Things Lost and Found (a Waglington and Mianite fanfiction)

Chapter 62

The song of the day is "Souvenirs" by Switchfoot.

*Memento's POV*

The morning after the rat fiasco, Mary changed my bandage and checked Wag over. Wag seemed to have recovered from his exhaustion but seemed a bit distant. He talked when spoken to at breakfast, but didn't initiate any conversations of his own. I kept one ear on him as I dosed under the table they sat around. Mary was just telling him about my misadventure and how he could remove my bandage in two days. That got his attention. "Why am I removing the bandage?" He asked.

I could hear the smile in Mary's voice as she announced, "Because you're well enough to travel now. Your lungs are clear, and your burns are healing quickly. Of course, your skin will start peeling in a day or two, but the blisters are resolved. I can make up something for you to take with in case your skin bothers you on the road. After that, you can leave when you're ready."

I was relieved that we'd be leaving soon. Sleeping somewhere soft and warm was great and all, but I couldn't stand being nose blind. If I went much longer without food, I'd risk making myself sick. (This is a real problem in cats. If a cat goes 2-3 days without eating, they can develop fatty liver syndrome, which is potentially fatal.) Once I can smell again, I'll feast. I almost started drooling at the thought. Wag didn't seem quite so enthusiastic about the idea of leaving. At first, I thought this was because we had no clue where to start looking for Steve. Then I caught a whispered memory from his and Martha's meeting last night. Steve was safe, which meant we no longer had a reason to be out here. We would be heading back to Dagrun... and Martha. I contained my annoyance to shifting my position and lashing my tail once.

When he said as much to Mary and Andor, the prince started bouncing his foot, impatient to say something, but too polite to interrupt. I just couldn't resist as I watched his bare foot move right in front of me. I swatted quick as lightning, but without claw, making him jump in his seat. Out with it, Little Bird, I mentally laughed, pleased that I had gotten such a reaction out of him. Quit making the floor vibrate.

Wag nudged me in the back with his boot in silent rebuke. In response, I rolled over and wrapped myself around his foot, grabbing onto it with my good paws. I playfully bit down on his ankle—just enough for him to feel it through the leather of his shoe. He yanked his foot back, dragging me with it. He leaned over to scowl at me, and I looked up at him innocently with my claws still buried in his boot. "Ih," I chirped, all sweetness.

"You little wanker," He scolded.

I released him and rolled onto my back to stretch. You know you love me.

Wag rolled his eyes and scratched my chest before returning to his conversation with the comment, "Well, someone's feeling better."

The conversation turned to supplies and road conditions. It turned out that the trade route running through town would take us half of the way back without going very far out of the way. Wag normally would have been able to fly most of the trip, but I could feel his magic was still running low. It would be until he finished healing. So having a well-maintained road to follow would be welcome, even if it didn't help us with keeping a low profile. As they talked, Andor's foot started bouncing again, and I realized that he never had said what he clearly wanted to. I resisted swatting him again. Instead, I limped over to his chair, sat down, and stared up at him.

Mary and Wag were now discussing how to keep me off my tender feet while we traveled. "I can carry him, but my arms will get tired eventually."

"Maybe we could rig a sling..."

Andor noticed me out of the corner of his eye, and I rubbed my face against his leg in encouragement. He grinned at me and stopped bouncing his leg. He looked back to my wizard and cleared his throat to get the others' attention. "I might be able to help with that."