Baird rounded the southern end of the pack borders and the lake came into sight. He grinned as he spotted the shimmering water, stepping up his pace. One of the little male pups squeaked as Baird started to jog, the change in pace taking him by surprise. Baird was saved from comforting the little lad as his sister snuggled into his side instead, the dingo man smiled again, pleased that the little girl had taken the initiative. The crack of wing feathers and a swooping blur of brown, white and iridescent blue alerted him to Gelars presence as the kookaburra flew alongside him. His toes hit the water and the pups and Pan bailed realising what he was planning, Gelar circled high overhead and watched, issuing a loud stream of laughter as his dingo brother dove into the clear, clean lake. Baird sighed happily as the cool water enveloped his body, it had been a long time since he'd been anywhere near a fresh water source. He swam about a bit before turning his gaze back to the shore where he saw his pups frolicking in the shallows, Pan washing herself and keeping a watchful eye on the pups, and Gelar perched in a nearby tree, preening. His verdant gaze swept along the shore a little, taking in the scenery, until they fell on the slight form of another Two-legs. He froze for a moment, was this a member of the pack come to tell him to bugger off? He swam to the shore, scooping up his three remaining quoll pups into his arms, Pan leaped at him and scrambled up his body to settle on his shoulder.
He approached the smaller Two-legs and bowed his head, only now that he was closer could he see that the little female was dripping wet, just like him. He sniffed the air, smelling the strong pack border, but also getting a whiff of pine and brine from the Two-legs, the same mixture of scents he had gotten from Grace the day before. "G'day, Young'un. Bonzer day for dip in the Billabong, ain't it?" He asked, hoping to make conversation with the little canine. He swept his eyes eyes over the female, taking in her russet fur, strange coloured eyes and small stature. He ws sure that she wasn't all wolf; he had become somewhat of an expert in recognising 'purebreds' 'hybrids' and 'mongrels' on his travels, relying in this talent in many situations, in one or two cases it had saved his life or valuable body parts.
Photo courtesy of pierre pouliquin
<style>.KMTT24611_BBTQ1 p {padding:0px 1px 5px 1px; margin:0px; text-indent:25px;}
.KMTT24611_BBTQ1 b {font-family:verdana; color:#631a19; margin:5px; font-size:9px; font-weight:bold; letter-spacing:1px;}
.KMTT24611_BBTQ1 {background-color:#daac9a; font-family:verdana; font-size:10px; color:#000000; line-height:12px; width:500px; text-align:justify; background-image:url(http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/6223/bairdbyrne.png); background-position:top center; background-repeat:no-repeat; padding:289px 0px 5px 0px; border:1px solid #000000; margin:0 auto; box-shadow:2px 2px 3px #1d1d1d; -moz-box-shadow:2px 2px 3px #1d1d1d; -webkit-box-shadow:2px 2px 3px #1d1d1d;}
.KMTT24611_BBTQ1 .inner {margin:0 20px; border-radius:0px; border:0px ; }
.KMTT24611_BBTQ1 .ooc {text-align:left; font-family:verdana; color:#000000; font-size:9px; padding:1px 18px 0px 18px; border-bottom:2px dotted #000000; }
p.template-credit {text-indent:0px; text-align:center; font-size:10px; font-style:italic; width:425px; text-align:center; margin:0px auto;}</style>