If You Wish to be a Proper Soldier [Finished]

[Yuiven]

There was a wave of muttering amongst the small group of spectators that had gathered to watch, as they milled about for a few moments before dispersing to resume their activities.

Either oblivious or ignorant to the Cards as they walked past him, Beowulf watched the retreating back of the little girl fade into the distance as she was swallowed up by the crowd. In his heart of hearts, he truly didn't want to turn the young raccoon over to the proper authorities. Given his history with the police, he was worried that she would be mistreated. So he was happy with their decision to let her go. Hopefully she will find her way in life now that she had a second chance. "I wish you all the best, kid," Beowulf murmured as he continued to watch the reformed pickpocket until she vanished completely from sight.

Smiling crookedly, he chuckled just as lightly as the bashful tone of the other Josiggy's voice pulled his attention to Jarvis, meeting the chipmunk's gaze. "I am Beowulf," he said in belated introduction, leaning forward and reaching out with his own hand to accept the proffered paw. He shook it firmly in a formal handshake and then released it afterwards. "Thanks for your help. You came at exactly the right time. Without your intervention, things would've turned out quite differently."

Azure eyes slid to one side as Wiglaf piped up, "Thanks from me too." The misty wraith started to take shape under Beowulf's watchful eye, manifesting in his animal form and solidifying to the point as if he was still flesh and blood. He stood beside his chosen haunt with a grateful smile on his face. After informing Beowulf of the theft, he had stayed invisible throughout the incident until the Sorgaire Range stone was back in their rightful possession and the young Morganberry raccoon had been dealt with accordingly. There was no more he could have done. It was in the hands of the living to retrieve the much-loved stone.

[Kitty]

Well ... I had to do something constructive with my day other then run errands from the Marsh.

He grinned a bit, making sure to keep his fangs covered... strangers didn't generally appreciate them as much as he did. But he supposed they had a point, chipmunks generally didn't have long, pointy fangs. His banded tail wiggled a bit as he looked at the stone, really looked at it. Was that from Sorgaire? What one earth was a marsh lander doing with a stone from there? It had to have some sort of sentimental value, especially after all the trouble the avian had put into getting it back.

Did that belong to a friend? Sorry if I'm being intrusive at all ... you just don't see many of those in the Marsh ...

He was inquisitive and just couldn't keep all his questions bottled up at all times and, well, this one seemed innocent enough to not be offensive. His curiosity was shown clearly by the forward tilt of his little ears in the stone's direction.

[Yuiven]

((Aiiee-yah! I'm sorry that it took longer than usual to write this post, Kitty. ^^;))

What came out of Jarvis' mouth caught Beowulf and Wiglaf completely off-guard. Quiet fell between the two friends as they exchanged a glance that spoke as well as a full conversation. 'Well... I had to do something constructive with my day other than run errands from the Marsh.' Neither could think of anything to say in response to their new acquaintance's blunt statement. It was far from the typical response you would expect from someone who went out of his way to help you. With that in mind, Beowulf refocused his attention on the chipmunk. Bracing his elbows against his knees, he eased back on his haunches and looked at the younger man, taking advantage of the lull in the conversation to scrutinize him.

Despite Jarvis' jovial tone, he thought he could detect a hint of dissatisfaction behind his words. He'd have to think about that later. At the seemingly innocent question, Beowulf felt his breath catch in his throat, and coughed to try and regain his voice. "N-No, you don't," he stammered in reply. While the crow was pulling out the stone from his pouch, he made a vague reference that it had belonged to his late best friend.

"This stone..." Staring down at Wiglaf's stone with a forlorn expression, Beowulf curled his fingers around it, clenching the prized possession as if desperately clinging to the memory of his late best friend. His next words were barely audible as he spoke in a mournful whisper, "and my memories are all I have left of him."

Wiglaf sighed deeply, brown eyes softening as he looked as if he wanted to say something, but he kept it to himself. With a wry twist of his mouth, he shook his head and then moved a few steps away. Glancing around, a figure walking towards the Percheron caught his attention. He stopped short and did a double take, eyes widening as he took in the sight before him. 'Uh oh.' Wiglaf backed up a step, ears flattening against his skull, and snorted. 'That's not good.' He craned his neck to look back at Beowulf, who was stuffing the stone in his pouch once more for safekeeping.

When Wiglaf nudged the crow's shoulder gently with his nose, Beowulf started. Regaining his senses again, he ticked an eye back to the ghost and raised a questioning eyebrow. "Cop!" Wiglaf answered in a low, urgent voice. Beowulf refrained from saying the four letter word that crossed his mind.

After a brief, confirming glance over his shoulder, Beowulf smiled as if nothing were wrong and stood up, discreetly stretching out the kinks in his legs after squatting for too long. Eager for a chance to change the subject to anything less uncomfortable, he resumed his conversation with Jarvis. "Anyway, you said you were running errands?" he asked, and continued before giving the chipmunk a chance to respond. "I know the Capital like the back of my hand. I can take you directly where you need to go; if you come with me, you'll be done a lot faster. Then I'll treat you to lunch at the Golden Apple to show our– er, my gratitude for your help."

Beowulf cocked his head as the smile broadened across his beak in earnest. "Whaddya say, hmm?"

[Kitty]

There wasn't anything behind his first statement, it was just the truth. He got sent out on the same errands every week and it was horribly boring and... monotonous to boot. His parents never left the Marsh anymore, not since they'd gone into retirement, and he was the youngest ... and therefor the one they sent out on errands. He just ... needed a little deviation to keep the Capitol interesting, he had no intentions of being a region hermit like the chipmunk and squirrel he was going home to later, no matter how much he loved his homeland.

He twitched his ears forward as he watched the avian, so that was a sore subject then? He did appreciate the fact that the man gave him an explanation anyhow, and his expression softened a bit. He wouldn't say anything, not even something pleasant and upbeat ... he knew the look of someone who wanted to change the subject and the bird's expression and body language was almost screaming it.

He tilted his head to the side ever so slightly as the other heart looked over his shoulder, what was he looking at? He couldn't really see much from his position so low to the ground ... but that was just one of the things you had to deal with when you were on the smaller side of the size spectrum ... and he was quite alright with that. And then there was the subject change he'd been waiting for ....

Well, I get sent on the same errands on a weekly basis, but I can't deny the fact that company would make the day go by faster and.... really, you needn't treat me to anything.

He grinned up at the fellow Marshlander, forgetting to be careful this time and showing off the tips of his unusually long fangs .... well, fangs on a chipmunk were just off in general, weren't they?

[Yuiven]

'"Really, you needn't treat me to anything."' Beowulf's smile slipped as he blinked several times in mute surprise, not sure what to say or do. To him, the sentimental value of the stone was priceless, though the monetary value was negligible. Without a call to arms, his mind became a battlefield of conflicting emotions, beliefs both virtuous and shameless duelling like a sword versus a spear. Too wrapped in his own warring thoughts he failed to notice the pearly gleam coming from Jarvis' freakishly long fangs.

Behind him, the ghost of Wiglaf made nickers of unease that echoed his own growing sense of imminent danger as he danced from foot to foot. Pausing in his movements, the Sorgaire Range Percheron swung his head around and squinted so he could have a better look at the Capital City police officer. 'Typical, when you need a cop they're never there, and when you don't want one they're all over.'

Here he comes now, the warthog- all the way from The Solandria Glacier- ambling towards them with an indolent swagger in his step. The man was enormous. Not so very tall, as simply wide. His pale blue mane seemed to be cut aggressively short on the sides and back, while the top was cut short at the crown and gradually longer towards the front. Curved tusks jutted out of his wart-covered face, and he had a kegger of a beer gut (probably from gobbling up a lot of doughnuts and washing it down with pots of coffee!) Wiglaf recoiled in disgust. That police officer fitted the stereotype of "Lazy Cop" so well it made him want to vomit, if equines were physically capable of doing that. He tossed his head, looking agitated, and pawed at the cobblestones. "Hurry up, Beo! The smell of bacon is getting stronger!" Wiglaf's voice rang out clear as a bell over the din of the crowd. "We can't let that cop catch us. You know he's going to ask us questions we can't answer...we can't let Jarvis get involved in this." His words came out in a rush.

Turquoise eyes widened slightly, and Beowulf stiffened as he listened to his best friend's warning. Chills ran up his spine as he brought the opposing factions in his mind together to negotiate some type of truce now that they had a common enemy. He looked into the other Josiggy's eyes, cocked his head a moment as if in thought, and then renewed his smile.

Relief flooded his face when his mind presented a solution to appease both Jarvis and his conscience, as well as get away scot-free before the two men were nabbed. The crow held out his hands, palm upward, and spread his wings for an impromptu screen, effectively blocking out what little view the chipmunk originally had. "All right," he said. "How about this: I'll accompany you wherever you need to go on your errands, and if you feel a bit peckish when you're done, then we'll go get something to eat. Does that sound good to you?"

[Kitty]

He watched the other marsh dweller with an arched brow, his behavior starting to make him just a bit suspicious. He arched a brow but pulled it back down once he noticed it. Hum. He wasn't entirely certain what to think of this and he flipped his notched ear backward as he kept olive eyes on the crow. He looked... almost as if he was listening to someone but ... he certainly wasn't talking. He'd heard of people with various forms of insanity but this heart didn't seem like that either, hell... if his sister didn't fit into that category then this man certainly didn't. How very, very odd.

Both of his ears twitched ever so slightly when he spoke; persistent one wasn't he? Well he'd already announced he wouldn't mind company throughout his errands, although why anyone would want to accompany a stranger on something so boring was beyond him, so why not just agree and get on with it? Besides... he probably would be hungry by the time he got everything .... especially since mother wanted some spices she couldn't get in the Marsh.

Sounds good to me, but we've got to be on our way ... one of the shops I need to go to closes in about an hour. Why so early I haven't the faintest idea.

And with that he turned and started to walk in the opposite direction, little banded brush of a tail twitching ever so slightly as he moved.

[Yuiven]

Persistent? Well, that was one word to describe him. Depending on whomever's word you relied on, Beowulf could also be labelled either determined or stubborn. If you were to ask the man himself, he'd say he was as honourable as a Mid-Ranger. Renege on his offer...that wasn't a soldier's M.O. Beowulf owed a debt of gratitude to Jarvis for his assistance in the recovery of the stone, and he wouldn't find peace until it had been fulfilled. That's why it pleased him greatly when Jarvis accepted his revised offer to accompany the chipmunk on his errands. It was the least he could do.

Pleasure gave way into sudden bloodcurdling horror when he noticed the look on his new acquaintance's face, staring up at him with an arched brow in query at his odd behaviour. He knew that look; it's the same one his comrades in the Thirteenth Unit levelled at him whenever he was caught interacting with Wiglaf- as if they were seriously considering sending him on an all-expense paid trip to a locked, padded room where he could wear the latest fashions from the asylum. If Jarvis' expression fazed him, Beowulf gave no sign. Taking a deep breath, the feathered soldier lowered his arms and pulled in his wings as the smile remained pasted on his beak. In the back of his mind, he quietly recited this mantra to himself: there are no such things as ghosts, there are no such things as ghosts, there are no such things as ghosts...

Pretending to act as if everything was normal, Beowulf looked calmly at Jarvis, nodded and replied, "Okay."

"Let's go!" Wiglaf turned to leave, then paused, and craned his head back to look at his now-calmed chosen haunt. "And you should change into your animal form. I don't believe our new friend has his biped yet," he added as an afterthought, casting a glance at the aforementioned new friend. Without another word, the spectral equine launched straight into a trot in order to catch up with the diminutive rodent.

Don't have to tell me twice. Equally aware that time was slipping by, Beowulf marched up to where Jarvis was- it only took five strides to reach him –shifting into his animal form in one motion; not breaking his stride as he fell into step beside his fellow Josiggy Marshdweller.

[Yuiven]

None of the three companions realized how narrow an escape they had had from being apprehended.

Within minutes of their departure, the policeman dispatched to investigate arrived, but found the crime scene completely deserted. Standing in the middle of the street, he turned around slowly as he searched for any signs of the incident...but all he could find was the impact zone of crazed cobblestones just a few feet away. Other than that, there was no evidence to suggest that something had taken place here. Both the culprits and the victim were gone, and no witnesses were left to question. Grrr! He tilted his head and raised a hand, scratching beneath his hat, ticked off that he had no leads to follow.

Dammit! He'd been hoping to mess up someone's day!

Unbeknownst to the baffled warthog, Wiglaf materialized directly behind him. He had returned to the scene of the crime; checking to see if that cop was following them. After several seconds of silence had passed, like a helium balloon, Wiglaf puffed up slightly. He began to snicker, then to chuckle until he burst out laughing at the antics of the hapless policeman. Much to his relief, it was fairly obvious that he wasn't on their trail. Rearing and turning neatly on his heels, the ghostly draft horse pranced away with an impudent swish of his tail.