Episode 16 - Back to the Manor

Music: Majestic Nature by Craig Stuart Garfinkle Artwork by Steve English The script: Episode 16 - Back to the Manor When Scragg eventually awoke, it was night, and a beautiful summers’ full moon shone gently down on them. It was probably a flower moon or a strawberry moon in May or June, but it was hard to tell as all they had to go by were the warmth and smell of the air and the appearance of the leaves on the trees. Scragg didn’t get up very quickly as she still felt exhausted from all the effort of spending who knew how long in that tunnel and then dragging Winefry out with her. At the thought of Winefry, Scragg was suddenly wide awake. What had happened to Winefry? He had seemed all but lifeless as she’d dragged him out. Sitting bolt upright, Scragg started to frantically search around for Winefry. Thankfully, she didn’t have to look far as the bottle was only a little way from her and lying on its side, probably having rolled there after falling out of the tunnel. Gently, Scragg rolled the bottle onto its back to get a closer look. Annoyingly, the bottle didn’t breathe in the same way animals did, so she couldn’t check for a pulse or for his chest rising and falling. So, she looked as closely as she could in the full moonlight at the label, to see what his face was doing. A wave of grateful thanks washed over Scragg as she saw the peaceful expression that filled the features drawn on the label. Gone were the hopelessness and the lines of deep anxiety. Instead, they had been replaced by a look of peace and strength, and a very distinct animation of the wine bottle’s drawn features that told her he was snoring! Winefry was going to be ok. It might take a while before he woke up, but he had survived, so Scragg relaxed a little. Then her tummy growled, and she realised how hungry she was. The vermin in the tunnel had been small, and few and far between so, feeling confident that Winefry would be safe to leave for a little while, she headed out to hunt for her tea or breakfast. Whichever meal it might be, it was needed. When Scragg returned having found much larger and tastier vermin to feast upon, Winefry had still not moved. But as she looked at him, he seemed more robust and healthier as the first rays of morning light flickered through the branches onto his label face. Scragg had been anxious about Winefry, not least because she’d never seen him eat. In fact, she had no idea if he ate at all! What had made it worse was that, while they’d been in the tunnel, Scragg had got the distinct impression that Winefry had been starving. But he didn’t look as if he was starving now. In fact, as the light played on his features, there was a faint impression of a smile. Then, as the light started to grow in strength, Scragg suddenly found herself on high alert. Something was wrong or different about this place. From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of things moving that shouldn’t have. Then, a moment later, Scragg leapt into the air and backwards in the way only cats can when startled by something unexpected. But there wasn’t anything there. Again, something caught Scragg’s eye, and she jumped as high, if not higher than before. What was going on? Then she saw it, a shadow moving away from her – but it didn’t seem to be attached to anything. A moment later, it disappeared into the mix of shadows of trees and bushes. Again, for a third time, Scragg jumped as if her life depended on it. But this time, as she looked at what had caught her eye, she couldn’t believe what she saw. It was a shadow of a dog but without the dog. Deliberately coming up to her and acting as if she could understand it, it seemed to be looking at her, while sitting down and wagging its tail! Now, one thing cats are known for is their curiosity. While Scragg was still on high alert, she was also very curious about this strange shadow. So, moving very slowly, she started to creep towards it. At first, it just seemed to stay where it was,... Support this podcast