Chapter 2
The sun was starting to set, giving the sky a faint purplish glow which spread throughout the fading sky. Skydrop flew on with Diathus sitting in an awkward position on his back, only he knowing which direction they were traveling in. The two had soared on in silence, so it was surprising for Skydrop when Diathus struck up conversation.
"What's yore name, eagle, if ye don't mind me askin'? I can't just call you eagle for the rest of your life if we're going to travel together an' all that sort, unless of course, you want me too, an' I'm not very sure you do. I wouldn't like being called 'hare' all of my life. Well, at least it better then some of the other names I've been called by Ragfang an' Vermeng when they got very mad at me. I'm not goin' to say them, not very appropriate. But still, wot's yore name?"
"Yer right about t'at, being called 'eagle' t'ain't one o' mah faverit things. Mah name's Skydrop. I cannae call ye lassie fer thee rest o' yer life either. Wot's yore name, lassie?"
Diathus giggled. "My name is Diathus, though you can call me lassie if you like. It isn't that bad. Not as bad as 'flopears', or 'rabbit'. Mind you, I'm not a rabbit, I'm a hare. Sorta obvious, except some dim-witted people keep makin' the same mistake. Drives me crazy. Can you imagine, the first time Wynde an' I met down below deck, he mistook me for a rabbit. Unbelievable. O'course, he apologized right away, though I was bristling mad. Anyway, back onto the subject. Mind if I call ye Sky?"
Skydrop nodded. "Ah think Ah'll stick to lassie, an' donnae worry, lassie. Any eagle with 'alf an eye ken figure that yer a 'are, no a rabbit. Sky sounds fine, thank ye. Well, lassie, as 'em corsairs says, Land 'o!"
Diathus whooped loudly. "Whoohoo! Now I won't have to sleep on an eagle's back! No offense, Skydrop, but I bet it's not one of the most comfortable things." The hare looked around, scanning the landscape. "Are we landing by that big mountain over there?"
Skydrop tried to turn his head and look at Diathus while still flying, but started to wobble and loose balance so stopped trying. "No 'arm done, lassie. An' we're no landin' by the mountain, we're landin' much further inland, jus' incase Vermeng has followed uz comes aroond. Noo 'old on, lassie. No far noo."
The eagle slowly flew towards the shore. He and Diathus landed just as he had said, much further inland from the mountain, although where they were, the mountain peak was still visible. When they landed on solid ground, the two immediately began searching for a place to stay for the night. It took a while of searching until Diathus finally found a small cave, concealed well by tall ferns and low branches.
"Do you think this would do?" Diathus peeked her head through the cave's entrance. "It's a bit little for you and me together, but you could fit if you go I by yoreself. I'll just stay outside and sleep under the stars."
Skydrop shook his big head. "Nae, lassie. Ye go inside an' sleep tight for ah'll be thee one tae sleep un'er the stars."
Diathus then shook her head. "No, I insist. Besides, it would be nice for me to sleep outside for a change. You were on the deck all the time, so you wouldn't know what is was like to stay under."
"But-"
"But nothin'. I'm stayin' out here an' that's that."
"Lassie, g-"
"Go inside to sleep, Sky. I'll stay out here."
"Ah-"
"I'll be fine. You better go to sleep now, for there's a long day in front of us."
Skydrop slowly walked through the cave opening, muttering to himself, "Strange 'are, doant talk like a 'are, doant act like a 'are, only thing 'are-ly aboot t'at 'are is t'at she looks like a 'are! Huh, ken't call 'er rabbit either, doesn't look like a rabbit! Hmm, maybe she's a squirrel beastie widout a long bushy tail. Hmm…sort of resembles a squirrel beastie, doan't she?"
As Skydrop walked into the grotto, Diathus smiled and laid down on the grass, her eyelids drooping. She was right though, there was a long day ahead of them. Closing her eyes wistfully, the hare drifted off into deep, dreamless slumber.
A slight breeze passed by, sprinkling morning dew from the assortment of flowers that surrounded the sleeping form of the hare. Birds sang and chirped their songs, announcing that a new day had arrived. Diathus slowly opened her eyes, and the sight that she saw amazed her. Skydrop was already awake, but that was not what had surprised the hare. He had looked like an early bird to her. What had stunned her was that the eagle was making breakfast. Diathus sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Am I seeing things right?"
Skydrop chuckled, not stopping or looking up from his work. "Good morn to ye, lassie. I couldnae sleep last night inside t'at stuffy liddle cave, so ah came out her' and slept ootside. Ah woke oop an' ye were asleep, so ah deci'ed to save ye some trouble an' make oor break'ast."
Diathus shook her head in amusement. "By the fur, you're a strange one, eagle… I mean, Sky. Not to mention a sly one, too. Sneaking out here while I was asleep. What a waste of a good cave. An' it took quite awhile too find too. Hmm, so what's for breakfast?"
With one of his great talons, Skydrop pointed at the food that he had set out. "Not much, lassie, but 'twill do, 'twill do. Ah took awhile to gather thee food, but ah couldnae find much. Jus' a few beries and veggibles."
Diathus nodded gratefully and sat down. Skydrop passed her a bowl. He gave one to himself and immediately dug in, bits of berries and other things of that sort flying around. Diathus, unlike Skydrop, ate slowly, her mind somewhere else.
Remembering what he had garbled the last night, Skydrop chuckled to himself. "Doant eat like a 'are either."
"Huh? Oh, er, what's that? What did ye say?"
Ignoring her questions, Skydrop cocked his large head quizzically as he questioned his
companion. "Wot are ye thinkin' aboot, friend?"
"What? Hmm…well, I don't exactly know, guess I was just wondering about my friends on board the Carassan. Hope old Wynde is alright. Huh! What am I saying, Wynde's always been able to take care of himself. A tough squirrel, he was. Then there's also Dockpetal. Ha! The otter had always hated his name. Well, yes, I think Dock will be okay. Actually, I know he'll be okay. He has those eyes that Ragfang is afraid of, so the rat will think twice before messing with him. Same with Wynde, too. But what about Ariel? She never was strong or sturdy, and she has no defense of any sort. I hope Dock and Wynde'll take care of her. I would hate for the young vole to get hurt by that treacherous whip…"
"Come on, lassie! Cheer oop! Ye'll see 'em agin soon enough." Skydrop frowned. "'Tis not good for a wee bairn tae be sad. Sing a 'arppy song!"
Skydrop started dancing around, hopping from one talon to the other while a foolish grin was pasted on his huge face, hoping that this would inspire his companion to be more positive.
Amused at the eagle's antics, Diathus tried to hide a creeping smile, but did not succeed. Packing up the rations into a haversack and swinging it over her shoulder, Diathus and Skydrop continued on their journey, laughing and chuckling as Skydrop continued his hop-skip dance. Unable to stop herself, Diathus burst out into a merry song as she made it up as she went along, skipping to the cheerful beat of her ditty.
"Be happy widout no fears an' woes,
I'm a happy hare because I know
That if you're happy, nothing can go wrong,
But if your sad, the day is weary and long.
An' if you're cheerful, you're jolly too,
An' if you're miserable an' gloomy, that won't do.
So be happy too and sing this song,
And sing and sing it all day long!"
Skydrop picked up his pace, still grinning. "T'at's the spirit, lassie! Be 'appy…" Skydrop suddenly stopped dancing. His grin had left his face, but he continued walking. Urgently, he leaned over and whispered to Diathus, "Lassie, we're bein' followed!"
Diathus looked at Skydrop, confused. "How do you know?"
Skydrop continued walking and urged Diathus to follow, trying not to look behind his back. "List'n!"
Diathus's ears perked up, picking up any sound that could be heard. A few moments of silence passed, then she nodded gravely. "Footsteps, crunching leaves, snapping twigs, definitely signs of stalking vermin. Okay, here's what to do. I want to get rid of the vermin, so we won't have to have the worry of being murdered in our sleep. The villains aren't showin' themselves because you're around and they're afraid of you since yore so big, so what I want you to do is fly away, but stay close. They probably want our food, and since I'm only a little haremaid, they'll come out and maybe fight or sneak up on me. I'll be okay, I can handle it. If I do need your help, I'll shout 'Eulalia', so you'll know to come. Go on."
Skydrop raised an eyebrow, a sign that said 'Are you sure?' The hare smiled and winked. Skydrop grinned again, this time slyly. Diathus grinned back, and pretended to trip clumsily. She landed gracefully onto the ground and frowning, the hare groaned.
"Oh, how clumsy of me!" Diathus said to herself loudly, hoping the creatures stalking her and Skydrop had heard her. They needed an excuse for what they were about to do, so the stalkers would not be too suspicious. The hare inspected her footpaw and pretending to take something out of it, while also taking a few heavy rocks. Swiftly, she stuffed the rocks into the haversack and took out their provisions. Then Diathus sighed, making sure the vermin behind her could hear every word she said.
"Pesky thorns. I stepped on one when I tripped. Sky, would you be so kind to take this thorn out of my footpaw. It's very uncomfortable, and I can't bear trying to take it out myself."
Skydrop nodded and pretended to take a thorn out of Diathus's footpaw with much effort, really taking the food out of her paw. Diathus smiled happily and winked at Skydrop.
"Thank you, mister Sky. I feel much better now. I'll be fine on my journey now. Thank you for your help. Go on, now. Your mate needs you." The hare nodded to Skydrop who winked back with both eyes and flew off.
Diathus started singing her happy song again, knowing that she needed to seem as harmless and innocent as possible. Still on alert, the haremaid looked around her, still singing. She caught a glimpse of a fox that was trying his best to hide behind the small trees that bordered the left side of the path she was walking on, failing obviously. The fox stopped, and looked up at her. Averting her gaze swiftly, Diathus nodded to herself in satisfaction that she had been correct. The hare began to sing louder, as if she hadn't seen a thing. The fox had also nodded, and continued to follow her. Soon, the hare was surrounded by a small gang that consisted of one fox, two ferrets, one rat and a stoat.
The fox that she had saw grinned wickedly. "Well, look what we've got here, me buckos. 'Tis a little 'aremaid."
The stoat, called Deathweed, spoke up, wearing the same smile as the fox. "Aye, Scarroot, and she has some vittles fer us too."
Diathus smiled back. "Hello, gentlebeasts. How are you today? Would you like to share some of my provisions?"
The fox, whose name was Scarroot, pointed to the haversack. This was as easy as falling off a log, he thought. "Yah, we would. But not just some o' it, we want all o' it! Now just 'and the bag over all nice like and we won't hurt ye."
Deathweed drew a dirty and rusty cutlass. "Just say the word, Chief, an' we'll slice 'er innards."
Diathus looked around, and saw that the others had also drawn their weapons. The hare's temper began to rise, for what reason she did not know, but she knew she had to keep her act going. Still smiling foolishly, she slowly stretched her paw with the haversack out like she was handing it to the fox, when with startling speed, sent it crashing down on Scarroot's head. Scarroot fell, instantly slain by the heavy and hard rocks.
The other creatures in the gang stared at their fallen comrade with a disappointed expression. Then the rat shouted out, "Let's get 'er!"
The foebeast charged, blades glittering wickedly in the sunlight. Diathus was ready. She dodged nimbly aside to avoid a ferret, who was unable to stop himself, and went crashing into the rat's awaiting steel who had been trying to sneak up behind the hare. Diathus almost ripped the haversack open while trying to take out one of the rocks, wanting to use them to defend herself. While she was doing so, Deathweed struck at her with his blade, almost slicing her in half. Fortunately, Diathus saw the sword flash down and tried moved out of the way, but the rocks weighed her down, and she wasn't fast enough to get out of the range of the weapon. Instead of cutting the hare in two, Deathweed's sword, instead, reopened Diathus's shoulder wound. Deathweed let go of his sword did a little victory dance, thinking that he had won and Diathus could no longer continue to fight. This little dance caused the stoat his life. Diathus quickly picked up the sword and thrust it through Deathweed, narrowly missing his evil heart. Diathus grimaced and clutched her bleeding shoulder. Knowing that if she removed her paw and continued fighting, the blood loss would be greater, she called Skydrop.
"Eulaliiiiaaaa!"
"Krrrreeeeeekaahh!"
Immediately, the eagle swooshed down, his talons grasping the last ferret and the rat as he passed. He also seemed to drop something in front of Diathus. Seeing that they were beaten and helpless, the ferret and rat immediately began to beg for mercy, and also give weak excuses. Skydrop paid no attention to them, and sat perched onto a tall oak tree, still clutching the vermin with his dangerous talons. He stared at Diathus expectantly, waiting for a command. First, Diathus picked up the things that Skydrop had dropped. She nodded with appreciation.
"Dockleaves. Thanks, Sky. This'll jus' take a sec; I got to fix up me wound."
Skydrop waited patiently as the hare applied the plant to her shoulder, still holding his death grip on the two squirming vermin. When Diathus finished, she looked back up and nodded at the rat and weasel.
"I'll leave this fer you to decide. Wot are you goin' to do with those two wriggling idiots that call themselves beasts?"
Skydrop grinned wickedly. "Well, lassie, frae the way they treated ye, Ah'd say that ye should use the two o' 'em fer target practice. If ye'll excuse meh fer sayin', ye should work on yore arch'ry. On board the Carassan, instead o' choppin' good ole Sinzord's ear off, you cut it in 'alf ins'ead. Bad aim, lassie!"
The rat groaned in despair and hung his head, but the weasel continued to plead pathetically.
"No, mercy, I beg o' ye, goodbeasts, mercy! 'Twas all Scarroot's fault, 'onest! 'E made us attack the 'aremaid! I was mindin' me own business when Scarroot snuck up on me an' tol' me that if I didn't join 'im, he'd kill me! I swear it on me oath, t'ats wot 'e said! I was forced to join his evil band!"
The rat joined in. "Aye, he's telling the truth! I saw it with me own eyes! Scarroot had threatened me about a few seasons before, and he did the same to him! We're innocent, mercy!"
Grinning inwardly and trying to stifle a giggle, Diathus shook her head in mock pity and called out, her voice dripping with sympathy. "You poor, poor beasts. Well, now that we've heard yore story, here's my proposition. Instead o' using you and yore pal fer target practice an' turnin' you two to filthy pincushions, we'll hang you by yore tails on the ash tree that my good eagle friend's perched on."
The rat and the weasel moaned miserably. They had been expecting something better. Diathus turned her attention to the eagle.
"Sky, do you mind hanging them onto a branch and tying them by their tails in a strong knot so they won't fall? I would hate to see these poor, poor beasts get hurt. Oh, and could you by any chance find them a high branch? The view is better from a higher place, and I'm sure they would enjoy looking at nice scenery, since they're going to be there fer quite awhile."
Skydrop grinned willingly. "Be done in a flap o' a feather, lassie. Now, lemme see, how's thiz one fer ye, laddie bucks? Plenty high off thee ground, ye ken. Now, jus' knot yer tails on the branch…okie! We'll be goin' now, lads. Us gots lots tae do. Bye-bye noo!"
The rat and ferret wiggled and squirmed, pleading and whining while they muttered nasty curses.
Skydrop shook his big head and called out sternly, "So, ye want better, eh? Rude beasties. Well, we might jus' leave ye two oop ther' fer awhile so ye can larn some manners! Come on, lassie."
The pair strolled on, chatting amiably about this and that, leaving the two unfortunate beasts hanging on the tree limb, bobbing like strange fruit. Once they were out of earshot, Diathus quietly whispered to Skydrop.
"Do you really think we should leave them hanging there like that? I know they're vermin, an' they attacked me, but it's a bit cruel, an' the two are goin' to fall down and die soon anyway, so why don't we jus' kill 'em an' make their death less painful…"
Skydrop snorted. "'Em two deserve it, affer thee way they treated ye, Doant worry yer pretty liddle 'ead aboot those two, lassie." The eagle stole a glance back at the dangling rat and hanging weasel and snickered softly. "'Em do look abit funny, doant 'em?"
The sun was starting to set, giving the sky a faint purplish glow which spread throughout the fading sky. Skydrop flew on with Diathus sitting in an awkward position on his back, only he knowing which direction they were traveling in. The two had soared on in silence, so it was surprising for Skydrop when Diathus struck up conversation.
"What's yore name, eagle, if ye don't mind me askin'? I can't just call you eagle for the rest of your life if we're going to travel together an' all that sort, unless of course, you want me too, an' I'm not very sure you do. I wouldn't like being called 'hare' all of my life. Well, at least it better then some of the other names I've been called by Ragfang an' Vermeng when they got very mad at me. I'm not goin' to say them, not very appropriate. But still, wot's yore name?"
"Yer right about t'at, being called 'eagle' t'ain't one o' mah faverit things. Mah name's Skydrop. I cannae call ye lassie fer thee rest o' yer life either. Wot's yore name, lassie?"
Diathus giggled. "My name is Diathus, though you can call me lassie if you like. It isn't that bad. Not as bad as 'flopears', or 'rabbit'. Mind you, I'm not a rabbit, I'm a hare. Sorta obvious, except some dim-witted people keep makin' the same mistake. Drives me crazy. Can you imagine, the first time Wynde an' I met down below deck, he mistook me for a rabbit. Unbelievable. O'course, he apologized right away, though I was bristling mad. Anyway, back onto the subject. Mind if I call ye Sky?"
Skydrop nodded. "Ah think Ah'll stick to lassie, an' donnae worry, lassie. Any eagle with 'alf an eye ken figure that yer a 'are, no a rabbit. Sky sounds fine, thank ye. Well, lassie, as 'em corsairs says, Land 'o!"
Diathus whooped loudly. "Whoohoo! Now I won't have to sleep on an eagle's back! No offense, Skydrop, but I bet it's not one of the most comfortable things." The hare looked around, scanning the landscape. "Are we landing by that big mountain over there?"
Skydrop tried to turn his head and look at Diathus while still flying, but started to wobble and loose balance so stopped trying. "No 'arm done, lassie. An' we're no landin' by the mountain, we're landin' much further inland, jus' incase Vermeng has followed uz comes aroond. Noo 'old on, lassie. No far noo."
The eagle slowly flew towards the shore. He and Diathus landed just as he had said, much further inland from the mountain, although where they were, the mountain peak was still visible. When they landed on solid ground, the two immediately began searching for a place to stay for the night. It took a while of searching until Diathus finally found a small cave, concealed well by tall ferns and low branches.
"Do you think this would do?" Diathus peeked her head through the cave's entrance. "It's a bit little for you and me together, but you could fit if you go I by yoreself. I'll just stay outside and sleep under the stars."
Skydrop shook his big head. "Nae, lassie. Ye go inside an' sleep tight for ah'll be thee one tae sleep un'er the stars."
Diathus then shook her head. "No, I insist. Besides, it would be nice for me to sleep outside for a change. You were on the deck all the time, so you wouldn't know what is was like to stay under."
"But-"
"But nothin'. I'm stayin' out here an' that's that."
"Lassie, g-"
"Go inside to sleep, Sky. I'll stay out here."
"Ah-"
"I'll be fine. You better go to sleep now, for there's a long day in front of us."
Skydrop slowly walked through the cave opening, muttering to himself, "Strange 'are, doant talk like a 'are, doant act like a 'are, only thing 'are-ly aboot t'at 'are is t'at she looks like a 'are! Huh, ken't call 'er rabbit either, doesn't look like a rabbit! Hmm, maybe she's a squirrel beastie widout a long bushy tail. Hmm…sort of resembles a squirrel beastie, doan't she?"
As Skydrop walked into the grotto, Diathus smiled and laid down on the grass, her eyelids drooping. She was right though, there was a long day ahead of them. Closing her eyes wistfully, the hare drifted off into deep, dreamless slumber.
A slight breeze passed by, sprinkling morning dew from the assortment of flowers that surrounded the sleeping form of the hare. Birds sang and chirped their songs, announcing that a new day had arrived. Diathus slowly opened her eyes, and the sight that she saw amazed her. Skydrop was already awake, but that was not what had surprised the hare. He had looked like an early bird to her. What had stunned her was that the eagle was making breakfast. Diathus sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Am I seeing things right?"
Skydrop chuckled, not stopping or looking up from his work. "Good morn to ye, lassie. I couldnae sleep last night inside t'at stuffy liddle cave, so ah came out her' and slept ootside. Ah woke oop an' ye were asleep, so ah deci'ed to save ye some trouble an' make oor break'ast."
Diathus shook her head in amusement. "By the fur, you're a strange one, eagle… I mean, Sky. Not to mention a sly one, too. Sneaking out here while I was asleep. What a waste of a good cave. An' it took quite awhile too find too. Hmm, so what's for breakfast?"
With one of his great talons, Skydrop pointed at the food that he had set out. "Not much, lassie, but 'twill do, 'twill do. Ah took awhile to gather thee food, but ah couldnae find much. Jus' a few beries and veggibles."
Diathus nodded gratefully and sat down. Skydrop passed her a bowl. He gave one to himself and immediately dug in, bits of berries and other things of that sort flying around. Diathus, unlike Skydrop, ate slowly, her mind somewhere else.
Remembering what he had garbled the last night, Skydrop chuckled to himself. "Doant eat like a 'are either."
"Huh? Oh, er, what's that? What did ye say?"
Ignoring her questions, Skydrop cocked his large head quizzically as he questioned his
companion. "Wot are ye thinkin' aboot, friend?"
"What? Hmm…well, I don't exactly know, guess I was just wondering about my friends on board the Carassan. Hope old Wynde is alright. Huh! What am I saying, Wynde's always been able to take care of himself. A tough squirrel, he was. Then there's also Dockpetal. Ha! The otter had always hated his name. Well, yes, I think Dock will be okay. Actually, I know he'll be okay. He has those eyes that Ragfang is afraid of, so the rat will think twice before messing with him. Same with Wynde, too. But what about Ariel? She never was strong or sturdy, and she has no defense of any sort. I hope Dock and Wynde'll take care of her. I would hate for the young vole to get hurt by that treacherous whip…"
"Come on, lassie! Cheer oop! Ye'll see 'em agin soon enough." Skydrop frowned. "'Tis not good for a wee bairn tae be sad. Sing a 'arppy song!"
Skydrop started dancing around, hopping from one talon to the other while a foolish grin was pasted on his huge face, hoping that this would inspire his companion to be more positive.
Amused at the eagle's antics, Diathus tried to hide a creeping smile, but did not succeed. Packing up the rations into a haversack and swinging it over her shoulder, Diathus and Skydrop continued on their journey, laughing and chuckling as Skydrop continued his hop-skip dance. Unable to stop herself, Diathus burst out into a merry song as she made it up as she went along, skipping to the cheerful beat of her ditty.
"Be happy widout no fears an' woes,
I'm a happy hare because I know
That if you're happy, nothing can go wrong,
But if your sad, the day is weary and long.
An' if you're cheerful, you're jolly too,
An' if you're miserable an' gloomy, that won't do.
So be happy too and sing this song,
And sing and sing it all day long!"
Skydrop picked up his pace, still grinning. "T'at's the spirit, lassie! Be 'appy…" Skydrop suddenly stopped dancing. His grin had left his face, but he continued walking. Urgently, he leaned over and whispered to Diathus, "Lassie, we're bein' followed!"
Diathus looked at Skydrop, confused. "How do you know?"
Skydrop continued walking and urged Diathus to follow, trying not to look behind his back. "List'n!"
Diathus's ears perked up, picking up any sound that could be heard. A few moments of silence passed, then she nodded gravely. "Footsteps, crunching leaves, snapping twigs, definitely signs of stalking vermin. Okay, here's what to do. I want to get rid of the vermin, so we won't have to have the worry of being murdered in our sleep. The villains aren't showin' themselves because you're around and they're afraid of you since yore so big, so what I want you to do is fly away, but stay close. They probably want our food, and since I'm only a little haremaid, they'll come out and maybe fight or sneak up on me. I'll be okay, I can handle it. If I do need your help, I'll shout 'Eulalia', so you'll know to come. Go on."
Skydrop raised an eyebrow, a sign that said 'Are you sure?' The hare smiled and winked. Skydrop grinned again, this time slyly. Diathus grinned back, and pretended to trip clumsily. She landed gracefully onto the ground and frowning, the hare groaned.
"Oh, how clumsy of me!" Diathus said to herself loudly, hoping the creatures stalking her and Skydrop had heard her. They needed an excuse for what they were about to do, so the stalkers would not be too suspicious. The hare inspected her footpaw and pretending to take something out of it, while also taking a few heavy rocks. Swiftly, she stuffed the rocks into the haversack and took out their provisions. Then Diathus sighed, making sure the vermin behind her could hear every word she said.
"Pesky thorns. I stepped on one when I tripped. Sky, would you be so kind to take this thorn out of my footpaw. It's very uncomfortable, and I can't bear trying to take it out myself."
Skydrop nodded and pretended to take a thorn out of Diathus's footpaw with much effort, really taking the food out of her paw. Diathus smiled happily and winked at Skydrop.
"Thank you, mister Sky. I feel much better now. I'll be fine on my journey now. Thank you for your help. Go on, now. Your mate needs you." The hare nodded to Skydrop who winked back with both eyes and flew off.
Diathus started singing her happy song again, knowing that she needed to seem as harmless and innocent as possible. Still on alert, the haremaid looked around her, still singing. She caught a glimpse of a fox that was trying his best to hide behind the small trees that bordered the left side of the path she was walking on, failing obviously. The fox stopped, and looked up at her. Averting her gaze swiftly, Diathus nodded to herself in satisfaction that she had been correct. The hare began to sing louder, as if she hadn't seen a thing. The fox had also nodded, and continued to follow her. Soon, the hare was surrounded by a small gang that consisted of one fox, two ferrets, one rat and a stoat.
The fox that she had saw grinned wickedly. "Well, look what we've got here, me buckos. 'Tis a little 'aremaid."
The stoat, called Deathweed, spoke up, wearing the same smile as the fox. "Aye, Scarroot, and she has some vittles fer us too."
Diathus smiled back. "Hello, gentlebeasts. How are you today? Would you like to share some of my provisions?"
The fox, whose name was Scarroot, pointed to the haversack. This was as easy as falling off a log, he thought. "Yah, we would. But not just some o' it, we want all o' it! Now just 'and the bag over all nice like and we won't hurt ye."
Deathweed drew a dirty and rusty cutlass. "Just say the word, Chief, an' we'll slice 'er innards."
Diathus looked around, and saw that the others had also drawn their weapons. The hare's temper began to rise, for what reason she did not know, but she knew she had to keep her act going. Still smiling foolishly, she slowly stretched her paw with the haversack out like she was handing it to the fox, when with startling speed, sent it crashing down on Scarroot's head. Scarroot fell, instantly slain by the heavy and hard rocks.
The other creatures in the gang stared at their fallen comrade with a disappointed expression. Then the rat shouted out, "Let's get 'er!"
The foebeast charged, blades glittering wickedly in the sunlight. Diathus was ready. She dodged nimbly aside to avoid a ferret, who was unable to stop himself, and went crashing into the rat's awaiting steel who had been trying to sneak up behind the hare. Diathus almost ripped the haversack open while trying to take out one of the rocks, wanting to use them to defend herself. While she was doing so, Deathweed struck at her with his blade, almost slicing her in half. Fortunately, Diathus saw the sword flash down and tried moved out of the way, but the rocks weighed her down, and she wasn't fast enough to get out of the range of the weapon. Instead of cutting the hare in two, Deathweed's sword, instead, reopened Diathus's shoulder wound. Deathweed let go of his sword did a little victory dance, thinking that he had won and Diathus could no longer continue to fight. This little dance caused the stoat his life. Diathus quickly picked up the sword and thrust it through Deathweed, narrowly missing his evil heart. Diathus grimaced and clutched her bleeding shoulder. Knowing that if she removed her paw and continued fighting, the blood loss would be greater, she called Skydrop.
"Eulaliiiiaaaa!"
"Krrrreeeeeekaahh!"
Immediately, the eagle swooshed down, his talons grasping the last ferret and the rat as he passed. He also seemed to drop something in front of Diathus. Seeing that they were beaten and helpless, the ferret and rat immediately began to beg for mercy, and also give weak excuses. Skydrop paid no attention to them, and sat perched onto a tall oak tree, still clutching the vermin with his dangerous talons. He stared at Diathus expectantly, waiting for a command. First, Diathus picked up the things that Skydrop had dropped. She nodded with appreciation.
"Dockleaves. Thanks, Sky. This'll jus' take a sec; I got to fix up me wound."
Skydrop waited patiently as the hare applied the plant to her shoulder, still holding his death grip on the two squirming vermin. When Diathus finished, she looked back up and nodded at the rat and weasel.
"I'll leave this fer you to decide. Wot are you goin' to do with those two wriggling idiots that call themselves beasts?"
Skydrop grinned wickedly. "Well, lassie, frae the way they treated ye, Ah'd say that ye should use the two o' 'em fer target practice. If ye'll excuse meh fer sayin', ye should work on yore arch'ry. On board the Carassan, instead o' choppin' good ole Sinzord's ear off, you cut it in 'alf ins'ead. Bad aim, lassie!"
The rat groaned in despair and hung his head, but the weasel continued to plead pathetically.
"No, mercy, I beg o' ye, goodbeasts, mercy! 'Twas all Scarroot's fault, 'onest! 'E made us attack the 'aremaid! I was mindin' me own business when Scarroot snuck up on me an' tol' me that if I didn't join 'im, he'd kill me! I swear it on me oath, t'ats wot 'e said! I was forced to join his evil band!"
The rat joined in. "Aye, he's telling the truth! I saw it with me own eyes! Scarroot had threatened me about a few seasons before, and he did the same to him! We're innocent, mercy!"
Grinning inwardly and trying to stifle a giggle, Diathus shook her head in mock pity and called out, her voice dripping with sympathy. "You poor, poor beasts. Well, now that we've heard yore story, here's my proposition. Instead o' using you and yore pal fer target practice an' turnin' you two to filthy pincushions, we'll hang you by yore tails on the ash tree that my good eagle friend's perched on."
The rat and the weasel moaned miserably. They had been expecting something better. Diathus turned her attention to the eagle.
"Sky, do you mind hanging them onto a branch and tying them by their tails in a strong knot so they won't fall? I would hate to see these poor, poor beasts get hurt. Oh, and could you by any chance find them a high branch? The view is better from a higher place, and I'm sure they would enjoy looking at nice scenery, since they're going to be there fer quite awhile."
Skydrop grinned willingly. "Be done in a flap o' a feather, lassie. Now, lemme see, how's thiz one fer ye, laddie bucks? Plenty high off thee ground, ye ken. Now, jus' knot yer tails on the branch…okie! We'll be goin' now, lads. Us gots lots tae do. Bye-bye noo!"
The rat and ferret wiggled and squirmed, pleading and whining while they muttered nasty curses.
Skydrop shook his big head and called out sternly, "So, ye want better, eh? Rude beasties. Well, we might jus' leave ye two oop ther' fer awhile so ye can larn some manners! Come on, lassie."
The pair strolled on, chatting amiably about this and that, leaving the two unfortunate beasts hanging on the tree limb, bobbing like strange fruit. Once they were out of earshot, Diathus quietly whispered to Skydrop.
"Do you really think we should leave them hanging there like that? I know they're vermin, an' they attacked me, but it's a bit cruel, an' the two are goin' to fall down and die soon anyway, so why don't we jus' kill 'em an' make their death less painful…"
Skydrop snorted. "'Em two deserve it, affer thee way they treated ye, Doant worry yer pretty liddle 'ead aboot those two, lassie." The eagle stole a glance back at the dangling rat and hanging weasel and snickered softly. "'Em do look abit funny, doant 'em?"