Snippets and Stories: (WtI) Dog Day Shorts - By the Pond

A rain of pellets scattered the mirror like calm of the pond's surface. A few stray pellets bounced on the lily pads, rolling a ways to rest on the large broad leaves.

Already tiny mouths gaped at him, greedily sucking up the feed.

Silas sat back and admired their glimmering scales as they reflected the afternoon sun. To his pleasure he caught more glances still as more swam over, visible in the gaps between duckweed and aquatic plants.

The kois and catfish had grown large in the years that he had gone, but he was glad to see that they were still here, and that their keepers had taken as scrupulous a care of the pond as they had prior to his impromptu leave.

To his disappointment the lotus flowers had lost their petals, leaving but the pod on their long stalks. It was to be expected, given that their blooming was but a mere 5 days in comparison with the much longer two weeks of a lily flower's life. 

"Siras? Where are you?"

He turned his head as the familiar voice and footsteps reached his ears, "By the koi pond Neiro."

Wheeling himself around so he could fully see the entrance, he nodded as the albino appeared from the hallway.

Neiro beamed at him, "Nailed it!"

At his bemused stare and furrowed brow, he went on, "I figured you'd be basking in the sun, but I couldn't find you in the garden."

"The fish need feeding. Besides, it's a beautiful day. It'd be a shame not to enjoy the sun."

His friend simply grinned. It was a blatant lie, the fish were fat.

The currently brunette wheeled over to a bench that overlooked the pond, the stream of multicolored glimmers following him along the edge of the pond. 

Nodding a quick thanks he took a seat, he reached over the invalid, ignoring half-hearted protests as he stole some feed and tossed them for the many awaiting mouths. 

"They still follow you, don't they?" It came out more as a statement than a question.

"They follow everyone." a pause, "So long as they have food."

That brought a laugh, and his flatmate threw another handful. 

With some resignation he hefted the large bag of feed between them and pulled his blanket higher up on his lap, reveling in the soft texture. Microfiber was a luxury indeed. A small distraction from the ache in body, but any distraction however small, was welcome.

They sat in comfortable silence, and slowly his eyes slipped shut. It was a lazy afternoon and the sun was oh so warm. The glass panes filtered the light so he needn't worry of sunburn, though the thought of the breeze did leave him wistful.

Beside him the albino stared out of the corner of his eye. Silas was reaching the midpoint of his life. The man had been languid to begin with, but he could see that time was taking its toll. There was a profound weakness in his movements, though he did well to mask it. 

The proud man was no longer able to stand without the assistance of crutches, whereas a few years prior in the Tea Shop he had not only stood but labored.

Seeing him confined to his wheelchair, weak but still proud, burdened his heart. 

It did bring him comfort to see that the fond gaze as he beheld the rainbow menagerie of koi in the pond. The occasional catfish or surprise visit from a turtle lighting his eyes if only for a moment.

How fleeting human lives were.

In his long years he had seen many come and go, the flame within their eyes burning bright but eventually falling to time, Fading away as the sand fell in its hourglass. Though his youthful appearance belied little of his years, Neiro's existence numbered far greater than even the passing of time itself could recall. Numbers, however, meant little to him and he cared little to mark their meaningless passing, except to tick away and quantify the existence of those around him.

The crinkle of plastic jolted him and he swiveled to fully attend to his friend. But there was little cause for alarm. The noise was but the plastic of the bag of feed. His body was lax and his hand but moved on the folds of the bag.

The shallow rise and fall of his companions chest told him the man was at least in the blissful embrace of slumber. Temporary, but an escape nonetheless from the cruelty and injustice of reality.

The sad reality that he was slowing down.

He had met many, each their own character. It was his duty, his very existence, to guard the continuum, and strictly forbidden for them to intervene with the same other than the anomalies that arose with circumstances.

This was one of them, it was just work and nothing more.

His odd eyes narrowed and he stared at the essence of not only life, but existence itself. The way the timeline contorted and seemed to pivot on the slumbering man. No matter how often he peered through the aether at him, it made him apprehensive and uneasy. What humans would deem chilling or "hair raising". 

It was off, and to one who swam and breathed the aether, it sent chills through him. 

Like seeing an animated corpse. Unbound by strings or other such puppetry.

There was just something wholly wrong to his existence, and many times he had to resist the strong urge to wipe away his paradoxical being. How void he was of the essence that was existence. Yet here he was. 

There was nothing. He was just... there. 

Closing his eyes, he repressed a shudder. It wasn't that he felt fear, for there had been many more unutterable horrors he had born witness to, but it was vile. An atrocity. An affront to all that was. 

It hadn't been his intention to stay for long, nor to relish in his work as much as he did.

But for the remainder of the man's years he would remain by his side. It was but a speck in his unending consciousness.

Shuttering his eyes, he gazed back at the other's peaceful form. The matter must be resolved and soon. Though the light still burned strong, it was fading. 

Just as the afternoon light would soon dusk before altogether smothering on the horizon.

Quietly, so as not to disturb him, Neiro pulled the blanket higher. The weather was pleasantly warm, but it never hurt to take precautions.

"G' night Siras."