"Oh good!" Mitch said, then he checked the list, "Do we have everything?"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nora finished rolling up the last of the sugar rice balls. Mitch loved these things and she knew he'd hate to miss them at this meal. Hopefully, they would not be late. After covering them with a cloth, Nora placed them on a tray that could be lowered to the surface in the waiting arms of a guard. After which, she got down herself.

"Thank you," she said, taking the tray back, "My husband ready yet?" The guard nodded.

"He's standing at the gate with an escort ready ma'am," He said.

"Excellent! I can already feel this'll be one fine occasion!" She said.

Valiant checked the list. "I'd say we got it all...And just in the nick of time. Let's pay and go."
(ooc - a miniskip won't hurt at this point, right?)

Ian ran ahead of the group and got to the pizza place first. He waited by the door for the other pets.

Pain remained on the ground, waited until the bear climbed up. Once the ursine was up, the cat asked with faked dramatic voice
"Tell me, oh thee - bear on a tree, what do you see?"

"Don't be a ground hound, you silly cat, come up and see for yourself!" Borues hollared back.

"You're the one who volunteered to climb up, not me." Pain replied "I prefer not to take all of this off and then put it on again just to climb a tree."

Borues slid back down the tree at that with a grin.

"Your talking to a bear who climbed up with his pack," he said as a challenge, "Anyways, there appears to have sprung up a feral village just past the lake in my absence. But I do believe it's the source of our music."

Lance got out of the taxi and went around to the trunk as it opened picking up some of the food taking it to the house.

(OOC: that's fine I kind of skipped back to the house. Hope that wasn't to far ahead.)

Archy bolted into the first place he found. It would be a slight understatement to say that he was a hungry husky. Inside he all bout pounced on the first open table. He grabbed a menu and quickly began reading through it for something good.

In his tree, Nate relaxed, but, too, determined food would be good. He dove down and followed the others in. Inside he slide into the booth, bumping Archy against the wall.

"Overgrown fluffball" Archy grumbled as the bigger cat easily knocked him aside.

Jess followed the others into the pizza place and waited to sit until everyone else had chosen their seat. "So what would you guys recommend?" she asked to Archy and Nate

"I hope we're still on time," Valiant said, carrying his own bags. Belisarius looked like an overloaded sherpa

"Pizza!" Nate said, throwing his arms in the air excitedly, "We'll need one half Hawaiian, one half chicken and brocolli, one half plain cheese and one half with sausage and fries!."

"All for you?" Archy asked, "or were you planning to give us a slice or two." He gently poked the cat's almost nonexistent, but, still bigger than Archy's, belly.

"Wait just a second here!" Pain exclaimed "What do you mean that a feral village have "sprung up" in your absence? How long was it when you walked this path?"

"About a half a year ago," Borues said, "My territory is split in half. Part of the year I spend in the north, and the other part I spend here in the south. And this part is the part I check first on my rounds. And I only spend time in this area about a month or so. So, they've had plenty time to build."
------------------------------------------------------------------------

"We needn't worry," Mitch said, "My parents are almost always a little late." He finished with a grin.

Lance rolled his eyes "I'm not dating anyone, so it will just be me." He said as he put his bags down started taking stuff out.

Valiant nudged him. "Aw, come on, a cute pup like you? I had taken for granted that they'd leave out-of-season Valentines in your mailbox. So... You'd like some help finding a new match?"

"You know Lance, there's a couple open minded girls in our village," Mitch suggested, "If you wanna try that route that is."

"Wait, wait, wait just a second!" Pain said as he began to massage his forehead "You're telling me your territory is so vast, you spend a whole year traveling though it?" the nebelung chuckled "By the spirits, in that time I could make myself a perfectly safe and hidden base and even mask my scent so it will look as if it was always here." He looked at the village "But a whole village is still not an easy thing to build. Know any of them?"

Valiant opened the back door and entered in the kitchen first. "No way the rainbow doggies club loses his third cutest member, you tempter!"

Borues laughed at that notion.

"Ha ha, I hardly think you'd manage to pull off that feat," he said, "And besides, how could I know any of them? They must've had help, whatever they are. I wasn't able to see what they were. Hm. Anyways. Come on, the lake isn't much farther. We should get a better view of the village across the lake."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mitch stuck out his tongue.

"Heh, I'll convert one of you yet!" Mitch said. Then he sniffed the air. And suddenly grew worried.

"What's wrong?" Rikki asked

Mitch shook his head.

"Not possible, they're almost, always, late," he said with a dry mouth.

"Ok! No panic! Bel, Lance, let's put the groceries in the kitchen! Then we introduce ourselves to Rikki's parents and entertain them until Mom and Dad are ready to serve, and it will take some time. Bel: no unproper displays of affection, they're chieftains not 'just friends'. Rikki, go make yourself presentable! Mitch, suggestions?" He proceeded to put the bags onto the table.

Mitch's mind was drawing a blank at the moment. He too was almost in a near panic.

Suggestions?! Your asking ME for suggestions!? Mitch was thinking. Okay breathe! Don't panic don't panic don't panic don't panic don't panic for crying out loud! Your the chieftan's son, act like it!

"Okay, calm down!" Mitch said, "Rikki, no need for that, you look fine. This is an informal meeting. But it still needs to have a formal greeting, since it's their recognizing officially of me and Rikki. And Bel, affection is fine, just keep it, uh, nice. Just make sure your standing like I asked you when we go in there. Please?"

Both wolf and wolfdog saluted smartly. "Aye aye!" "Sir!"
Rikki kept dusting herself. "Are you sure? I mean, I never met anyone's parents, not on this basis I mean, I mean we used to talk about business and, I mean, it was mostly the unpleasant ones, I mean--"

Ian sat down at the table and flipped through the menu. "Well I'm down for whatever as long as it's got some meat on it."

Mitch took both her paws in his and gave her a forehead kiss.

"You'll be fine, I promise," Mitch said.

Valiant nodded. "Then we better get going. What's more appropriate, Mitch? You and Rikki walk in the living room first?" Lance, are you with us?"

"Yeah, all right, one more thing, but, just so I don't trip the names up," Mitch said, "What are your parent's names again? And Lance, what's your last name?"

"I like just about every topping, so I'm good with whatever. Except for anchovies."

"PIZZA!" Nate all but yelled again. When the waiter came, he gave him a full order of mixed, varied and all encompassing pizza... With fries.

"Lead on, then!" Pain said "Let's hope they could give me more recent update on the forest pathways to the human settlements."

"Heh, heh," Borues chuckled to himself. The lake wasn't that far at all.

"My last name is Hayes" He said

"All right," Mitch said, "Let's...Oh fudge! Bel, who are your parents?"

After the order was placed I an tries to get a conversation going. "So I know me and Jess are new in town what about you two?

"Not quite new" Nate said, "I've lived here forever! Just got a new owner..."

"I've been here a little while," Archy said, "not forever, but, not new either."