"Kindred Spirits "
June 2002 Debs-dragon
Chapter 11
The four campers awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and what promised to be another warm day. Stretching lazily Goten set the fire going and put the water on to boil. Kauli joined him and the two began to get everything out ready for breakfast. Bra and Pan appeared moments later still fuzzy with sleep.
Goten disappeared into the girls' tent and came out with the eggs and bread. Setting them down he proceeded to make boiled eggs and toast for everyone.
"My, my, aren't we becoming domesticated," said Bra as she placed her arms around Goten's waist and gave him a good morning hug.
"Well, I figured it was generally called self defense," Goten replied. "If we wait for you two girls to get up and cook breakfast Kauli and I would have faded away to shadows by now."
Bra released Goten from her embrace and pinched him...
hard...
on the rear...
"Ow!"
Kauli sniggered as Bra savored her small victory.
"Any more wise cracks like that and you will both be doing all the cooking from now on," said Pan as she came to her friend's defense.
Goten rubbed the tortured spot on his backside. "Okay, I give up... I know when to quit," he grinned.
"Good. Just make sure you stay in your place then," huffed Bra and she went back into the tent to change into something suitable for their hike.
Pan joined Bra while Kauli and Goten finished cooking the breakfast. Sitting around the table enjoying the meal, they once more looked at the maps. Agreeing on the best way to proceed, the girls made up a picnic lunch while the boys got themselves ready.
With the dishes done and the lunch stowed in Goten's back pack along with the map and a couple of large bottles of water, they checked the campsite. Making sure all items were safely inside the tents and the campfire out cold they set off along the track that would take them to the ruins.
The trek was a pleasant one and the track wide enough for them to walk side by side. Goten took Bra's hand in his as they strolled along and Kauli followed suit with Pan's. The beauty of the forest surrounded them and here and there the trees closed overhead forming a green canopy to shade them from the warming rays of the sun.
They had been walking for about half an hour when they decided to rest for a moment and enjoy a drink. Sitting on a small rock Pan gazed around at the wonders of the forest. Several flowers peeked out from the undergrowth adding a magical air to the area. Scattered around were toadstools and Pan could just picture fairies and elves dancing around the glade.
After sitting for a few minutes, Goten once more shouldered the back pack and the group pressed on. The rest of the hike passed fairly quickly and soon they found the track widening out into a large meadow of sorts. Up ahead they could see the columns of stone rising from the grassy plain.
"That must be it," breathed Bra as she studied the formations ahead of them all.
Kauli whistled. "Sure is big."
"Yeah, and there's a good portion of it still there," added Goten.
"Must have been one heck of a place in its hey day," said Pan.
"Let's go exploring," said Bra.
They continued forth watching in awe as the ruins grew larger. The castle it seemed had been built in a slightly rectangular shape with a turret gracing each corner. Two of the turrets were still standing as if in defiance of the elements. One was half crumpled and the fourth nothing more than rock and rubble.
The castle's outer walls were a mixture of partially standing to completely wrecked. It reminded Pan somewhat of a roller coaster the way the walls dipped and rose as the rock had crumbled and fallen giving in to mother nature in various areas.
The general outline of the lower rooms could still be made out even though the interior walls and upper level had long ago succumbed to the forces of the seasons. They made their way to the arched entrance noting that the moat that had once surrounded the majestic piece of architecture had lessened in its depth and become filled with grass and flowers.
They crossed over what had once been a draw-bridge, but for safety's sake the rotten wood of long ago had been replaced with concrete, offering the visitors a much safer passage. Entering the vast interior the four gazed around in awe of the building. History seeped from every stone and the wind whispering through the nooks and crannies sounded like to voices of long dead occupants.
"Wow."
"Yeah."
"Awesome."
"Stunning."
Bra moved further in and made her way towards the crumbled ruins of what appeared to have been a staircase. She consulted the small pamphlet the ranger had given them to see where on the diagram they were currently standing. Peering over her shoulder Pan scanned the map as well.
"According to this we are at the base of the grand staircase. This used to lead upwards to the first floor where the grand ballroom was located."
Bra sighed as her mind supplied her with images of ladies decked out in the finest of jewels, wearing flowing gowns of satin and lace stepping gracefully up the stairs while resting their hands on the arms of their handsome escorts. The men would have been dressed also in their finery, buttons gleaming as they proudly escorted their ladies to the dance.
Lips gently kissing her neck brought Bra from her visions. She sighed.
"What are you imagining?" asked Goten softly.
"Just picturing what it would have been like with all the people here attending a dance," said Bra dreamily as she leant back into Goten's embrace.
"It sure would have been an impressive sight," replied Goten.
"Hey you two, quit that for a moment and come and have a look up here!" yelled Kauli.
Bra and Goten looked up to see Kauli and Pan both standing on the thin parapet of the wall by the entrance to one of the turrets.
"Okay!" Goten called back and with another gentle kiss to Bra's cheek he took her hand and led her to the small stairway that led up to the turret entrance.
Standing inside the small room, the tiny slit windows allowed only a minimum of light to pierce the gloom. Dust and dirt was thick, but the imagination could easily override that and picture the room as it once may have been.
Heading back out onto the small ledge that ran the edge of the wall they paused to admire the view. Leaning on the top of the wall you could see for miles. The dip of the forest as it disappeared one way and the broad expanse of the meadow as it led to a small rutted track which was obviously used by vehicles to access the site. To one side Pan spotted a small graveyard.
"Hey, look over there," she said and pointed in the direction of the small fenced area.
"Cool," said Kauli, "Let's check it out after lunch."
Bra looked at her watch amazed to see how much time had passed since they had arrived at the ruins.
"I second that motion," said Goten.
"All right then, let's go eat," said Bra and they headed back down to the floor of the castle ruins once more.
Sitting on the grass just outside the archway they opened up the back pack and pulled out the packets of sandwiches they had brought. Pan passed them around along with the bottles of water and they all began to eat.
"I bet if this place could talk it sure would have some interesting stories to tell," mused Kauli.
"I can just picture it as it would have been with the lords, ladies and servants all busily going about their daily chores," said Pan dreamily.
"I wonder what it would have been like to have lived way back then?" said Goten.
"Well for one thing the men all had to be chivalrous," sniggered Bra, "Which puts you two out of being lords. Servants maybe, but definitely not lords,"
"Watch it, peasant woman," growled Goten. "I'll have you know that neither you or Pan currently fit the bill of ladies either."
"Ohh... we don't?" said Pan as she stood and placed her hands on her hips.
"Nope... not a chance. You're both too much like tom boys to be real ladies; besides, a lady wears a dress, not jeans or shorts like you two," teased Kauli.
"Why you..." and Pan threw herself on Kauli tickling his ribs mercilessly.
Kauli rolled around in the grass as he vainly tried to fend off Pan's attack, laughing loudly as his arms flailed the air.
Goten watched with amusement for a moment and then his eye caught a slight movement. He turned and saw Bra advancing on him. He gulped. "Now, Bra... let's talk about this shall we? I mean don't go doing something ... arghhhh..."
Goten was cut off as Bra launched herself at him and mirrored Pan's attack on Kauli. Although Goten had strength and Bra certainly wasn't lacking in it either, he refrained from using his powers and opted instead to let Bra think she had him pinned.
The friendly sparring continued for a few moments until Goten suddenly lunged and rolled Bra around, effectively pinning her to the ground. He looked at her for a moment and licked his lips. "Hmmmm now that I have you, my peasant woman, what shall I do with you?"
Bra refrained from answering, electing to cock her head jauntily to one side and flash him a coy smile. She batted her eyelashes.
Goten groaned softly and then releasing her arms slowly he reached for her lips and began to plunder her mouth.
Kauli had also managed to restrain Pan's hands and was busily kissing her, removing all fight from her body with his gentle ministrations. Breaking for air, Kauli stared into Pan's darkened eyes, eyes that were filled with something akin to lust. Feeling his body responding to the visual stimuli he moaned softly.
Bra returned Goten's kiss with a fire and passion she wasn't aware she had. Resting her forehead against Goten's she panted softly. "I think we had better have a look at that graveyard before I can't stop myself."
"I agree," whispered Goten and gave her lips one last brush before pulling them both to their feet.
Kauli and Pan followed suit. They walked in silence to the small fenced area and wandered through the few headstones reading the inscriptions. Most dated back several centuries and were extremely worn, but a lot of the carving remained.
"Strange how people used to decorate the tombs of the dead," muttered Pan.
"I guess it was a sign of respect," said Bra.
Kauli shivered. "Well, I think I have had enough of graveyards for a bit. I'm going back to the castle."
They wandered back out and to the ruins once more. After another couple of hours exploring they sat eating apples before readying themselves for the trek home. The afternoon sun was beginning to cool and by the time they walked back to the campsite they would have just enough daylight left to get dinner organized, thought Bra as she stared at the lengthening shadows.
They walked back through the forest in companionable silence. The day had worn them out and although they would never admit it to each other they were tired and looking forward to relaxing around the fire and curling up into their respective sleeping bags.
The track meandered around leading them back to the campsite just as the sun began to descend from its place in the sky and allow the moon to rise and take over the watch. They arrived back at the campsite as the day was beginning to fade.
Bra wasn't watching where she was going as her mind was too pre occupied with thoughts of Goten and when Goten suddenly stopped she ran right into him. Kauli and Pan managed to stop just before plowing into Bra.
Realizing Goten was standing stock still, Bra wondered what on earth was up with him. She craned her neck around the side of his body to see why he had come to a sudden halt. "Goten... What is it?" she whispered.
"Look," he gestured towards the camp.
Four pairs of eyes took in the scene before them.
"What the?"
"No idea."
"Animal?"
"Could be."
"What if it's still there?"
"You girls stay here, Kauli and I will check it out."
Goten and Kauli moved silently into the camp and began to search around. Pan and Bra watched and waited from the fringe of the trees, their eyes scanning around at the sight of the usually tidy camp. The tent flaps were open and it was obvious from where they stood that something had been inside. Items were scattered around having been removed from their places of storage. The fire and cooking utensils lay scattered around the small table and Pan could see the remnants of some of their food supply nearby.
Having satisfied themselves that whatever was responsible for the mess was no longer in the camp, Kauli and Goten beckoned the girls forward. Bra felt her heart sink as she took in the scene inside her's and Pan's normally tidy tent.
The bags containing the food had been ripped open and contents lay strewn about, clothes had been pulled from their bags and were also scattered about. Kauli and Goten's tent was in similar disarray, but without the added extra of the food.
"What could have done this?" asked Bra as she looked around.
"Could have been a raccoon," said Kauli, "The forest is full of them and they are known to be avid scavengers."
Fortunately for Kauli, both Pan and Bra accepted his answer and set about tidying up the mess. Kauli didn't want to alarm the girls and so he had suggested the raccoon as the possible culprit. He knew, however, that bears were also a likely possibility as they were also found in numbers throughout the forest, although it was rare for one to come near a camping ground.
Goten was thinking along similar lines to Kauli. The amount of havoc that had been caused through the camp seemed to be a bit large for a racoon. His mind strayed to thoughts of a bear as well, but like Kauli he knew it was rare for bears to come close to camping grounds. They were usually shy creatures and stayed away. Besides, he didn't recall seeing any bear tracks around the camp site since they had been there. Sorting through his clothes as he stuffed them back into his bag he found he was missing a pair of sweat pants. He frowned as he searched around again but was still unable to find any trace of the item.
Kauli was also replacing his clothing into his bag when he noticed the frown on Goten's face. "What is it, Goten?"
"I'm not sure," replied Goten as he scratched the back of his head. "I can't seem to find my blue sweat pants. I could have sworn they were in here."
Kauli smiled, "Knowing you, they are probably hanging on the tree." Kauli returned to his packing while Goten continued to muse over where his missing pants could be. "That's strange," said Kauli.
"What?" asked Goten.
"My black t-shirt isn't here."
This time it was Goten's turn to look amused. "Sure you packed it?" he quipped.
Kauli looked at his friend. "Yes I did 'cause I only wore it a couple of days ago. I washed it through and put it back in here... I know I did."
"Maybe we have a raccoon that wants to be well dressed," teased Goten.
"If that's the case, why take our stuff? It would have been better off pinching something from the girls' tent if it wanted to make a fashion statement," growled Kauli.
Goten laughed. "I could just picture a raccoon dressed in a pair of Pan's shorts with one of Bra's skimpy tops on."
Even Kauli had to laugh as his mind supplied him with an image of Goten's words.
Something tugged at the back of Goten's mind but he couldn't quite nail it down. Something he had heard earlier but not taken a lot of notice over. Mentally shrugging his shoulders he dismissed the thought and continued to tidy up.
He would regret that decision later...
tbc...