Of Squirrels and Dragons

Nox kept her head low to the earth, kicking up the scent of dirt and pine, and sure enough, her prey. A branch crack and skittering to the east confirmed that she was on the right track. Tucking her wings flat against her back she slipped down the embankment the trickling river had carved into the forest floor. The light was low this deep inside the forest, her forest, but her keen senses kept her on the trail. No prey had ever escaped her grasp.

Her head shot up at the sound of angry caws south of her. Something had disturbed the raven nest that had been built early that spring. Annoying, whining creatures. Nox turned back to her hunt. The scent had led her to the base of a towering pine tree. She stood on her hind legs, resting her claws into the bark of the tree. She enjoyed the feeling of the wood cracking and splintering as she pressed deeply. Patiently she waited until, there it was. Movement.

Pushing off her legs, she pulled herself upwards, flapping her wings to help her momentum. Two more bounds and she had her quarry.

The squirrel squealed uselessly as she pushed off the trunk of the tree, gliding back down to the forest floor. Relishing the crunch of delicate bones and warm liquid that filled her mouth, Nox made quick her of her meal.

“Oh no,” a small voice gasped.

Nox swung her head to her right, her ears flattening against her head, a hiss rumbling low in her throat. There before her stood a human hatchling, its stubby legs tottering slightly as it took in the sight of her. Nox adjusted herself out of the defensive stance, raising up to be just above eye level of the hatchling.

The hatchling was breathing heavily, as if it had just given chase to something. It’s dark hair was matted in a mess of tangled curls, and dirt smeared across it’s face and ragged clothes. Even in her young life, having just become full grown, Nox knew enough about humans to realize that it was uncommon for their hatchlings to be left in such states, and all alone.

The tiny creature balled up it’s hand into a fist, leaving one finger out to point accusingly at Nox.

“Bad,” the hatchling huffed, again pointing emphatically at her.

Nox shook her head. Never in her life had a human dared to speak to her in that way. She was fearsome, yes, but bad? Well, she wasn’t entirely sure the meaning of the word, but surely it was meant as a slight. This hatchling would have to be put in its place. Nox stepped closer, but the hatchling continued to shake its fist.

“Bad. Where squirrel?”

Nox stopped mid step. Squirrel? This was about the squirrel? Surely it couldn’t be upset, because Nox ate the squirrel, could it?

The hatchling toddled forward, placing its chubby hands on either side of Nox’s snout.

“Open. Where squirrel?”

The indignation at being manhandled by a lesser creature rumbled a low hiss at the base of Nox’s throat, but still the hatchling held on. She could easily devour this creature whole. If she wanted to. But maybe it would be easier to leave the hatchling to fend for itself.

She opened her mouth, revealing it to be full of sharp teeth, but otherwise empty.

“Oh no,” the hatchling gasped again, “squirrel gone.”

Gone indeed. And now it was time for Nox to be gone as well. She shook the creature off and turned around to leave. It had interrupted the momentum of her morning hunt, and one squirrel was not enough to satiate her.

Where squirrel. Ridiculous.

The uneven snapping of twigs and underbrush behind her informed Nix that clearly the hatchling was unsatisfied in ruining just one meal. She spun back around.

It was smiling at her, and let out a breathy giggle.

“Puppy.”

Did this hatchling consider her to be the family pet? Surely, she could sink no lower. Once more the crows kicked up an angry fuss, a flock of them taking off into the sky. The hatchling jumped at the noise.

“Oh no,” it whimpered, rushing towards her and placing a trembling arm around her neck.

Something heavy and acidic settled in Nox’s stomach. She knew the hatchling wouldn’t survive the night alone. Wasn’t that for the best though? A short quick release? The hatchling’s hand began gently patting the side of Nox’s neck. It was strangely, comforting. That heavy feeling increased tenfold.

Fine. There was a human settlement along the southern border of the forest. It was maybe a day’s walk from here. Perhaps if she guided the hatchling back there, someone would claim it. She brushed past the hatchling, stopping briefly to insure that it was following, and continued southwards. They had only been walking a few feet before she heard a distinctive thud. She turned back to see the hatchling flat on its face, having tripped over the uneven ground.

The creature pushed itself back up with a small huff. It looked down at the smeared dirt on its clothes and began a futile attempt at trying to wipe away the grime.

“Oh no.”

Truly the heavens were testing her. At this rate, the single day journey would turn into a week. Nox eyed up the hatchling. It was small, most likely didn’t weigh much. It would be faster to place it on her back and continue forward. She crept cautiously towards the hatchling so as not to startle it, and lowered herself to the ground. The hatchling let out a resounding giggle before plopping itself onto Nox’s back. She resisted the urge to roll the tiny creature off, and stood, tucking her wings protectively at either side of the hatchling.

Nox continued on, listening to the nonsensical babble from her back. Tree, bird, go where? Puppy. She had to work especially hard to ignore that last one. Eventually the babbling petered off, letting Nox once more focus on the sounds of the forest around her. It was livelier than usual, as if reacting to their unexpected guest.

“Food, please.”

Food? Ah yes, the hatchling was most likely hungry. Nox herself had foregone her usual meal schedule. She glanced up at the orange-tinged hues filtering in through thick leave filled branches. It would be night soon, and harder to find any worthwhile prey. Perhaps it would be a good idea to stop and rest. Nox let herself wander a bit further before finding a small grove of evergreen pine trees. Their branches brushed low to the ground allowing for the soil to be kept warm and protected. She ducked under the branches and once again laid herself low to allow the hatchling to step down. It took a moment, but eventually the hatchling slid itself off without too much hassle. She thought for a moment on how to communicate to the simple being to stay put. Looking around she noticed the ground was littered with pinecones. Perhaps a distraction would suffice. She batted one towards the hatchling. The attraction was immediate. With a bubbly giggle the hatchling bent over and pick up the pinecone, wooshing it through the air. Nox took the opportunity to sneak out of the branches. She’d have to be quick and stay close, there was no telling the attention span of such a creature.

It was a successful hunt, as she knew it would be. She had managed to eat enough to satisfy her own fill and find something for the hatchling. When she returned to their makeshift burrow, it was unnervingly quiet. Nox slipped under the branches relieved to find the hatchling quietly patting its pinecone. It looked up at Nox’s entrance, giving her a wide smile.

“Puppy!”

Nox pushed down the grumble of annoyance and gently placed her fresh kill in the hatchling’s lap.

“Squirrel!” It squealed, patting the rodent excitedly.

Nox waited impatiently for the hatchling to eat, but instead it continued petting, until the petting slowed and a look of confusion washed over the hatchlings face.

“Oh no.”

The hatchling gently hugged the squirrel and set it down on the ground. It stood, looking around for something before ambling towards a small stick. Taking the stick the hatchling began digging at the ground. Nox looked to the uneaten offering. It was clear that the hatchling wasn’t interested. She had noticed some berry bushes that the bears frequented not to far from here. If the hatchling wouldn’t eat that, then when it starved it wouldn’t be on Nox’s conscience.

The hatchling was preoccupied with its stick leaving Nox space to once again slip away. This time she returned with a branch from a blackberry bush full of berries. She placed the branch next to the hatchling who was still dutifully digging at the earth. The hatchling removed on hand from the stick to grab at the ripe berries, absently shoving them into its mouth. Nox settled herself next to the base of the tree resting her head on her front paws and watch the hatchling with a curious gaze. Every once in a while it would stop to gently pat the squirrel before continuing to dig. Eventually the hatchling felt satisfied with the small hole it had created and set the stick down. Picking up the squirrel it placed the rodent inside the hole and scooped over the small dirt pile, covering the carcass. The hatchling then placed some leaves from the berry bush branch and a few small rocks on top.

“Night, night squirrel.”

Nox huffed at the strange ritual. What a waste of a meal. Tottering over the hatchling plopped down beside her, resting its head on her side. A few heavy blinks and a small yawn, and the hatchling was asleep. Nox couldn’t remember the last time she had slept next to another creature. Was it with her own hatch mates? Most of them had left the forest, seeking out places that were further away from the human settlements. Such places were getting harder and harder to find. They had wanted Nox to go with them, but this was the forest where they were hatched, this was home. How could she ever leave it? Soon she felt her own eyes begin to grow weary. Wrapping a wing around the strange little hatchling, she closed her eyes. Tomorrow she would return it to the humans, and life would go back to the way it was.

The bright rays of dawn snuck in through the needled branches of their protective pine tree alerting Nox that it was time to stir. She stretched out her front legs, arching up her back and shook out her wings. A moment of panic pierced her heat when she noticed the hatchling no longer beside it, but her fear was short lived as she saw the chubby cheeked creature munching away happily on the remaining berries next to the squirrel. The hatchling’s face had taken on a purplish hue around its mouth, staining from the berry juice. Noticing that Nox had stirred, the hatchling squealed and ran over, placing a sticky hand on her neck. This time when she lowered herself down the hatchling took to her back much faster.

Intermediately the hatchling would switch from babbling, to petting Nox on her head, and then to giggling. At times it was amusing, other times Nox greatly contemplated rolling the creature off. But it was nice to travel with a companion of sorts. Perhaps this was why humans kept lesser creatures by their side.

By the time Nox reached the southern edge of her forest the sky had become awash in pinks and reds. She settled low to the ground, shaking slightly to indicate to the hatchling to slide off. The hatchling slid down, landing resoundingly on its bottom, before pushing itself back up. At least it was a tenacious little creature. She gently nudged the hatchling towards the settlement, careful to stay within the cover offered by the trees. The dark green of her scales allowed her camouflage in the forest, but away from that protection she would be spotted easily. She shuttered to think what the humans would do if they saw her next to one of their young. The urge to protect hatchlings was a trait shared by many creatures after all.

At first the hatchling was reluctant to move, seeming unsure of what Nox was trying to communicate. But then a sound caught both of their attention. A woman stepped out of her door and called towards two young boys playing in a field a few feet away. The hatchling took a step towards the woman, its hands opening and closing in uncertainty. Nox gave it another gentle nudge, and the hatchling continued forwards out into the field.

The movement caught the woman’s attention. She paused for a moment, trying to identify what was ambling towards her, before rushing out. She knelt in front of the hatchling, looking it over. The boys she had called to ran to her side. The woman gestured towards the settlement, causing both boys to run off in the direction she pointed. Scooping up the hatchling, the woman held it protectively in her arms. The hatchling nuzzled in close, resting its head on the woman’s shoulder. She glanced out towards the border of the forest, and Nox kept herself low to the ground, her wings tucked against her back. With one final glance the woman then turned and carried the hatchling off towards the settlement. Nox watched and waited until the woman had entered her home and closed the door. She waited while the two boys came running back with two men, one large and bearded, with a heavy apron on and another more slender and younger carrying a leather satchel. She waited until the sun had set and the candles and lamps had been lit inside the human home, allowing soft warm light to emit from the open windows. And she waited until those lights had been extinguished and those windows shuttered.

The forest and the town had gone still. Nox knew that she should be returning to the forest, but she wanted to wait, just one moment more.