Will Ranka succeed in Riding the SC?Will Saint decipher the message?What's Next?

[SGA]

I shall try Bun, two different area RP's going atm however, so the In bus local can continue I think?  Anyone have any reason it shouldn't?

But I shall wait for a little bit anyway regardless.  I'll just go color some more pretty.. stuff.. to throw at you all *grin*

[sera]

*flails at Bun, stuck waiting for her post!!!!!!!*  ^.~  heheee  In-bus should be fine.  ^^  Just the ones left out in the cold are frozen where they are. ^.~ hehee  *excited for pretties, too~~~*

[SweetCaroline]

"No Sunny, I definitely brought them for I remember laying them on top of my pocket book right by the window along with my scarf. But as I said, if the glove is not found then I can surely replace them later. Thanks for helping look though."

[SGA]

Hearing movement behind her Sascha turns to see Sunny moving up the bus.  "it's strange guys, but we do have a few spare sets in one of the bags, if SweetCaroline winds up needing some.  Thank you all for helping to look."  Giving a weary smile she starts and blushes when her stomach growls loudly, laughing a bit in embarrassment she returns to her own seat.  Grabbing the dropped sandwich from the seat she sits down and takes a big bite.  Chewing a few seconds she suddenly frowns and looks at the sandwich in her hand, then stands and searches the seat.  "huh!" she says in bemusement "well I think I found your glove.. or part of it.."  Turning she holds out her hand, a few bits of shredded blue and white material resting in her palm, along side a few tiny bits of roast beef.  "and all that's left of the meat from my sandwich."   

[Silvanon]

Silvanon looks at the mangled bits of glove in Sascha's hand.  "Ummmmm..... ok, that's weird.  How did the glove get torn up like that?  Are there any moving parts inside the bus here that could have done that?  If so, I'd like to be careful to keep my hands away from them!"

[SweetCaroline]

SweetCaroline looks at what looks to be all that is left of her glove and Sascha's meat. "I guess the gloves will definitely need replacing now. As for your sandwich Sascha, looks like you need a new one if there are any left. I'd try to hang on to it until you were good & done with it though if I were you. From the evidence I can see, that glove was not shredded by any mechanical bus parts. I mean if it were just the glove, then maybe, but the meat, & just the meat from the sandwich? It looks more like some hungry creature got hold of the sandwich for it's dinner & perhaps shredded the clove trying to make a warm bed to sleep in I wonder where it's at. Must be small as the only way in is the door, which we all were watching for signs of the guys coming back & the window that River left open. God only knows why she would open a window in this frigid weather." SweetCaroline begins searching again, only this time she is searching for something much more important. Gloves are replaceable, lives are not! And she just can't bear the thought of anything or anyone being in this cold with no way to get heat or food. So she begins searching under & in everything she can think of.

[Bunraku]

Thanks for waiting on me <3

Ranka's head rears to the sound of the crack in the distance, green eyes flickering towards the source of the sound. Fingers numb with cold beneath their leather glove tighten their grip upon the stave as he moves cautiously along side Saint, wary of the shift of every shadow in the abrupt silence.

Raising his arm against the sudden gale that drives clumps of snow and frozen pine needles from the trees. Taking a few steps forward through the pressure of the storm, he only halts once more when the sound of a high pitched yip pierce the night.

Glancing past Saint, towards the dim beam of the headlights where they cut through the fall of snow, he shifts forwards, green eyes following the source of the falling debris as he tries to peer up into the trees. "It seems...we're not alone..." He says softly to Saint, tapping the mans arm as he point's upwards.

[Elenaria]

Saint frowns, following the gesture so dark eyes peer upwards.  In the haze of the snow and storm, however, he's having trouble spotting anything.  "Did we step into a horror movie?" he asked softly, trying to offset the flash of fear.  His lips quirk upwards, but he can't managed a full smile, despite his best efforts.  "That sounded like my parents' dog's squeaky toy." 

Of course, that only brought to mind Chucky and he blanched and cursed once, softly, under his breath.  Ray, unfortunately, had not answered.  Saint took another breath, not glancing at Ranka.  "Think it's the thing from the bus?"

[Bunraku]

Ranka manages a grim half smile in response, even if his lips and face are starting to go numb "Attack of the killer squeaky toys maybe?" He laughs softly, but there is a faint hint of nervousness in it, as though he, too, is trying to cage his own rush of adrenalin through the use of humor.

Yet humor fades as his lips compress in a thin line, those strange, green eyes flickering towards the woods, trying to see, to hear, any indication of Ray. Glancing back up at the trees above, his frown deepens "Quite possibly..." or perhaps its children....He grimaces slightly at the idea that there might be something...bigger out there, keeping the thought to himself. Taking a cautious step forwards, highlighted by the buses beams, Ranka continues watching the icy foliage above "Whatever it is...we have to get past it to find Ray."

[SGA]

Watching Criminal minds with River, post will come after it's off.

[Silvanon]

Silvanon nods, agreeing with SweetCaroline's assessment.  "You're right, that did look rather like what my gerbils would do to a glove.  Maybe we're looking at a rat or a mouse?"  She joins in the search, this time looking in dark corners for something small and furry.

[SGA]

Wrapping her bread back up and laying it aside, because really, who wants to eat a bread sandwich.. Sascha shows little interest in this new mystery  offering the brief advice "be careful, even small creatures can bite!" she begins digging through her bag "Where did they go, I know I packed some nuts in here..  Ahah!" Pulling out a bag of roasted peanuts she curls up on the seat and watches SweetCaroline and Silvanon search while she eats her snack.

SweetCaroline searching under all the seats, spots something on the floor where Silvanon was just sitting.  Going over to look closer she discovers crumbs of roast on the floor.  And there!  Stuck on the bottom edge of Silv's backpack it looks like.. is that fur?  Yes, yes that definitely looks reddish brown bits of fur.

Silvanon having joined SweetCaroline in the search, spots something blue hanging under the seat behind hers.  It's caught on a screw between the seat and wall.  Closer inspection will reveal it to indeed be the missing glove, with a bit of white fur poking out of a hole where the thumb tip used to be.

Meanwhile Marshall searching through the supplies at the back finds a flashlight in a box with other spares, as well as batteries and some glow-sticks.  While shifting the supplies around, he also finds one of the spare sheets brought for making bandages, somehow drug partway out of its box, and the edges chewed.

Outside bus post coming next!

[SweetCaroline]

SweetCaroline  picks up the bits of evidence she has found stuck to the bottom edge of Sylvanon's backpack. She gets a strange look on her face & calls out "Sylv??? You didn't happen to bring any of your little gerbil friends with you did you?" She holds out the reddish brown fur toward Sylvanon for further inspection. "Does this perhaps look like it may have come from one of your little friends?" she asks.

[SGA]

In another sudden lull in the wind, the snow falls nearly straight down.  The light from the bus reflects faintly off of two small shiny things in the branches above.  A small pair of eyes staring down upon the two men below. 

From around the bend, scuffling and cursing can be heard of a sudden, then a muffled thump, followed by a sharp cry of pain from the missing Ray.

The eyes disappear from above with another brief yipping and some scrabbling sounds as more needles fall down around the men.  The scrabbling sounds fade off quickly in the direction of rays voice, snow falling in clumps from the branches of the tree's along the path ahead, one by one, marking the path of the creature.

A faint light, pale and yellow, can be seen low to the ground around the corner ahead before the wind begins to slowly pick up, once again obscuring vision beyond a few feet.

[Elenaria]

A sudden flash of color up in the trees made Saint lean back, almost taking a retreating step, but not quite doing so.  Eyes, he recognized them suddenly.  Shining in the light.  It was difficult to know what color the eyes actually were; goodness knew that light made such things shine all sorts of odd colors.  His mom's dog's eyes would go blue and green in lights.  It's eyes were brown.

Despite knowing it was a terrible idea, at the sudden sound of a scuffle, Saint's eyes jerked towards the sound.  At the cry of pain, however, and he was moving, only absently noticing the creature above had disappeared because of the needles.  He cursed again, this one louder and far more fervent as he scrambled through the snow to try to aid the man.

He hoped Ranka was as good with that bo as he seemed he should be.  It sounded like they were going to need the weapon and the knowledge with it.

[Bunraku]

Long legs, and a body attuned to the instincts that came of situations where one needed to survive needed no more encouragement than the sounds of pain coming from the distant struggle to run. With the bo tucked flat against the back of his arm, Ranka was already moving into a labored run, muscles straining against the weight of the snow that tried to pull his legs and feet under. Cursing against it, for a moment the calm, quiet man let loose his emotions as the deep drifts seemed to purposely hinder their progress.

"Over there! I saw a light, yellow." He shouts, catching a gleam of yellow light in the near distance. Growling another curse into the wind as it picks up once more, he dives forwards into the storm "Ray?"

[SGA]

Around the corner, Ray's flashlight winks it's glow valiantly, the bulb flickering briefly, then holding steady.  The light comes not from the path, but rather into the wood-line a bit.  A quick glance around shows nothing, but a longer, closer look shows a shock of red hair blowing in the wind at the base of a large tree. 

At the sound of his name, Ray moans and tries to sit up, cursing in pain as he moves and clutching his head.  "Hello!  Over here!"  Then, almost as an afterthought "be careful, they stole my ear muffs!"  At this curious statement he attempts to stand, only to cry out in pain again and drop back down, this time clutching his ankle instead of his head.

Waving to the men and calling out to them to make sure they see him, he then glares up into the tree at something red and orange fluttering in the wind.  "It's her scarf.. I saw it and was worried, tried to climb up but I fell.. and they stole my ear muffs!"  Attempting again to stand he uses the trunk of the tree for support, but quickly winds up on his knees, dry heaving in the snow.

Aside from a swollen ankle, an inspection of Ray will reveal a nasty swelling bruise on his temple, and pupils rapidly dilating.

[Elenaria]

What in the world.. his ear muffins?  Whose scarf?  Saint glanced up automatically, catching a glimpse of red and orange, but then his attention is right back on the man.  He hardly knows any first aid; only the sorts of things learned from a life of his own bumps and bruises and, well, sad to say, tv.  Saint nabs the man's flashlight, leaning in close, even as he asks, "You know first aid, Ranka?"  Because on the one hand, it would be handy if the man did, but, on the other, Ranka was the one who knew how to use the weapon. 

"His pupils are dilated."  He knew from tv that was bad, especially in light of the goose egg swelling on the man's temple.  Hit that just right and it could be fatal.  He was pretty sure.  "What happened, Ray?  Who stole your ear muffs?" In any other situation, any less dire situation, anyway, Saint would also have asked why the man wore ear muffs at all.

If Ranka indicates he knows anything about first aid, Saint will move out of the way, otherwise, well.... He has no idea.  But the cold can't be good for the man.  And whoever's scarf that might be, if something is still ear muffs, it's highly likely they stole the scarf as well.  And that the scarf owner-- wait, Kadana, right?  Isn't that who was driving in front of them?-- Kadana likely wasn't up in the tree.

[Sunchaser]

(ooc: Im sick, hubby is at work but mostly he is just here to help with whatever lol but he can post later if we need him to right now just imagine him by my side really)

Sunchaser looked at the bitten gloves. Where had she heard that squeek before? She sat down, mentally going over the animals she had met at the aquarium and the zoo near her. She could not remember what it was. She looked up as Marshall motioned to her. "Whats that you got there babe?" She took the supplies then did a double take on the bandages. He had not touched them but had left them as they where. "Uh.... If they are not the gerbils we have something in here that likes to chew. We are going to have to find it and make sure it doesn't chew or steal something else!" Her fingers played with her bracelet before looking out the window. Where were they?

[Bunraku]

Green eyes fix upon the scarf captured in the branches of the trees above them, flickering uneasily from shadow to shadow in search of the eyes he had seen only moments before. They...he said they... Yet he has no time to contemplate what 'they' are, the desperation in Saint's voice drawing him back to the situation at hand.

"Yes." He answers automatically, kneeling down by the man heaving in the snow "Easy Ray, don't try to get up again." resting a hand on Ray's shoulder, he tries to keep his voice calm and level, soothing as he makes note of the bruising on his head, the dilation of his pupils "Looks like a concussion." He murmurs to saint. Shifting slightly, he slides his own arms beneath Rays once the man's heaving seems to have subsided, gently easing him back against the tree.

Unwrapping his own scarf from around his neck, he folds it, forming a makeshift pillow, which he slides behind Ray's head. "Ray, I need you to stay awake. Tell me if you feel like your getting sleepy." Though his voice is gentle, there is also an edge of something like authority in it. Glancing towards Saint, a flicker of earnestness, perhaps fear can be seen in the green eyes. Yet it fades as he continues examining Ray, moving on to the ankle.

"Possibly fractured." He follows the observation with a soft curse "It's risky to move him, but we don't have a choice." Looking back towards Saint, he glances towards the distant headlights of the bus this cold could kill him if he goes into shock he doesn't say it, not wanting to frighten Ray, yet he can't avoid the truth "Saint, do you think you can help me get him on my back?"

[Elenaria]

When Ranka takes his place, Saint stands up, eyes skimming upwards to the tree again, an automatic lookout for something interested in stealing head and neck gear.  Maybe just cold weather gear.  That also seemed bad.  Well, not necessarily bad, and certainly not evil, though his imagination was more than willing to offer up reasons something might be stealing cold weather gear from them.  Hypothermia was a very real concern in the piles of snow.

He listened to Ranka's quiet voice as the man checked Ray over.  He glanced down in time to catch the look.  Saint gave a small nod of comraderie, or... something he couldn't fully define.  He'd support Ranka's decisions, trusting the other man to direct them as needed. 

Well, until the last part.  Saint gave a quick, negative shake of his head, flashing the man a rueful sort of smile.  "No way, man.  I'll carry him."  His eyes flicked upwards again once, then met the man's gaze seriously.  "I'm a great pack mule, and..."  He glanced at the bo, wordlessly dooming his own ability to protect them.  It rankled that he couldn't, but he was also quite realistic about his abilities in this arena.  He'd rather Ranka's bo be available than have to try to punch something.  He quickly crouched down in the snow in front of Ray, waiting for Ranka to help move the man onto his back instead.

"Ray, you didn't find any sign of the other car?" he asked instead, hoping it would help keep the man aware.

[SGA]

Resting briefly against the tree, Ray smiles weakly at the two men.  "Thank you, it's good to have friends.. " Trailing off he looks back up into the tree and frowns "other car?  no, I don't know.. but she loves that scarf"  Looking around in a daze he wonders aloud "why would they want my ear muffs?  And her scarf.. got to get that back.." 

Realizing with a start that they plan to move him, he starts to try and stand again, clinging to the tree. "But Kadana's.."  Looking up into the tree at the scarf he gives a sudden surprised shout and falls back down, as a brief yipping is heard from near the 'scarf' right before it seemingly takes flight from the tree.  Sitting on his rear in the snow he watches wide eyed as the bit of red and orange glides on the wind currents from tree to tree.

Raising his hand he rubs at his eyes then blinks at the men "You know, I think I hit my head harder then I thought.."  Sighing and staring off towards the headlights "We need to see how bad the pass is blocked, or if it's still passable.. and see if anyone else knows how to drive a bus"

Looking back in the other direction, at the opening to the pass, he sucks in a breath and stills  "Uh guys?  Am I seeing things.. or is there something moving in the pass?"  In the little light that reaches the entrance to the pass, one can almost think they see movement, and it seems the wind is dieing down a bit.. but only in that particular location.  A soft scraping can be heard against the tone, as the falling snow begins to slow near the pass as well.

You know, Sascha and Ray are new NPC's to the shop.  I had no idea who they were, personality wise.  I am finding it very fun to see there personalities emerge.. even if Ray does seem to be a bit of a nit wit, and so far anyway, I see no point to Sascha other then an extra body lol

[Bunraku]

Great idea Kadana! I espcially love Ray's personality and would love to see him again in an RP. (I hope you plan to have more RP's! )

At first, Ranka lifts a brow at Saint, as though questioning his desire to carry Ray, yet as he follows the other mans gaze to where he had lain the bo next to him on the ground, a wry smile blossoms on his lips "Ahh yes, horror movie. I almost forgot. I'm probably the guy who gets eaten first when the monster finally decides to attack." The joke lightens his serious tone, and the smile softens, becoming grateful. Yet the green eyes harden slightly as Ray tries to get up again.

"Ray-" He sounds faintly exasperated as he reaches for the other man's shoulders, steadying him once he lands back on the ground with a muffled thump "Yes I do think you hit it harder than you thought. Very hard." Ranka's lips thin, and despite his tone, the underlying concern, the fear that the man might injure himself further, is what truly drives his frustration. Glancing up into the trees as a flicker of bright color, followed by a yip, draws his attention, he suppresses the faint shudder that wants to run down his spine. Reaching for Ray, he hefts the man forwards, carefully trying to arrange him against Saint's back with his arms over the other man's shoulders "Ray, what took the scar-"

Yet he has no time to finish the sentence as he follows Ray's gaze towards the pass, green eyes fixing upon the illusion of solidity, of some shape, that seems to take form as the winds slowly die away.

"Saint." His gaze does not leave the pass as he reaches for the bo, drawing himself slowly to his full height . "Watch out for Ray."

Straightening, the long black coat flutters around his ankles as he takes a few steps away from the other two men, attempting to make himself the most visible target. He doesn't do anything stupid, like shout out 'who's there', he has the feeling whatever this is, might not have a friendly answer for them. Instead he tucks the bo against the backside of his arm, muscles tensing in preparation for confrontation.

[sera]

Saint might have offered to attempt the tree if only to help calm Ray down, but there was no way that was going to work now.  He was quick to adjust to the other man's weight on his back and, really, was unwilling to chance losing Ray now.  They all looked up at the question and none of them were happy about the fact that they all seemed to agree on the answer: there was something moving in the pass.

"Don't die," Saint muttered, shifting one last time to be certain he had a good hold on the man.  He doesn't want to leave Ranka alone to face whatever was out there, but it also wasn't going to do them any good to all wait here to be eaten.  Or stripped naked.  As Ranka moves forward as a target, Saint tries to move Ray and himself a bit more obliquely.  He wants to be on the road with firmer footing underneath-- even if it is still covered in snow-- and, if possible, he's going to start angling them back towards the bus. 

[SGA]

We shall see Bun, if there is enough interest perhaps

And lols *head hurts form laughing so hard*

Ray trembles on Saints back, clinging the best he can while trying to not hinder the man.  "Really Saint, I can walk.. probably."  Frowning a bit he changes his mind "well, maybe hop.."  Sighing he gives in to his fate for the moment, laying his head down and going quiet.

Back on the road the wind bites harder, howling around the two, pushing first at their backs then their fronts.  Alternately shoving them towards the bus, then trying to toss them away from it.

But back towards the pass, the wind is still slowly calming down, and another scrape can be heard against the stone.  Then, a quiet voice heard but not heard.. Hello?  Give it a minute, it will clear..  A white shape can be faintly seen moving slowly out of the pass, quite a bit larger then the thing in the trees.  Once clear of the pass, it comes to a stop.  The voice is 'heard' once again, but this time quite clearly only in the mind.  Oh, I did not mean to startle, please, I mean no harm

Standing perfectly the shape waits, and the winds continue to die down, until finally, barely, one can make out a very equine shape.

[Arty]

Looking out the window I see shapes moving in the darkness "Hm..." I wonder aloud. "I wonder what is moving outside..." I stand up and get off the bus, not being able to see any better, I trip over something (probably air, knowing me) and end up with a face-full of snow.

[SGA]

As Arty leaves the bus, she trips over something, and falls.  As she lands she hears a ( http://chirb.it/C454PN  ) followed by something darting into the gloom under the bus.

[sera]

"Just hold on, Ray," Saint said quietly, giving one last worried glance towards Ranka.  Maybe he can get Ray safely back to the busy-- and it's supposed safety-- then back out here to back up the other man.

The one good thing is that if anyone is okay on their own, it's probably Ranka. 

The ends of Saint's scarf, a deep blue mixed with black affair, fluttered back, hopefully on either side of Ray's head rather than right smack into the man's face.  Saint wrinkled his nose, wishing he'd pulled it up over that same feature before he'd started back.  He hadn't realized the wind was going to be so nasty, however.  They staggered with it, away and towards.  Blast, this wasn't working.  Instead, Saint held firm when the wind tried to shove them away, then took a few careful steps with the wind towards the bus.  It took some time before it felt like they had any sort of rhythm at all, especially in the heavy swirl of the snow. 

[Arty]

I jump back and my necklace catches on a nearby branch pulling the silver chain and locket out from under my shirt as I feel the very edge of the drop of crumble beneath one of my hands. I grab for the branch with my other hand but just barely miss it as the necklace's chain breaks and I fall down the drop off to a tiny ledge about 10 feet down. "This... is just my luck... CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?!?" I hollered up the steep incline.

[SGA]

Almost back to the bus, Ray jerks in surprise at the sound of a voice hollering "Saint, did you hear that?"  he sounds unsure, as if he thinks he could be imagining things.

Following the voice calling out, snow from the embankment near the bus breaks off and slides down.  Arty just misses the brunt of it, but gets instead the edges of the falling snow.  Loud noises apparently not a great idea just now.

Back at the bus, Arty's path for the moment, is clearly visible..  And the pendant from her necklace rests just on the edge of the drop off.. the chain having vanished.

Ray, lethargically points over saints shoulder at the tracks "oh, that's not good!"

[sera]

It's a relief to see the looming shape of the bus and they'r eblown slowly towards it.  Until there's a cry.  Another one.  This one disconcertingly feminine in sound in comparison to Ray's cry earlier.  Saint is an electronics man; he tries to control his words on a day to day basis, but this is slowly turning into a nightmare of logistical and user errors. 

They are given the pleasure of seeing a cleared path through the snow right up until it disappears into nothingness and something sparkling up at the top.

Saint gives the circumstances a very pointed insult that is entirely impossible as the things occurring did not have physical forms to follow the commands.  Saint doesn't answer Ray's statement of the obvious, he hunkers down and bolts forward, shoving their way through the wind to get to the safety of the bus.  There's no time to even get Ray inside, not if someone's gone over the bloody embankment!  "Ray, your good foot! I'm putting you down!"  It's a rushed warning, delivered even before Saint begins the motion.  "Get on the bus," he orders as he scoots swiftly forward, dark eyes searching for whoever had gone over. 

There!  He can see her.  He leans gets down into the snow, reaching out a hand.  "Grab my hand!" he calls urgently, stretching out as far as he can.

[SGA]

Hearing Saints hurried warning Ray attempts to shift to keep his weight on his left leg.  Stumbling a bit and falling backwards to land on his rear on the steps of the bus.  Watching Saint, he grabs the rail of the bus and stands leaning on it.  Inching slowly backwards up the steps he keeps a watch on Saint.  Once inside he turns and calls "Sascha, get a rope from the back."

Sascha startles awake, having dosed off briefly, completely missing Arty's exit from the bus.  Staring at ray a moment before jumping and rushing to the back, digging in one of the boxes she comes back and hands ray a coiled length of rope died the unfortunate color of.. white.

"Saint! " Calling to the man, he then tosses the rope out to him.  Clutching the guard pole tight as a wave of dizziness sweeps over him, he turns and slowly makes his way into the bus, collapsing on Sascha's seat where Sascha immediately begins to fuss over him.

[sera]

Saint half-turns when he hears his name.  Ray's throwing something, he can't tell what exactly, and it's either a great throw or incredible luck as the rope basically skitters into his arms.  He, at least, is still tied to the bus, but he surely does not want to try going over.  He loops one end around his waist, tossing the other down to the woman.  "Can you catch it?" he calls again, though some part of him wants to scoff at the white rope against the white snow.  IF she's not immediately sliding and just struggling for the rope itself, he'll pull it up long enough to hopefully get some colour on it.  But if she can manage it as is, he'll gladly get her to safety sooner rather than later.

[Silvanon]

Silvanon goes along the length of the bus, searching for small and furry.  She's not too far along when SweetCaroline calls out, asking if she had brought along her gerbils.  "No, my gerbils are safe at home, I fed them right before I left."  She pokes her head up to peer at the fur SweetCaroline is holding.  "Yeah, that's not the right color for any of my critters, either." 

Silvanon continues her search, now more certain than ever that they have furry visitors.  She notes that the undersides of some of the seats have little rips and openings that a small furry something might like to get into, so she starts paying particular attention to those areas.  The extra attention pays off, but not in the way she expected, when she looks underneath the seat behind her own.  There's a screw poking out slightly from the wall right under that seat, and most of SweetCaroline's disappeared glove is hanging from it.  "How did that get there?" she wonders aloud as she maneuvers to get a better look at the suspended glove.  Like previously noted, the glove  looks to have received attention from some critter's teeth.  The thumb is hanging furthest down and has been chewed off to reveal a white substance that Silvanon first takes to be the inside lining of the glove.    However, when she reaches forward to try and unhook the glove, something inside it moves.  That wasn't glove lining, that was fur!  "I've got something alive here!" she calls out to the rest of the bus.

[Bunraku]

I'll be posting my response tomorrow Kadana, sorry about any hold up. Just got some bad news and am kind of shaken ><

[SGA]

As Silv reaches for the glove, the white fur vanishes back inside, and a loud chirruping ( http://chirb.it/C454PN  ) can be heard, at the sound of which, an answering chirruping comes, muffled, from Silv's backpack.  With the answering sound, a little white.. nose pokes out of the hole in the gloves thumb, a little white nose, twitching amidst blue fur.  Wait, blue fur??


I'm sorry to hear that Bun, I hope everything turns out OK for you.  *sadness* bad news seems to be making the rounds   If there is anything I can do, or you just need to vent or such, you're still on my yahoo *hugs*

[Riverwind]

River hears Silvanon give a surprised gasp, and, bored of resting, goes to see what's going on. Silv has found SweetCaroline's glove, and it's all torn up. There seems to be a furry blue creature inside! Not wanting to touch the thing for fear of rabies or something, River urges Silv to coax the creature out. "Maybe it likes sunflower seeds?" She wonders, shrugging. "Here, you can borrow mine to try and get it out of there. It must be quite cold, hiding in that thin fabric..." She says, handing her friend the bag of seeds.

[Silvanon]

"Blue!" Silvanon mutters in surprise when the little creature's nose appears.  "That's no gerbil, that's for sure."  She is truly curious now what this little creature could be.  She turns back to look when River starts speaking to her.  "Oh, thanks!" she gladly accepts the proffered sunflower seeds.  She grabs a handful out of the bag, then hands the rest back to River.  "It sounded like there's another one in my pack over with SweetCaroline.  She might want to try some sunflower seeds too," Silvanon comments.  Turning back, Silvanon takes her handful of sunflower seeds and piles them on the floor near the glove.  Then she holds one seed out close to the little creature's nose, so it can hopefully get a whiff.  "Sorry to have scared you little one," she murmurs.  "Are you hungry?"  She sets the seed down with its fellows on the pile and draws back a bit to see if the little furry will come out.

[Riverwind]

River smiles at Silvanon and nods. "Yes I'm sure she could use some of these.." She walks over to her mother and offers up the rest of the seeds. "These might help coax it out, maybe."


OOC: Lol Kadana pointed out to me how mean I am. XD *whistles innocently*

[Bunraku]

Oh, I did not mean to startle, please, I mean no harm

Ranka is frozen from the moment he senses the touch of a voice upon his mind, rearing his head to words unheard, but felt. Green eyes glitter faintly in the darkness as they settle upon the equine shape taking form, as if from the substance of a dream. Suddenly, it seems he has found himself not in a horror movie, but in a fantasy. Though every fiber of his being still sings with tension, he lowers the bo to his side, forcing himself to relax.

"Who are you?" He asks the shape softly, taking a single, hesitant step forwards, then another. A cautious tilt of his head reveals an expression of curiosity mingled with wonder, and just a little fear beneath the fall of his hair. Whatever this creature is...it seems capable of summoning the storm, or causing it to abate. "We are searching for a member of our team who has gone missing...we mean no harm ourselves."

*Hugs* Thanks Kadana <3 I'm starting to calm down now, hopefully everything will be ok

[SGA]

waking with migraine, will post as soon as pain pills (hopefully) kick in.

[SweetCaroline]

(I've got something alive here!) SweetCaroline hears Sylvanon say.
"As do I & it seems to have taken up residence inside your backpack. I can hear it chewing on something. Hope it's not something important." I say to Sylvanon. *I try to get a better look inside the backpack without disturbing anything as I would hate to hurt whatever is inside by squishing it with whatever Sylvanon might have packed.(No telling what might be inside the backpack that could harm a small creature.)

*I look up as Riverwind offers the seeds & accept them.* "Not to sure this will help but it's worth a try."
I hold a seed just inside the opening of the backpack as I try to imitate the sound I heard the creatures making* There is a scurrying sound coming from the pack & I can see the side of the backpack move slightly as whatever is inside it moves around. I try again with the seed & imitate the sound, the side of the pack has movement again, but closer to the bottom. I let out a sigh of exasperation as I realize the creature(Whatever it might be) is burrowing deeper into Sylvanon's backpack away from the offer of the seeds.* "Perhaps it doesn't like seeds. I mean there are traces of the stolen roast beef around the backpack on the floor where it tried to take it into the pack with it. Or perhaps it is full & just frightened" *I sit down on the floor beside the backpack & every now & then try to imitate the strange squeaking/chirping sounds as I place my hand on the outside of the pack hoping the poor thing can feel the warmth from my hand as it hears me & maybe venture out to see me.*

[SGA]

When listening to the sound clip, try to ignore the mic static and echoing.

On The Bus

As Silvanon proffers a seed out to the twitching nose, it quickly vanishes back into it's hole.  A few moments pass after she sets the seed down onto the pile, before the nose returns, this time out of the wrist hole of the glove.  A furry blue and white body scuttles out and up onto the seat, before plopping down over the side onto the floor.  With a pleased Gurgling sound (http://chirb.it/LJAK2M ) it quickly begins devouring the seeds.  Now that it's out, it's fur can be seen, blue and white, and oddly matching of it's chosen nest.  It is of course small, small enough to have made a glove it's nest.  It's body is about the size of a grown adult's closed fist, with the tail making up the rest of it's size, being almost twice as long as it's body.





Silvanon's backpack wriggles and moves against SweetCaroline's hand then goes still, then moves again.  Faint chewing and scratching can barely be heard, and then a tiny warm nose wriggles wettly against SweetCaroline's palm.  A long tongue darts out and licks at her palm, before a tiny furry head pushes it's way out of a freshly chewed hole in the bottom of the bag, the rest of the little body quickly follows, and teensy sharp clawed 'fingers' dig into Sweet's skin, as the critter clinngs tightly, it's furry tail wrapping swiftly around her wrist.  The little things belly is bloated, and meat crumbs and reddish savory gravy form the roast smudge it's whiskers and face.  It begins to emit the same gurgling sound as the blue creature, while tucking it's head under it's chest and seemingly settling in to sleep.  This one is even smaller then the other, maybe a quarter of the size of the blue one, with a reddish brown and tan fur, with white and black. 

Off The Bus

Click headshot to see full image, sorry they do tend to stretch the page too much to post full body.

Listening to the man speak, the creature begins to walk toward him, slowly so as not to alarm.  Once it is mere feet from Ranka, the storm seems to stop around them.  A small area of perfect calm surrounds the two, while outside the area, the storm rages on.  Standing befor Ranka is an SC, with fhair so white the pink of her skin shows through, and eyes of a rddish pink look calmly at him.  I am the Herd Mother she responds, as if that explains everything.  Lifting her head and sniffing the cold air she turns back to Ranka There is no one else nearbye, perhaps your friend is at the human place  Eyeing the bus beyond Ranka and turning to look back at the pass she blows softly through her nose I cannot clear it enough for your cart to get through.. I must check on the young, but I'll let your humans know where you are



A crack! in the forest form a tree limb snapping, and a startled whinny has the mare turning quickly I must go!  Be ready to move, when they come!  Moving even before the last thought words are out, she turns and bounds into the forest and disapears into the woods.  With her departure the storm rushes back into the void, swirling fiercly around Ranka, tearing at his hair and clothes, almost as if it's angry at having been held at bay.

[Bunraku]

Just to quickly clarify before I make my post Kadana, does herd mother mean move the bus or for Ranka to move himself out of the way?

[Siurin]

*waves hello*forgive me if I am not very good <.< I was dragged here by my wife and i stole her comp for this haha

He looked at his wife before looking towards all the chirping. His hand went to his necklace like it always did when he was nervous and.... Where was it? "Sunchaser!! I lost my necklace." He panicked and went back to the boxes hoping to find it there.

*makes grabby hands* There is a reason i look over my wifes shoulder. NOw to let her back on her comp.... HI KADANA! <.<

[SGA]

hehehee she can;t get you all through the pass, so has to get word to the people at the base camp.  And she means for you to have "your people" ready to move (ie go/travel) whenever your help arrives.

And I have to say, I am so absurdly excited, to have FINALLY been able to release the SC's long kept secret.  This was an idea conceived before I ever released them for the first time, and have just had no good way to "out" them.  I feel like a little kid in a candy store

[Sunchaser]

Sunchaser looked at her husband as he panicked. "Where could it be? I swear you just had it on!!" She grumbled before shaking her head and looking at the two new creatures on the bus. "Aww! They are cute! maybe one of them has your necklace babe?" She glanced at her husband before turning back to the others. "Shouldn't they be back yet?" She was started to get really worried about her friends.

-Snuggles hubby- goofball

[SGA]

At the back, a glint of silver peeks out form under the corner of the medical crate.  Moving the crate a bit will reveal the silver chain from Marshal's necklace, but alas, the cross pendant is missing.

[SGA]

Showing no interest whatsoever in the creatures, or even a missing necklace, Sascha sits and continues to fuss over Ray.  Glancing back at Sunny briefly "I think Saint and Arty are just outside, no clue what they are doing.  I've not seen Ranka..  Trailing off she turns her attention back to Ray, talking to him and trying to keep him awake.

[Bunraku]

Thanks for the explination Kadana! ^^

His halting steps cease as the brief lull in the storm takes him in, surrounding him in a globe of silence in which the mares voice seems to be the only sound in his whole world beyond the distant whine of the angry wind. Green eyes widen, and for a moment, the mans features melt, softening as childlike wonder takes the place of fear. His body relaxes, tension easing from his frame as her voice washes through him, and for a moment, it seems that he might try to touch her as she approaches. His hand lifts, lingering in the air, and yet he does not dare to reach for the silken coat as those ruby eyes hold him beneath their regard.

I must go!  Be ready to move, when they come!

Before he can speak, before he can even exhale the breath he has been holding, she is gone, wheeling upon her heel, leaping across the snow like a white deer. If he would allow his imagination to play out the scene again, he might have added a unicorns horn to her brow- the power of her presence reminds him of his childhood, spent imagining what it might have been like to encounter such a mythological beast.

The wind swallows the soft cry that escapes his lips, a sound of loss and longing, as if he might have followed her if he could, but the words she has left him with remain ingrained upon his mind, and he knows what he must do. Regaining his senses, his composure, he fights against the wind tearing at his hair, never minding that it has ripped loose its bindings to allow its length to tangle in the wind. Holding up one arm, shielding his eyes against the storm, he breaks into a run, using every ounce of strength in his lithe frame to fight against the snow and wind that tries to pull him back.

"Saint!" He shouts against the storm, his coat whipping about his legs as the headlights reflect in his eyes, growing closer to the bus, concern for his new friend and Ray compounding the mare's message "Saint we've got to get the others moving! Where are you?"