Excuse Me, Do You Know Who We Are?

Tarnish settled down in the sand to spend his day bird watching and bird hunting. He dug his front paws into the sand, soaking in the warmth as he watched the gulls, egrets and other birds flying to and fro. If only one would land a little bit closer. Most of the birds were white but he did notice a big, black bird looking at him. As soon as he made eye contact with it it would go to preening and completely ignore him. Maybe he could stalk closer to it?

Tarnish had yet to learn the ins and outs of disguise so he simply slunk into the golden sand in a stalking stance, not realizing that his dark coat made him stand out clearly against its pale, shimmering surface. He moved slow, placing each paw carefully. Tar was learning that if he didn't want to trip he needed to be more deliberate about where he placed his paws and to move slowly, which was such a pain in the ass. He was just at the base of the tree when the bird started staring at something behind him. Tarnish squinted then looked back. Nothing. When he turned to look back in the trees the bird was gone. Boo!

A chill breeze started to blow and Tarnish shuddered, suddenly feeling woozy. Maybe it was time to lie down again. He'd been feeling ill on and off, his energy coming in spurts. He slinked back to the den and immediately curled up to fall asleep. He must've dozed for some time but it felt like he'd barely shut his eyes before Calliope shoved his back. He was about to tell her to piss off when she mentioned treasure. Ok… she had his attention. Not that he was sure he believed her but the chance, however minimal, was too good to pass up. He rolled to his feet, shook the sand from his coat and meandered out of the den with his sister hurrying him along to the raft. He had a moment of uncertainty looking at the gathering clouds but it passed as soon as he acknowledged it.

"So, what kind of treasure is this anyway? Is it like a skeleton or jewels or something?" He hopped off the raft. "And why isn't she taking this treasure for herself? Why tell us about it?" Tar yelped as a quarter sized hailstone bonked him on the head. Needing no more encouragement he scrambled into the underbrush, nestling under some mangrove roots before a snarling sound caught the attention of both pups. Calliope leaned in and whispered that they should check it out. Tar nodded. It sounded like a wolf and he figured it had to be one of the pirates training. Maybe they could get a lesson out of this.

However, when they arrived it was clear that this wasn't a pack wolf. "Intruder! Intruder!" Tarnish screeched at the top of his lungs in hopes of alerting the other pirates and especially his dad. They'd eviscerate this fool! Suddenly the wolf charged at them, Tarnish scrambled out of the way and to his benefit the adult wolf was focused on his more colorful sister. Without a word Tarnish leapt for the other wolf's hind end, his teeth latching onto the wolf's tail. The intruder yelped, standing up suddenly and bashing his head into the top of the roots before scrambling backwards, whipping around to try and get the boy off his tail. Tarnish squeezed his eyes shut and held on for dear life.

Suddenly the brute screamed and stopped. Tarnish took the chance to let go and scramble under a nearby shrub. The intruder's left ear had been shredded vertically into three pieces. What the hell? A croaking caw caught his attention and he looked to see the black bird, the crow, perched above him with blood dripping from its talons.

Raider Brats