Follow Your Nose <Earth Kingdom>

[june]

The night remained silent and calm; only the small rustling sounds made by small animals in the trees and bushes could be heard every now and then. The stars and moon soon started to disappear from the sky as dawn was nearing, the sun rising slowly, making the sky a little brighter. June awoke from her light sleep, rubbed her eyes and sat up in the saddle of her pet.

She had managed to get a fairly good night sleep, despite the small sounds she heard during her light slumber made by the small creatures in the wilderness. June gave a light pat on the head of her Shirshu, the wolf creature giving her a small grunt as a response. She climbed out of the saddle and stretched her arms above her head, yawned then took in her surroundings real quick.

"Well, time to go hunting..." June said softly, her alto voice sounding a little raspy.

She checked her small temporary camp site to make sure none of her belongings were left anywhere, then got out the piece of rope she was saving from the previous night. June didn’t forget about that Igni and was still determined to capture him and turn him in to receive her bounty. Besides, it could also be a little way for her to get payback for ruining her plans.

After clearing her throat, June held the piece of rope to the ugly, pink snout of the Shirshu, letting it examine and sniff it. It didn’t take the Shirshu too long to pick up a sent, standing ready to charge out into the woods. June jumped onto the saddle, pulled the reigns and they were off. The bounty hunter had a feeling that the Igni didn’t get too far last night and had to be resting.

June was correct. The Shirshu started to slow down after twenty minutes, starting to walk lightly around in circles and different directions in a small clearing sniffing at its surroundings. June arched an eyebrow, tugged at the reigns softly, making the Shirshu stop, then climbed out of the saddle slowly. He was around this area and close too. She could feel it. But where was he now?

[iikagen]

The encounter at that outlaw-infested tavern had been quite a draining experience. Fun and exciting, but draining nonetheless. Iikagen had been forced to resume his travels without his supplies of food and water, nor his map. Without a heading or the luxury of readily available nourishment, he'd simply resolved to head Southward and eat along the way.

A few ponds and brooks along the way provided the occasional drink, and toward nightfall on that second day he'd managed to pick off a fobbit with his blowgun and made a nice meal out of it. After darkness had fallen, he smothered the cooking fire, travelled a short way longer, and then climbed a rather tall oak tree to take his rest. He found a nice wide branch and tied himself to the trunk with his chain just as a precaution. He slept a bit more soundly than usual, most likely due to the exhaustion built up over the last 24 hours, but still his ears were kept alert.

As dawn rolled around and the sun lightened the sky, his eyes flickered open and he let out a loud yawn. To his mild surprise, he was hanging slightly off the side of the branch with his chain keeping him in place. Iikagen pulled himself more fully onto the branch and untied the chain, then reclined more comfortably to take a few more minutes of rest before climbing down. However, as he sat there, enjoying the chorus of morning birds, another sound came to his attention.

Claws scraping the leaf-strewn forest floor gave announcement to the arrival of a rather large beast. Iikagen looked down toward the ground and off toward the source of the noise, and though the foliage of the trees he managed to see a familiar black and brown-furred creature with its nose in the dirt. Its rider was clad in black leather and brandishing a long whip.

A slight grin tugged at the Igni's lips as he watched from the safety of the tree. The shirshu circled around the base of the tree, occasionally sniffing further out. Iikagen quietly reached out and plucked an acorn from a branch near him. As the shirshu circled back around toward the tree, he tossed it down at the beast's head.

[june]

Even though that acorn was rather small, it still got the attention of the Shirshu once it hit the top of its head. Immediately, the beast growled, going onto its hind legs and using its front paws to scrape at the bark of the oak tree. It snarled loudly as it made useless attempts to get to the Igni, but the beast was soon pulled away by its owner. June rolled her eyes. Damn animal...

The bounty hunter pulled hard at the reigns again, but was dragged along the ground on her feet as the Shirshu tried to make its way up the tree once more. June pulled out her leather whip, lashing it towards the Shirshu’s feet. Giving it a few more commands, the beast obeyed its master reluctantly, snorting a little as it backed a meter away from the tree, but stood ready.

June also backed away a little, stopping in front of her Shirshu, looking up at the branch where Iikagen was. Damn. He was too high up for her or her tracker to even reach him. How clever, she thought. The grasp on her whip tightened as June glared at the Igni, putting her free hand over her dark brown eyes to shield them from the sun's rays. There wasn't much she could do now.

"Damn you, Igni! Get down here right now!"

[iikagen]

"Damn you, Igni! Get down here right now!"

Iikagen chuckled lightly to himself and then let out a great exaggerated yawn that even June could hear almost three stories below him. She seemed so amusing at that moment, making demands of him from a position with absolutely no leverage whatsoever.

"Morning!" he called back down, rubbing his eyes for a moment. The limber Igni rolled himself over the side of the branch and dropped down to a lower one where he sat sideways and then rolled back once more. He caught the branch in the back of his knees and hung upside down, swinging slightly back and forth as he looked at June with a wide smile. "Now what be de odds of us meeting yet again so far out in de woods?" he asked, his tone playfully incredulous. "I t'ink someone's got a bit of a crush..."

Iikagen's words were meant to amuse himself and aggrivate the bounty hunter, but all the while he was certain to stay well out of range of the shirshu's tongue. As long as he did that, he was reasonably certain that June posed no immediate threat to him.

[june]

June shot another glare at the Igni. She watched as he dropped down just one level, picking a spot and hanging upside down on another branch that was still rather high up. She rolled her eyes once more, sucking her teeth and digging the short heel of her black, leather boot into the dirt.

"Now what be de odds of us meeting yet again so far out in de woods? "I t'ink someone's got a bit of a crush..."

"Sure, Iikagen. Just think that in that small mind of yours.." she replied in an annoyed tone.

The huntress knew that the Igni was trying to get her annoyed and frustrated and she had to admit it was working. However, June decided it be wise if she watched her irritability and try to stay tolerant and calm. She couldn’t let her enemies get to her so easily, like her father would say.

There was some silence for a few moments. June turned to her Shirshu, clicked her tongue lightly and watched as it became less tense. The beast simply laid on the forest floor, twitching its ears as it kept aware for any other dangers. If the Igni wasn’t going to come down, she would wait.

"I’m not leaving until you get down from your spot on that branch, Iikagen."

[iikagen]

"I’m not leaving until you get down from your spot on that branch, Iikagen." Looking at the upside-down image of June on the ground, Iikagen couldn't help but imagine the scene of an angry mother trying to order a stubborn child.

"Den joo might want to go get some food and water," the Igni replied, still swinging slightly on the branch. "Cause it's gonna be a long wait if joo t'ink I'm coming down dere." Iikagen clamped his hand onto the branch then, slid his knees off to let them swing down below him, and then he dropped down onto another branch slightly lower. His face was a little red from all the blood rushing to his head, and he didn't feel like blacking out at the moment.

"However," Iikagen said, allowing a bit of playfulness to show in his voice. The Igni stepped closer toward the main trunk and put a hand around the bark. "If joo were to make a more tempting offer..." he swung around behind the trunk, hiding himself from June's line of sight for a moment before popping his torso horizontally out on the other side,
I might consider it." He flashed her a wide grin with that statement, and then began walking out on a different branch like a tightrope.

[june]

"Den joo might want to go get some food and water. Cause it's gonna be a long wait if joo t'ink I'm coming down dere."

He was just really pushing it now. June looked at her short nails rather than watching Iikagen drop down to another branch to test her patience and tolerance levels. When she heard him speak once again, she looked up at him and listened to what he had to say, a frown on her pale face.

"What a good idea. I could use some breakfast. And I’m not making no tempting offer."

June turned her back to the Igni, giving him one more glance, then clicked her tongue a few times like she did before. This time, however, the wolf creature got up from its spot on the hard ground and approached the oak tree with caution, its large head turned upward at Iikagen.

"Well, I’m gonna go find something to eat while my Shirshu keeps an eye on you. Have fun."

With that last remark, the bounty hunter gave her pet a pat on its side and walked off in a casual manner. The large beast still kept its watch on the Igni, growling lowly and displaying it’s sharp teeth. Being such an obedient pet to its owner, there was no chance it was going to move.

[iikagen]

Iikagen watched June depart until she was all but gone from sight, and then called after her, "Pick me a few grapes while jou're out!" A smirk spread across his face as he contemplated how much mental anguish he must be causing the unfortunate bounty hunter. His gaze wandered down toward the ground where the wolf-looking creature was standing alert. For a moment, the Igni just kind of looked at it, but then he decided that a staring contest against a creature with no visible eyes was going to be an exercize in futility.

With the practiced ease of one who's been climbing trees for much of their life, Iikagen picked his way down closer to the beast. And along the way, he made a rather astute observation that the creature only really seemed to make a visible reaction whenever a branch creaked. As long as he was moving silently, the shirshu remained still, but with each rustle of leaves, the animal swivelled its head and began sniffing the air rapdly with its freakish, flower-shaped nose.

Iikagen kept that information in mind as he came to a low point on a branch about 20 feet above the ground. He sat crouched on one branch while his arm rested on another that was slightly above and beside him. "Ahhhhhh," he sighed, settling in to get more comfortable.

However, that slight noise seemed to set off June's watchdog and he suddenly opened his mouth and lashed out his barb-tipped tongue. Iikagen quickly kicked off with his legs and pulled himself up higher with the branch under his arm. The shirshu's tongue snapped in the air just below where he'd been sitting, leaving him almost horizontal and balanced between two other branches. The shirshu wasn't finished, though, and it suddenly charged forward, trying to climb up the tree and put its tongue within range of its target.

Iikagen heaved with his arms and legs and pushed himself into an upright position on a branch of the tree where he then hopped to another and swung around the side of the trunk. The shirshu's tongue lashed out again and cut right through the air where he'd been a moment before, though the barbed end snagged on a branch and pulled back a few leaves. Hissing like a snake, the shirshu backed down from the tree and paced around the roots anxiously, all the while spitting out chewed wads of leaves.

Leaning around from the trunk, Iikagen could see that the beast had learned its lesson and was probably not going to try that again. "Serves joo right," he said, taking a seat on a branch just a little higher than his previous perch. "I hope joo got a splinter!" The shirshu cast a snarl his way, revealing a set of needle-like teeth, though the Igni waved it off. "Please..." he told the animal, "My baby teet' were sharper than that..."

[june]

The Shirshu gave Iikagen one last growl before taking a few steps back away from the tree, still watching the Igni warily for its master. Mean while, in another part of the wilderness not too far from where Iikagen and the Shirshu were at each others throats, June still looking for food.

She wasn’t very hungry and could wait, but having a small meal now would better than waiting until later. Besides, she didn’t want to leave her pet with Iikagen too long – that was like punishment for her Shirshu. Who knows what that damn Igni might do to the poor creature.

June only imagined that Iikagen was irritating her tracker with similar tactics that he performed on her. Even if it was selfish of her, June did appreciate the few moments she had by herself and not being bothered or harassed by some wanted fugitive. It wouldn’t last too long for her though.

Stopping at a certain area, the dark haired woman found some bright red berries that seemed edible. There was also some leechee nuts on the ground. Seeing as how there was nothing else, June gathered up as many of the scarlet berries and small nuts as she was able to carry with her.

June’s Shirshu perked up once it saw its master return with food. June was eating some of the berries as she climbed into the saddle of her tracker, dropping the berries and nuts in the saddle. She popped a few more berries in her mouth, then cracked the shells of some of the nuts.

"What did he do to you while I was gone?" June asked her pet as she climbed out of the saddle.

The huntress gave her Shirshu a handful of berries and nuts, watching it eat in a greedy manner. She noticed some small fragments from branches along the snout of her Shirshu, along with some leaves in different shades of green and brown. With a roll her eyes, June sighed deeply.

"He won’t bother you anymore, unfortunately for me..."

[iikagen]

Iikagen sat comfortably on one of the branches of the tree, allowing his feet to dangle lazily as he watched the shirshu pace below him. He had stopped trying to converse with the beast for now. Without June around to be disturbed by it, it served no real purpose... Instead he turned his attention to the surrounding area; the trees, thetrails, the potential food source in the bitter-tasting acorns that littered the branches. The resourceful Igni also began plotting ways to get around the problem of the shirshu.

As much as he was loathe to admit it, his chances of winning a confrontation with the beast were very slim. He'd need a way to disable it or otherwise take it down with a single unexpected blow. Then again, some part of him really didn't want it to come to that. The shirshu was June's companion and method of transport. The fact that she was trying to turn him into the Fire Nation for gold aside, he actually sort of liked the woman. Perhaps he could find another way...

Almost by que, June came into sight then carrying a handful of foraged goodies. As she deposited them in the shirshu's saddle and ate a few herself, Iikagen called down to her, "What? None for me?" He allowed the words to sit for a moment as he plucked a few nearby-growing acorns and managed to bite off a chunk of one, grimmacing noticeably at the taste. "Dat's rude..."

[june]

June looked up at Iikagen as she gave her Shirshu a bit more of the food she foraged not too long ago. She frowned, raising her eyebrows high. It never seemed to end with this Igni. Can’t he just keep his mouth shut for once instead of always making a damn comment about something?

"Yes, none for you. Why would I bring you back anything? I don’t like you," she called back.

The brown eyed woman climbed back into the brown saddle atop her beast’s back, pushed aside the left over berries and nuts and reclined casually. Her hands folded in her lap as she twiddled her thumbs in boredom. Strategies on how to get the Igni down roamed through her head.

"You know you would just make it less complicated for yourself if you just came down."

June snorted, running one of her pale hands through her slick black hair unconsciously.

"If you just give up now I just might go easy on you and make sure my Shirshu won’t hurt you."

[iikagen]

"If you just give up now I just might go easy on you and make sure my Shirshu won’t hurt you." June seemed fairly confident, almost as if she was speaking from a position of advantage. Iikagen had to suppress a laugh at her charade of self assurance.

"Somehow, not sharing jour food and saying joo don't like me have not convinced me to leave my happy little tree, which is safely out of reach of jour nasty little pet," Iikagen said, tossing the remains of an acorns shell down toward June. "Like I said before... Make de offer more tempting."

Iikagen smiled slightly as he pawed at a nearby branch, smacking it into slight oscillations out of boredom. As things stood, he was in no immediate danger. The problem would come later when he would need to find food and water. June could only wait around for so long before she too needed more nourishment than a few berries. Perhaps then he could make a move to elude her, but until then, perhaps he could simply shatter her will to even continue the pursuit...

"Joo know," he said after a moment, "Dere's a branch up here dat's wide enough for a person to lay down... Maybe joo'd like to come up and see?"

[june]

The wolf creature snarled at Iikagen, attempting once again to make its way up the oak tree and get to him. June yelped as she flew back in the saddle, almost falling out if she didn’t grab the black leather reigns in time. The leechee nuts and berries she had gotten strewed onto the forest floor and the Shirshu, paying more attention to the Igni, stepped on them with its large feet.

"You damn, incoherent animal!" June yelled as she jumped to the ground and cracked her whip.

Obediently, though reluctant and wanting to continue after Iikagen, the Shirshu stopped with its behavior, letting its sharp, dark claws run down the hard bark of the tree. It made a low growl as it passed June, lying down on the ground. The bounty hunter recoiled her whip and placed it in the leather belt wrapped around her waist, muttering angrily to herself. Just stay clam, June...

"Joo know, dere's a branch up here dat's wide enough for a person to lay down... Maybe joo'd like to come up and see?"

"In your dreams!" June abruptly snapped back, turning her angry gaze at Iikagen when she spoke.

[iikagen]

The Igni grinned... So Fiery! Iikagen admired that spark, though June's apparent inability to keep her cool against obvious irritation was a glaring weakness. One that he intended to exploit. This bounty hunter might have some skill with her beast and a whip, but she seemed to have no tact for dealing with blaitant immaturity.

"Well!" Iikagen huffed, his voice carrying a heavy tone of being insulted, "if jou're going to be so nasty about it, den I'dunn wanna talk to joo no more!" The crimson clad Igni stood up on the branch beneath him and began picking his way higher up into the tree and around to the opposite side of the trunk. By the time he'd gone up nearly 40 feet and June was completely obscured from sight he shouted back down, "And I'm gonna to get a whole bunch of acorns and have a lovely meal wit' dese chipmunkeys and joo won't be invited!"

He ended the shout with a loud "Hmph!" and then took a seat carefully amongst the thinner branches near the top of the tree where the swaying motions were far more noticeable. In truth, he had no intention of eating any more of those nasty acorns, but still, he picked a few and occasionally dropped an emptied shell down to the ground while letting out a few laughs, presumably to be interpreted as lively conversation with his new tree-dwelling friends.

[june]

June’s jaw dropped slightly, looking both surprised and dumbfounded. There really was no end to this. That Igni always had some new idea or trick in his head. Snapping out of her shocked state, June grinded her teeth in frustration, her open palms turning into tight fists. She inhaled then exhaled, repeating the process three times before walking over to her wolf creature slowly. The Shirshu grunted as it felt its master climb into the saddle on its back, grabbing the reigns.

As she let one hand hold the reigns carelessly, June pondered a plan to get Iikagen to come down from his spot. At first, no thoughts came in mind, but she continued to think carefully, her chin resting in the palm of her head to keep her head up. There had to be something she could do... perhaps trick him? Maybe making him believe that she gave up on trying to capture him and left the area to go find civilization, could work. Yes, it’d have to work, she thought, grinning.

"You know what? Whatever. I’ll find an easier target to turn in! You win!" June called out.

With that believable (in her mind) statement, June gave a scoff, rolling her eyes and directed her Shirshu out of the area. It trotted lightly for a few moments, but then started to go a little faster, almost galloping. Hopefully, the bounty hunter thought, that will get him to leave that damned tree. June let one hand go of the reigns and started to check her belt. She soon found what she was looking for, the piece of rope. If all went accordingly, she’d have her ticket to her bounty.