Stopping for water? (Open)

[☼Åžrå☼]

Sandy looked up surprised when Crystal came over by her. She didn't understand why the dog and the rabbit didn't like thunderstorms. Sandy didn't like them, but she wans't scared of them. In fact, she sort of liked the sound of the thunder, the flashes of lightning. If it wasn't for the rain, she would be running around barking for joy. The rain ruined it though. Sandy looked up at the sky quickly as a large flash of lightning struck a nearby tree. CRASH! The hulking tree was reduced to nothing but a smoking stump and woodchips. One smoldering chip landed close to the trio were laying beneath, but was soon put out by the rain, sizzling and spattering the whole time. The white dog watched in fascination and awe at the power of the bright light. Behind her she heard the black and white dog wimpering. Sandy sighed and stood slowly, stretching, showing that she wasn't afraid of the storm. As if to intimidate her, the heavens above crashed in fury, the thunder shaking the very ground she was standing upon. The samoyed simply turned her head to the black sky and barked I'm not scared of you or your silly noises! Sandy turned and walked calmly over to the shivering form of Crystal and lay down, trying to calm the she dog with her bodyheat.

[crytothemoon]

Crystal was tempted to growl angrily at the sky as Sandy yelled up at it. Why must thunder come down? She wondered. Pointless, it seemed. She stood up on wobbly legs to fetch the rabbit, who sat in a small ball farther away from the tree, and carried him in her maw. She wanted the small creature near her, rather than out in the open. She returned to her place by the tree, and was surprised to see Sandy walking to them. She sat down on her haunches and watched the rain splatter onto the pond. She didn't know much about rain, nor did she want to know much about it, but she guessed the pond was attract the electricity of the lighting. She had seen it happen to a lake she once rested by. Such a terrifying day that had been. The rabbit snuggled into her fur and she looked down briefly at him before returning her attention to the pond. Each drop causing tiny ripples in the water, it looked almost like the pond was moving. Her brow knitted together, so much for her peaceful afternoon. But at least she wasn't out in the rain, soaked. She curled down next to the rabbit, her flank barely pressing to Sandy, and sighed. Not much she could do but wait out the terrible rain. She shuddered as another boom of thunder sounded in the distance.

[☼Åžrå☼]

Sandy looked calmly at the border collie. "Don't worry. This is one of the shorter trees here. Lightning only strikes the taller trees, so we should be safe. And you don't have to be scared of the thunder, it won't hurt you. It's like an old toothless dog. It's bark is worse then it's bite!" The corners of Sandy's mouth tugged upwards into a slight smile. She licked herself a bit, dirinking the little moisture that was still clinging to her white fur. She looked at the rabbit and dog curled together. That's one lucky rabbit. If Crystal wouldn't have seen the thing floating in the water, it would be out in the ocean by now! And, if it had floated past when a dark dog had been here... Sandy shuddered a bit at the thought of dark dogs. They were always mean, and they would probably kill any of the three of them on sight. Sandy looked up at the protecting tree that sheltered them from the rain. Big mistake. A drip of rain fell from a leaf strait into her up pointed nose. Sandy stood quickly and began to sneeze violently.

[crytothemoon]

Crystal looked up toward the tree. Huh. It was shorter than the others. She sort of smiled, she knew her worries were silly, but she couldn't help her fear of thunder. "It would be nice to be safe." Crystal said, answering to Sandy's remark. Crystal jumped slightly as Sandy sneezed, and turned her head to watch. She held back a laugh at her sneezing, knowing that would be rude. The rabbit let out a squeak as a drop of water landed on it's head and Crystal frowned. She felt the creature needed a name, but what? She went over a list of names in her head. Everest, Valand, Copper.. Some of her favorite names didn't fit the small creature. She looked down at the rabbit as he watched the water. "Courage." She murmured to herself. It fit whichever gender the rabbit was, and it took some bravery to survive that fall. She smiled smugly to herself. Perfect, she thought. Now she just needed to think about what she could do with the critter when the storm let up. Her brow knitted together as she though, but nothing came to mind. She shrugged to herself and decided to worry about that later. Maybe he could survive on his own? She glanced back down and cocked her head. Maybe.

[☼Åžrå☼]

The Samoyed finally stopped sneezeing. She shook herself a bit, then looked at the small rabbit. "I think Courage would fit it nicely." Sandy walked back over to the border collie and the white rabbit. It's probably old enough to take care of itself. I hope Crystal won't be heartbroken if it decides to leave her! The small she-dog knew that this rabbit was a once in a lifetime thing, as most rabbits wouldn't stay near a dog for more then a few seconds, much less cuddle up against them during a thunderstorm! A thought struck Sandy What if the rabbit has some sort of disease that it isn't running away? What if it is delusional and thinks we are big rabbits? What if... what if it can spread a disease to us dogs?! At that last thought the samoyed backed up a few paces. If it was going to spread a disease she didn't want to catch it! Her shoulders suddenly slumped a bit. Then again, if it was going to spread a disease to us, I would already have it, as I did pick it up in my mouth. Sandy looked down at the ground, thinking that she might not have much time left on this earth. She used her paw to make a little depression in the ground by scratching, curled up in a small ball, and looked at the rabbit. It's eyes and nose didn't look runny, it didn't look like it had too many parasites on it, (obviously it had a few fleas just like all of the other creatures here) and it didn't seem to have any peculiar smell to it. She sighed a bit at the thought that the dogs might be safe after all.

[crytothemoon]

Crystal nodded. "I agree," she barked happily. Courage would be her.. his.. Erm, it's name. She snorted, a bit angered having to refer to the rabbit as it. But, she didn't want to check, it seemed rather awkward, and Crystal wouldn't know how. If only rabbits could bark.. She tilted her head the opposite direction, a habit she was starting to form while she thought of talking rabbits. As Courage snuggled into her fur, for the first time of the day, the smell of rabbit, meat, struck her. She glanced down at the small ball of fur. Why did rabbits have to smell so good..? But Crystal hadn't gone hunted for a day almost, the smell was so irresistible. She licked her maw at the thought of delicious meat. She was tempted to pounce then and there, but the rabbit gave a small sigh and Crystal froze. She already named it, how could she eat it? Courage looked so peaceful, she gave a yelp that she even considered that. She quickly stood up and shook her head furiously, trying to rid herself of that thought. She couldn't, she wouldn't dare to eat Courage, not after all he's been through. She shook her head once more before straightening it and sitting on her haunches. She snorted again and focused on the ripples in the water. She wouldn't bring herself to a savages dogs level, she was better than that and would wait to go hunting rather than, dare she say, eat her friend. The calming sight of the water relaxed her tensed muscles as she tried to block the scent out of her mind.

[☼Åžrå☼]

A small growling sound made Sandy turn her head back toward Crystal. The border collie's eyes were trained on the rabbit, so either she was going to eat the creature, or her stomach was growling. The samoyed stood slowly, stretching her muscles as she did. The rain seemed to be slowing, and she was hungry as well. She was a little tempted to eat the rabbit, take the trouble off of Crystal's paws, but thought it would break the dog's heart. I hope I never get that attached to my food! She walked over to Crystal as the border collie stood and stared at the water. Sandy wondered why she did that, but didn't say anything. The samoyed looked at the water as well, trying to see what the she-dog was looking at. She opened her maw a little to speak, but decided against saying what she was speaking. Sandy turned her head toward the rabbit and saw it's large brown eyes staring at the two dogs. The eyes seemed so... smart, they seemed to hold so much intelegence. Maybe too much. She shuddered a bit at the thought. She bared her fangs at the rabbit, causing it to look quickly away. "Are you hungry Crystal?' Sandy looked away from the rabbit and looked to the face of the border collie. "You can watch your rabbit, and I'll go and find something for us to eat." The samoyed then turned quickly and walked out into the light mist. Water dampened her fur a bit, but she didn't mind.

[crytothemoon]

Crystal looked up from the water to look at the Samoyed. "Uh. Little bit, thanks." She said, feeling a bit rude that she wasn't hunting for herself. She laid down carefully on the ground, wanting to keep away from the rain that dampened the ground. She turned her head slightly away from Courage so the scent would not tempt her. Crystal looked up at the gray sky, relived the rain was stopping. Luckily it didn't seem like anymore thunder was in the forecast, seeing how it was stopping. "Good, good, good.." She whispered to herself and Courage who ate away at a blade of grass. She cocked one ear to the right, listening to the rain drops slow down to an almost stop. She stood up and padded to the pond to lap up some water, not caring as much if she got wet. She finished her drink and licked her maw off and trotted back to the tree that sheltered Courage. She laid back down in her previous position, her head on her paws and her tail wrapped around her side. Courage finished his blade of grass and picked another one, his ears twitching in different directions to the sounds of the forest around them. He watched her with his wide brown eyes. She wondered if the creature was actually afraid, despite his calm outside. It was pretty possible. The border collie imagined what it must be like being surrounded by large breast with sharp teeth and giant paws. She shuddered at the thought and turned her head away from Courage as his delicious smell hit her head on again. Why must they smell so good?

[☼Åžrå☼]

Sandy walked slowly through the woods, watching for the slightest movement. Up ahead she saw a fern move. It was a promising sign, so she began to stalk whatever was there. One foot in front of the other, slowly, painstakingly slowly, she advanced upon the creature. Suddenly, it's head shot up and looked about for predators. Sandy didn't know how it didn't spot her snow white pelt, but it's head miraculously sank back down as the creature continued it's feeding. The long pointed ears told the white dog what she was dealing with. Rabbit. She continued her advancing, and the distance was eaten up by her small steps. Soon she was only feet from the fluffy bunny. She felt a moment of pity for the creature, for if it had been the creature to fall down the waterfall instead of Courage then it would live to see another day. Sandy bunched her muscles and sprang, landing directly on top of the rabbit. Her strong jaws quickly found the spine of the rabbit, snapping it quickly. The rabbit had let out a long squeal before it had died, and the sound was still echoing around the trees. She was sure that Crystal and Courage had heard the sound, and hoped that Courage hadn't ran off. Sandy buryed her kill beneath a layer of dirt and leaves, before going off and searching for more. After a good fifteen minutes of hunting, she returned to each of her kill sites and collected her prey. She walked back to the edge of the river carrying each of the creatures she had killed, two rabbits, a muskrat, and a raccoon that had ventured out into the daylight. The weight of the creatures was heavy for her, but she managed.