Legend's Pet

Chapter twenty one: A hero's death?

Footsteps came down the hall, nearing the room. I jumped off the bed as Manfred walked in. He pulled his scarf off, threw it onto the bed, and sat down in a chair in the corner. I stood where I was for a moment before walking up to him and rolling over on my back, wanting him to pet me. "Mori," he said. "I was just visiting our friend, Zeumer. He isn't doing very well."
Georg hadn't been doing very well the whole time I had known him, but for some reason, these words made me feel like hot water was being flushed through my veins. Manfred's face was unreadable. I wanted to find hope in it, but I couldn't.

That night memories of Georg and the words Manfred had said, raced in my head. He isn't doing very well. He isn't doing very well. Out of all things, why were these words the ones closest to making me lose my nerve. I didn't whine or bark, I didn't even pace around. But I didn't sleep a moment that night either.

When I walked into the mess hall the next morning I saw my friends all talking in low voices about Georg as they ate breakfast. "He really needs to go on leave," Werner said, "back to his home so he can be with his family. I don't know him as well as you. But I think he could get better, or at least live longer, if he just rested a bit--"

"You think he can get better," Manfred said, getting up, "but he won't. He's too far gone. Besides, who wouldn't rather die in a dogfight? It's a hero's death, and you should be happy for him that he's still flying." He continued under his breath, "I'm just glad he's not in my jasta."

I waited for him to take it back, to at least look like he was sorry. And when he didn't, I walked with my head down out of the mess hall, making sure no one noticed I was leaving, or how mad I was. I was so mad I felt like I could bite someone.

I ran past the planes, through a grove of trees, and jumped over an old pasture fence. Georg's camp was farther away than I remembered, and by the time the tents came into view I was panting and itchy from the tall grass. I knew I shouldn't be here, but I had to do something. I couldn't apologize for what Manfred had said and done, but at least I could say goodbye.

I wandered around for a while before I found Georg standing outside his tent, watching the mechanics getting planes ready. He was wearing his coat and flying boots and so I knew he would be leaving soon. He smiled when he saw me, but I could tell had grown worse since I had seen him last. He was skeletal, hollow-eyed, and even though he was shivering he was covered in a cold sweat. When someone's dying you just feel shy around them, without meaning to at all, and I approached him slowly.

"Mori--" he said. "Where is he?"

When he realized Manfred wasn't with me, his face fell. He dried his eyes, knelt down, and hugged me around my neck. "Shh, it's okay, schatzi," he kept saying. "It's okay. Don't worry about me." But even though I tried, I couldn't keep myself from whimpering. After a few minutes, that went by much faster than they should have, he got up and turned away from me.

"Bye, Moritz," he said. "I just have to get it over with this time. Say goodbye to Manfred for me, okay?"

I wanted to do something to keep him from flying but I knew it would be useless, so I just sat down and watched him walk to his airplane. By the time his plane was only a spot in the distance, I had a dizzy feeling in my head, like everything was real except me. I wanted it to stop. I wanted to make up for all the time I hadn't been able to see Georg -- the times he was in another town or airfield -- because my master, who had the power to make people come, go hadn't cared about him enough to keep him around. But I couldn't make up for anything now.