back with an awkward hand. "Okay. Let go. We need to
get out of here. Let go!"
Yuzu squeezed tight enough to shove air from Kit’s lungs.
The bony girl was strong! She pushed away, grinning. "We have time for a bath, don’t
we, Sis? I want to see your tail."
Kit felt whiplashed with how fast her sister’s mood changed.
Sis. The word was still awkward in Kit’s mind. She shook her head. She hated not
being able to plan. Her wits were muddled. She blamed it on being tired, and on
Timothy. He had to addle her brains by calling her full name and adding his family
name. Kit decided to add her sister to that list of reasons for feeling muddled. At least she shows little interest toward my shepherd. The warm sister feelings
wouldn’t last long if she started encroaching on Kit’s territory, but a sister could
make for some fun flustering Timothy.
"I will show you eventually. Let’s go—and keep quiet."
Kit threw open the side door. Wind rushed past, grabbing Kit’s cloak. Snow swirled.
She envied the wolf fur Yuzu wore. Tail or no tail, winter was cold. A wool cloak
only did so much. The fool thing made her itch too. She rubbed her arms through
her shirt sleeves. Yuzu crouched and slipped out the door. Kit smelled the air and
listened. She caught the spicy scent of Yuzu and heard Timothy’s muffled voice from
the common room. She stepped into the night and closed the door behind her. Kit’s
ears stretched and swiveled. No one will sneak up on me again. It took a
moment for her eyes to adjust to the night. Snow glittered in the faint moonlight
that dabbled through the skeletal trees.
"I can’t see much of anything," Yuzu whispered.
"Follow me." Kit grabbed Yuzu’s hand and led the way.
They slipped through the sparse undergrowth engulfing the lodge. Her arms burned
and itched. Damned fleas . She tried to ignore it as much as she tried to
ignore Yuzu snapping every twig in the forest. She smelled nothing amiss. Orange
light mottled through the stubborn foliage spider webbing a window. She remembered
the fat tree with the strange white bark.
Yuzu tugged Kit’s hand and hissed.
Kit whirled around, almost throwing Yuzu to the ground.
Kit wasn’t going to let another person sneak up on her. She had her vixen pride.
The tangled skeleton forest waved.
"I hit my knee," Yuzu whispered.
Kit shook her head. Her heart hammered her chest hard
enough she thought Yuzu could hear it. The girl gazed about with wide eyes. Yuzu
probably couldn’t see anything beyond the light escaping the windows. To Kit’s eyes,
the night beyond looked gray and flat. The stable stood dark against the trees
beyond. Even her eyes couldn’t penetrate the darkness inside, but the sound of
the horses’ soft breathing calmed some of her nerves. They didn’t smell
agitated from the scent the wind carried. In front of the stable she could make
out the shape of their wagon. The wagon’s tongue rested in the dirt, and the
white tarp laid over the bed shone against the dark stable interior. It looked
as if the mule unhitched and then the wagon was forgotten. If she remembered
right, their travel packs would be just inside the wagon’s bed. It was too cold
for them to leave without supplies. Timothy would grumble to no end if she
didn’t get something. She scanned the area for motion, but everything remained
still. Kit grabbed Yuzu’s thin arm and pulled her over the gnarled roots. "We
are going to run to the wagon over there. Do you see it?"
"The white blob? Your eyes are glowing, Sis. You can
see just as well at night as I can in the day can’t you?"
"Not as well as you think. Yes, that’s it. We are
going to run over there and get our supplies."
"I wouldn’t want to try to leave without blankets
and food," Yuzu said. "I don’t have a tail to keep me warm."
"I know where they are, so I will climb in. You
watch for movement. You will see that before anything else."
Yuzu nodded.
They crouched at the side of the lodge, just below one
of
get out of here. Let go!"
Yuzu squeezed tight enough to shove air from Kit’s lungs.
The bony girl was strong! She pushed away, grinning. "We have time for a bath, don’t
we, Sis? I want to see your tail."
Kit felt whiplashed with how fast her sister’s mood changed.
Sis. The word was still awkward in Kit’s mind. She shook her head. She hated not
being able to plan. Her wits were muddled. She blamed it on being tired, and on
Timothy. He had to addle her brains by calling her full name and adding his family
name. Kit decided to add her sister to that list of reasons for feeling muddled. At least she shows little interest toward my shepherd. The warm sister feelings
wouldn’t last long if she started encroaching on Kit’s territory, but a sister could
make for some fun flustering Timothy.
"I will show you eventually. Let’s go—and keep quiet."
Kit threw open the side door. Wind rushed past, grabbing Kit’s cloak. Snow swirled.
She envied the wolf fur Yuzu wore. Tail or no tail, winter was cold. A wool cloak
only did so much. The fool thing made her itch too. She rubbed her arms through
her shirt sleeves. Yuzu crouched and slipped out the door. Kit smelled the air and
listened. She caught the spicy scent of Yuzu and heard Timothy’s muffled voice from
the common room. She stepped into the night and closed the door behind her. Kit’s
ears stretched and swiveled. No one will sneak up on me again. It took a
moment for her eyes to adjust to the night. Snow glittered in the faint moonlight
that dabbled through the skeletal trees.
"I can’t see much of anything," Yuzu whispered.
"Follow me." Kit grabbed Yuzu’s hand and led the way.
They slipped through the sparse undergrowth engulfing the lodge. Her arms burned
and itched. Damned fleas . She tried to ignore it as much as she tried to
ignore Yuzu snapping every twig in the forest. She smelled nothing amiss. Orange
light mottled through the stubborn foliage spider webbing a window. She remembered
the fat tree with the strange white bark.
Yuzu tugged Kit’s hand and hissed.
Kit whirled around, almost throwing Yuzu to the ground.
Kit wasn’t going to let another person sneak up on her. She had her vixen pride.
The tangled skeleton forest waved.
"I hit my knee," Yuzu whispered.
Kit shook her head. Her heart hammered her chest hard
enough she thought Yuzu could hear it. The girl gazed about with wide eyes. Yuzu
probably couldn’t see anything beyond the light escaping the windows. To Kit’s eyes,
the night beyond looked gray and flat. The stable stood dark against the trees
beyond. Even her eyes couldn’t penetrate the darkness inside, but the sound of
the horses’ soft breathing calmed some of her nerves. They didn’t smell
agitated from the scent the wind carried. In front of the stable she could make
out the shape of their wagon. The wagon’s tongue rested in the dirt, and the
white tarp laid over the bed shone against the dark stable interior. It looked
as if the mule unhitched and then the wagon was forgotten. If she remembered
right, their travel packs would be just inside the wagon’s bed. It was too cold
for them to leave without supplies. Timothy would grumble to no end if she
didn’t get something. She scanned the area for motion, but everything remained
still. Kit grabbed Yuzu’s thin arm and pulled her over the gnarled roots. "We
are going to run to the wagon over there. Do you see it?"
"The white blob? Your eyes are glowing, Sis. You can
see just as well at night as I can in the day can’t you?"
"Not as well as you think. Yes, that’s it. We are
going to run over there and get our supplies."
"I wouldn’t want to try to leave without blankets
and food," Yuzu said. "I don’t have a tail to keep me warm."
"I know where they are, so I will climb in. You
watch for movement. You will see that before anything else."
Yuzu nodded.
They crouched at the side of the lodge, just below one
of
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