Moff Wandering: Scavenging 5

            With the floor clear and the debris piled against the other walls, Moff and Tag took a break. The raptor stepped back out to the road and rolled around until the dust faded from her feathers. Then she righted herself and sneezed three times in quick succession. The action seemed to irritate her, so she threw herself to the ground and rolled around some more.

            Moff sat on what remained of the near wall. Their hands and legs and clothes were covered in dust, and they were half considering following Tag’s lead and rolling until they were dust free.

            However, they had a better idea.

            The group had rested long enough (Probity especially since he didn’t lift a claw to help).

            “Tag,” Moff called and hopped down from the wall. “We need to find water.”

            The raptor perked up at that, jumping to her feet and shaking the remaining dirt and ash from her feathers before trotting over.

            “There has to be some kind of water around here,” Moff said. A village wouldn’t survive without it. If they couldn’t find any, they’d move on as soon as the night passed. There was no point rebuilding a village if nothing could live in it.

            Probity stretched his wings and then took off with a relieved cry. He circled a few times as Moff gripped Tag’s halter and jumped up onto her back. Then the little dragon flew on ahead. He didn’t need any further instruction beyond the need to find water.

            Tag shook off again and then took off at a canter into the woods. Her long legs ate up the distance, and the forest swallowed the two. Above, Probity scouted from on high.

            The day was fading, though the thick cloud cover hid the sunset’s colors. Moff could feel the night draw closer, the shadows growing darker as the light began to fade into a strange gray twilight. The transition into darkness would be slow with no sun to burn low in the sky, but eventually, the darkness would overtake the forest and Moff would find out what lurked in the shadows.

            Then Probity came circling back. He swooped low over Tag’s head and chirped loudly. Before Moff could ask, he retreated just as quickly, pointing a way forward.

            Tag followed, breaking into a run in order to keep up with her flying counterpart. Moff gripped her harness and leaned low over her neck. They kept their wings tucked tight against their sides and the wind brushed their antennae back against the top of their head.

            They didn’t have to run long. As they went, the broken remains of an old path appeared. It was old and overtaken by the green that somehow managed to still grow, but it could be rebuilt in the same way the village could be.

            The sound of running water cut through the silence and Tag stumbled to a halt when the trees gave way to a narrow stream.

            Probity made a cheerful sound and circled a few times, proud of his accomplishment.

            After her brief moment of hesitation, Tag splashed into the water until the current nearly reached her knees. She shivered and then plunged her head below the surface.

            “Whoa!” Moff yelped, throwing their weight back so they didn’t just tumble right over her neck.

            Tag raised her head again. She glanced back at Moff and then looked down into the water. The broken surface was dark in the fading light, looking like a stream of ink as it parted around pale feathers.

            Tag shoved her head underwater again, water splashing as high as her shoulders.

            “What are you doing?” Moff asked. They leaned back again, trying not to be thrown, but then it occurred to them that if they wanted to wash the dust off, they’d have to actually get into the water. They hopped down from their raptor’s back just as Tag resurfaced.

            She tilted her head back, letting the water run from her neck down to her shoulders. Then she dove again, this time crouching until the water splashed over her back.

            Moff grinned and likewise tried to scrub the dust and ash from their hands and clothes. Probity too tried to get clean, landing in the shallower waters and splashing about.

            Beside them, their raptor burst up out of the water so fast she sent water spilling down onto the top of their head.

            “I can bathe myself, thanks,” Moff laughed, wiping the water from their eyes. When they next looked up, they realized Tag was holding something. Before they could further inspect it, the raptor leaned forward, shoving the object into their chest.

            “Oof!”

            Tag went back to searching for treasures below the surface and Moff gingerly looked down at the object in their hands.

            She found gold??

            Upon closer inspection, they realized it was fool’s gold, but given what could be made with it, it was nearly just as good. They didn’t have much use for real gold anyway.

            As they waded back to the shore, Tag resurfaced a few yards further away.