The next day, I wake up, to my surprise, right next to Buck. I figure that I fell asleep when I was watching over him. I sit up. I yawn and stretch. Buck begins to stir. He opens his eye. He looks up at me. A low moan escapes his lips. "Is the-ah anything tha' c'n ease th' pain?" Buck whimpers.
"Here. I have some poppy seeds. They might help," I smile. I give the poppy seeds to Buck. He swallows them up. It isn't too long before the poppy seeds start to take effect. Buck stops moaning.
He looks up at me. "Thanks, Sophie," Buck smiles. He yawns. "Strange. I feel tired, bu' I jus' woke up," Buck says, before yawning again.
"Buck, you're sick. It stands to reason that you'd be tired. Plus, poppy seeds also do that. Just get some more sleep," I smile. Buck closes his eye. His breath evens out as he falls asleep.
"How is he, mommy?" Rita asks from somewhere behind me. I guess that means my kits are awake.
I turn to look at Rita. "He'll be fine. He's still in pain and a little sick, but he'll recover," I answer. Rita smiles at this piece of news. "Rita, I am going to go gather more food. Will you look after things here? Take care of Buck and Callie. At this point, Buck will need to stay in his nest," I explain.
"Yes, mommy," Rita replies. She goes to where Lucas is. She relays the information to him. They both turn towards me and nod their heads in acceptance. I turn to the exit and dart out of the tree.
I head around in the forest, intent on finding some fruit (and maybe fish) to bring back. As soon as I finish filling my sack with fruit, I start heading towards the river. I'll see if I can catch enough fish for dinner, though I'm not sure that Buck will be able to eat any of it.
However, as soon as I reach the river, I stop. I am almost paralyzed by fear. There, right in front of me, is Rudy. Rudy turns his face towards me. He growls and gives off an ear-splitting roar at the mere sight of me. At the sound of that roar, I turn and start to run off. Rudy roars again and begins chasing me.
I continue running. I refrain from screaming just in case that Buck or my kits hear. Buck is in no condition to help me and the kits would be afraid. I keep running. I can hear the footfalls as Rudy keeps chasing me. He closes in. I turn to look behind me. My eyes widen as Rudy raises a claw. He slashes down on me, barely missing my eye. I scream, obviously unintentionally, at the pain from the long scratch that spans from my left shoulder to my right hip. I am flung backwards. I am knocked unconscious against a tree.
I wake up, which is a surprise in itself. I find myself in a hole in the base of the tree. My chest hurts. My head is throbbing. I whimper and groan, feeling the pain tear, relentlessly, through me. I crawl out of the hole. I can see that the danger has passed. I sigh in relief. I stumble to my paws, wincing at the pain. I start to limp back towards the tree. All I can think of is how worried my kits will be when they see me.
Soon, I can see the tree up ahead. I climb up it branch by branch until I can finally enter the tree. I see my kits playing. Buck is still asleep. He is, by the kind of expression on his face, is having a more peaceful slumber. Rita turns to me first. Her eyes widen. "Mommy!" She yelps.
I shush her quickly. "Don't worry. I'll be fine," I whisper so as not to wake Buck. I crawl a little ways. However, I'm in too much pain to make it to my nest. I just lie down on the floor, exhausted. I wince at the pain.
Rita, against my wishes, goes over to Buck and wakes him up. "Buck! Mommy's hurt!" She yowls.
Buck is immediately alert. Buck turns to me. He gasps and rushes to my side. "Wot 'appened?" Buck asks.
"Rudy…he attacked me…I…I was knocked out against a tree…It's a miracle that I'm alive…I fell into a hole at the bottom of the tree…" I explain. I can hear my kits start to cry from their fear for me. I want very much to comfort them, but I can barely breathe because of the pain.
Buck's eye widens. "Rudy did thi' ta ya?" He gasps. Buck helps me lie down on my nest. I groan from the pain. I squirm a bit, yelping slightly. "Stay still," Buck whispers into my ear.
"How am I supposed to? It hurts like there's no tomorrow!" I yowl. My eye twitches from the pain.
Buck strokes my forehead. "Calm down. I'll ge' ya something ta 'elp ease yer pain an' 'elp yer wound heal. Jus' sit tight," Buck soothes me. He darts out of the tree. I am surprised, seeing as I know that he must still be in pain. I don't understand how he could care enough to tough it out in order to help me.
Buck returns a short while later. I can see herbs, moss, and a cup of water in his paws. The moss, I know, is to stop any possible bleeding should it start up again. Buck sits beside me. "Stay still. I'll clean yer wound an' put a dressing on 't," Buck smiles reassuringly at me.
I nod my head, groaning. Buck begins to clean my wound with the water. I wince, biting back the yelp. Buck puts a poultice of the herbs on my wound and bandages it up. He looks into my eyes. "Tha's done. Now, ge' some rest. It'll feel betta in th' morning," Buck says. I nod my head again. I close my eyes. I am asleep in moments.
I wake up in the early morning. I whimper and squirm from the pain, noticing the nausea that is slowly taking hold. I turn my head slightly. I can see Buck and the kits asleep on their respective nests. "Buck!" I call out in a hoarse whisper.
Buck squirms as he slowly comes to. He turns his face towards me. "Sophie? Wot's wrong?" He asks.
I groan. "I don't…feel so good…" I whimper as pain shoots through me. I curl up in a tighter ball.
Buck puts his paw on my forehead. "Well, ya don' 'ave a fever. I's probably th' pain tha's makin' ya feel sick," Buck points out.
I whimper some more as my stomach cramps up. "I…I think I'm gonna…be sick…" I moan.
Buck's eye widens. "Go ahead. I's alright," he smiles warmly at me.
I know that, soon, I won't have a choice. That is proven when my stomach gives a sudden lurch. I sit up quickly. However, I'm not even able to turn over on my side. I lean forward and begin vomiting on myself. I can't stop. I can feel Buck stroke my head as I continue to heave and retch. I start coughing. Buck pats my back to help stop my choking.
When I finish vomiting, I look up at Buck. A blush begins coating my cheeks. "I…I'm sorry…" I whimper.
"Don' worry 'bout 't. Now, le's ge' ya cleaned up," Buck strokes my forehead. He grabs some water and uses it to clean the vomit from my fur. He helps me lay back down on my nest. I squirm, trying to get comfortable. Buck places his paw on my forehead. "Ge' back ta sleep. I'll be 'ere when ya wake up," Buck says softly. I close my eyes. Soon, I am fast asleep.