Chained

Chapter 7

~Zita~

"Is Zita okay?" skittered a tiny voice in my ear.

My eyes fluttered open and my face was met by a soft fuzzy body.

"Rudolf, get off my face." I mumbled into his body.

He flapped away and I sat up. Ouch. Wrong choice. I laid my face back down on my pillow and stretched my arms above my head. I rubbed my face into my pillow and enjoyed it fresh laundry smell.

"Zita hurt. Zita broken. Zita okay?" squeaked Rudolf again.

"Yes, i'm fine." I said. "Can you go get someone to get me some water? Anybody?"

Rudolf nodded and flapped out the window. Hope he doesn't bring in a dead cricket like last time. I looked over my shoulder to look at my wings and saw one tightly bandaged up. Oh.

Clumsily, I slid off my bed while my other wing helplessly flapped, knocking stuff down. I spun around and then jerked from the pain. My large wing hit a vase and it crashed onto the floor. Damn! And I liked that vase.

The door, without warning, suddenly opened and Andrew burst in.

"Zita!" he gasped. He looked flustered and looked like he just went out. He wore loose jeans that hung just right on his hips, and a hugging t-shirt that really defined his chest muscles. Though, most of his

"Would you like something?" I said, wrapping my good wing around my body, rubbing the frame.

"What... did something get in?"

"Yes. A big headache."

he glared at me but allowed himself in. He walked behind me and poked my wing. I hissed in protest.

"Sorry." he mumbled, backing off.

"No, it's fine." I said through my teeth.

"Um, the he-she- I mean, nurse, said to tell you to eat those."

He pointed to a pill bottle and I frowned.

"Ugh, those." I groaned.

"What are those?" Andrew asked.

"I like them better in the match box thingy." I mumbled.

Andrew looked confused and I rolled my eyes. I dumped some of the contents into my hand and held it out.

"Blood tablets," I said. "I'm basically the only one here that eats them."

He stared at them like they were a new, undiscovered species. They were small and round with a cross stamped on both side. Ironic, right?

"What do they taste like?" he said.

"Really? What do they taste like? That's your question?"

He shrugged and took one from my hand. He popped one into his mouth and then immediately spit them out.

"Gross!" he said, wrinkling his nose. "They taste like blood!"

"No duh, Sherlock." I said.

I threw the rest into my mouth and nosily chewed on them as Andrew stared at me in disgust.

"What?" I said. "Don't you eat blood when you, you know."

I put my hands on the top of my head and wagged them.

"Yeah, when we're changed." he said like i'd said the most ridiculous thing in the world.

"Huh."

"Yes, huh."

"So if you ate these while in your puppy form..."

"Don't call me a puppy. I'm so far from that."