The wait was long, but the scenery was beautiful. The panorama was rich with the scent of pine and petrichor. Sagwa sat on a bed of fallen leaves and breathed in the smell of nature as she attempted to calm herself.
She would find Sheegwa. Then they would meet up with their brother and parents, and hopefully by then Sagwa would have come up with an explanation that they would accept. It seemed simple enough. Then again so had the words I'll meet you outside.
Fu-Fu appeared on the horizon. She stood up, training her eyes on his face as he neared. He didn't look like he had good news to deliver. He landed and shrugged. "Sorry. Unless you wanted dogs."
"That would be a forever no." Sagwa made a face as she tried again to consider. "She has to be someplace."
"What do you want me to do?"
She smiled at his offer. "Would you mind scouting again?"
"Not at all."
"Thanks, Fu-Fu. You're a good friend."
He grinned at her and took wing. Sagwa turned around and meandered into the forest, looking for paw prints. Fu-Fu was always crashing and attempting to keep his glasses secure, so she knew his vision was suffering even from his vantage point. Her own eyes could better see things up close, so as she wandered through the woods, she called her name. There was no reply, and it saddened her to realize that she was no longer expecting one. She was just getting tired of hearing the echo of her own voice, resonating through the woods.
And then she did hear someone else. It was Fu-Fu. "Sagwa, look out! Turn around! Run away!"
She obeyed without understanding. The terrain was rough and unfamiliar in every direction, and the path she had unthinkingly chosen was downhill and muddy. As she ran, she could feel herself gaining momentum, and she knew that gravity would work on her predator, too. She could hear a large, growling animal pursuing her. She could feel her heart pounding like the beak of a woodpecker.
Sagwa slid into the abyss of a hollowed log and spun to face the entrance as her hideaway suddenly fell into shadows. She could see a hoofed creature; and between its legs, she could see its horned shadow. Breathing hard, she inadvertently began to back up. Fu-Fu saw her emerging backwards at the same time the Yanbian lifted its head and saw her at the other end of the log. Neither of them, only Fu-Fu, realized that she was perched on the corner of the hill. The cattle charged, knocking her unconscious. She slid down the muddy bank; and seeing him charge again, Fu-Fu flew into the creature's snarling face, flapping his wings and shouting wordless nonsense in a desperate attempt to annoy him.
The Yanbian ducked its head, spun around and plodded up the hill. Hovering in midair, Fu-Fu spared what he intended to be a quick glance at Sagwa, and found he could not look away from her limp, muddy form. After pulling himself together, he laboriously dragged her to the log, tucked her back inside and flew as quickly as he was able towards the Teller house.
-0-0-0-0-
Awareness began as a question, struggling to formulate in the dark. Sagwa fought to remember what happened, feeling pain in all four legs and her right side. She had never bled before, but in the vaguely circular spot of light, she could see the disquietingly pink strands of fur. She raised her sore body into a sitting position, hunkering down again slightly when her head scraped the log. The forest was falling into shadow and all was silent...deceptively peaceful. Did she dare check? But what choice did she have? Even Fu-Fu was nowhere in...
Her gut clenched at the memory of the horned beast. Had he been injured even worse? Had he been killed? She tentatively ventured out of the log. Coming into open air, she stretched and peered around in fear. Just how long had she been...asleep? The bright moon illuminated the fog that blanketed the rough terrain. Probably blanketed the fallen form of a friend. Sagwa had no memory of retreating into the log-she didn't know which way went downhill. Slick with mud and blocked with hidden roots and stones.
"Fu-Fu!" she called. Her voice shook with worry. She backed up inside the log, listening attentively for the monster to come rampaging at the sound of her voice. But the peace went unbroken.
She considered crawling through the mist on her belly, as if stalking an imaginary rat. But who knew how good the creature's eyesight was? So she lay in waiting, trying not to draw attention to herself; and her thoughts inevitably turned to Sheegwa. Putting two and two together, she sat up so quickly she bashed her head. "Ouch!" she yelped, and rubbed at her new injury. But now she could only think of the Yanbian attacking her little sister. Her frightened, sweet, defenseless little sister. Staring up at the glowing, vicious eyes and the long, sharp horns...No. No, she couldn't just stay here.
She hesitated only a moment longer, rubbing her sore head and scratching an itch before pulling her sorry self out of the log for the last time. Moving with a caution she had been taking for granted, she moved through the mist; wishing it would clear so she could track properly.
Did she dare call their names...? She tried not to consider with so much passion that she fall again. Deciding to go with her first alternative, she squatted down and slithered on her belly like a snake. Her eyes scoured the terrain for small, cute prints; but she found herself in a muddy maze of hoof prints that did nothing to help her forget what had happened. How much of this was her fault? Or would the attack have been even worse if she had stayed with the group?
Concentrate, she told herself. She paused and tried to find her center, breathing deeply in the night. Its quietness suddenly didn't feel peaceful; it felt alarming. It felt as though the trauma of realizing Sheegwa was lost, was fresh. She knew better, but it felt like it had just happened. The curling fog reminded her of Sheegwa's tail, her lopsided ear. She took another few seconds to try and process the fresh wave of loss; then continued on her way, wondering at the sense of it all.
The goal was clear, but what if it was unattainable?
She suddenly debouched from the fog into clear air; and she stood up, limping forward without a clue, without a choice, and without Fu-Fu there to warn her of danger. And suddenly she didn't care anymore. Not calling their names could only reduce the chance of finding either of them. And even if she did draw attention to herself, it just might divert the animal away from someone else.
She took a deep breath. "Sheegwa, Fu-Fu!" she yelled.
Then Mama's voice floated to her in the night. "Sagwa?"
She stopped. "Mama?" she called, quickly scanning the woods. Her fear was like a physical thing. All she could think about was danger. The animal charging. The ground splitting open. The trees falling.
"Sagwa!"
Her head cranked back to look at Mama, who stood on the hill behind her. The mist hovered beneath her. She was lit by the moon; eyes glowing, claws glinting. She retreated and then led her mate, Dongwa and Hun-Hun off the cliff. Sagwa anxiously watched them advance.
"It's not safe here," she said, and looked up apprehensively as Fu-Fu landed on a branch.
"We know."
Baba was scrutinizing her. "Where are you hurt?"
"I'm fine," she assured him. "Really."
"Fu-Fu told us what happened," Hun-Hun began.
"In detail," Dongwa added.
She walked past her father's concern. "Which way?" she asked.
Dongwa's confidence wavered at her impassive tone. "Well, we've been going new directions for several weeks," he pointed out. "Maybe Sheegwa's been trying to track us."
Mama had to seriously take his hypothesis into consideration. But all she could do was look at the distant, cold look in her daughter's eyes.
"I'll check the alley," Fu-Fu announced; and flapped noisily into the growing night.
"I haven't been a kitten for a long time. It'll be hard to try and think like one," Baba mused.
"Why not think first about getting someplace safe?" Mama answered.
With that reasoning, travel meticulously continued. Sagwa plodded alongside, the distant coldness unwavering. She spoke little and would barely look at anything except the ground. Her companions soon gave up attempting to include her in the conversation. Finally, in the heart of the storm, they reached the first pagoda; and still hypothesizing that Sheegwa was trying to track them, they settled in for the night. Sagwa distanced herself at first, but as the storm persisted, she approached her family and squeezed in between their resting bodies. Baba stirred and looked sleepily at her. Their eyes locked. Hers were bright with tears, and she looked away before they could fall.
Needless to say, nothing had worked out the way she thought. But her parents were safe. Her brother was safe. Fu-Fu was safe. And if Sheegwa couldn't be found, then at least she had them.
Sagwa closed her eyes and relished the feeling of togetherness...while she was still able. And feeling like a rotten egg, Baba watched her cry herself to sleep.
