Robbin

23. Dinner

She dashed back through the dark (the moon having set) to the entrance of the shelter and slithered inside to find the man and Robbin sitting in a tense silence around a fire used to cook a fish.

She wrung out her hair as they finished serving it. The fire's shadows played on the odd shaped walls like dancing firework animals. As she ate, she studied the way Robbin and the third blur kept eying each other. Her food was dry. She decided that if her bodyguard of sorts wanted to continue staying in the hideout, she would find out what their history was: a better explanation than he had given her.

The man named Jake offered her his coat to sleep under, as he had no blankets, he explained. She couldn't refuse his handsome face and she caught Robbin giving her an odd look.

She curled up on the dirt awkwardly and stared at Robbin. "Aren't you going to sleep?" she asked.

He shook his head, the fire casting shadows on his face which made him look angry. As she settled into sleeping, she thought of how Creep had told her doom had come upon them. She supposed it had, but while everyone at the nomad cave was fighting for her mistakes, she was hiding out. She felt guilty for causing so much trouble, and slept.

The fire of the dungeon torch was her only source of comfort. There was no companionship, no comfort of the heart. Only the fire which danced always except when it burnt out, and he had to come re-light it.

Reality was not so bad as her dreams when she woke.

"Just let me take over the second watch, will you?" the man's voice said.

"You're not going to take the second watch," Robbin barked.

"Who else is going to take it? What do you think I'm going to do: stab you while you sleep?"

"Wouldn't put it past you."

"You son of a—"

"Stay up too, if you like."

Terra cleared her throat. Jake's and Robbin's heads turned to her and then fell silent.

She felt too tired to show too much concern. Their silent black outlines wriggled before the dusky light of the plants.

The hallway was long and dank. Madiera had to be somewhere in the damned castle. Her heels clicked.

She woke to a stubborn nudging on her shoulder.

"Sarah, I'm not ready to get up."

Robbin stared at her quizzically before saying gently, "stay quiet: there's a visitor."

Terra furrowed her brows, deducing after a groggy survey of the dirty underground hole that someone was missing. "Where's Jake?" she asked. The name was so short and sharp like the sound of a reluctant engine.

"There's been an unexpected visitor," was all Robbin answered.

Terra finally asked the right question: "who?"

"It's a wolf... and it's not alone."

He grabbed her hand protectively, without asking first, and led her from the wall of bunks and close to the exit. Terra understood now Robbin's suspicion of them. She sneaked alongside him on tiptoes as if it would assuage his caution, though with no effect. The man's 'visitor' was actually far away, a few yards at least. Far enough away that he could not hear their whispers, or Robbin's pounding heart, or her whispered curse, or their clambering from the claustrophobic exit to Jake's secret cave, which they would not come back to.

Terra sneezed then.

It was not a particularly discreet sneeze, as she had never known any sneeze to be discreet coming from her mouth, but an impulsive and automatic bellow. It echoed off the surrounding trees and the odd shaped boulder. An Earthling would not have heard it, but as it happened, the hiding visitor did.

Jake started as Jesie crashed through leaves after the sound that had come from far away. He had tried.

"Who is this?" it asked.

Jake came tumbling through the brush after the figure and before the boulder outside which Terra and Robbin stood frozen, hands locked together.

"Jesie, I told you not to come to my home. You are always to meet me at the damn spring, in case I have visitors."

Terra shook her head. Jake had already made the first mistake of telling a good lie: never act surprised.

The human-looking figure didn't seem to buy it. He looked human enough, though Terra had thought Robbin said he was a wolf. She eyed him suspiciously.

"This isn't your average company, usually it's—"

"They're not," Jake interrupted, and Terra wondered what the wolf was about to say.

Mistake number two, Terra thought: telling the truth.

"They're just friends," Jake extrapolated.

The wolf surveyed them. "Are they friends of red-eyes? I haven't met a nomad before..." he sniffed them. "You know, like a real one. Alpha hates nomads... other than you, of course."

If he had never met a nomad, what did he think Jake was?

"They're friends," Jake repeated, swallowing in his attempt at sternness.

Jesie eyed Terra and Robbin doubtfully. Robbin squeezed her hand tightly.

"I'm going to get Lou and Anje," he finally concluded.

Jake's voice enticed with a coolness like honey: "no, no, leave them where you left them. You and I can take care of business ourselves."

"What kind of business do you do here, Jake?" Robbin murmured, and Terra wondered why he cared.

Jake nearly succeeded in leading the intruder away, without a third mistake, before Terra's sinuses picked another inopportune moment to let out a ghastly sneeze. Robbin's hand squeezed tighter. It was warm and she hiccupped, blushing, as the intruder turned indecisively back to them and noticed the subtle glint of her necklace as it jangled.

"Is that—?" Jesie attempted to step closer but Jake stopped him. This was his third mistake.

"What are you doing?!" Terra inclined her head and everyone else tensed as the wolf man suddenly recollected something.

"Come on," but he shoved Jake off.

"You know who they look like?" He attempted to take another step but Jake stood in the way. "Alpha told me the wolves were looking for that nomad—Robbin! And the necklace girl that went with him. One of their sources said so. Last night—" The wolf croaked: "missing," as if the word meant something. Terra wondered if he had fought after they left and wondered if the fight had ended so quickly, and what had happened.

She had a feeling they wouldn't salvage any answers from him as there was a tense moment before the intruder looked upon Jake and back to them. Robbin tensed, which made Terra tense.

"YOU TRAITOR!" Jesie bellowed.

His transformation from a human into a black wolf happened between breaths before Terra's very eyes. The enormous wolf, human no more, pounced suddenly atop Jake. It was not as big as the one she had protected, so Jake was able to throw him off, staggering to his back with the effort of the load.

The medium wolf splinted a tree. Robbin gave Jake a hand and let go of Terra's.

"RUN!" Jake bellowed.

a/n: Ahhh, it's so fun to delve a little bit into Jake and Robbin's friendship:p Also, what's up with the Nomad-hating wolf, right?

Let me know what you think by voting and/or commenting:) Thank you so much for reading!

Chay