Fawn

I sat against the wall and stared at the ceiling. Time will tell, that’s what they said. Time had come and gone and so had they. Outside, the others were still trudging through the backyard looking for treasure. I didn't share the same optimism. There wasn't much when the world was still burning so there wasn't bound to be any now. A few moments passed until one of them shouted for the others. They apparently found something interesting. I heard more shuffling around in the grass before they started calling for me.

“Ion!” Pop shouted, “You might wanna come look at this!”

I stood and shouted back, “If it’s bones again then I'm cutting someone!"

I exited the old house through the kitchen doors and headed into the jungle that was once a yard. The others were standing off to the far corner against a leaning fence, huddled around something. I heard hushed whispers and a faint raspy breathing. Was someone hurt? Didn’t seem likely since the only living thing, Smidge had killed in the living room.

I stepped up behind Smidge and looked over the top of her head. My eyes followed what everyone was gawking at and my breath caught in my throat. I felt a slight sting and my heart grew heavy. None of them were hurt but something else was. Something I didn’t expect to be hurt or even alive after this long. Lying in the middle of the huddle was a small puppy with golden blond fur. Blood was caked into some of the hairs around wounds where plants had weaved their way into the animal’s body. I could see a little bit of it’s rib cage with blood around it and a vine curled around one rib. It’s insides were dark with a slight tinge of green like moss had grown over it’s organs. It looked dead and yet it still breathed. It’s eyes looked aware but tired. Staring at it, I didn’t know what to make of it but I knew something had to be done.

“Poor girl,” Pop said, “she must’ve ended up like this when everything went down. She’s like a little plant zombie now.”

Smidge said nothing. She just stared at the pup’s body gripping her hammer tightly. I saw her knuckles turning white and put my hand on her shoulder. Her head snapped towards me as if she were waking from a trance and I nodded toward Gun. The man was standing closest to the fence with tears welling up in his eyes. She blinked at me and then made her way to him. After putting her hammer away she grabbed Gun by the shirt and pulled him into the house so they could grieve together. It was their thing. They were the only two that still had a soft spot for animals. I did too but crying never helped anything and it certainly wouldn’t anymore.

Pop looked to me and drew his sword, “I’ll put it out of its misery.”

I stopped him, “No. Go with Gun and Smidge. I dealt with their tear fest last time with the deer. Your turn.”

Pop groaned and trudged toward the house, “And here I was thinking you forgot about that.”

I laughed a little when I saw him smirk on his way there. We became like brothers when the world went south. He was the jokester and I was the serious one. The world may have ended but as long as there were people then it hadn’t ended. That was his thing. I just didn’t care to see anyone else die.

I crouched down next to the puppy and drew my knife. It had been here for so long, kept alive by the earth but unable to move. I vaguely wondered if it was happy or at peace with being here. It might have become like a tree, minding its own business doing nothing. I raised the blade above it’s head but before I could strike it looked at me. It’s eyes locked on to me and then moved to the blade. I don’t know what I expected but the sudden whimpering caught me off guard. It’s eyes started to water almost as if it were going to cry. The puppy didn’t want to die. I relaxed and moved the knife from above it’s head. That’s when something caught my eye. Through its backside, a thick mess of vines had grown through its body. I followed them as they weaved their way into the grass and then firmly into the ground. It was stuck!

My heart raced with excitement as I parted the grass trying to get a clear view of the rest of its body. I moved some fur from around the wound as well. The vines weren’t wrapped around anything they had just gone through. They had to have grown while it was unconscious and fast too. I cut a few leaves and strands of grass away before reaching in and cutting each vine one by one. With each one, the pup’s breathing sped up. Once the last one was done, the dog scrambled off the ground and bolted around the yard. After several cycles the noise caused the others to come out and look. Smidge’s eyes lit up and Gun started shouting. The puppy reacted to the others and stopped running. It stared for a moment and then ran back to me. It slammed it’s little paws into my chest and started licking my face.

“Seems you’ve got a new pet,” Pop said smiling, “What’ll you name her?”

Gun immediately volunteered, “Oh! Let me name her! How’s barreta?”

“Ugly,” smidge said.

Pop punched him in the arm and I laughed, “I think I'll name her...Fawn.”