Lost Change

Chapter 51

In the end I decided to wait on breakfast. Ivy's comment about Minna feeling better if she got to feed me stuck with me. I wasn't that hungry yet - it was later in the day than I normally had breakfast at, but it had also been much later in the evening when I had finally eaten dinner - so I told myself I just wasn't ready to eat.

But deep down a part of me wanted to fix things with Minna. I didn't like the idea that she was upset.

Which only bothered me more.

The heat lamp had been turned back on, and my den looked comfortable... but... neither of them felt right. I spent a few minutes trying to get comfortable in my den, but I kept glancing back towards the couch.

Years of living on my own with Susie had put a habit in me. When she was resting out in the open, I was always there. Nothing would ever sneak up on her. And things had tried - more than one creature in the park had scratches on its face that matched my claws.

Now it seemed that the habit to be around and protect Susie had transferred itself over to Minna. It just felt wrong to be too far away while she was asleep.

I climbed back up onto the back of the couch and stretched out along it. Just like I had time and again on low branches when Susie had been resting.

The sound of rain grew lighter as the day wore on, but it was still a constant in the background, and I felt an urge to fly in it. Seeing Ivy fly had reminded me of the sorry state of my wings and of how long I had been stuck on the ground. It would be so nice to just glide through the air again and lose myself in wind and sun, and not have to worry about any of this...

Minna stirred after about three hours of sleep. She yawned, then lifted her arms over her head and stretched out. She held that pose for a few seconds, then relaxed and pulled her hands back in.

How many times had I woken up in that exact same way back when I had been human?

I chirped down at her. "Good morning."

She blinked a few times and looked down towards her stomach, then glanced up at me. "Oh. Hi..." She seemed suddenly nervous, like she wasn't sure what to say or do around me.

I watched her for a moment... then my stomach rumbled. She winced at the sound. "I owe you a few meals. Come on... let's get you something to eat."

She sat up on the couch and started to stand. I think she thought I would follow along on the ground, but before she could stand all the way I hopped the short distance to land on her shoulder.

It was just easier to ride on her shoulder than to navigate the bits of wood that covered the carpet.

Or at least that's what I tried to tell myself.

"Minna's awake." I nibbled on the piece of apple I had been handed. "We're finishing up breakfast now."

"Okay. Trenil will call over in a few minutes, then we'll head up."

"Why not just come right up?" Minna handed me another apple slice and went back to her own meal - we were at the table, and she was trying to eat in between handing me food. I think she had picked apples for my breakfast so she would have time to eat her own food in between passing me slices.

"Trenil's supposed to think she's asleep. It'd be a little weird if he just showed up as soon as she woke up; that kind of timing is a bit too much to be coincidence. Best to leave her explanations other than 'the strange alien lizard is spying on me'. Trenil called her a few times already, so she'll see missed calls and know it wasn't a coincidence he called again."