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P** art Eleven: "The Missing Mouse"**

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"Take it easy there, spikey back. Come on in nice an' slow like. I'll grab a hold of yer craft with this 'ere hook o' mine when the time is right." Hudder explained good-naturedly, awaiting the arrival of the older hedgehog paddling his wee boat up alongside the Dynamic in the fading afternoon sunlight, "That's it, that's it. Bring ye'self on in. A little more. A little closer. Hah, there we go! Loop that hook onto something in that boat of yers and I'll tow ye' in."

After the Urchinhide father had thrown a rope ending in a hook to the paddling hedgehog downstream, after the said hook had been properly fixed into place where it held firmly, the Dynamic was soon visited by new guests. When they had stepped on board as well as introduced themselves, the Urchinhides came to know the old hedgehog with greying spines as "Spik" and the pretty mouse maid in his company, with the brilliant sunflower set in her blonde hair, as "Sunbeam".

Instantly, with the both of them showing very polite manners to their company immediately, the hedgehog and she-mouse were liked by Dynamic's otter crew. Watching in silence with a gentle smile on his face in the background by the fire, Ivan allowed the anima to have a good chat between themselves before he, as a messenger of the goddess, became the center of attention like always.

"Ah, finally, we're out o' that there wobbly tub of mine and back onto solid ground. This here is a finer than fine craft ye've got here, good otters. I can feel it in me feet." The aged hedgehog, Spik, admired of the Dynamic when first stepping onto its deck, "Then again, why wouldn't this be a finer than fine vessel? Har har, every boat, smallest to biggest, is a good boat when in the ownership of an otter. It's an even greater thing when it's manned not by one water dog but by many, ha ha."

"Thank ye' kindly, spikey back. Five years ago, this 'ere vessel you're lookin' upon was made by me'self and my family here before you." Hudder explained proudly, swelling with pride at hearing the hedgehog's praises, "We're the Urchinhides. This is my beaut' of a wife, Mistdrop."

"A pleasure." Mistdrop said to Dynamic's two new guests, curtsying.

"Hah! When meeting such a lovely creature like ye' miss, the pleasure is all mine!" Spik laughed, merrily tugging his spiny head spikes in turn. Such a gesture as him tugging his spikes to the otter mother was sign of respect from any spikey-back.

"As it is mine." Sunbeam happily added after Spik, doing her own curtsy in her simple made dress of white cotton.

"This here is my son, Clampter, the little rogue." The Urchinhide father went on with the introductions, proud of every one of his family members, "This is my daughter, Nyrina. She may look a little wacked up at the moment but trust me, she's still as gorgeous as 'er mum. And I am Hudder, the father of this young lot, husband to this goddess blessed otter maiden as well as the keeper of this ship that is our home."

"A mighty fine pleasure to meet all of ye' this grand afternoon." Spik chuckled jovially, never seeming to lose his bright smile, "And what a grand afternoon this is, eh? After so many days of storms, it's nice to know that the goddess has at least blessed the world's patience and given us several days of naught but gorgeous weather in turn. Ahem, yet, where are my manners? I, this old excuse of a spikey back before you, am Spik. Spik Spikewell, if ye' please."

Paws were shaken, a laugh or two was shared and friendships were instantly made as Spik of the Spikewells made himself known to the Urchinhides. Next, the mouse maid with the sunflower in her hair smiled before tenderly saying in a most attractive voice, "And I am Sunbeam Minno, neighbor to Spik. It's very nice to meet all of you, Urchinhides."

"Aye, that it is. That it is." Spik agreed, nodding his head, "Still, I hope we did not interrupt yer family or anything of the sort, Hudder. It sounded like ye' were havin' a grand time when me'self and Sunbeam 'ere stumbled upon ye'."

"Har har, nah, the two of ye' didn't ruin anythin' for my family tonight. Me'self and me crew were simply enjoyin' the end of the day as best as we could. And how we otters enjoy the end of the day is like this; with singin', dancin' and gladness for all of the world to see if not hear." The Urchinhide father explained, being the spokesman of his family, "Speaking of enjoyin' the end of the day, are the two of ye' hungry? It wouldn't be proper form of me not to offer ye' somethin' to eat when I have good food cooked by me' talented wife."

"As tempting as that sounds, we do not wish to intrude on your time for too long." Spik admitted next, chuckling softly, "Truly, me'self and Sunbeam could smell yer wife's good food from the shore. It might've been that which drew the two of us to yer craft here in the first place, closely followed by your singing. However, we've come to ye' to ask ye' something."

"And pray, whatever is the matter, good hedgehog?" Ivan said next, having left the fire to join the conversation finally and now standing beside Hudder, "Why does your face as well as the mouse maid's radiate happiness but your eyes show that you have a problem at hand?"

"Ah, forgive me Ivan. I went and forgot about ye' mate." Hudder hurriedly admitted, rubbing the back of his head guiltily before saying to the newcomers, "Er, Spik, Sunbeam, this 'ere is the human Ivan T'lore of Norlinth. He's a passenger of the Dynamic and a good friend of us Urchinhides."

After the introduction of Ivan, as Nyrina watched them as well as understood their reactions, the hedgehog along with she-mouse looked a bit surprised. It seemed that a human, any human, had that kind of astonishing effect on the anima of the world. For a human of Norlinth was a messenger of the goddess, a warrior of justice, a living sign of peace. And after understanding that Ivan really was with them at the moment, after realizing that a member of humanity was in their presence, Spik purposefully turned to Sunbeam.

"Well, well, Sunbeam, me' girl. It looks like we chose the right boat to ask what needs askin'." He said, tugging on his spikes absent mindedly in the meantime, "With this human here with us, I'd say that the goddess is present. Truly, it would seem that this would be a sign from Gaia that everythin' with your little brother is goin' to turn out alright. Go ahead and ask these good otters what needs askin'. Go on."

"Yes. Of course." The mouse maid brightly replied, looking from one Urchinhide to the next as she said what apparently needed saying, "Good otters, human, myself and my friend Spik did not mean to intrude. We have not come to you to rest nor be fed but want only a moment of your time. We must ask you something. Something very important. Thus, I request that you listen very carefully."

"Very well. We're all listening very carefully, mouse maid." Ivan said for everyone, sounding reassuring and seeming to know something already that the Urchinhides still had to figure out, "Speak your mind. What is it that troubles you and your hedgehog friend? Tell us. You can rely on these otters to give you the truth for whatever it is you need to ask. I know them well enough. They do not lie to souls in need like you."

This situation had become something of a mystery to the otter family. They couldn't exactly understand that Sunbeam, although looking very optimistic, was in need of help. They couldn't see like Ivan that although her face was cheerful, the she-mouse's blue eyes spoke volumes of distress. Nevertheless, soon enough, everyone who didn't already would know of her troubles. Troubles that she began to explain with a brave face.

"Tell me, Urchinhides," The mouse maid began politely, "have you been sailing down the Seidon River during the course of today?"

"Er, uh, yes. Yes we have." Hudder answered, "From early this morning to now, me'self and my family have been doing naught but sailing down the Seidon. For the last five days we've been sailing downstream, to be sure."

"For the last five days?" Sunbeam asked, looking a bit hopeful over something, "I see. Very well. During today while you were sailing along, did you perhaps spot a little he-mouse on the river shore? He would have been about the same age of your son, mind. Also, he would have had the same color of fur as me while wearing a meager tunic of brown."

"I... No, I didn't see any young mice of any kind while sailing today." Hudder admitted, feeling a bit guilty about his words as well as glancing at Clampter when he was mentioned, "What about the rest of ye'? Mistdrop? Clampter? Nyrina? Did ye' see any mice earlier?"

When the Urchinhides shook their heads in answer, Ivan also had to say, "I myself didn't see any mouse youth while the Dynamic drifted along today. Was I - were we - supposed to?"

"No. If you say that none of you saw a little he-mouse upstream earlier today than you did not see one." Sunbeam said with a smile, the worried glint in her eyes fading a little bit in turn, "Which leads me to believe... that the boy me and Spik are looking for has not ventured too far. Nay, he's probably hiding from us to try to make us worry. He'll back tomorrow in the morning when I begin cooking breakfast. That's what always draws him back home."

"Uh, who is it that you'll draw back home, miss?" Clampter asked bluntly, the most confused about what was being discussed, "Who is it you and spikey back are looking for?"

There was a moment of silence where neither the hedgehog nor she-mouse seemed to want to say anything. They weren't being rude, mind. Judging by the somewhat unsure expressions they were showing now, it was clear that they just didn't wish to get anyone apart for themselves involved with what was perhaps a personal problem of theirs. Nevertheless, with a gentle voice, Ivan guessed for everyone what needed guessing.

"You're looking for someone important to you, aren't you, Sunbeam? Perhaps it is family you're looking for if not worrying about? Please, speak truly. You have nothing to fear here nor hide."

"I... I..." Sunbeam began, trying to keep a brave face that soon caved into distress. Next, with a huff of defeat, she explained hurriedly, "I... Yes. Yes, I'm looking for my little brother, Sunseed! You see, after he and I had an argument, he ran off this morning saying that he wouldn't be coming back. I didn't take him seriously. He's at that age where all younglings run off on their own quite a bit. This time, though, he's been missing all day!"

Frantic, shaking a bit with sobs, the young she-mouse looked to Mistdrop as well as Nyrina as she exclaimed bitterly, "Oh! And I just let him go without trying to stop him! What kind of sister does that make me?! Terrible, awful, pitiful - Waaaaah!"

Immediately at hearing the news that a little he-mouse child was missing, when realizing that the he-mouse in question was Sunbeam's little brother, a number of things happened. For one, crying Sunbeam, unwilling or not, was brought to the fire where the girls of the Urchinhide family comforted her with food and drink. In the meantime, in their own private corner, Ivan as well as Hudder formally spoke with Spik over the details of what had happened to make Sunseed run off earlier that morning.

"It had to be just before noon today that little Sunbeam came to my home and filled me in on the situation that her little brother had run off into the woodlands by himself for what has to be the goddess darned millionth time." The older hedgehog wearily explained to his newly made otter and human friend, no longer smiling but grimacing over the subject at hand, "By the goddess, friends, this has become ridiculous. That little rogue of a mouse, Sunseed, has run off cuz' he was told "No" by his sister there. He's been rebellious like this since his mother died six years ago. Yet, that was six years ago, mates!"

"Whose mother died?" Clampter innocently wondered, trying to keep up, "What?"

"Hush, Clamp, mate. Let us all try to hear." Ivan reassured, winking at the little he-otter fondly, "We're all trying to figure out what's going on here. Shush now."

"He can't keep doin' this to Sunbeam. She deserves better." Spik added next, wringing his hands anxiously, "Let me tell you that if it were up to me, why I'd give Sunseed what I give all of me gran' hogs back home when they misbehave; a good ol' dose of humble spankin'! That'd twist his whiskers, straighten his tail and set him right or else."

"And perhaps it might come down to that, good hog, but now is not the time to let ourselves be consumed or distracted by anger. A young mouse is alone out here in this wilderness? Such a thing has never proven to be beneficial for any soul." Ivan put in sagely, glancing over at bandaged Nyrina as he spoke of being out in the wilderness by one's self. The Urchinhide daughter was proof of what happened to young one who went alone into unknown lands. "Spik, I would like to know more about this Sunseed in question. Where would he run off to? If me and the Urchinhides didn't see him today, is he perhaps in this area?"

"That's the thing, human. I don't know where that rogue has run off to." Spike admitted, grudgingly scratching his head spikes, "You see, Sunbeam came to me as soon as she did because I'm the master tracker in these parts. Like my granddaddy before me, all of me years I've been digging up roots, hunting down berries, locating underground springs for folk to dig to. My life has just plain been focused on helping my friends live easier lives by marking down lands of profit and benefit. I'm Spik the Searcher in these parts. And well... I can't seem to search out Sunseed. His trail went cold just before I found ye' sailing in this direction."

"Ye' mean that his tracks led close to the river here?" Hudder wondered next, looking grave suddenly, "A little scamp like my Clampter would be safe if close to water. He's a pure river dog like his ol' man. However, if Sunseed got too close to this running river, a mouse youth like him wouldn't last... Ahem, sorry 'bout that. Didn't mean to be negative."

"No. You're right, Hudder. It could be a possibility that Sunseed... got washed downstream earlier today." Ivan admitted, trying hard not to hint towards how maybe the mouse could have possibly drowned in the river and that was why his tracks had gone cold. Sunbeam nearby had enough to wail about without overhearing that her brother could have possibly been killed. "Along the banks of this river is where we should begin searching then, no? In turn, if we don't find any hint of a little mouse along the shore then we can have Spik lead us to where he lost the trail inland. Agreed, Hudder, mate?"

"Agreed, of course!" The Urchinhide father exclaimed, putting on a brave face, "Goddess willing, we might find the little rogue of a mouse tonight. We've got some sunlight left, don't we? Alas, if we don't find this little lost Sunseed by dusk, well, hopefully we'll pick up his trail at dawn so that we can get underway tomorrow."

"You mean that ye' two are going to help find that troublesome, Sunseed?" Spik wondered in shock, quickly taking both the otter and human's hands into his own and shaking them gratefully, "Oh thank ye', thank ye' thank ye'! Goddess's blessings be upon ye'!"

"Hah! Why of course the goddess's blessings are upon us, matey." Hudder laughed back, patting Ivan on the back, "We've got one of 'er messengers with us, don't we? And trust me when I say this, Ivan here is one of her best messengers in all of the land. If there's any Felldewan out there who can fix a mess like this, it's this human right here with us."

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There was approximately three hours before the sun would fully set behind the steadily fading western horizon. Thus, within an hour, Dynamic had been pulled close to the western shore, anchored down, secured to nearby trees as well as set in place for the rest of the night. In turn, with the chatting girls staying behind on the raft, the men - even Clampter - resolutely set off downstream where they closely looked along the shoreline for any hint of the missing Sunseed.

Once, with dread, upon a reedy shore, Clampter thought he saw something that resembled a mouse child. What he had seen instead was a bramble of weeds tangled with a large log.

Moving on with guilty Clampter being berated by his rattled father for having scared everyone so badly, the searching party looked for the next hour for anything interesting on the western as well as eastern shores of the Seidon River. Once, twice, thrice, Hudder dove into the river with his son where they searched the bottom for something. Thankfully, they found nothing ill to report.

One way or the other, goddess be praised, it seemed that Sunbeam's little brother hadn't met a watery end at the Seidon River. He couldn't have come in this direction but must have gone a different way when his tracks were lost to Spik who, scratching his spiky head in wonderment, led his fellows northward into the woodlands. There, among the northern trees with the sunset casting its golden glow upon everything from the west, the atmosphere became peacefully tranquil almost immediately.

Every so often through the stillness of the serene forest around them, a bird would in fact sing its song. Then, that bold bird would be answered by another, another and another until the world around the searching party seemed to ring with the echoing, natural songs of Mother Nature.

At long last, with Clampter being held firmly by the shoulder by his father so that he wouldn't go and get himself lost in the forestland like Sunseed supposedly had, Spik stopped the trekking group. Then, putting his nose to the ground, snuffling about in the soil, the grass, the leaves, licking an occasional object once in a while, the old hedgehog stood upright, turned back to his fellows and announced firmly that this spot was where he'd lost Sunseed's trail.

"This is it. This is where I lost the little troublemaker."

"And how far inland do you suppose this is, Hudder?" Ivan said at once, already beginning to look around the area for anything expert Spik may have missed, "Judging on how we got here, looking at where the sun is now, we're directly west of the Dynamic."

"Aye." Hudder noted, cuffing his son over the head for giggling at the way Spik went about sniffing the ground like he was taught to by his own pa. Little otter children these days, feh. They were so rude. Clampter had been raised better. "We're west for sure. As for how far we are from the Dynamic, hm, I'd guess about twenty minutes or so."

"That sounds about right." The old hedgehog put in, nodding his head, "Walking east from here, it took me and Sunbeam about twenty minutes to find ye' sailing in our direction earlier."

"Good, good. Then we know that when we begin this search tomorrow, we won't have far to travel from the raft to get to here. Only about twenty minutes or so." The human explained, suddenly becoming interested in looking up towards the forest canopy above, "Tell me, Spik, is Sunseed an exceptional climber?"

"Is he an exceptional climber? Why he's a pain in the butt with all of the climbing he does. I swear, hmf, he was born part squirrel."

"And pray, did you ever look up into the treetops when you lost his trail here?"

"I... No, I didn't, as a matter of fact. Not me nor Sunbeam did, now that I think about it. Why? Did ye' find anythin' of interest?"

It turned out that Ivan had found something of interest; a piece of simple made, ripped, bark brown cloth that was stuck on a thick branch about ten feet up on a certain sycamore. At once, being a skilled climber himself, Clampter was up among the limbs where he easily grabbed the cloth of interest, scampered back down and then handed it over to the hedgehog as his father proudly patted him on the head.

"That's my boy. Well done." Hudder praised his happy if not skilled son, smiling a fatherly smile, "So, what's the verdict? Will that cloth help us get back on the trail of our missing mouse tomorrow?"

"Maybe." Spik huffed, having smelled the cloth in his hand a great deal before looking infuriated, "Why that little brat! Pardon me for saying such a thing, good sirs, but this is a fresh clue. This cloth in my hands tells me that I did indeed track that mouse down twenty minutes back. However, he was hiding up in these trees when I caught up to him with his sister and rather than come back home... BAH! He hid from us!"

"And now he's scampered off to who knows where during this last hour or so." Ivan mumbled gently, carefully scanning the surroundings, "But what direction would he take... Hm."

As Spik went on fuming aloud, it became clear that Sunseed had been this way. Such news was a bit of a relief for everyone, even for the begrudging hedgehog elder. It meant that he was in the local area, not halfway to Norlinth itself. Either way, Ivan was busy looking at the nearby trees for more clues. Clues that he soon enough found when he found a bark made sandal that he picked up, handed over to Spik as well as did nothing but looked grim with what was said next.

"Hmf, well, we're now looking for a mouse troublemaker bearing only one sandal on his tricky little foot paws." Spik grumbled, tucking the discovered foot wear into his pocket, "Ah, well, this is proof that we have found Sunseed's trail. Sunbeam will sleep easier tonight."

"Aye, glad to hear that." Hudder said next, looking at the fading sunlight in the west, "It seems like our little mouse ran off further west. And if he's smart if not scared enough, he'll stop running tonight and find a high spot in a tree to sleep in to stay safe. Then, by tomorrow, we'll have him back in his sister's arms by noon. For now, though, we all need to head back to the Dynamic. Right, Ivan?"

When Ivan didn't reply for a moment, the father rotter repeated, "Right, Ivan? You okay there?"

Finally, the human turned away from looking west into the empty woodlands. He smiled, nodded his head along with agreed, "Yes. We've done enough for tonight. We should head back to the Dynamic. I pity the he-mouse we're leaving out here but perhaps it is for the best. Naughty children need to be punished. Maybe this is the way Gaia intends to punish Sunseed."

"Bah, that little rogue mouse knew what he was getting into when he didn't show himself when found." Spik said, shaking his head sternly, "He'll come to like the dark of night tonight. He has to now. He has no other choice."

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When the search party returned to the Dynamic with news that they'd rediscovered naughty Sunseed's trail, Sunbeam nearly exploded from newfound relief. Without so much as a worry to her name, she jumped up from the fire and hugged, kissed along with thanked the successful men who did their best to accept her gratitude with good spirits.

"The goddess does not wish for us, her people, to weep so much." Ivan sagely said to Sunbeam, just as he had said to Nyrina after having saved her from the shark, "Thus, it was my duty to give you reason to not cry all through the night to come. I am glad that I was able to give reason to find peace if only for a little while longer."

"Har har, bless ye', little miss. But watch yer'self. Kissin' the likes o' me tends to be a bit of a bushy experience." Hudder chuckled as Sunbeam kissed him light on his scraggily cheek, "Or so me' wife always tell me, har har har!"

"My pa says we'll find yer little brother by tomorrow at noon." Clampter admitted, earning another cuff from his father as he giggled next, "And when we do find yer little brother, miss, the hedgehog is goin' to give him a right ol' humble spankin'! Ha ha - Ouch!"

"Beggin' yer pardon, Sunbeam. I was caught up in the moment when I said such a thing about spankin' some sense into yer little brother." Spik admitted, pulling out Sunseed's lost sandal from his pocket to give to relieved Sunbeam, "Here. The human went and found this along with yer' brother's tracks. Today ended well. Truly, by tomorrow, your brother will be back in your care."

"Yes, I believe that now. Thanks to all of you." The she-mouse admitted looking admiringly to all of her newly made friends with her, "It seems my prayers to the goddess did not go unheard, after all. She has sent me many friends in my time of need. And Spik, you are right about something."

"I am?"

"Oh yes. This is the last time my little brother is going to cause this much trouble for us. When we get him back, after I do give him a good ol' spanking that he won't soon forget, I'm going to fashion him a collar and leash that won't let him go ten feet away from me!" Sunbeam declared, looking very certain about what she had to say, "Six years back, mother died. My little brother is not the only one who suffers because of that. I suffer like he does every day when I'm trying to live in her place. Now, one way or the other, I've been too soft with him. I know that. It's time that I grew up. It's time that he grew up."

"Being hard on someone you love is a tremendous sacrifice on your part, little miss." Mistdrop admitted while hugging her children close to her, having the experience of a mother on her side, "However, through all of the tears, through all of the strife, you make progress. In the end, even after all of the fighting you will do with each other, your brother will come to respect you, Sunbeam. He will learn to want to be like you when he grows up."

"That's true." Ivan agreed, not as a father or mother but as an experienced human, "Life is not a thing filled with nothing but easiness. There must be hardships conquered too. With each of those hardships conquered, a person grows stronger. And when you next see your brother, when you give him his appropriate punishment, you will have conquered his rebelliousness. Even if he doesn't realize it at first, you will have begun to earn his respect."

Next, with brightened spirits, everyone took a seat around the cooking fire in the middle of the Dynamic. As Mistdrop went about giving famished as well as grateful Spik some of the food she had at hand, Ivan directed a question to Sunbeam, "I suppose that you've gathered already, mouse maid, that you now sit in the company of good Felldewans. Here, we are all friends."

"Oh yes. You have all been good to me. I will never forget this night."

"Excellent. I am happy to hear so. Still, I am at a loss about how this whole situation came to be. If I may ask... Who was your mother? How did she die? What about her death makes your brother so hard to control?"

"Well... I don't want to ruin this good night with talk of death and distress." Sunbeam said, looking a bit hesitant, "I mean no offense... It's just a personal matter."

"Again, you sit in the presence of friends." Ivan stated, gesturing to everyone around him who were nothing but smiles and gladness, "From what I've gathered about you, Sunbeam, you've been keeping your family matters bottled up for a bit too long. You wish to talk about them. Truly, you do. So speak. Let us, your companions, understand your woes. You will not be burdening us or ruin our night in doing so."

For a long moment, uncertain on how to proceed, Sunbeam looked around at the encouraging faces watching her. She looked to Spik who nodded. Then, out of nowhere, Nyrina gently took the she-mouse's hand in her own as well as told her gently, "It's okay. Go ahead. Say what needs to be said or the human won't leave you alone about it. Trust me, I know."

"Oh do you?" Ivan chuckled, looking to the she-otter gratefully for her help in coaxing the she-mouse, "Yes. I guess you would, wouldn't you?"

"Yes. I would." Nyrina giggled, smiling brightly in the firelight, "How wouldn't I with the way you've been doting on me ever since we met?"

"That's thanks to your mother and father." The human said, pointing at chuckling Mistdrop along with Hudder. "Someone had to be your keeper. It ended being me. After the family vote, of course."

"A likely excuse." Nyrina teased back, cutely sticking out her tongue at her beaming guardian which made everyone laugh, "Are you sure you didn't just jump up at the first chance of being at my side all day, every day? C'mon, confess."

"Maybe." Ivan chuckled, shrugging and winking simply, "Maybe not. You decide."

Finally, humored by Nyrina's and Ivan's teasing exchange, Sunbeam gained the courage to explain why her brother had run off today and why he was so very rebellious. It had begun six years ago when his mother had been very ill...