<USS Lovisa> The Walk to Adulthood - Occurs just before the 1st Departure from Sivao
- From: DrizzellaGL0n@xxxxxxx
- To: usslovisa@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, usslovisa@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 19 Aug 2006 05:59:59 EDT
Editor's Note: This log has been sometime in being published, but it was a
labor of love as a few of the Sivaoans herein are portraits of BELOVED cats I
have known. Particularly at the end.
My fellow authors and I NEARLY wrote a novel. I hope you enjoy our work.
Lt. Drizzella Glon and Counselor Joy Mudd made the decision to be recognized
in Sivaoan society as adults and for that they needed to WALK.
Being festival season Sretalles would be expecting new adults to be arriving
ANYTIME now, but at the moment there was a party of youngsters readying for
their own WALK. It made sense to join them.
Zel approached a young male with the coloring of a grey Mackerel tabby who
was packed and impatient to get on the trail. "Would you have room for two
more? " she asked, indicating Joy and herself. The young male looked at her,
warily," I am FetchesWater to Sretalles. Why would offworlders want to WALK?"
"For the SAME reason you Walk, to be recognized as adults," Zel replied as
she watched a long haired calico female fold usefuls to be carried. Another
female, white with tabby patching was carefully wrapping herbs and what seemed
to be rolled bandages into a pack. Into their midsts and THROUGH the
encircling crowd of interested adults of the village, bounded a handsome
silver grey
tabby, his chin and chest of a lighter shade with striping. His heart shaped
pink nose twitched as he looked around the crowd for something to catch his
interest. That proved to be food, as an older female, a pastel Tortie, came
through the crowd with a haversack of foodstuffs to give the young female
packing the herbs. The tabby boy reached to open the sack and got cuffed.
"Pouncer! That is for the trip cub!" the pastel tortie said, " you take
care of distributing this WhiteEars to Sretalles, else it will disappear in
the first day." She watched her son go over to a younger cub and ask to share
in what he was eating. Pouncer got a share that he then hissed at and moved
away with a growl to eat.
"Thank you PurrsLoud to Sretalles," White Ears said, tying the sack to
the small rack her backpack was attached to. Moonshadows to Ennien stood among
the surrounding adults reviewing once again the rules of a Walk for Joy and
Zel.
"You get no powered devices, no phasers, comm badges, only medical
supplies are allowed like sensors. You will be allowed your boots and clothes."
Zel made up a back rack similar to White Ears' pack and rolled 5 usefuls to
tie
to it, as Moon had explained they could take as many of the waterproof, warm
"Usefuls" as one wanted to carry.
Joy balanced her pack, pocketed her blade and made ready to move out.
She also visually scoured the ground for stones of a good throwing size,
thinking it a good idea to have some with her. She had earlier shaped a piece
of
flint into a cutting edge, that allowed her to smooth out a staff for herself.
Zel had finished tying the usefuls to her back rack, shouldered it and
adjusted the Klingon knife belt she wore. Hefting the mek'leth, asked, "Are we
all
ready to go?"
Each of the Sivaoan youngsters nodded, shouldered their repsective
packs, staff, spear or walking stick. "C'mon! Let's go!" Pouncer exclaimed
impatiently, tossing pebbles into the bushes. FetchesWater took the point into
the
Jungle Trail, when a Ginger Tabby female burst thru the circle of adults,
"Wait! Wait for me!" She was frantically stuffing articles into a makeshift
pack, made from a useful. She bent quickly to grab what items had dropped.
"AlwaysLate to Ennien, you are late!" FetchesWater admonished the orange
striped female, still tucking things into her pack.
"I cannot help it, I wasn't packed!" AlwaysLate ran a quick 'washpaw'
over her face as she shouldered her finally together pack.
"Remember Joy, Zel, no adult will meet you or help you. All must
survive or none are adult," Moonshadows told them with slightly wilting
whiskers.
She forced herself to brighten up as she added, "Take care of yourselves and
each other. May you walk in peace, and arrive as adults."
"We will be home on the Lovisa before you know it, Moon," Zel assured
the moping Sivaoan. Joy watched as Moon waved to the leaving party and slunk
away slump shouldered, "Find your own path Moonshadows."
The Walkers left the clearing and headed out into the Jungle, bound for
Vensre. The local "Welcome Homes" set up a great racket in the trees and
pelted them with a hail of nuts. " I presume others have studied the
navigation
as well.."Joy inquired of Zel who had let FetchesWater and Tanglefoot take
the lead.
"I have a basic idea of the terrain from having looked at the ship's
scans....I am being courteous letting them take the lead," was the reply.
"Well enough. If you lean your eyes left, I will lean right. Beyond
this, I cannot help but feel this is their voyage, not mine," Joy intimated to
the fit Argellian woman beside her. White Ears' white ears twitched as she
listened to the offworlders' exchange. She wondered about them, but kept her
own counsel.
"Keep up! Keep up!" FetchesWater called from the front.
"But we just started!" AlwaysLate whined from the back. Tanglefoot
paused to sniff the air around her, looking very serious, "Keep bickering, no
doubt the slashbacks will find us more easily." Pouncer bounded hither and
yon
past Tanglefoot,
"Slashbacks HA! I will SLASH THEM First!"
"You said that about Cloudy sky too, and he bit your ears!" AlwaysLate
reminded the silver tabby, who paid her no mind in his continuing foraging
search for food. The pink heart shaped nose twitching and inhaling snuffully
when he found something of interest.
"Why do I feel like I am back at the Academy?" Joy asked as she walked
along observing the Sivaoan cubs' banter.
"You kind of are," Zel replied in a whisper, in a normal tone,
commented, "This is EXCITING for me....I am a student of culture as well as a
scientist being the Xenobiologist." Zel cut a few leaf branches out of their
way. The
path was becoming less and less defined as their journey progressed. "This
is the Sivaoan Academy. Just is TRUE to LIFE," Zel continued.
"Perhaps. It is just that I am going through a negative feedback cycle,
much as Moonshadows is. While this is the case, I am just not sure this is
true to my life," Joy explained. Zel nodded while she continued to hack brush
and tall grass out of the way with her mek'leth. "Well...we are engaged in
the mission now," Zel stated, "These youngsters are counting on becoming
adults."
"So they are, Zel," Joy affirmed, still questioning her own presence on
this Walk.
At sunset FetchesWater called a halt when they had reached a small
clearing that seemed a good place to make camp. White Ears set up and tended
the
fire. Pouncer had raided a GroundBird's nest for eggs to add to the evening's
meal. Tanglefoot, Zel and FetchesWater made tents from a number of usefuls.
AlwaysLate went about gathering fruit and roots. Joy chose to gather firewood
in assistance to White Ears. FetchesWater also lived up to his name once the
tents had been erected. He had a question of the offworlder Joy, that he
just had to ask.
"You are "all palms" all over, how will you stay warm and dry?" He
referred to the fact Sivaoans did have bare palms on their hands as MOST
humanoids
do. Joy smiled as she replied,
"I am made in the image of humans, who make their fur, and take it off
and on with the seasons, or a need to wash." FetchesWater gave her a look of
dubiousness, so she elaborated, "Do you always need the same amount of heat?
Always need the same amount of fur? There is not only one way." Fetches
grunted his acquiesence.
" I will take first watch," he announced to the camp.
"I will take the second, if you like," Zel chimed in.
"I will second all watches. My kind do not require sleep," Joy informed
FetchesWater, who was still incredulous about the offworlders.
"We have to trust them FetchesWater," Tanglefoot said, her ears and whiskers
forward, reassuringly. Still not COMPLETELY convinced Fetches nodded when
AlwaysLate voiced her concern,
"You humans are numbnoses, can you smell danger Joy Mudd?"
"I have no nose for night air, but my eyes and ears are better than
many," Joy replied, "If I watch to the downwind, while another scents from the
up, we may be all right."
"IF we get eaten, I will not speak to you again! " FetchesWater
laughed, as evidenced by his looping tail.
"I shall strive to cause indigestion, Fetches Water," Joy smiled..
Zel had settled herself beside the fire listening to Joy and FetchesWater's
exchange. She was glad Fetches had finally decided that she and Joy were
alright for offworlders. She began cutting one of the usefuls she had packed
into
long thin strips. When she had realized she had forgotten to pack a rope,
she chose to sacrifice a useful for that purpose. Soon she found she had an
audience in Pouncer, who was ordinarily facinated by food, but the Klingon
style
blades she carried had caught his attention.
"What are those?!" he asked, his pink nose STILL snuffling as it did
around food. Zel picked up the heaviest blade and explained,
"This is a Klingon mek'leth, about half the size of a bat'leth," she
laid it down and picked up the next blade,"This is a dk'tagh." Zel drew the
dk'tagh from it's sheath and the mini blades just above the knife's tang
sprang
out at 45 degree angles. Pouncer drew back with a slight hiss when the blades
snapped. "The others are just balanced throwing knives that my fianc- uh,
mate gave me, "Zel corrected herself to a term she knew the young Sivaoan
would
understand. She continued cutting the useful into strips, but nearly
swallowed her tongue in mirth when Pouncer experimented with the Klingon blade
names, sounding like he was having a hairball.
White Ears, ever stoic, tended the fire, but her tightly looped tail at
Pouncer's language lessons, gave her away to Zel. Zel did her best to hide
her amusement at the young male by finishing tying the useful strips together.
Tanglefoot and AlwaysLate had loops in their own tails while they made up
"plates" of dinner on huge jungle leaves.
Joy and FetchesWater were conferring about keeping the camp secure
during the night and sleeping when AlwaysLate presented them each with a
leafplate
of dinner. Joy mapped in the faint light, the possible paths a predator
might take to stalk prey with a strong sense of smell. Looking further around
the camp, Joy marked in her mind the places they would have difficulty against
a
sight defending prey.
Zel having completed tying her useful rope, and eaten her share of
dinner, contentedly began singing an Argellian camp song. She knew her Sivaoan
companions would never forget the tune, so she strove to sing it correctly
though is had been years.
"I think it will rain tomorrow. We should sleep," Tanglefoot announced.
" I gather this is not the river-that-may-be-flooded?" Joy theorized as
the Sivaoans headed for the tent.
"This is not the bad river," Tanglefoot replied as she let the side of
the tent flap down. Joy and FetchesWater began their watch as the others
bedded down for awhile. Fours hours later, FetchesWater lay down while Joy
woke
Zel up for the second stint of nightwatch. White Ears took over for Zel not
long before dawn.
Nothing of consequence occurred until after the sun had come up.
Joy came alert to where a predator had made it's presence known, but
seemed to have sensed fire and chose to skirt around it. She did send up an
alarm that put White Ears on the alert at the firepit. Tanglefoot, did just
what
her name was, as she emerged from the tent. FetchesWater stepped deftly over
Tangle as she wrested her foot from her blanketing useful. AlwaysLate had
not yet been seen. Zel scrambled from the tent she was sharing with Pouncer.
A
strong nudge got the young tabby moving, but he entered the firecircle
yawning widely, that showed his fangs, " 'sit morning? where's breakfast?"
"Assuming that that big ball of fire is a sun, I think we can assume it
is morning," Joy mused, as the kittens milled about. She rose from her
post,"Yep. A sun."
"Sounded like a slashback... They may not come near the fire"
FetchesWater said, as he threw more flamables on the coals. White Ears stirred
the
coals further to have what Fetches threw on ignite faster. AlwaysLate finally
came out of the tent dragging her feet, and her spear end along the ground.
Joy
looked toward the sound, briefly, then away from the sound.
"WE are too exposed here," AlwaysLate volunteered, leaning on her spear.
"And you have a cave in your pack, AlwaysLate?" Tanglefoot asked,
prompting a sour look from AlwaysLate.
"Well, let's eat, and then move on," was Joy's solution. FetchesWater
agreed that was the most expediant thing to do and went to the stream
implimenting his cub name, while everyone took a role in breaking camp or
fixing
breakfast. Joy maintained the watch, Tanglefoot assisted Zel in cutting down
the
tents made of usefuls and WhiteEars passed out biscuit bars from the supplies
she had been given by PurrsLoud to SreTalles, Pouncer's mother.
Pouncer took his with a growl and gnawed on it while he rolled and tied
up usefuls. WhiteEars doused the fire, highly amused, thinking on
FetchesWater ALWAYS living up to his cub name and wondering what would he
choose as an
adult name. She also watched Pouncer, wondering if he would EVER be mated to
someone. AlwaysLate joined Joy on the watch, as she had not really unpacked
much. Feeling a bit more a part of the journey, Joy teased the young female
slightly,
" What? Aren't you supposed to be late?" The dark haired android smiled
without showing her teeth. AwaysLate thumped her tail as she replied, "I
can't help it I TRY to be on time!" The ginger female thumped the end of her
spear on the ground for emphasis as well.
Pouncer had finished his biscuit bar and was cajoling WhiteEars into
letting him have the spare, when FetchesWater stepped in asking her for an
accounting of the distribution. He then approached where Joy and AlwaysLate
were
standing. Joy had shouldered her pack and was showing AlwaysLate her now
completely smoothed staff.
"You must eat Joy Mudd," FetchesWater proclaimed, holding out the last
biscuit bar Pouncer had been trying to wheedle from WhiteEars.
" No, I must not. I was not built for eating... or being eaten."
Joy told him. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine." FetchesWater's tail
reflected his questioning of this. Joy continued to explain," I am a machine
built to look like an animal. I do not take energy from food as you do. And
yet
I think much like other walks-on-feet."
"Androids don't need to eat," Zel input as she nibbled her own biscuit
bar.
"We know machines from Vensre,"AlwaysLate commented, "they need power,
are you all right?"
"I have sufficient power assuming we keep moving. If the walk is very
much delayed, there could be problems," Joy stated. The conversation turned
much more personal when Pouncer, chewing on the biscuit bar FetchesWater
relinquished to him upon Joy's decline, asked, "How?"
Joy blushed a shade correlated to 32 percent and hurriedly said, "Um...
External power sources are inserted. It is not considered polite to ask
where." Zel felt it wise to cutoff further inquiry by announcing, "We can
answer
questions while we move..." and hustled Pouncer along the trail. Tanglefoot
checked to see that the fire was out. That brought WhiteEars to an ear
flattened hiss.
"I did that job Tanglefoot!"
"Better safe than singed fur," Tangle moralized to WhiteEars as she
disappeared thru the jungle foliage. Zel hung back, bringing up the rear so as
to
observe the young Sivaoans. Joy began marching slowly forward, again
focusing on the right flank. She was caught up in thought, beginning to
understand
an old saying about the difficulty of herding cats. When there was a commotion
on the left side of the trail.
White Ears, miffed, but moving, had been concentrating on being annoyed,
slipped down a slope off to the left. She grabbed with her claws, and slowed
her decent with a cry, "Nuts!"
"Hold!" Joy shouted for the others to wait, while she kept watch over
the bushes in WhiteEars' immediate vincinity.
"And they call me Tanglefoot!" Tangle smiled ironically.
"The better use of a staff," Joy philosophized, bracing herself. "To
give aid rather than cause injury." as she reached to allow WhiteEars to grab
a hold of her staff. The tabby and white female grabbed the staff end with
the claws of her right hand and pushed herself back up the slope with her own
staff in her left.
"I'm alright," WhiteEars chuffed, just at the lip of the slope. She let
go of Joy's staff, who then executed a deft back roll to her feet and took a
full 360 glance around for danger. Zel coming up from behind was impressed
with Joy's dexterity. She had in mind to invite the counselor to workout
sometime once they were back on the Lovisa. At the moment Zel offered a hand
up to
WhiteEars who was still on her knees. Pouncer was up ahead on the trail, his
tail full of loops, "Watch where you step!" he sniggered at WhiteEars.
"Watch where you stand!" Zel grinned, as she watched a bird high in the
trees let loose his waste right on Pouncer's head. He ducked away with a
hiss, highly annoyed. All Sivaoan tails except Pouncer's were slinky springs
of
mirth as they continued up the trail.
"Now you will have to wash!"Tanglefoot teased the silver tabby who
angrily charged toward a tree.
"I'll get that feathermess where it lives!" Pouncer cried, and began
using his claws to shinny up the tree.
"Oh THAT is adult, Pouncer! " Tangle admonished from the ground. Joy
positioned herself casually where she might have a chance to catch him, if
Pouncer fell, and yet, not directly under the "feathermess". Zel on the other
hand
took action, grabbing Pouncer's tail before he got much higher up the tree.
"You can hunt later down the trail....let's Walk!" Pouncer reluctantly
released his clawholds, jumping back to the ground and taking up his spear.
Zel clapped him on his back and gave it a reassuring scritch. "G'wan
Hunter..." She also slipped him one of her spare knives.
The Walking Party made good time, but at a brief stop Joy asked, "Will
we come to water shortly?"
"A stream by end of day, the Walk is routed that way, " FetchesWater
informed her," We may have a smooth walk, and this still smells like rain." The
latter statement echoed what Tanglefoot had said the night before. The clouds
rolled in from the West as they and the day progressed. The wind began to
accelerate, prompting Joy to put on the jacket she had brought. Zel, as well,
donned her Starfleet uniform jacket. Though to this point she had preferred
the sleeveless jumpsuit she had chosen for jungle wear.
"Are we close to where we can stop for the night?" WhiteEars inquired of
FetchesWater. She had been being more careful and placing her staff ahead of
her as she walked, but was approaching her limit of travel. Fetches sniffed
the air, "I smell water, we must be near the stream... the weather will be
bad. We will need tents."
" How many usefuls do we have between us?" Pouncer asked, finally taking
things a bit MORE seriously. Zel smiled catstyle, slowly closing her eyes.
The young male puffed his chest and twitched his ears proudly. Joy silently
pondered on the possibility of predators being found near water, but chose to
let the cubs make their adult choices, after all it was their world and their
Walk. Aloud, she said, "I brought a few usefuls. These might be shared."
"A fire may be possible if small and sheltered," Fetches continued to
lecture about the evening's plan.
" We might want to move quickly, then, for dry fuel and to start fire
before the wet," Joy stated, as she watched the sky and felt the wind increase
in velocity.
"I have 4 usefuls....it might be good to make ONE large tent, if tightly
secured," Zel suggested.
" Keep an eye for a good tent place, then," Joy said in response to
Zel's suggestion, "Or is it a place of tradition?" she inquired of the nearest
Sivaoan cub. None of them answered her though. They were caught up in their
own
issues.
"I hate wet fur! "AlwaysLate moaned.
"I see the stream, down slope! Not too near, it may rise!" Tanglefoot
called to the others. She rushed forward and tripped on a tangle of grasses,
demonstrating her cubname. The bundle of long haired calico disappeared into
the grasses hissing and making untranslateable growling noises. AlwaysLate
passed right by muttering, "Fuzz Brain."
"There you go! "WhiteEars paused, offering a paw to the flattened
feline. Tangle accepted the help with a nod and semi-closed smile eyes.
"Are you ready to walk, you two?" FetchesWater had turned around to see
what the rest of his Walkmates were up to. "The numb noses are more adult!
Let us make camp now."
Joy had gone on alert when Tanglefoot had fallen, but was now wandering
into the camp clearing, wondering if a fuzz brain was a kind of predator, or
yet another way the kittens address one another. Zel had taken her clues from
Joy's response and had been in a battle ready stance, but then realized it
was just the cubs having another interactive incident. She arrived in the camp
clearing just as FetchesWater made his comment about "Numbnoses." She smiled
widely at Joy.
Everyone pooled their usefuls to make the tent. Joy, keeping a constant
eye out for predators, had dropped her usefuls in the communal pile and
joined in the search for firewood. Tanglefoot chose to accompany her.
FetchesWater
and AlwaysLate staked out the tent feet, while Zel directed Pouncer in the
tying of the usefuls and using the minor knife she had given him in making
vine roping. WhiteEars gathered firewood in a useful on her walk to and from
the
stream to fetch water. She liked the idea of doing the chosen chore of her
possible mate. It was only a matter of finding out if the Mackerel tabby male
would want her for his mate. "Once this Walk is done," she thought solemly.
Joy returned to camp with a supply of fuels, from light kindling to
fairly heavy branches. WhiteEars dropped the firewood she had gathered beside
Joy's pile. It was only fair that another member of the party have a chance at
fire building since she had done it last night. Joy got an intense look on
her face as she wondered if this flint and spark business can be all that
hard.
"~Ah...only slighly impossible....~" was the android's inward
thought,"~feel more cat like already.~" it continued,"~ however, there is no
presence
of a tail.~" Joy smiled, and exhaled oxygen on the small fuels, slowly adding
larger fuels. "~ There is something to this burning of plants for heat
buisiness that can be satisfying, big chief fire Joy...~" her inner soliloquy
continued. She started considering the compromises involved in warming kittens
without burning tents.
Meanwhile, FetchesWater had broken out his cache of food to share for
dinner. "I brought tail kinkers!" he extolled. Zel blinked and closed her
eyes,
remembering Moonshadows' offer of tail kinkers. She liked hot and spicy, but
the spiny nuts were a bit much for her.
"Tail kinkers! My favorite!" Pouncer exclaimed, reaching out to grab
one. WhiteEars cuffed him for his rudeness, "Wait for everyone else!"
AlwaysLate
got out a pot and sliced up meat and fruits into it. FetchesWater added
water from a skin and a few tail kinkers, mindful of Zel's tender tongue,
since
he had caught her expression at the mention of the spice.
"Do you think the rain will swell the stream too much?" Zel asked,
addressing Tanglefoot.
"That is why we are back from the bank... but it looks like heavy rain.
We are lucky this is one of the Easy Walks," Tangle replied as she looked
out the flap of the tent, up at the sky's impending rain.
"Speak for yourself, Tangle," Pouncer mewed, as he clawed the dried bird
guano off his head.
Joy had finished building a successful fire and returned to the task of
PredatorWatch. She began by scanning the periphery. "~Storm coming through
means wind is apt to shift.~" she inwardly noted. Outside the tent, she
isolated the stalk paths appropriate to various wind directions and notes the
difficult points on the stalk for each. The difficulty lay in finding a
position
where she can keep dry while observing all the stalk approaches. Joy chose
what seemed to be the most advantages and returned to the tent to report her
choice.
"This is going to be a bad rain," FetchesWater intoned, his nose
twitching and his scruff having risen in concern, bordering on fear he wasn't
going
to show the others.
"Well, I'm good to minus one twenty centagrade. If the watches keep an
eye on what can be seen from the tent mouth, I'll cover the back side," Joy
told everyone gathered around the fire. She wasn't looking forward to what she
knew would be a wet night. Tangle foot thumped her tail and said, "Tonight
Joy Mudd you will have company."
"Appreciated," Joy responded, smiling toothlessly.
WhiteEars chose a corner of the tent and began making a bed of jungle
leaves thick enough to keep the water from her fur. Zel emulated this action,
but chose to put her back rack inverted on the ground so the water would pass
under the bed of leaves. FetchesWater did what would circumvent water getting
into the tent. He dug a small trench, moatlike, the perimeter of the tent.
Pouncer had been occupied with scraping the bird guano from his fur, left
the tent to go wash in the stream as Tanglefoot complimented Joy on her fire
making abilities.
"Very nice fire, not so big it will scorch the usefuls, but good for
cooking," she raised her voice so Pouncer could hear, "An drying out fuzz
brains!"
"It is very important to have dry fuzz brains," Joy said, going along
with the joke, but having concerns about Pouncer going out alone. Sivaoan
tails
looped in response to Joy's remark. Down at the stream Pouncer was a bit
disgruntled.
"Dry fuzz brains!" he muttered, as he bent forward to first drink from
the stream and then paw water onto his head. Joy, back in the tent, plagued by
thoughts having to do with "security red shirts" kept a sharp ear in
Pouncer's direction. WhiteEars felt the call to follow Pouncer, not liking
anyone to
be alone in the wild. It was a good thing she did follow him. She got in a
glancing strike with her staff at a Grabfoot making a spring at Pouncer's bent
head. All the Grabfoot accomplished was stepping on the silver tabby's head,
shoving his face into the water. WhiteEars yowled an alarm.
Pouncer, meanwhile, sputtered and turned over to fight back. He had a
thankful thought for Zel, using the knife she had given him and his claws to
slit the Grabfoot's throat. He also used his hindfeet to disembowel the lizard
too.
"Grabfoots!" Tanglefoot shouted, picking up her spear and rushing to the
little lizard and Pouncer,"I did not smell a colony!"
AlwaysLate jumped to the ready with her spear, "They must be migrating!"
Joy had already ducked out of the tent ahead of them toward the stream. The
dark haired android held the two Sivaoan females back, thinking too many
sticks
might be a problem. She continued to watch all directions unless White Ears
and Pouncer needed help. "If they are on the move, would we be in their path
where we are?" Joy inquired of Tanglefoot.
"I think it is a stray, starving.. or more would attack. They pack,"
Tangle assured her.
"Well... we pack too..."Joy commented, as she moved cautiously back to
her post. Tanglefoot and AlwaysLate stand guard with Joy, periodically walking
sentry. WhiteEars spent sometime beating the bushes with her staff to flush
out other Grabfoots, but found none. FetchesWater made a command decision
and began striking the tent, "We cross tonight."
Zel frowned, but began assisting him, "If you feel it is necessary."
" Between the rain and the possibility of migrating Grabfoots, we are
better off ACROSS the stream," he explained, not liking having to continue on
when even HE was tired.
"The fire won't move so easy..."Joy stated, beginning to look for a
branch that can be carried, so she wouldn't have to start from scratch once
they
crossed the stream. AlwaysLate was entirely too cheerful in this situation.
"If we move at night, we will get to Vensre early!"
"We're moving?!" Pouncer asked, disheveled and disbelieving. His fur was
in worse shape than from the bird guano. WhiteEars entered close behind him.
"Well.... I guess we don't need dry fuzz brains..." Joy muttered, as
she waited to see if ALL were in agreement about the move.
"Everybody bundle up in a useful and we will keep going...I have a rope
to get us across the stream," Zel told them all, referring to the rope she
had made from a useful.
"I will go with the rope first. I am male," FetchesWater proclaimed,
which brought a snort from Tanglefoot, "You are male so what? Raise a cub!"
FetchesWater responded with a chuffing sound, but left off raising his ruff.
Getting across the stream safely was the important issue at hand, he knew.
"In which case, who should go last this time?" Joy asked with a wink at
AlwaysLate, who commented, "Adults." She looked around at the gathered
Walkmates, "Adults. All or none."
Zel chose for the group, "*I* will BE the *Tail* because I don't HAVE one."
Joy bundled up, and started putting out fire, saying, "Very wet adults,
but adults..." Zel smiled and agreed," That we will be.... name choosing
after a goodnight's sleep."
Joy scouted out a likely spot for the Walkers to cross, taking into account
the best footing and level of the water. Even though it was shallow, the
water was running WAY FAST and the rain was coming down in buckets. Joy had in
mind to be the one to play out the rope considering her strength as an
android.
She made her way back to what had been camp. AlwaysLate was finishing
packing the usefuls that had made up the tent. "I should have fallen. Then I
could
have ridden a travois the rest of the way!" WhiteEars put her whiskers
forward in a smile at the comment.
"You'd want to be carried huh?" WhiteEars just couldn't fathom
AlwaysLate's seeming lazy method of getting thru life. It was one thing to BE
HURT on
a Walk, but to WISH it?! In her mind, WhiteEars thought,"~There is STILL
opportunity for a fall AlwaysLate. Cloudshape keep away! that we ALL make it
to
Vensre!~" AlwaysLate ignorant of WhiteEars' prayer, called,
"Usefuls when we get across!" Pouncer hissed at AlwaysLate while he
continued to wipe off Grabfoot guts, taking advantage of the rain, before he
wrapped up in a useful. Tanglefoot already wrapped in a useful came up and
lent
Pouncer a helping hand.
"Wash off first and I will help lick you dry." Pouncer raised his head
from where he had taken his right paw and wiped his face.
"You will?" he looked at her incredulously, but then spread his whiskers
wide as he thought about Tanglefoot licking under his chin. WhiteEars
twitched her whiskers in a feline eye roll. They had gotten to the edge of the
stream where Joy could hear Tanglefoot's offer.
"We aren't any of us going to have to worry about dry for a while." Joy
had been watching the stream rise with the onset of the rain. "This might be
best done sooner than later." FetchesWater came forward with Zel's
useful-made rope and handed one end to Joy. She accepted the end with a nod,
readying the coils to playout without resistance, but with little slack.
Unceremoniously FetchesWater charged into the rushing water with an unhappy
snort. It
was a struggle for footholds and twice he was grateful for the rope tied
around his waist, but he made it to the other side. Joy sighed when she could
release the braced stance she had taken on the more solid ground higher up the
bank from the stream.
"I made it!" FetchesWater shouted from the opposite bank.
"Tie off the rope....THERE!" Zel shouted to him, pointing to a nearby
tree. Fetches did so, while Joy searched for a decent anchoring point on her
side of the stream. Once she had tied the rope off, she bundled herself in a
useful and made her way hand-over-hand across the stream. AlwaysLate followed
close behind Joy.
WhiteEars went next, leaving Tanglefoot fawning over Pouncer. Tangle
noticed WhiteEars leaving and left off licking Pouncer under his chin.
"C'mon!"
She grabbed the rope and worked her way thru the water, spitting and
complaining about the WET the ENTIRE way. Pouncer followed with a disgruntled
GROWL
at, first the pleasant sensation had stopped and then the WET conditions he
had to endure getting across the stream.
"It is only a day if we hurry from here, Joy Mudd," AlwaysLate commented
as she watched the other Walkmates scramble up the bank. Tanglefoot resumed
licking Pouncer, it seemed to be an inordinate amount of time. Pouncer licked
the top of Tanglefoot's head and her cheeks in reciprocation and celebration.
"Then let us hurry from here," Joy replied, as she moved a bit
downstream with the hope no rescues would be needed. She paused to turn
around, staff
in hand, and pack over her shoulder.
" Can't you at least wait for festival?" she heard AlwaysLate complain
at Pouncer and Tanglefoot. WhiteEars had licked FetchesWater in celebration
and had given AlwaysLate a few licks as well, but stopped when Always voiced
the complaint.
"I understand it is better dry," Joy opined as she rejoined the party.
AlwaysLate did lick WhiteEars in return, but WhiteEars was paying attention to
FetchesWater who was watching Zel across the stream.
Zel brought up the rear, as she had promised to be "the Tail" of the
party. She actually untied the strong useful-made rope and drew herself across
hand over hand as Joy had. It was a test of strength, but Zel was GRATEFUL
that wrestling and pumping iron with Tajneteb (Chris) had become part of her
every day life. She reached the other side of the stream, having coiled the
rope
around her shoulder as she had drawn herself across. FetchesWater came down
the bank and offered her a paw to help her to her feet and up the bank.
"Up you go... do you want me to lick you?" he asked, his pink tongue tip
sticking between his lips. WhiteEars came up behind him, her ears beginning
to go flat in jealous anger, but they arose to normal when she heard Zel tell
him,
"That won't be necessary....I may have been a cub to Sivao, but I DO
have a mate." Zel smiled, an eye closing smile, as she thought of Chris and
how
much he would ENJOY this kind of challenging trip as a Shoreleave. She vowed
to bring it up to him when she got home.
"You Humans are strange..."FetchesWater said with an amazed look on his
face, he turned to the rest of the party, "If we hurry, we can be in Venres
by late afternoon... we will be tired, but adults!" WhiteEars standing behind
him, gave him a lick to test his reaction. She moved foward to give a
purposeful lick under his chin like Tanglefoot had been licking Pouncer.
Fetches
spread his whiskers foward in a smile that allowed the tips of his fangs to
show. He nodded and licked the tabby patch on the top of WhiteEars head in
response.
"I have been adult before," Joy said with a slight smile,"There are
other Walks on other worlds. I must admit, this one is damper than others."
"I hate wet fur!" AlwaysLate whined, stating the obvious, but she wasn't
exactly happy with suddenly being a "Fifth Wheel". The paired potential
mates still washed for a little bit, but ceased when the rain began pounding
harder. Zel handed everyone a useful to bundle up in and they continued the
Walk. AlwaysLate seemed to continue to pout when the pairs walked along
together.
"If we get to this festival, there will be a room, and they can get a
room?" Joy asked Zel, quietly. The Argellian looked at the Near Adult cubs.
Pouncer was stretching his neck as Tanglefoot once again was licking under his
chin.
"I believe so Counselor, I believe so," Zel responded slightly glum,
missing HER mate. The MOOD of Adulthood was an uncomfortable one amidst the
rain, but everyone kept moving. Joy did her best to cheer up the thoroughly
soaked orange tabby female walking by herself.
"As you pointed out, we will be early." Joy began gently, " Perhaps your
adult name could reflect that?"
" I suppose it could," Always cocked her useful-covered head, "I will
have to think on my name." The dark haired android smiled as AlwaysLate became
contemplative as they walked on toward Vensre. Pouncer had overheard this
exchange and dropped back to approach Zel.
" I want to thank you again for the knife. It saved me." Zel looked at
the delicate pink nose quivering as Pouncer huddled under one of the usefuls
she recognized as hers.
"You saved yourself young man. The knife is a tool and tools are only as
good as the hand that wields them. My mate is especially skilled." Zel said,
with a grin that was an inward leer. Again she wished that Tajneteb (Chris)
were here becoming an adult with her, but it would be good to come back to
Sivao for his own Walk. It would give Chris yet ANOTHER non-Terran name.
Pouncer looked at her blankly, not understanding ENTIRELY, but burst out with
what
he had been thinking.
" I am taking ZealousClaw to Sretalles as my adultname. I hope you like
it enough, to let me," his pink nose was twitching anxiously. Zel looked at
Pouncer and reached out with a hand to smooth his furred cheek. " I am
HONORED, little brother in claws. Here, hold up your hand in greeting," Zel
requested. Pouncer did so and Zel put her fingers between his. She squeezed
and
retracted her fingers while Pouncer did the same.
"Brother in Claws," Zel smiled again. Tanglefoot came over to see where
her mate had gotten to.
"What is THAT about?" she asked about the clasping of hands.
"Zel is my clawsister," Pouncer announced, with an amused growl.
"Really?" Tangle began to slink away dejectedly. Zel reached out and
biffed Tangle's nose lightly.
"*I* have a mate waiting for me at home. You are just as easily my
clawsister as Pouncer...er..ZealousClaw to Sretalles is my brother. Silly
cubling!" Tangle intook a surprised breath as she stared at Pouncer. He was
kind of
pleased with the reaction to his chosen adultname and nodded approval to
Zel.
"Let's get either to the village or somewhere we can DRY OUT!" Zel
enthused, ushering the two forward and onward. It was a LONG DAY, a LONG WALK,
a
STRONG RAIN and a GIDDY Company that entered Vensre village in the late
afternoon.
"We are here! and we are ADULTS!" FetchesWater loudly announced to the
village. There were Festival Drums and music sounding at the far end of the
village, but a few residents came foward to greet the new adults.
"Welcome to Vensre, former cubs, I, FineFur to Vensre, greet you!" a
willowy all white female greeted the Walkers. She spread her whiskers in
surprise to see Joy and Zel enter along with the five Sivaoan youngsters.
"Offworlders? You have Walked too?"
"Indeed, FineFur to Vensre," Joy replied, "I am Lawbound to Tiffany's. I
believe my Walkmates need to find somewhere to sleep for some hours. We
walked thru the night because of the rain."
"Through the night? Until now?" a classic Tabby female of some age came
to meet the party, leaning on her staff. She sent a young fluffy tabby female
to make a place for the Walkers.
"You are offering them a place, Treasure of the Heart? " FineFur asked.
She shook her head at the condition of the young adults, their fur either
plastered to their bodies or spiked this way and that.
"Yes, FineFur...I sent EvilOwlEyes to get things ready," Treasure of the
Heart told her, "Do you offworlders need to sleep too?"
"I don't," Lawbound to Tiffany's answered her, "but my companion does."
Joy looked at Zel, who smiled and then rubbed her eyes.
" I, ClawsReady to Kronos, thank you all! Point me to where I can get
horizontal."
"Just this way, ClawsReady to Kronos," Treasure of the Heart directed
the weary Adults to her tent of bright usefuls. They all tumbled onto cots and
into a deep sleep. Announcing adultnames would come later.
Other related posts:
- » <USS Lovisa> The Walk to Adulthood - Occurs just before the 1st Departure from Sivao
