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CHAPTER 35: CLEMENTINE.

Cocoum was rested on the ground again as Kurues finally came to a stop, panting heavily. They'd ran non-stop for a while now- And they had no idea where Glett and Clementine had gone. It seemed they'd fled right after Glett had heard the ruckus. He must have carried Clementine with him on his back to safety.

Their original plan had been to meet up with Hogarth, Klue, Glett and Clementine at the river once they'd trapped Gutt and his crew in that cave; But the plan went hay-wire once the ape slammed his way out without breaking a sweat, adding to the survivors caution.

And Kurues couldn't shake the feeling they wouldn't give up on finding them. Cocoum was half-conscious now, having lost a lot of blood from his shoulder. He made sure the ape child was comfortable and turned to Argeth, who was scanning the area around them.

They had entered the cave-like shelter of a tree, its roots creeping over the mound of earth in this bumpy landscape. It was dark and quite inside the protection of the thick roots, and Kurues allowed himself to rest, setting himself down on the ground. Maut, who'd flapped non-stop throughout the run flopped beside him.

It was still very late in the night and the moon was clouded over. Argeth growled in frustration; they wouldn't be able to go and find Glett and Clementine without any light...

Maybe they'd found some place to rest. Glett and Klue were reliable enough, but Clementine and Hogarth...

"Maybe I should go after them" Argeth commented. He glanced over at some discarded branches sitting beside the tree, just outside the roots. Maybe I f he lit a fire...no...that would get Gutt's attention faster than Flynn's with a juicy fruit.

"I guess we'll wait till it's lighter. They can't have gone far..." He muttered. Lee, who had hung from Kurue's antler the whole time, said:

"Don't worry. Glett's good at keeping quite, and with that greeny shell o' his, he'll blend in nicely. We'll find 'um tomorrow..."

As the animals settled down and fell asleep (immediately one might add, that sudden dash had taken all of their energy) Cocoum shivered, curing up into a tighter ball. Argeth had bound his wound in some leaves, but it wasn't helping.

It was pure exhaustion that allowed him to fall asleep at last.

"Alright, you sorry sons of shark-bait weevils!"

The sun was lifting into the sky, and with it the Captain's anger levels.

The crew cringed slightly as Gutt paced back and forth, looking completely beyond the boiling point. Raz glanced to the side. Maybe letting them go wasn't going to be an option after all.

"I want you to search the island across that blasted river." He growled, though a smile was beginning to spread. After all, they'd entered this island many times in the past. They knew most of it off by heart...and it wasn't like those saps would be able to run forever.

"Whaddaya we do with 'em if we see them?" Squint inquired with a smirk, though Raz noticed a mirth in his eyes that no-one else did as the rabbit twirled his knife around.

Gutt grinned viciously as he turned back to them, shooting his arm out towards a nearby tree, effectely slicing the thrunk in two. "I don't really care what way you deal with then. But I want that elk and that runt of an armadillo back here, alive."

He turned away, smile replaced by a sneer. "I want the pleasure of killing them both myself."

They crew chuckled raucously at this, Raz feeling a small spark of relief that her small, fair-furred friend had not been mention and thus not threatened.

Squint's smile seemed almost forced, though att he mention of the armadillo's doom, he laughed quietly (and in a manic way) to himself.

Raz rolled her eyes. Nuttjob...

Cocoum awoke the nest morning. He opened his eyes a crack, only to screw them shut again as the sunlight hit him, near blinding him. He raised a hand to shadow his eyesight as he looked around again, finding that the light was leaking through the roots in bright rays. Huh. Sorta cool looking now that he thought about it...

The young ape's arm was feeling oddly better. Maybe the wound hadn't been as bad as he'd thought before...

He sat up and stretched, yawning loudly until a stabbing pain in his shoulder alerted him that he was still injured. He lowered his arm, clutching it with his other hand when he noticed the cut was...closed. With...stitches? tight, straight stitches coated with some sort of herb-filled paste. His eyes widened.

"That won't heal if you keep touching it, you know."

Cocoum turned his head quickly to the entrance to the root-shelter, eyes widening.

"Clem?"

Clementine was standing there, her herb-bag slung around her shoulder and one paw on her hip, her ears slightly flopped and her frame looking a little thin, but healthier all the same.

She smiled brightly as Cocoum grinned widely in return. The others had awakened at th sound of voices, and where all staring at the doe. They broke into grins, too.

"Clementine!"

It had been a horrible time, expecting their friend to eventually die. It had seemed inevitable; She looked so frail and sickly it was like she was going out like the embers of a fire. It had been horrible to think that Clementine, the one that had kept the other survivors alive as they drifted out to sea, tending to their wounds and their troubles with hands and herbs that worked like magic, was fading away from them.

Now she was here looking close to a total recovery, smiling gently. Like she'd never left.

They swept over her like a wave, Cocoum wrapping an arm around her and lifting her up as Maut hugged her face, Argeth always thowing an arm around her and hugging her to his side as she looked up at him happily. Kurues bent down to eye-level, laughing.

"You're okay! Guys, she's okay!" He exclaimed. Argeth rolled his eyes.

"No kidding, genius."

"I see your personalities are all still in tact." Clementine laughed as she was released from their group hug. "And your relationships, too."

There was a familiar agreeing grunt from nearby, and the group turned to find Hogarth parched on Glett's shell, the two smiling brightly. Klue was beside them, waving.

"Hey, guys!" Hogarth said as their lemur friend hopped up to them quickly, proceeding to give Klue a friendly noogie.

"We knew ya wouldn't die on us, possum-boy!"

"Lee, get off! ow!"

Maut giggled happily from Clementine's shoulder. "We're all save and sound, Y'all!"

That reminded her. Clementine turned and looked over at Argeth to inquire:

So...how did we all get here? what happened?"

Lee hopped on Argeth's head before he could answer, smiling in a cheeky manner.

"We're being hunted by the pirates like fish by a shark." He commented jubilantly. "We dropped a bolder on that Gut guy, but he flicked it away. And now we're hiding for a lives!"

Clementine's eyes widened and her mouth set itself in a surprised, doubtful 'o' shape.

"..."

Hah.

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