Roses and Thorns

4- Logistics

They say there's a certain thrill that comes with mortal peril.

I've heard stories of townsfolk who went feral and struck out alone just for the sake of the adrenaline, hunting down the most terrible creatures in all of Dreamland for a good fight. I've personally seen Canii risk direct attacks to the horns mainly to prove they weren't afraid of this or that (my sisters and I were smart enough to stay with the tamer Eudicans when we visited particularly bad towns).

Nothing has brought me closer to that all-consuming rush than willingly subjecting myself to the most dreadful thing I can imagine- the fabled logistics meetings that occur on the half, full, and new moons of each month.

"I'm still moved by how far you're willing to go for me." The Hunter tells me when I break the news to him.

"I know."

"It's quite touching."

"Evidently."

"The two of us are just chumming it up down here, aren't we? Soon, we'll be placing ourselves in mortal danger for each other. Won't that just be adorable?"

"You can stop now."

Things have smoothed over significantly in our last few conversations, although very little has been done. We have negotiations running with Alabaster to get him out of the cell for a quick walk (on restraints, mind you), which I've claimed is for his own mental health, but I may have some ulterior motives. I'd also like to have him speak with Anassa, who is a better judge of character than I am. In better times, Ivy may have been helpful as well, but the chances of that happening are lower than the chances of the upcoming meeting going well.

He sighs. "Really, they're going to demand far more from us once we're officially on the clock. We'd best be ready for that."

"Does it worry you?"

"Are we going to be fully transparent about this?" he replies.

"Is there some reason we wouldn't be?"

"It's going to make it significantly harder to perform any covert operations if we have to get permission from higher-ups before doing anything."

"What would we be doing, necromancy?" I snort.

"Have you considered that?" he asks, ears tilted forwards.

"You ask the dumbest questions."

"It's always a backup plan. I'm laying all our options out."

"I'm guessing you can raise the dead, in addition to umbrakinesis?"

"Oh, absolutely. I bring the squirrels you give me back to life again so I don't starve to death down here."

"You're fatter than when you came in and you know it." I tell him, tapping the bars. It's as close as we get to physical contact but an occasional rattle or readjusting our gaze around the tricky parts has become a custom between the two of us. I'm beginning to memorize the whorls in the bark, where the large V-shaped holes are and where I might be able to fit a paw through, if not for the protectors up above. The thought immediately fills me with another round of thrilling, awful adrenaline. "Well. I should probably go talk to Tammory and Eris about... this."

"You make it sound like they're going to be incredibly angry. You have to tell me all about it." He cracks a wicked grin.

"They're not angry enough to change the meeting dates."

"They've hidden their rage behind a thin mask of bureaucracy." The Hunter turns dramatically, one eye still on me. "Take care, Rose. If you lose your head, I lose my head."