Rorri

　　"Poppy is doing really well with his leash training," Adar said as he shuffled their Go Fish cards. "So, I was thinking&"

　　He paused. Rorri sighed.

　　"You were thinking?"

　　"I know you`re going to fight me on it," Adar said, "but I think it`s important to get you practicing, so you can be independent again some day."

　　Rorri`s face went hot. "Just spit it out," he grumbled as Adar dealt his hand. Poppy had taken to laying on his feet while the two played cards. It was the only thing that had ever stopped his foot from bouncing.

　　"I want us to go to the market. Poppy can be your seeing-eye cat, since the two of you are inseparable these days."

　　"Mau?"

　　"That`s ridiculous," Rorri said. "How would that even work?"

　　"Well, the way I see it, if a person sees a blindfolded man walking down the street with a cat on a leash, they`ll probably get out of the way."

　　Rorri pursed his lips. Why did Adar have to be so logical all the time?

　　"Well, how am I supposed to keep from tripping over stuff? Like rocks, or boxes, or&"

　　"We could get one of those long sticks for you to feel things out with," Adar suggested.

　　"The market gets so crowded, though," Rorri protested, tapping his cards on the table. "What if someone steps on Poppy? I`d never forgive myself if he got hurt."

　　"We`ll go early, before it gets too busy. And, like I said, I`m sure people will give you lots of space. Even if someone gets too close, Poppy is surprisingly fast for how chubby he is."

　　"Mau?"

　　"It`s just an observation!"

　　Rorri`s chest simmered with a confusing slush of frustration and resignation. Adar left no room for argument - he never did - and Rorri knew he was right. Why did he always have to be right?

　　"And if I`m wrong and somebody does try to mess with you or Poppy, I`ll be right there to take them out," he said, his voice maddeningly chipper. "What do you say?"

　　Rorri grunted and rubbed his eyes, muttering obscenities under his breath. "Fine," he said. "Just because I know you won`t stop bugging me about it.

　　"That`s true," Adar said. "Tomorrow morning, then."

　　Kano & Cabbage

　　 I thought it might be easier This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

　　with every lonely day that passes by

　　but it seems I was mistaken

　　I thought it might be one of those things

　　that fades away, like time

　　into an empty space...

　　*******

　　Kano sputtered up the mountain, barely able to keep Cabbage`s pace. Though spring had overtaken winter, he had the uncanny sense that they were going backwards in time. The mountain air was just as cold, if not colder, and the snow stubbornly stayed put, increasing the farther up they went. The wind sometimes blew bits of it into his face, as if mocking him.

　　"Cabbage&" Kano said as he bent to catch his breath. "Where&?"

　　He looked up, but the cat-owl was nowhere to be seen. He stopped and spun around, searching the rocky terrain, but all he saw was boulders, twigs, dead bushes, and&

　　"Oh, no."

　　Farther down, the path wound into a cave. Cabbage waddled out, meeting Kano`s gaze, deadpan. The sun was still high. It was far too early to be seeking shelter.

　　"Prooh?"

　　"You`re just messing with me, right?" Kano said with a nervous chuckle.

　　"Maurooh," Cabbage said, narrowing his eyes.

　　"But&"

　　Dizziness struck, dropping Kano to his knees. His breathing grew shallow, more erratic with each subsequent breath.

　　"That leads to the Obsidian, doesn`t it?"

　　Cabbage watched him for a moment before giving a slow wink with his right eye. Kano released a pitiful whimper.

　　"W-what am I supposed to do in there?" he said. "I can`t see in the dark - I can`t&"

　　Kano covered his mouth with his fist. Cabbage huffed.

　　"Prrrooh-"

　　"I`m defenseless, Cabbage!" Kano shouted. "Do you have any idea what lives down there? There`s m-monsters, and& oh, god, I`m such an idiot. Why did I think I could do this?"

　　Kano collapsed forward until his forehead touched the ground. He`d never felt so helpless, so destined for suffering and death. Perhaps he ought to just end it, he thought as he sobbed into the mountain dirt. There were plenty of cliffs he could dive from and be spared the pain that surely awaited him in the bowels of that cave.

　　Something tickled Kano`s ear, startling him from his torment. A sandpaper-like sensation followed, brushing his cheek firmly, but gently.

　　"Cabbage&"

　　The cat-owl continued to lick the forlorn half-human, purring loudly, until Kano set himself upright. He wiped away the tears that Cabbage hadn`t gotten to.

　　"All this time, you haven`t left my side, have you?" he said.

　　"Prrroooh," Cabbage confirmed. Kano`s face scrunched up as he fought another wave of tears.

　　"How do you know he`s - he`s even still& still alive?"

　　Cabbage flattened his ears and gave him an annoyed stare. Kano slowly nodded his head, his eyes glassy and distant.

　　"Okay," he whispered. "I guess I`ll just have to t-trust you&"

　　"Mrrrooh," Cabbage said, then about-faced and hopped into the cave.

　　Kano rose shakily to his feet, gazing out over the landscape. The desolate forest he`d left behind looked as sparse and depressing from a distance as it did up close, and Iridan was long gone from the horizon. He truly had nothing to look back at with fondness. Nothing important, anyway.

　　So, he followed his feathered friend into the Obsidian abyss.