Patrol

    "I say," Dianthus began, grinning widely, "are you a tortoise or a hare? We simply can't wait around for you forever!"

    As badly as Dianthus desired to crack a joke or make a pun, they were out on patrol. He felt it was necessary to show some restraint, especially in the company of older and higher-ranking hares. Dianthus had only been on a handful of patrols before, and none of them ever went as far as this one was planning to go, so naturally he was becoming a bit jittery and nervous. The thought that they may very well happen upon foebeasts desiring to do them harm, and having to fight...

    It was making him a bit queasy.

"Rather clever indeed. Though if I recall correctly, the tortoise won the race, wot!"

She laid her ears back as one of the hares in front of them shoots them a look. She was wondering why they'd give her that sort of look when she and her friends clearly hadn't been the only beasts engaged in conversation, but it made sense once she realized that the Sergeant had ordered a halt for lunch. Glad to catch a break from Marching, Lucerne found a nice spot to sit down a little ways away from the rest of the group. A lot of these hares were higher ranked than her, and she wasn't entirely comfortable socializing with all of them. Though one or two she knew as good friends of her dad. She'd have to keep in mind that they were here, so she'd be sure to do a good job.

Lunch rations were kept in their bags, but Lucerne held off and just drank some of her water instead. She found she had a harder time eating out on patrol, though she knew she had to keep her energy up. Plus she wanted to see if anyone would like to join her for lunch.

"Fair point, wot," Frederick chuckled.

That would be when one of the elder hares shot them a look--the lanky young hare's long ears flattened slightly. That would be when he realized that the Sergeant had called for the patrol to halt and have a bite to eat. The elder hares were breaking off into smaller groups, finding places to sit down, and getting into their rations. Truth be told, Frederick was rather glad that a halt had been called. Oh, marching didn't give him much trouble--he'd grown used to it, and it generally wasn't terribly difficult to keep pace. But it was good to give the old footpaws a short rest... And to be honest, he'd been getting a bit peckish of late, so he welcomed the opportunity for a meal.

He wasn't terribly certain about sitting with some of the senior hares, though... They were decent sorts, Frederick supposed, but somebeast of his rank sitting with higher-ranking without being invited was... Well, he wasn't sure if 'bad form' was quite the phrase he was looking for, but even so. He wanted to make a good impression and give a good account of himself. Not just because this was his first long patrol, but also because he knew that some of these higher-ranking hares were friends of his mater and pater, and Frederick wanted to reflect well on them.

So, he settled himself beside Lucerne and Dianthus. Frederick was quiet for a moment as he took some rations out of his bag and grabbed his canteen. His stomach let out a rather embarrassingly loud growl; Frederick began to eat and drink, careful to try and pace himself a bit. His long ears pricked up curiously as Dianthus spoke. The other hare didn't quite sound steady... Was Dianthus a little nervous? Not that there was anything wrong with that, of course. Frederick hastily swallowed a mouthful of biscuit before answering.

"I can't say that I have, wot," he admitted. "Still, I don't think it'll be too bad--I'm sure that some of the senior hares have been out this way before." Frederick took a sip from his canteen before continuing. "I have heard a bit about Mossflower, though... I have to admit, I'm rather looking forward to seeing it for myself. You've been there before, Dianthus?"

    Their negative answers disappointed him, but Frederick mentioning that surely some of the older and more experiences hares had been to Mossflower before soothed him. Dianthus trusted his officers with his life, even if they were sometimes a little grouchy or told bad jokes. And with a group this size, they wouldn't be easy pickings for just any old ruffian, either. Maybe he really was just being paranoid...

    "Oh," Dianthus muttered, when Frederick prompted more out of him. He hadn't realized they didn't know, and felt a little shy.

    "Well, I grew up there, don'tcha know? Of course, I lived nearer to the seaside than farther in the forest, but that's not to say I didn't have a few little adventures when I was younger, wot! Of course, the way we're heading, we're passing the area I'm from, but I say, all the better. I never want to go back there."

    And then, realizing he ended his small backstory blurb on such a sour note, smiled hugely and added, "Not when I can be here with you two! I'm feeling better about the patrol already, wot?"

Lucerne was a little surprised to hear that Dianthus was actually from the Mossflower area. Her curiosity was aroused even further when he mentioned not wanting to go back. What had he been through? Whatever it was, it was probably pretty bad if he didn't want to talk about it. She wouldn't pry into that. If he ever wanted to share, she'd be willing to listen. She smiled when he said he'd rather be on patrol with them.

"I'd much rather have you here too." She replied. "What's Mossflower like though? Is it pretty?"

Frederick was quiet for a long moment, munching on a biscuit. After a moment, his thoughts began to drift. It was...nice, being on patrol with beasts around his own age. With friends around his own age. Oh, he had friends, of course--but sometimes talking to beasts he didn't know terribly well wasn't easy. Even so, he'd become rather fond of Dianthus and Lucerne. Dianthus was jolly clever with those jokes and puns of his. And Lucerne was a good sort, to be sure. Truth be told, he was rather glad that the three of them had been assigned to the same patrol. Being with friends made duty more pleasant, like right now.

The lanky young hare finished off his biscuit, then shifted his attention to Dianthus as the other hare spoke. Now, Frederick was a Salamandastron hare, born and bred--he loved the mountain and the lands around it. There was nothing like listening to the tide against the shore, or the distant calls of seabirds... But Mossflower sounded absolutely beautiful. Dianthus painted a picture with words, so clear that Frederick could almost picture the trees looming over their heads like silent guardians, bright flowers nodding amiably to one another in the breeze. What would it be like to sit in the shade and listen to the stream babbling on a summer's day? What would it be like to see autumn set the branches ablaze with so many different shades? What would it feel like to make one's way through a wood hushed by snow?

"That sounds absolutely lovely..." Frederick murmured. And he really did mean it.
He fell silent for a moment. And they would get to see Mossflower for themselves... Of course, it wouldn't necessarily be a lark--they were here on duty, not to sightsee, he knew--but it would be wonderful to see Mossflower regardless.

"Have you two really lived at Salamandastron your whole lives?"

Frederick nodded.

"Mmhmm, I've lived there my whole life," he replied. Admittedly, living up to the Willoughby family name wasn't always easy, but he was still proud to be a part of it. "My mater and pater ran with the Long Patrol in their younger seasons, and so did their maters and paters, and so on. ...My pater still runs with the Patrol, wot."

    Dianthus listened to them both, nodding his head as they spoke, listening with bright eyes. Admittedly, their stories, although short and straight to the point, made him feel a bit... inadequate. Lucerne and Frederick were, essentially, bred for their job - and although they were young, certainly the two of them were held in high regard by someone, and great things were expected of them. The pressure must be irritating, but goodness, they'd have all the opportunities in the world to prove themselves!

    And here he was, some hare from maybe an unknown Salamandastron lineage, if he was lucky, who had grown up playing in the forest and following no rules and training for nothing, who just... showed up at the mountain and hoped for the best. He had nearly been moved to tears when they had finally accepted him into the forces, but even then he knew that surely most of the older hares likely didn't care much for him...

    "Let me tell you," Dianthus said, once both had spoke, addressing Lucerne, "if you love the Long Patrol, and if you feel you're really making something of your life here, then I wouldn't be too worried about what you're missing out on. The world is huge, and filled with amazing things you and I and most every hare here will never see. At least with the patrol, you're being provided with a way to travel safely. We're on duty, yes, but that doesn't mean we can't take in the beautiful things around us, wot!"

    Leaning over to elbow Frederick excitedly, he added, "Why, if we're lucky, maybe we'll even see the Guosim!"