Page 100 of Cozy Prisons

Nataly laughed. “Oh, there’s so much potential to that.” She put a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes tightly. “I’mgetting a strong feeling we need to find a regular supply of cocoa and have it shipped here.”

Daxus picked her up. Purring, he cradled her to his chest. “Let me carry you back. The sooner we ask and get supplies, the longer we’ll have to find the perfect site.”

She snuggled into his arms. “Deal.”

His purring echoed across the pond as they headed back to the manor.

Sil, the jeweled lizard.

After eating her fill of tasty, tasty bugs, Sil found a good spot in the sun to rest. She didn’t have a sense of time, so she didn’t know how long she’d been in the small place. All she cared about was the here and now, which her ancient instincts told her was the right place to be.

The food here moved, triggering her to eat more than she had in the small space. It also tasted better than the other food. The here and now was better than the there and then. Not that the small place was horrible, but nothing felt as good as the sun warming your scales.

Sil had to move three times to keep herself in the sun before she heard the others again. The one that carried her and the bigger one. She liked the soft-skinned creature that carried her. Her body had been warm, and her touch gentle.

The two passed, and Sil laboriously climbed down from her sunny spot and followed. They walked for so long that she almost gave up, but they finally stopped and set down their burdens.

Finding a good-sized bush, Sil climbed back up and found a small spot of sun. Her stomach was still so full it had hurt to keep up with the two, but Sil was glad she had. She watched as theymade themselves busy. Soon, there was a domed structure with a bright, red-and-orange thing flickering in front of it. The sun was too low for her to bask in, so she moved closer to the dancing warmth.

“Daxus, look!” the smaller one picked her up. Sil closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth. Ahh, this was nice. Almost as good as a warm rock in the sun. “Her pattern is just like Sil’s.”

“That must be a coincidence," Daxus said. “We left Sil by the pond.”

The smaller one rubbed a finger in the spot between two of Sil’s jewels. Yes, that was the best spot!

“We passed by there to get here. Maybe she followed us.”

“Maybe,” the big one said. “Even if this one isn’t Sil, she seems to like you, too. You must have an affinity for jeweled lizards.”

Sil drifted in and out of sleep as the two talked, then ate. The soft-skinned creature held Sil for the rest of the evening until it was time for them to retreat into their strange little shelter. Instead of leaving her outside, they laid her out on a pad that was similar to the floor of the small place. Sil decided this was fine, but preferred the soft-skinned creature or the sun.

“It’s good to be home,” the smaller one said to the bigger one as they settled down on their beds.

Sil couldn’t agree more.