It felt good to be in her childhood home once again. How many years had she been away now? Four? Five? It felt like a lifetime ago. She'd played under these trees. Fought through the briars and jumped out and scared the piss out of passerby. Good times, truly. She squinted up into the trees as she walked. Was that the one that she'd gotten stuck in? It was hard to tell; time was unforgiving and the Orchard, while set up exactly as she remembered it, looked different. Rhys glanced over her shoulder at her mother. The pair had finally gotten a chance to catch up. It felt great to be near her again. Rhys had always been independent, but the nature of her mother's disappearance had haunted her for years. Now that they were reunited she wanted to stick close to her and catch up on lost time. The last time she'd seen her mother she'd been a child with a child's attachment. Now she was an adult, an equal, and she felt like she had to get to know her mother all over again. An odd, guttural whine brought her out of her reverie and Rhys turned just in time to see a bear cub rise up onto its back legs. The little beast was very close and very small. That it was alone was kind of surpris- The sound of teeth snapping together rapidly alerted her to the presence of the mother bear. Rhys, always up for a challenge, grinned hungrily at it and nodded her encouragement hoping to entice it closer. It was then that she was reminded of her blind mother's presence. Fuck. There would be no bear fight today. Calmly she stated for her mother's benefit, "It seems we've gotten between a mother bear and her cub-" A second one appeared beside the first and Rhys had to resist the urge to sigh. "Cubs," she corrected. "And she'd very much like it if we left." Rhys started to walk backwards towards her mother. She was going to keep the mother bear in her sights until they were well away from her and her babies. If she charged them (hopefully she wouldn't if they were quiet and non threatening) Rhys planned on trying to distract the bear while her mother made a break for it. "I'm walking back towards you. Maybe if we're really slow and careful they'll just...mosey on their way." The bear rose up on its hind legs, its mouth open and its nose working, but it didn't make a sound as it tried to figure them out. The baby bears, annoyingly fearless little buggers, continued to romp around unabashedly. Man, if she were by herself she'd try to run off with one of those little beasts. Someone somewhere would pay a pretty penny for one. For her mother's sake she'd resist. Her father would probably eat her if she got Rhythm chased by a bear. Of course she would have to make a mental note of this location for later. Should she be back and should the bears still be in the area could anyone really blame her for having a go at one? Word Count: 536

Leaving Rhys had been one of her biggest regrets of having been captured. She knew that there hadn’t been any changing the fact, and she could blame the slavers all she wanted, but who ever got the blame wouldn’t change the fact that it had been too many years since she’d been in her daughter’s presence.

Of course now Rhys was like a stranger, Rhythm hadn’t spoken to her since she was a yearling. She’d grown up without her mother and Rhythm hated having to admit to that fact. She had offered little bits and pieces of her life the past four or five years, not really wanting to relive the moments. She did offer Rhys any information she wanted about her half siblings, though couldn’t blame Rhys if she didn’t want anything to do with them. Rhyme had seen them grow up, the ones she had been able to keep at least. He retained a similar attachment to them that Rhythm felt despite how they had been created.

All in all she was very much enjoying her day catching up with Rhys. She’d grown into a strong woman despite losing her mom all those years ago. She seemed happy, and Rhythm wouldn’t complain about anything as long as that remained true.

Rhythm stopped as the sound of Rhys’s paws ceased. Dark chocolate ears swiveled curiously at the sounds on either side of them. Then she caught a whiff of their guests. She realized it as Rhys vocaliased it. Bears.

The old Destruction felt her hackles raise and her joints bend. Thankfully with the marmer weather she was much more limber than usual. She remained still as Rhys commentated, making mention of her plan. Rhythm listened as Rhys drew more near, and stayed quiet as she started making a quiet retreat as well. She knew that Rhys would have likely been much more bold in the face of such danger with out her incapacitated mother beside her. Not that she could guess that the younger woman wanted to steal one of said cubs they had gotten between.

”Alright, good plan.” She said in a loud whisper as Rhys backed far enough that the two of them were almost side by side. ”What’s plan B when she charges?” By the sound of it, she really wasn’t happy. However she wasn’t the most intelligent bear, and was taking her time in deciding if the two she wolves were a threat or not. As the words left her mouth the old she bear made a threatening half roar and fell heavily on her front legs. She hadn’t charged yet, but Rhythm could tell she was starting to work herself up. They either had to turn and run, or get ready for the explosion.


word count: 464

"What's plan B when she charges?" Had she been with anyone else Rhys' answer would have been easy: every woman for herself, slowest chick is bear food. But, seeing as she was with her mother and they had only just been reunited, she couldn't very well abandon her mother to the bear, could she? Even for someone with Rhys' questionable beliefs about right and wrong that seemed a bit harsh.

"Well," she whispered back in a tone that said she was stalling for time. Honestly she didn't have much of an answer besides run like hell and throw in the occasional zigzag, and no time to think of a better plan. Except maybe...

"Seeing as only one of us has eyes..." She felt her hip brush Rhythm's chest or shoulder (she couldn't tell which without glancing back and she didn't dare take her eyes of the bear to check) as she backed up and took solace in the contact. She wanted her mother to be close just in case. "If it charges I think it will be best if you run while I distract it. We'll meet up at the barn, yeah?"

That sounded like a reasonable plan to her. Had the bear not had cubs she might have suggested they hold their ground and bluff, but instinct told her that would not help them in this scenario. The cubs were a bit too foolhardy and the mother was...well a mother bear of all things. It seemed unlikely that she would settle for running off when her cubs seemed keen to keep rolling around in the leaf litter.

Speaking of...

One of the rambunctious little bastards began to pad towards the wolves. Its expression was curious, not malicious, and yet that didn't lessen Rhys' dislike of it. "No, no, no," she groused at it as she backpedaled faster. "One of the little beasties seems to think we're worth investigating," she said to her mother. To it, she hissed, "Shoo, cubby, can't you see you're making mommy unhappy." Her gazed darted to the mother and then back to the nosy cub. The least momma bear could do was recognize that the proximity was the cub's fault, right?

Word count: 362

Moments like this made her miss her sight the most, but at least she was with her daughter. Rhythm and Rhys had just been reunited, and though her daughter was a stranger she felt safe in her presence. Happening upon a mother bear and her cubs alone, Rhythm might not have made it out alive. With her eldest daughter she had a chance. Rhys let her know there wasn’t much of a plan with her hesitation. Rhythm might not have liked the answer but when one was given it had to be good enough. ”It’ll have to do. Don’t hurt yourself, I’ve only just gotten you back.”

The blind Destruction woman kept herself next to Rhys, never losing contact as the bear cub trotted forward. Rhys narrated as Rhythm tried to think. Her feet moved just as fast as her daughter’s as they tried to withdraw from the too curious cub. Even the blind woman knew that the mother bear was not impressed. She could hear the massive animal snort and huff as she shifted through the underbrush. Her heart beat erratically in her chest as she felt her feet grow restless.

”I don’t know if we’ll make it away fast enough.” Her paws were itching to run, and even if Rhys couldn't see it on her features she would hera it in her mother's voice.

wc: 230