The Spider and the Butterfly

Chapter Six

By the time Daisy made it back to the den, it was almost so pitch black outside that she couldn't see. Dot and Sage still accompanied her, perhaps fearing for her safety like the good friends they proved to be. With the leather piece in hand, Daisy walked over to the entrance of the den. "Fang? Are you down there?" she called.

"No, I'm over here..." said a growly voice beside them. They all startled and looked into the grass. Fang revealed himself, his eyes glistening in the dark. "I was out hunting. Where have you been?"

Daisy seemed ashamed of herself. "I'm sorry, Fang. I found the leather, but I should have come back sooner."

"Yeah, you should have..." the spider muttered. He groomed one of his legs and licked his fangs. "But whatever. At least now I can fix the middle and upper part of your wing."

Dot stepped up. "Alright, drop the act. What do you really want with Daisy?"

Fang stared at the ladybug. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I didn't catch your name?"

"I'm Dot," she said. "And I'm on to you, spider. We all know you want to eat Daisy. So drop the 'friendly spider' act and just admit it."

Daisy looked dismayed. "Dot, you're not gonna hurt him, are you?"

Dot replied, "Not unless I have to. Right, Sage?"

Sage and Fang stared at each other. "Uh," Sage whimpered. "I'm not with her. She just dragged me along for this, Mr. Spider sir. Really, you're quite a handsome specimen for-"

"Shut up," Fang barked. Sage cowered a little.

Turning to Dot, the spider said, "I've got nothing to say. If I really wanted to eat her, why would I send you out to get me things to fix her wing with, huh? Did you figure that one out yet, little lady?"

There was a tense silence between them.

"Winter, right?" Dot asked. "You're waiting until winter when there's nothing left to eat, and when it's too cold for her to fly. She'll be stuck in there with you, then."

Fang growled. The ladybug continued, "Fact of the matter is that I don't trust you. So from this moment forward, me and Sage will be monitoring you. Understood?"

The spider chuckled. "I'm not afraid of your little spear."

"Understood?!" Dot yelled.

Fang glared at her. "Yes, I understand perfectly. But before you go on thinking you can come into my domain and bark threats at me, at least try to understand for yourself the logic of the situation. Unless you need me to dumb it down for you?"

Daisy gently put a hand on one of Fang's arms. "No, they get it. Right, guys?" Her friends nodded. The spider's anger seemed to melt away as his focus returned to her.

"Just be careful, Daisy..." Sage said. With that, he and Dot strolled away. Fang and Daisy watched them go, the sounds of the night echoing around them.

Then the spider cleared his throat. "Well, we probably should get some sleep." Daisy hadn't realized her hand was still on Fang's arm until now, and she pulled away. "Y-yes, alright..." she stammered.

Fang sighed as they walked back into his den. "Are your friends always this much of a headache?"

Daisy shook her head. "No, only when giant spiders are around them." Fang chuckled again, and the butterfly couldn't help but smile at him. She didn't trust him entirely, but she also had a hard time believing he actually wanted to eat her. Fang made a good point, after all: why bother helping her if his endgame was to kill her anyway?