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As a newcomer to the Syndicate, Ranboo received some chores to perform in the commune. His favorite to do was to feed all of Techno’s animals. Even despite the slow but continuous growth in numbers of the pets, he actually enjoyed it. One frosty morning, when Ranboo was doing his work, Niki, who usually was busy with making breakfast, introduced him to the new pet - a small piglet. It has been a week since Ranboo joined, but he hasn’t seen the piglet in the barn once yet. Niki brought carrot nobs to feed the piglet and shared with Ranboo the secret tactic of making the pet joyfully grunt - head scratches. Babying the piglet seemed to bring joy to Niki, but Ranboo felt shy to do so. Piglet’s eyes were too attentive and smart, and that was making Ranboo extra timid.
For the next several mornings, while Ranboo was feeding and cleaning in the barn, Niki either already was there to play with the piglet and feed him snacks, or quickly sneaked in after finishing her chores. Under her influence, Ranboo also started warming up to play with the piglet. They even gave him a name: Piglet, which wasn’t as fancy as their first option: “TechnoKnife”, but at least they could not fear messing it up with Techno’s name. Mornings spent playing with the Piglet became a ritual of some sort that brightened Niki’s and Ranboo’s days. So naturally, after one very tough and demanding fight practice, that Phil and Techno gave them, their first thought was to go play with the Piglet for an emotional support.
Yet there was a dreadful surprise waiting for Niki and Ranboo at the barn: there was no Piglet on his bedding. Stricken with the shock and scared, they ran to look for the piglet. They searched around the entire barn, looking in every paddock, especially the one with foxes. They searched in the doghouse, in Phil’s basement filled with confusing contraptions, and even ran around the houses but found nothing! Saddened, they came back to the barn to start their searches once again, but they got another surprise. There was the Piglet lying at his place like nothing happened. Relieved with such an outcome, Niki and Ranboo happily played with Piglet for a while, gave him a lot of his favorite head scratches, and then, soothed and joyful, left for the so needed rest after an eventful day.
In a couple of days, when Phil and Techno left for some tradings, Niki and Ranboo decided to give all their free time to Piglet. They came to play with him and brought a lot of snacks with them. But to their utter dismay, Piglet was missing again! Yet again, they rushed to look for him, scared for his safety. This time it took them almost the whole day and several circles of searching in every possible corner; they even looked behind the fences rounding the commune place. Only at the sunset, when Phil and Techno were already back, and tired Niki and Ranboo started feeling the utter despair, they found Piglet at his place looking innocent and unbothered as like he was not missing for most the of the day.
Scared for Piglet’s safety, Niki and Ranboo decided to never leave him alone and guard him in turns. The next morning, Ranboo was the first one on the watch-out. He tried to feed Piglet with baby carrots (his favorite snacks) and give him head scratches, but Piglet seemed to be out of the mood completely. After giving Ranboo some tough time, he even tried to pretend to fall asleep, which Ranboo found hilarious. But the unexpected coming of Phil broke all the guarding plans, as Phil, seeing that Ranboo had a free time, basically dragged him out asking for some help. When Niki came to change Ranboo on his duty, she couldn’t find no Ranboo nor Piglet. Astonished, she ran out to look for Ranboo, but right outside the barn she met Techno. Scared for his reaction about the missing pet, she came up with the first reason to lure him away from there she could. Slightly confused with the request, but Techno followed Niki to help her choose stuffing for a cake.
Later that day after dinner, when Niki and Ranboo were alone, she started to scold him for leaving his post and losing Piglet again. But nothing much he could do but tell her that he was literally drugged out of there by Phil. After they successfully retold each other their earlier experiences at the barn, Niki and Ranboo decided to go to check on the Piglet together. To their pleasing surprise, he was peacefully sleeping in his usual place. After the whole day full of worries and ruined guarding plans, they wanted their joyful playtime with Piglet, but he was looking so sweet and peaceful in his sleep that neither Niki nor Ranboo dared to bother him. They decided to come in the morning.
The next morning, while Phil and Techno weren't yet back from their night hunt, Ranboo and Niki went to play with Piglet. But again, he was missing. Bewildered with such a pattern and yet already experienced, they decided to see what’s going to happen throughout the day and check in turns when Piglet will be back. As soon as Niki finished her morning chores, she went to check whether the Piglet was back. But as she opened the barn’s door, Phil, who had just come back, called her up for help. She couldn’t deny the plea, yet she managed to quickly look into the barn and see that Piglet was still missing.
Sometime later, when it was Ranboo’s turn to check on Piglet, he sneaked into the barn and suddenly saw Techno. He looked surprised to see Ranboo there and, apparently, wasn’t in the mood that day. Techno gloomily asked Ranboo to not bother the animals and walked him out of the barn. Later in the evening, Niki and Ranboo were discussing their only checks, as both were shy to check again after being caught. When they were sure that both Phil and Techno were at their houses ready for the night, they went to see whether Piglet was back or not. And Piglet indeed was at his place. Niki found all the happenings very curious, especially when Ranboo noticed that Techno must have seen that Piglet was missing, and yet he said nothing.
But Ranboo shouldn’t speak so fast. The very next morning at the breakfast, Techno strictly required them both to not bother his animals beside the feeding chores. He said that some animals are still undomesticated and human attention was stressing them out, and some of them even have a special ‘free time’. Ranboo and Niki obediently nodded, but both found this information odd. Especially considering the Piglet, as he was so sweet and friendly that it was very hard to think about him as ‘wild’. Torn apart between being respectful and being curious, Niki and Ranboo couldn’t stop discussing until, out of nowhere, Ranboo dropped the worst: Phil and Techno were raising Piglet for food!
Niki couldn’t believe in such an awful notion, especially knowing the Techno’s soft spot for pigs. But how else Piglet’s constant missing could be explained? And that strange Techno’s comment about Piglet’s special diet that they were ruining with snacks? Ranboo heard from somewhere that there is a special technique to feed animals so their meat would become more tasty. Without having any other evident explanations, they came to the dreadful conclusion. That is exactly what was happening: Piglet was raised to be killed! And Niki and Ranboo decided, that even despite their utter respect for Techno, that’s not going to happen.
At the evening, when lights in Phil’s and Techno’s cabins went off, Niki and Ranboo sneaked into the barn and took the sleeping Piglet. They put him into Ranboo’s secret basement, which they furnished earlier with a basket and toys. But Piglet apparently didn’t appreciate the new place, and despite all the snacks and attempts to give him head scratches, he stayed agitated and angry. Niki proposed that it probably was because they awakened him, so they left him back to sleep and went to their beds as well. But even in the morning, Piglet stayed in the bad mood. He didn’t want to play with them and was even refusing the baby carrots! Bewildered with such a change in the mood, Niki and Ranboo left him be.
After all the morning chores were done, and it came the time of the lunch, Phil started asking about Techno as he left somewhere without a word. Neither Niki nor Ranboo saw him as well. It wasn’t odd for Techno to do something on his own, but the fact that he didn’t notify even Phil seemed odd. After the lunch, Ranboo went to check on Piglet and bring him new snacks. He got very surprised to be met with an utter mess in the basement. Angry Piglet didn’t want to be petted or fed. And for some reason the small and beady piglet’s eyes gave shivers to Ranboo.
While Ranboo was trying to tidy up the mess made by Piglet, Niki came down as well. She asked Ranboo to not lock up the basement, as she couldn’t deal with its intricate lock and couldn’t check on Piglet earlier. She was sure that he was angry because he was alone in a new place. But even her sweet voice and fresh carrots couldn’t bring peace to Piglet. Saddened with his attitude, Niki and Ranboo left him alone after tidying everything up, as it came time for dinner.
At dinner, it was three of them again, and Phil was looking a little worried as Techno still wasn’t there. But as soon as they started their meal, Techno stormed in the kitchen. He looked angry and disheveled; he didn’t say the word but took his plate and silently walked out. All three were surprised and the rest of the dinner went in silence. After the meal was done, Phil went to check on Techno and bring him some tea. Ranboo and Niki finished washing the dishes and went to check whether the Piglet’s mood got better.
But for their utter terror, not only everything in the basement was again upside down, but Piglet was missing. How could Piglet leave the basement? Unless.. Techno found him! That’s why he was so angry! He found him, and now Piglet will be eaten! Scared, Nikki and Ranboo run to Techno’s cabin. All respect and awe for him flew away as the only thought they had was to save the piglet. In a rush, with desperate yells, interrupting each other, Niki and Ranboo blown into the cabin. Phil and Techno were peacefully drinking the tea beside the fireplace.
Still interrupting each other and almost crying, Ranboo and Niki plead to not kill and eat Piglet. Confused at first, Phil tried to calm them down. But as it didn’t work, he strictly made them sit with a firm voice, and then, while Techno was gloomily sinking in his armchair, hiding behind his teacup; Phil drily said: “We need to talk to you.”