The pain seemed to intensify with every passing second in small increments, a steadily rising ache. He blinked dully, lulled by the monotonous digging yet unable to fall fully asleep, hovering between physical discomfort and fatigue. Every now and then one of his ears twitched and he jerked up suddenly only to discover the source of his fright was only a cricket chirping or a breeze rustling through the branches. Whenever he was on the edge of sleep, the black lioness rose up from the corner of his eyes and he jolted awake. Knowing that this was just his imagination was no comfort.
Vu opened his eyes and looked to the tunnel. Mollie’s quiet voice called to him from the hole she’d dug. He must have dozed off again when she went inside. He rose shakily, gritting his teeth as he slithered down the tunnel, using his back legs to push more dirt over the entrance to make it seem even smaller from the outside.
After his eyes adjusted to the dark he started to crawl further down. His paws slipped at one point and sent him sliding into Mollie at slow speed. He put his front paw around her and lay his head on top of her as his tail curled to encircle them both, exactly the way he slept with his siblings in mother’s den. Dark spaces never bothered Vu. With Mollie’s warm body against him, he released a heavy sigh and quickly fell asleep.
((End~))
