My long nails wrapped around the old wooden boards of the train tracks buried amongst layers of grey gravel. The steel beams running either side were boiled under the sun slowly cooking them and my own body. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0FDkiMrtFp
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRJ73K9Xj46
The sky was clear, as it had been for a week now, with not a grey cloud in the sky. It was the perfect temperature too. The air was cool but not cold enough to freeze me or hot enough to choke me. It was pleasant to idle in on my wander to the house in the distance. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPUHqhE6Sqr
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYVYr9ElmK
I kept my eyes locked on the tracks running as far as the eye could see through overgrown fields of grass that rippled like water in the breeze. My pace turned to excited running and my heart gripped at my chest when I saw a flash of orange and blue emerge from the house in the distance. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfh5F3TFV8X
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡucDDlx6Aqm
I bounded over the river and paused on the other side where people were moving across the empty road to the shops lined either side. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKGl0rUHnsg
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I was in clear sight of them now. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOwW6x6Ixa
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV9PaSIG1xQ
"Soup!" the tiny voice blew on the breeze to catch my attention again. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISOUhUG8Zm
It was so faint, but it was the sound I was waiting for. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVG0lvdEUMJ
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2mgNkQdRRO
A portly man approached the tracks as quick as his waddling body allowed, placing distance between us so he could squint in the direction of the house. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75SRgrgmtI
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4RtNhRePQb
He was the news agency owner here. His balding head with a halo of grey hair and leathery skin once roughed by laborious work in his youth was easily distinguishable. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXh8t5jkiF
His corner-shop was only a few meters from the tracks so he could have the time to waddle out each afternoon I made my appearance to make himself known. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0PNZi5C4gr
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMrVdLV3Db
I used to call him Bartleby. He preferred Bartie.314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSxk6VGaiRJ
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7bSqfZYjlg
"MISSY!" Bartie cupped his hands around his mouth before pointing them to me "you've got to stop feeding the beast!" 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIskCLGuQeT
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvNpYDePIX
I snickered at his concern and walked past Bartie before he cleared his throat to halt me. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Fghmh9Im0
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP002P1Zi7T
"You be good to her, Soup, you hear?" he scowled and waved a finger to me "I'll know if you do anything to her!" 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5pKt13j2pj
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiVPmFSv2xu
He had no reason to worry so much. It was the same empty threat he had been giving me for three months straight now. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUc0FICw52E
I just shook off Bartie's concern and raced for the woman waving for me to come. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRMvAqIJC4b
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFGWseB1tFL
I was smitten with her. She was so kind and had this wonderful light voice that was rougher around the edges. She had the most adorable freckles painted on her face and a lovely round body that she liked to swamp in knitted jumpers or flowing dresses she made. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVwN2gsOpZ3
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHl25Dthp1B
When her features began to form on the figure bobbing closer into focus, I grinned wildly and pushed myself to sprint for her laughing face bent down to search for me through the sea of grass. I swam through it to break through to her open gate held back for me. Her scooter was heaved back into its stand here too. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOWJwYlwjdR
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfmImrO4h5
Missy stood on the wooden stairs to her porch hugging the front half of her little wooden home. It was a very cost place made entirely of old wood painted in a muted green. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXUaaH85pVx
It had herbs growing in the windows glimpsing into her sewing room in the left where she had spools of fabric hung on the wall next to her machine and dotted cloth mannequins. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZEG1hZWY4B
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZwNX8sDbU4
Her right window had parts of her kitchen on show. I had peered into it a few times when I had been too eager to wait, watching her cook on her gas oven nestled within stone countertops while she shooed me away with a smile. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYiqCadSmIg
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt7MLyQp8og
Missy had the window wide open to waft out the smell of the food she had been cooking. The rich beef spiralled around the earthy tones of stock and tangy herbs freshly plucked from her windows. I could smell the carrots and buttery pumpkin I knew were harvested from her garden nestled out the back. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBAMH3hHnUM
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrODNk2xJko
That's how we had met. I had been raiding her gardens at night before she caught me and chased me off. After a few nights of futile attempts to stop me, and several vegetables left discarded in my escape, she started offering me her leftovers before it became proper meals. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAeAVbLX5BL
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiggWBjQQte
She didn't know what to call me, so she called me Soup. It was her favourite thing to feed me, and the easiest on her budget made selling homemade dresses. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6oFynoqhV
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhqDzMw0IhX
"Soup!" Missy cooed down to me waiting at the bottom of her stairs "I missed you! I'll grab your food. I think you'll like it today." 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGpIxpLsJgS
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtn8BQqrtzg
I liked how her voice rose excitedly when she saw me. It sounded like she was greeting a lifelong pet dear to her heart. I didn’t mind that; I was just glad she loved me so dearly to put this much effort into caring for me. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWDfGlxPxro
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqynMI06OUg
"Beef soup with my own vegetables and the local meat. I cooked it with teriyaki before putting it in" Missy exclaimed as she returned carrying two stone bowls and carefully placing one down on the grass for me. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrR5lpVCBSC
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6EJIxs0mW
My mouth was watering when I saw the mixture of colours beside me. Steam spiralled from the fresh meal Missy set down so she could fan out her checkered blue and white dress to sit on the stairs. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkmpZz7ItjJ
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0QLoVIZFj8
She cradled her soup in her lap while I blew onto mine to try and cool it enough to scoff it down. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl4jWjEN1rc
My stomach was begging for the hot meal that little birds and discarded rubbish along the roads could never satisfy. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6xPuYqQNSV
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAwM08Rqrj
"Thank you" I grinned to her and wrapped my hands around the hot bowl so I could lift myself onto my legs and drink it down. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLG0XuDMVd2
Soup spilled down my chest to burn trails down my skin before I could swipe then up. The chunks of beef were chewy and wedged between my teeth. The bitter teriyaki coated all its layers to bring out the meaty flavour. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS5tvLSOWpt
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTejfQz5SG
It was the cheap meat again. I don't think Missy could afford anything like the ones that fell from the bone or had soft marbles of fat throughout rather than thick coats. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡchBqLgVeY2
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFDAOniwXQj
She grinned and watched me try to keep my balance as I felt the meal burn a new hole in my stomach that growled for more. My legs trembled, not used to being so relied upon when I had all four of my limbs to power me effortlessly now. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡezHkzJ2tHL
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIw21JMZdws
I placed the bowl beside her and lowered myself back down. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8EfRZFxD86
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"More please" I pointed.314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡogEGsP16tx
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEqAE9bZtsh
She couldn't understand me but smiled like she had. All she heard were the same noises I did whenever I spoke in this form. It was just a mixture of growls and low snaps that I preferred to keep quiet, so I didn't scare her. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhCkY5m3VMv
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrcGd2gyflW
Missy liked it when I talked to her, and I liked it when I made Missy happy. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaA7ALBLLei
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFILEUTEtE7
"You're hungry today" she mused "did I not feed you enough yesterday?" 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbnm5MgCe2e
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpzhNc7oGY
I just smiled and watched her retreat back inside, leaving her bowl on the stairs. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwrB19DDZOh
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbOzXzvdM29
Missy was the type of person I would grow old with as a human. I often let my mind wander to what we could be if I hid behind my skin again as a human and tried to form a relationship with her in this home built for two. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBjYMHx90lb
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjFgG3tvjqB
Despite having a sunny personality and being loved in town, Missy liked her quiet life. She didn't want her heart to be broken or taken advantage of. She was worried she was too poor to ever please a man or mother children. She hated that she was too scared to reach out and form those connections. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gwm2Ix7t0
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgs0QwEuc5e
She liked me because I was an animal to her. I had no commitments other than one hot meal a day. I wasn't going to make her sad or upset her simple lifestyle with big ambitions. I didn't drain her trickling budget or offer anything outside the trinkets of lost belongings or junk I presented her with. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWKapzIaY8
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCqtnLF0Ysf
I didn't want to ruin that. I kept in this form and didn't dare to try and act on my daydreams of being accepted into her life as her partner with open arms. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhveK8YgZDS
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVfmn4OnmIR
I ate my soup and accepted her new name for me that spread through the town. It was simple and the way things were. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIk7DOxl1J3
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFOoYaSiMC
"Here we go!" Missy returned from the house along with two slices of crusty sourdough she had pushed into the bowl "buttered it for you too, you greedy guts. I'm surprised you didn't eat mine." 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmdJoy4bt3w
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQi8zZL2X8q
I was lucky to have her. She was too kind to be so afraid of life itself. Missy deserved more than it was handing her.314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSEyE0EeAjA
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUg9scG9puj
I took the filled bowl to drop one of the slices of bread into her own before shovelling this one down greedily. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBni7lkXRSq
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs315Llee2d
I could feel the warmth of it leaking down my front from the inside and bubble in my gut gurgling from so much liquid drowning it at once. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVqjogvGQ8c
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFmwCeJ8jnd
I snapped down the tough meat, licked the bowl, then headed back for the wall of grass awaiting me. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTW5Qnj66d
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaZMeq7WB3g
"See you tomorrow?" Missy called out with a worried frown. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJbddR2vLlH
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxW6BKyoYfg
Of course, she would. I would never leave her wondering where I had gone. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjQP56ZVyYV
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPd55iNaQC
I nodded and disappeared into the grass to follow the train tracks back to the East. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKUnXNnOHBK
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfA7mEauhy3
I stared up at the moon nestled in amongst the glittering stars from my grassy ledge curved over several meters from the tracks behind me. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcaWS1Ipj1W
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMJ4JEhTBgJ
The field surrounding me was dancing with wildflowers that stirred at the touch of glowing fireflies blinking through the air like showers of floating embers. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfcOJzwm8tv
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKEOpeDbGOx
They flitted like fire in the cool air and amongst the flowers. The fireflies reached for the stars themselves and I watched them ascend to the dusted void above. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03mb2JoJOt
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYsYvYowY9
It was so peaceful here with only the moonlight basking over the land. There was no artificial glow of streetlights or the sound of cars screeching on tar. The only sound piercing through the silence was the scraping of metal as the train thundered by on its nightly route to distant towns. Each lit window slashed over the grass below, reminding me of the loud and bright reality amongst the dark serenity until it was gone again. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwz81gw6mF
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGL3NyNqngS
One day I might go visit those places. For now, I had my reason to stay here. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtoHS00b0kE
I wonder if she just stopped to stare at the beauty of the moon too. Maybe she sewed in her room while wondering about things beyond her reach like I did? 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXSlFmrAFUB
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP7h5k5JLiC
I smiled at the moon and laid back, so I didn't have to take my eyes from it. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7eiq0fC1mN
The soft grass would be my bed tonight. Usually, I roamed for food or trash on the roadside for several kilometres to try and salvage something until sleep sapped my energy and I collapsed wherever I was. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6p5HVrccdb
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZpbLfTT0tf
The moonlit field of fireflies would be nice tonight. I could wait until Missy gifted me with her wonderful food tomorrow. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMkow263ve
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJ21RixVlw
I curled up with my hands wrapped around me, pretending they were hers cradling me and breathing warmth into me. 314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOZGFElEKq5
314Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs2jPKJnDR5
One day...
Penana
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