Once Upon a December {Mac}

[Mika]

The sun had just disappeared from its' position in the sky, plunging the city into darkness. Other than the moon, only the earths' white winter coating seemed to give more light to the temporarily dark area. The darkness and decrease in temperature didn't seem to bother the cats and dogs wandering around outside.
The twin shibas' had taken refuge in a fairly large house that no one else had claimed. They were on the balcony of the house, looking down at an unusual couple that was trying to hide in a dark alley. They were actually doing a good job of going unnoticed by hiding toward the back of a dark alley behind a large dumpster as other loners passed by, oblivious to the two. The twins were able to see them easily because of their position. The twins both had equally scornful looks on their faces as they watched a cat and a fairly small dog appear to be alt closer than others would think they were, unless they were getting the wrong idea.

Haru scoffed at the strange couple. "What idiots. Do they honestly think that will last?" Hiro said nothing as she stared at the couple for a few moments before laying her head on her paws. Haru looked up and watched the stars wink at her from above before getting up on all fours and shaking her coat. She took a few steps toward the door before looking back at her sister. "Are you coming? You could freeze out here." Snow was just starting to fall from the sky.

"In a minute." Was Chihiro's only response as she continued to lay on her belly with her head on her paws. Haru walked through the door, through the door and headed down to the first floor of the house.

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[atrb=background,http://i42.tinypic.com/33ufp07.jpg] Night had fallen, and Valkyrie was extremely excited. Her mother had never let she or her brothers stay up after dark, let alone in a strange part of Hexasol. But after several days of non-stop nagging, Rikki had finally given in and said that she could spend a evening out here, but with a responsible adult whom she would obey at all times, but without her brothers; more than one cub to watch over would be too much trouble, or so she said. The Arctic wolf had been as good as her word, and the two-week-old-cub had been allowed to roam the city that evening, accompanied by a big Newfoundland, Ralph, whom her mother had befriended. She marveled at how well she could see in the dark; there were so many interesting things to see! Breaking into a run so that she kicked up a cloud of snow dust behind her, where Ralph was, she heard him quicken his pace so that he wouldn't lose her. He was so large that, to keep up with a speedy wolf cub, all he had to do was to change from walking to trotting. Quite frankly, she envied him. Slowing to a sedate walk again, she amused herself by attempting to identify all the scents that reached her small black nose. Rikki had taught her four cubs what many scents meant, but not quite all of them. There were the scents of other dogs, which were, for the most part, rather faint; most of these were loners, some belonging to Tempest, which she recognised clearly. A few belonged to the - what was the name again? - The Lexis Tribe, that was it. And then there were the feline smells. They were more elusive and subtle than the smell of canines for the most part, but they were there. She identified loners, Lexis cats, and, barely known to her in scent, but well known and hated by name, Iris Pride felines. The fur on her hackles rose and she growled softly into the night. Ralph nudged her with a huge paw. "Shh, keep quiet, we don't know who's around here," he warned her in a whisper. "But - but wouldn't we be able to scent them?"

[/b] She asked, confused. "I thought -"
"Sometimes other creatures hide their scents, using everyday ones to blend in with their surroundings," he told her. "So be careful."

Slightly annoyed by his forbidding tone, but frightened nevertheless, Valkyrie bobbed her head and murmured, "Yes, Ralph."[/b] Then, suddenly, she took off again, wondering where she should go now. Chuckling with delight, she ran down a darkened street, and stopped in front of a magnificent old house. It was almost a mansion; but what interested the timber - Arctic wolf cross was that there were the fresh scents of dogs inside it. Two dogs! Maybe they'd want to play with her.

Glancing behind her and seeing that Ralph had, of course, caught up to her, she yelped playfully, forgetting what Ralph had told her, and ran into the house. She slid on the smooth floor, and found herself colliding with a set of legs. From where she lay, sprawled on the ground, the cub smiled sheepishly up at Haru. "Sorry."[/b]

OOC; My first post with Valkyrie! <3
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[Mika]

Hiro

Still on the balcony, Hiro rolled onto her belly and sat up on her haunches as she watched the streets below. The falling snow started to cover her head and back as she continued to watch the unusual couple hiding in the alley. After a while the cat and dog couple looked around to see if anyone had seen them before leaving the alley. Other than disgust she didn't know exactly what she felt about the two. She agreed with her sister, no doubt their relationship would have to end somehow, but she thought she could feel only a small hint of jealousy.

Two nearby figures caught her attention. She sat as still as she could as she watched a wolf pup, accompanied by a large Newfoundland, who was running ahead of her escort and sniffing the various scents of cats and dogs that had already passed. The larger canine caught up with the pup and seemed to whisper something to the pup who took off again soon after they had talked. Hiro chuckled lightly until she noticed that the pup had entered the house, followed by her older friend. Hiro stood and shook the white powder from her coat before entering the room and stopping at the door. She made sure no part of her could be seen as she listened to what her sister and their uninvited guests.

Haru

Once she stepped out of the room she looked down at the living room from the second floor of the house, sniffing the air for any unfamiliar scents. No one had invited themselves inside, not yet anyway. She was going to patrol a little; make sure the other loners knew to stay away, then explore the house a little more. She leisurely walked down the stairs and looked around at the large living room with expensive looking furniture that was now left to collect dust. Haru and her sister had chosen this house because of it's size. It was big enough for both of them and others, even though the didn't plan to invite anyone else into their world.

Haru headed toward the kitchen, her back was turned toward the door. She didn't notice anyone running through the door until she felt something hit her hind legs. A surprised growl escaped her throat as she jumped forward only an inch and turned to see a pup sprawled on the ground. This stranger was much too young to be wandering on her own but Haru thought she didn't have to be too concerned. "Kid, shouldn't you be with your mom or something?" She sounded annoyed even though she had only just met the younger female. A second, much larger canine then walked through the door. "Just keep running away from your friend there. I'm sure there's a cougar somewhere that will be happy to eat you."

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[atrb=background,http://i42.tinypic.com/33ufp07.jpg] Ralph stepped through the doorway, watching in dismay as Valkyrie slid across the floor. He liked Rikki's cubs, he really did, but this one was quite a pawful, even at two weeks of age. She knew enough words for a cub her age, which wasn't many at all, really, so it was hard to have a proper conversation. He sighed as the little timber - arctic wolf mix ran headlong into a white bitch, and quickened his pace to reach the two before things got nasty. The adult female was saying something to the cub, but he couldn't tell what. From the fresh scents scattered around the grandiose building, he could tell that it was her home, and that of another female, who carried a similar scent. Valkyrie scrambled to her paws as Haru spoke, putting her head to one side. "What's a cou- cougar?" She asked, curious, and not at all frightened by the shiba's greater size or her hostile manner. She was always hearing adults say words that she'd never heard before, and didn't know the meaning of. She couldn't recall most of them, either; she wasn't able to remember a lot of the things she heard. Hearing Ralph behind her, she turned and told him, "Ralph, she said something about a cougar. What is a cougar?" The Newfoundland sighed, putting it as simply as he could. "A cougar is a cat." Using words such as breed, type, or kind would only confuse her, he knew. Turning to the white shiba, he told her, "I apoligise for our entering of your territory without permission. The cub, Valkyrie, is only a few weeks old, so she doesn't have understanding of complicated concepts yet." Bowing his head in a polite and slightly submissive gesture (he didn't want trouble, and it was her territory, not his), he assured her, "We will leave, right now. I'm sorry for having disturbed you." But Valkyrie had other ideas. Bored with Ralph speaking to the stranger with words she didn't know, she had decided to explore. Finding the staircase, she sniffed it, curious at the way it zigzagged upwards. Then, scent another canine, she shot off up the stairs, towards Chihiro. The Newfoundland glimpsed Valkyrie's bushy tail as she sped up the stairs, and apologised once again to Haru. "I'm terribly sorry. I'll go and get her." Without another word, he ran over to the stairs and followed his mischievous charge. OOC; teehee, this is too much fun! XD

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[Mika]

It was obvious that Haru wasn't interested in what the Newfoundland had to say. Her face was expressionless as she just stood and listened to the stranger's apology for his young companions' behavior. Once the male had run up the stairs, chasing after the pup who was headed toward her sister, a smirk slowly appeared on her face.

She didn't bother trying to stop them, she watched them go up the stairs for a moment before silently making her way into the kitchen. Those two had barged into their home uninvited, the least they could do is entertain Hiro and herself. Since both sisters looked exactly alike it might take a while for their guests to figure it out, as it usually did with many others that would never be able to tell the difference between them. No doubt these two strangers would be no different.

Chihiro

She continued to stand just out of sight at the entrance of the door as she listened to two different voices. From her sister's comment she could tell one visitor was too young to be out on their own, the other stranger was much older. She only moved back a little to make sure she was completely out of sight as she listened to the older dog's apology.

She backed away from the door as soon as she heard the sound of approaching paws. She turned and quickly walked over to a chair that sat near a dusty dresser. She jumped up into the seat of the chair then up onto the top of the dresser, leaving paw prints in the thick layer of dust that coated the top. She then sat near the edge facing the door waiting to see who would walk through.

(sorry it took so long for me to reply)

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[atrb=background,http://i42.tinypic.com/33ufp07.jpg] Valkyrie pushed herself up the stairs, her little legs barely making the distance between one and the next. Reaching the top, she glanced back behind her to see Ralph stop talking to the shiba and run towards the staircase. Turning back to the room in front of her, she trotted in, scenting the air. Sure enough, there were the scents of two bitches - the one who was downstairs, and another one. The scent of the second was only slightly different. Looking around the room, the cub’s eye was caught by something white, up high, on top of what appeared to be a short, square tree, for it was made of wood. Craning her neck, she saw that it was the female she had scented moments ago; she was practically identical to the one downstairs. Confused, she put her head to one side, narrowing her small brown eyes. This couldn’t be the same dog; there was no way she could get up here without being seen, surely! Hurrying to the doorway to check that the unfriendly female was still downstairs, the timber-arctic wolf cross squealed and retreated as Ralph’s great, shaggy black head and shoulders appeared, blocking any view of the stairs or anything beyond. Seeing the chair, the little female jumped onto it, and, seeing that her guardian was making his way toward her, she flung herself upwards, managing to hook her tiny front paws and snout over the edge of the already occupied wardrobe top. Her heard beating furiously with excitement, she swung her body up and forward, sliding across the smooth surface on her side, her progress arrested by, for the second time that evening, a furry white body. Yelping, “Sorry!” she flashed a sheepish look at the shiba, and peered downwards to see what had happened to Ralph. * * * * The Newfoundland glared up at the wardrobe, thoroughly disgruntled and somewhat annoyed with his small charge. The chair lay on the floor, pushed onto its side after Valkyrie’s wild jump for the top of the wardrobe. Without it, all Ralph could do was brace himself against the large piece of furniture and scowl up at the wolf cub whose face hung several inches above his own. Cursing his heavy body that made him considerably slower than most other smaller canines and felines, he growled threateningly (which was an achievement for the generally gentle, good-natured and too-lenient giant of a dog) at his young protégé. “Valkyrie, come down here this instant, or I’ll see to it that your mother doesn’t let you out of her sight for a week!” Knowing that this threat was an empty one (Ralph was far to soft-hearted to do such a thing), Valkyrie whined pleadingly, “Just a minute, Ralph, then I’ll come down!” Turning to the female beside her, she asked a little tentatively, “Miss, you’re not the same dog who was downstairs only a moment ago, are you? You smell a little. . . Well. . Not the same as her, really. I’m Valkyrie, by the way.” Wagging her bushy little tail, she glanced up into the eyes of the white female. Meanwhile, her Newfoundland custodian sighed and apologised for what, he felt sure, would not be the last time that night. Knowing form experience that the female atop the dresser was a different bitch from the one they had encountered downstairs, he spoke accordingly. “Miss, I’m terribly sorry that we’ve trespassed on your territory; I’m afraid that youngster is the most disobedient cub I’ve ever met. I’ve already explained this to your. . . sister, mustn’t she be? I’ll have her down and out of your site in a jiffy if you distract her for a moment. . .” And with that, Ralph hurried over to the chair and nosed it carefully, righting it and carefully testing it with a huge paw to see if it would hold his considerable weight.

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