A Tall and Small Collection | Soren

Rescue

It had been two long weeks since Ashlynn had found Soren trapped beneath the bar of a mouse trap. Since then, it had taken every ounce of effort to gain Soren's favor. Even after bandaging his wounds, splinting his leg, giving him food and a place to sleep, and agreeing to his terms and conditions, Soren still seemed hesitant.

Patience was never Ashlynn's strong suit – and it still wasn't, but it was beginning to pay off. Soren was talking more and started accompanying her to the kitchen. She was starting to sense the smallest inkling of trust was blooming between her and the tiny human from the walls.

Now, seeing him kneeling on the ground with another even smaller person cradled in his arms and her picking up on fragmented whispers of conversation, a pang of sadness overwhelmed her. Soren always seemed sure and intelligent – level-headed when presented with an emergency; even if he was cautious and visibly nervous. This was not what she saw when he turned to her.

There were tears in his eyes. There was a hurt and a primal fear, but not for himself – for someone dear to him. The look in his face conveyed uncertainty and desperation. It didn't suit him.

"Ashlynn." Soren's voice was soft and threatening to crack. She could see he was barely keeping himself composed on behalf of his brother. "Please... save my little brothers."

Those few, simple words were all it took to send her into action. Ashlynn nodded, a determination burning in her eyes. She stood abruptly, making the one called Dorian flinch and whimper. Ashlynn didn't have time to worry about that and instead concerned herself with making sure Soren had the necessary tools to bandage his brother. She had to trust he could handle one while she endeavored to help the other.

She took a clean dishrag and cut it into small strips Soren could manage while running a bowl of fresh, warm water. She grabbed it, ensuring the water wasn't too hot, and set them on the ground near Soren.

"You need to make sure his wounds are clean before bandaging them," she said while keeping her voice low. Compared to Soren, she was doing a poor job of keeping her tone even and calm. She wanted to be sensitive to the situation, but it sounded like time was of the essence. "You said brothers. This is one of them, right? Where's the other? I didn't hear."

Dorian whimpered again and pushed his face into Soren's bandaged leg.

"S-s-so-ren," he stammered. "Th-th-e human... w-what's she gonna d-do to Rey? A-are we c-cap-captured?" Ashlynn felt the familiar frustration that she experienced when first earning Soren's trust, but bit her tongue. [There's time for this later.] She thought.

Soren's arms engulfed his brother as he pressed his cheek on the top of his head. "No. No, we're not captured. She's going to save him. She's going to get him back. It's going to be okay." Soren unconsciously grabbed a fragment of cut cloth that Ashlynn had placed hear him and began wiping away the snot and tears from Dorian's face.

Soren turned back to Ashlynn, his breathing becoming more rapid. "The older woman in the apartment near from yours; somewhere over there." Soren gestured in a broad sweeping motion toward the other apartments. "She has a cat. I... I don't know her name, but Dorian said that's where they were. He's caught in a glue trap. Dorian, is there anything else you can tell me?" Dorian sniffed and grasped the cloth near his face.

"H-he wa-was wearing the other m-m-mouse pelt. I... I th-thought it would help, like what you taught me," he sniffed, his voice losing strength.

"Dorian said he was wearing the mouse pelt, like the one I was wearing," said Soren to Ashlynn.

"Okay, last thing. Is there something I can say to him that would help calm him down? Or maybe help him know I'm not going to hurt him?" asked Ashlynn, preparing to stand and head out. Soren shook his head, the stress of the situation making his shoulders tense and tremble.