smiled down at the sereva.

"Tis nae wonder

yer sae claise, then," Ealar noted with a smile.

"Yeah, he's a

good demon hunter," Kuna replied, nuzzling back against the canid

lightly. Lykou just smiled and squeezed him in return. "Anyway,

after that we met these two strangers..."

He went on to

describe their first awkward encounter with the shakonu, then the

burned village and the ghosts. The latter fascinated the lepne, and

Lykou chimed in a few times to talk up just how brave Kuna had been,

and how it was the first time there was a hint that he could have

magical abilities. The sereva grew a bit flustered but was happy to

let the canid take over the story for a minute while he started on

the second cup of... whatever it was. It didn't taste nearly as

good as the gourd juice, but it was quickly washing away his nerves.

"But yeah, anyway,

after the echo guy-"

"Tareq," Kuna

chimed in.

"Right, we later

found out his name was Tareq. After he faded away, we kept going

until we found this really pretty camping spot behind a waterfall and

ended up staying there a couple days so we could resupply again.

Honestly I wish it was closer to home, because it'd be a great spot

to visit again now and then."

"Other than the

creepy lizard thing," the sereva said with a shiver.

"Hey, he just

spooked us a little. I don't think he was dangerous in the end."

"A lizard ye say?"

Gavin asked curiously. "Ah tak' it t'wasnae wee one?"

Kuna shook his head.

"Nope," he said, then gestured with his arms. "About this big.

And six legs. We were swimming in the water near the base of the

falls and suddenly he came out of the depths and popped up next to

us."

Lykou snickered. "We

both got out of the water so fast I think it took our shadows a

minute to catch up. Luckily, the thing didn't seem hostile in the

end. It just crawled onto the other shore and started basking in the

sun."

"We don't go

near water that deep anymore, though."

"Yeah, I guess it

made us realize we weren't being as careful as we should have,"

the canid admitted with a sheepish smile. "Not much else to say

about that place, I guess, but-"

"I mean, we found

a salt cave, which was nice," Kuna continued. "And you helped me

with... you know."

Lykou raised an

eyebrow, mildly surprised, then smirked. "Oh now you're

not avoiding it, huh?"

Kuna shrugged.

"Maybe it's just this stuff," he said, gesturing to the cup in

his hand before taking another sip.

"Whit are ye

talkin' aboot?" Ealar asked.

"I've... had

this bad, recurring nightmare I've dealt with for years," Kuna

answered with a frown. "And it woke me up the first night we were

there. I won't go into details, but it basically forced me to

finally tell Lykou some... painful things about why I had those

head-demons."

"Aye?" Clara

asked with a concerned expression. "Ye dinnae 'av tae tell us if

ye nae want ta, bit ah'm sure we're aye curious."

Kuna glanced around

at the small crowd for a moment, then sighed as he looked down at his

cup. "Like I said, I won't go into the details, but..." he

trailed off and took another big gulp from the cup. Then he took a

deep breath before continuing. "I s-saw my parents get... killed...

savagely... by a berserk monster, w-when I was still a kid."

A flurry of gasps

and soft consolations erupted from the audience. Effie hopped over

and gave Kuna a brief hug, making him smile bashfully in response.

"Ye poor dear..."

Lykou gently

squeezed the sereva. "And to make matters worse, his worthless,

cowardly tribe eventually just abandoned him when he got older."

"Nae, really??"

Gavin interjected in disbelief.

"Yeah, that too,"

Kuna said after a moment, then took another moderate-sized sip of his

drink, his eyes just starting to get a little glassy.

"How wid they dae

such a thing?!" Finlay asked from the back, having paused his

music.

Kuna shrugged. "They

thought I was cursed. And to be f-"

"Hey! None of

that," Lykou interrrupted, squeezing him again.

The sereva smiled

very faintly and leaned back into the cuddly canid. "I'm not

excusing it, I'm just explaining their stupid logic, okay?" he

said, then turned back to the lepne. "I was always real sick as a

kid, I've always been on the weak side, and I think some of them

blamed me for the... attack. Plus another one later on. And then

there's this," he explained, waving a slightly unsteady hand over

the bumps on his head. "My people are supposed to have antlers when

we become adults, but mine never grew."

"Es tha' all?!"

Ealar demanded. "Thas how they ken ye 'ad a curse 'n' ditched

ye?"

Kuna shrugged.

"Pretty much, as far as I can tell anyway," he said, cuddling

into the konuul's arms.

"Whit a buncha

glaikit fookin' feartie bastards!"

"My thoughts

exactly," Lykou said with a mild scowl.

"Hey, I've got

much better company now at least," Kuna said, rubbing the canid's

arm.

The canid's

expression shifted to a smile as he squeezed his friend again. "And

a new home to go back to."

The sereva smiled as

well and took another big sip from the cup before continuing. "So

yeah, I just kind of... told him everything after that nightmare and

he helped me, well..."

"Realize they were

dead wrong about you and that you're worth something?" the konuul

suggested with a smirk. "Although I keep having to remind you every

so often."

"Yer a real class

lad, Lykou," Bhaltair said and raised his cup to the canid,

prompting a chorus of agreement from the other lepne.

Lykou blushed and

smiled, resting his head on top of Kuna's. "Thanks, I try," he

said, then playfully tickled Kuna's side very briefly, making him

squirm and giggle. "Not like I could let this guy suffer alone,

anyway."

"Alright, alright,

enough with the sappy shit, let me get back to the story while this

stuff is still workin'," Kuna said with a flushed, bashful grin,

holding up the cup before taking another big sip.

"Ah'm not

complainin'," Clara teased. "Lemme ken if ye need more."

"At this rate,

probably so, if that's alright," Kuna replied.

"Aye, nae problem.

Jest be careful na tae overdo it. Ah'll bring ye some water, tae."

Kuna continued the

story and ended up splitting the third cup with Lykou, as it started

getting more tipsy. Together they told the lepne about their next

run-in with the shakonu and Kuna's worm-dodging adventure. Lykou

then brought up Kuna's first experience with being drunk, and

playfully teased him about maybe having a repeat, much to the

sereva's chagrin.

"On that note, I

think I should -hic- go easy on this stuff," Kuna said, his hand

already wavering ever so slightly as he set the cup back down.

"Unless you want to take over the story."

"Aww, it's fun

watching you get silly though."

Kuna rolled his eyes

and continued with the story, bringing up the attacks from the

armored beast and the golzogs. Kuna described the galdra after

several lepne mentioned not knowing what one was, and it was revealed

that few of them ever saw any elemental spirits in the highlands.

"Aye, thas druna

business, anyway," one of them said. "Nae wonder et showed itself

tae ye."

"Och, thas right,

ye do magic, right? When did ye start tha'?"

"I was just -hic-

getting to that, actually," Kuna said, then went on to describe his

first encounter with 'Mentor', and his little 'initiation',

much to everyone's fascination, despite occasionally stumbling over

his words. Lykou chimed in to describe their encounter with the

giant, but Kuna made sure to describe the mudslide-ride in as much

detail as he could, making the konuul blush a bit at some of the

things his cuddle-buddy opted to focus on. Ultimately, when it was

clear he was going off on a gushy, somewhat playful tangent about the

konuul in general, Clara give him another cup of water to hush him,

snickering in amusement. Lykou mouthed a silent thank you to her.

"A'right, ah

think thae lad es pure blootered. The rest of th' story kin wait

fer noo," she said, much to the audible dismay of several of the

other lepne. Luckily, several others agreed with her and shushed

their compatriots. She bent down and booped the sereva's nose

playfully. "Ye jest tak' it easy, aye?"

Kuna giggled as the

crowd gradually shifted away to chatting among themselves, though

from the sound of it, their story featured in all the various

conversations starting up. "W's I really -hic- getting that bad?"

"A bit," Lykou

said behind him with a chuckle. "If I didn't know any better, I'd

say you were trying to get back at me for making you the center of

attention."

"Mmmaaaybe," the

sereva teased, then reached for the cup that still had a bit of

liquor left in it.

Lykou quickly

scooped it up before he could reach it. "I think you've had

enough silly-juice, goofball."

"Nuh-uh!" Kuna

protested, tugging at the canid's arm playfully.

"If you have any

more you might do things that'll kill you of embarrassment

tomorrow," the canid warned with a smirk.

"S'future Kuna's

-hic- problem. Gimme!"

"Mmmno. Trust me,

you'll thank me tomorrow," Lykou said, then, after a moment's

thought, downed the rest of it himself. "There, all gone anyway."

"Aww," Kuna

complained, then slumped back against the konuul and pouted. He

looked around for a moment, then blushed and tilted his head back to

look up at the konuul. "Hey. Thanks for -hic- everything as usual,

'Kou. S-sorry if I made you -hic- feel awkward at the end," he

said with a sheepish grin.

"You're fine,"

Lykou replied, then chuckled and squeezed him gently.

Kuna thought for a

moment then unsteadily started to sit up. "Lets go lay down, I'm

-hic- tired."

"Mm? Sure, that

sounds good."

The two bid everyone

goodnight, then slipped off to the storage area they'd been

sleeping in.

*****

The somewhat cooler

night air coming through the upper gaps in the wall helped the two

sober up, but only slightly. They quickly cuddled up under the

blanket together, but right away Kuna propped his head up and poked

the konuul lightly in the side. "Seriously though, I didn't -hic-

make you uncomfortable, right?"

"I told you,

you're fine," Lykou said, rubbing the sereva's head softly.

"...as much as you tried to get a rise out of me with all that

flattery back there," he added with a blushing grin.

"S'not... ah,

nevermind. Thanks -hic- for helpin' me tell th' story though,"

Kuna said, then sighed and slumped over, laying his head on the

konuul's chest. "These lepne are n-nice -hic- people. I know I

need to work on not being so -hic- shy."

Lykou gently rubbed

the sereva's back. "Hey, you're making good progress."

"Yeah, s'long as

I got some giggle-water," Kuna pointed out with a smirk.

The canid snickered.

"Well, yeah, I guess that always helps. But even still, you're

getting better. And hey, there's nothing wrong with still being a

bit shy in the end anyway," he assured the sereva. "How did

things go with that... druna-lady, anyway?"

"Oh yeah, Moyra,"

Kuna said, perking up a little. "Really -hic- well, honestly. She's

actually super friendly and laid back wh'n she's not, uh...

'keeping up appearances'. I gather -hic- druna have to keep a

certain reputation around here."

"Heh, yeah, I

noticed how the chief acted around her. So, is she really...?"

Kuna snickered.

"Like she told me, 'The chief is in charge... because -hic- the

druna says so'."

Lykou chuckled.

"Sounds about right. So what did you two talk about?"

"A buncha stuff.

She -hic- actually taught me somethin' Ink didn't, and I managed

to help her start learning -hic- sta-... err, soul magic, too."

"Oh really? That's

great!" Lykou said, rubbing the sereva's head softly. "What'd

she teach you?"

"How to make

plants -hic- move around, n'stead of just grow n' change in

differen' directions. Uses -hic- less energy," he explained. "I'd

show you, b'there's no plants in here. Plus I prolly couldn't

anyway, 'm too -hic-... that," he added with a giggle.

"At least you're

not as wasted as last time," Lykou pointed out with a smirk.

"Yeah, thanks for

-hic- keeping me from overdoing it. Even if I really wanted to for a

minute there," the sereva said, poking his tongue out playfully.

"Believe me, it

was tempting to watch you get adorably silly again. But I didn't

want you to be utterly miserable tomorrow," the konuul said,

snickering. "So did you two talk about anything else?"

"Sure, plenty.

Told her a bit of -hic- our story, too," he said, then sighed.

"Including some of... you know. She kind of picked up -hic- on it

early on, to be fair. Apparently she's pretty good at figuring

people out."

"Really? Guess

you're getting more used to spilling things, hmm?" the canid

said, giving him a gentle squeeze. "Proud of you."

Kuna shrugged. "She

w's pretty comforting about it. And -hic- as for the crowd tonight...

drink helped. I'll prolly -hic- feel awkward about it tomorrow."

"Maybe, but you

don't have to. Not like anyone's going to hold it against you."

"Not everyone

needs to -hic- know my whole sob story."

"True, but you

don't have to keep it hidden either. It shows what you've

overcome. And hey, at least you can talk about it now without-"

"Drink, remember?

Would've been -hic- harder normally," Kuna pointed out, then

sighed. "Thank goodness Moyra was so sweet -hic- and patient about

it."

"Well, still.

You're improving," Lykou reiterated, hugging him.

"I guess," the

sereva replied, smiling up at the konuul. Then he yawned and nuzzled

into the canid's fur. "Mmm, lets do that whole -hic- sleep thing

for real now, though."

Lykou chuckled.

"Sounds good. G'night Kuna."

"Nini, 'Kou,"

the sereva replied contently before quickly dozing off in his

friend's arms.

*****

Late that night, a

figure slipped out of the travel lodge. He darted between buildings

silently, keeping an eye out for the guards on the night watch

patrolling the village. Once he reached a crack in the outside wall,

he waited for a short while. Soon, he was joined by a second

individual. One of them peeked through and waited for the nearest

guard to turn and begin patrolling the other way, then they both

slipped through the nearby farm's fields. Once they passed the end

of the fields surrounding the village and began entering open

countryside, they dipped down around a particularly large hill and

waited in a dug-out hollow in its base, facing away from the nearest

road. Soon, several other individuals approached, with a few of them

holding small, crude lanterns putting off just enough light to

confirm each individuals' identity to the others.

"Dougal, Caelan,

whit's th' word?"

"Ah bought us an

extra day, bit ah dinnae think they'll hauld oof enny lainger,"

Dougal replied. "Ah hawp thas lang enough."

"Should be plenny

tae mak' sure everyin's in place," the first shadowy figure

said, then turned to the second figure. "'n' the guard?"

"Ah'll keep Rhag

n' Lachlan hoachin'. Jock 'n' Barabel wull hae a distraction

t'lead th' others astray south efter the caravan es goan. By time

they gi' back, it'll be tae late."

"Ye git whit ye

need fra Tannil?" another asked the first.

"Aye. 'nuff

tatty banners n' broken shite tae mak' it convincin'. Even some

guard claithes tae wear."

"Not tha' wi'll

leave witnesses, aye?"

"S'jest an extra

precaution."

"Whit aboot th'

outsiders? Th' plan didnae involve them," Caelan chimed in.

"One or twa extra

bodies wull be nae problem. Wi'll still outnumber 'em."

"Aye, bit one's

a druna."

"'es freish,

tho, fram whit ah unnerstan," Dougal commented. "Wouldnae

unnerestimate thais twa, tho. They bin through a lot, at least if

thir stories are half true."

"Ye'll just 'av

tae keep 'em separate, then. As fer th' druna," the first

shadowy figure said, then smirked in the dim light. "Ah'm sure

Kerr kin handle him."

The group scattered

after a few other matters were discussed, agreeing to meet one more

time the next night. As Dougal and Caelan made their way back towards

Kerney, however, they weren't alone. Another, even stealthier

individual slipped away from the shadows near the top of the hill the

group had been meeting under. After Dougal and his accomplice were

through the wall, they whispered something to one another, then went

their separate directions. The secret third individual slipped

through shortly afterward, then made their way across the village,

ending up at Moyra's house. They slipped around back, lifted a

thick patch of moss hanging like a mat over the back fence, then

slipped through a hidden gap behind it.

The druna was

standing in the garden, waiting for them, and sighed with mild relief

when Faergus joined her in the moonlight. "Weel? Wis ah right?"

"As usual, aye.

Tis nae simple banditry noo. Thir upty somethin' big. Ah ken

they're plannin' tae ambush the caravan, 'n' tryin' ta pin

et oan Tannil. Ta make matters worse, they hae eyes in' the guard."

"Damn. Cannae go

tae them, then. The rest wull scatter afore they kin be caught,"

she said, then rubbed her chin thoughtfully. She then bent down and

sketched a symbol in the dirt, before concentrating in silence for a

few minutes, holding her hand over it. Eventually, she manifested the

pale blue glow and tried to push energy into the symbol.

"Och! When did ye

learn that??"

"Kuna taught meh

jest todae. Bin practicin' sin' he left," she replied. She

smiled up at him briefly before returning her focus to the symbol.

But after a few minutes, she sighed and dismissed the magic.

"Whis tha?"

Faergus asked curiously, pointing to the drawing.

"Ah wis tryin'

somethin' Kuna showed me. Lets me find th' way tae things.

Unfortunately, ah s'pose ah need some kind o' connection to whit

ah'm tryin' tae find."

"Aye? Whit wis ye

tryin' to fin'?"

"Th' bandit

camp. Fer a conspiracy lik thae, they must hae one out in th' hills

somewheres."

"Ah kin follow 'em

next time, find thir camp. They wis gonnae meet agin tomorrae."

"Tis too dangerous

by yersel'," Moyra said, standing again and placing a hand on the

other lepne's shoulder. "Dinnae dae anythin' rash, Faergus."

"Ha! Ye ken ah'm

a sleekit bastard. They'll ne'er ken ah wis there."

"Still, ye

shouldnae go alone, jest in case."

"Yer worryin'

too m-"

"Please, Faergus,"

Moyra insisted, concern painting her face. "Bad enough ye insist on

stayin' on the watch, ah'm already worried ah'll lose ye one

day."

Faergus sighed and

embraced her. "Ah ken. Mibbie if we kin stop thae bastards, it'll

turn more folk away frae tha' banditry shite altogether."

The druna returned

the hug and rubbed his back. "Aye, but ye dinnae need tae jump at

it heid-first. We need tae think o' a better wey."

"...whit if ah get

hulp? Someone tae watch mah back?"

"Guard's oot.

They 'av moles, aye? 'n' ah wilnae hae ye tak' someone tha'

cannae fight."

"Ye ken who ah'm

talkin' aboot."

Moyra sighed. "Aye,

ah ken. Bit ah hate tae drag 'em intae our problems, especially

efter how many they already had o' thir own. They're such nice

lads."

"Aye, bit thas how

we should ask 'em. Them mawkit bandits wilnae ken what tae expect

from 'em. Ah 'av a guid feelin' about 'em, 'n' if ah kin

feel it, then ah ken ye definitely dae."

The druna smirked.

"Aye. A'right, if we kin get them to hulp ye oot, ah s'pose

that'll ease mah worries a smidge. Ah'll talk tae Kuna tomorrae.

If they agree, ah'll 'av 'em meet ye 'ere. Unnerstan' they

kin say nae, though."

"'course,"

Faergus replied, then smirked. "Bit ye tell me. Wull they?"

"Unless ah'v

lost mah edge fer kennin' folk, nae," Moyra admitted, grinning

back. "Lik' ye said, they're decent lads."