Just Imagine...

The Tiger and The Pteranodon

Myfanwy had a pretty good life. All the food she could ask for, a special treat in the dark chocolate bars she got from Ianto, occasional flights around Cardiff, but the truth was there was still something missing.
Myfanwy was lonely.
She had everyone on the team, sure, but Ianto was one of the only members to check on her regularly, Sam and Jack only doing so every few months, Owen about once a year to run a few tests on her, and Tosh and Gwen? Hardly ever!
She needed an animal companion. Sure, there was Janet, but she rarely came out of her cell and was a bit violent.
Myfanwy spent most of her days huddled in the nest she'd built way up high, remembering the days when she used to fly with her family across the vast Cretaceous seas. There were no cities then. No people. No cars. How had it all changed so fast?
"Have you noticed something odd about Myfanwy recently?" Ianto asked Sam one afternoon with a worried expression on his face.
"She's a bloody dinosaur, that's odd." Owen pointed out.
"She's not a dinosaur, she's a pterosaur," Ianto growled, "she's been eating less lately and she doesn't fly around as much anymore. I'm worried about her."
Sam smiled understandingly at him. Myfanwy was like Ianto's pet - a very exotic pet, but a pet nonetheless - and she knew how much he cared about her.
"Maybe she's sick." Tosh suggested.
"Or getting older." Jack added.
"I don't think so..." Ianto sighed, "Sam? You're the only one who can talk to animals. What do you think is wrong with her?"
Sam blinked at him, considering, then gazed up to where the pterosaur had made her huge nest near the roof.
"I think she's lonely," she said finally, "she needs a friend."
"She has me!" Ianto exclaimed, indignant.
"No, I mean like another animal," Sam laughed, "like when you get another dog to be friends with the dog you already have. She wants someone to play with - do you wanna be her playmate? Cuz I don't think that'd go over well."
"So what do we do?" Owen asked dryly, "find another pteranodon? Oh wait, this is the twenty first century, I forgot."
"Owen." Gwen growled.
"I'm not saying we need to find another pteranodon, you fool," Sam said, "I'm saying she needs another animal companion. Like... maybe Zephyr!"
"Oh yes, I forgot about your menagerie of zoo animals." Owen said.
"It's not a menagerie!" Sam hissed, "they're my friends! They got me through hard times better than any human could."
"You really just called a tiger, a wolf, a lion cub, and an elephant your friends."
"And a gorilla, a capuchin monkey, a ball python, a chameleon, two caiman, a llama, a deer, three macaws, five peacocks, two dogs, nine cats, and two horses, yes."
"Well a prehistoric bird would just be the cherry on top, wouldn't it?"
"Shut up, Owen."
"You have nine cats?" Gwen cut in.
"That's what surprises you?" Tosh demanded, "what about the bloody gorilla??"
"Didn't you have a shark too?" Ianto asked.
"Ay, I had to let him go." Sam murmured, almost sadly.
"And where do you keep the caiman? In the bathtub?" Owen spoke up.
"Of course not," Sam said, "that's animal cruelty. They get a section of the pool during the summer and a room to themselves in the winter."
"You're completely mad." Tosh said disbelievingly.
"Oh c'mon, her house is the closest thing in existence to the Garden of Eden." Jack protested.
"We're getting off track," Ianto said, "Sam, are you suggesting we transport Myfanwy to your house?"
"Not permanently," Sam said, "just, say... maybe a couple days a week? She'd stay with me, I know she would. She just wants friends."

Beneath the shade of a cherry tree was where Zephyr liked to sit. It was her spot, the place she'd claimed the day she'd arrived in Cardiff. Of course Sam's backyard was very different from the city centre, it was much quieter and more peaceful. Well, usually it was more peaceful. Today there was an intruder. A couple intruders, actually.
Zephyr growled as she felt Peanut's tiny claws in her back, lashing her tail. Didn't that pesky lion cub know she wasn't his mother?
And then there was Manolin. The black wolf was running around in circles, barking like a mad thing and chasing Persephone as she trumpeted gleefully.
Was there no animal in this world that could just sit still and be quiet? If there was, Zephyr had yet to meet them. She snarled as Peanut bit her ear, and the cub squealed and ran away, only to return a second later to resume torturing her. Zephyr let out a long sigh, resting her chin on her big white paws. She had almost fallen asleep when she heard the rumble of several car engines in the driveway and the sound of human voices. She raised her head again, then stood up to get a better view over the line of rosebushes, dumping Peanut on the grass as he squeaked in protest.
"Okay, okay, easy girl," Sam murmured, gently stroking Myfanwy's face as Jack, Owen, and Gwen untied the ropes they'd used to hold her in place.
The sedative Tosh had given her was wearing off and Sam could feel the pteranodon's unease rising.
"Ianto, I need you here." She said, beckoning him over. Ianto stood on the opposite side of the flatbed they'd used to get Myfanwy here, bending over her and murmuring softly to her in Welsh.
Sam made a few clicking noises in her throat and Myfanwy seemed to relax slightly, stretching her big wings as everyone else backed away. The prehistoric creature locked eyes with Sam, who tilted her head in the direction of the nearby fields.
"Go on." She murmured gently.
Myfanwy glanced at Ianto, who also nodded, then spread her wings to their full length and leaped into the sky, landing in the backyard.
"C'mon," Sam said, "we can watch from the back porch."
"You're sure this is a good idea?" Tosh asked uneasily.
"I'm certain," Sam answered, "I can jump in if anything goes wrong."
Zephyr had initially bristled when the strange flying creature had landed in front of her, but now regarded her with fascination. The energy this creature had around her was ancient and almost felt misplaced. Zephyr had never seen anything like this animal before.
She glanced to the back deck as Sam and her human pack came out the back door, and Sam crept across the grass on all fours, looking curious but ready to intervene.
Myfanwy on the other hand was surprised to see a creature like this one so large. Usually the furry animals were tiny, an easy snack. But this one was almost as big as she was!
"What are they doing?" Ianto asked quietly as Myfanwy and Zephyr sniffed the air around each other.
"They're trying to figure each other out," Sam murmured over her shoulder, "remember, neither of them have seen anything like the other before. They're curious, and confused."
"What happens if they try to fight each other?" Gwen inquired worriedly.
"I'll step in," Sam answered, "don't worry, I've done it before. That's how I got this scar on my arm."
"Yeah, that's not a good thing, mate." Owen said.
"Shh!" Jack hissed, "something's happening."
He was right.
Zephyr had gingerly raised one paw and was hesitantly swiping at the air in front of Myfanwy. The pteranodon seemed unfazed by this, bobbing her head and making cooing noises. Zephyr finally tapped Myfanwy on the nose and she responded with a non-aggressive squawk. Zephyr bounded a few paces away, flicking her tail, and Myfanwy took to the air to follow her at a low height.
"Sam?" Ianto asked nervously.
"They're playing." Sam murmured, awed, as Zephyr rolled over on her back and batted at Myfanwy's underbelly as she swooped overhead.
"Oh, wow!" Gwen exclaimed, laughing, "I can't believe that worked!" 
"Told you." Sam said with a smirk. She walked back across the yard and sat next to Ianto on the steps as he watched with an open mouth. "Hey," she murmured, nudging him with her elbow, "our pets are best friends."

Years went by and Myfanwy continued her regular visits with Sam's animals, even after the move to Saint Lucia. Harmony Palace truly was like the Garden of Eden - the caiman had their own water fountain, there were wide open pastures for the horses, deer, and llama, there were trees for the macaws, peacocks, and the monkey. Tree bears, love bats, Felgion serpents, and rainforest cheetahs claimed the trees as their place too, and unicorns mingled with the other grazers in the fields. Florapirs and galamingoes lounged in the caiman fountain and a small pride of coastline panthers sprawled in the shade of the trees. And there was open sky for Myfanwy to call all her own. But she wasn't here for flying today. She swooped down, landing in the tall grass next to Zephyr and her mate, a Syrvannia lioness named Leona, in their private spot a few feet away from the panthers, who regarded Myfanwy with uneasiness. She and Zephyr touched noses in greeting, Zephyr chuffing happily and Myfanwy clicking in response. They settled down in the shade to watch as Manolin and Peanut ran in circles around the fountain, avoiding the water Persephone sprayed at them with her trunk. Zephyr gave Myfanwy a friendly headbutt. 
It turns out they were exactly what they'd needed for each other.