4

~Tamar~

Hugo yawned, and enjoyed the fern tickling his back.  He shivered, it was colder than he had expected it to be on such a nice day.  He stretched himself out luxuriously, wondering if the sun was always like this outside the Hollow.  Hugo cursed himself, he finally got out and he spent his precious time sleeping?  Hugo looked around the clearing, it was rather shaded and dark, but maybe the gnarled oaks were just so big they blocked out the sun.  The only visible light was ghostly pale and shone around the grassy thicket.

What Noctus wouldn’t give to be out here!  He thought smugly.  Lyn shifted in her sleep and muttered something that sounded like “mum ... me ... give crayfish ... yummy squirrel.”  Hugo giggled and flicked her ears with his tail, trying to wake her up.  She was obviously dreaming about eating, and now that he thought about it he was also rather hungry. 

“Lyn!” Hugo whispered into her ear. “Wake up you hibernating hedgehog, it's spring!” He teased.  She woke with a start and gave him a grumpy expression, which quickly turned to a playful one.  Without warning she jumped onto Hugo and they fell into a tussling ball of paws and tails.  A flapping leathery sound echoed around the clearing, it seemed to be coming from above.  Hugo looked up, expecting the warm sun to beat down on his red coat as he stood in a patch of pale light.  Instead, he got the moon, floating menacingly in the black abyss above.  No, he thought, it-it can't be night already!  Lyn seemed to be thinking the same thing, the two foxes cast each other wary glances and ducked back into the shelter of the fern.  The leathery flapping sounded again, louder this time.  The twisted shadows of the gnarled oaks fell on the ground like a tangle of black snakes in the moon's pale light.

Lyn peeked out from under the fern.  “I-I’m cold.” she stammered. 

Hugo huddled closer to Lyn, they both enjoyed each other's warmth.  Hugo heard the wind rushing through the trees and the sound of a crow's call.  A fox shrieked and the shadows closed in around him as the moon hid behind a cloud.  The shadows were gone, so was the light.  Hugo could only see the blue glow in Lyn’s eyes.

“What are we going to do?” Lyn asked,“we’ve never been out after dark, and Mother didn’t tell us anything about the WideWorld!”  Hugo agreed but another crow called and the leather flapping sounded again before he could say so.

The towering oaks seemed like giant birds ready to swoop down and grab the fox kits at any time.  They were half right however, a bird did sit on its gnarled limbs, fourteen birds actually.  Their pale eyes gleaming down on their prey.  Their black wings spread out against an even darker sky.  The fourteen crows sat on the twisting branches staring down at the fox kits unnoticed.  Hugo felt the fern on his back and glanced up into the thick foliage to see fourteen pairs of black and beady eyes staring back at him.  He opened his mouth but no sound came out.  He tried to tell Lyn another way but a croaky voice split the silence.  “CAW, Oo ‘mit is be, eh?” It said, high pitched and scratchy, “wer’ is ya, hmm?” It was coming from the top of the gnarled oak.  Lyn and Hugo exchanged scared glances and huddled closer together.  Hugo felt the pulse of both Lyn and his own heartbeat fast on his chest, like having two hearts beating rapidly in the face of danger.  “‘Ittle fooxes ‘oot after derk, mm?” The scratchy voice spoke again.

“CAW CAW CAW!”  The crows chanted from the limbs of the gnarled oak

“Peck their eyes!  Pull their whiskers!  Nip their ears!”

Hugo and Lyn moved closer into the fern fronds.

“CAW CAW CAW!  Peck em’ tear em’ rip em’”  It echoed eerily around the clearing once more.  High pitched laughter rolled around the trees like wind, spreading a chill through Hugo’s spine.

“Wha’ ur be wat’n, eh?”  A crow asked from one of the gnarled limbs that spread over the clearing. 

“We -” began Hugo.  Lyn exchanged an anxious look with her brother before she stepped out into the clearing.  The moon had come out from behind the clouds and shone a silvery light back onto parts of the clearing. 

“GO AWAY you, you scary birds …”  Lyn's shout was drowned out by the loud cawing of the fourteen crows. 

“CAW CAW CAW! Kill, rip, tear!”  The crows flew down from the twisting oak, in a large cyclone of black feathers, swirling and turning downwards at a dizzying speed towards the moonlit ground.

“CAW CAW CAW! poke em’ wreck em’ rip em’!” they called right before they landed before the foxes, with their beaks clicking and cocking their heads from side to side.  They crouched as low as they could to the forest floor still under the cover of the fern.  An old crow stepped out from the swath of feathers and pointed beaks, with one white milky eye.  He spoke.

“Oo is ya, eh? Lil’ fox kits’es Oot a’ter derk, hmm?  CAW!”

The crow stepped forward, his pointed beak almost touching Hugo’s snout.  Hugo backed away from the cover of fern, until his tail hit something pointed, he jumped and spun around, another crow was staring at him with black beady eyes.

He faced the crow with the blind eye bravely, or more so than he felt.

“I'm Hugo,” He called out.  All the crows jumped back at the sound of his call but the milky eyed one stayed put, undaunted by Hugo’s scream.

“Wh-who are you!”  Hugo's voice echoed around the clearing much like the crows’ calls did, still the crow stayed put.

“CAW CAW CAW! Tear … rip … kill …” the crows screamed with a laughter that made Hugo shiver uncontrollably as if he had just jumped into a freezing cold lake.

“Who-who are you!” Hugo asked again, more like a plea for mercy rather than a question.  The crow stood back to admire the foxes, scared and shivering in the dark under the fern.

“Meh?” Answered the crow. “Meh? Meh ‘nem eh? Hmm.” said the crow.  “Meh name eh? Me nem’s Tamar.” The crow cocked it’s head at the foxes.

“Oo is ur be ‘den, eh? Wha mit’ ur nem be, eh?” Tamar asked Lyn in his high pitched voice.

“CAW CAW CAW, what's ur name? What's ur name?”  The other crows agreed loudly.

“My name is Lyn!” She called out, making the crows jump back yet again, Tamar stayed where he was.

 “Wha’ ‘ur be ant’in, eh?” He asked.  The moon slid over the sky and lit up Tamar’s black, twinkling eye.  “Wha’ ya’ come ‘eer fer, hmm? Wha’ ya be ‘antin wih ol’ Tam’r?”  The bird asked and cocked his head.

“Well” Lyn started

“CAW CAW CAW, what ya wan’?  What ya wan’?”

“Oh, shu’ up!” Tamar screamed suddenly.  Hugo and Lyn jumped back in surprise, breaking a few of the ferns.

The crows went silent.  Flapping their wings and clicking their beaks, but they did not call out again.

“Wha’ ye’ wan’ then, eh?”

Hugo wondered if they kept him talking, if he would leave them be.

“- er,” Hugo said. “Well, we heard so much, a-about, about you!”  He tried.

“Bou’ me, eh? ‘An wha’ dida’ ‘ear?” Tamar cocked his head. “- at ima blood ‘irsty scavenger ‘an a liar? Eh? Isat wha’ yea’ ‘erd?”

“CAW! CAW! CAW!”  The crows screamed in anger.

“Be quiet!” Tamar cawed.  The crows went silent.

“No!  No, not at all we heard that you a - .” Hugo looked at Lyn for help.

“That you're a fearless adventurer!” Lyn added, she looked at Hugo who nodded slowly.  “I ‘spose I ‘ave ‘een ter Tambora ‘n back, ya?” Tamar said in confusion.  “Seen many a foox lik’ yer selves, eh?  Why,”  he called. “I ‘ave seen a fox tha’ looked jus’ like ye’ i ‘ave!”

“Err, you have?”  Hugo said, mildly interested.  Lyn seemed more so.

“Oh ye, ‘e was up at ‘ol Tambora, bein’ captured beh ‘dim wolves ‘e was.” Tamar said, his eyes glinting.

Lyn and Hugo looked at each other in confusion.

“Tambora?” They echoed.

“The’ mountains! Don’ ye’ know bout’ the mountains, eh? Don’ ye’ know bout’ anythin?”

“Well, we know a small bit about, uh, wolves!  But just because we haven't seen one doesn’t mean,” Lyn started defensively.

The crows screamed with laughter.

“Well I ‘ave,” Tamar cut across, “her lot’a wolves up at Tambora ‘er is!  I know all ‘bout ‘em now ‘at is been up ther’ I do!  Lots ter know ‘bout ‘ol Tambora.” Tamar cawed.

Lyn looked at the crow in awe, she leaned towards Hugo and whispered “he knows so much!  Maybe he’s not that bad after all.”

“I still don't know,” Hugo said.

“But what if he could tell us about Grandfather!” Lyn whispered back, “What if he knows him?”

“Ye’ whisprin ‘bout meh, are we now?” Tamar asked accusingly.

“No!” Lyn said “please tell us more!”

Tamar grunted, unsure whether or not Lyn was lying.

“Well?” Lyn said.  “We wondered if maybe you had known our grandfather.”  Hugo felt like telling Lyn that he hadn’t thought that at all but Tamar seemed satisfied.

“Yer gran’fath’r, eh?  Was ‘is name, eh?” Tamar asked.

“er, we don't know, we just - ” Lyn said.

“Don’ know nut’n you don’!” Tamar screeched, “ya? ‘E might’a been ‘at fox ‘at i saws ‘e might! Eh?”

“You think so?” Lyn said slowly, thinking it over in her head.  Hugo thought it was ridiculous but if it meant Lyn would come with him on an adventure, on a quest, he would believe it.

“Ye don’ trus’ meh, eh?  Think ‘ol T’mar ain’t tellin’ eh truth, ya?  Sat what’cha thin’?”

“No!” Lyn said.  “Not at all!” Hugo tugged on her tail and they both looked up at the oaks.  The crows were perched on their branches clicking their beaks, flapping their wings and cocking their heads.  They jumped from the branches and dive bombed Hugo and Lyn.

Hugo screamed.

Tamar joined his murder.

“Rip! Kill! Tear!” They screeched.