Hey you guys! *waves at all you loyal readers* I was actually kind of excited to write this chapter, because something funny happens. But first I gotta give some credit to scoobs5601 because she gave me the idea for the first part of Mikayla's plan, and of course for letting Taz be in my story.
Enjoy this! I enjoyed writing it! And I've set up a poll on my profile on whether or not I should continue The Girls In The Ice Age, so if you could please tell me your opinion that would be greatly appreciated :)
Peaches sat on a rock ledge, watching Ethan and the Brat Pack down in the valley below. She'd snuck off during the process of organizing accomidation for the pirates, and no-one had noticed. Or so she thought.
"Hey, Peach."
"Gah!" Peaches leapt up "Man, Auntie Shira, you scared me."
"Sorry," apologised the sabre quickly, joining Peaches on the ledge "So, whatcha watching?"
Peaches giggled. "Oh, nothing..."
"Ethan and his mates?"
"...since when are sabres telepathic?"
Shira laughed, as Peaches sat down again beside her aunt. "Not all sabres are, as you should know from your uncle. Anyway, what's bugging you?"
"It's just... okay, I guess I oughtta tell you all this..." sighed Peaches, before explaining everything that had happened at the Gyro-Drop all those months ago. (If you don't remember, re-read chapter 1!) When she was done, Shira gasped.
"T-they, said that? About me?"
"Yes, but they were wrong! You're not a curse, honest!" Peaches assured her frantically, wishing she'd never even told her "I told them that! I told them you weren't bad luck!"
"Thanks, Peaches," she replied, smiling "You're a good kid. Now be a great kid and help me get back at that guy."
"Deal," said Peaches, cracking up at her aunt's determination "Okay so, what're you thinking? Like, a prank or something? Because, if we're going down the prank road, we might be able to get some help from Uncles Crash and Eddie."
"Hmm... prank sounds like a good idea, but-" suddenly, Shira had a great idea "Hey, did you tell Ethan I was gone?"
Peaches nodded. "Yeah, but I haven't told him you're back."
"Perfect," Shira grinned, her eyes twinkling with mischief "Right, now I've gotta go speak to Miss Tasmin." Upon seeing the look of confusion on Peaches' face, Shira added "Taz is short for Tasmin."
And with that, Shira disappeared into the bushes, Peaches right behind her.
Taz was sitting talking with Louis and Meghan, trying to figure out where Peaches could be, when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned to see an anxious-looking Diego.
"Have you seen Shira?" he asked her. She rolled her eyes.
"Hi to you too," she replied.
"I'm not kidding, have you seen Shira?"
"No, I haven't. Why?" Taz was interested now. Diego sighed.
"She went to get Silas, Boris and Flynn, but after she brought them here she must've wandered off or something, because no-one's seen her since," explained Diego, growing more worried by the second.
"Relax, Softie," came a voice from the trees "I just went for a walk, that's all."
"Shira!" he cried, running over and pinning her playfully "I was really worried!"
She rolled her eyes, and licked his cheek. It was then that Diego spotted Peaches, who smiled awkwardly and waved with her trunk. He blushed, and climbed off Shira, allowing her to stand again.
"Why were you worried? I was gone for like, four minutes!"
"Yeah, but last time you left you were gone for like, four months!" Diego pointed out, nuzzling her. Shira sighed; he did have a point. Then she spotted Taz.
"Okay, okay, Softie, point taken, but do you think you can let me out of your sight for about an hour or so?" she asked hopefully "I have something I need to do."
Diego sighed. He didn't want to let her go, in fact he wanted to take her back to the cave and keep her there, where she couldn't get hurt, but he knew arguing was pointless. She was stubborn, and if he took her back to the cave she'd just sneak out anyway. "Alright, but please be careful," he begged. She grinned at him.
"Of course. I wouldn't expect any-"
"And!" Diego interrupted her "I get a kiss before you leave."
She rolled her eyes. "Sure thing, Softie," she replied, before leaning in and pressing her lips against his gently. Satisfied, Diego licked her cheek and walked off. Shira smiled, and ran over to Taz, Peaches close behind.
"Taz!" she exclaimed, grabbing the possum's tail "I need your help!"
"And I need you to get off my tail!" snapped Taz "Oh, hey Peach."
Shira rolled her eyes as Peaches waved. "Remember those two snow wolf cubs you introduced me to the other day?"
"... Rhianne and Herbert?"
"Yeah, that's them," Shira blushed slightly, somewhat embarressed that she'd already forgotten their names "Didn't you have a special whistle to summon them?"
"Uh-huh, that I do," Taz brushed her fringe out of her eyes "Why? Whatcha need?"
Shira smirked evilly. "Revenge."
A sabre, two mammoths, a possum, a molehog and two snow wolf cubs gathered in a clearing, plotting and planning. They had a brilliant scheme for getting back at Ethan and the Brat Pack, but there was one major thing they needed to do first.
Nearby, there was a field of strange flowers that emitted a harmless, yet startlingly white, powder that clung easily to fur. It let said fur keep it's original colour, it just made it a paler colour, but in a certain sabre's case it made her already silver fur turn pure white, and her black stripes turn grey. After carefully rolling in the flowers, Shira did look seriously ghost-like.
"Alright, let's go scare some mammoths," said Shira, the devilish grin on her face making her even scarier.
"Uhm... Shira? I think you've already scared some mammoths," Taz gestured to Meghan and Peaches, both of whom were quite afraid of the sabre. Shira blushed, but it barely showed under the white powder.
"Sorry Peach," she apologised quickly, shaking the stray powder off her coat, so that none of it came off during the act, which would ruin the illusion. For the final touch, Taz drew a long, red line on Shira's side with berry juice, that gave the image of a bloody cut. And with that, the group headed off to the valley where the Brat Pack were hanging out.
Peaches stormed into the valley, Louis and Meghan flanking her. Louis had Taz beside him, and Shira, Rhianne and Herbert waited in the bushes.
"Ethan!" she snapped, cutting straight to the chase "I need to talk to you!"
Ethan rolled his eyes. "Ah, jeez. What now, Peaches?"
"Remember when Gutt captured Shira? And you guys were so happy about it?" Peaches glared at the mammoths as they nodded spitefully "Well, I hope you're happy, because she died on that ship!"
Ethan sighed. "Right, and you know this because..."
"I know this because, her ghost has been haunting our flamin' herd!"
After a short moment of silence, the entire Brat Pack burst out laughing.
"Her ghost?! C'mon girl, that's the oldest trick in the book!" laughed Steffie, who'd recovered completely from her Gyro-Drop accident.
"Burn!" yelled Drake, to which Meghan rolled her eyes.
"Laugh all you want, but we ain't kiddin'," she stated simply, shrugging. Louis nodded.
"Yeah, she's been tormenting us for weeks, none of us have been able to sleep! Especially poor Taz," Louis squeezed Taz's shoulders.
"I-I came across S-Shira's body a while ago, I think the monkey must've killed her with a sword or something, because she had a long, bloody cut on her stomach. So, I went over, and, and..." Taz trailed off, shuddered, and lowered her head to hide the smirk that threatened to cross her lips. Louis hugged her properly, patting her back and cradling her head.
"Aww, Weiner's got a girlfriend!" came a taunting voice from the crowd. This set off a chain-reaction of stupid comments, making both Taz and Louis blush. Peaches frowned in utter frustration.
"You know, we came here to warn you, but maybe that was a mistake!" she shouted above the noise "Maybe we should've just let you guys be haunted for the rest of your life, which may not be that long! Shira's out for revenge, she told us so! She wants revenge for everything you said about her, and she's not gonna rest until you're all-"
"Dead," finished Shira, emerging from the bushes. The afternoon sun glinted on her powder-coated fur, giving her a strangely spooky edge. All the mammoths were taken aback, surprised that Peaches and her friends had not been lying.
"I-is, a-are you..." stammered Ethan, not knowing what to do or say.
"Save it," hissed Shira, advancing forward, causing the mammoths to back up a bit as they were afraid of the ghostly sabre "You've put my poor neice through a whole lot of rubbish, and expected her to just keep coming back to you, which she did, because she's loyal. And then, because hyou idiots didn't listen to her about the Gyro-Drop, two of your moronic friends got badly injured, which they deserved, and you blame us?! Sheesh, and people say sabres are twisted."
Several mammoths attempted to flee, but one growl from Shira stopped them from doing so. Rhianne and Herbert both prepared to walk out. Neither of them needed any powder on their coats, but they had fake sabre-teeth stuck on with thick honey.
"L-look, S-Shira, I know we've been kinda, mean b-but please, we're, well I, I am, s-s-" Ethan tried to apologise, but Shira cut him off.
"Y'know, while you were celebrating my capture, I was being tortured! And more recently, killed! Murdered! And not just me!" Shira turned to the bushes "Kids!" she called. On cue, Rhianne and Herbert walked out of the bushes, Herbert limping for effect.
"Kids?!" exclaimed all the mammoths, suddenly feeling remorse for the ghost.
"Yes, kids!" she spat, cuddling them "They were killed before they were even born!"
"But Shira, it's not our fault that Gutt took you!" protested Ethan, regaining some confidence. Shira hissed.
"I'm aware. But you did celebrate my disappearance, and you have been horrible to my niece, so I still have reasons for revenge," she pointed out. A moment of silence passed, broken only by Taz's occasional sniffles and Louis's murmurs of comfort.
Just as the teens were about to run away, Shira spoke up again.
"And one more thing," she turned to Peaches, Meghan, Louis and Taz.
"PRANKED YA!" they all yelled. They then began to laugh, and Rhianne and Herbert spat out their fake canines. Taz stopped fake-crying, and high-fived Louis. Peaches and Meghan started giggling, and Shira bowed dramatically.
"Wait, what?" Ethan was the only one able to speak, as the others were either too confused or too afraid.
Shira grinned. "I got back yesterday, the herd saw me this morning, Peaches told me what happened, and I wanted revenge on you. Simple as."
"B-but, Taz was..."
"Acting? Like a boss?" suggested Taz, before high-fiving Louis again, and flicking her fringe out of her eyes.
"But, Shira's kids..."
"Are safe and sound back with their father, thank you," Shira finished for him "These two are some friends of mine and Taz."
"I, I..." Ethan looked enraged all of a sudden "I'm gonna get you for this, Peaches!"
Peaches rolled her eyes. "I have a super-overprotective father, a sabre aunt and uncle, and a crew of pirates looking out for me. I'd like to see you try."
Triumphantly, Peaches led her friends out of the clearing, but not before Shira gave Ethan and the Brat Pack an evil stare and a frightening growl.
As they were walking home, Shira was ambushed by a frantic Diego.
"Diego what are you doing?!" she struggled to ask, as Diego licked her over and over.
"I was really worried!"
She rolled her eyes. "You're always worried! I'm fine!"
"I know Shira, but one time you might not be fine, and I'll never forgive myself if I cause you any trouble again!" Diego kissed her lips, momentarilly silencing her.
"What do you mean, 'again'? You've never caused me trouble!"
"Yes, I have, if I'd never been so stupid that day you wouldn't have run into the forest and you wouldn't have got captured by Gutt," sighed Diego, nuzzling her gently. She rolled her eyes at him.
"Maybe not, but he still would've come, Diego! And Peaches and Louis would still be there, so they'd probably have been captured instead! And honestly, I'd rather I get captured then-"
"Stop right there," interrupted Diego "You didn't deserve to be caught by Gutt, okay?"
"I didn't say I did, I just said I'm glad it was me, not Peaches and Louis. Okay?"
Diego sighed again. "Okay, okay, I just care about you, alright?"
"I got it," Shira smiled "Now, let me up."
Diego nodded, and stepped to the side, allowing Shira to stand up again. It was then he noticed how white she was, only he didn't know about the powder, so he was confused.
"Shira, why're you so pale? You look like you've seen a ghost," Diego then reconsidered "Actually, you look like a ghost."
Shira grinned. "I know, that was the plan."
Deciding he wasn't going to get anymore explaination, Diego shrugged and nuzzled her. "Okay, should I leave you lot to it?" he asked. Shira shook her head.
"Nah, we're just about done. Right guys?" She turned to Peaches, Louis, Meghan, Taz and the wolf cubs, who all nodded "So, I am now free for you to stalk me."
Diego rolled his eyes. "I'm not gonna stalk you, I just want you to be safe!"
"Fine," sighed Shira "So, what do you want to do?"
"Hmm..." Diego studied her abnormally white coat "Well, let's start with clearing your coat off, because it's actually kinda creepy."
She nodded, and the two walked off together.
"Aww, they are so sweet together!" sighed Taz dreamily. Absentmindedly, she rested her head on Louis's shoulder. Peaches turned to Meghan and gave her that 'I-told-you-so' look, to which Meghan rolled her eyes.
Diego and Shira arrived at what Diego thought was a shallow pond. Shira stood at the edge, gently dipping her paws in the water, as she couldn't swim and was somewhat afraid of the water. Forgetting this, Diego thought it would be funny if he playfully pushed her in. But the pond was deeper than he thought, and the poor silver sabre couldn't stay above the surface for long. Panicking, Diego jumped in after her, also forgetting that he was scared of water too, and managed to get her to the edge.
"Oh man Shira, are you okay?" he fretted, cradling her in his forelegs. After recovering from her coughing fit, Shira realised that Diego had shoved her in, and she kicked him in the stomach.
"Why'd you push me in?" she demanded, as he rubbed his sore stomach.
"I thought the pond was shallower!" he protested, clinging onto the edge himself. She glared at him, and tried to knock him under too. This turned into sort of a splash-fight between the two, until Diego grabbed Shira's leg and pulled her under again. Seeing this coming, Shira took a big gulp of air beforehand, but still felt very afraid as Diego held her just below the surface.
Suddenly, she came up with a plan. She allowed herself to go limp, and Diego, even though he knew she was faking, still freaked and lifted her out of the water and onto the edge again. Seeing that she was alright, Diego kissed her on the head and squeezed her tight.
"Okay, let's get this coat of yours cleaned up, alright?"
Shira muttered something inaudible, but Diego assumed it was a yes, so he began to clean the powder off her fur. He smiled at her, but she still wasn't happy with him. He nibbled her ear gently, and she started to smile. Then, he tickled her slightly, and she suddenly started laughing uncontrollably.
"Ah yes, you're ticklish, aren't you?" he remembered, smirking.
"Stop it!" she begged, but she wasn't mad anymore.
Unknown to both sabres, Mikayla watched from the bushes, a smirk forming on her face. She ran to the valley where the teens were still hanging out, a devious glint in her eyes.
"Hey Ethan!" she called. The popular - and still quite grumpy - mammoth turned to her, not particulary wanting to speak to another female sabre.
"What?" he asked, not remembering her name.
"Did you hear about Diego and Shira?"
Ethan groaned. "Yeah, yeah, she's back and they have kids, so what?"
"Actually, that's not what I meant," Mikayla grinned evilly "Word is, they're breaking up!"
"They are?!" Steffie's eyes widened "But those two were all lovey-dovey before she got taken by Gutt, why're they breaking up now?"
"Not quite sure, but apparantly it has something to do with the fact that she brought those dumb pirates back with her. He really didn't like it," explained Mikayla "In fact, I even saw him try to drown her earlier!"
"Really?!" all the teens were astonished. Mikayla nodded.
"Yep, but when it didn't work he tried to play it off like it was just a game. Y'know, he told me he wants to break up with her ASAP, he said he had his eye on someone else. Whoever that is," she shrugged, but in her head she was excited. Her plan was working!
"Wow, who would've thought?" muttered Ethan.
"I know," Mikayla fake-sighed "But remember, you guys didn't hear it from me!"
They all nodded, and she walked off, smiling. She quickly darted into the bushes, watching the teens chatter about what she had said.
"Hey Jasmine, Tawni!" Ethan ran over to two gazelle fawns "Did you hear about Diego and Shira?"
Mikayla smirked. My work here is done.
*Le gasp!* Mikayla's spreading rumours about the sabres! Is this all there is to her plan? You'll find out soon, honest, but I have lots of homework to do. Man, I hate homework.
Mikayla: She's not kidding, she's been putting off her Geography project all week.
Me: *rolls eyes* Do I need to get Precious?
Mikayla: NO! DON'T GET PRECIOUS!
Me: Haha, sabre's are so easy... anyway, thanks for reading and please, please review! xD