Dreaming With Your Eyes Open

(Rayner's top priority is getting to the cave. I'll wait to see what happens after HF's post, but he'll get there!)

((ffff you're guy's posts were getting pretty stale with nothing to move them, so I'm trying to get Viva as noisy as possible, so you guys have something to at least chatter about HAHAH

Also, WYCO YOURE SO FUNNY HAHAHAHA VIVA IS AN ALPHA MALE AWHH YEAHHH))

"Viva, are you alright?" "I'll help you. I'll cut the branches."

Viva's eyes were wide with panic as she rolled, kicked and flailed against the branches. She knew deep down, there was nothing to fear. It was just the trees trapped in her antlers; and yet iwth each tug and pull, the resistance grew tighter and her panic heavier in her throat.

"Get it off me!" She screamed in response to Rayner's timid aid. her fur crackled as her panic built.

((There, rescue Viva and then we can go beat everyone up. JK, when we enter the cave well be showing up behind you guys))

(I was checking your ref sheet and well heck with a rack like those every hunter would want a rack like that...over their mantel or on the wall. Besides Jagter thinks with racks like those you must be a male and thinks rayner is a girl lol.)

Seeing the spectucal of the shinlai's branches caught it's horns Jagter's thoughts "Just like a buck the bigger the rack the easier the fall." As the shinlai's panic grow Jagter began to wonder about the shinlai's plight he couldn't help but to wonder
"This shinlai is entirely rendered hapless I could help it but what if it turns to attack me?" He listened to the two shinlai's converse
from what Jagter gathered from the blue shinlai's behavior he figured that shinlai's clearly must be a female or so he thought.
With the caughted shinlai's behavior becoming more and more distressed Jagter relented "I must help this poor beast or it will die an unpleasent death." He stood up and made his way out of the brush he raised this arm "Be still your only making it worse." he shouted.

Rayner grabbed some of the branches in his mouth, and tugged, tearing at them with rows of sharp teeth. "Fine!" He grunted in response, pushing against her mask with his foot to gain more leverage. A shock traveled through his foot where it brushed against her fur, and he jerked back with the branches in his mouth. "Ouch!"

Dropping the branches, Rayner barred his teeth at Viva. But he went back to grab another bunch, and roughly tore them from her antlers. He owed her one, but in his mind the blue shinlai felt sorely tempted to send a long and tedious lecture her way. He probably deserved one himself, but at least he was always in control of his element.

As the next set of branches tore loose with a loud *crack!*, Rayner swung his head to fling them away. Something caught his eye, they were being approached. By a human. He had made a pact with himself to approach the human he had attacked that day to offer some sort of peace, but this one was coming right towards them. A warning growl issued from his throat. With any luck, he had torn enough of the tangled mass that Viva would be able to free herself, but this human still appeared to be a threat. He could almost imagine that they were everywhere, a gigantic hoard of ants, approaching two shinlai who had already proved themselves to be mentally unstable in various ways.

Unlike last time, Rayner was no longer half-starved, and his mind remained in its thought-capable state. "What do you suppose you're going to do about it?" He hissed, leaning slightly towards Jagter. "If you have ill intentions I will tear you limb from limb."

Zeke was just sitting back in the cave with laila s Pip rested, and stood up quick at the screams from outside echoed in the cave. He knew it would be best to stay if Rayner showed up since Pip was asleep and alone Lailia would not be safe, but he had to check it out. "Sorry Lalia I will be back, but those screams sound like crys for help, and I must check out! Watch pip!" he said and then ran swiftly out of the cave towards the direction of the screams.

As he got closer to the screams he saw Rayner trying to help the female shinlai from earlier get branches from her huge antlers. Zeke then thought to himself "Maybe he is being normal now after that attack to his side" but still he didn't know weather he would still attack Pip and Laila so he had to be cautious. Then he saw that Rayner had mangaged to remove some of the branches with his teeth when the human male that was in the cave with them pop out of the brushes and shout "Be still your only making it worse."

Zeke knew that might upset Rayner as it seemed he didn't really like humans. But it was too late Rayner already was near him, but this time he seemed to be in a better state of mind. "What do you suppose you're going to do about it?" He hissed, leaning slightly towards Jagter. "If you have ill intentions I will tear you limb from limb."

Zeke got close enough to say something to Rayner before her hurt the poor boy "Now now, Rayner does it look like he has ill intentions toward the two of you? I mean it was just brave of him to pop out of that brush at two menacing looking shinlai." he chuckled and brushed past Rayner's side toward the female shinlai to see if she still needed help "Hello again, looks like you got yourself all tangled would you like some help with the rest of those brances? I am Zeke by the way I never got the chance to tell you my name before I ran off" he said down to her.


(yeah I got a post in hope it is not too crazy))

"If you have ill intentions I will tear you limb from limb." "I assure I have no ill intentions." Jagter glanced at the horns then climbed the tree he quickly made his way up the trunk and onto the branch. Slowly drew his sword and begin hacking at the branches. "You do better to think before you go charging trees you know many bucks die like this." he said with a grunt as he began hacking the last if the branches ensnaring the horns. "I've see a many shinlai's horns and yours are by far the biggest I've seen so far...." he paused as he finished cutting the last of the branches off "Must make you popular with the ladies eh?" he added with a chuckled.

Having heard the commotion, and watching Zeke and Jagter leave to go after Rayner, Laila sat at the ready. She was sitting in a way she could easily spring to her feet but was resting beside Pip, letting the Shinlai get her strength back. She winced at each sound off in the distance. Some Shinlai was very upset. She prayed the roaring was not Rayner, angry she got away with Pip.

The crackling noise echoed inside Viva's head as she tumbled and rolled all over the trail. She could just barely Rayner in the corner of her eyes lung in and rip apart what she hoped were branches. Without even thinking, she pulled again, and with the great heave her mass came lunging down on top of Rayner's weeping tail.

She shook her head, her body trembling all over. She hated trees. With a growl she realized there were voices chattering above her. She took in her surroundings.

Just beside her stood Rayner, glowering at human before her. Her purple acquaintance from before stood beside the human, and they seemed to be having a conversation.

Viva's snout wrinkled up in a confused; wary of the trees around her. Though, she realized there wasn't much left. A perfectly circular clearing had been made, and many of the trees had been singed and torn apart.

A tugging sensation came from her right antler, and as she looked up she noticed the little male had begun to cut away at the remaining branches. "I've see a many shinlai's horns and yours are by far the biggest I've seen so far...." She looked up at him surprised he was stupid enough to be here more then anything. Most humans wouldn't come near an angry lai; she opened her mouth to question his actions..."Must make you popular with the ladies eh?" ... and then she snapped her mouth shut.

What had he just said!?

Rayner turned to look at Zeke, brief surprise flashing in his eyes. He had almost failed to notice that parts of the previous company had come together again. Eyes trained on the purple shinlai, Rayner took a brief moment to inspect him. The previous night's rampage had led him to believe that Zeke might be injured if he followed Pip and the human. But here he stood, looking just as healthy as ever.

It was possible that this male human might not be a threat either. If nothing else, they were quite small enough to squash, assuming he did try to do any damage. "Hmph, I suppose." He admitted, then muttered under his breath, "Brave, and stupid."

Still not entirely convinced, he kept an eye on Jagter, ready to pounce if the human tried anything. They were known for hunting down large animals and keeping their body parts as trophies. It would be no good if he tried to saw off Viva's horns. Even if he claimed not to be a threat, Rayner would have preferred that the human asked permission. He liked the ones who groveled at his feet.

It did seem as though he only wanted to help, so for the moment Rayner was content to sit back and wait patiently. "Hey," He let out a little grunt of protest, as Viva fell forward and landed on his tail. Most of it was just hair, but as long as Viva was sitting on it he couldn't move. He turned his head to express this concern, but something the human was saying caught his attention. Popular with the ladies? At first he assumed that Jagter was speaking to Zeke or even himself, but apparently not. Neither of them had horns like Viva. He stared at Jagter, and then at Viva, back to Jagter, and let out a roaring laugh.

The blue shinlai's roaring laughter made Jagter nervous at first but he laughed along too. "I see the blue female get what I'm saying."
As he shealthed his sword and climbed down the from the tree he thought of the human girl and smaller shinlai "I wonder if that shinlai is arounded here somewhere maybe I should ask them they may know?" Jagter looked back at the cave "Do you think its okay to leave that girl and smaller shinlai alone at the cave?" "I mean there a rabid shinlai wandering about?" he said with concern

"On Daila's soul!" Another howl of laughter burst forth from the depths of Rayner's chest to shake his lungs and vibrate through his body. Not only did this human think that Viva was male, but that he was female. Never in his life had he been mistaken for a female. Ryshka would surely get a kick out of that, when he told her.

This was, for the time, the best response the blue male could have to offer. Rather than allow his emotional element get the best of him yet again, he had come to release his build up of stress in another way. At least it was something, some sort of improvement.

The worst part though was that Rayner could almost see how Jagter would be able to make such a mistake. Viva was, so far, the largest shinlai in the area, with horns to make a thirty point buck wither away in shame. But other than that, she was most certainly female, and Rayner most certainly male. It was the sort of insult that he knew deep down shouldn't be taken too seriously, at least in this situation. It took a moment, but suddenly he regained his composure at the sight of a glint of steel from Jagter's sword. How he had missed it before, he did not know. Weapons were the things that made humans hazardous.

"The other human and the young shinlai... They're alone, you say?" He moved forward again slightly, before stumbling back onto his rear at the tug to his tail, a reminder that Viva was still sitting on it. "Too bad. I think they'll be alright, but you'd better count your stars, my lady, because you just insulted the rabid shinlai." Having said what he intended to say, Rayner turned his head in the other direction, a sign that the threat was empty. Whatever Viva and Zeke thought about this piece of information, he was no longer capable of causing physical damage. Rayner would do all in his power not to take charge of the situation, and that was how he believed it was meant to be.

Viva sat stunned, Rayner's laughter rattling her head. She was no male!!

Viva turned her head around her self, taking in her messy, untrimmed fur and long unclipped claws. Maybe she needed a good pampering from all her travelling, but to be mistaken for a male!! She supposed it had something to do with the deer, and how only their males had antlers; but at the moment she was quite insulted.

She stood, one paw still on Rayner's tail, and chuckled softly as he plopped down because of it. She tried not to laugh too loudly; they didn't need more then one embarrassed lai!

"Do you think its okay to leave that girl and smaller shinlai alone at the cave?" "I mean there a rabid shinlai wandering about?" The human said with thick concern. Viva huffed, walking further down the trail," You make us sound like animals!" She retaliated.

"Trust me when I say, I do not often see other lai in this area. There is barely no game, and off of this cliff, it is too open to hide." She glanced towards all the new comers; a big load of exceptions they were.

"Let's head back to my home before I pull another fit," Viva threatened," I'm tired and hungry... soon to be cranky. " She loose a light growl, keeping her head low from the branches.

"So your the shinlai that attacked the girl and the small shinlai?" Jagter said puzzeled "Why did they provoke you?"
Jagter stance stiffened "So this the shinlai that attacked them?"he thought raising a brow "Let's head back to my home before I pull another
fit." the shinlai said sounding irritated "I'm tired and hungry...soon to be cranky." it growled. Jagter began to feel nevrvous an began to wonder about if the shinlais where planning to eat him and the girl."I'd love to come but first if you don't mind i'll escort have to escort the girl to the main road."
"And I'll forget the incident as I am unable to determine the cause of attack but no injuries or deaths have resulted from it, so it can be forgotten."
He said with a smirk hoping to sell his reasoning,he then turned and headed towards the cave. "That girl and I must get away we're in danger I know not if these shinlai have developed a taste for human meat." lost in thought he tripped over a rock.

Pipistella kept her eyes screwed shut, she could hear the roaring and commotion, feeling Zeke and Laila move about, the male left, but Laila stayed by her side. She must have doezed off, because the next thing she heard was roaring laughter. She cracked an eye open in iritation, but came to the decision that laughter was better than roaring, despite how loud it might be. Whith a slight huff, she lifted her head and looked around. The cave was empty other than her and Laila, who seemed to be taking guard over her.

"I'm awake." She said, standing up and stretching, she felt much better, her energy had returned, not as strong as before, but better than before her nap. She stratched her legs forwards arching her back and giving a wide loud yawn, before plonking herself down next to Laila, watching the cave entrance.

"What did I miss?" She asked.

"What did I miss?" Laila turned her head as soon as Pip spoke, hearing the Shinlai's voice echo throughout the cave. She shrugged. "Zeke ran off to go check out all the noise. He thought it might be Rayner I guess. It sounded like somebody was freaking out. I wonder if it was Rayner or that other Lai who helped us escape?

She paused and frowned, shaking her head. "And that boy ran off. I guess he expected much the same."

"Blaaa blaaa blaa ." he turned his head and spit the leaves from his mouth "I'm okay I'm okaaaaayyyyy..." from the angle of his head he could clearly see under the shinlais. His sentence trailed off when he relised that he had mistaken the the shinlais' gender. He quickly stood up "I'm...I'm sorry I seem to have been mistaken about a few things." He said sounding embarrassed "I don't believe we introduced are selves my name is Jagter of the guild." he said avoiding eye contact. "I'm sorry for the misunderstanding I shouldn't have assumed your genders..." he covered his face with his hand "It was wrong on my part."

"Hm, a fit?" Rayner brought himself back to attention, and tried to scoot away from Viva without losing the fur on his tail. "Yes, we should definitely go then." He nodded in agreement, trying as nonchalantly as possible to free himself, with little luck. It just wasn't worth the pain of injury.

At the sound of something falling, he turned his attention to Jagter. The somewhat nonthreatening demeanor of this human, in the daylight, made him dislike this particular specimen less than some. The male humans were generally more friendly anyhow, or so he believed. Still, the blue shinlai wasn't sure how to respond to Jagter's apology. Personally, he thought the whole thing was quite funny, but he hadn't honestly expected anything like an apology. He glanced at Viva and Zeke, having decided that the safest bet would be to gauge their reactions first.

"Well we wouldn't want you ro have another fit, so let's get moving." he said to both rayner and Viva. "I am sure Laila and Pip will be happy to see us return, but Rayner no funny business! Or I will personally take you down" he chuckled.

As jagter aplogized to Rayner and Viva thought it was nice and funny at the same time, and he could tell Rayner didn't really know how to react so Zeke spoke up "Well Jagter nice apology, just next time remember to try and find out the gender of a shinlai before jsut assuming by looks." he laughed. "I mean look at my pretty purple coat I guess I look pretty feminine huh?" he said to jagter.


"So shall we get a move on now guys?" he spoke to the three of them.

"Yeah let get going." Jagter said as he dusted the dirt off his vest "I'll take the girl off your hands and take her to the nearest village."
Even though Jagter's nervousness was building he kept his cool, he didn't want to seem as thought he trying to flee them as they may kill him to silence him about the shinlai attack incident. "I must play it cool and get that girl out of harms way." he thought to himself "That poor girl she seems so oblivious to the danger they present." "So the smaller shinlai will it be okay?" he said concerned.

((I've been waiting for you guys to actually get to the cave to post. Anyone still rping?))

I am but I'd ruin the post if posted without them. I was waiting in turns to post but I'm not sure if i should skip them, maybe you and meshould just
post?v