Spike, Scramble, and Cecilia stood in the now empty backyard of Autumn Blaze's house. Everyone had left when the found out the one stealing their stuff wasn’t a threat at all. Spike stood in front of Cecilia, his arms cross and he tapped his foot. He looked stern, his brows furrowing. Cecilia stared up at the tall dragon, her ears flattened. She was terrified, not knowing what was going to happen next.
” Is he going to hit me? Is he going to yell? Is he going to kick me?” Thoughts raced across her mind, making Cecilia shake in fear. Tears welled up in her eyes and she looked down at the ground. Spikes' expression softened and he crouched down to her height.
“It’s okay, I won’t hurt you,” Spike said in a soft tone. Cecilia looked up at him with teary eyes.
“Do you want to tell me why you were stealing?” Spike asked. She sniffled and nodded her head.
“My mommy and daddy left me when I was three because they said I was too slow. I’ve been living by myself for so long. I stole food and blankets because I was hungry and cold.” Cecilia explained.
“I told her we can share a mommy and daddy!” Scramble butted in. Spike stood there in shocked silence. He had heard of parents abandoning their children but never like this. When parents left their children, it was usually with a family friend or someone who could take care of them.
“How old are you?” He asked. Cecilia hummed to herself and counted on her fingers.
“I’m five!” Cecilia informed, showing him five fingers. Spike let out a sigh and stood up, making Cecilia’s ears flatten.
“D-did I do something wrong?” She asked fearfully. Spike shook his head.
“No, you didn’t do anything bad. Let’s get you some food.” Spike stated, grabbing Cecilia’s paw. Scramble hopped next to Cecilia, excited to have a new friend. Spike led Cecilia and Scramble into town, looking for a fast food restaurant. Different types of creatures walked around, shoving past Spike. A kirin shoved past Scramble, knocking her over to her side.
“Hey!” Scramble shouted, now laying on her back. The kirin ignored her shout and continued walking. Spike picked Scramble up and tucked her under his arm.
“Where is a fast food restaurant?” Spike asked, looking around. Cecilia’s ears perked up at the sound of that.
“I know a Hay Burger nearby.” Cecilia said, pulling Spike forward. Spike followed close behind, letting the small child lead him. Soon, they approached a Hay Burger which was very large.
“I come here to eat out of the trash, it’s really good.” Cecilia said with a smile. Spike grimaced, he hated the idea of a child as young as her eating out of the trash. Spike walked up to the front doors, only to pause when he saw a sign.
“No fleas.” A sign read with a picture of a crossed out flea. Spike looked at Cecilia. There was no denying that she had fleas. Spike thought for a moment before getting an idea.
“Stay out here, I’ll go get us some food.” Spike stated, letting go of Cecilia’s hand. Her eyes widened and she quickly clung onto Spike's leg.
“No don’t leave me like everyone else!” Cecilia exclaimed in fear. Scramble looked at her father, not understanding what was going on. Spike placed Scramble on the ground and took Cecilia off of his leg.
“I promise I’ll come back for you. I’ll just go get us all food and then I’ll get you cleaned up.” Spike reassured. Cecilia sniffled and wiped her eyes.
“Do you want me to stay with you while we wait?” Scramble asked with a smile. Cecilia nodded her head and sat on the ground. Scramble sat next to her, humming to herself happily. Spike let out a sigh of relief.
“Okay girls, I’ll be back in about fifteen minutes, don’t go anywhere.” Spike instructed before walking inside. Scramble continued to hum to herself, bouncing in her spot.
“Your dad's really nice.” Cecilia stated. Scramble nodded her head happily.
“My mommy is nice too. Sometimes she makes me brownies and we watch movies!” Scramble said happily. Cecilia let out a sad laugh.
“Your parents sound great. I wish I had that.” She said, tearing up a bit. Scramble pulled her into a tight hug.
“You can be my sister from now on and you can live with me forever.” Scramble said happily. Cecilia hugged her back happily, excited to have a new home. Spike walked out of the restaurant, holding two large bags of food.
“That was fast.” Scramble commented. Spike nodded his head.
“The whole place was empty.” Spike stated as he took out two hayburgers. He handed one to Scramble and one to Cecilia. Cecilia quickly unwrapped the burger and shoved it into her mouth, making Spike giving her a look of surprise. Cecilia scarfed down her burger within seconds and licked her lips with satisfaction.
“I’ve never had a full hayburger before!” Cecilia said happily. Spike gave a sympathetic smile before picking up Scramble and holding Cecilia’s hand.
“You can have more food after you get cleaned up.”
Cecilia marveled at the large hotel room she was standing in, looking at the two large beds. She hadn’t laid in a bed in years. There was a microwave in the corner of the room and two lamps pressed up against the wall. Scramble hopped on the bed, letting herself bounce into the air. That looked like fun.
“Mr. Spike, can I jump on the bed too?” Cecilia asked excitedly. Spike shook his head.
“You need to get cleaned up first and then you can jump on the bed.” Spike stated. Cecilia nodded her head as Spike led her to the bathroom. He turned on the water in the bathtub, waiting for it to fill up. He reached into the plastic bag he was holding and pulled out toenail clippers, scissors, flea shampoo, a toothbrush, a brush, a hairdryer, a towel, and a blue ribbon.
“Give me your hand.” Spike instructed. Cecilia anxiously placed her paw in his hand. Spike started to clip her long nails, letting the nails fall to the floor. He went to the next hand, completely clipping the nails away. Cecilia stared at her paw. It looked so neat. Spike turned off the faucet and picked Cecilia up, placing her into the water.
“It’s so warm!” Cecilia exclaimed happily, splashing around in the water. Spike chuckled and put some flea shampoo on his hands. He rubbed it over Cecilia’s fur, scrubbing it clean. Dirt washed out, turning her yellowish brown fur into a beautiful golden color. Cecilia giggled.
“That tickles!” Cecilia laughed out. She splashed her hands in the water, letting it splash around. Spike let out a laugh and lifted her out of the water. He smiled and looked at Cecilia. Her fur covered her eyes but she looked happy and clean. Spike looked in the tub to see that the water was brown and filthy. He drained out the tub and picked up a towel, wrapping her in it. He picked up the hairdryer and plugged it into the wall.
“What’s going on? I can’t see.” Cecilia said, looking around.
“This might be a little loud,” Spike said, pressing a button on the blow dryer. It let out a loud whirring noise, making Cecilia tense up.
“TOO LOUD!” Cecilia shouted in a panic. Spike frowned.
“It won’t take long, I promise.” Spike reassured. He held the dryer close to her fur, quickly drying it. He quickly turned off the dryer and looked at Cecilia, who’s fur was all dry and fluffy. Her fur was still covering her eyes. Spike picked up the scissors and started to snip away the excess fur.
“I can see again!” Cecilia shouted when Spike cut the fur from her eyes. Spike grabbed a brush from the sink and started to brush her fur out. Clumps of fur stuck to the brush. After several minutes of brushing, he was finished.
“And for the finishing touch.” Spike said, picking up the blue ribbon. He tied it around Cecilia’s neck. Spike turned Cecilia to face a mirror and she let out a gasp.
“Is this me?” She asked in disbelief. She had never been this clean before. Her fur wasn’t matted down and it was shorter than before. She still looked very skinny but that was a work in progress. Spike chuckled and nodded his head. Cecilia turned around and hugged Spike tightly.
“Thank you so much Mr. Spike!” She exclaimed, her tail wagging happily. Spike hugged her back, happy that he could help her.
“Go play with Scramble, I got some board games we can play together.” Spike stated. Cecilia nodded her head and happily skipped out of the bathroom. Spike let out a sigh.
“I need to write a letter to Gabby to let her know I’m not coming home tonight,” Spike said to himself. He looked around the bathroom to see dirty water and fur scattered all over the place.
“But first I need to clean up.”