Finding a Slogmok

    Egis was just falling asleep after a long day when a tiny, pitiful, mewling sound reached his ears. Blinking in surprise, he sat up in bed and listened again. Mewmew mrrew. Whatever it was, it sounded scared. With a soft sigh, Egis rolled out of bed. Glancing out his window at the gibbous moon in the clear, dark sky, he decided to grab a scarf. It'd probably be chilly out there with no cloud cover. Locking his door behind him, he heard the soft mewling sound again. He wondered briefly if it could be more sinister than it sounded, but shook his head. It didn't matter, he wouldn't be able to sleep until he found out one way or another.

    Following the sound, Egis found himself walking farther than he expected. The soft mewling had become louder as he tracked his way closer to the source. It was now clearly plaintive and lonely. Egis quickened his steps until the sound was quite shrill and seemed to be coming from directly in front of him. Moving cautiously ahead, aided by Kreludor shining bright in the sky, he spotted a small shrub that seemed to rustle at the same moment that the crying echoed through the night again.

    “Hello?” Egis called softly, hoping not to scare whatever it was off. He hoped he sounded friendly and that nothing would leap out of the shrub spitting and clawing.

    The shrub trembled and shook, and then suddenly, underneath the branches, a tiny head poked out. At first, seeing the long black claws and little brown face, Egis thought it might be a small Symol that had perhaps gotten separated from his family. Symols were quite abundant in this area of Brightvale. But either this Symol had cried its eyes alarmingly red, or it wasn't a Symol at all. Egis beckoned to the little petpet, cursing himself for not having thought to bring food, or even an extra blanket. The petpet trembled, but did not come any closer.

    After talking softly to it for a while and not getting anywhere, Egis finally decided to give up. Before he left, he unwound his scarf and placed it on the ground between himself and the little petpet. He nudged it slowly toward the shrub, hoping the petpet would understand and perhaps spend the night a little warmer than it otherwise would have. Egis couldn't think of anything else to do so he shrugged to himself and turned away.

    He had walked two steps when he heard a sharp rustling behind him. The petpet launched itself out of the bush and clung to Egis's tail. Egis turned his head and peered behind him, lifting his massive tail a bit higher. The little petpet was a Slogmok, and it had draped itself over the Skeith's tail in between two spikes. Its little arms were wrapped around the spike closer to the base of Egis's tail, and it had linked its claws together for a more secure hold. While Egis was trying to decide what to do, the little petpet rested its furry cheek against the side of the spike it was hugging and promptly fell asleep. With the decision made for him, Egis retrieved his scarf and headed home.