Lost Change

Chapter 16

I sat on a sturdy branch and kept a careful eye on the river. It was early morning, and I was trying to catch something for Susie to eat. She had slept through my Morning Song - she was doing that more and more of late - and I knew she would appreciate breakfast if I could get it for her.

The sky was a little cloudy this morning and it was hard to make out the movement of fish in the river depths, but I had gotten good at it over the years. I kept my ear tufts perked to the sounds around me. I was fairly certain I was well hidden by the leaves and branches of the tree, but without Susie nearby to warn me I had to be more alert to possible predators that were around, or of any Kymari that might wander through the forest and come across me. So far I didn't hear or smell anything concerning so I watched the surface of the water and waited patiently for any sign of a fish.

There!

I spread my wings and dropped from the branch. Two careful flaps were all it took before I reached the spot where the fish had splashed at the surface of the water, and it only took half a second after that to spot where it had swam to. I dove after it and struck with my claws, piercing its slippery skin to get a secure hold of it, then I flapped my wings as hard as I could to pull away from the water.

It only took me a few seconds on the shore to finish off the fish. Years of practice had made me an expert at fileting the fish and removing any bones that Susie might choke on, and in no time at all I had breakfast for her. I tossed the leftover bits back into the river and picked up the large chunks of meat, then flew back to our den.

Susie wasn't at the den when I arrived.

I frowned at that and looked around, but I didn't see any signs of the dog. Where had she gotten off to this time? It wasn't unusual for her to wander off sometimes, especially when I took longer to catch something, but she usually came back when she heard me returning. I hadn't made any effort to try and be quiet - there wasn't much point, since Susie almost always began barking in excitement any time I came back. I sat the food down by the entrance and sniffed the air.

She couldn't have been gone long. She had to be somewhere nearby. Maybe she had seen a squirrel or some other animal, and just gone chasing after it?

"Susie! I have food!" I chirped out her name, then made the odd creeling sound that happened anytime I mentioned having food for her. If there was a 'language' to the dragonet sounds, 'I have food for you to eat' definitely translated into its own tone.

My ear tufts twitched as I heard a familiar bark in response to my call. It sounded faint, and... upset? Was Susie okay? I picked the fish back up and flew in the direction of the barking. It took a few minutes of flying before I found her, and I sighed when I did. "Susie, not again..."

The Kymari had set up some strange sort of traps throughout the forest. I think they were meant to catch coyotes - they had first shown up several years back, and a few days after their arrival all the coyotes had vanished. Since then the forest had been a lot safer, but the traps would occasionally show back up every now and then.

I wasn't exactly sure how they worked. They usually consisted of four or five posts driven into the ground, and they kept whatever animal they were designed to trap from getting out of the 'fence' they created. I had never risked testing it myself, but I had seen squirrels and other smaller animals pass through the field.

Susie, on the other wing, would be trapped inside the fenced area. Whenever she tried to get past the posts some force would simply block her way, and no amount of running or jumping would let her make it through.

As had happened now.

Susie barked in excitement as I approached, and she stood up and wagged her tail. She started towards me but stopped just before reaching the posts, and I sighed again. "Oh, that you remember, but not to avoid them in the first place." I smiled and shook my head... though privately I was worried. This was the third time this week Susie had been caught in one of the traps. She was getting worse about avoiding them.

She whined at me and pawed at the ground. I rolled my eyes and gave a half-toss of my hands to throw the fish past the posts. The dog barked again in excitement and dove after the food, eagerly gobbling it up.

The posts had a few design flaws, though. They weren't exactly easy to get Susie out of, but the solution wasn't complicated. The field would extend between them and block any attempt to get past above ground... but all it took was a simple tunnel and Susie would be able to crawl right out.

I took a quick glance around to make sure the Kymari hadn't set up any cameras - occasionally they placed them in branches or shrubs, especially after they had started finding the escape tunnels I dug through their traps - but once I was sure it was clear I set to digging.

It took a few minutes, but Susie began helping from her side once she was finished eating. Once we had the exit dug out she crawled through and happily attacked me with her usual greeting of excited licks and barks. I smiled while she covered me in the sloppy dog kisses and tried not to think too hard about how she had just eaten. She was happy at my return and she was determined to show it.

She began to get a bit too excited, though, and her licks and nudges started to cause me to wobble. "Eep! Susie!" I laughed even as her next happy lick knocked me over and onto my side, and she followed with several ticklish licks over my belly and wings. I tried to push the happy dog away, but it was hard to push my heavier friend away even when I was focused, and now that I was distracted with laughing from her tickles it was impossible.

Susie gave me a complete bath as part of her greeting while I laughed and tried uselessly to get my feet back underneath me. Eventually she decided she was finished coating my scales with dog saliva, and she stepped back. I got back to my feet and stepped closer to nudge my head up against her chin. "Yes, I'm happy to see you too, Susie."

The dog wagged at my cheerful chirps and whistles. I wasn't sure how much she understood of my dragonet 'words'... but she definitely understood when I was happy. She gave a happy bark and ran in a quick circle around me.

I eyed the Kymari posts still set up nearby and shook my head. "Not yet; we'll play later." She tilted her head at me and whined faintly, then pawed at the ground. I laughed but shook my head. "No Susie. I need to get breakfast too. Come on, let's go this way."

I began walking away - I had learned very quickly not to fly suddenly away when Susie was excited like this - and the dog let out a dejected huff. She followed after me, though, and when she started to run ahead I felt safe enough to jump into the air and fly along.

The Kymari had gotten rid of a few trees over the years - mostly dead ones, or ones that seemed unhealthy - but the original grove of apple trees was still around. The Kymari didn't go there that often, since it wasn't near any of the paths they had cut through the park, so it made for a nice place to relax and enjoy the sun after a good meal. I led Susie there, then flew up into the branches to pick out my breakfast.