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Planting Seeds

The front door swings open disturbing my peaceful slumber on the couch. I lean up and shield my poor eyes from the sunlight, eventually getting a view of the unashamed disturber of naps. A familiar coyote stares at me with a wide smile and ears excitedly pointed to the ceiling. Rust colored muzzle, fluffy tan cheeks, the rest of her coat is a speckling of gray, cream, and dull orange. Held in her hands is a large tray containing a variety of new plants for our, well, it's really her garden. I lower my hand and smile.

"Got some new houseguests for us Amber? I hope they'll pay rent unlike the last batch you brought in."

Her wagging tail slows down just a bit.

"Oh shush Leo, I think you're really going to like what I managed to find. I mean just check out the colors on these flowers! They're downright majestic!"

I rise up with a tired grunt and walk over to survey the contents of the tray. White flowers, violet flowers, golden flowers, red flowers. She was right that they all looked pretty and despite standing a couple feet away I could already detect their pleasant scent. I nod my head approvingly.

"Nice haul. Just flowers though? Not in the mood to plant things we can eat anymore?"

"Leo! We can barely eat all the food we already grow and you want me to dedicate the new bed to even more fruits and vegetables? I'd much rather grow a few things back there that are actually nice to look at. Maybe we'll even move a few of these flowers to the front of the house, impress our neighbors."

"Amber, you can do whatever your heart pleases with these plants. You know I don't have much of a green thumb, last time you let me take care of part of the garden it died in what? A week?"

She chuckles politely.

"I think it took longer than that. But if you just paid more attention and did some research on what you're growing you could be as much of a botanical success as I am."

"Right, so these new flowers you got, will they be easy to take care of or will we have to shell out cash for specialty soil and even more gardening tools?" I ask, the memory of the last receipt we got when she went shopping for gardening supplies bubbling up into my memory. One too many zeros.

"Nope, taking care of these things will be a piece of cake!" She answers with a smile. "I already looked up the requirements for most of them." She begins pointing her muzzle to each group of flowers as she explains. "The red daisies there just need plenty of sunlight and some water if the bed starts getting dry, as will the golden dandelions. The violet chrysanthemums will need the same plus some extra fertilizer."

She looks towards the group of white flowers and cocks her head, a quizzical look on her face.

"Those white ones are called morsenias and they're by far the ones I know the least about. They're pretty rare around these parts and the guy I bought them from knew next to nothing about them other than their name. I'll have to do some research later today."

I lean in closer to the cluster of strange white flowers. Each blossom is composed of several large white petals surrounding a grayish round center. The delicate petals slightly drooped towards the ground as if reaching for the soil. I briefly tilt down and take in their scent. They smell earthy, with a faint hint of flowery sweetness. Not exactly the most aesthetic or pleasant smelling flower I've ever seen, but they should make for an interesting addition to Ambers garden. I have to guess she got them for contrast given how colorful the other flowers she got are.

"I have full confidence you'll find out whatever it is they need to grow. You've never been one to back away from a challenge. But the guy who sold them seriously didn't know anything other than their name? How is that even legal?"

"Well, he did mention an old myth surrounding them. Supposedly there's a chance for a flower to grow completely black rather than the gray and white you see with these ones. If that happens you're supposed to get a wish granted, but only after you burn it."

I absentmindedly rub one of their thin white petals.

"Sounds like a bunch of superstitious hooblah to me. And none of these are black so I guess you'll have to wait until next year to get your wish. However, I am thinking about a use for some of these violet chrysanthemums." I reach down and pluck a chrysanthemum from its stem, placing the large purple flower next to Ambers ear. "I think it looks cute on you. The purple goes really well with your eyes."

She chuckles and twitches her ear causing the flower to fall onto the tray.

"Not exactly my style to wear dead plants Leo, I much prefer to keep them living. Now as punishment for killing one of my precious flowers you'll have to take these to the garden and help me plant them. Ha!"

She presents the tray to me and I take it from her paws with a suppressed grunt. This thing is heavier than it looks, I'm surprised Amber didn't ask me to take it sooner.

"Suit yourself. If there's one thing I can do without screwing up it's digging holes in the ground. But it'll be up to you to keep these beauties alive."

She crosses her arms and sighs happily.

"And I will, just like with the rest of the plants we have back there. Now let's get going, I want to get them in the ground before we lose anymore sunlight."

"Yes ma'am." I reply, and follow her outside to the garden.

Dig a hole. She plants a daisy. Dig a hole. She plants a dandelion. Dig a hole. She plants a morenia. Dig a hole. She plants a chrysanthemum. Dig a hole. She plants a daisy. And so on and so on. The summer heat is already burning my skin and drying my mouth, yet Amber seems utterly unphased by the all consuming heat and humidity. Probably has something to do with the big floppy hat she's wearing. Despite her endless reserves of determination I am in desperate need of a drink and a breather. Not like we have many flowers left to plant anyway.

"Amber, how about a five-minute break?" I needily suggest, wiping the sweat off my brow.

She compacts the soil around a freshly planted dandelion before responding.

"I guess. It is pretty hot out here. Get me an iced tea will ya?"

Her response is no surprise, iced tea with a squeezed lemon is her favorite.

"Anything for my favorite coyote."

I get off my knees and walk into the house, pouring two large glasses of iced tea. Being her dutiful mate, I also place a lemon wedge onto the rim of one of the glasses, that one'll be for her. I walk onto the back porch to find Amber sitting down on a lawn chair, panting in the shade provided by a short awning we recently had installed. Guess she isn't as invincible as I thought, that just means she'll be twice as relieved when she gets her tea. I sit down on a chair beside her and hand her the glass with the lemon wedge.

"Thanks. You have no idea how much I needed this." She happily responds, quickly squeezing the lemon into the tea before giving it a quick stir and taking a long, thirsty sip. I lean back into the chair and take a drink of my own. Damn this stuff is good, maybe one day I'll figure out what her family recipe is. As we rest, taking in the sunshine and birds chirping, a question pops into my mind. One related to why she has so much time to spend gardening in the first place.

"So Amber, how goes the job search?"

"I've been weighing options, sending out resumes, doing the whole song and dance."

"Good, but know that you don't need to find another job just yet. With our savings you have plenty of time to relax and take it easy for a while. Especially with how stressed out that job at the hospital had you. I swear half your fur was about to turn white!"

"Tell me about it!" She exclaims, almost spilling her tea in the process. "I am so done with those awful hours, and those awful schedules, and those awful managers, and not getting my paychecks on time, and even-" She stops herself and looks to the left and right, as if there were an eavesdropper nearby. "And even some of my patients. I mean they were mostly good, but every now and then I would get a real ass." She whispers out of the corner of her mouth.

"Well it's good you're out of there. Have any other hospitals nearby in mind? I'm sure with your experience they'd love to have you."

She breaks eye contact and stares down at her tea.

"Uhhh, no. I've been thinking of moving to a different field actually." She hesitantly admits.

"Oh? Want to get some more training and become a specialist? Like a radiologist or something?"

She shakes her head.

"No, I don't mean like that. I'm talking about a total career change."

"That's...a big decision. But there's a lot of things I know you have the skills for besides nursing. What did you have in mind?"

I keep my mouth shut but I have a very good idea what her answer will be given her talent in gardening.

"I've put a lot of thought into it, and things aren't yet set in stone..." Come on Amber, we both know you want to be a botanist, or a landscaping specialist, or something outdoorsy and involving lots of dirt. "...but right now my first option is to join the police force and become a cop."

What?! I almost spit my drink out, where the hell did her desire to become a cop come from? This is totally unexpected!

"Whoa! Hold on, you want to be a police officer? Why? You never struck me as the judge Dredd type with your love of sugary drinks and hobby of growing tomatoes."

She looks back to me with a chuckle.

"I do have some family history with the force ya know. My dad was the sheriff of Macon County for the better part of his life, made a good career out of it, brought in enough money to give me and my brother a comfortable upbringing. He liked it too, always full of stories of little adventures he had while on the job."

"He liked it? Didn't one of those stories involve him getting shot at?" I ask, a tinge of disbelief in my voice.

"Yes Leo, he was shot at while on the job. But it was only one time! And the shooter was a fat lizard waving the gun around in a drunken daze while stumbling around his front porch. It was doubtful the dumbass could have hit him even if was lucid enough to aim down the sights."

"Alright, not quite the shootout I thought it was. But Macon County is sparsely populated area Amber, where we live it's a lot more built up. You would be patrolling around the city, around scummy sewers and shady back alleys. It's a very different kind of area than a small rural town like what your father patrolled."

"I know that Leo." She says with a look of annoyance. "But there are also benefits to go along with it. Like higher pay and..." She raises an eyebrow, emphasizing her next words. "Big, fat, juicy, sign on bonuses. Especially for canines."

I have to stifle laugh.

"Amber, when they're looking for canine anthros to recruit I think they're talking about species with some bite. Like German Shepard's, or wolves, or huskies. No offense honeybun, but you're not exactly intimidating with your thin build and average height."

She huffs and crosses her arms.

"Oh come on! I can be intimidating when I want to! Look."

She lowers her muzzle and gives me a cold canine stare. She brings up her paws to display ten fingers tipped with dull claws and a low growl emanates from her chest. She's...still just a cute little coyote. To me, anyway. I put my hands up in surrender.

"Okay, you're p-pretty fierce. N-no need to turn me into c-coyote chow." I say with mock fear.

She lowers her paws with a triumphant smile.

"Told you. But just so we're clear they don't exclude any breeds of canine for the sign on bonuses so I do in fact count. Besides, they're also looking for recruits with especially good senses of smell, like me! The website said something about a lot of positions for bomb disposal experts being open. I think that's what I'm going to shoot for, go above and beyond just being a beat cop."

I turn to look her in the eyes hoping she would pick up on my concern.

"You sure about that? That sounds dangerous. Very dangerous. You could get killed just being a cop, never mind one that also has to contend with explosives. Think about what you're doing for a second."

"I know what I'm doing." She states, voice low and serious. "I'm ready for something new and I really think this is it. I like helping people, I like actively being in the local community, I enjoy doing something new everyday. Hell, I don't even mind a bit of acceptable risk if it's for a good cause. I know you have apprehensions about me doing this but you need to give me this chance. And hey!" She shrugs her shoulders. "If I don't like it I can always go back to nursing. Like you said, there's plenty of places hiring."

"I'm not trying to discourage you Amber. I'm just urging you to think things through. Being a cop is a big change. This isn't something you should rush into, like I said we have p-lenty of time before you need to start working again."

She gives me a warm smile and a pat on the shoulder.

"Thanks Leo, my big strong manly man always looking out for me. I wouldn't be able to start for a couple months anyway, the local police academy won't take in a new class until then. And it's nearby too, I can come back to the house after classes are done and work on the garden with you."

I turn my head and smile.

"Good, because you know how much of a green thumb I have."

Clean Burn

Being at her graduation ceremony was the happiest I had been in a long time. Seeing her enter the room with the other recruits, dark uniforms carefully tailored and badges polished to a gleaming metallic sheen, an air of anticipation filled the auditorium. Most of her fellow officers were taller and had more bulk than my limber coyote, but she never seemed to mind. Kicked the butts of more than a few of them during the physical training courses from what she told me. Amber made a valiant attempt at maintaining her professional bearings when she went up to accept her certificate but the edges of a smile were plainly visible on her muzzle when she looked at me. I couldn't help but smile back and clap.

Over the coming months she would take to her new career like a duck to water. Responding to calls, riding on patrol, investigating crimes, she seemed to love all of it. Not counting the occasional complaint about the volume of paperwork she had to do of course. And she never even railed me for embarrassing her when I was able to hunt Amber down while she was on duty and surprise her with a box of donuts in front of a few other officers. When she had proven herself as a competent officer is when she started training for the departments bomb squad. Most of what she did while training was above my head, the only experience I had with anything similar to what she did was through movies. Just cut the right wire and you'll save the day right?

She wasn't kidding about those sign on bonuses, with the new cash in our pockets we were able to put some money towards paying off the house while also snagging a few amenities. She got another bed for the garden. I was happy to learn she planned on growing more fruits and vegetables in it, not that I disliked the one bed we had bearing flowers. And me? I got a new grill for the backyard, despite it still being spring I needed experience for all the cookouts I saw in our future.

"Amber? The kebabs are almost done! Come get yours before I eat all four of them!" I shout somewhere behind me, an array of juicy meats and colorful peppers sizzling on the shiny new grill I'm manning.

"Okay! Okay! I had to change out of my uniform you kebab hording maniac!" She yells from inside the house, quickly running up behind me in a food frenzy.

I laugh and drop two of the steak and pepper laden sticks onto her plate. She's dressed in a lose t-shirt and short shorts, it became her typical off duty uniform some time after graduating from the academy. Not like I was complaining, the loss of one of my t-shirts was more than made up for by getting to see her toned legs everyday. She snags a couple hotdogs as well before topping them with mustard and relish then sitting down in a lawn chair. By the time I'd made my own plate and sat down in the chair beside her she's already eaten both kebabs and is halfway through the first hotdog. Guess she didn't have lunch today.

"Hey." I whisper. She turns her head and perks her ears up. "You got something..." I point a finger to my lip and she gets the message, wiping away a spot of mustard with the collar of her shirt.

"Better?"

I shake my head in response and take the first bite of my hotdog. It's cooked well, a hint of smoke, a crunch from the toasted bun it was nestled in. Not bad for the first grilling of the season, I'm honestly just glad I didn't burn them to a crisp like what happened the last time I was put in charge of a grill. Her parents never let me live that one down.

"Hey, Amber?"

She turns to me once again, half of her second hotdog still wedged between her jaws.

"Ya got something..." I point to my cheek.

She puts down the hotdog and once again dabs away a stain with her shirt.

"You got it." I say, giving her a thumbs up.

"Thanks. Sorry if it seems like I'm in a rush, didn't have a second of downtime today."

"Oh? Out catching purse snatchers and rowdy drunks again? There're a few shameless habitual jaywalkers I know, I could give you the location they commit all their crimes in and you could have yourselves a stakeout. I'll even provide the late night coffee and donuts."

"Ha! Those may have been the things my Pa dealt with every day when he was a sheriff but my day to day is a little more chaotic. Me and my partner had barely even started our patrol when a call came in regarding a robbery at a gas station."

"A robbery? Were you able to stop it?"

She shakes her head with a disappointed look.

"Nope, they made off with the cash just after we arrived. However..." She raises an eyebrow. "...apparently the suspects getaway driver heard our sirens in the distance and made off before he could hitch a ride, meaning he tried to get away on foot." She says, a sly grin creeping onto her muzzle.

"No freaking way, you got into a foot chase?"

"That's right!" She responds with a happy yip. "I was able to pick up the scent of the perp and follow his trail through a few back alleys and over a couple fences."

"I bet you made it look easy babe, ever since the academy I've noticed a definite improvement in your fitness." I nearly take a bite of hotdog before remembering to add an important qualifier. "Not that you've ever been in bad shape or anything."

"I know." She replies coyly. "Anyway, I managed to catch up to the perp while he was still on the run. Wanna guess his species?"

"Hmmm, I'm thinking something fast, like a leopard."

"Nope!"

"Okay, a wolf maybe?"

"Wrong. You get one more try."

"Okay then...uhhh...maybe...like...a deer? They're pretty fast."

"Wrong again! It was a human! He was taller than you though, and skinnier. I have to admit I was just as surprised as you are, never thought a human could run fast enough to give me such a good chase. He still lost though."

"Probably because we're endurance hunters or something." I mumble under my breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing! Please, continue."

She clears her throat before continuing.

"So, I close the distance and tackle him on a sidewalk. Then the little shit pulled a switchblade out of his pocket and tried to slice me with it, however," She delivers her line a flair of pride. "coyotes have a well-earned reputation for being quick and agile, so before he could even process what was happening I had already dodged the blade and had my tazer aimed at his, uhh, pelvic area. When he continued resisting I fired the tazer, it hit true, and I don't think he'll be able to feel anything below the belt for the next several days. When Murph managed to catch up to me he got polite real quick. Even started calling us ma'am, heh."

"You got a weapon pulled on you?! You could have died! And who the heck is Murph?"

She puts her hands up in an attempt to calm me down.

"It's not as bad as it sounds Leo, our vests are stab proof and I was only a radio call away from the hospital. And Murph's my new partner. Been on the force a few years longer than I have so she's been acting as a kind of mentor. She's a big bad Lioness, could probably take down a half ton rhino jumped up on bath salts if she had to. We make a good pair, she's got the brawn while I'm the more nimble of the two."

"That's still an incredibly dangerous situation Amber." I respond, shaking my head. "But it's good that you're at least paired up with someone who can teach you, someone to hopefully discourage you from going solo on foot chases with armed assailants again. It would make me uneasy if you had to go out there all alone."

She rolls her eyes.

"Come on, don't worry about me Leo, I'm in good hands out there. With Murph watching my back the chances of anything happening to me are slim to none. And in case you're wondering, yes, she chewed me out for trying to take him down alone."

"Okay, well, how's your training with the bomb squad going?"

"Good! Just a couple more weeks and I'll be a fully certified member! Then I get a nice pay raise and become available for special assignments. But enough about my boring old job, have any of my flowers bloomed yet?" She asks, stuffing the last bite of hotdog into her mouth.

"I haven't checked."

"I'll see if any of our beauties have decided to say hello then."

Amber gets up and saunters over to the bed containing her collection of flowers. She leans down, eyes scanning for signs of color. In a sudden movement she stands back up and looks to me.

"Leo! Come check this out!"

"We got bloomage?"

"Ya, but, just, come over here dang it!"

Complying I stand up and make my way over. She points downward and I follow her finger to a single black flower surrounded by a collection of similarly shaped white and gray ones. Black? I don't remember her buying any flowers that are-oh.

"This means we get a wish!" She happily says, leaning down to pluck the flower from its stem. She cups it in her hands as if it were the most precious thing in the world. I can't help but chuckle and cross my arms.

"Okay Amber, what do you want to wish for?"

She brings it closer to her chest, eyes tracing the ground.

"Uhh, I don't know, you want to make the wish?"

She brings her gaze back up to me and I take a step back.

"Whoa now, you're the one that did all the hard work helping it grow, it's only right that you get to be the one to make the wish."

She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes, bringing the dark flower close to her chest. After a few seconds of silence they reopen.

"Okay, my wish is made. Now if I remember right the guy I bought it from says you have to burn it for the wish to be granted."

I motion towards the grill.

"Well we have a fire going right over there."

She walks towards the grill and I follow behind. Hesitantly she drops the black morenia onto the grill, flames licking up between the metal bars. Then...nothing. For a plant it seems oddly fire resistant. Somewhat annoyed my brand new grill can't seem to roast a freaking flower I grab a bottle of lighter fluid and squirt some onto the charcoal underneath the flower. The flames rise higher with a ferocious intensity and with a loud pop the dark morenia disintegrates into ash.

"Huh, that was weird." I say. I turn my head to look at Amber only to see she's not there. I turn it further to find her cowering behind me. "Come on Amber, the big tough coyote cop needs to use her squishy husband as a meat shield?!"

She gives an embarrassed smile and returns beside me.

"Sorry, that popping sound spooked me a bit."

"Uh huh, so what did you wish for? A million bucks? Lifetime pass to Disney world? A way to finally get rid of that pesky road runner?"

"No-no-no!" She says with a laugh. "If you tell someone what your wish is then it won't get granted! Didn't your parents ever tell you that?"

"Guess not. So, how about some more hotdogs?"

She claps her hands together.

"You read my mind!"

I make her a quick dog and hand it to her. She immediately take a gargantuan bite and starts walking towards the chairs.

"Amber..." I say, a tinge of disappointment in my voice. She stops looks back to me.

"What?"

I put a finger up to my lip and she groans in annoyance, bringing the collar of her shirt up to her muzzle. Before she has a chance to wipe away the stain I immediately move my finger to the other side of my mouth. She tries to wipe away the other stain but I stop her with a hand.

"Actually, Amber..."

I bring an open hand up in front of my face and make a wiping motion. She breaks into a chuckle and nearly drops her hotdog.

"Oh come on! I'm not that messy of an eater!"

It's Always the One You Don't See

A rustling somewhere in the bedroom rouses me from a deep slumber. My eyes open and the room is pitch black, must be early in the morning. Very early. The rustling continues and I lean up.

"Amber?" I sleepily slur.

The sound stops.

"Dang it, sorry Leo. I was trying not to wake you up." Replies a familiar voice.

"What's going on? Isn't it a little too early for you to go in to work?"

"Yes, it is." Is that a gun being holstered I hear? "Got a phone call a few minutes ago, apparently there's some kind of situation going down by the courthouse, they called the bomb squad in so I have to get there asap."

I turn on a bedside lamp and see Amber kitted out in her tactical vest. She puts on a weighty backpack and grabs a duffel bag from a closet. Must be something serious if she has to take all this equipment with her. She looks down checking has everything then moves towards the door.

"I'll call you when I get off duty. Bye!"

She moves towards the door and even in a sleepy daze I recognize something is missing.

"No, wait, come here." I motion for her to come closer and complies.

"What?"

I rub the sleep out of my eyes and look up to her.

"I love you."

She smiles.

"I love you too."

We share a quick kiss then she rushes out the door. I lean back onto the bed as I hear the car outside being started and driven off. My eyes close yet my body fails to slip back into slumber. If anything I feel more awake with each passing second. Guess today will have an early start, at least it's a weekend.

After making myself a quick breakfast the first rays of the morning sun make themselves known, filling the house with a dull blue light. I sit down on the couch and switch on the TV. A news reporter rambles on about the stock market, some corporate scandal, a few random and unnoteworthy pieces of information. It switches to a different reporter who announces a major piece of breaking news. Before she even has a chance to speak I switch it to a different channel.

I already know there's some kind of 'thing' going down at the courthouse of a major city. I already know the whole area's been sectioned off with yellow police tape. I already know there's a bomb squad, and armored trucks, and helicopters, and cops surrounding the perimeter of whatever the 'thing' is. I don't need some reporter telling me that. And if there is some, accident, I definitely don't want my first source of information to be coming from some doom and gloom media shill. I switch to a streaming service and pick something to binge watch. An hour later I check my phone. No new messages and a full battery. I make sure the sound is turned on, if she does call me I don't want to accidentally miss it. After placing it on the armrest next to me I press play on episode one.

It's five in the afternoon. After eating a quick dinner I check my phone again. No new messages, no missed calls, no emails or voicemails. Nothing to indicate anything is wrong, nothing to indicate she's doing well either. I put the phone down with a sigh. I wish she would just contact me by now, even a quick text would do wonders to blunt my creeping anxiety. But this is fine, it's normal for her to be out of contact for a while and with whatever's going on she's probably incredibly busy right now. Nothing to worry about. But still, it would make me feel better to at least do something to try and reach out to her. I navigate to her contact and send a quick message.

[Hey babe, you doing alright? Need me to bring over some coffee?]

The clock reads 10pm. No response from the text. My finger is right above the green button to call Ambers number. I just want to check if she's okay. But I don't want to distract her, she's probably still very busy, or fatigued. After some mental deliberation my finger touches the screen and I place it up to my ear.

*RING-*

"Hello! You've reached Ambers voicemail, sorry I wasn't around to pick up, if it's something important please leave a message after the beep and I'll contact you as soon as I can."

*BEEP*

"Hey babe, it's me. Just give me a call or shoot me a text when you can okay? Love you, bye."

I hang up. Right to voicemail, that's not good. But her phone is probably just out of battery. She never was good at keeping it topped off. Ya that's it, she just forgot to charge it.

It wasn't until 2am that I decided to try and get some sleep, some lingering hope of Amber soon responding to my messages keeping me up. I sent her a couple more texts, hopefully in the morning she'll get her phone charged and reply back. If not, then I'll drive down there and try to find her. I know a few of her fellow officers, surely I'll see one of them down there and they'll know where she is. After a quick shower I stumble into the bedroom and lay down on the mattress. The mattress felt odd with no weight on the other side of it. Not for long though, we'll be reunited tomorrow. I turn off the lamp, and drift off.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

The sudden sound almost causes me to spill my orange juice. Didn't get much sleep last night and with Amber being gone I must be a little on edge. Whatever, all that's left to do is eat my breakfast as quick as possible then drive down to the courthouse. But who the hell could be knocking on my door at 8am?

I walk to the door and open it. Two dark police uniforms. A buff Lioness is on the left, her nametag reads 'Murphy'. Ambers partner, I've only talked to her a few times in the past. The officer on the right is a gray rat with a pudgy belly. I remember seeing him at Ambers graduation ceremony, the chief of police. An awkward silence fills the air, the two cops seemingly unsure of what to say. I decide to break the silence.

"Murph, Chief, what brings you here?"

Internally I'm screaming. We all know it's a rhetorical question. There's only one reason for the two of them showing up unannounced. Something happened to Amber. The rat takes off his cap then so does Murph.

"Have you been watching the news lately, Leo?" Asks the Chief.

"No. Haven't felt like it." I curtly respond.

He takes a step closer.

"I think this would be better if we all sat down. May we come inside?"

My heart races but I try to restrain any sense of panic.

"Of course, come in."

I step to the side and they enter the house. They're led to the kitchen table and we all take seats.

"I'm guessing this is about Amber. Is she okay? Can I see her?" I ask. I try to look at Murph but she breaks eye contact so instead I stare at the chief. "Is she okay?"

He clears his throat before responding in a professional, and emotionless, tone.

"Leo, yesterday your wife was involved in an incident involving a suspected bomb threat at the Columbus City courthouse. A suspicious backpack was reported laying next to a mailbox in front of the courthouse entrance. After consulting the utility department we discovered that this suspicious object was sitting right on top of a natural gas line. At the time, we suspected that it was an act of malice towards the local justice department that had the potential to turn into a widespread catastrophe. Due to time constraints, and the risks involved, we decided to send a unit of the bomb squad in to assess, and potentially defuse, the suspected explosive device within the backpack. Your wife volunteered and she was sent in. However..." The rat adjusts in his seat and narrows his gaze. "...while she was assessing the object next to the mailbox an explosive detonated. At first we thought that it came from the original device that was reported, however we later learned that the explosion came from the mailbox itself. The backpack was a decoy. Thankfully it wasn't powerful enough to rupture the gas lines underneath the courthouse but your wife was caught in the blast. She died instantly."

The rat stops and I stare into his eyes. Murph reaches a paw over and rubs my shoulder. As my brain attempts to take in this horrific information I stare down at table.

"W-what do you mean she died? I just saw her yesterday. Are...are you sure?"

"Leo." The lioness says quietly. "I was there when it happened. Amber was a brave, valiant officer and one of my best friends. She died trying to protect others and for that we'll always remember her. But Leo she's...she's no longer with us."

I rest my forehead on a hand, breathing quickening to the point of hyperventilation.

"No-no-no you must have made a mistake. That can't be right. I mean I just-I just saw her yesterday morning! We were...I just...she can't..." Any further words are caught in my throat as my eyes start to water. We sat at that kitchen table for the next hour. Murph did her best to console me while the Chief divulged further details. At some point I asked them to leave. I don't remember when exactly, but I do remember the crying started not long after.

It was a closed casket funeral. They offered to let me see her body beforehand, but I declined. I wanted my last image of her to be when she was alive, not a collection of lifeless charred bones. I wanted to remember her as the beautiful, energetic, loving, coyote I had spent the last few years of my life with. And the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Guess life had other plans for me. Plans I didn't care for.

It's Better to be Late than to Never Show Up at All

"Goddamnit...fucking things...shit." I angrily mutter under my breath.

I stare in horror at the state of the garden. For weeks I've been trying to keep it alive. Special soil with extra fertilizer, pesticides to keep insects away, I even made a calendar of when each plant needed to be watered. And it was all for nothing. I stare at the many stems slowly turning brown with each passing day. No matter what I do the flowers wilt, the fruits rot, roots become dry and brittle, pests invade and eat the leaves. I can't save this garden anymore than I could have saved-

No, I close my eyes and try to shake the intrusive thought out of my head. I can't keep thinking about her. I can't. It isn't healthy to keep opening those old wounds. Yet every week, every day, every hour, every minute, I keep running back to her. To the day she left. To the meeting with the Chief and Murph. To the happy days spent in the sun. To the times I picked her up from a bad shift at the hospital and ran by her favorite ice cream shop to cheer her up. What was her favorite flavor again? Right, mint chocolate. She couldn't have too much though, the dark chocolate flakes in it would make her stomach upset being a canine and all. Found that out the hard way when she tried to impress me on a date and ended up vomiting 5 whole cones worth of ice cream right into my toilet when we went back to my place. I never did let her live that down.

There are a few wet spots on the soil in front of me, yet not a cloud in the sky. Damnit.

I wipe my eyes and slink back into the house, passing by a slowly rusting grill. Nothing more I can do today, just being around the garden makes me think of her. With the sun sinking below the horizon I decide to get some sleep. Not in the bedroom though. The first few nights after Amber passed I could never get good sleep in it. I later realized it was because I was so used to sharing the bed with her that her not being with me felt wrong, unnatural. So now I sleep on the couch. It's less comfortable, sure, but at least it doesn't smell like her, or still have her fur sprinkled on it.

After laying down and wrapping myself under a blanket I try to drift off. I begin to feel a little hungry, didn't eat dinner, but I find I lack the motivation to go up and get something to eat. Motivation is something that's been in short supply recently. I don't bother to clean the house, or go out with friends, or even watch tv. The small joys in life seemed to have abandoned me. After coming home from work I mostly just sleep, occasionally going to the backyard in an inevitably failed attempt to save the garden. Guess it's because when I'm sleeping I'm not feeling anything. I don't want to feel anything, especially not what I've been feeling since Amber passed.

With a sigh and shift of my body I smush my head against a pillow. I nearly drift off but a bright light and crack of thunder pulls me to lucidity. They're soon followed by a torrent of heavy rain against the windows. Guess it's going to storm tonight. That's going to make it harder to fall asleep, but at least the plants will enjoy some water. That's good. I'll take another look at the garden tomorrow; try to see what I'm doing so wrong. Can't let it die. It's all that's left of her. At some point sleep takes me.

*KNOCK...KNOCK...KNOCK*

The sudden sound jolts me awake. Someone's at the door? It's still dark outside. A quick glance at my watch reveals it's 3 in the morning, far too early for any visitors. A flash of blinding light is accompanied by a booming clap. The storm's still out there, if anything it may have gotten worse since I fell asleep. Maybe...someone's caught outside and needs shelter from the storm? Possible, or it could be some crackhead waiting to stab me and rob the house as soon as I open the door.

*KNOCK......knock............knock*

Whoever it is seems to be losing strength, that last knock was barely audible. I step in front of the door, flip on the porch lights, and against my better judgement, open it.

At first I thought it was someone in a Halloween costume. The canine skull mask, torn to shreds clothing, strange glowing eyes. It all fit the bill. Then I noticed just how realistic the mask was, too thin for a real muzzle within it. And the odd uniform it was wearing, one side was far more tattered than the other and parts of it seemed to almost be charred. Then I looked into those eyes. Two white glowing orbs sunk into the eye sockets of the skull. Too far into the skull. Because it was a skull. And that wasn't a costume.

My body is paralyzed in shock as I take in more strange details. That uniform had the frayed remnants of a tactical vest hanging off of it. Beneath the rips in the cloth were either bony ribs or an impenetrable blackness. The creature only had one boot on the side of that wasn't quite as damaged as the other. Clumps of moist dirt hung off its body. Two hands composed only of bone hung limply by its sides. The occasional tuft of burnt fur stuck to its tattered uniform. My eyes drift down from its thin bony neck to its chest. There, just barely visible on the left breast and half disintegrated, is a nametag. With my last name. Ambers last name.

This must be a dream. Things like this don't exist. What I'm looking at can't be real. She can't be real. She's gone. I squint my eyes and blink as if it may wake me up yet when they open the creature is still standing there, looking at me with those two white orbs. It tries to take a step forward but seems barely in control of its feet, tripping on our welcome mat and falling forward. Reflexively I reach out to catch it. When it falls into my arms it feels...light. Very light. This can't be a person, just bones. Its skull rests my chest for a moment and in shock I'm still not sure what exactly I should do. So the two of us just stand there for a moment, the limp creature weakly gripping my shoulders, my arms holding it up under its armpits.

"Thanks...Leo." It says. She says. Amber says. That's Ambers voice, just as I remember it.

Suddenly it all clicks together. Somehow, someway, what I'm holding in my arms is Amber. My beloved coyote. I raise her up and hug her bony frame, ribs slightly flexing from my grip. At the same time I feel a few smooth fingers wrap around my own back and weakly try to return my affection. As we embrace a comforted sigh escapes her muzzle.

"Amber...it's...it's you. You're back." I say across her shoulder, my voice nearly cracking.

"Back? From where?" She replies.

Confused, I exit the hug and back away from her slightly.

"You don't remember? You were in an accident. I thought you were gone forever."

She looks at the ground and gives an airy sigh.

"What accident? I remember...leaving the house...then I was out by the sidewalk in the storm. I don't remember anything in between." She cocks her head and looks down at her body. "And why do I feel so...strange? So numb."

"You, uhh, you're injured." I hastily answer.

"Injured? Was I shot? My vest is pretty torn up for a bullet wound."

"No, well, let's go to the bathroom so you can see what I mean."

I reach a hand out and she takes it, allowing me to lead her to the bathroom.

"Why the hell is this place such a mess? How long was I gone?" She asks, skull swiveling around as she takes in the poor state of the house.

"I'll explain everything, don't worry." I reply as calmly as I can, rushing her forward. Eventually we reach the dark bathroom. I flip on the lights and she follows me inside. We both look at her reflection in the mirror. In the light I now realize just how gaunt her frame is, uniform hanging loosely off her shoulders and ribs. Stupefied, her jaws slowly lowers and she reaches a hand up to her cheek. She then inspects the hand, twisting it in the light.

"Amber, baby, I'm not sure what happened but-"

"AHHHHH!" She screams, my ears ringing. "WHAT THE FUCK AM I?" She yells into the mirror. "Oh my god! What the fuck! What. The. Fuck."

I put a hand on her shoulder.

"Amber, please, I know this is frightening but at least you're here, alive, in some sense of the word. You're not gone like I thought you were."

"What are you talking about?!" She shouts. "I walk out the door and wake up as a coyote skeleton?! Where's my fur? My ears? My whole fucking face!"

"Amber please just listen to me!" I loudly implore. "After you walked out that door you died. You tried to defuse a bomb by the courthouse and you fucking died. It wasn't your fault, you did nothing wrong, but you lost your life that day. You had a funeral. I gave a speech. I saw your casket lowered into the ground. After that I couldn't recover. You were my everything, I thought about you every day and night wishing you would come back to me. And here you are, talking, moving, just like before that day at the courthouse."

She shakes her head confusedly.

"I...don't understand. If I died then how am I still here? I've got no skin, or muscles, or guts, nothing to keep me alive."

"I don't know either baby, I just heard you knocking on the door and went to answer it. And there you were. You just showed up out of the blue."

She backs into a corner of the bathroom and slinks down, staring at the ground. I softly step beside her and match her position.

"Amber?"

She looks up to me with those two glowing eyes.

"What?"

"I don't know how, but I'll find a way to make you better again. I promise I will. You're just bones in a ragged uniform right now but I'll do whatever it takes to make you happy. I promise."

She looks back down to the ground.

"Leo, I still don't understand any of this."

"Neither do I baby, neither do I. But we'll find a way through this. Whatever it takes. After all...you're back." I state with a cautious smile.

I lean over and wrap my arms around her chest, this time a softer hug than when I saw her at the door. The tears started flowing and I made no attempt to stop them. After all, they were tears born of happiness. She returns my embrace with a couple bony hands and places her muzzle across my shoulder.

"I'm back." She whispers.

Chasing Threads

Amber and I sit side by side at the kitchen table as the first rays of sunlight spill into the room. In front of us are a newspaper and a labtop. At her insistence I've been showing her every news article, video, and police report regarding her death. She scans every frame, interrogates every word, and pores over her own obituary. I guessed that she's still in disbelief that she had died, not like I could blame her. A news video of the incident finally reaches its explosive end and she closes the tab, then shuts the lid. She stares at the table for a few moments before speaking.

"So, I really did die."

"Yes. You did."

She slowly nods her head and turns to me.

"But clearly I'm not entirely dead. I've still got my bones and, uhh..." She reaches a hand into her chest cavity and searches around for something before pulling her empty hand out. "...not much else apparently. There's nothing in there."

I put a hand on her shoulder.

"You'll...get better. Somehow. But do you have any idea why you're back?"

She looks back towards the table as she racks her memory.

"I don't remember anything around when I died, not until I showed back up at the front door. If this is some sort of divine intervention nobody every bothered to tell me. I don't remember making any pacts with the devil or praying for eternal life recently. No medical experiments either, they made me get some injections when I joined the force but I highly doubt 'becoming an undead coyote skeleton' was one of their side effects."

"I can't think of anything either." I admit.

She puts a finger to her jawbone.

"Well...there is one thing. It was probably nothing, but do you remember that silly story about the black morenia? About the wish?"

"Ya, I let you make the wish and throw it on the grill to burn it. What was your wish?"

She chuckles shyly before responding.

"I don't remember the exact words. And it was after all that talk about my job, about the chase with the knife wielding suspect. I ended up wishing that we would never be separated because of an untimely death so that we would both grow old together."

I cross my arms.

"I don't think your wish was granted. All the evidence I've been giving you is proof that you did in fact die an untimely death."

"Not...exactly. I did die, but I'm alive now, in an incomplete sort of way. We might still be able to grow old together assuming I can keep my skeleton from falling apart."

"I guess." I reply with a dissatisfied huff. "So, assuming that the wish really is what brought you back where does that leave us? How do we get your flesh and blood back?"

"I have a vague lead. That guy that sold me those morenias at the farmers market? He was pretty strange, harmless, but strange. I got the feeling that he was holding something back when we were talking. He's the only one I know of that could get us some help."

"Jesus Amber, that was a year ago. How do we even know he's still going to be there? Or if he's even alive?"

She shrugs.

"We'll just have to hope. If he is there then ask him about the flowers, about, I don't know, if he knows anything about the occult. Whatever the hell we're dealing with won't be helped by modern science or a visit to the doctor. We're talking about bringing people back from the dead here."

"Okay, the market opens back up in a few days. I'll head down there and see what I can find. Any other-"

*RING RING RING*

I grab my phone and accept the call.

"Hello?"

"Is this Leo?"

"Yes it is."

"Hi, I'm the grave keeper here at Sunnyside Cemetery. Last night there was a uhhh, incident, with your wife's grave. Please come down at the earliest convenience."

"I'll head down there. Thanks."

"What was that?"

"Apparently_something_ happened to your grave last night."

"I have a feeling that something looks a whole lot like a graverobbing, and I have the strangest feeling the graverobber is in this very room. But can you really call it a graverobbing when the body belonged to you in the first place?"

"Not sure, I think it would technically be a gravereposession." I respond and head out the door.

It was as if something in her coffin dug itself out. A great big hole in the ground right in front of her gravestone. The poor grave keeper was overly apologetic, I did my best to appear just as perplexed as he was and gave him a vague suggestion to improve security. A police report was filed, though I knew nothing would come of it. It would probably just be blamed on high school kids looking for some taboo fun or some creep wanting to play with bones. Whatever, her grave held no significance anymore.

A few days later I'm sitting at the kitchen table again with Amber. The farmers market opens in 30 minutes, almost time to head out.

"You seriously can't think of anything else? Nothing that could explain why you're suddenly back besides some wish granting flowers?"

"Well do you have any better ideas? It's all I've got!" Amber responds with a bony pointed finger.

"Well...uhhh..." I look down to my coffee. "...no." Is my meek response.

The kitchen falls into an awkward silence and I look back up to Amber. You know, she looks a lot better than when she first came through the front door. I had to end up cutting most of her uniform off, parts of it had melted and fused to her skeleton. With a few warm showers and generous scrubbing her bones were now a dull white color. She still wore her old off duty uniform out of habit, one of my old shirts and short shorts. Though still cute, some part of me still missed being able to gaze at her toned legs. Tibias just aren't the same thing.

I take a long sip to finish off my coffee.

"I'm off to search for the weirdo that sold you those morenias. Where was he again?"

"He had a table near the end of one of the aisles. Right in between a stand selling watermelons and one selling healing crystals. Older human with a leather jacket."

"Healing crystals...okay. Was he selling anything else besides flowers?"

"He had a few books there I think, and uhh, I don't remember much else. It's all kind of fuzzy at this point."

I stand up and don a light jacket, with fall approaching mornings were becoming nippy.

"Okay, I'm off. Anything you want me to pick up while I'm there?"

"Maybe, I don't know, some of those healing crystals? They're worth a try."

"Healing crystals it is then. See ya soon, bye!"

We wave to each other and I step out the door into the chilly morning air. After parking I get out and immediately start my search for a strange leather clad man selling morenias flanked by some hippies and watermelon salesmen. After scouring the entire market I come upon an unfortunate sight. One stall selling crystals, one stall selling watermelons, and an empty table in between the two. I step closer and look around. Absolutely nothing around the table besides an empty metal chair behind it, whoever was here has clearly left. Shit. Well, might as well get some of those heali-

A heavy hand suddenly pats me on the shoulder from behind causing me to flinch.

"Looking for something stranger?" Asks a wiry older man with a worn leather jacket. His slicked back hair is gray and thinning.

"I, uhh, do you know who was at this table? I'm looking for someone."

"Of course I know him. He's me! Ha ha!" The man happily responds.

He enthusiastically brings his hand out for a handshake and I return it.

"I just packed up my wares but I'm willing to do some last minute sales if you need something specific." He says, walking around the table and sitting in the lone chair.

"Oh, I'm not here to buy anything. I just need some information."

He leans forward.

"I sell that too. What do you need to know? And please, don't say that you need to know the next set of lottery numbers. I don't do that anymore after the last guy bought a couple first class tickets on a cruise. Ended up hitting an iceberg and sinking, absolute tragedy."

"No, you see, my wife bought some flowers from you about a year ago and uhhh..." I trail off and scratch my head. How the hell was I going to word this?

"I remember her! The coyote gal?"

"Yes! That's her!"

"Ahhh, did she end getting a black morenia?"

"Yes, one bloomed just a few months ago."

He raises an eyebrow.

"And the wish?"

"She made one, then we burnt the flower."

"And I'm guessing that now you need my help due to some...unforeseen consequences."

Jesus, how much did this actually know? I shake my head in an affirmative.

"Yes, do you know of anything to help us out? Anything at all? Please, I'll pay you whatever you want."

"Well..." He looks to the left and right, then motions for me to lean in closer. I comply and eagerly await his response. "...I heard...that...the stall next to me peddles some real mean healing crystals. Maybe they could help your wife out."

I stare at him for a few moments, my heart sinking. Then he bursts out in laughter, slapping his knee.

"Did you think I was serious? Ha! I think what you need is this."

He reaches under the table and brings out a large leather-bound book. It hits the table with a loud thud. Where the hell did the book come from?

"Ya see, this here tome has all manner of occult rituals, spells, and incantations. It's got tips for making thralls, best ways for banishing undead rats, and it's even got a killer recipe for spiced wine made with werewolf blood. Actually you may want to hold off on that last one, werewolf blood is really something of an acquired taste."

"Does it have ways for bringing someone back from the dead? Even someone who's just bones? But like, living bones? That can move?"

He leans back in his chair.

"That's...an oddly specific question, but my gut says the method is somewhere in here."

"I'll take it! How much do you want?"

I get my wallet out and open it. He just leans back further in the chair and looks at me with a curious eye.

"I'll let you rent it. No buying it though, the tome belongs to me."

"Fine, how much to rent it?"

"...ten bucks. No less." He firmly replies.

Ten bucks? Was this guy crazy? I would have given him my entire savings and agreed to work as his personal assistant for a chance at using the book to help Amber.

"And how long does ten bucks let me have it?"

"As long as it takes until whatever you need it for is dealt with. No longer than that though. The late fee is...harsh."

Something about the look on his face tells me he isn't lying.

"Deal!" I quickly grab a ten dollar bill out of my wallet and present it to him.

"Pleasure doing business with you. Just remember about the late fee."

He snatches the bill and places it into a pocket within his jacket. He slides the book closer to me and I look down to retrieve it. Yet when I grab the book and look up the strange man is gone. Odd, but with the events of the last few days I'm somehow numbed to it. With the key to Ambers salvation in my arms I rush back to the car and drive back home with a smile plastered onto my face. I have a feeling there's going to be quite a bit of late night reading in my future. But it'll be worth it, I know it will be.

Flickering Flame

When I got home we began poring over the tome, studying every page and illustration. The first thing we noticed was that absolutely nothing was in English, the whole thing appeared to be written in some esoteric version of ancient Latin, not that it slowed us down. With the internet at our fingertips we began studiously translating word after word, sentence after sentence, paragraph after paragraph, page after page. The work was slow, but after a few weeks me and her had a good rhythm down. I decided to quit my job to devote more time to translating the text, I wanted to do everything in my power to help her.

Amber, bless her heart, went outside most nights to care for the garden and water the plants. During these late night ventures she always wore a dark billowy dress to hide her skeletal frame and blend into the darkness. Despite being a member of the undead she still had a knack for helping the living, within a month the garden was once again flourishing under her careful watch. Not that I had much time to spend outside enjoying it with how many of my waking hours were spent indoors going over the tome. It became a weekly occurrence for us to translate a ritual or incantation that might, possibly, potentially restore life to Ambers body only for it to either do nothing or fail in spectacular fashion. Just last week I accidentally set fire to the basement. The fire was green, smelled of lavender, and attempted to seduce me. Amber was quick with a bucket of water. We've become used to such occurrences at this point.

Over time we transformed the basement from a dusty storage area to an occultists dream. Shelves lined with all manner of rare ingredients and specimens. Strange shapes of ritualistic significance already marked out in chalk on the ground. Bags of salt for protection from hostile spirits. Enough candles to last us several centuries. A large oaken pedestal to read incantations from. We were conducting one such ritual this evening.

"Okay, you ready Amber?" I ask, lighting the last of at least a dozen flickering candles arranged around the room.

"Yep." She responds, laying on her knees in the middle of a pentagram drawn in chalk.

"You got the frog and the hammer?"

She holds up a croaking green amphibian in one hand and a hammer in the other.

"Excellent! Just stay there and I'll begin the incantation. Remember that when you see red smoke and smell copper to lay the frog on the ground and smash it with the hammer."

"You know I can't smell anything Leo, and I don't want to kill the frog." She states, absentmindedly rubbing its back.

"Alright so just tell me when you see red smoke. And you just...you gotta kill the frog Amber. The tome made it very clear. We need an animal sacrifice and the frog counts for this one."

"Fine, but you forgot the ring." She flatly reminds me.

I search my pockets for a shiny silver ring, the text warned of great consequences should the one conducting this particular ritual not have a ring of silver on their body. Why? Who the hell knows, I just follow the directions. I put the ring on a finger and flip the tome to the correct page.

"Okay, here we go, let's hope this one works." I clear my throat and raise my hands while reading from the page. "Ranae argenteae et rubicundae fumi solent reducere uxorem tuam a mortuo viro meo!"

I look on as the pentagram surrounding Amber begins to glow a dull red. It's working! I continue.

"Vel fortasse hoc satis! bene futurum videtur!" I shout.

And...nothing. The glowing red lines around Amber appear to slowly fade away.

"Amber! You smell copper? See any smoke?"

"No." She says with a deflated sigh.

"I'll read the next passage. Canis os canis mitte! Mihi os canis!"

I look on and...nothing. Amber leans forward and releases the frog. It ribbits and happily jumps away. It gets to live on, for now. I angrily close the book and grip the pedestal.

"Well shit. We almost had something going on there with that one." I look over to Amber still slumped on the floor. "We'll try a new one in a couple days. You said you had another page translated right? Which one was it?"

"Five hundred and forty one. We'll need another bull tongue and some more salt peter to perform it." She glumly replies.

"Okay, I'll run to the store tomorrow and get them."

I close the tome and walk towards the stairs, but when I reach them I notice Amber is still on the floor, slumped down and staring at the ground.

"You coming up Amber?"

She looks up to me.

"Can you...come here for a second?"

Concerned, I move away from the stairs and sit down next to Amber.

"What's up?"

"Leo, I haven't been feeling well lately."

"Not feeling well? Like you're sick? Not sure how that's possible considering you're nothing but bones."

She shakes her head.

"No, not like that. I've been feeling kind of...disconnected. Like I'm just watching everything happen while on autopilot. I never truly feel in the moment anymore. As if I'm just...not really supposed to be here."

"I don't understand."

She reaches a bony hand out and strokes my cheek.

"Leo, I love you, but I can't feel your warmth when I touch your cheek or when we lay together in bed. I can't smell, or feel, or taste. I feel totally numb. It's infuriating, having all these memories of us happy together yet I'm utterly unable to relive any of them. Hell, I can't even eat anything Leo, you have any idea how strange it is to feel thirst and hunger for your entire life then for those desires to suddenly disappear? I can't even drink the tea I make or get drunk!"

"This will all be fixed when we find the right ritual. It's just going to take time."

"That's the thing! With each passing day the numbness grows more intense! I feel utterly out of it, a bystander in my own life. I fear that if this continues I may lose my sanity entirely and have whatever life is left in me fade into nothing. There's some kind of physical decay too. It's subtle, but the invisible connection between my bones grows weaker day by day, and the light in my eyes dims. Haven't you noticed?"

She looks into my eyes. Yes, I have noticed. I tried not to think about it, after all, surely her salvation is right around the corner.

"Yes, I've noticed the dim of your eyes. But you'll get better!"

"No, no Leo. What I'm getting at is that maybe...maybe I'm supposed to be dead. I clearly can't walk among the living and with each day my connection to this bony frame grows weaker, like my soul slowly being siphoned away to somewhere else. Maybe this whole thing was meant to be temporary, maybe the morenias could only grant a portion of my wish." She looks to the ground. "Maybe I'm supposed to be dead."

I quickly grab her jaw and turn her head towards me.

"No-no-no! Don't say that Amber! Don't you ever say that! You're alive damnit! What kind of cruel god would bring you back only to put you right back in the ground? You're meant to be with me, all the way into old age just like what you wished for. We just have to stay strong, keep trying every ritual and spell in that dusty old tome until we find something that works! It will happen! I know it!"

She quickly straightens her back and wraps herself around my chest. I return her embrace and bring her close.

"I hope you're right but our time is limited Leo. When the lights in my eyes flicker out I fear it will be the end of my time with you. I don't want to leave you, but I don't have any choice in the matter." She whispers.

My mouth opens, but words fail me. As much as I hate it, what she says is right.

Fatal Substitution

With time running out I doubled down on my efforts to translate the text for the next several weeks. Countless hours spent poring over esoteric terms and vague instructions. I read and read and read until the words blended together and became amorphous blobs filling my vision. I started missing meals. It didn't bother me, my hunger can wait to be sated until after I've found the secret to restoring Ambers body. My sleep schedule could best be described as erratic. Most days were now filled with intense studying until I passed out then awoke several hours later only to begin where I left off. Amber would drop by to give me food but I rarely stopped my work to eat. Translating the tome was too important, I couldn't let Amber down, not when we were so close making her whole again.

There's a soft knock at my door and a muffled voice.

"Leo? I made you breakfast."

Breakfast? It shouldn't be a minute past noon. I glance at my watch. Eight in the morning. My sense of time has never been great, but it's been especially inaccurate as of late.

"Come in."

The door swings open and Amber steps inside. The glowing orbs in her eye sockets have become significantly dimmer than when she first showed up at the house, barely brighter than a dying candle now. She's getting weaker too, she has to hold the plate of food with both hands and even then it appears to be a struggle. She slightly stumbles in her weakened state and I get out of my chair to meet her halfway.

"Thanks." She says as I take the plate out of her hands. "Made much progress lately?"

"Oh yeah, lots. I think I've finally discovered the final ritual to make you better once and for all." I reply reassuringly.

"Good. Because I don't think I have much time left Leo."

"...I know. But this final ritual shows great promise! We have nearly all of the supplies needed for its execution and from what I've read it will treat the root of your issue rather than the symptoms." I reveal with bright enthusiasm.

She cocks her head, curious. I continue.

"The weakness, the strange feelings of numbness, the feelings of being out of place, they're all the result of your soul not fully being within this plane of existence. You're caught somewhere between the afterlife and the mortal world. Your soul is slowly returning to the afterlife with each passing day. That's why your body is fading and your feelings becoming blank. The unfortunate thing is that so far everything we've tried to either arrest your souls return or reclaim it from the afterlife has failed. Failed miserably. But, I have found a way to split a soul. To give a portion of one full soul to another thus binding them to the mortal realm once more. This even has the benefit of rejuvenating the body of the one receiving it so you should get your blood and guts back!"

"So you're going to...give me part of your soul? That sounds risky. What if it fails? What if something gets screwed up and you end up transferring the entirety of your soul to me? Will you die? Will you fade away into nothing like I am?"

I put a hand on her bony shoulder and stare her in the eyes.

"I don't know. But it's our best shot at making you better. We should at least try. I don't think I could live with myself if I knew I didn't try absolutely everything within my power to make you better."

Her shoulders slump with a tired sigh.

"Okay, but what else do we need to complete it?"

I remove my hand from her shoulder. She wasn't going to like this considering how reluctant she was about killing the frog.

"It's a uhhh, blood ritual. We need a source of fresh blood for the sacrifice to work."

She crosses her arms and asks the obvious question.

"Blood from what?"

"The text gives a few worthy sources. A horned beast such as a goat or bull counts, as does the blood from a human sacrifice. The only issue is the amount needed would surely kill the one giving it. And again, it needs to be fresh to work so we can't just go buy goat blood from a butcher and expect the ritual to work."

"Well we sure as hell aren't going to bring a bull into our neighborhood without a horse trailer and truck, so you're going to do what? Buy a goat and kill it? Does anywhere around here even sell goats? And would they ever sell us one considering we have absolutely no logical reason to need one? Or a place to even keep it?"

"I know a farm a few hours from here that raises goats. I plan on driving down there and...taking one."

She gasps.

"You're going to steal a goat just to kill it? Some of these rituals have been ethically dubious but that's just outright committing a crime."

"I know!" I shout. "But we're running out of time. The light in your eyes has almost faded to nothing and we're out of options. I'll do anything for you Amber, anything. Even if it means committing a crime to help you. I can't let you slip past my fingers so easily. I won't."

She sighs, a resigned tone in her voice.

"I guess there's not much I can do to stop you. When are you leaving?"

"Tonight. The instructions for the ritual have all been translated. All we need now is that goat."

When night fell I put on a jacket and gathered some rope. The drive to the farm was a quiet one, the lonely country roads illuminated by my headlights. Eventually I came upon the field I was looking for and got out. Thankfully the moon was full and I was able to see the rough outline of a lone goat aimlessly wandering the fields. I knew it would be wary of my presence and offered a bribe of a few carrots to come closer. As soon as it came close enough to bite the offering I jumped on top of it and slammed it into the ground, it's legs furiously kicking in attempt to defend itself. With some muttered curses, and a few new bruises, I managed to tie its legs together with the rope and drag its still struggling form into my trunk. The drive back didn't feel any less lonely despite the bleating coming from the rear.

After arriving back at the house I was in a rush to get things ready for what should be the final ritual we would ever have to perform. I drew a new pentagram on the floor with fresh chalk, picked a couple different flowers from Ambers garden and sprinkled the mixture around its chalky lines. Thirteen candles were lit and placed in very specific places around the room. I dragged the goat to the basement and laid it on the ground. With its feisty demeanor no way I was untying it until it was nearly time.

I had to help Amber down the stairs, her movement growing weaker with each step. We didn't have much time left. But it didn't matter I told myself, by the end of today she would be complete again. I set Amber down in the center of the Pentagram and untied the goat.

"You ready Amber?

"Ya..." She says with a weak shake of the head.

"Good, okay, here we go."

I grab the goat by the fur and manhandle it in front of the pentagram, a freshly sharpened steak knife held by its throat. With the tome placed on the ground I began reading the incantation.

"Ne interficias hominem hircum quid faciam tibi! Et nunc ad magnum officium mortuis!"

This is the part where the blood sacrifice comes into play, I bring the knife up against goats neck and well, start cutting. It resists at first, but with an arm around its neck I quickly sever its vital arteries and blood starts pouring onto the floor. When the goat had stopped struggling I tossed its limp body away and stared at the ground. The blood was moving, but not following the path that gravity would imply. The liquid moved around the ring of flowers surrounding the pentagram and formed an odd sort of perimeter around it. At the same time an unearthly glow comes from somewhere beneath Amber, it's color alternating between pale green and purple. Ha ha yes! It's working! Time for the next incantation. I look back down to the tome.

"Vos phantasma nunc eruditionis habes in!" I shout with a wild smile.

The blood...begins to boil, red steamy bubbles littering its surface.

"This isn't right." I quietly mutter.

I look back down to the tome and repeat the incantation, this time making sure to pronounce every single syllable clearly.

"Vos phantasma nunc eruditionis habes in!"

The blood continues to boil away eventually disappearing entirely. An indescribable sense of horror rises within me. I've failed. It didn't work. Amber looks up to me.

"Was that supposed to happen?"

"No...I...I need to...I'll see what went wrong." I nervously stammer, quickly picking up the tome and retreating to my office. I enter it and slam the tome down onto my desk. With my breath quickening I stare at the instructions I spent so many hours verifying were correct. I don't understand, it's all perfectly translated, I did everything right yet we barely even got halfway through the ritual before it failed. Now with the goat dead there's no way to try again in a timely manner. I stare at the yellow pages as a wave of terrible emotions drown me.

I've failed Amber. I can't save her. She has maybe a couple hours left and I've fucked up the one chance we had at saving her. The one chance. She was brought back to me and I couldn't even work hard enough to save her from dying again. I can't imagine the pain of having to die once, much less twice like she will. She said she didn't remember anything after leaving for the courthouse. Where did her soul end up after the first death, I wonder. Would they accept her back again? If not, have I singlehandedly doomed her to a fate of eternal suffering? Or something worse?

The page has become stained with tears. I scrape a hand down my face and break into broken sobs, sinking off of my chair and landing on the floor. I remain in that state for at least a couple minutes, until the door to the office slowly opens. I look up to see Amber slowly shuffling towards me, the lights in her eyes almost entirely faded. I look at the floor in shame.

"I'm so, so sorry Amber. I thought it would work, I don't understand what went wrong. But it's too late to try again. And now..."

I try to speak but my words devolve into anguished sobs. She sits down and rests her head on my shoulder.

"At least this time I'll die next to you. Instead of being alone like last time. And Leo, I don't blame you for any of this. If it's my time, it's my time. I know you tried as hard as you could."

"I just don't get it. I made the pentagram exactly as it was shown in the tome. I said the incantation exactly as it was written. I spilled the goats blood exactly when I was supposed to. I got a few cats ears and chrysanthemums from your garden and sprinkled it around the chalk. I did everything right."

"Cats ear? As in the plant?"

"The plant with a yellow flower and long stem, the tome had a description and illustration of it. I saw some in your garden."

She gives a weak chuckle.

"Cats ear is a weed, I don't grow weeds in my garden. They look similar to my dandelions, you must have gotten them mixed up."

"But...are there cats ears around here?"

"Yeah, pesky things grow all around the fence. I pull out all the ones that try to take root in my beds though."

With this sudden realization I shoot up, a plan forming in my head. I reach a hand down to Amber who weakly grabs it.

"I'm taking you back down to the basement. We're trying this again."

"I thought you said--hey!"

Suddenly overcome with a wave of determination I sweep Amber up into a bridal carry and rush her down the steps into the basement. After setting her down back onto the pentagram I sprint outside to rip out a few dandelion lookalikes from around the fence, then gather a few more chrysanthemums. After sprinkling the new mixture around the pentagram, I step back and look down to the tome, the steak knife once again held in my hand.

"Leo! I thought you said it was too late to try again. What are we going to use for the blood sacrifice?" She weakly asks.

I look down to the knife, then back up to her.

"I'm using my own. Human blood counts. I only have to be alive until the last incantation then half of my soul will be added to what remains of yours. After that you'll be bound to the mortal realm once more, free to live the rest of your life."

"Leo don't do this! If the ritual fails then two lives would be lost instead of just one."

"I know." Is my curt response. Without further delay I look down to the tome and begin the first incantation. "Ne interficias hominem hircum quid faciam tibi! Et nunc ad magnum officium mortuis!"

I place both arms in front of me, put the blade to my wrist, and without an ounce of hesitation I slice deeply into my own flesh. I don't even notice the pain, all of my attention is focused on the blood now pouring onto the ground. After a few tense seconds the blood has formed a sizable pool and I feel lightheaded. Is it enough? I have to hope so, I still need to be lucid enough to finish the ritual before bleeding to death. The bloody pool in front of me moves around the circle of flowers and once again forms a perimeter around them. I can't help but notice how much thinner this perimeter is compared to when we tried with the goats blood. The purple and green glow returns beneath Amber and everything seems to be going well. I look back down to the tome.

"Vos phantasma nunc eruditionis habes in!"

The line of blood slowly moves towards the flowers yet does not touch a single blossom. This is good, the tome mentioned this happening. With blood still pouring from my wrist I look once more to the tome.

"Aliquid de anima tranfers aut aliquid ego nescio."

The strange glow beneath Amber grows more intense and the circle of blood now covers each purple and golden blossom before their forms sink beneath the liquid, as if absorbing them. Unable to keep my legs straight I break into a kneeling position and steady myself with a hand on the ground. Amber puts a pleading hand out, the lights in her eyes nearly imperceptible.

"You can still stop this and save yourself. Don't die for me."

I shake my head and look towards the tome, words swimming as my vision darkens around the edges.

"Fere ibi paulo longius, usque dum fiat ritual."

The glow beneath Amber suddenly turns a golden hue and the circle of blood creeps towards her. Vision darkening and strength almost extinguished my body falls to the floor. But I can't stop just yet, there's still one more incantation to make.

Not.

Yet.

Pulling the last of my strength together I reach a bloody hand towards the tome and pull it towards me. My eyes frantically search for the final line of the ritual until finding it, or rather, where it should be. Instead of black text on yellow page I see only a large smear of my own blood, must have done that when I pulled it closer. The text is unreadable, Amber is nearly gone, and I only have a few seconds of consciousness remaining. But I didn't spend all that time translating this fucking thing to fail now. Fighting through severe blood loss I pull the last line of the incantation from my memory.

"Modo cum res putabatis n-non posse deteriora f-facere, modo enascentes...retinere."

And...the light under Amber disappears as she slumps to the floor. The blood stops its march towards the center of the pentagram and remains still. My head hits the concrete floor with a dull thud, strength utterly spent. My vision fades into a dark tunnel. Two lives instead of one. Or at least that's what I thought. Just before I fade into the nether I see the candles flicker out one by one until an inky blackness fills the room. Then, curiously, the hollow sound of bone hitting concrete. The darkness takes me.

Half and Half

Warm. Soft. Comforting. I must be in the arms of an angel. Actually, these angel arms seem awfully furry. Must be an anthro angel. An anthro angel that smells of coyote. A coyote that seems awfully familiar.

My eyes shoot open to see a face staring down at me. But this time it's more than bone. It's fur, lips, ears, skin, eyes. All belonging to my beloved Amber. My head is in her lap and a clawed hand gently runs through my hair. Noticing I'm awake a smile grows on her muzzle.

"It worked." She softly says.

"It...worked?"

"Yes. Sometime after the candles went out I felt my body begin to change in the darkness. It started subtle, all I felt was pressure at first, then texture, then smell. I had to stumble around the dark but managed to find the light switch and turn it on. I looked down and...I was back. All of me was back, more than just the bones. Then I saw you on the ground and thought the worst. After checking your body I found you still had a pulse and stopped the bleeding with some medical supplies I had stashed away from my academy training. You're stable, for now."

I try to lean up but she gently pushes me down.

"Don't try to move, an ambulance is already on the way. You've lost a lot of blood. A lot."

"I'll...make more." I reply, half delirious.

"Well while you recover you'll have to do it without me by your side. The ambulance will take you to the same hospital I used to work at. If I go down there with you someone is bound to recognize me and, well, I'm still supposed to be dead."

I point an unsteady finger at her.

"Just...be sure to call me okay? And pick up when I call you, I don't want to have to leave you anymore desperate voicemails or texts."

"Okay, sure. I will." She affirms, a tinge of confusion in her voice.

I begin to grow tired, my body still very weak.

"And...also...I need you to..."

She leans in closer.

"Want me to what?"

"Return the tome...to the guy at the farmers market...late fees."

My eyes close and I lose consciousness for the second time that day. While recovering in the hospital Amber and I would discuss plans for the future. Given that she was still very dead in the eyes of the government and they would be unlikely to give her a bureaucratic revival we decided to move to somewhere far away, somewhere where no one knew our pasts.

That place ended up being a farm out in the countryside. The land was expansive and beautiful, far different than the cramped neighborhoods we had been used to. With a barrel of sweat and many weeks of hard work Amber managed to get the farms plots growing all manner of cash crops. Meanwhile I fixed up the farmhouse on the property. It wasn't that large, and needed more than a few renovations to truly become livable, but we found a way to make it work. We accrued a decent profit each year, enough to keep the operation going while saving for personal expenses or new pieces of equipment. We even decided to keep a few goats on the property, more as pets than livestock. Guess she felt bad about the one that died and wanted to make up for it. If there were any side effects to living with half a soul we never felt them.

Amber brought over all of the plants she had growing at our old house. The fruits and vegetables now rested in beds in the backyard while the flowers were moved to the front. Every year they would bloom and every year the front of our house would be accented with brilliant blotches of red, purple, and gold. And in a corner, almost hidden from view, would be a small group of strange white flowers with petals reaching for the soil. No more black morenias have bloomed since that one fateful spring. But you never know about next year.