Tale of Two Corgis

Chapter 12 (Part 3)

GASPING FOR AIR, THE WATER SUCKED ME DOWN, CLOSER TO THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER. It tightened its grasp around me as I fought for my life. My eyelids fluttered. The rabbits swimming above me made it to the other side, but I was left to die. I closed my eyes, struggling no more. I exhaled, opening my eyes to watch the bubbles float to the surface. 

And then something yanked me back to reality, making me pull myself out of the river. While Jasmine wasn't herself, she was being hunted by these rabbits. And I had to stop them. She was their next target. Determination pulsed through my body as my muscles worked overtime to push myself to the top. 

With each forceful push, I was closer to the surface of the river. Running out of what little air I still had, I let my anger at Blueberry fuel my weak limbs. She hadn't been trying to starve me of meat, she'd been trying to weaken me. I let my hunger flow through my veins. Power flowed through my brain. 

I felt like I could do anything at that moment. But instead, I did the most sensible thing and got out of the water. I ran as fast as I could on my short legs, putting as much distance as possible between me and the murder bunnies. As I ran, my thoughts directed towards food.

I should've snatched one of the bunnies for a snack. I should've taken two or three, actually. They used me to get across the river and then saw me as an obstacle. They deserve to die at my paws. 

Instead of letting my violent thoughts distract me, I diverted to analyzing, choosing the best place possible to hide. I spotted a nice rock formation ahead. There was a little crevice just wide enough for me to fit through. I sprinted the last ten yards, and crouched, preparing to get stuck, but I slipped through with ease.

Looking down at my body in the rays of sunlight drifting through the leafy top above me, I saw that I was thinner and much stronger. I was, in a way, glad that Blueberry hadn't let me do very much. She didn't realize how much she prepared me to run away from her.

I dismissed my thoughts quickly, returning to the issue at hand. Jasmine was still out there somewhere, and they were hunting her. I looked around the little cavern, examining it as well as I could in the fragmented sunlight. 

There was a small space in the back wall that I assumed was a tunnel, leading down to a lake or something, by the sound of water. Then I realized that the water noise could be the river, but when I poked my snout out of the cave I saw that the river was too far away for me to hear it. 

There was a pile of vines sitting in one corner, so I assumed I was in some animal's den. I hoped they wouldn't mind the company. If they did mind it, then I could leave. But as of now, my tongue was flopping out of my mouth and my throat was dry. I ventured into the small hole, pausing and sniffing occasionally to see if my new friend was back yet.

The lake was bigger than I expected. It was also shallower than I expected. There were fish in there, leaping gracefully. They gave off a strange glow that lit up the small cave. There was a cat across the lake. She looked up at me, hissing, and jumped into the water.

By the time I had recovered from the shock of a cat jumping willingly into the water, she waltzed out next to me. I looked at her. Her silky black fur was wet, shining in the dim light of the fish. She had white paws. I hoped her name wasn't Mittens. No cat deserves to suffer like that, even though they're the enemy of dogs. 

"I'm going to ask you one question before you start interrogating me, and I'm hoping the answer is no because no cat deserves to suffer from a name like Mittens. Is your name Mittens?"

She laughed, looking at me with her multi-colored eyes. One was a dark red, like the color of the blood in the river after I hit the rocks. The other was a calming blue, shimmering with silvery light. "No, my name is Galaxy. My sister is Mittens." 

"Oh, that poor cat," I said, hoping that I didn't sound too sarcastic. I wasn't being sarcastic, I was being sympathetic. Or trying to, at least. 

"Why are you here?" she asked, breaking the silence that had fallen between us. 

"I'm looking for my sister. There's a bunch of rabbits, including a really dangerous murder bunny, that are hunting for her."

She inhaled sharply. "You don't... by any chance... are you... is your name..." She paused, struggling to think of the wording she wanted. "Are you Lavender?" She finally looked me in the eye. 

"Yeah, that's me. Do you know where Jasmine is?"

"Hunting." 

Panic filled me. The rabbits could come across her at any minute. I slurped some of the water I came down here to drink and then dashed up, running as fast as I could (much faster than I used to be able to run) to save Jasmine.

I found her lying a puddle of blood.