Didn't I Tell You?

As the dusk settled over the woods, the two women began walking through the underbrush. It didn’t take them very long to find the first patch of the mushrooms as the caps began to glow under the cover of darkness. Under the growth of the forest floor, they were pulsating with the turquoise glow that Bear knew so well. She bent down and gently pulled the fungi from the ground, wiggling them free from the soil they were in. Bear placed the mushrooms into the small basket she’d brought along for this exact purpose. 

Cozy pushed her nose up against her girlfriend’s back, a short snort of warm air brushed along Bear’s spine. Absentmindedly, Bear reached back and brushed her muddied paw across Cozy’s nose. It was a mindless gesture, one that she had repeated until she forgot that she was even doing it. Cozy leaned into the touch, not minding the mud at all.

“Hey babe,” Bear murmured, “Just need a few more, ok?” 

The dragoness nodded, her nostrils flaring as she breathed out warm air over Bear’s fuzzy body. She shifted her considerable weight from her front right paw to her left, “Of course,” Cozy stuck her tongue out an inch in the cheekiest face she could make, “I’m happy to walk with you whenever you want.” 

Bear felt her chest swell up, a happiness fizzled in her stomach, “I only need a few more, I know you don’t really enjoy it out here...” 

Cozy brushed her away, her tail flicking through the underbrush. “I don’t mind it. Not if I can protect you.” 

The hyena blushed, her bespectacled face becoming warmed by the flush of blood. She nodded, tongue-tied and gazing at the floor. Bear began looking for another mushroom, scouring the ground for another one of those turquoise glowing patches.

It took her a split second to find another one, catching the tail end of the glowing. She danced through the underbrush towards it, her footsteps light on the wood floor. Cozy’s large form shifted behind her, the dead leaves crunching underfoot. Bear knelt on the floor and began picking the mushrooms. 

Overhead there was a clear sky beyond the tops of the trees, past the reaching branches, and a sky full of stars. The wind was gentle in her fur, but that may have been Cozy’s breath, she was never too sure. Her basket was about half full when she stood up, it really wouldn’t take her that long to fill it. 

“I just need to find another patch, maybe?” Bear muttered to herself, not even thinking about Cozy. “Just one more and then I’ll be done for tonight.”

Cozy head snapped upright, her ears flicking back, “Bear.” Her voice was low and gravely, the low growl building in her throat, “What’s that?” 

Bear stepped back, hiding herself behind the bulk of Cozy’s body, not sure what the thing was and not willing to take any risks either. “I don’t know, let’s go home.” 

She nodded, her bulk keeping the hyena safe from the unknown in the night. “Get on.” 

Without a split second of hesitation, Bear grabbed a handful of her girlfriend’s wild mane and slipped across her back. The mushroom basket swung from her elbow, the dull glow of each of the caps barely covered by the handkerchief. Cozy moved as soon as she felt Bear settle into the arch of her back, her long strides taking them out of the forest and back towards their home. 

“I told you I’d protect you,” the dragoness smiled, her gentle paws covering the ground much faster than her girlfriend could, “Didn’t I?” 

Bear leaned forwards, her face buried in the fluff of her girlfriend’s mane. “Yeah,” she grinned wrapping her arms around Cozy’s neck, “You did.”