The trail didn't get far--just to the nearby spring--before it dissipated past Evan's tracking abilities. The only clue he had left was a paw print in the mud.
"A fox's, maybe," he mused to a nearby sparrow. "Or a dog's. Do they make dogs this small?" His voice was a bit hoarse from disuse, a light baritone rather than the tenor it once was.
Still, he continued musing, allegedly to the bird, just in case his small visitor was nearby. If it was a fox, his voice would scare it off. If it was a lost pet... Well, Evan liked dogs just fine. And the poor thing must be starving to subsist only on his mint plant.
It must be a lost puppy, Evan decided. Clearly it couldn't be a wild animal, because it couldn't hunt for shit and wasn't a particularly stealthy thief, either. Whistling, the man hopped the stream and set a couple of fishing traps. If he wanted a new pet, he'd have to keep it fed. Especially if he wanted any of his mint to come back.
As Evan repaired one of his old traps--when was the last time he'd had fish?--he mused over what else a dog (or maybe fox) in distress might need. It was getting a bit chilly in the evenings. Once the trap was repaired and set, he went out back to look at the old chicken coop.
By the time the shadows lengthened and it was too dark to bother with anything outdoors without a witchlight, Evan had done all he was going to do for his little visitor. A freshly caught fish, cleaned and boned, sat on the stump next to the chicken coop, which had been filled with newly gathered reeds. He'd tried to mitigate the effects the thief had had on his herbs, but even magic could only do so much to straighten broken stalks and mend bruised leaves.
With a sigh, Evan went to check the trees just outside his garden one last time. He spotted something odd under the branches of an old oak. The ground looked... churned, almost, like something large had been digging at it. It almost certainly hadn't looked like that this morning. He looked closer.
There, next to a large pile of crushed grass and foliage, was a bare human footprint.
"A fox's, maybe," he mused to a nearby sparrow. "Or a dog's. Do they make dogs this small?" His voice was a bit hoarse from disuse, a light baritone rather than the tenor it once was.
Still, he continued musing, allegedly to the bird, just in case his small visitor was nearby. If it was a fox, his voice would scare it off. If it was a lost pet... Well, Evan liked dogs just fine. And the poor thing must be starving to subsist only on his mint plant.
It must be a lost puppy, Evan decided. Clearly it couldn't be a wild animal, because it couldn't hunt for shit and wasn't a particularly stealthy thief, either. Whistling, the man hopped the stream and set a couple of fishing traps. If he wanted a new pet, he'd have to keep it fed. Especially if he wanted any of his mint to come back.
As Evan repaired one of his old traps--when was the last time he'd had fish?--he mused over what else a dog (or maybe fox) in distress might need. It was getting a bit chilly in the evenings. Once the trap was repaired and set, he went out back to look at the old chicken coop.
By the time the shadows lengthened and it was too dark to bother with anything outdoors without a witchlight, Evan had done all he was going to do for his little visitor. A freshly caught fish, cleaned and boned, sat on the stump next to the chicken coop, which had been filled with newly gathered reeds. He'd tried to mitigate the effects the thief had had on his herbs, but even magic could only do so much to straighten broken stalks and mend bruised leaves.
With a sigh, Evan went to check the trees just outside his garden one last time. He spotted something odd under the branches of an old oak. The ground looked... churned, almost, like something large had been digging at it. It almost certainly hadn't looked like that this morning. He looked closer.
There, next to a large pile of crushed grass and foliage, was a bare human footprint.
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A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 06-28-2017, 10:17 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by ambientmagic - 06-28-2017, 10:49 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 06-28-2017, 11:10 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by ambientmagic - 06-30-2017, 11:20 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 06-30-2017, 11:57 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by ambientmagic - 07-02-2017, 09:01 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 07-02-2017, 10:30 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by ambientmagic - 07-07-2017, 12:04 PM
RE: A Fugue of the Continuous [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 07-07-2017, 03:16 PM