Farthing!

It really was Farthing! She tugged the sea lion’s ear like a puppy playing with a knot-end of rope, and the animal waddled in a frantic circle, flicking his head from side to side and bellowing. I scrambled to my feet and back up the rocks I’d climbed to reach this beach. The smaller sea lion took his opportunity; while his opponent was distracted he lunged, slamming into the larger animal’s body and rolling right over his tail. They were like the mud wrestlers I’d once seen at the harvest fair.

“Farthing!” I called out, terrified she would be crushed.

Farthing sprang free and darted toward me, and she was almost safely away when the bigger animal whipped around and launched himself after her. I gasped as the sea lion bit down on the end of the lizard’s tail.

“Farthing! Run, now! Here … Farthing!”

Farthing was flung to the ground but bounced back up, twisting to bite the fleshy lump between the sea lion’s eyes. He shook his head with more booming bellows and Farthing was flicked free. She landed neatly and raced up to where I stood on the rocks, continuing past me and over the pile.

I ran after her. The very end of her spiky tail had been bitten clean off, leaving a bloody stump. I stopped at the crack where I’d emerged from the cave and pointed. Farthing was injured and should take shelter, but she didn’t stop running.

This time I didn’t question that the lizard knew where she was going, I simply couldn’t bear to let her out of my sight. It dawned on me that she was still the only one of her kind I had seen. Maybe this lizard wasn’t Farthing at all.

I stopped. The lizard stopped and nudged at the ragged stump of her tail with her snout. I crouched as she turned. Those bright copper eyes. She tilted her head to one side and the ruff of scales at her neck rose. One of the scales was missing from the neat row.

“It really is you,” I whispered. Somehow she’d survived the fire. My throat felt full and I had an urge to sweep her up in my arms, but instead I reached out my open hand. Farthing took a step forward and nudged her snout gently into my palm.

“That was awful bricky, taking on those big beasts,” I said, and stroked her scales.

I looked up at the purple-pink evening sky. Still no sign of the dragon, but I needed to get Farthing underground with me. But the relief at seeing her again made me feel weak and dizzy. I was tired of trying to figure out the best thing to do, so I followed her.

Farthing led me inland through a plain of prickly pears, and I stopped, my mouth watering. I’d left the buccaneer’s knife in the boat.

She stopped and pawed at the ground, impatient, turning only her head to look behind.