-v-

Chapter 12: A path offered

"The Ship Manufacturing Guild guarantees that the improved EM Drive will allow you to swiftly accelerate towards your destination. Finding your destination, however, is entirely up to the operator."

Ship Manufacturing Guild

Preamble to EM Drive manual

"Flyer... flyer... rising in the sky, oh will you not hear my plea? As you soar into the sky, what do you think of a walker like me? Flyer... flyer... not a care in the world, as the ground speeds by from below. Oh what wonders do you see that I will never know?"

Detras was at his tenth poem now and he was no calmer than he was when he had first stepped foot into his thinking spot nearly an hour before. In the distance, as if to mock him, soared flyers on their comings and goings. Perhaps they were as unaware of his troubles as he was of theirs?

In any case he was no closer to coming to a decision.

"Ah, my mother told me that one as well."

Detras groaned in pain as he ran from the new voice and collided into the rock wall near his perch. It wasn't until his collision and the resulting pain that he realized that the words had come from his mate.

"Damn it, dear!" he rubbed his side, momentarily distracted from the day's events.

Pearl allowed herself a slight smile as she stepped into the crevice in the rock. Her mate had always preferred this secluded spot when he had to ponder on difficult decisions. His need for seclusion when deep in thought was something that had been passed on to their daughter. Now, however, she realized that more thought would not do him much good.

"She also taught me a few other poems as well. Though I can make some of my own..." she began with a playful glint in her eye, ignoring his annoyed glare. Her pink form and tilted head almost appeared to mock his dour expression as he groaned in frustration.

"Dear, you know that I came in here to think about what has..." he never got the chance to finish as Pearl began reciting her poem in a sing-song voice.

"Little Detras ran in his cave, away from what he feared. But as he waited and pondered, his troubles only neared. Like a ground fuzzy he ran in place, digging himself into a hole. Until finally his mate came by, seeing that he had nowhere to go."

Detras was silent for a moment as he considered his mate's words. The mockery was obvious, but so was her intended message. Though in his current mood he wasn't going to let her get to him this easily. "Your rhyming needs some work."

This had the expected effect as Pearl playfully yanked at one of his tail feathers, "And your reflexes need some work!"

Detras suppressed a snort as he shook his head, "Not as much as my eyes, apparently."

Detras again stared at the distant flyers, his face an impassive mask. His mate's antics could only distract him for a moment from the heavy decisions that now lay before him. How was he going to make sure that his daughter and her mate safely found a place of their own? What was to be done about Orchid, his beloved son?

It wasn't until about a minute later that he felt his mate sit beside him. Unlike before she was now as silent as the wind. Only her breathing interrupted his dark thoughts.

What am I going to do? What is the right thing to do?

"How are they doing?" Detras asked hesitantly, unsure of himself. He felt his mate lean closer as he asked this, a show of support.

"Well... Nahoda and Arial are doing fine. I think everyone has convinced Mender that Nahoda is not dinner." Upon hearing a snort from her mate she continued, "Your son seems to be contemplating what to do once you kick him out."

Detras's body shook, "What?"

Pearl looked at him gingerly as she sighed, "Well, dear, what else is he supposed to think?"

The elder male fastrunner appeared to almost crumple up at Pearl's statement as his gaze turned downward. It was obvious that his thoughts were turning in the same direction, but that he was not pleased with them.

"Our son is strong, dear. He knows it is time for him to go and he is alright with leaving."

Detras jerked back suddenly and stared at his mate with a befuddled expression.

Arial placed a hand on her mate's shoulder. "He is not like Nahoda, dear, and he is not like you. We have taught him every lesson that we know, and he has had every opportunity to grow into a fine young fastrunner. You are not like your father."

Detras was struck by this and contemplated it for a moment. He had always tried to be a better parent than his parents had been to him. He had been hurled into the world with only the basics to survive. He always wanted his children to have more than that.

"At least not yet."

Detras looked at his mate, uncomprehending for a moment, but then he sighed in recognition. What good would a childhood of lessons be if they ended with a hateful chase?

"So he is ready to leave, but he doesn't want to leave like this." It was a statement, not a question. Detras turned towards his mate with a contemplative expression, but the sense of conflict was gone. After all, with Detras blindly going after Arial's loved one what choice did Orchid have in the heat of the moment? I love you, Orchid, but you take after some of my worst traits. "He reacted brashly and it nearly got me killed. Then both of them were afraid to bring the subject up because they thought I would go kill Nahoda," he shook his head, "Like father like son, huh?"

Pearl smirked, "I am sure the fact has not been lost on Nahoda, dear."

Detras shook his head, "Nahoda... that is the other thing. How can he protect our daughter when he seems to not be able to protect himself? Mender doesn't even have a good sniffer but was able to track him down."

Silence reigned for a few moments as each fastrunner thought about their predicament. That was when Detras's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Wait... I think that I may have an idea."

Mender hesitated as she approached the stream. Despite her initial optimism about her proposal she was now only filled with doubts. She was a newcomer here and knew little of fastrunner traditions. Would her proposal be welcomed? Would it make things worse? Would it...

Splash

"Yep, there's a stream there," Orchid's sarcastic voice called from some distance away.

Mender looked mortified as the cool water of the stream splashed over her feet. In her uncertainty and absentmindedness she had walked straight into the stream, alerting Orchid to her presence.

Verant would be disappointed. A fastbiter should never taker her eyes off of her surroundings.

"Um... are you alright?"

Mender looked up suddenly as the fastrunner as he noticeably cringed at her expression. Only then did she realize how her sharp gaze might have looked to a prey animal and quickly averted her eyes slightly.

"I guess I could ask you the same question."

Orchid paused at this before again looking at the stream, looking for fish that Mender suspected were not there. "I know how to find food and shelter so I will be fine." The fact that his voice broke on the word 'fine' did not escape Mender's ears.

Mender opened her mouth to speak, but hesitated. I need to be careful here. Not even Verant was at his best when emotional...

The past:

This is not good, Dodger thought as he approached Ducky's position, Why did she bring Seeker with her? Is this worse than I thought it was? Realizing that Violet could smell and recognize fear now, he let himself indulge in the bit of anger he felt towards Ducky for bringing the one fastbiter that could shut all this down with a word. If she weren't Violet's friend I'd never again believe a word she said.

Littlefoot shifted into a rigid stance as would be expected by a second of higher rank than the dinosaur who called the truce. It was a reaction that communicated silent support without giving away anything. Ducky, on the other hand, almost looked sick. It was as if she didn't know what to say in that moment.

"I am here under truce, as I announced to your second. I have brought my own second, but no one else," her voice was soft, but had an edge of formality to it, "I have honored my side of the truce."

Dodger gestured for Violet to take a step back so she was slightly behind rather than directly at his side before replying. "I too have obeyed the truce. My second is beside me, but no others."

Ducky noticed Dodger's reaction and reflexively looked over at Littlefoot; he took a step back as well, a slightly apologetic expression on his face. The meaning being rather clear, Littlefoot had gotten a minor piece of etiquette wrong, but Dodger had noticed it. This meant that Dodger must have done this entire ritual before.

Ducky took a deep breath, "I see that you have done this before. Know that any mistakes here are due to inexperience, not malice," her words were said with more than a hint of irritation, but her eyes were apologetic. It was obvious that her irritation was directed at herself in that moment, and not him.

"Understood. Likewise, I would ask that you ignore any mistakes on the part of my second. I have had little time to teach her about this." Even if he had to point out Violet's obvious inexperience, he wasn't about to let her take the blame for it. It was his job to teach her, and he had failed to do so in this matter. He paused for a moment, making sure that Ducky understood what he considered the most important thing he had to say. Don't blame Violet for any of this.

"You called the truce," Dodger continued, "Are you here to apologize or demand one from me?" He made sure that his stance and posture conveyed that he wasn't going to simply back down but didn't actually want a fight. It was the very definition of uncomfortable.

Ducky replicated his gesture as her second looked noticeably uncomfortable, "You will receive no apology from me for defending my brother's honor. The very suggestion of taking pleasure at his pain fills me with disgust," her eyes fixed upon him with icy coldness before softening slightly, "But I would not expect you to apologize for defending your mate's honor. My brother was the one who sounded the alert that led to your mate nearly dying."

Where is she going with this? There's a reason I've only ever done this once, and that was when I was a child. Dodger really wished Ducky would just make her main point. What she had said was a bit too hard to interpret.

Ducky swallowed at that lack of response from Dodger. She had no idea whether to take that as a show of disrespect, or of uncertainty, "Since we are both acting for our loved ones then perhaps we should ask what our loved ones think of this. Would they want us to carry on like this? Would they want us to fight?"

"I know Tracker doesn't," Dodger replied. I don't want to fight, either, but I have no clue whether that would make her change her mind. Showing weakness can do that. "She'd rather I drop the whole thing if at all possible."

Ducky nodded, "As would my brother… and Seeker. They see this as an unfortunate misunderstanding," she grimaced, "...and after talking to your second about it, I agree. We both acted foolishly during the spar. You should have said your grievances to Finder directly rather than provoking all of his friends by insulting him from a distance. That is not how a pack leader behaves."

She swallowed, "...but I should have reacted calmly and explained myself before threatening violence. I did not act how a pack member should behave. I put my own feelings ahead of the well-being of my pack and of this alliance. I am at fault as well."

Dodger couldn't stop himself from looking at Violet. She looked a bit embarrassed but quickly hid it. Okay, I wasn't expecting any of this. And yes, Haven, I know I'm an idiot. I think we established this when we met. I really should consider resigning. I have no clue what I'm doing. This just proves it. Dodger sighed. "What do you propose we do?" he asked in a tired voice. If you want to just have us walk away from this I can't think of a single reason to object.

Ducky looked down for a moment as if she were building up her nerves. finally, however, she looked Dodger in the eyes, "I apologize for my reaction, but not for the reasons that I reacted," the twitch of her tail showed how difficult this was for her. Making an apology under truce was a step away from submission, and provided no guarantee that the gesture would be replicated. It was to invite the risk of losing face without anything to show for it. "I only request, that you do the same for your faults."

All of them or just the one you're concerned about? We could be here until the Cold Time is upon us if you want all of them. "I apologize for my actions as well," Dodger replied, purposefully leaving out any suggestion that he was sorry for his thoughts concerning his mate. This actually wasn't that hard for him. He'd been wanting to fix things since before he got hurt.

Ducky let loose a sigh of relief as Littlefoot stood down as tradition dictated. He was now in a relaxed posture, though his eyes still seemed conflicted.

Ducky finally looked at Dodger again, "I was hoping that this mess could be taken care of. This is not like any of us. Nope, nope, nope." she then appeared to look in the direction of her brother's sleeping area, "My brother told me that he does not like grudges either. So if you wanted to resolve this by a friendly spar then he would be willing. Though, to be honest, I think he just wants to redeem himself after losing to Stern Claw."

"I think that my brother will have to heal his head before he can bang heads," Violet blurted out before realizing that she had interrupted the only two people who should be speaking. She quickly took a step back with an embarrassed look on her face.

Ducky did her best to suppress a snort, but failed. Violet may have broken protocol but it provided a needed respite from the emotionally heavy conversation.

"Yeah, I think those vines could do with a second skull," Dodger said, increasingly sounding like he was more thinking aloud than conversing, "An actual skull would likely break, but more vines could be too confining…"

Littlefoot coughed as he whispered something into Ducky's ear. A quick nod from her was followed by her responding to Dodger's statement.

"Umm… I guess we could make sure there are no trees in the fighting area. Speaking of which… shall we end this? Because there is someone else here that wants to talk to you. Both of you."

Violet couldn't help but take a step to her right so that she was nearly behind her brother.

I think I'd rather spar Finder and Thud at the same time, Dodger thought. "Um… okay," he replied. Anything more formal or coherent was currently beyond him.

Ducky was not sure how to take Dodger's sudden reluctance and briefly considered that it might be due to lingering resentment directed in her direction.

"Before I go… are we okay now?" Ducky asked in an almost depressed voice, "I try to be friendly to everyone and I would hate to think that I ruined what goodwill was between us, Dodger... If so, then I understand."

"We're good, Haven. I was worried I had done the same." Focusing on Ducky was much easier than focusing on the pack leader that Dodger was pretty sure was still very displeased with him, to put it mildly.

Ducky nodded after a pause and looked towards a visibly agitated Littlefoot. Briefly whispering something into his ear, she then quietly sprinted away. She was very aware that this conversation was not for her.

Well that went well, Littlefoot thought to himself, But I have my doubts about this.

"I guess that you know why I want to speak with you, Dodger?" Littlefoot finally spoke.

Dodger gulped and unconsciously moved so that he was entirely in front of Violet from Littlefoot's perspective. "I think so, sir, but if it's about anything after my fight with Leap, I can't really remember any of it," Dodger answered honestly albeit extremely nervously.

Littlefoot looked down. It was an odd sight to put it mildly to see the pack leader suddenly look as guilty as a chastised youngling.

"Do you remember any of it? Anything at all?"

"Other than that you and I fought, and it wasn't much fun? It's really unclear beyond that." Dodger was feeling extremely awkward. He had no idea what he was supposed to do or say.

Littlefoot nodded as he reluctantly spoke again, "Things got really out of hand… to put it mildly. We both fought as if our lives depended on it. It was not a friendly fight."

I'm not sure how that's getting out of hand. Fighting as if my life depended on it is the only way I know how to fight. And fights aren't supposed to be friendly. They're fights, Dodger thought. "Fights are usually friendly at that point? I thought they were supposed to be hard."

Littlefoot looked at Dodger with a dumbfounded expression for a moment, before quickly shaking his head, "With vines that allows us some room to be rough… but I took it too far. Way too far. In my fear of losing the match I threw you into the tree," he shook his head as an ashamed expression appeared on his face, "A pack leader shouldn't injure his allies just to save his pride."

Dodger looked at Littlefoot with an odd expression. He wasn't quite seeing where Littlefoot was at fault. If he's speaking of 'throwing' the way I think he is, I didn't consider what was beyond my target during my own attack. Wow. I really am an idiot. "Sir?" Dodger asked, hoping for more of an explanation.

"This is why Thud and I agreed to never spar one another, and to just consider a match that would lead to that a draw. When pack leaders fight in front of their followers things can get very messy," Littlefoot sat on his haunches, "I guess I did not consider that because I failed to think of you as a pack leader in that moment… and for that I apologize."

Dodger was following Littlefoot quite well until the apology. For a moment his mind went blank. He literally didn't know how to respond.

Nervously moving from the safe spot behind her brother, Violet intentionally bumped into him while trying and failing to make it look accidental. "Dodger?" she asked. Are you okay?

The world is coming to an end, isn't it? I'm pretty sure I'm the one that needs to apologize even if I'm not entirely sure what for at the moment, Dodger thought. "I'm okay, Violet," he replied to his sister's unspoken question. Violet quickly turned to get back behind her brother. She couldn't think of a safer place at the moment.

Littlefoot took the lack of response from Dodger as an indication of his displeasure. Thinking that he had irrevocably damaged his friendship with the other pack leader, he bowed his head respectfully, "I understand if you are upset… I only ask that you only hold it against me. Please do not judge my pack based upon my failure."

"With all due respect, sir, I don't understand what you're apologizing for. If I understand what happened correctly, I made a leap without considering what was beyond my target. With the amount of times I've had to tell Violet to mind her surroundings, I'm not exactly happy I made such a foolish mistake." Dodger was doing his best not to sink to the ground and grip his head since doing so would appear either weak or disrespectful. Possibly both. His sister had no such qualms. She considered herself to be the former, and the possibility of appearing to be the latter didn't occur to her.

Would being completely smell-blind be simpler or would it make all this even harder? Violet wondered, Seeker is confusing me more than my sniffer does when everyone's in the same place.

Littlefoot blinked in confusion, "But… but I put your life in danger for a selfish reason! You would have every right to be angry with me. That is not how a pack leader should behave."

"I could have backed down before the fight even started. I chose to take the risk. I made a mistake that would have earned Violet a lecture lasting until the next full Night Circle had she done the same. And, honestly, sir, I wouldn't know how a pack leader is supposed to behave if it bit me. I've gotten very few things right. Almost everything I've gotten right now you've taught me."

Littlefoot looked at Dodger as if he had grown a second head. My goodness Ponder was right about how he felt about me. I only wish I was worthy of such praise.

"Dodger, listen to me. You helped to keep your fellow pack members alive through adversity that no child should have to deal with. At least we had Dein and Terri to help us… but you three didn't even have that," Littlefoot placed a hand on Dodger's shoulder, "I am not perfect, Dodger, and I made a mistake during that fight. A pack leader shouldn't take things that far over their pride. Had I ended up killing you then I would have never forgiven myself."

"I still should have considered exactly what I was doing, sir," Dodger replied, "I can't control anyone but myself. Had I not made that leap everything would have been fine." Or at least not as bad.

Littlefoot sighed, "Yes, you made a mistake in the fight, but I made a worse mistake. I allowed myself to get involved in a fight that I should not have gotten involved in. I let my emotions get the better of me and you paid the price," he looked into Dodger's eyes, "I acted in a way that would have been more fitting of Prowler than myself."

"The fact that we're standing here talking, sir, says otherwise," Dodger replied.

Violet felt quite a bit of relief in what she was hearing, but she quelled the urge to say anything. None of this meant that Seeker wanted to hear anything from her. Maybe I should get out of here…

Littlefoot nodded, "Nonetheless I demand better of myself, and today I did not live up to that standard," he gave a knowing smile to Dodger, "I guess that neither of us lived up to our standards today."

"I guess we didn't," Dodger replied, mentally emphasizing 'guess'. He was still pretty sure he could have prevented at least part of this if he hadn't been such an idiot.

"So as you can see, Violet, even pack leaders make mistakes sometimes."

Violet practically jerked up in a panic at the mention of her name. "Sir?" she asked, deciding it was best to err on the side of being respectful, especially since she hadn't been listening that attentively even though it was now apparent she should have.

"I think we can drop the formalities, Violet," Littlefoot offered with a chuckle, "You just got done hearing two pack leaders acknowledge how idiotic they have been behaving. You have done quite well today, though. You calmed Haven down and resolved a wedge that was dividing the two packs. For that you have my sincere thanks."

Violet just nodded dumbly, too stunned for words. The world is officially upside-down now. Well, at least he doesn't want to kill me anymore.

"You did good, Violet," Dodger told his sister, "I couldn't think of any way for Haven and I to resolve our dispute, and you got us to talk things out." He moved his head next to his sister's ear and whispered, "I'm proud of you, little sister." He wasn't embarrassed by the sentiment, but he didn't want to accidentally embarrass Violet if the phrase was taken as too parental by others. She was his sister, not his daughter, no matter how many times he'd been forced to act as though she were the latter.

Judging by the smile he got in return, he was pretty sure Violet needed to hear that more often.

Littlefoot coughed feeling a bit bad about interrupting the moment, "Well, Dodger and Violet, it seems that you have learned quite a bit from being with us. Would both of you like to learn another lesson?"

Dodger nodded. Violet's nod was a bit more hesitant than her brother's. She was not a fan of surprises or anything else uncertain at the moment.

Littlefoot chuckled, "Don't worry, Violet; it isn't anything too horrifying. I am going to show the both of you how you show everyone that things have been resolved without actually saying anything to them at all."

"Huh?" Violet asked. It's another of those confusing things, isn't it?

Littlefoot smiled, "As a pack leader you may not want to lose face by going into detail about how things are resolved, but that does not mean that you can't show that things are alright. Sometimes the non-verbal response is better than a verbal one," he tilted his head, "So, Dodger, how would you show everyone that things are better between you and Haven, and between all of us? Any ideas?"

"Not really, sir" Dodger replied. Anything back when Prowler was in charge was dealt with rather straightforwardly, or, in Prowler's case, not dealt with at all.

"The reason that I'm being elusive is to see what you come up with," Littlefoot clarified, sensing Dodger's unspoken question, "How about you, Violet? Any ideas?"

"I really don't know," Violet replied, looking a bit lost, "Tracker and I always talked things out, and Dodger would too if Prowler wasn't looking. Prowler didn't really let things go until he either won or forgot about it."

Littlefoot nodded, "Well, let me show you how to do things with a bit more subtlety. What do packs do together after they kill prey?"

Violet actually had to think about it. Usually the first thing that happened was that Dodger would check her for injuries, sometimes twice. "Can you just tell us? We'll be here all day otherwise." Violet immediately clamped her hands over her mouth. She backed away a bit. "Sorry."

Littlefoot nodded in her direction, "It's alright, Violet, but patience is an important thing to learn when it comes to learning. That was something that Mr. Thicknose always said that I ignored when I was a young longneck, but it seems more and more true as I get older," he looked at Dodger, "One last question, Dodger. What do packs do after they hunt?"

"Mine or a normal pack?" Dodger asked.

Littlefoot smirked, "Why not tell me both?"

"Judging by you guys, the normal answer is 'eat'. For my pack it's a bit less fun. For the last couple Cold Times, I'd first check Violet for injuries. She has a tendency to try to hide them. Then we'd wait until Prowler was away. After that we'd eat in shifts so nothing snuck up on us. We had a bad day with a two-footer a couple times when we didn't bother. Actually, one time when Tracker and I got separated was really bad…" Dodger shuddered a bit at the memory.

Littlefoot frowned, but nodded in acknowledgement of Dodger's statement, "No wonder why you two were confused… I'm sorry that you three had to deal with that," he turned and looked towards the pack lands, "A pack will usually eat together. It is a great show of solidarity between the members of the pack. So considering all that, how would you show everyone that we all on good terms again?"

"Eating together, but I think we'd need to find something first." Dodger was already out of habit considering what areas he had seen would make good hunting areas.

Littlefoot smiled, "True, but we do have some leftovers… how about we get Haven, Tracker, and us together and discuss our next hunt as we eat our meal? I think the rest of the pack will breathe easier realizing that we are all on good terms again."

"Sounds good. I completely forgot there was anything left," Dodger said.

Violet nodded in agreement with Littlefoot's words. She didn't trust herself to verbally reply right then, fearing that she'd ramble and eventually say something she didn't mean to. That had happened quite often in the past.

Littlefoot noted Violet's hesitant reaction and laughed good-naturedly, "Come along, Violet! We can talk while Dodger gets his mate. It will be good to get this situation behind us all. See you at the food, Dodger!"

Dodger gave his sister an encouraging pat on the shoulder before leaving. He hadn't failed to notice Violet's 'help me' look. I don't think Seeker gets that at least a bit of what Violet is afraid of is his position in the pack. Any mistake she makes gets worse with someone that outranks her, and just about everyone around her outranks her.

"So, Violet, now that we are alone, can you tell me how you got Haven to calm down? I had a lot of difficulty even getting her to talk."

"I didn't do anything. We just talked, and she told me to deliver a message to my brother," Violet replied, trying her best to keep from stuttering. Despite Littlefoot not really seeming angry at her anymore, Violet was still afraid of messing up, more so now that things seemed to be getting better.

Littlefoot nodded as he continued to walk through the dark forest, "Perhaps that is what I did wrong. I went into full-on 'leader' mode as opposed to being a friend. Though in that moment I guess I didn't have much of a choice." he chuckled, "My reaction didn't exactly make Ponder happy with me either."

Violet kept silent, not seeing a safe way to reply. It's like he's trying to make me insult him.

"I guess what I am trying to say, Violet, is that sometimes you simply have to act. You did so with Haven, and it turned out well, but if you had not been a good friend to her then who knows what would have happened?" he shrugged as he looked in her direction, "I know that right now you are not saying anything because you are afraid of 'getting it wrong'. Well don't be afraid of that right now. How can we learn and grow if we don't try new things? Feel free to say whatever comes to mind, Violet."

Violet actually had several things on her mind that never really went away, which sometimes led to trouble. Most of them would be embarrassing to talk about with any pack leader, especially this one. "Um, how did Thud and his pack all end up together? End up staying together, I mean. I don't think they'd appreciate me talking to them." Violet cringed as soon as she said it. Maybe that wasn't the best question.

"After Leap and Swift found us we decided that Thud would be the best bet to train and lead them. At first there was too much bad blood because they were members of Calin's pack, but they very quickly proved their honor and decency. After serving under Thud during the Battle for the Valley their bonds were pretty much sealed with blood. Though I consider them like they are fellow packmates." Littlefoot smiled as he looked her way, "Why do you think they wouldn't appreciate you talking to them?"

Violet looked at Littlefoot like he'd suggested poking a sleeping two-footer with a stick. Seriously? You nearly killed me and apparently forgot why? "Attacking one's packmate does that." Violet consciously avoided saying 'sir' since it could possibly sound like she was trying to insult the pack leader through sarcasm.

"I am sure that Leap understands why you would flip out after hearing what you heard. Heck, I threatened you in order to stop you, but you didn't actually think that I had it in for you."

Violet looked down and away. Should I start running now? This is getting awkward and dangerous. I think I'd prefer Stern Claw glaring at me. At least she's not subtle about much around me.

Littlefoot froze, "You… you did realize that I was just trying to stop you, right?" his voice was barely above a whisper, "I had to protect Leap… and yourself. Who knows what would have happened had you had been allowed to reach him?"

Violet just cringed. She knew she'd screwed up badly at the time. Now she was being told it could have been even worse. Prowler was right. I really am worthless.

The brown fastbiter sighed heavily as he sat down and gestured for Violet to do the same. His eyes suddenly had a very tired expression to them.

"Sir?" Violet asked. She didn't dare use the pack leader's name. It seemed too personal. Too friendly.

"Seeker, please," Littlefoot offered, "Do you honestly think that anyone can blame you for reacting the way that you did? How do you think I would have reacted if I heard that one of your pack members had done that to Ponder? How do you think Taunt would react if someone had done that with Stern Claw? Even though Leap had no choice, rage is an understandable reaction."

"I still didn't bother to think," Violet replied, angry at herself, "There was no way I was getting out of there alive if you didn't want me to." She sighed heavily. "Dodger fought Leap, and Leap didn't even get hurt. My brother can actually control himself."

"That is only because, I would wager, that his mate talked to him last night," Littlefoot suggested, "There is a very good reason why Dodger was not present for that conversation between Thud's pack and all of you. Everyone has limits."

"And mine make me a liability," Violet responded, "always have." She wasn't bothered by any single thing about her that wasn't up to par, but all of them together made it very hard for her to convince herself she was worth much.

Littlefoot's voice suddenly turned very assertive, "Violet, you are not a liability. You barely had a chance to learn how to deal with your disability and now look at you," he gestured towards her, "After a few days you already have had a successful hunt, you scored a point during a spar, and you have helped to mend a potentially dangerous situation. Does that sound like the works of a liability to you?"

"I didn't even realize I did something most of the time. That spar still tells me I'm useless in a real fight, and I didn't realize I was doing anything other than trying to figure out why my friend was so angry. Honestly, I still don't get it. And I'm never going to be able to survive on my own. I can't find anything to hunt with this." She tapped her sniffer.

"You may not have been attempting to help your friend, but you did so anyway. And getting one point is the starting point to getting five points. We all have to start from somewhere," Littlefoot asserted, "As for surviving on your own, why would you need to? You have a pack, Violet, and as long as you help them then you have proven your worth. Never let someone tell you that you are worthless, Violet, and don't ever tell yourself that."

Violet just nodded, afraid of losing control on her emotions. I'm not going to cry.

Littlefoot frowned at this reaction, but his eyes remained kind, "Have you talked to Dodger and Tracker about these feelings?"

"About what? Me?"

Littlefoot nodded, "Yes. Prowler is gone, but it seems his words still haunt you."

"Dodger keeps telling me I'm not just trouble on legs, but I'm just not that good at anything, really. Tracker might not be any better than me in a fight, but she can find almost anything with her sniffer. I'll never be able to do that. Dodger kept us alive through some things I don't think we should've survived. I nearly had my leg broken once, and he made sure I got to safety long after Prowler left me for dead. Nearly got himself killed doing it, too. There's nothing I can do that someone else in my pack can't do much better than me."

"You are the only person who can be you. I suspect that part of what kept Dodger going during those times was the fact that he had to be strong for you," Littlefoot pointed out, "A pack is not just its runners, trackers, and hunters. Fastbiters are more than their jobs. A pack is made up of individuals, and all of them are valuable."

Littlefoot shrugged, "Not to mention, I can think of something that no one in your pack can do. But I think that there is one pack member who might be a good candidate to learn," he pointed directly at her chest.

"Huh? What can I do?" Violet was completely clueless as to what Littlefoot could be referring to.

"Violet, how would you like to be trained as a healer?"

The present:

Orchid watched the fastbiter with more than a little annoyance. Deep inside he realized that this was not fair for the healer of his sister, but he couldn't bring him to care at that particular moment. He had much more pressing matters on his mind.

I guess I could go to the Lowlands; there are fish, snapping shells, and eggs there. Well… and fastbiters. There's always a downside.

Mender tried to say something to break the awkward silence between the two but gave up before even saying a word. Eventually she decided to imitate Orchid and pretend to look for fish as well.

Oh who am I kidding? If Mender nearly snuck up on me then how can I avoid a pack? The fastrunner tossed a small stone into the stream, which skipped to the other side. Maybe I would be better off trying to live in the Barrens?

Orchid's now visible concern was not lost on Mender even though he was now turned away from her. Finally deciding that she was overthinking what she wanted to say, Mender walked over to Orchid. "If you want, you could come with us when we leave. At least until you find a good place," she finally said.

Orchid froze, immediately dropping the stone that was in his hand. He tilted his head but did not turn around. Uncertain about how to take his silence, Mender continued.

"We don't have anywhere that we really need to be right now, so I could help you get wherever you want to go if you don't want to stick with us..."

Orchid slowly turned towards the fastbiter as the reality of her words kicked in. Join a pack? Like… a sharptooth? That would help me, but… but…

"Why would you want a burden like me?"

The words left his mouth before he even registered what he had said. Despite his help during the incident with Dein and Terri, and despite everything else he had done, ultimately he was just a fastrunner in his mind. He could almost hear his father's words. A brave fastrunner is a dead fastrunner. Try to be a smart fastrunner.

But what was the smart choice here?

Mender couldn't help but stare at Orchid in shock, unable to believe Orchid would outright say such a thing about himself. "Is there a reason you think you'd be a burden?" she finally asked Orchid as calmly as she could.

The fastrunner looked down for a moment as he collected his thoughts. In the end, however, he simply spoke what was on his mind.

"I nearly killed my father. What kind of son does that?" His voice dripped with venom. "I should have thought of a different way. Maybe my voice would have carried if I had yelled? Maybe… maybe I could have done something else."

He sucked in a deep breath as he averted his eyes again. His voice came out in an accusing hiss, the anger fully directed at himself.

"I looked up to my dad, and I let him down. At least he can be proud of Arial."

"You think he has a reason to be proud of your sister? She nearly broke her leg to get between a hungry fastbiter..." Mender pointed at herself for emphasis. "...and her prey. In what way was that even remotely smart?"

Orchid recoiled as if he were struck. His voice came back in a defensive hiss, "My sister did what she could to help her love! Don't you dare bring her into this!"

Orchid didn't get so much as a warning before Mender slammed into him, knocking him over. She quickly followed it up by pinning him down. "Still think she made a good decision, Orchid?" Mender demanded angrily.

Orchid struggled for a moment before the hot breath of Mender made him snap back into reality, his composure instantly slipping. No coherent thought escaped his mind in that terrible moment of helplessness. Only words. Failure. Stupid. Trapped.

Before Mender realized it she had a sobbing fastrunner in her grip. Only a few words leaving his beak.

"If you're going to end it then please end it."

Orchid, you've completely lost me. "And why would I want to do that?" Mender asked much more kindly, "You're my friend, Orchid. You've got quite the beak on you, but you're my friend."

The fastrunner was silent for a few moments, only sobbing as if an emotional barrier had been breached. Even for a sniffer such as Mender's the smell of regret was overwhelming.

"How do I fix this, Mender? I didn't want to hurt anyone. I just want to be…"

"Like your dad?" Mender asked, "I think you succeeded."

Orchid's sobs ended suddenly as the stupefied fastrunner froze in shock, "What? How? My dad is honorable, I'm..."

"Just as honorable, perhaps even more so. You're actually bothered by your decisions when they don't go how you want. From what I've seen of your dad, I can't tell whether he's bothered by all this or not."

"More than you two could ever know."

In a rather bizarre move, Mender shifted from barely pinning Orchid down to moving to protect him as the new voice interrupted the scene.

Orchid choked out a response, quickly trying to hide his emotion, "Dad?"

The purple elder looked every one of his years as he walked towards the duo. The mist in his eyes was obvious as he gave Mender a placative wave, "Unfortunately, son, I think you got your idiocy from me."

You'd be right, Mender thought, barely resisting the urge to nod in affirmation.

Orchid tried to escape from Mender's protective guard as he walked towards his father. It was only when his father embraced him that he let out a surprised gasp.

"You're not a burden. But you still have a bit to learn."

Mender's reaction to seeing both fastrunners embrace was pretty much not to react. She just stared at the scene in front of her. I am seeing this, right?

"They are so much alike, aren't they?"

"A bit too alike if you ask me," Mender replied to Pearl, who had just walked up beside her.

The two fastrunners shared the embrace for a moment that seemed to stretch on into eternity, before Detras pulled back. "Mender, Pearl? Join us for a moment."

Mender glanced at Pearl, unsure of what to do. She felt very much like an intruder right then.

Pearl gave Mender a quick nod as she began to rush to her son's side. She was followed much more slowly and hesitantly by Mender.

Orchid looked at his dad with a confused expression, "Dad? How can you…"

"You did what you thought was necessary to protect your sister's love. How can I blame you for that?" Detras's chest puffed out in a bit of second-hand pride, as his son tried to maintain his composure. "But do you know what I do blame you for?"

Hearing this last, Mender couldn't help but look at Detras with suspicion. What are you getting at, Detras?

Detras met her gaze as he smiled and looked at his son, earning a glare from his mate.

Orchid, despite his best attempts stammered, "I didn't try to warn you? I didn't…"

A playful slap of his shoulders shut him up as he rolled his eyes, "You were just offered free passage by a fastbiter and her famous pack, but you decided to challenge her to a fight. Now as your mom will tell you, I am not the smartest fastrunner but…"

After seeing Pearl playfully hit Detras, Mender decided that fastrunners were truly bizarre. And yet they're still not the weirdest things I've ever seen.

"But I think you should accept the offer."

Orchid tried his best to not break down as he nodded at his father, "I will, Dad. I don't think I could escape from Mender in any case." he forced a smile in Mender's direction, but it was obvious that he was struggling to maintain his composure.

Mender gave Orchid a supportive smile.

Detras didn't even try to hide his wet eyes as his mate embraced his child and he stepped back for a moment, giving Mender a placative look.

"I hope you can forgive me for failing to teach you one lesson, son. But I think Mender might be a better teacher than I. And.. well… Nahoda needs to be taught as well."

Mender suddenly looked at Detras, startled. You want me to do what?

Orchid sighed for a moment before laughing intensely. "Dad, are you sure you don't want to just kick me out?" This earned him a playful nudge from his mother, as Detras laughed and gave his son a playful nip, "Mender, you owe our daughter one more favor, do you not?"

"Yes, I still owe Ponder another favor," Mender replied.

Detras's eyes gleamed as his son groaned, sensing what was coming, "And what would you consider Orchid and Arial's greatest fault?" Dodging his mate's playful nip he quickly added, "And Nahoda's?"

"Well, Nahoda seems to be an idiot, Arial likes Nahoda, and Orchid is a bit too protective of Arial..." Mender thought aloud, "Er... maybe I could have said that more nicely. Sorry, Orchid."

Orchid groaned as he shook his head. "I think you need to learn how to lie, Mender. I am sure Spotter can teach you."

"Why would I want to do that?" Mender asked, confused.

Detras laughed. "Well, a fair exchange I suppose. My son can teach you sarcasm as you teach him to avoid being hunted…"

Orchid's laugh caught in his throat as he protested, "Couldn't you just disown me?"

This finally earned Orchid a slap on his shoulder from his father. "Never. If you are ready to leave then that is one thing, but I will be damned before I let you, my daughter, or Nahoda leave without being as ready as possible."

Mender smiled at the scene before her. See, Orchid. You were worried about nothing.

As the three fastrunners embraced, Detras looked in Mender's direction, "Care to educate our children in how to avoid a hunt, Mender? I know you like to chase…"

This time Mender smiled with her whole body. Oh this is going to be fun.

Many miles away:

The fastrunner sprinted through the undergrowth as the panting of the fastbiter erupted behind her. She knew if she found the stream then perhaps its waves would cover her scent, but time was running out. The fastbiter was nothing if not persistent.

Said fastbiter tore through the shrubbery as if it weren't there, cutting down on the fastrunner's lead.

Shit! The fastrunner turned in a wide arc as the fastbiter followed her without delay. It was when she felt the moisture from the stream that she knew that she was doomed. Death was at her footsteps.

The fastbiter rapidly closed the gap, sensing victory.

It was when she could feel the breath at her back that the fastrunner finally knew her fate. With a heavy heart and a choked voice she said her last words...

"Alright, you win, Verant!"

...of the game.

Verant ignored the admission of defeat and made who won quite clear, tackling the fastrunner and pinning her down.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Ovie? You can't outpace a fastbiter," Verant lectured, "You've got to lose your pursuer, not outrun him."

Ovie groaned, only to coo with amusement as she heard the sound of numerous younglings landing on Verant's back, their blue and green forms periodically falling to the ground. In that atmosphere she couldn't help herself.

"Want to take your own advice, Verant?"

Verant just chuckled in response. "Gyors," he said to one of his children still climbing over him, "the idea is to land with your feet, not your head."

The small bundle of scales laughed as he hopped from his father's back to the fastrunner's, "But I got to you the fastest, Daddy!"

Ovie tried to restrain her amusement as the young predator hopped on her back with excitement, making her glad for her protective feathers.

"You know, Ovie, the kids need something more their size to chase," Verant suggested teasingly, "And you need the practice."

Ovie merely glared at her benefactor. "I think I will have more than enough things chasing me once my eggs come, Verant." She then looked at Gyors with more than a little amusement, "And what is your mother up to, little one?"

"I was trying to sleep," Staza responded as she walked up to the group, "Unfortunately, someone here has never met an obstacle that he'd go around when he could go over it." She gave a meaningful look at Gyors.

"I caught Daddy, Momma!" the youngling exclaimed, unaware of his mother's annoyance as Ovie carefully nudged him in his mother's direction. A brief glance between the mother and the soon-to-be mother communicating volumes.

"Well, since I'm up, who wants to go catch something we can eat?" Staza asked her children.

"Tiny biters!"

The screeches of the excited children were almost deafening as they all jumped onto their mother's back as if synchronized by years of training. It took only a moment for her and Verant to exchange a nuzzle before she disappeared with the children into what was certainly another hunt.

"And this is why I stayed away until your hatchlings had grown a bit, Verant." Ovie snorted with amusement, but sincerity.

"If you showed up too early Staza might have eaten you," Verant replied. They both knew what happened to the eggstealer that had tried to live up to its name at the wrong nest.

Ovie shivered, not directly addressing the incident that was imprinted on everyone's mind. "Well… am I getting any better, Verant? I don't plan on stealing any eggs from you, but you know what we are used for from time to time."

"Yes, hunting practice for whatever predators are nearby," Verant replied. His opinions on the effectiveness of fastrunners as spies were well-known. His opinion of Ignis recruiting them for such activities was even clearer.

Ovie rolled her eyes. "Well a good thing that I am going to be focusing on raising eggs then." She gestured at her belly. "But we are not as useless as you think, Verant." The reproach in her voice was obvious.

"I never said you were. You're just not good at hiding and observing at the same time. You're good at escaping when you try, but spying on predators? That's asking for trouble."

Damn it, Verant. I already had one father; I don't need another one.

"I'm sure Ignis knows what she is doing. She needs all the help she can get with the troublemakers." Ovie sighed. "Why can't they leave good enough alone?"

"They're hidden runners. It's what they do. They plot rather than act. If Ignis would let me I could clear this problem up with a few friends by the next new Night Circle," Verant said.

Ovie laughed as she gestured towards her nest in the distance, "I think she wants to keep the body count down, Verant. I know, I know…" She smirked at him playfully. "...it is a weird concept to you fastbiters."

"How would you handle it, Ovie?" Verant asked, "If you wait too long to act things might be far worse than had action been taken immediately."

"And if you take hasty action then you might have a problem that could have been avoided," Ovie muttered as she began to walk back to her nest, "Don't worry, Verant. I am sure there will be blood soon enough. Let's just make sure our pack is far from it."

"You won't get any argument from me there," Verant replied with a laugh. He sighed somewhat sadly as he watched her walk off. "I've seen enough to last a lifetime."

Ovie turned back and gave him a smile. "Well, let's hope that we have seen the end of it then. Have a good night, Verant."

"Goodnight, Ovie."

Hello again, everyone! It is nice to finally again have a chance to update this story. Between the hectic situation at work, an illness a few weeks ago, and duties with upcoming family gatherings, I have not had as much time to write as I would have liked. Nonetheless, I hope that this chapter proves to be worth the wait. And, as always, I would like to thank my co-author, Historian 1912, for his contributions to the latest chapter. His assistance with the last two scenes in particular were very important in allowing me to break through a case of writer's block with regards to the 'present' portion of the story.

DevoutRelic: You know me and my love of cliffhangers. XD Oddly there is not a cliffhanger in this chapter... but whether that is a good thing for the characters or not I will leave up to your imagination. d-; As for the roleplay, it is utterly huge at this point and still going on each weekend. And I have not really made too many modifications to the roleplay except to omit the occasional scene that doesn't work for pacing reasons, or to make the occasional spelling or grammar correction. A lot of the credit for this has to go to my awesome co-author, Historian1912, who has made the roleplay into more of a collaborative story writing exercise. I love how the story is turning out thus far, and I look forward to seeing how it develops in the chapters that are to come.

bryan mccloud: We will have to see how Wayward reacts to the sudden realization that this 'game' may not be proper for his audience. Though, yep, it seems that Spotter is looking for the ever practical solution to Ignis's little problem. XD He often things in the same way he hunts: strike unexpectedly, leave undetected, and enjoy victory.

Keioj6: Yeah, the speed of forgiveness was quite rapid, but as we see in this chapter the philosophy of Dodger's pack has been shaped through their experiences. This has led to more than one instance of culture shock between the packs. As for Ignis and the hidden runners, let's just say that is going to be an important part of what is coming. As Ovie asked "Why can't they leave good enough alone?". We will soon see things from the other perspective. Civil wars are seldom simple things.

gordhanx: Thank you for the detailed review as always. :) In many ways the last chapter (the past story anyway) was probably one of my favorite parts of the roleplay. It was interesting to capture the dynamics between Mender and Haven, Seeker and Ponder, and, of course, Tracker and Dodger. In this chapter we get to see a bit more of Mender's interactions, and echos from her past in the struggles of the present. Though I can certainly see where she gets her trait of tackling people to make a point. XD I think that Mender might still need a bit of work at her diplomatic skills even though they seem to get the job done. d-;

Thanks for the reviews, everyone! Though I have a lot coming up over the next few weeks (including some duties at my friend's wedding) I do hope to have the next chapter in a somewhat timely manner.