The Troublesome Duo's Adventure

[Seirei Hisakata]

Time had indeed passed since the birth of Tersias and Seirei's little cubs. By now they had weened themselves off their mother's milk and shared their father's taste for meat, their bodies growing bit by bit every season. The two girls, Ebony and Aislin, were two contrasting characters: Ebony very head strong, the decision maker and defensive of her mother, and Aislin, slightly more timid, but with beauty that could rival her mother's fur and always had a good sense of right and wrong. The pair of troublemakers, Sai and Kai, were almost identical to each other, with the exception that Sai had inherited his father's wings, already a span wider than the length of his body. These two had such strong personalities that it was no surpise that little Artemis, who was not of such a strong build as the others, was often forgotten, stuck between his sisters and brothers. But despite this, Tersias always had a soft spot for him. He had a heart of gold.

Since the day they were born Sai and Kai had been a mischeivous handful for their parents, always getting themselves stuck in little pot holes if Seirei tried to teach them hunting in the meadows, or made their mother worry sick by sneaking out for little adventures of their own.

The day was young, and Tersias and four of her cubs were nestled together in the den. The other one, however, had other plans than lying around until sunrise. Sai was desperate to try out his wings and was frustrated that even though his father had promised to teach him some day, the time never came. He was going to take matters into his own hands.

He poked his brother repeatedly on the back with his paw, 'Kai!' he whispered. 'Hey, Kai wake up!' He gave his brother a particularly hard shove, pushing him off the bed and landed on the hard floor of the den, waking him up with a yelp.

'Ssh!' Sai hissed, gesturing to Kai to follow him out the door of the den. Yawning, Kai did as he was told; it was often Sai who came up with the crazy ideas. When they had reached outside, closed the door of the den and were in the middle of the forest, Sai laid down his cunning plan.

'Listen, bro. I'm tired of waiting for Dad to teach me how to fly. He's been gone goodness knows where for a whole day now!'

'So what do you wanna do?' Kai tilted his head to one side.

'Teach myself of course' Sai grinned. 'I'm gonna need a high spot to jump from ...' He rotated on the spot, looking for the perfect place and... 'There!' he pointed with his right paw and Kai followed it until he spotted a particularly high tree that breached the canopy of the forest.

'I dunno Sai...'

'Oh c'mon. I'm not gonna crash or anything. If I do fall I can always glide. I can at least do that on my own.'

'Well, ok.. I guess it's alright then.' This was what made the twins' partnership so terrible, Sai could convince Kai into things too easily. All that was left to do was for Kai to watch as his bold brother made his way slowly up the enormous tree, looking around occassionally to check incase they got into trouble.

[Hiruko Koudo]

Hiruko had been walking outside after a long think about things. He couldn't sleep after what he was sensing within the air. Sighing, he looked up at the clouds in the distance which still covered the sky in darkness.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw movement within the treetops. They were small and one of them had wings. Walking closer he saw it was Sai and Kai, two of Seirei's cubs. What are they doing? He thought to himself. Concerned that they were on their own, Hiruko swiftly climbed the tree, leaping from branch to branch until he reached the level where they were playing and whispering.

"What are you guys up to?" he said. "And why are you out on your own? You're not safe out here on your own!"

[Seirei Hisakata]

Sai had reached the thin spindly branches of the top of the tree easily, and Kai had followed, but much more cautiously, unsteady on the wobbly branches and not daring to look down. Sai, focussed on his goal, had already readied himself, preparing to leap into the air freely, until Hiruko's sudden appearance made him falter.

At Hiruko's scolding, Sai scowled. Stupid meddling cat he thought. 'There's no harm in it!' he remarked defensively. 'Besides, I'm old enough to take care of myself.' He raised his muzzle indignantly, trying to appear mature.

However Kai just stood there quietly, his ears flattened and he looked down in shame, unable to look Hiruko in the eye. 'We're so in trouble' he mumbled to himself.

Sai's mind was made up. He quickly moved even closer to the edge of the tree's limbs to spring into the air, the branches wobbling even more. Then he was gone: Kai was gone. As the branches moved more and more he had tried to cling on with all his might, to be brave for his brother, but it didn't last. In a matter of a few seconds, his paw had slipped and he fell, crashing through layer upon layer of branches, twigs and leafs snapping off everywhere, until at last he was still, his limp body draped over the lowest layer of the tree, his paw hanging over the thick branch.

[Hiruko Koudo]

"No!" Hiruko shouted as the cub fell from branch to branch. He quickly tried to follow and catch Kai's fall but it was too late, he lay motionless on a lower branch.
"It's okay Sai," he said reassuringly to the other cub who seemed to be in shock from what had happened to his brother. "Here, climb onto me." He took up the cub and put him on his shoulders, making sure he was holding on tight before he climbed down from the tree. Once they were on the ground, Hiruko let him down and placed him on the floor. "Stay here, I need to help your brother," he told the cub, as nicely as he could have commanded. Hiruko jumped to the branch where Kai was laying. His eyes weren't open. Neither could he hear Hiruko when he shouted out his name. Unsure of the cub's injuries, he couldn't leave Kai where he was but he had to be careful not to harm him any more by moving him. Carefully, he slipped his paws underneath Kai's body and carried him to the ground where his brother was waiting anxiously.
"We need to get back to your mum and dad," he said to Sai. They needed to hurry too, if either Tersias and Seirei woke up without their two cubs, they would panic.

[Seirei Hisakata]

((OOC - watch out for TLK moment xD))

Sai stood frozen, his heart beating frantically at the sight of his partner in crime lying motionless on the grass underneath the tree from which Kai had fallen. He only heard Hiruko's instructions in the background, a muffled noise, as his head was filled with a panicked ringing at the thought of what he'd done.

In the mean time, Seirei was taking his time on his way home from a successful hunt and dreaded what his wife was going to hurl at him when he entered the den after being gone for a whole day. The trees rustled underneath him as his wings swept over Lacina forest, his home. Looking down through the gaps in the trees to check where to land, he thought he saw an orange blur jumping on branches below him. Hiruko? he thought.

Curiousity getting the better of him, he descending through the canopy and landed. He looked around and found Hiruko with .. with .. His heart dropped as he saw the unmistakable body of his cub lying still in the grass, it's duplicate sitting close by, staring down.

'W-what happened?' Seirei looked at Sai, who in the panic hadn't remembered to close his wings. 'Sai, what happened. Tell me' This last command came out as a bark and Sai flinched.

'It- it was an accident'

'You tried to fly didn't you?!'

'Dad, I- I'm sorry..' A single tear trickled down Sai's muzzle.

Looking up he saw Hiruko, then saw the tree debris and assumed what had happened. 'Thanks you so much Hiruko, I'm sorry you had to be involved in something as terrible as this. Please could you take Kai to the den for me? I need to teach my son a lesson first...and then I'll join you soon after.' Seirei turned to Sai and picked him up by the scruff of his neck and carried him by the teeth a few feet away and then put him down by a tree trunk.

'Sai, you -'

'Dad, I'm so sorry I -'

'Sai! I'm so disappointed in you. I told you not to try and fly all by yourself, and you deliberately disobeyed me. And what is worse, you put your brother in danger!'

Sai's tail flopped between his legs. 'I was just trying to be brave like you...and you don't get scared..'

'I'm only brave when I have to be, and I was scared today... I was scared that I might lose you both..' Seirei licked the top of Sai's head then picked him up again, and caught up after Hiruko. 'How is he? Is it serious?'

[Hiruko Koudo]

<<OOC - I thought there was only going to be one or two references but Lizzie! Tut tut tut You could get into some serious copyright issues Lol>>

After Seirei's arrival, Hiruko felt a little bit more relaxed. At least some extra help had arrived. He nodded at Seirei's command and carried the young cub gently in his paws, only taking a very quick glance behind him at Sai and his father.

"I'm not sure if his injuries are serious...for now," Hiruko said as Seirei caught up with them. "But we at least need to get him home." They are all ran gently (particularly Hiruko with the injured cub in his paws) to Seirei's place.

It was only a matter of minutes before Hiruko had stopped outside Seirei and Tersias' den. He knocked politely, carefully making sure Kai was secure in his arms, but there was no answer. Tersias must be out or asleep he thought. Quietly, Hiruko opened the door and sat down inside. It was warm and cosy inside their den, similar to his own if it weren't for the familiar scent of the wolf family. Resting Kai on a cushion, Hiruko placed a paw on the cub's forehead and closed his eyes in deep concentration. A soft, green glow emitted through his paws and onto the cub, engulfing him in the healing magic. There wasn't much else Hiruko could do whilst the young one was unconscious but at least it would ease any pain when he woke up.

"All we can do is wait until he wakes up," Hiruko said to Seirei patiently.

[Seirei Hisakata]

Seirei bent his head down as they all entered the den under the massive oak that partially concealed the entrance down underneath. Looking around the dimly lit main room of his home, Seirei noticed the rest of his pups sleeping peacefully on the bed, their paws and tails intwined as they snuggled closely together for warmth. Tersias, however was no where. She must have gone out to catch some breakfast for the pups... he thought. He placed the large chunk of meat that he had been holding since he and Hiruko had hunted together beforehand onto a side table, and then dropped Sai from his mouth onto the bed next to his brothers and sisters.

He watched nervously as Hiruko performed some kind of healing magic on Kai, hoping that it would do some good. Seirei sighed and stretched out on the floor, his nose a few inches away from Kai lying still on the cushion.

'I shouldn't have gone hunting Hiruko. If I had come home sooner, this would never have happened. I wouldn't have let it happen ...'

[Hiruko Koudo]

"You can't blame yourself, Seirei," Hiruko reassured him. "The pups are just going through a rebellious stage. It's natural. I know that you'd rather these things didn't happen, we all do, but you didn't know he was going to be up in that tree."

He put a comforting paw on Seirei. "He'll be okay," he said softly. They watched as Kai's chest rose and then fell slowly. "If there appears to be something seriously wrong with him, I'm sure Mylar will know what to do."

[Seirei Hisakata]

Seirei tried to perk up a little, but it was a father's nature to assume the worst when his young were in trouble. So he smiled at Hiruko, but inside he still felt that pang of guilt.

It must have been an hour roughly when Kai finally showed signs of life. Seirei stood up quickly, knocking over an ornament with his tail but he didn't care. 'Kai? Little buddy can you hear me?' He gave the cub a lick and Kai yipped again.

'Dad? ... What happened?'

'Oh thank goodess.' Seirei's eyes started to well up. 'I thought I'd lost you.' He picked up Kai with his tail and pressed him tightly against his chest, nuzzling him under his chin. 'Don't ever do that to me again, you hear me?'

'Dad... you're hurting me.'

Remembering what Hiruko had said about not knowing the extent of Kai's injuries, Seirei quickly put his son down on the cushion again. 'Does it hurt anywhere Kai? Do you feel anything different?'

Kai stood up on the pillow and looked into his father's eyes. 'Dad I'm fine, really. See?' He hopped off his little cushion and walked confidently across the room. It looked as if he couldn't feel any pain but.. as he walked, Kai's back right leg trailed against the floor. Seirei looked immediately up at Hiruko with horror, but didn't say anything; he didn't want to scare Kai. Hiruko's power must have temporarily numbed the pain. Expecting some sort of praise, Kai looked around confused.

'What's wrong? Why are you looked at me funny, Dad?'

'I...' Seirei didn't know how to say it. He looked at Hiruko for help. In the background, Sai, still sitting on the bed, watched with tears pouring down his muzzle. What had he done?

[Hiruko Koudo]

Watching the poor cub drag his trailing leg behind him was horrifying to say the least. "It's...it's okay," Hiruko said but he wasn't sure if he was speaking to Kai or Seirei. He turned to Seirei and whispered, "His leg appears to be broken I'm afraid. But it's okay, all it needs is rest and time."

It had been a long night and daybreak was finally making it through the windows. "Kai, you need to go back to sleep," he said to Kai. "You've had a long fall and you're...not going to feel your best once the excitement and shock wears off." It was the best he could come up with. The poor cub had been through enough as it was.

[Seirei Hisakata]

At least it didn't reach his spine Seirei thought with relief. He collected himself and forced his face into a small smile 'C'mon Kai. Back on the cushion. You heard Uncle Hiruko, you've had a long day.' He nudged his reluctant pup back to his temporary bed gently with his nose. After a short while Kai did doze off and Sai hopped off the bed and tentatively made his way towards his brother. He quivered a little as he passed his father - he never wanted to experience his anger ever again - and lay down next to Kai. 'I'm sorry bro..' he whispered, and then joined him as he too fell asleep.

Seirei moved away from the two pups and went to sit next to Hiruko on the other side of the room. They kept their voices low as the talked, 'I guess all we can do is keep him off his leg until it heals. I might put a splint on it once he wakes up later, it may help a bit. I can't thank you enough for what you did. If you hadn't arrived in time I would have lost both of them because of Sai's stupidity.' He sighed heavily, 'You think you're doing a good job raising them and then they go completely the other way. Ah well, I think they learnt their lesson. I bet you're grateful you don't have your hands full with your own eh Hiruko?' He grinned as he nudged Hiruko with his shoulder, unaware of Mira's condition.

[Hiruko Koudo]

<<OOC - Awww Uncle Hiruko :3 Lawl>>

As Kai returned to his bed, Hiruko relaxed a little bit as he sat with his old buddy. "It's okay, no need to thank me," he said to Seirei. "If anything, I'm glad that I was there myself. But everything's fine now, Kai just needs to rest his leg and Sai, well...I think he learnt his lesson." He looked over at them both as Sai had a regretful, guilty look about him.

"Yeah, I bet they get a handful..." Hiruko said, replying to Seirei's comment. "But, I think I should announce something that has come to light recently and I want you to be the first to know." Hiruko's heart fluttered slightly, whether it was nerves or excitement, he couldn't tell. It was probably both.

"Me and Mira are expecting cubs," he said, smiling yet anxious to hear what Seirei thought. "Mylar confirmed it. We're having two! Not quite the handful that you and Tersias must have to put up with but, kids are kids."

[Seirei Hisakata]

((OOC - Lol why not, their real uncle's in banishment on a different planet ))

Seirei forgot to keep his voice down he was so excited, 'Oh wow Hiruko!' He embraced his friend tightly, 'I'm so happy for you both! Do you know when Mira's due?' Mira was so sleek Seirei hadn't noticed any signs of her showing, so it must be the early stages. At least that's how it was with Tersias.

Ebony had woken up with her father's loud voice and yawned, one eye still closed with sleepiness, 'What's up, Dad? Why are you shouting?'
Seirei turned at Ebony's voice and explained that Mira and Hiruko were going to have cubs. 'So that means you and your brothers and sister will have some new play mates.' he smiled.
Ebony laughed at her father's enthusiasm, 'So will you by the looks of it Dad.' she peered over the edge of the bed to congratulate Hiruko, when she spotted Kai and Sai on the floor asleep. 'What are they-'
'Oh they just couldn't sleep.' Seirei quickly lied, 'You know how fidgety they get at night, so I let them get comfortable on the floor.' Ebony didn't question it any further, easily persuaded, and hopped off the bed. 'I'm going to wash in the stream now.' The sun was fully up in the sky as the new day began.
Seirei nodded 'As long as you take Aislin with you.' Normally he wouldn't be so cautious but the events of the early morning had influenced him greatly. Ebony raised her eyebrows but said no more, nudged her sister awake and made their way out of the den.

Seirei turned back to Hiruko. 'Do let Mira know that if she ever needs any help, she can always come over and ask Tersias, I'm sure she wouldn't mind.' He sat back down next to his friend and sighed contently. Just think, only a few years back we were strangers, and now we've grown so close and even made families.

[Hiruko Koudo]

As Seirei embraced him, Hiruko couldn't help but smile and laugh. "I'm so excited," Hiruko said to him. "I don't care too much about whether we have a boy or a girl but I have always wanted a son so that I can teach him the ways of the Torakan warriors, like me. A generation that will follow in my footsteps."

As Ebony and Aislin left, Hiruko stared into the brightening sky. "What a beautiful sky to lighten my earth," Hiruko said as a metaphor for his friendship with Seirei. "Sometimes I wonder if we're such great warriors after all: here we are raising little families. I thought I'd be at war all my life." He chuckled slightly. He was only joking because he knew deep down, he always wanted a family. "Your children are very lucky being the first to be born on this world. I cannot wait for my children to be blessed with that gift too."

[Seirei Hisakata]

Seirei knew what Hiruko meant. Thinking back, he thought it strange how it was only a short while ago that he was destined to become the head of his clan, and live a life of duty and defending his title. Until his brother got in the way of course. He wondered how his clan were coping and if he'd ever find a way of going back to his old world one day, but at the moment, he felt perfectly content in his new friends and family.

'They'll certainly feel like more than a blessing once they start moving about.' he winked. Then again, compared with the large family he had, Hiruko's two would be much less demanding. 'Well, I guess I'd better get this lazy lot up, they've slept way past dawn.' He went over to Sai and Kai on the floor, nudging them awake, and then went over to Artemis to do the same. He encouraged Sai and Artemis to go join their sisters at the stream so that he could tend to Kai's leg without the others worrying. Sai was of course very reluctant to go. For one thing he hated bathing, but more importantly, he wanted to be by his brother's side.

Seirei insisted, and then it was just himself, Kai and Hiruko left in the den. 'Hiruko, could you come help me for a sec?' He pointed to where he wanted Hiruko to hold the bandage that he was wrapping round Kai's leg in place, so he could slide a smooth twig he had retrieved from the wood pile by the fireplace underneath to form a splint. 'There all better!' he said cheerfully to Kai. 'How's it feel?' Kai got to his feet gingerly (the healing magic had worn off by now) and tried to put his weight on his broken leg. He winced with the pain and gave up, flopping back down on the cushion. 'Thaaat's right.' Seirei said with a grin. 'You're not going anywhere. You'll have to stay put i'm afraid little man.'

[Hiruko Koudo]

"I guess it's just a case of waiting now," Hiruko said. "Mira has certainly been feeling the pregnancy. But I've been trying to make her feel as comfortable as possible. She really should have some nice, girly chats with Tersias so that she has someone who properly knows what she's in for. I try to help the best I can but I guess females understand these things more."

As the cubs got up and ready, Hiruko couldn't help but feel proud for Seirei. It didn't matter that Sai had gotten into a little bit of mischeif, they were only young after all and wanted to experience new things. He hoped that he would feel the same pride in his own children one day.

After they had sorted Kai's leg, Kai could barely move from his bed. "It sounds cruel but I'm not going to put any of my healing powers on him," Hiruko whispered to Seirei. "It can be dangerous if he forgets the leg is broken and begins walking on it. At least the pain will indicate what he can and can't do with it."