15. A dinner mate

A human caked in dust lying sprawled on the ground, it had been 2 days since he fell unconscious and now he was starting to stir.

The body which was only breathing slightly suddenly twitched and a violent tremble went through the body and a huge fit of coughing erupted.

Gareth had inhaled lots of dust and it was only now that it started to expel it out of his lungs, as he continued to violently cough he slowly got up from the ground. The first thing he did wasn't to check on himself but the little creature he had rescued.

Seeing that it wasn't as weak as before and was peacefully sleeping Gareth let out a sigh of relief still exhausted from the previous journey. Trying to stand his legs turned to jelly and fell face first onto the ground. Gareth decided he would rest a bit longer.

Night time Gareth had risen a little earlier and was preparing for dinner. It was a simple grilled meat with some edible flowers with a dash of honey for some sweetness. This was the last bit of honey he had and he didn't even hesitate to add it for tonight's dinner. With the meat slowly cooking over the fire he set up, a meaty aroma began to pervade the surroundings.

He felt some movement and looking down he saw the dirty bundle of fur had just woken up by the pleasant smell wafting from the cooking meat. Gareth noticed it had a pair of wings and as it tried to stretch them there appeared to be discomfort. The little creature soon noticed Gareth and immediately curled into a ball. Seeing Gareth not doing anything towards it, it slowly uncurled before wandering towards the almost cooked meat.

Gareth watched the curious creature head towards the fire, it had wanted to touch the fire but Gareth quickly caught it and pulled it back safely. The dirty grey creature trembled in his hand, it was very small and delicate looking even a man who had gone through many dangers couldn't but lower his vigilance towards the small fella.

Putting it down, Gareth went to get the now cooked meal. It had a nice aroma and had attracted the grey creature. Gareth noticed it's interest and cut out a small portion for the small furball. The little fellow was wary at first and only when it saw Gareth begin to eat did it nibble on it.

Gareth thought he could see small stars in its eyes when it nibbled the food and greedily gobbled its shame before nudging Gareth thigh for more. This time Gareth cut half of his portion and gave it to the little guy. It was fine for Gareth to eat less and seeing the furball chow down on its food with such relish made eating much more tastier.

After dinner Gareth fed the fire some more wood before heading to his camping bag, the grey furball watched Gareth with interest and seeing him lie down to rest, it hesitated before it approached Gareth and lied down next to him.

Gareth had noticed the action of the small fella and his mouth cracked a small smile, and with a whisper he wished it goodnight.