Herding Along

[Gaeva Winged Unicorn]

OOC
While the RP still takes place in Deep Forest or the Wastelands people can join in, but once they lgo beyond that, RP will be closed (unless there’s a good explanation, or a non UV character showing up). This thread will span a RP time of about 6 months, so every now and then I’ll push the story along a little bit. Add whatever you like though, just don’t have them stray too far from their course ^_~

Meali (light blue one) is the human equivalent of a 14 or 15 year old in this thread. The twins about 9 or 10.

IC
It was night, nearing morning, but still pitch black all around except for the little light allowed by the stars in the summer night above. Three silhouettes moved quietly through the darkness as they made their way among the few sparse bushes and small trees on the outer edge of Deep Forest. The three youngsters were being remarkably quiet considering their age and lack of any kind of stealth training, and only now and then a small sound would escape from one of the two bringing up the rear of their little group, quickly followed by a hushed “Sorry!” Putting down their hooves as delicately as a cat they continued on their way, the two smaller ones relying on the larger one to show them the way in the dark.

Meali led her two half siblings through the dark forest, having gained enough experience of the local territory during her rebellious times against her father to at least have a good idea of the direction they needed to head to. As for the actual way, she wasn’t quite so sure about that as she appeared to be, which was mostly done on purpose to keep the young twins believing she knew what she was doing. Mostly she knew what she was doing anyway, so it wasn’t that far from the truth.

”I still don’t get why we couldn’t at least say goodbye to aunt Gaeva, she’ll worry about us!” came a soft voice from behind her, making one of her ears swivel back. Jahran again. That black colt had been repeating pretty much the same thing the whole night now. Meali sighed with all the experience of being almost a whole year older than the other two.

”If we did that, she’d try to stop us, Ran, now please stop it!” Meali whispered back to him without turning her head, or bother to slow down their already slow pace. She’d taken to calling him by the nickname his twin sister used for him as well.

”Yeah, we can’t trust an adult right now, it’s just us kids,” the golden filly piped up softly, but not softly enough according to Meali, so she gave her sister a quick snort of warning.

”Sorry,” Zahli added in an even softer voice before continuing, ”But yeah, especially if they’re related to us we can’t trust them anyway. First mom abandons us after she promised to follow us to Deep Forest, then “father” disappears on us just like that as well.”

The young voice, while kept low, was obviously filled with anger and resentment. Meali lowered her eyes for a moment as a pang of sadness shot through her. It had been months now, months since her dad disappeared. Nobody could tell them where he had gone, it was like he had just vanished. And worst of all, the Meadow of Peace had suddenly become unbound, losing it’s protective shield just like that. Meali knew what that meant for one of their species, knew it very well. Such a bond could not be completely broken without a death being involved. But how? And why was there no body? No claim to have done the deed? She longed to know who had murdered her father, burned to release her anger on them, but nobody spoke up. And she refused to believe it had been an accident, like tripping and breaking his neck or something. He wasn’t the sort to die of an accident, not her dad. If he was going to abandon her like that, in such a final way, it must have been because somebody made him. She had to believe that.

The foals moved on until they finally reached the area that could no longer be clearly defined as either part of the forest or the wastelands, and halted without a word from Meali. This was it, this was their last chance to turn back. Meali hesitated.

”We have to do this…”

Surprised Meali turned her head to look at Jahran, who had spoken. It was uncommon for the black colt to speak so decisively. Her eyes had trouble picking up his dark coloring in the night, but she could sense his presence, his mind, and knew where he stood.

”We have to do this, for mom, and for dad,” he continued in that same decisive voice, ”Grandmam and grandpop deserve to know what happened to dad.”

Meali agreed in silence as Zahli did so out loud. She looked over at the golden filly, her coat clearly visible in the dark except for the small black patches along her wings. They indicated the filly being able to fly. Meali had actually been present when the twins had been taught how to fly by her aunt and some friends. And she’d resented her father for not being a part of it. Not being present for such an important moment in his kids’ lives. They deserved better. So much anger.

As her aunt had grown more and more overprotective of the foals, Meali had put more and more effort into making sure the younger two still had fun. This of course involved a lot of sneaking away, something her aunt wasn’t very happy with, and strained the relationship a bit between the two females, but they still managed. Her aunt simply couldn’t get mad at them for very long, her grief over her brother wouldn’t let her. Meali the sad orphan. She hated the idea of it, it made her sound so pathetic. Not that anyone actually called her that, but still, she hated it.

And that was why they were now leaving, sneaking away in a way that even her aunt Gaeva may not forgive so easily. She was now officially an orphan, without a mother or a father, but her siblings, her half sister and brother, they might still have a mother. Nobody knew what had become of the mare, no word had ever reached them, and now Meal intended to find out. She’d make sure at least her siblings would still have a parent. A mother still alive.

And as agreed upon, their grandparents -her father and aunt’s parents- needed to know their son was dead.

”You’re right, we’re doing the right thing.” Meali finally said, a little louder than she realized.

”And we’re the only ones who can do it,” Jahran said with that strange conviction she normally didn’t hear from him. And she had to agree with him once more.

”Yeah. Aunt Gaeva wouldn’t understand, she’s still too sad…”

”Too suffocating you mean,” Zahli interrupted her, using the term she’d been using so very often lately since learning what it meant.

”Whatever, but she would never agree. So we leave now or never. She sleeps at this time so she won’t notice we’re gone for a while. But if we hang around for too much longer, somebody might see us and rat us out too soon. She’ll catch up before we’re too far away to do so. We have to leave now.” Meali said decisively, and started moving again. She saw Zahli nodding silently, and assumed Jahran was doing the same thing, she couldn’t see in the dark. Determined the light blue filly led the other two forwards, to the wastelands, and away from the only home she could clearly remember. They had to be quick, and they had to be quiet.

[forgerofsouls]

Unforntunatly, no matter how hard they tried to keep quiet they managed to fail. They also managed to not notice the large beast sleeping near one of the last trees they passed. In his sleeping state he looked dangerously harmless. His three eyes closed, his head resting on his forepaws, his tail barely wagging back and forth. In the starlight his white fur with a black stripe running down his back from tail tip up to split to his ear tips seamed to glow. But his horn, alot like a unicorn's horn, but clear and translucent, perhaps because it seamed to be some sort of gem, truely caught the starlight, the horn becoming illuminated. Indeed, for being a horse sized wolf with a deadly horn, a third eye, and teeth and claws made from what appeared to be diamond, he looked very peaceful and harmless.

But, again, the small amount of noise reached the ears of the large wolf. His ears perked up as they caught on to the sound of their voices and light steps. They were doing very good at staying silent, but even so, they did not manage to sneak past a creature who was aware of his surroundings even while asleep. Slowly the large head lifted off the paws and orinated itself towards the three young unicorns. Then the two blue eyes opened up slowly, catching the starlight they seamed to light up. Then finally the third eye opened up, the eye entirely silver in color. The wolf gave a big yawn stretching out its jaw as it stood up on its legs, stretching out its legs as it stood.

His understanding of what they were saying wasn't complete as he was just now waking up. But as he thought about it he realized what they were saying and decided to investigate. So he started to follow the young unicorns. He kept his distance so as to not alert them to soon, hopping to hear more of what they were saying. This way he could make an appropriate decision as to what to do. Young creatures should be with their family at this time of night, not traveling. So depending on what he would understand from their discussion would dictate to him how he should handle the situation.

Indeed, while they were nor Leichter Wolves, or even creatures he knew, the primal parental instinct in a Leichter Wolf would not allow them to harm a young one, nor would that instinct allow a Leichter Wolf to allow a young one to come to harm while the wolf has the ability to help out. In a strange sense Leichter Wolves could be seen as nature's nannies. They tended to the young of all sorts of creatures. A pack almost always had a few young ones that were not Leichter Wolves. So to see young ones up at an hour they should be sleeping safely with their family bugged not only him, but set off to many alarms from his parental instinct. Indeed, Silver was on the prowl...to prevent something bad from happening if at all possible.

[Lady-of-the-Rings]

It was cold and she was starting to really hate this weather. Who could ever get used to this she thought. She preferred the summer, she hated to bundle up all the time. And it stressed her out that she couldn't get the herbs that she needed. She would have to make due with out.

She was, at the precise, moment sitting in a tree lazily watching everything pass by her. She, at times, missed her home. It had been several years since she last visited it and wondered how the others were doing. She mostly wondered about Brian, her older brother.

She loosely dangled her right leg over to her right side of the branch she was sitting on. It was better than sitting in the snow. She didn't wear any shoes, but was wearing her jean jacket, pants, and blue shirt and a black scarf along with her duffel bag.

She hummed for a bit, wondered when she would see a new creature wandering about in this forest. She chuckled as she heard several voice coming near her. She stretched, grabbed her bag and jumped down from the tree landing softly in the snow.

She walked towards the voices. What she saw, she smiled as a some unicorns were walking by. She went and walked up to them. She had seen these type of creatures before one of her many journey in other dimensions.

"Hello there!"She said to them with a smile on her face. "Where are you all going? If you do not mind me asking?"

[Trick]

The black wolf lay asleep beside a tree. He was completely hidden in the shadows of the night and couldn't be seen even with a skilled eye. It had been a good first day in his new home. He had met a few animals, one of which being a species he hadn't even come across before. He had spent the rest of the day exploring the forest and when night fell, his exhausted form just couldn't possibly keep going. He collapsed beside the same tree he was now and fell into a deep sleep. Nothing could possibly wake him up now...or so he thought.

Light whispers entered his ears and seemed to arouse him from his slumber. Had he been dreaming? He could have sworn he had heard something whisper, nothing but silence greeted him now however. The groggy wolf lifted his head and scanned the trees and bushes for any movement. Nothing, nothing but the dead silence of night and the wind rustling through the trees. That must have been it, the wind. It was just the wind playing with his senses that was all. Shuin rested his head back on his paws and closed his eyes. Only when he was but a second away from falling asleep, did he hear another set of whispers. Shuin's ear rose up on his head to make sure it was truly something alive and not the wind playing with him. As he got bits and pieces of a conversation he let out a loud sigh. Whoever it was, wasn't alone and surely wasn't going to stop talking any time soon. He slowly got back up onto his feet and shook his fur coat to get all of the dirt off. Another whisper followed by a snap caught his attention. Whoever it was, was trying to be quiet but kept messing up.

Shuin pinpointed the exact location of the group of whispers and teleported a few feet behind them. He was still hidden as he watched them move about and talk. They looked like horses, but small and with weird coloring. Whatever they were, they were alone and without an adult nearby. Seriously, did all the young creatures here wonder off alone without an adult around? Did they just want to be eaten? To become prey? Especially at night when some of the worst things came out to eat. Shuin knew all too well what really came out in the night. His pack pulled off night ambushes, most were successful and only a few ever escaped their traps. The wolf just shook his head. It seemed as if this group was asking to be ambushed. He started to leave but something stopped him. He had become curious, curious as to why these young ones would pull something this stupid and risk their lives. What could be worth their lives? He started to follow them, lagging behind them and staying hidden all the way. Unlike the weird horses in front of him, he knew how not to seen and heard. Having night vision also helped the wolf follow the small band.

Then a familiar voice called out to the group. It was the rabbit-human he had met today. A light smile crept up on his face for a few moments before it disappeared quickly. He teleported beside her and walked towards the group as well. "If you were trying to get ambushed, this is definitely the way to do it young ones. Yes, why do you risk your lives in the night?" Shuin asked curiously. He hoped he wouldn't startle Maylene. The stars did very little to outline his shape beside the rabbit-human, and he doubted they would be able to tell exactly what he was.

[CrhisaHoa]

<center><font color="ffc309">"They're rather determined about something, that's for sure,"</font> a new voice carried through the clear, crisp night air. <font color="ffc309">"At least, the two foals are. Oddly enough, however, I'm not picking up much from you, young mare. Or maybe, not so odd... Hmm..."</font> The voice trailed off into a short, vague hum, though a wordless mental question was directed in the older filly's direction. A white and gold mare stepped out from among the trees, her bright colors almost seeming to glow in the dark, a sculpture of snow come to life and gilded with sunlight. A gentle, steady - but this time very real - glow shone from her alicorn, casting just enough light into the shadows before her for the mare to pick her way without tripping.

<font color="ffc309">"I'm rather curious myself, actually,"</font> she continued, studying the three foals and falling into step with them and the others. <font color="ffc309">"And the good wolf has a point, as well. The war may be over, but it's generally unwise to wander the Forest alone, most especially the Edge, and certainly more so in the dark by younger creatures."</font> The mare lowered her head to their level and winked. <font color="ffc309">"Still, I probably shouldn't be saying anything, as I'd be back in my house in the Village star-watching if I had any sense. Of which my brother repeatedly has told me I have none, which occasionally proves true."</font>

She raised her head again to survey the odd party, paying particular attention to both the wolf she could see and the wolf - or canine, at least - she could sense only with her mental abilities, mostly the latter. Crystal could sense no malice or anger, and came to the cautious conclusion that the one behind was no intentional threat at the moment. The one in the open, following the group, she wasn't too worried about, either; She could detect no more active danger from that end than she had from the other. The rabbit-anthro, unless she possessed powers Crystal had no knowledge of - which was more than likely, actually, with the way things went in Deep Forest - was also harmless, or at least likely was to Crys.

Still, she had no intention to let these young unicorns wander off on their own. Her maternal and protective instincts were stirred awake at the sight of children of her own kind alone even on a warm night such as this, with only a female anthro-woman and a male wolf for company, with another wolf following along behind as if he didn't want to be seen. Crystal had learned to be cautious and wary in Deep Forest, and she would stay with the youngsters until she knew without a doubt that they were safe - or at least, as safe as they possibly could be.

<font color="ffc309">"Still,"</font> she said after a moment filled with these quick, flitting thoughts, <font color="ffc309">"if you'll pardon the repetitive question, what are you three doing out here alone in the dead of night, at the Edge no less? Won't your family be worried about you? Or are you here with their blessing?"</font> Her ears pricked, waiting for an answer, and she kept a keen Empathic watch for any dishonest energy.</center>

[Roose Hurro]

As usual, the Pathways between Gates made twists and turns in apparent random, but Bem knew where he was going. Deep Forest had lately become his most frequented place of visitation, when he wasn't home, on World. Home, to see and play and feel awkward around Gazelle. Only, more and more, he felt less awkward around her, though he still had some way to go, before he'd feel calmed and settled. Fully aware not just in mind, but in body... aware of what it meant to be male. Ready to seriously court a female. Presently, though, Bem still had to deal with the confusions of being young and emergent. His focus, right this very moment, however, dealt with the weft and weave of Pathways, that last twisting spiral and brace of senses tearing a hole in the Universal Fabric.........

In the wee hours before morning, a rip tore open the air out over the Wastelands, and the young Fyr Fyr's golden-skinned form slid through on widespread wings, his warm insides a-tingle. His reason for arriving so early, to see the sunrise over Deep Forest, again. A single yellow star, as it arose over the Mountains. Bem had found a charm in that view, the way this world's early morning sunlight felt on his sensative hide. Not the same as his night spent in shared warmth with Gazelle. Under the light of three moons, just off the bay, in a small, soft, dry nest. Them, together, alone. No, nothing happened. Nothing could happen, for decades yet. But it was still the closest intimacy he'd spent with her, in some time. Not only this night, no, but for the last ten nights previous. She'd even understood his leaving, and nibbled his ears as her goodbye when he'd stirred, before she'd returned to sleep. After all, he was GateKeeper, and needed to travel where she couldn't follow. That didn't keep her from caring for him. For loving him and wanting him, even though they weren't formally courting. Yet.

A deep breath took in the crisp summer air, filled with familiar scents. Wingbeats strong and steady, the rip behind him closed as quickly as it had opened. Dark amber eyes, bright and observant, not at all dimmed by the dark predawn. Enough light from stars for him to see, despite the moon's absence. Bem had time before this day's dawn to enjoy flight, to feel his muscles work, as air passed over his body, and moved under his wings. So alert after the night's rest and his Passage, his Mindstone glowed enough to light his face. As if a blue-lit lightning bug perched between his eyes, teased by his mane's forelock. Wind of his flight swirled around his ears, as his head moved. Yes...

... he'd spotted something, way down below.

No, he hadn't caught scent yet. Didn't need to, really. His excellent vision had clearly seen enough to pique his innate curiousity. What would Meali, Jahran and Zahli be doing out at the Edge, so very early in the morning? Not only that, but he'd recognized Crystal, even though he'd never met her outside of school. Of course, he hadn't really encountered the other three outside of school, either. In fact, he'd not been back to Deep Forest for the last few weeks, business elsewhere keeping him... well, busy. Conversations with his mentor, Roughshod. Nights snuggling with Gazelle. Days spent sunning and playing and eating skytree fruit, when Roughshod let him loose between debriefings.

Bem had seen and scented but hadn't yet formally met the rabbit female, who had arrived last Winter. The others also part of this group, the two male canids, one exposed and one hidden, he hadn't seen either before now, as the group came fully out from the trees. Oh, his innate curiousity? It turned his flightpath into a wide, sweeping circle around the group, as his sharp eyes gathered starlight and reflections, and his ears heard voices in conversation, even as high up as he flew. Each circle he made, though, grew lower and lower, till he swept one more time over the trees...

... and landed a short distance off.

Bem slowly and carefully walked on all fours as he approached the group, his body exuding a relaxed grace, wings loosely folded, ears in a neutral pose...

... "If I'm guessing right, I'd say this looks like a roadtrip, but nobody packed any clean socks...."

With his last few words, Bem nodded his head and clearly yet quickly aimed a studied glance at all the feet present.........


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Gaeva Winged Unicorn]

This was the crucial moment of leaving the forest undetected, to be far away by the time anyone noticed their absence, and all of Meali's efforts were going into being as inconspicable as possible, keeping her steps soft, her mind completely walled up, and watching her siblings every move to make sure they would also remain unseen. Not being familiar with this sort of physical sneaking about, the light blue filly was having a really hard time with it, and was actually feeling her bodyheat turning up. If she wasn't careful, she'd be smoking out of her nostrils soon, and that would kind of give her away to anyone with a good sense of smell!

Trying to force herself to relax, and failing, the filly's mind picked up the approaching presence right before Maylene spoke. Startled badly Meali's legs froze up in a sudden stop, quickly trying to decide if it would be possible to pretend they weren't heading to the wastelands at all. Zahli and Jahran, less capable in picking out others in the dark night, both gave a little shriek, their high strung nerves making them overreact to the rabbit's sudden appearance.

"We're just..." Meali started slowly, quickly going through the potential options of "just taking a walk", "just going for a quick snack", "just looking for our parents", when Shuin made his rather sudden appearance at Maylene side. For a moment Meali thought he had materialized out of nothing, his black fur having masked his approach, when she realized he really had materialized out of nowhere, as she would have been able to sense his presence otherwise. Startled once more, and after a traumatic event a year past or so involving a wolf, the filly stared at him as he too spoke up, and slightly leaned back as her mind tried to sort him into dangerous or not dangerous.

"Risk our lives?" she repeated, and felt her heart slow down a notch again after the double scare, "We're not risking our lives, we can take care of...we're fine," she said a bit out of breath, feeling a bit insulted, and absently noting that her body heat was still rising from the tensions. She shouldn't make them look suspicious, they were just talking a walk, nothing dangerous or doing anything against the rules, nope!

A brush against her mind made her aware somebody else had shown up, and she turned her head and saw someone familiar, one she had seen in class before, though not as young as most of the others in school. The mare's words made it obvious she had been the one to touch Meali's mind. She didn't mind that, normally, but right now she didn't want anyone figuring out what they were doing and possibly alerting her aunt. She tightened up her mental walls, while her eyes flicked to her siblings for a moment. Nothing she could do about them though.

Another familiar mind, voice and appearance joined them then, Bem, also from the forest class, before Meali could find a proper reply to Crys. One thing was for sure though, the white mare had calmed Meali's stung pride by along by calling her a "young mare". It made her feel more important, less foolish. Normally Meali would have laughed at Bem's silly comment, but besides her not knowing what "socks" were, she was still feeling restless, and a little bit trapped now with so many others looking at them, that she didn't even consider it.

"We're..." she started again, wondering how to best phrase this to get them to leave so she and her siblings could keep moving quickly, when she was interrupted.

"We're leaving the forest for a bit," came Jahran's reply as the black foal took a step forwards. Meali admired how he managed to keep his voice from sounding too nervous, as she could pick up he was feeling anything but confident speaking to this little gathering.

"And don't worry, we have permission," added the golden filly confidently. To Meali susprise, and suspicion, Zahli did not feel nervous saying this at all. In fact, if Meali hadn't known this to be a outright lie, she would have believed her. How in the world did Zahli do that?? Meali's paranoid mind leapt to several conclusions at once, none of them favourable, and all of them involving them getting caught any moment now, when she told herself to get a grip. There was no way Zahli would have alerted Gaeva only to try to sneak away herself as well.

Still confused she faced the "assembly" again and tried to smile. She hated her light coat for a moment, her facial expression would be so much harder to see if she had the same coloring as her brother. "So yeah, we're fine...and leaving...and, we're in kind of a hurry too. So if you don't mind?" She tried to step around Maylene and Shuin, smiling her most innocent smile she could muster as her heartbeat increased once more. One of her ears twitched as she heard her siblings taking her cue and moving as well behind her.

"Thanks for your concern though!" came Jahran's honest voice, nearly making Meali burst into nervous laughter. Yeah, "thanks" indeed for scaring them silly!

[Lady-of-the-Rings]

Maylene had noticed the other people there and was somewhat glad for that comfort thought. She had a feeling that things were not as they seemed with these three young unicorns. "Perhaps it'd be best if I stayed with you." She said with a smile as she started walking with them, she then noticed another unicorn that wasn't part of the herd and she smiled at her. "I am a healer after all." She took off her jacket tying it around her waist as it was warm.

[forgerofsouls]

Well, now things were getting interesting. New faces have joined the crowd. And they all seamed to be friends of the unicorns. Except...Silver could tell that the three were lying. But why? But he had heard enough to devise a plan. This way, the three unicorns would be supervised, and yet they can do what they wanted to do. But first things first, he had to approach the group and stop hiding. So, he ran towards the group coming into view of the entire assembly. "There you are! You were supposed to wait for me!" He yelled out, the noise coming from his horn, concern obvious in the words, with a touch of a delicacy to the noise. He had heard them talk about an Aunt Gaeva.

"Your Aunt decided to send someone with you, she had told you she would and told you to wait for that person. Sorry she didn't tell you who she was going to send. Oh, and greetings to all of you, I am Silver Sight." He finished his own lie. If anything, if caught it would be worrisome. But, if it passed, than the others would think less of the situation, and then the three would have no option but to allow him to accompany them. And still, perhaps, it would be best for him to travel with them, who knew what they would encounter on their way.

[Trick]

Shuin stared at the weird horses, their story didn't sit right with him. Leaving the forest with permission in the pitch black that is night? Shuin found a few things that were off about this. A parent that let their young ones wonder away alone was ether a bad parent or one that was very confident in their little ones ability to survive on their own. Letting them leave in the dead of night, alone, was also the mark of a bad parent. Ether that, or they wandered off without the parent's knowledge. Now that was more likely, but Shuin knew he had to consider all angles.

The sudden arrival of another weird horse startled Shuin but in no way did he show it. She was right, he could feel the determination coming from the young ones. She then mentioned a war. What war? There had been a war in the forest? Good thing he came after it or who knows what might have met him when he arrived. Shuin then tried to pick up their emotions. He was drawn more to the speaker then the others. She was stressed about something and if she didn't calm down she might explode. She also gave off a hint of fear that would soon fade away only to come back a few seconds later. Something was out of place and their emotions backed up Shuin's assumptions. Though, the other two seemed rather calm and their words never faltered. Their determination for whatever their goal impressed Shuin.

Shuin's attention was momentarily distracted as the new creature flew down to them. Whether it was a threat or not was the first thing to run through Shuin's mind. After hearing what it had to say however, Shuin classified it as neutral. Its posture was that of a subordinate. Avoiding eye contact for now and staring at everyone's feet. Definitely not an aggressive stance.

Shuin then listened to Maylene's words. It would be wise to take her along with them. The sudden arrival of yet another creature surprised him for he had no idea where it had come out. It's words brought new information to the situation. So their mother had indeed sent someone, interesting. Something conflicted with the wolf still though. The horses were in a hurry and had only stopped because they had been interrupted. At least that was what Shuin thought. Were they really going to wait for this...thing? It seemed possible but it still bugged Shuin immensely.

The wolf gave an audible sigh, this was frustrating to him. It was good that they had Silver Sight with them, he looked like he could very much so defend the young ones, but he was alone in defense. This didn't put him at ease for he full well knew that if he had gone unnoticed while following the little ones, then what else could do that? Shuin had the mind, body, heart and soul of a predator and could easily see these three taken down without much of a problem if they continued to do stupid things such as leave without their intended escort in the dead of night. He could see and even plan out what a band of wolves that were hungry enough would do if they came across these horses. It worried him a little more then it should have.

"It is good that you have something like Silver Sight coming with you but I find there are still a few things your group lacks in order to stay alive. Even though I find that you are not telling us the whole picture I wish to come along with the group and help with the journey. Traveling in numbers is the safest thing to do and having one that knows what comes out at night and what they can do and plan would be very vital to the group. Not to mention one that actually knows how to be silent and can scout ahead easily. Therefore like I said, I will be coming along to help make sure you get there safely. If you have any objection to this, I will gladly teleport to your aunt and see what she thinks, but I have a feeling that won't be necessary." Shuin lied with that last bit, but with his emotionless voice it was covered very well if not completely. He slowly walked over to Silver Sight's side turned and then sat down to look at the other two to see what they would say. He could tell this was going to be a long night.

[Gaeva Winged Unicorn]

OOC
I'll just go ahead and post.

IC
Of course it was too good to be true, to think they would just let them go like that. Meali looked slightly to the side, glancing at Maylene. What could she possibly say to make her change her mind? She was still struggling with it when her little brother spoke up instead, "Ok," he said to the long eared female, making his two sisters both whip their heads at him, "It'd be a good idea to have a healer along!"

Slowing her step without stopping Meali stared at the black colt, barely able to see him in the dark except for the golden shine coming off of his horn. Was he insane?! They couldn't let someone come with them! Especially not an adult! They'd probably try to stop them or something! But how to phrase it now without raising suspicion? They were losing valuable time after all.

All three foals come to a simultanuous stop as a new voice called out to them from behind. Looking back they saw a white furred wolf running towards them and as he continued speaking the two younger ones did the equine quivalent of a jaw drop. This wolf had been sent by their aunt?! Meali on the other hand managed to keep up appearances a little better, though her mind and stomach did a little loop at first. Logic however told her that the horned wolf could not possibly be telling the truth. First of all they weren't supposed to wait for anyone, second, her aunt wouldn't have sent someone to go with them, she would have stopped them had she known.

Meali shifted her body just a little bit to look at Silver Sight properly, then forced a smile onto her face, "Oh there you are!" she said cheerfully, making her siblings whip their head at her this time, disbelief in their unseen black eyes, "Sorry we didn't wait any longer, we just got impatient and wanted to leave right away!" Her smile had melted into a real one as she considered the consequences of this lie. First of all it gave the others "proof" they weren't doing anything wrong, and second this horned wolf would be bound by them by that same lie. If he revealed the truth to their aunt now, they could claim he'd been a part of it. It wasn't the nicest thing to consider, but Meali didn't really care. Every moment spent talking was a moment of lost time.

Her smile wavered then as the other wolf also insisted on coming along. Meali was about to tell him it wasn't necessary when he brought up his little threat. Wincing the filly lowered her head a little as she looked at the wolf. It didn't occur to her he might be bluffing.

"Yeah, uh, no, that won't be necessary. I'm sure my aunt would think it's a good idea," she said while smiling weakly, "It would be a good idea for you to join us." As long as he didn't consider them to be a snack anyway.

"Then I guess we can go now, right?" she said loudly, then quickly lowered her voice again as she quickly looked around herself, "Then lets go already." She didn't mean to be overheard while they were so close to leaving the forest! Belatedly she looked at Silver Sight as if asking him for permission. He was supposed to be their designated adult after all so she might as well play along with that for a while longer.

With her siblings right behind her Meali started moving again and finally left the last of the trees belonging to the forest behind her. They were now officially out of Deep Forest and onto the Wastelands. It looked very dark in the middle of the night.

[CrhisaHoa]

<center>Crystal tilted her head as she halted with the others, feeling the eldest of the three young unicorns seal up her mind. <font color="ffc309">Well, if that isn't an indication of nerves and-or paranoia of something,</font> she mused to herself, <font color="ffc309">I'm sure I either don't know what is, or I'm definitely losing my touch!</font> Still, she could tell that her choice of address for Maeli had had the effect she'd intended it to; That is, make her feel as if she were being treated as an adult with opinions of equal importance, which was both something Crys had always appreciated her own human parents doing and was considered important among her Unican half-kin.

A new creature appeared - or rather, landed - on the scene, and the mare recognized the golden dragon from school last winter. She was also probably one of the few present who could appreciate the joke about socks, and she couldn't help laughing quietly for a moment. <font color="ffc309">"Aye, my friend, I must agree,"</font> she told him, grinning. <font color="ffc309">"Though since I don't wear socks much anymore myself, it's a bit of a moot point in my case."</font>

The equine's ears pricked as the younger two unicorns provided the group with an explanation as to their intentions, admiring their externally calm demeanor even while studying their hidden inner emotions. Oddly, while the colt was nervous, his golden counterpart was utterly confident, providing a rather baffling clash of signals for Crys. Was the colt simply anxious about leaving the forest while the filly wasn't, or did the filly somehow know a trick that would allow her to speak a lie as if it were truth in such a way that even an Empath could not tell the difference? Crystal couldn't be sure which it was, but something - instinct? Female intuition? - told her that whatever it was, there was something more going on underneath the surface.

The blue filly turned to face the group, attempting a smile. "So yeah, we're fine...and leaving...and, we're in kind of a hurry too. So if you don't mind?" With that, she set off again, her siblings - at least, Crys assumed they were related, until proven otherwise - close behind her.

The halfling couldn't help but smile at the midnight colt's expression of gratitude for the others' concern for their welfare. Crys opened her mouth to speak as she once more kept pace with the three foals, but first the anthro woman spoke, and then the hidden wolf decided to come out of hiding, talking about being sent by the unicorns' aunt. She was about to speak, but again was cut off before she could begin by the other wolf expressing his own concerns and determination to provide additional protection.

Resigning herself to the fact that she'd not get a word in edgewise until the others were through, she listened as the black colt welcomed the anthro to the group and his older sister - Crys was sure that that's what they were - went along with Silver Sight's story, made an excuse to keep the other wolf from teleporting - <font color="ffc309">Teleporting? I used to think unicorns didn't exist, and now look at where I'm at!</font> - to their aunt himself, and prompted the party to keep moving.

<font color="ffc309">I think it's finally my turn,</font> she mentally sighed in mock relief. <font color="ffc309">"Well,"</font> she mused aloud, <font color="ffc309">"it seems you lot have gained at least three devoted protectors and companions. However, with all due respect to you, ma'am -"</font> she nodded to the rabbit-anthro, <font color="ffc309">"- it never hurts to have another Healer along, and an extra pair of limbs with opposable thumbs couldn't do any harm either. Not to mention a big, scary, goofy, eye-glaringly-bright mare with a glowy horn,"</font> she added, grinning at the younger equines. <font color="ffc309">"So, I hope you don't mind another tagalong on this adventure."</font> Her head raised, her voice firmed, and her steps were those with an unswerving purpose. <font color="ffc309">"Either way, I'm not about to let any friend of mine face any sort of possible danger without doing everything I can to help them; If that means I have to follow them to who knows where, then that is exactly what I am going to do."</font></center>

[Gaeva Winged Unicorn]

OOC
I'll just...post again.

IC
Meali gave up, there was no way these older creatures were going to give up any time soon. And at least Crystal she more or less knew from school. It was something. She nodded at her at last, never stopping her pace to keep on moving, "I guess that makes sense." It didn't really, not to her right now, but that wasn't what was important. What was important to get out of here as quickly as possible and make themselves as hard to be found as they could. And to keep these new tagalongs from wanting to return to Deep Forest and tell on them to their aunt. As long as they could get away far enough, then not even the teleporting wolf would be able to get their aunt back to them in time to stop them. It was time the kids took over and made some decisions...under the watchful eyes of their selfproclaimed guardians that was.

Meali set their pace at a fast trot, after a while looking at the ones around her, "You guys can't fly, can you?" she asked a bit disappointed. Her initial plan had been to simply fly through the first night, cover as much ground as her younger siblings were capable of doing. But with flightless members in their group that wasn't going to be possible. She might be able to carry someone on her back for a while, embarassing as it sounded, but the twins hadn't developed the strength for it yet.

Jahran seemed to have taken an interest in Maylene, asking her questions first in whispers, then in a louder voice as they moved further and further away from the forest. Anything from wether she could hear better with her ears to what it was like to wear that jacket now tied around her waist. His trot resembled that of a skipping child as he grinned at her, practically beaming with excitement at being out and about in the middle of the night and on their way to some adventure.

Zahli on the other hand had at first spent some time glaring at Silent Sight, her eyes narrowed as she looked the wolf over. After having moved across the Wastelands for some time she finally snorted softly and moved over to him so she was moving beside the horned wolf. She did this in silence for a few moments before speaking to him in a quiet whisper, "Why'd you do that?" she asked suspiciously, not bothering to clarify what "that" was, "Why did you bother?"