Argento
By: biacebaolck
"Brioka…" Silver wondered aloud. "What would your mom think if you're nowhere to be found?" Obviously, the silver-furred otter was thinking about what her mother would've thought as well.
"Nothing." The she-squirrel replied curtly. "Because she won't know I'm gone."
"What do you mean? Surely whatever you're planning will take no more than two or three hours?"
"I mean," Brioka grinned mischievously, in a way that Silver automatically knew that something was going to go totally wrong with whatever her friend was planning. "I'll be there and back and she won't even think to GUESS that I even left the abbey grounds!"
"But Bri—"
Before Silver could continue, Brioka opened the window, hopped out and onto the branch outstretching there, racing down the tree trunk. Sighing, Silver made the bed as if somebeast was still sleeping in it. Knowing full well on a lot, on her best friend, Silver knew that Brioka would come back around mid-night and just plop on it, the instant she hit the bed, the instant she would fall asleep. So it was best to take precautions, just in the case the Squirrel Queen decided to check on her daughter.
Though, that was only for what Brioka called, 'Things that would take only a minute or so'.
She gave the outside of the window one last look before settling into her bed (which was next to Brioka's and closest to the door) before falling fast asleep after a few minutes after her head lay down on the pillow and as she worried for her friend.
It was a long night. The longest Silver would ever remember, for she woke up ever few hours, not sluggishly, but startled upright and awake at every little sound that sounded like her roommate who was currently gone.
As she placed her head back onto the pillow, Silver sighed before drawing the covers closer around her body. "Long night…" She muttered, having awoken half-asleep and drowsing back to the world of dreams.
She was shaken awake after what seemed like only a few minutes after she had lain her head back down, but judging from the light that fell from the window, Silver immediately realized it was near afternoon tea time as she cracked one eye open.
"FINALLY!" She jumped right out of the bed, falling into a crumpled heap on the floorboards, her ears ringing. Brioka sighed impatiently. "YOU sleep like a log."
Silver was about to retort that, she, normally, in normal circumstances, did not 'sleep like a log', as: a) logs were not living ; b) logs were inanimate ; and c) she normally didn't wake up several times in the middle of the night worrying that her friend had no way to get back in. But she just sighed and picked herself up, dusting off her clothes.
"Get dressed." Brioka told her in a tone that made Silver wonder if she should dive back under the covers and never come back out as long as Brioka was still standing around. "We're gonna go finding." She grinned, before leaving the room.
"Find what?" Silver called out as she exited the doorway.
"You'll see!" Brioka's voice echoed back.
Silver sighed, rubbing her tired eyes. This was going to be a loooooong day.
"Say what?" Brom asked in disbelief as Silver ventured out into the abbey grounds in search of her friends and came up to them. "You want us to what?"
"I said," Brioka snapped impatiently. "We're going to—"
"I heard you the first time, oh-crazy-theif-one—" Brom snorted, getting cut off by Brioka's tail flicking him off his feet angrily.
"What's going on?"
"Oh, nothing," said Brom, before Brioka could open her mouth to answer her. "Just that this wise young squirrel" his voice sounded forced and full of sarcasm, which Brioka certainly did not miss. "has—YOWCH! Don't hit me!—anyway, she says we should go and find Argento!"
"Huh?"
"Yeah, huh! I mean, WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS ARE GOING TO GO AND FIND THIS OTTER WHO COULD BE ANYWHERE?!" Brom yelled as he stood up so quickly, Silver thought he had just teleported there. His glare was full of anger.
"We are." Brioka glared back, but her voice was held back and she said the words calmly. "I am, in fact, very concerned—"
Brom snorted.
"Okay, maybe I just wanna find out what all this business is about Facemakers and all that stuff—"
Brom snorted again.
"Okay, then, maybe I just am, out of concern and curiosity. I wanna find out if he's hurt or—"
"COUHypocriteGH!" Brom coughed, feigning dry throat. "Sorry 'bout that! Continue! Cough!" Silver gave him a look that clearly stated of disbelief, but Brom shrugged, giving her a look that clearly stated, 'you know it's true, you certainly do, don't you'. Thankfully, Brioka didn't hear that 'hypocrite' in his first cough.
"I swear, out of the goodness in my heart—" She began.
Brom snorted. Silver couldn't help it. She coughed, but in a slightly more polite way, into her fist. Brioka gave them both a look that clearly asked, 'what's with you guys?' Brom cleared his throat and began to answer to Brioka's unspoken question.
"You're not so innocent as you think you are." He smirked.
"Neither as you pretend to be. I'm as innocent as you." She responded rather coolly and at that, Brom's smirk faltered.
"Are you saying I'm scared?!"
"I'm not saying that. You said that yourself." Brioka smirked superiorly, in a matter-of-factly way.
"You asking for a fist in the face?!" Brom stomped forward, drawing up a sleeve so that his fist was free of any cloth.
"Are you asking for one?!" Brioka stomped forward as well, moving up her sleeve and waving her fist in the air. Both of their noses nearly touched as they glowered indescribable hatred towards each other's mind, body, and soul for what seemed like eternity to Silver.
It was, in fact, only a few minutes.
"Whoever finds Argento first wins!" Both shouted in unison, before rushing off to pack.
Silver was left alone. With a soft sigh, Silver walked back to abbey after them, desperately wishing that they weren't doing what she thought they were going to do, but when she saw them, with their packs packed and ready, she faltered, but, nevertheless, gave in to their persisting. Somebeast would have to make sure they didn't murder each other as soon as out of the abbey's sight.
"Oi!" Rick called out as they headed to the abbey gates. "Is summit th' matter?"
"Nothing!"
"Where're ye going a' such a fine day an' hour?" Shellhound asked as he and Rick traded blow for blow, each time they forced weight onto the blades simultaneously and glowered at each other, like they wanted to rip each other's throat's out.
"We're going to visit Argento!" Brioka called out truthfully, yet not so truthfully at the same time. "He knows we're coming!" Actually, in reality, Argento had no knowledge, whatsoever, that his little sister and her two best friends were going to hunt him down, down to his last tooth, claw and only rudder.
But, somehow, to Silver, Rick's glare was nothing compared to the one full of deep hatred and loathing…the one he had given Argento at first glance.
"Just to recap on this…" Brom murmured. "I think…"
'I don't like this…' Silver shivered. Then, she looked down, even though, only seconds beforehand, Brioka said not to. Then, she got dizzy. They…they…they WERE SO HIGH UP! You'd be scared too if you were edging along, back to the rock, on some sort of path that just barely was the width of your paw, and were walking on a reaaaaaallly high chasm following a leader who doesn't even now.
"C'MON now, IDIOT!" Brioka shrieked, water soaking her as the waves grew higher. Yep. As luck would have it, all three of them were next to an ocean, RIGHT as the tide decide to come as tidal waves and just HAPPEN to keep on hitting them. "MAKE UP YOUR STUPID MIND!"
"Um…um…" Brom winced, as he rubbed his head, the spot smarting from where a stray rock had been hidden in a water wave. "I forget…" Brioka twitched, before kicking him face flat onto the—bad move. Brom fell over the edge.
"BRIOKAAAAAAAAAAAAAa!!!!!!" Silver shrieked. Her best friend was going to be a murderer!
"QUIET!" Brioka shrieked back. She was now grasping Brom by his neck and flung him into the air at a 45-degree angle at full strength. She grabbed Silver by the arm and made them run like hell, the poor silver-furred otter flying, her legs flailing behind her as Brioka expended unnecessary energy. "Phew!" Brioka dropped Silver on the ground, falling on all fours. "Mother…" She breathed rather heavily, just as Brom landed with a rather scary BOOM. A Brom-shaped whole was in the ground.
"Wow." Brom laughed from his position with his facing the sky and his back flat on the solid mountain ground. "The day Brioka says 'mother', in a non-hateful way… I didn't think I'd ever live to see that."
Brioka threw a stone at his head. Brom rolled to his side to dodge. With a huff, she started throwing random stones at him, but he dodged, each and every time, a mocking and cheeky grin on his face.
"Guys…" Silver's heart was pounding. She swore, she had just had 15 seasons knocked off her life. Her voice was sore and barely audible. And the wind blew their way, and because they were all wet, it seemed colder and harsher than before. All three shivered, Brioka in mid-throw.
"Let's get some shelter." Brioka said, standing shakily up and looking around. Brom chose that exact moment to sneeze. "Over there, then." Brioka pointed.
"Cavern… Hey, did you hear the joke about the cavern--?" Brom was hit once again by Brioka.
"This is NOT the time!" She sighed. "I barely even know how to-- I should've brought that book!"
"A…a book?" Silver sneezed and Brioka gently led her into the cave.
"Yeah. I study at least that one interestedly. That one tells you how to survive like this. Anyway… Stay here." She ordered, before going back out to retrieve Brom.
Once the trio was once again reunited, Brioka drilled her brain for whatever knowledge she had gotten from the book, before leading them all a little further into the cavern, away from the shrieking winds. Then, with the help of some flint and some wooden logs they had picked up from the back of the Abbey that had been discarded, after what seemed like a long time, Brioka finally started a fire.
"Sooty and dirty… It's times like these that I could use a ba---" Brioka stopped and started yanking her fur.
"Full of self-loathing that you nearly said that you'd like a bath, eh?" Brom sighed. "Yeah…"
"Well, what's our plan?"
"Plan? That's easy!" Brioka was healed enough to answer Silver's question. "We go find your brother, beat some sense into him if we need to, and drag him back to Redwall abbey!"
"That's stupi—ERK!" Again, Brom was hit multiple times before being put into a strangle hold by the she-squirrel. He made frantic moments at her arms, trying to dislodge them, but a stubborn, angry…and super ticked off Brioka wasn't going to let him go just yet. She started stomping on his rudder too.
Tears sprouted from Brom's eyes as he turned sort of blue. Finally, Silver managed to separate the two, and with a sigh, she fell back against the cavern wall. "Jeez…can't you guys spend at least HALF a day not fighting?"
"No." Brom and Brioka answered, as though it was quite obvious. To be honest, it was.
Silver sighed again and hugged her self, the flickering flame of the firelight, her eyes half-closed. "I don't know why…" She mumbled. "Do you even think my big brother even cares about me?"
"What's to say he doesn't? After all, you're his little sis, right?"
"I know that, Brioka, but that was just…it was only a few hours we 're-met'. To be honest, I don't even remember even SEEING another otter."
"You were two, Silva." Brioka said reassuringly. "It's alright. Hard to remember stuff when you were just a few seasons old."
"I know…but…"
"The light's dying." Brom pointed out the obvious, like he seemed to be doing more and more often nowadays. "We'd best get some sleep. We'll need to wake up bright and early tomorrow if we want to catch up to Argento."
"Took the words right outtalk my mouth." Brioka commented. "'Kay…" She yawned, before curling up, her bushy tail becoming her pillow. "Silver, why don't you take first watch? Then, you can sleep better."
"Okay." But Silver replied too late. By that time, both were still asleep.
"YOWZA!" He whistled as he stared through the tall grasses on the mountain hill to the pathway down below.
"What's up?" His companion asked.
"Check out those beauties down there!"
"…uh…Derek? One of those 'beauties' seems to be the most likely to punch your lights out and leave you hanging on a cliff and never giving a care about your wants and needs if you even are going to marry her, which is the unlikeliest thing to happen unless Argento suddenly decides he doesn't want to become a full-fledged Face maker anymore. And you know how much he's always—"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Derek the gray squirrel brushed it off. "You should find yourself a good girl, Marko. Seems that one is a good match for your reserved personality, you're royal—"
Marko hit Derek down. "IDIOT!" He hissed. "Argento said we'd leave at quarter sun! Hurry up, and I don't want another royalty crack coming from that bulge you call a MOUTH! Got. It?!"
"Yes sir."
"Good. Let's go then."
Marko left Derek muttering, "Come on, I'm pretty handsome, y'know?" as he followed the other back to the ship.
"What took you?" Argento asked, aiding them on board the ship. It had already taken off, but Argento had put the ship to a stop when Derek had tried drowning Mako. Surprisingly, his idiotic ploy of the century containing a life, had worked.
Oh, and Argento gave Derek Mako's duties for trying to kill a fellow crewmate.
"But 'Gento—" He whined.
"Unless you want me to use a sharp pointy silver stick and stick up your behind and through that bulge of which you call a mouth, you'll do it, and you'll like it." Argento said, whirling the silver casually through the air, but catching it easily with expertise. "And don't call me that if you want to live a long life with kids."
"I like it, I love it…I love this…" Derek muttered as put the sails down. "I like this…I love it…everyone's out to get me…I like this…I love it… Mako must've told 'Gento about that insult…I like this…I love this…they're all out to get me…I like this…I love this…I hate—"
"What was that?" Argento asked loudly from the center of the deck, he and Mako poured their souls over a map and a compass.
"NOTHING!"
"Better be." He growled warningly.
And all that Mako thought was, 'How in the blasted seven seas did I get stuck with idiots who barely know how to turn a boat around or even stop it without somehow breaking the mast in the process? Derek nearly broke that sail…it'll take ages to repair it… I think I'm better off doing my OWN duties…'
But aloud, he said, "C'mon Argento, we have to set a course."
"Yeah."
"I like this…I love this…I—"
"Kindly keep ramblings to your mind, Derek."
"Yessir, 'Gento."
"…"
"…I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT, DARN IT! YOU'RE GOING DOWN, SQUIRREL!"
"EEP!"
"Serves you right."
"I DON'T SEE YOU HELPING ME ESCAPE FROM HIS—HEY! WAIT! WHAT'RE YOU—WAAAAABLURBGHGH!!"
Mako looked over the side of the ship, Argento huffing like crazy from behind him. "Argento?"
"WHAT?!"
"You do know he can't swim, right?"
"…"
"….uh…"
"…get him back on board."
"But you just threw—"
"NOW!"
And Mako wondered, as he helped a coughing out water Derek, what the heck was wrong with Argento. He hated to say this, but somehow, one of the gang had suddenly turned hostile. 'I just hope Leader doesn't kill him.' He thought grimly.
That should've been the last of his worries as they started the course.
Author's Note: Okay, I know this story sucks like crazy, eh? I mean, I haven't updated in a long time. I'm sorry, but my inspirations haven't been coming to my Redwall stories at all...
I know, I know. I'm sorry, but I'm serious. I'm making up all the plots of my Redwall stories as I go, and I'm figuring, well, since I can't really think of much to write for Backlash's Story or this one, Silver's Tale, that maybe I should put them on a hiatus.
I know, I'm sorry...
Do any of you writers have ideas on how I can reclaim my inspirational spats for my Redwall stories? Thanks!