Growing Up

The Barbics, Glens and any other Disney characters are copyrighted to Disney and we claim no ownership. However, any new characters are copyrighted to Ulisa, Silver Fox and Cheetah the Furry. This plot is a collaboration of Ulisa, Silver Fox, and Cheetah the Furry.

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Kuriani looked behind her. She was not much of a truster of outsiders. She owed it to her parents to fulfill her duty however. Originally, they had been chosen to be her Magistrate's guardian. But Fate had other plans and they had been killed a few years ago.

Since then, Kuriani kept to herself as a general rule and had made it her goal to never be killed as her parents were. Her determination had paid off and in a short amount of time, she had climbed up the ranks. It did not bring her parents back but it was some reassurance. The only reason she allowed these visitors in was because the violet one carried the scarce golden charm.

As Kuriani stepped aside to let the visitors pass, she and her soldiers stayed by the gate, constantly at guard. She had adapted to a rough lifestyle. And a leader did not let her guard down. Even if-

"Kuriani! Kuriani!"

The captain turned as two young cubs, twins, ran out past the gates. They were about four years old, give or take a month or two. One was a boy and one was a girl. The girl had dark rusty fur, not unlike Kuriani's and lighter burgundy hair. The hair itself was short, to the shoulders. It had a natural wave in it. She wore dark black slacks but a festive green and red shirt, with various patterns. But the front of her shirt was stained with juice.

The boy had dark burgundy fur and light, light rust hair which was to about his chin and combed to the side. He wore a dark blue and violet tunic, with dark blue slacks. He was chasing after the girl. He spied Kuriani and said,

"Don't' listen to her, Kuriani."

"It's not true, Sissy!" the girl turned to the captain and said, "It's all HIS fault!"

"Is not Sachi!"

"Is too, Malachi!"

"Not!"

"TO!"

"NOT!"

A shrill whistle stopped them both. Kuriani, their older sister, had whistled sharply through her teeth. With their parents gone, Kuriani took it upon herself to watch after them. Now she faced them both with a glare that would have made their mother proud.

"Malachi! Sachi! I'm on duty. I don't have time for these games. Now, what happened?"

Both began to scream at once, each contradicting the other. Kuriani finally, exasperated, said,

"Randi, take over for now."

That said, she grasped one of her sibling's hands in each of her own and tugged them off into the city. Their guests had been rushed off to their chambers and offered exquisite baths and sleeping quarters. Kuriani herself stayed near to Corali, when she did retire which was typically at three hour intervals. She did not sleep the night through except on holidays.

At the moment, she was occupied with her twin younger siblings. She opened her own door, pushed them in, and then entered herself. She took a breath and then sat on her bed, removing her belt to relax a bit. She looked first at Sachi and then at Malachi.

"All right, listen." Her voice was cold but not unfriendly. "When Big Sister's on guard duty, you don't come to me with these little fights, understand?"

"Yes, Sissy."

Kuriani nodded, got to her feet and said,

"Come on Sachi, let's change your shirt."

The small cub got to her feet and skipped after her older sister. She turned and stuck her tongue out at Malachi. He crossed his eyes at her.

"Sachi…" came Kuriani's warning growl as they left for the bathroom.

Corali smiled at their visitors as the chefs brought in plates piled with hot and delicious foods. She called to her captain, Kuriani,

"Come, come Kuriani. You deserve a break. You've been guarding all day. I arranged for Randi to maintain order over the guards."

Kuriani was on the verge of protesting but then Corali was her charge, she couldn't very well disobey her. And she was feeling a bit fatigued. She pulled up a chair by her Magistrate. Corali gave her an appreciative smile. The captain did make a small grin in reply but then focused on the meal.

Corali smiled at their guests,

"I apologize for the abrupt welcome but I assure you that it is only in our city's best interests."

Grammi nodded, "It is a beautiful city. You must be very happy here. But…why here?"

"Well, this is really a temporary city. Even now, several others are working on a foundation for a great Gummi city, not far from here: Ursalia."

The Glens nodded, well, all but Tummi, who was too busy eating. Corali smiled at the Glens and said,

"Come, come, eat! If you have been lost as long as you say, you must be famished."

The Glens made no protest to that. They ate and drank their fill. This city was abundant with all sorts of foods, from meats and cheeses to wine and bread. The wine was similar to their own berry wine and a little less strong than the Barbics' wine. In any event, it helped relax them. The meat, cheese and bread did the rest. This city seemed to be a complete blend of Barbic and Glen.

The Glen gummies were primarily vegetarians although meat did occasionally slip into their diet. They survived on mainly vegetables, fruits and dairy foods. The Barbics relied on meat, bread, and occasional fruits. Grammi smiled as she remembered Buddi's repulsion of any vegetables and the way Ursa would not let him leave until he ate them. The Barbics were also much stricter on sweets. Grammi still remembered Buddi's surprised and gleeful look when Ursa had brought out that dessert when they had learned of the Great Gummies' decision to return soon. Sweets were abundant here. This city had all.

Kuriani made up her mind to be more open minded, if cautious, to these visitors. Her Magistrate obviously trusted them a great deal but Magistrate Corali had never been very critical of anyone. Still, for her charge's sake, she would try.

Gruffi and the others had never been treated so good. They had been practically stuffed until they could eat no more and now where lounging in their selected chambers. Gruffi was still in initial shock. He did not know what to do. He knew they were here to learn something of significance but he didn't know what. He knew that Kuriani had to have some tie to the Barbics.

Even the way she looked at them…she was different from all the others. She had the look of distrust that Ursa always carried. It unnerved Gruffi. How far back did Ursa's belief go? Was it already established here? Why? What…what truly had made 'The Barbics?'

Present:

Gritty waited a little bit before he entered the shelter where the glen cubs slept. They had turned in a bit earlier, probably due to exhaustion but Gritty had stayed awake to think. He had not been on a haiana for so long. But for some reason, he felt it was time for him to revisit one.

His thoughts once more faded to Ursa. He remembered a few times when he was younger, he had thought her cute, but he had dismissed it as a crush and generally, it faded, becoming once more a mere attraction for his best friend. Lately he was not so sure. Buddi growing up made the Barbic adult recall his own childhood.

He chuckled. He was sure that Grubbi was relieved that there was only one cub this time. He and Ursa had been the definition of trouble and mayhem. He supposed that some of that had been rebellion as was expected but not all of it. He remembered a few instances…

Ursa had taken the rap for him several times and vice versa. In many ways, this was still true. Grubbi still sometimes looked upon them as cubs, although they were of the highest authority in their clan. Grubbi claimed that they still acted as teenagers at points. Gritty did not deny that.

He and Ursa sometimes would play wrestle during training, just as a sorta release. And then, of course, they each had their own little hobbies.

Gritty fancied himself as a weapons maker. He liked to toy around with metals. He had made his own sword and reforged Ursa's more times than he cared to recall. He sometimes had made some wrist guards or arm bands for the Barbic females. He had made a few before they had all died. He had even made a fancy arm band for Ursa's birthday, which would be coming up in a few months. The Barbics generally ceased with the single birthday present after the twentieth birthday but Gritty gave her one just the same.

But why?

The feeling that rose in his gut made him uncomfortable. Kicking dirt onto the fire, he slipped into the shelter as if slipping away from memories.

Grubbi looked over at Ursa; she was quiet.

Buddi had long since fallen asleep, his head tucked into Ursa's shirt. Her smell was a comfort. Gummies typically depended more on smell than sight. Buddi clung to her desperately. Ursa had not made a reaction.

"Well?"

Ursa sighed, "Grubbi, after what happened I wonder if it is even worth the effort to continue. Buddi's so lost, so frightened and confused."

"We go on."

"Grubbi-"

"Ursa, look. What happened is significant and although it will make the haiana tougher, it will also improve the results. Buddi will come out stronger."

"But-"

"Trust me. I've been on two. The harder obstacles you're hit with, the stronger you become."

"But Buddi…he looks so lost, so afraid."

Grubbi softened his tone, "I know, I know. But Ursa, look, Buddi was going to hafta cope with this eventually."

"Eventually, Grubbi," she emphasized, "EVENTUALLY! Not when he's thirteen!'

Buddi squirmed a little in her arms but didn't awaken. Ursa took a breath,

"Grubbi, how about this? Let's both sleep on it. Consider."

The healer nodded, "All right, reasonable." He inwardly was not sure whether to continue or not, either. But he did not say so. He extinguished the fire as Ursa rose to her feet, cradling Buddi, and walked into the tent.

Ursa laid Buddi down and then slowly pried the layers of warmth away. At the lack of heat, the cub awoke. He looked around and Ursa said,

"Time for bed. Now, stay there while I grab your pajamas."

Buddi, for the first time, truly took note of his nakedness and drew up into a tight ball, his cheeks burning like cinders. Ursa couldn't hold back her chuckle as she returned with his nightclothes. She smiled,

"Come on, put these on."

Buddi did so, with shaking hands. Ursa turned her face away, to give Buddi some aid. She knew he appreciated it. When he said she could look again, he climbed under the covers. Ursa stripped off her own clothes and downed a warm nightgown. Buddi was still pretty cool and her body warmth would help.

Buddi clung to Ursa as soon as she crawled under the blankets with him. Ursa made no response; he needed her warmth right now. But more than physical warmth. If he knew she was there that would be a tremendous aid to the frightened cub. He was confused, frightened, lost…

Grubbi entered not long after, and like Ursa, donned a warm night shift, climbing in on Buddi's right side. The two adults sandwiched the cub in-between their body heat, while Buddi, tucked safe and warm beneath the quilt, went to sleep.

The cub's dreams were troubled. He kept seeing blood, his hands and the dagger, repeated screams…

Buddi jerked up, panting. The two adults made no reply. He rubbed at his arms as the details returned…

The Troggels' hearts splitting, blood squirting his face. The screams…

Buddi stumbled out of the tent, crying.

Ursa, well aware of what had occurred, followed.

Buddi finally stopped a good half a mile from the camp. He fell to his knees and became ill, vomiting up any food he had eaten and henceforth, any strength he had. He collapsed, face in the discharge, not even caring anymore. He just repeated, over and over,

"Ai Kuci Niai, ai kuci niai."

Ursa came up behind the sobbing cub as he kept saying over and over, in a voice drenched with hurt, regret and sorrow,

"I hate myself."

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