τφ When Two Worlds Collide φτ

[Kifo]

Kubikuro watched Akira and Tasuki leave before turning to Dakota with a knowing smile.
" In my world, there is no such thing as racism. And anyone who even thinks about doing something racist around me can expect to find me jumping down their throats about it. I despise it." He said before turning towards his third of the camp. " Now, I must get to my post before both Akira and Conrad decide I'm slacking off."
With that said, the brown dog bounded off to start his night watch duties by the watering hole.
Raimundo watched him go, knowing just how much he hated racism and a little surprised that he hadn't threatened to tear out the throats of whoever was being racist towards Akira... or Tasuki for that matter. But as he looked around the camp, he noticed the Rebels had finally finished their meals and were returning to the barn for the night. It was then that the Rebels leader turned back to face the leader of the other group.
" What exactly did my brother tell you?" He asked, a serious look on his face.

Anjiti looked over to Mana, wanting to help her overcome the situation but not knowing how. Never had she had to deal with a situation like that before, and the closest thing she could think of would be when Kubikuro told her about Lynk's life before he was truly able to live. It was either that or watching as cancer took her her sister in law. With a soft sigh, Anjiti lowered her head and looked at the ground herself.
" I may not understand exactly what is going on, but i do understand the feeling of helplessness that follows watching someone suffer needlessly." She said softly. " And I hate feeling that way. But I know that, no matter how hard you try to protect, there comes a time where you can do nothing to help. During those times, I often find myself praying that all turns out okay in the end. Of course, whether my prayers are heard or not, I can never tell. But I like to think that, even if a friend or family member does not survive, the ancestors and gods still welcome them and care for them like I once did."
She then looked up once more. " I guess, what I'm trying to say is that if that time comes, hope he did whatever he could and pray that he is welcomed by your ancestors where he can help protect you and watch over you in ways that one who is earthbound can only hope to achieve while they still walk amongst the living."

Anjou could not help the smile that seemed to travel from the happy brown wolf. " I'd like to have friends again." He said softly.
But his smile faded slightly when he heard Bane's words and his stomach gave a short growl in protest to not having had any food. Looking around him, he could tell that the big cats and his brother were also hungry... but they were all looking at him as if asking for his approval to even speak. And his ears were picking up on the sounds of the spirits again; whispers that urged the group on despite the fire not being able to reach them.
" We're hungry." He finally said. " I know we are. But the spirits urge us to move on. They say we are still in danger when I know that the valley we were in will be a large enough fire break to prevent the fire from spreading any further. I don't know what to do."

[Bakura]

Dakota nodded to Kubikuro's words, appreciating his views much more than he realized. "I may not like her, but Akira is still family and I will defend her to anyone. Thank you for accepting her for who she is rather than shunning her for what she is." Dakota said before she bowed her head slightly in farewell as the brown dog headed off to his quarter.
She then turned her attention back to Raimundo when the other leader addressed her. At the serious tone in his voice, she frowned. Her ears flicked as she remembered the conversation she had with the volatile leader before his brother showed up.
"I am not one of his followers who he can talk down to." She said gruffly as her eyes sought out the flaming jaguar across camp. "Nor do I make others follow me due to their fear. Respect is a given among my pack to those of all ranks and your red brother has none." Dakota explained as she got to her feet, she huffed in annoyance before taking a calming breath. "I know you are just trying to understand what is going on, and I hold no anger towards you, but I will not be pushed around like some lackey. And another thing, Tasuki is my Beta and my Brother. One more callous remark about his character and I will take it personally." She growled the last part before looking over the camp, choosing to be done with the conversation rather than work herself into anger over Conrad's thoughtless words. She noticed most of her pack had made their way back into the barn during their talk over Nightwatch and decided to remain outside as an extra set of eyes. She moved towards the barn and sprung into the air, landing lightly on the roof before she sat down and closed her eyes with a sigh.

Mana listened to Anjiti, noticing the lilt in the youngers voice as she spoke of loss and her ears drooped. She knew everything the dog was saying was true, there was only so much they could do to protect him. Eventually, it will come down to him and his will to survive, and all they can do is be there for him when the time comes. Her thoughts shifted to the niece she was never able to meet due to her nephew's inability to protect himself or others and a silent tear ran down her cheek. "We could have lost both of them that day." She said softly as she looked up to the moon. "But the one who could not protect himself survived while the one who hadn't the chance to passed. A tragedy which left him feeling like a failure and turned his mother into an overprotective worrywart. I know when his time comes he will be reunited with his sister and be happy but the thought of potentially losing him before he has even begun to live, like little Kaylee, weighs heavily on all of us." Mana said softly, mostly speaking to herself now.
She turned from the moon above her to her comrade and offered a soft smile. "I know Fenrir is watching over him and will greet him when the time comes. For now, that is enough." She finished with a sad smile.
She then noticed most of their families had headed back into the barn and stood up.
"Enough of this sad talk, perhaps we should head in and get some sleep."

Shanara frowned at the thought that the pup hadn't had any friends for a while and vowed to make sure he wouldn't feel that way again. As the others stopped she sat beside him and chuckled at his growling stomach at the mention of food.
Evie also hearing the sound followed by the youngers words nodded slightly before looking to her father. "Catch everyone something small." She ordered and the four brothers took off. Evie then looked to Anjou to address his concerns. "I understand your urgency to get us all to the safety of the camp. However, being hungry means less energy, which in turn slows us down and allows whatever has got you so worried to creep upon us. I suggest we all have something small to tide us over so we can run the rest of the way. Then we can settle down and have a proper meal before resting." She offered and she smiled when she noticed the vampires return.
As her dad and his brothers approached, lit up by Magnar's glow she noticed they were carrying multiple kills each. Bane, Asylum, Talus and Skype all placed their kills in a pile between Evie and Anjou before sitting back down. By the blood around their muzzles and Talus licking at his claws, Evie knew they had already had their share so she looked over the group and smiled. "Take something each, and once you have all finished we will head off again." She then approached the pile which had birds, rabbits, mice and even a snake before grabbing a mouse and sitting down to eat it.
After Evie had her meal, Riki, Takora, Shenzi and Shanara all moved to grab something as well. Shanara grabbed two birds and took one back for Anjou and dropped it in front of him with a smile before eating her own. Rakshaw and Rohei watched as the others chose their meals, deciding to sit back until everyone else was fed.

[Kifo]

Raimundo watched Dakota take off and plant herself on the roof of the barn, then sat himself down and placed a paw over his face with a sigh.
" Idiot!" He cursed himself. " She's obviously sensitive about these sorts of things and you go and try to force her to talk. You're trying to stop a war here, not start one."
With another sigh, Raimundo removed his paw from his face. It was then that he noticed Sarabi looking at him with concern in her eyes. Between her front legs sat a confused looking Luigi who was trying to figure out what his father was doing talking to himself. Quietly, Raimundo got up and made his way over to his wife and child, making sure to lick his son's head in an attempt to rid of him his confusion. It worked because, ever one to hate that kind of show of affection, the young jaguar began furiously rubbing his head where his father's tongue had been.
" You head into the barn." the older jaguar said gently, rubbing his head against Sarabi's. " I've got to talk with my brother."
" This better not turn into something like what happened earlier." Sarabi warned.
" I'll try to keep it more peaceful... for everyone's sake."
Sarabi could only nod before licking her husband's cheek. " Don't be too long."
" I won't."
The female jaguar then nudged her son back into the barn where she let him play for a little while longer with the youngsters who were still awake before it was time for bed. Raimundo watched them leave for a few minutes before looking around the campsite for his brother. He found him just crossing into the quarter Kubikuro was patrolling for what seemed to be the sixth or seventh time. And judging by the stomping, he was still annoyed.
" Conrad!" Raimundo called as he made his way over to his older brother.
" Not now, irmão." Conrad growled back, moving to go around his brother. " I have a camp I must patrol."
" Patrol can wait. We need to talk."
Conrad stopped in his tracks. After a few minutes, he heaved an annoyed sigh and sat down in front of his brother.
" What do you want to talk about?" He asked, though the look in his eyes clearly said he wasn't too happy about the distraction.
" Your attitude. You need to stop treating Tasuki like dirt. He's not going to hurt anyone and one more dig towards him or anyone else from Dakota's pack could get us all kicked out of his camp for good. And I know you like to show how tough you are, but don't do it towards Dakota. She is so close to ripping out your throat it's not funny."
" Don't worry, Raimundo."
" No, Conrad. With how you're acting, I will worry."
" And how, exactly, am I acting?"
" You're acting just like Pai." Raimundo growled.
" I will never be like aquele monstro!" Conrad roared back.
" Then prove it. Be nice to Dakota and her pack. Treat them like you would treat Ritara and the rest of the family."
That said, Raimundo turned and stormed off to the barn entrance, leaving a stunned Conrad behind.
In the back of his mind, Conrad could hear his three other alters talking amongst themselves about Tasuki and how - according to Clemens - he was a rather shy being who was only looking for acceptance. It was almost like they were agreeing to what Raimundo had said and this annoyed the main alter a little. This would have to be one of the times that he hated when his little brother was right. Besides, he had called the kitsune ' Blue Tail' because he had blue tails... and because he hadn't been bothered to learn the kitsune's name for fear of possibly being betrayed by him.
It was then that he realised what Raimundo was talking about. His fear of loosing his children to Tasuki was causing him to shun the kitsune... much like how his father's fear made him even more dangerous to even his own family. And it was only natural for a leader to lash out and protect their own, which would explain Dakota's hate towards him. Then again, everyone hated his 'evil' self. That's why everyone was so protective whenever he was around. They were all scared he was going to do something to them when he only seemed tough. Not to mention it took years of being with Ritara and the cubs before Conrad even realised he was really a 'softie at heart', or so his brother said.
Finally, a sigh escaped Conrad's lips and he turned to face the direction that Tasuki was in.
" I'm not like Taka." He muttered to himself. " But I can't show I'm weak either."

Raimundo stopped in front of the barn doors and looked back at his brother. He could easily see the turmoil he had left Conrad in, but he had a feeling it was for the better. He made a mental note to talk with Conrad (or which ever alter happened to take over during the night) when morning came around, but right now he had other things to do. He just couldn't help himself from looking up at Dakota again, hoping that she would calm down quickly.
" I've talked with Conrad." He said loud enough for her to hear him. " I have a feeling he'll calm down from now on."
He then walked into the barn and over to where Sarabi lay, calling his son over for the night only to find himself being surrounded by most of the Rebels young. Apparently it was his turn to be pillow that night.

" Perhaps you are right." Anjiti nodded, noting Raimundo heading towards the edge of the campsite. " The past and the future are not something to dwell on at this time."
She turned back towards the barn but waited to walk with her new friend first.

" I understand that," Anjou said to Evie, " but it is the spirits who are concerned. I can only see and talk to them, I cannot control them."
When the vampires returned with the small meals Anjou was about to go and get something for himself, but the sudden appearance of a bird picked for him by Shanara shocked him a little. He was thankful, though, and gave his new friend a smile before starting to eat his meal as well. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Kaine remove Shiro's muzzle as Sarba went to get some food for the three of them (a bird, a rabbit and a mouse), while Faraji grabbed a rabbit for himself and the snake for Mazari who immediately bit of the snakes head and started eating the body. Faraji, however, waited for Rakshaw and Rohei to grab something to eat before he started on his own meal.

(irmão = brother, Pai = father, aquele monstro = that monster, in portuguese)

[Bakura]

"The present is a more pressing matter right now anyway." Mana muttered in response before smiling slightly and following Anjiti towards the barn.

Dakota sat perched on the barn roof and watched as the Jaguar berated himself below her. She felt bad with how she had handled things but decided to leave it be as she was still mad over the earlier encounter with Conrad. She looked down at her paws with a sigh. Whether he was disrespectful or not, she really didn't want to pick a fight with any of the rebels. "I suppose I should apologize." She muttered to herself and she got to her feet ready to head over to the older leader when she noticed he was talking with Conrad. She tensed at the anger rolling out of the red-eyed alter and began to worry that a fight similar to last time would break out again between the brothers. After Raimundo stormed off, she could sense reason settling into Conrad. She felt his anger leave her to be replaced with calm determination and she knew Raimundo's talk had been successful. Her eyes were drawn down to said jaguar in time to catch the end of his words before he entered the barn. "My apology will have to wait." She said once he was gone before she glanced over the campsite again, She noticed a few stragglers still about and her eyes sought out Mana heading towards the barn with Anjiti. 'Gather everyone into the barn, It's time to settle in for the night. I don't like the look of that fire.'

Mana froze just before the barn's entrance and turned apologetic eyes to her new friend. "I do apologize but I must quickly call in the pack, Dakota doesn't want to take any chances tonight with the fire." She offered apologetically before her body rippled and she vanished, before appearing in front of Moonlight.
"Alpha wants everyone inside." Was all she said before she rippled again, knowing both Moonlight, Vox, Charmed and Hunter would follow the order and appeared before a startled Axel on the other side of the camp. The tiger cub swiped at her with an angry growl and was only stopped by Spitz grabbing him by the scruff.
"Sorry." Mana offered sheepishly before she nudged Lelani who was curled up against Akyme with a soft croon. "Alpha said to clear the campsite for the night." She said smiling as Lelani batted at her muzzle, falling over in the process. At a nod from Zander, she sprung into the air and watched as both groups made their way into the barn. She then floated over to the nearby dragons to also deliver the message. "I know you can't come inside right now, but please move closer to the barn. It will put Alpha at ease to know you are safe." She offered and Phoenix nodded before getting up.
At his movement, Mana flew back to Anjiti and landed lightly beside the other wolf.
"Sorry to keep you waiting." She offered with a grin before gesturing for her to lead the way.

Phoenix got up and nudged lightly into his wife's neck to rouse her awake.
"Agápi, Alpha has ordered everyone near the barn for safety. We must move." He said softly and the black and silver tiger grumbled as she got to her feet, jolting the already half-awake Bloodshot in the process. The Red Chumager wordlessly got to his feet and allowed his dragon free. He then carefully picked Snowdrift up in his claws a flapped his wings, once a few feet off the ground he sleepily glided over to the barn and landed just off to the side. Careful not to get in Akira's way, he curled back around Snowdrift and fell back asleep. Phoenix chuckled as he watched them before he turned to the two other sleeping dragons.
"Iora, Demanicus." He called sleepily, "Alpha wants us over at the barn, I wanted to let you know so you don't awake to find us all gone." He said before he, with Jordon by his side, headed over to their boys and lay down. Bloodshot's wing shifted to lay over the top of them while its owner remained asleep.

Evie finished off her mouse before nodding in Anjou's direction. "I think I understand," She said with a soft smile, which widened at the silent interaction between her cousin and Anjou as Shanara returned his smile in kind. Beside her, Rakshaw and Rohei continued to wait patiently as the prey pile slowly diminished. Once the pile only had two kills left, Rakshaw decided it was safe to move. He walked over to the pile and looked down at the bird and rabbit that was left. He then glanced over to his larger brother and back to the food. Deciding that his brother should have the larger meal, he took the rabbit over to Rohei before grabbing the bird. He then sat back beside his brother and the two began eating.

[Kifo]

Anjiti had almost forgotten about the fire and the look on her face showed it. And remembering that both Gemma and Lynk were out in the forest with the fire possibly still raging scared her. With a quick look around camp, she noticed that Iora, Demanicus, Seth, Hope, Octavian and Kaygis still remained outside. When Mana went around to alert her pack members to their alpha's concerns, Anjiti noticed Seth, Hope and Octavian follow Moonlight, Zander and their two groups back into the barn. Even the dragons began to stir thanks to Phoenix. So, knowing that Kaygis would quietly follow suit and head back into the barn, the brown wolf raised her head and let loose a long howl.
The howl was a simple warning sent to both Gemma and Lynk about the fire. It also said that, if possible, they were to return to the campsite. Anjiti knew that Lynk would try and get to the camp with Kilier, but with the vampires around, he would potentially be putting himself in danger. But she also knew that the older Haythen would have protected his Blade Falcon against extreme temperatures in order to keep himself and any passengers he had with him safe. She only hoped that Gemma and her son managed to get to safety in time.
Her job complete, Anjiti waited by the barn entrance for those still around the campsite to make their way in for the night, trying to keep her worry in check. She started a little when Mana returned to her, but quickly gave her a smile.
" It's alright. I understand.You must obey when orders are given." She said. " If you want, you can go in ahead of me. I want to make sure everyone's safe first. I've also let Gemma and Lynk know about Dakota's concerns."

Both Iora and Demanicus heard Phoenix's words and slowly began to awaken. But the second their aunt howled, both dragons' eyes shot open.Once they both realised that no one was in immediate danger, though, brother and sister both calmed themselves down, Demanicus even going as far as to stretch himself out with a rather loud yawn.
" Did you have to be so loud?" Iora grumbled, shaking her head and stretching herself.
" I can't help it." Demanicus replied, looking around to find where his young friends had gone.
He found them by the side of the barn... or rather, he found Bloodshot in his dragon form curled around his family by the side of the barn. At the sight of them, the black dragon gave a small smile. It made him want to find a family of his own, but he knew there were more important things to worry about. Making sure everyone was safe was one of them. Quietly he turned to his sister who was just finishing a yawn of her own.
" Why don't you head into the barn and get some sleep." He said gently. " I'll stay out here and help the adults keep watch."
" You need sleep too, Mani." Iora replied stubbornly.
" I'll get some sleep when this cave is finished."
" And until then, you'll be so tired that you won't be able to think straight. No, you're coming in the barn with me."
" The barn is too small to fit three dragons. You can only fit in there with Uphere because you're not as bulky as me."
Iora looked at the black dragon before allowing herself to change. First she shrank drastically until she had reached the form of a large canine. Then her scales began to sprout fur. Finally her now golden yellow fur parted itself as black emerged along her underside, on her paws, covering her folded ears and as a stripe along her back from her muzzle. The black also emerged as smaller stripes running through the long stripe down her back. In a matter of seconds, the golden dragoness had become a large, golden she-wolf. Only the black plates on the top of her muzzle and her longer claws showed what she truly was.
" Then we change forms, silly." She told her brother matter-of-factly.
" Iora..." the black dragon sighed.
" You need the sleep, Demanicus. Now come on. It's not going to kill you to transform for one night."
" Fine."
WIth another sigh, Demanicus closed his eyes and allowed his form to change. Like Iora, he shrank until he had also reached the size of a large canine, however, he was larger than his little sister even in this form. His black scales grew black fur and he gained a dark grey undercoat that covered his muzzle and curved around his eyes. His paws and tail tip also gained the dark grey colour. Just like his sister, the only way one could tell what his true form was were his elongated claws and the dark grey plates across the top of his muzzle. But unlike Iora, Demanicus' wolf form also sported two sets of small horns above his eyes.
Demanicus also had a silver crescent shape over his left shoulder and a matching silver collar on that itched like crazy. He had no idea how he had gotten them or why. He just knew that they had appeared during his time training with the elder dragons. Iora noticed his new additions as well and started prodding at his shoulder and neck with her nose.
" Since when did you get a collar and tattoo?" She asked.
" I have no idea." Demanicus replied honestly. " I must have done something stupid because I can't get the collar off. And Uphere's no help. I swear he likes watching me be in pain."
" You know that's not true."
The black wolf merely gave his sister a look that questioned her words but she merely smiled it off and nudged him over to the barn where they both made their way over to Uphere and lay down beside him. Soon sleep had overcome the both of them once more.

Lynk and Kilier were just finishing up their meal when they both heard Anjiti's howl. Instantly Lynk became worried, and not just for the safety of his wife. He rushed to the control panel of the Blade Falcon and pressed paw-sized buttons that Kilier had no idea what they were for and ordered commands in German that she didn't understand before finally looking back at his wife.
" The Blade Falcon is now prepared for any incoming bushfires. Stay here. You'll be safe." He said, rubbing his head against hers.
" What about you? Where are you going?" Kilier almost ordered.
" I just need to check on young Link. I left him alone in the forest."
With one final lick on Kilier's head, Lynk had leapt out of the Blade Falcon and was running through the forest right to where he had left the young werewolf.

Seeing that Rakshaw and Rohei were now eating, Faraji started on his own meal. It wasn't long before everyone had finished their meals and were once more ready to travel. After looking around at the group and noticing that everyone had finished, Mazari tried to make sure that his cousin was still safe on his back, but not wanting to wake the tiger cub or accidentally make him fall off made it hard to check on him.
" It's okay, big guy. Astro's safe." Faraji reassured him, noticing what he was trying to do.
" Thanks." Mazari nodded before turning to look at Skype and Krystal. " I think we're all ready to go."
" I agree." Anjou added, also having done a check to make sure that everyone was satisfied for the time being.

[Bakura]

Mana nodded with a greatful smile. "Thank you, I hadn't thought about Gemma and Link while alerting the others. Your howl didn't wake her, She is still asleep so I'm assuming she is somewhere safe, no panicked messages either so she found Link." Mana offered, looking to the forest behind her.
She startled at the sight of the two huge wolves as they passed to enter the barn and looked back to Bloodshot still in his dragon form with a frown.
"Blood, go inside. If they can fit then so can you." She said and the teenage dragon cracked an eye with a soft growl. He wanted to remain in his dragon form to keep his icy brother warm but an order was an order and he grudgingly allowed his chumager to the forefront.
"Mum, Dad." He called softly before he pulled Snowdrift onto his back. Once his parents sleepily got to their feet the family of four stumbled into the barn and the three concious cats collapsed near the back in a heap around Snowdrift.
Mana watched them go with a sigh before giving Anjiti a smile. "Better safe then sorry."

After they were done Rakshaw and Rohei checked on their three sleeping charges before nodding to Evie who was watching them. She then turned her gaze over to Anjou and nodded.
"Agreed, I think we should set a hard pace. From what I've been told by Krystal it is a straight run there. Lets not stop till we are home." She said getting to her feet, she however waited for the other leader to give the okay before giving the order.

[Kifo]

" My apologies if my niece and nephew's wolf forms startled you." Anjiti said. " The potion that gave them their forms was... tampered with leaving all four dragons with certain side-effects; their size being one such thing. But I must ask - and I'm sorry if I've asked this before - but how do you know about what your sister is doing?"
The Indian wolf gave one last look around the campsite as she waited for Mana's response, noting that Conrad had once more started his patrol but at a slower pace. Yet her eyes lingered on the black panther who was sitting, starting at the flames of the camp fire. It was clear that Kaygis had finished his meal but something seemed off and it was starting to scare Anjiti. It almost felt that he was in the early stages of having an epileptic fit. But suddenly, Kaygis moved his head in a movement similar to pulling something with his teeth, giving a short, pained roar as he did so. It was enough to get Anjiti to excuse herself from Mana's presence and rush to her friend's side.
" Kaygis, are you alright?" She asked.
" Something's not right." the black panther replied. " Julien's here, I can sense it. But I think he's hurt himself somehow. The young ones should be older. Kratia shouldn't be the only one pregnant. I should have figured this out a lot earlier than now. Why did it show itself now?"
" That's a question I cannot answer, Kaygis. But I can help you."
" Not with this."
" What do you mean? You obviously need help!" the wolf barked.
Kaygis somehow managed a sigh as he tried to untangle the mess that he could feel was building around him.
" Remember how we went back in time to fix the world?" He asked after a little bit of thought.
" Yeah." Anjiti replied slowly.
" Well, I'm trying to fix a problem in this world. Only this problem is specific to the Rebels only. Mana, Dakota and their group have nothing wrong with them. They're lucky."
" Are you saying there's something wrong with us?"
Kaygis looked back at the flames that had entrapped him before, clearly avoiding the question. But Anjiti knew how to read him... even if he tried to hide it. And she could tell just by how he was acting that her answer was in the affirmative. Yet something stopped her from getting angry and she wasn't sure if it was the determination to fix the issue that she saw within the older man or if it was the strange feeling she was getting in her lower abdomen.
" Whatever you're doing, be careful." She sighed, realising that there was no way to deter the black panther.
" I always am. Now go get some rest. I'll be fine out here. We've got a pretty strong night watch."
She couldn't argue there, so Anjii gave a nod and made her way into the barn.

Lynk could feel himself growing tired as he ran through the forest, but he knew it was only because of how close he was getting to the main camp. He just had to keep pushing himself until he got to his destination. It wasn't long before he was able to see the little mound in the ground that marked where Link had created his little hide-away. But there was another scent mixing in with both his own and the young werewolf's. An oceanic scent that Lynk easily linked to Gemma. The boy's mother had obviously been worried about her son.
" Link. Gemma. Are you both alright down there?" He called softly but urgently.

" I think we could handle it." Anjou nodded, agreeing to the young alpha's choice.
He was about to go over to his younger brother and make sure that Shiro was going to behave during the last leg of the journey when the spirits started almost howling in his ears. The noise was almost deafening and made him lay his ears back and close his eyes in an attempt to lessen the noise.
" Anjou?" Sarba asked, concerned for the older wolfdog.
" The spirits. They're screaming out danger. But I can't tell if that danger is towards us or someone else. They're too loud. And scared." was his whimpered reply.

[Bakura]

"Its no problem, whilst they did startle me a little their size isn't the issue. My Aunt is actually larger than them. I just didn't expect them to be able to shift forms, it doesn't seem like a concept common among your family like it is mine." She offered with a smile, she had heard the wolf's question but noticed she was also distracted. Rather than responding while the she-wolf's attention was elsewhere she decided to follow her gaze and watched Kaygis with concerned eyes. She could tell he was worrying Anjiti and she frowned as the Indian wolf excused herself and ran to his side. Still watching them with concern, she pushed off the ground and floated towards Dakota where the she-wolf was laying on the barn roof watching the wolf and panther with concern.
"What is happening?" Mana asked softly, knowing Dakota was probably overwhelmed by her empathy.
Dakota's ears flicked in her sister's direction and she tensed at the uncomfortable pulling sensation running through her body. "I am not sure, but he seems to have a similar ability to Jordon and I believe he is attempting to undo something that we can not see. Go wake her, she may be able to assist him." Dakota ordered before she closed her eyes and focused on suppressing the feeling which was beginning to hurt.
Mana sighed at the vague explanation and jumped from the roof with a huff. She headed into the barn and - without waking the boys - got Jordon's sleepy attention. Before she could even say anything Jordon sat bolt upright, shifting to her smaller wolf form where her power was strongest. She then sniffed at the air before running from the barn, passing Anjiti on the way. Once outside she quickly located the disturbance she had felt upon awakening and sat down by the panther. She didn't say anything as she sat beside him with her head bowed. She wasn't sure what he was doing or if she could even help, but she could feel a disturbance in time and would be there to offer assistance if he needed it.

Mana watched the wolf leave in a rush before noticing Anjiti enter the barn. She thought about heading over to her to answer the wolf's earlier question but decided against it when her eyes caught sight of Aluna and the pups. She could tell something was off just by the scent in the air but as she drew closer she knew what was wrong. In his restless tossing and turning, Kurama had rolled himself away from the others and his dark green foxfire was swirling around him as if searching for something. She knew what was wrong as it had happened once before. The night following Tasuki's arrival, he had ducked out to relieve himself and whilst he was gone Kurama had begun tossing in his sleep, whining softly and the kit's foxfire had sprung forth and was swirling in the air. Mana hadn't moved unsure what was going on and when Tasuki entered the cave again, he gave a soft whine and purple foxfire sprung from his own body. It intertwined with Kurama's and the kit immediately settled. Once Tasuki was curled around him and both swirls of foxfire disappeared, Mana decided to speak. She had asked what was wrong and he had explained that whilst asleep young Kitsune's are comforted by their parent's presence. As they sleep, they will occasionally draw heat from their mother or father usually seen as them snuggling closer, but when snuggling doesn't work they become unsettled and their foxfire seeks out the heat their bodies failed to draw, fire can be used to calm them slightly but only foxfire can completely soothe their restlessness. She approached the kit slowly and blew a small stream of blue fire in his direction. At the soft whimper from the now still kit, she gently picked him up and carried him towards the back wall of the barn, closer to the rebels side and placed him down close to the wall.
'Dakota, tell Tasuki that Kurama is getting restless.' She thought and when Dakota hummed in response she lay down around the kit, blowing out small flames to mix among the kit's still swirling foxfire, which was almost surrounding her body as well now. After a moment, the familiar smokey scent of Tasuki's foxfire drifted in through the barn wall and as his purple foxfire mixed with Kurama's the kit gave a sigh and snuggled into Mana as the swirls disappeared now that he was calm again. Mana smiled softly and licked the kit on the head, before remembering Aden who had also rolled slightly away from Aluna in his search for his missing cuddle buddy. He eyes sort out the shivering pup and she frowned, she wanted to go grab him but her body refused to leave Kurama and a quick glance discovered all her family inside the barn to be asleep.

At the soft voice interrupting her sleep, Gemma growled before blinking her eyes open. She stumbled away from her son's much larger body and tripped out of the small den. She sat up, barely reaching Lynk's chest and released a large yawn, before shaking herself and looking up at the cyborg.
"I didn't mean to fall asleep. I just came out to check on him and wanted to lay with him for a little while." She said, her voice slightly higher in pitch due to her young vocal cords. "Is everything alright, I thought you had retired with your mate for the night?"

Evie smiled at the youngers agreeance to the plan and was ready to give the order when Anjou flinched like someone was screaming in his ears. At his words she frowned, they had escaped the fire. It shouldn't be able to cross the valley. She looked back the way they had come and could see the flames just starting to breach the treeline. "Maybe it's cause the fire is getting closer?" She muttered to herself.
"Alpha." She startled out of her thought's at the serious tone coming from her cousin and she met Rakshaw's serious gaze with slight confusion.
"What is it?" She asked, sensing that something was really bad, what with Anjou's reaction and now Rakshaw's seriousness.
"Something is very wrong in the forest east. The smoke smells a lot closer, like it has crossed the valley." He said before frowning. "And I can scent pups."
At his brother's words, Rohei stood up and shifted a few steps towards the trees before he drew in a deep breath, maw slightly agape as he scented the air. His whiskers twitched as he looked back at Evie with worry.
"There are two scents which I am picking up, both are strange to me." He said softly, eyes flicking to the other group before he looked back out to the forest.
"It will take far to long for all of us to get there." Evie said, she looked over her shoulder in her fathers direction and frowned. 'They may be vampires but that trip through the valley has tired them out.' She thought, noting that the only one who seemed to have any energy was Asylum who was wrapped up in his pup beside Shanara. She sighed and looked back to the cheetapard brothers who were impatiently waiting for orders. She didnt like the thought of sending her cousin alone but she knew he was the only one fast enough so with a huff she nodded to Rakshaw. "Go."
Rakshaw bowed slightly at the command and nudged April closer to Evie before moving towards the forest. He stopped at his brother's soft noise of protest and looked back at the group. "I know you want to come, but I can see we will need speed for this mission, not strength." He apologized to Rohei with a slight lowering of his head before his eyes flicked to Faraji. "Run with me brother, it will be quicker if we both carried a pup."

[Kifo]

Noticing the shift in magic around the barn, Demanicus cracked open an eye. He watched as Jordon rushed out of the barn and lifted his head to look over the direction that she had come from. That was when he noticed that Phoenix and Bloodshot had returned to the barn; the younger red dragon returning to his chumager form in the process. Worried for Snowdrift (but still sleepy himself) Demanicus got up and stumbled over to the small family before doing his best to curl around them and help the white chumager before going back to sleep.

Anjiti noticed the strange fire swirling around the young kitsune and stopped her search for a nice place to spend the night. Instead she watched the odd interaction between Mana and Kurama and a strange fire she could only assume was Tasuki's. But she saw the frustration in Mana's eyes and her gaze lingered on the small, shivering form of Aden. So, quietly and gently, she picked up the sleeping pup around his small body (like she had always done to her pups) and carried him over to where his aunt rested.
" I'm sorry I took off. Kaygis is like a brother to me and he worries me sometimes. He worries us all." She whispered after placing the pup beside his friend and laying down beside the trio herself. " But don't worry. Everyone in the Rebels Gang has more than one form. Any young born as animals are given a human form once they are weaned, at which point they generally become a six month old human and have to get used to eating human foods. Any human born children are given a choice once they are old enough to choose for themselves... unless you're Bosko and Kratia who desperately want a set of twins that they can give a lion and a tiger morph to." She then looked over to Kratia with a steel gaze for a few seconds before returning her attention to her new friend. " Uphere, Demanicus, Iora and their sister Akira all gained their rather large, draconic wolf forms in memory of their brother Kainan who loved wolves. But the Rebel with the most forms, if you don't count Reece, would have to be Carlos. He's not here, but he has a total of seven morphs including a human morph and his true thylacine morph."

Kaygis pulled at another invisible strand of time, effectively freeing it from the knot it had gotten tangles in and aging young Kokoda to his rightful age of nine years, before he realised that he was not alone by the campfire. Beside him, though obviously still a little bleary eyed despite her attentiveness, sat the black and silver form of Jordon.
" Jordon? What are you doing here? I thought you were with your family?" He said, a little startled at her sudden appearance.

" I had," Lynk nodded, " but I had to check on Link. My sister in law howled saying that there was a fire and that Dakota has ordered everyone to the barn for safety. I won't be able to go thanks to the vampires, but my Blade Falcon has sufficient protection against such natural forces and will protect my wife and myself if need be. If you want, you can stay with us for the night and I can return you to the main camp in the morning along with my wife."

Faraji's ears twitched as Rakshaw spoke and his eyes landed on the form of Anjou who was now lying on the ground with his front paws covering his ears. A quick look at Shiro - who despite looking at his brother like he was mad was clearly a little worried - and the king cheetah's mind was made up.
" Shiro, you behave. Sarba, Kaine, Mazari, watching him and look after Anjou. You may want to put Astro down too. I'm nor sure, but I think he's growing." He said before leaping over to the blue cheetard's side. " Hopefully we wont be too long. And we get there in time."

[Bakura]

Bloodshot shifted as warmth surrounded him and he shifted slightly before opening his eyes. At the sight of the large black wolf curled around him, his brother and his father, he started before drawing in the other's scent and quickly relaxing. "Thank you." He said with a soft smile as he shifted between his brother and the large wolf and lay his head back on his brother's neck before allowing sleep to take him once more.

Gemma nodded at the kind gesture and gave the dog a smile. "We will take you up on that offer, I know Link won't want to go back to camp just yet. I just need to check that my youngest is alright before we go. I really didn't mean to fall asleep and leave Aden alone, but it's probably for the best that I did." She said thinking out loud before she glanced in the direction of the camp.
'Sisters, is Aden alright? Can one of you please check on him and stay with him, I will not be returning for the night.' She thought with worry and she anxiously awaited a response from either of the twins.

Mana sighed with relief as she noticed Anjiti gather young Aden and bring him over. The grey pup immediately snuggled closer to Kurama once he was placed beside the elder and his shivering stopped at the warmth flowing out of his friend's body. "Thank you and it's no problem at all, I can completely understand the compulsion to make sure he is okay." She said with a smile before she curled around the two young and lay her tail over their sleeping bodies. She, however kept her eyes trained on Anjiti, listening to her words and nodded slightly surprised at the mention of Carlos' seven forms. "Ahh I see, so most of your family have a human and an animal form. It's similar for us but quite a few of us have multiple animals forms, and some of us don't even have human forms, like my brother Moonlight. We average between two to four forms each, for instance, I have my Gaiwolf, my Andrewsarchus and my Human while my sister Gemma has her Gaiwolf, her Human, her Jaguar and her Phoenix." She explained before her ear twitched as her sister's voice entered her mind. At the concerned question, she licked Aden between the ears before nuzzling him slightly.
'He is fine, we will see you in the morning.' Mana responded in her mind, sending a wave of calm to the agitated mother and at the soft thank you which she received in return she turned her attention back to Anjiti, hoping the wolf wouldn't take her zoning out as being rude.

Gemma smiled "He is fine." She said before allowing her gaiwolf out, she stepped back as her small jaguar body grew and she had to move to avoid butting her head into Lynk's chin. She then stuck her head back into Link's small den and nudged the younger awake.
"Link, honey. There is a fire coming and we can not stay here, Lynk has offered to allow us to stay in his plane for the night." She said softly and the green teenager just grumbled. "Sweetie, we need to go." She said a little more urgently and he huffed before opening his tired eyes and getting to his paws.
"Alright, alright." He grumbled as he stretched on his way out the small opening.
He then looked from his mother to his friend and smiled sleepily. "Lead the way."

Jordon acknowledged Kaygis with a slight bow of her head and responded through a yawn. "I was but Alpha thought I might be able to help you with your task. I can sense the shifts in time but I'm not really sure what it is you are doing. I have the ability to stop time in its tracks and have recently been training my powers to reverse and speed up time as well. Although I can only change time by about a minute right now." She offered slightly ashamed, ears drooping at her inability to master the power she was born with.

Seeing the pain Anjou was in, Shanara moved to his side and lightly brushed her paw between his ears in a petting motion in an attempt to sooth the pain in his head. She looked to Evie with worry, but the blue wolf was looking worriedly towards the trees where they had been informed of lost pups.

As Faraji joined his side, Rakshaw relaxed his shoulders and took off at a sprint into the forest. "We must be careful as we get closer." He called over his shoulder, "The fire could be everywhere."
His eyes looked to the sky through the trees and he could see the glowing of the firelight in the distance.