Page 32 of Horn in My Side
“No!”She stepped forward, ready to shield Kaylie from the seventy-pound canine about to crash into them.Before she could even brace herself for the impact, Mal dove in front of them and caught Cora.A cheer went up from the audience.
“Are you okay?”Mal turned to face Jasmine, a squirming Cora in his arms, fox stuffie in her mouth.
“Y-yeah, thanks.Kaylie?”
“I’m g-good, Miss Jasmine.”She crept around from behind her, her eyes growing to the size of the moon.“Thank you, Mr.Mal.”
“No prob, kiddo.”Mal placed Cora on her paws and whistled, and she immediately sat down.
“Whew, that was a close one,” Jasmine said.“Wasn’t that awesome?Kaylie, where did you put the stuffie?”
“In the boys’ bathroom,” she said, wrinkling her nose.“I thought the smell in there would stop her.”
There were a few “eww”s and “yuck”s from the crowd and laughs from the adults.
Jasmine chuckled.“Good thinking, Kaylie, but like I said, nothing will stop a laelaps from finding its prey, not even a stinky bathroom.”Another laugh rang out.“After today, Cora will be headed to her new home on a ranch in Montana, where she’ll be living with a wonderful family with three kids.So, say bye-bye to Cora, everyone.”As the children waved and shouted their goodbyes, Mal led Cora back to her pen.“And thanks so much for volunteering, Kaylie.”
“Thank you, Miss Jasmine, Mr.Mal.”She waved at them before following Mrs.Howard as she led her back to her seat.“So, now we have our last friend.His name is Felix, and he’s a carbuncle kit.”
Jasmine had gotten the idea to bring the carbuncle from the little cyclops boy and his mom.It was unlikely that any of the parents watching would want to buy a tizzie whizie or laelaps for their child, but a carbuncle kit was the perfect starter pet for any child.That and they were adorable and had luminescent fur, a must for kids who were afraid of the dark.A little marketing and publicity never hurt, after all, and she especially needed it now, if the shop’s finances were as dire as Mal said they were.
“Let’s say hello to Felix!”
Felix, however, wasn’t keen on cooperating this morning.Mal placed his carrier on the floor and opened the gate, but the little creature remained inside.
“Oh dear, I think he’s a bit shy.”She looked up at Mal, unsure what to do.
His eyebrows did that furrowing thing.“Do you have any treats?”
“Oh, good idea.”Reaching into her purse, she found half a dental treat she had stashed in there when she was rushing to get home after playing with the tygre cubs.She placed it in front of the open crate.A few seconds later, Felix came out, sniffing at the treat before he began to munch on it, his bushy blue tail wagging and ears twitching happily.
Jasmine went through her speech, talking about the carbuncle.At one point, she asked that the lights be dimmed and sure enough little Felix began to glow, eliciting “ooh”s and “aahh”s from the children.When the lights turned on, Mrs.Howard waved to her and pointed at her wristwatch, indicating that she should wrap it up.
“Looks like we’re almost out of time.Let’s say bye to Felix.”
Mal opened up the crate door, but instead of heading inside, the little kit decided to run up the orc’s arm instead.The orc jumped back and nearly tumbled, but caught himself in time.The carbuncle, however, circled his neck before settling round it, like a fur scarf.Mal grunted and frowned.
A burst of giggles broke out from the kids and Jasmine had to bite her lip hard to stop from laughing.“I don’t think Felix is ready to go home yet.”
The kit let out a chirp of agreement, and the lines between Mal’s eyebrows deepened.He tried to brush him off, and though he unfurled his bushy tail, Felix crawled down to his arms and snuggled in before closing his eyes for a snooze.
A collective “awww” rang out from the audience.Jasmine had to admit, it was a cute sight, especially now that Mal’s frown had been replaced by a bewildered expression.
“Thank you, everyone, we’ll see you next time,” Jasmine said.As applause broke out, she let out an internal sigh of relief.She couldn’t believe she’d made it through this without embarrassing herself.Looking over her shoulder, she glanced toward Mal who was placing the sleeping kit inside the carrier.
After shutting the door, he turned to her.“Thank Vorlak we’re done.”
“I don’t know, Mal ...You looked the height of fashion with a fur scarf,” she teased.
He flashed her a wry smile.“I’ll be sure to bring my matching heels and purse next time.”
Wait, did Mal just ...crack a joke?
Before she could react, he lifted the cage, placed it on top of the others, then pushed the cart backstage.
She trotted after him, doubling her steps to keep up with his longer strides.“Thanks so much, Mal.I couldn’t have done this without you.”
He stopped pushing and swung around to face her.“You did great, Jasmine.What did I tell you?Here, let me.”
