☯ Patch's Haven ☯

[Patch]

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{ Click here to view the group. }

"This is one of Patch's favorite places. I've seen her sit here and write. She draws sometimes, but she gets impatient with it pretty fast. She prefers to write stories about her adventures and her...uh, favorites." He lifts his head up rather proudly. He leads you around a bend to beneath an enormous Weeping Willow tree. The hanging branches encircle a group of what appear to be neatly painted and positioned bird houses. Sparkling lights flash from inside the houses and around the tree trunk.

"They should be awake by now," Kyro murmurs, trotting over to a blue bird house with neatly painted triangles and runes. "Yo, Damos! Rise'n shine!"

There's an angry buzz and suddenly a blue blurring light mixed with some red zooms out of the little house and nearly smacking into Kyro's forehead. The dire yelps and hits the deck as the little blur circles back around and lands on top of your head. The tiny Glasswork dragon sticks his tongue out at the Collie Dire and flutters his wings furiously.



"This is Damos. He leads not only the Glassworks in this area, but all of the Delta 1's on the other side of the grove. He's a pain in the neck, but he can keep everyone in line." Kyro pins an ear. "He's also Patch's close friend- one of her first pets." He yawns hugely, watching the other little dragons coming out of their own little houses to see what all of the commotion with Damos was about.



"The Deltas are on the other side in similar housing. Patch loves them above the other Glassworks, so they get their own area, and she decided to take in any she could find."

{ The Delta 1 Glasswork Hoard can be viewed here. }

With a snort, Kyro nudges aside the hanging branches to set off once more.

[Patch]

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{ Click to view the entire group. }

"Watch your step," your guide warns. "These fellas live underground, and they can get grumpy if you cause one of their holes to cave in. They have sharp teeth." Kyro sounds as if he is speaking from experience, so you decide to listen and keep an eye on your feet.

It doesn't take too long for the fuzzy creatures to emerge from the holes beneath your feet. One of the jackalopes likes your shoes, so he sniffs at them eagerly. He nips at your laces, but otherwise doesn't beg for attention. He simply emerges from his hiding hole and moves rather slowly over towards some other jackalopes that are coming out to get a better look at you.



The black jackalope seems rather fond of the one with war paint. He puts his body in between you and the other rabbit. He shows off his impressive wrack of horns before huffing and curling up beside her. The War Paint Jackalope grooms him behind the ears.

"Puppy love," Kyro says in disgust, stalking passed. Some tiny jackalopes bounce around you and Kyro excitedly, but none seem to want to get too close.



"Being petted is something they only let Patch and Zara do," Kyro mutters, sounding a bit apologetic. "They don't mind strangers visiting, but no physical contact. It makes them jumpy and stressed. You can watch them play, though. They're actually pretty cute."

He sits down to watch the jackalopes, both big and small, hop around and around you and a steadily dizzy Kyro. The dire snorts and looks up at you. "They have a network of tunnels beneath us. I've never seen them myself, but Patch has had them looked at...somehow. I don't know. Apparently they have different sections that serve different purposes." He wags his tails. "There's a nursery, food storage area, and different sleeping areas for each jackalope. They dig new ones when the babies grow into adulthood. Pretty neat, eh?"

One of the baby jackalope sniffs at Kyro's tails. "Okay! Moving on!" Tails tucked, the dire leads the way down the path, away from the seemingly giggling jackalopes.

[Patch]

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{ Click here to visit all of the Ancients. }

"And now my favorite part of the tour," Kyro says sarcastically. "The Ancients." You look at him questioningly, and he barks a bitter laugh. "The Ancients are treated like royalty. Patch found this old, abandoned castle on her property and completely redid it. They live better than she does."

Up ahead, the looming castle comes into view. It's huge- well over six stories. Turrets and towers cover the entire thing. The old stone seems to have been cleaned and cleared of moss and weeds.

"The stones that were the most crumbled down were replaced with fresh ones." Kyro walks with around the ten-foot tall perimeter wall. "The old stones are now decorating the mote. Patch couldn't bare to throw away the old stones or crush them into gravel. She likes old things and believes in preservation. The stones instead," he finds the archway that leads to the same sparkling river seen earlier. The water surrounds the castle, and below, fish can be seen swimming lazily under the surface, their scales sparkling like jewels.

Kyro barks twice and ends with a low snarl that actually makes you take a step back. The goofy collie had seemed a tad full of himself, but never aggressive- even when the pygmy creatures had pulled on his tails and climbed on him. For a moment, you stare at him warily... But then the drawbridge lowers with a creaking of old chains. It only takes a few seconds for the wooden door to lower all the way down, making a perfect bridge for you to cross.

"After you." Kyro nudges the small of your back. Staring into the unknown, you cross the bridge and enter the Castle of the Ancients.

----

The entrance hall is lit by flaming torches, but like the serval's home, these flames aren't normal shades of red and orange. They are blues and purples. "Patch's idea," Kyro explains. "Her favorite colors. Magic keeps them burning constantly." You follow the dire, walking on a long, emerald green rug that seems to go on forever. On the walls many tapestries are hung. You can recognize most of them: snarling dires, roaring ligers, screeching griffins with their wings spread, and drakes breathing fire and seemingly to fly as the cloth stirred in the wind. All were different colors (excluding pink and yellow) and were hung neatly.

"Keep it down, 'kay? They all sleep a different times." He scratches his ear. "We have to wait to be greeted, though. Hopefully- AH!" Kyro yowls as something huge and fluffy collides with him and knocks him off his feet.

"Kyro! Hey, Kyro! What's up, buddy!? Who's this!?" Suddenly, a fox muzzle is in your face, sniffing eagerly. His long, fluffy tail is wagging a mile a minute and his wings flap happily. "Hi! Hi! I'm Dolos!" The fox creature says with a bright grin.



"Dolos, you're freaking out our guest," Kyro growls, getting to his feet and shaking out his coat.

"Oh! Sorry!" Dolos hops back a few steps. "Welcome! Isn't this castle great!? I'm the newest here, but Patch is super duper great! I get plenty of food, and I have my own room! I also get a lot of air space to fly wherever I wish. I'm just not allowed to chase the jackalopes," he adds, a little grumpily. "I tried once, and-"

"Patch nearly skinned you," Kyro growls. "You went after her Speckled Jackalopes. Those are her favorite jacks."

"Well, she overreacted, but otherwise..." Dolos wags his tail again. "Nobody but Faldinreach is home right now. The others went out to get some exercise, ya know? I'll get him!" Dolos turns tail and takes off up the stairs.

"This can't be good," Kyro mutters, moving slightly behind you.

Dolos returns a few minutes later, tail tucked as Faldinreach emerges behind him, his eyes searching over you and the slightly shaking dire. "I'm honored to have a guest, but Dolos woke me up..."



The fox creature pins his ears guiltily. "Sorry."

"Thank you for stopping by, but I wish to return to my rest." He glares at Dolos before taking off, flying up the stairs.

"Every Ancient has their own chambers in a tower. They seem to like it. Patch does her best to keep them happy, but they don't stay twenty-four seven like the rest of the creatures here."

Kyro huffs. "Anyway...I think we should go. At least the Galaxy Ancient was polite. Who knows? The entrance hall with all of the banners is the coolest thing, anyway. Patch is always adding on, so you can come back later if you wish to view the rooms. I can't go in there without permission." Wrinkling his nose in annoyance, Kyro leads the way back outside.

[Patch]

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{ General Foo Dog Collection Group }

{ Foo Dog Hoard Group }

Following Kyro away from the magnificent castle, he leads you along a river to a modest little cottage tucked into a shady area of trees. You and the Collie Dire don't get within fifteen feet of the little dwelling when a snarl tears into the air. An enormous orange shape obscures your vision before you land with a heavy thud on your back. Large, clawed paws pin your shoulders back while several ivory-colored sharp teeth hover over your throat. You start panicking but don't struggle, looking up into the gleaming yellow eyes of a Tiger Foo Dog.



"Dhiren!" Kyro barks. "Dude, you're scaring the visitor! Patch won't be happy with you!" At the mention of the girl he was bonded with, Dhiren steps off of you and grumbles, wondering over to a yellow ball he had apparently abadoned to ambush you. He rolls it around with his paws for a bit then flops down, resting his chin on top of it and showing his teeth again.

"Nasty temper he's got," Kyro says brightly as if you had not just been seconds away from being the Foo Dog's lunch. "But he loves Patch to pieces. Patch loves every single creature that comes into her care, but she bonded with Dhiren instantly when he was just a puppy. She cared for him all his life and they officially completed their blood-bond-thing when Dhiren was big enough to romp around and take care of himself. She sleeps cuddled up to him every night, and they're basically inseparable. Patch must be out checking on the hoarded pets." Kyro wrinkles his muzzle. "Dhiren doesn't get along well with the other creatures, so he stays behind during those trips."

The Foo Dog pushes his ball aside then rolls around on the grass like a puppy before flopping over with a whimper. "He misses her," Kyro says softly, sympathy laced in his voice. "Don't worry, big guy. Patch'll be back soon. Okay, lets move before he remembers he can eat me." Your ever loyal guide scurries away from the little cottage at first then pauses. "You can have a look inside. It's just where Patch sleeps when the weather sucks. She prefers to camp outdoors normally."

You walk up to a window and peek inside. It was a simple, three room cottage. The largest room was the living area- complete with a small kitchen, sofa, and fireplace. You notice in a corner on a mountain of pillows is an injured griffin with a tiger-like backside.



"She fell earlier this week and crippled her wing," Kyro says quietly while the huge bird-hybrid slumbers peacefully. "Patch actually has a soft spot for any of the pets with tiger-like markings. Actually, she hoards them. We'll visit the hoards last, though. They'll bring us full circle."

With a happy leap, Kyro sets off again with you trailing behind him.

[Patch]

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{ Cuttlefish Group }

{ Chillawing Group }

Kyro hops along at his own happy pace while you take a swig from your packed water (good thing the goofy dire reminded you). He wiggles his tails as you approach the sounds and smells of the ocean. "We're reaching one of the border's of Patch's property," the Collie Dire explains. "She obviously can't own an ocean, but she keeps her sea-dwelling creatures here. This is actually a new addition."

You follow him to the beach, which doesn't feel like a powdery, human-made beach. In fact, it looked as if only rocks had been cleared so creatures and others could walk on it safely. There are smaller rocks, but they're avoidable. There are also shells and many foot prints left by dozens of creatures. A few you spot are recognizable as dire prints with the claws visible, rounder prints without claws that could be ligers, and the varying shapes of rune dragon paws. You smile to yourself and end your identifying game to wade out ankle deep into the water.

Kyro was up to his chest and was sniffing the air. "There they are! Out there!"

Several yards away from you and your furry guide are rather bulbous heads with large eyes sticking out of the water.



They don't say visible for long, for they both duck back under the waves. A moment later, you feel a tug on your leg, and you look down to see the brown cuttlefish with big, blue eyes looking up at you. His tentacles have a surprisingly strong grip on your calf, but not a painful hold. You touch its rubbery, slippery head tenderly and it seems to lean into you. After a long moment, the cuttlefish lets go and drops back into the sea to join his friends.

"Friendly little buggers," Kyro says cheerfully, clearly liking these creatures more than the last few you had visited.

~

As you and Kyro return to shore, you spot two little fuzzy creatures playing in the sand together. Upon closer inspection, you find that they are an adult and pygmy Chillawing enjoying their play together.



When you and your guide approach, the little rodents squeal and scramble away, leaving a cloud of sand behind them as they vanish into the woods.

"They're really shy," Kyro says quietly. "I'm surprised they let us get this close." He shakes his head. "They're new like the cuttlefish, but-" He breaks off as the pygmy returns and approaching you, sniffing at your wet legs. Having discarded your shoes to wade out into the water, the little chillawing climbs into your shoe and blinks up at you, its little wings fluttering.

As you bend down to inspect the little fella further, he jumps onto your shoulder then scuttles under your shirt. After enjoying a pleasant tickling sensation from the pygmy's fur, his little head pops out of your shirt collar and he rubs his nose against your chin.