It was raining today, and Otter was bored out of her mind. She'd already exhausted her favorite indoor activities and felt there was nothing left to do.
She sighed wistfully, laying in the entryway of The Taigh, and watched as the rain continued to fall; at least this was more entertaining than watching grass grow, she supposed.
She wasn’t far from her bourie when the rain started. Meerkat channeled her namesake as she slithered into the cozy space, then turned around to watch the shower. She hoped it would slow or at least taper, though half an hour passed, then an hour, then…
Finally, it slackened some. The lady of the copse held her breath and burst out of her burrow, making a beeline toward The Taigh. She passed Towhee right before ducking inside. Meerkat nearly bumped into Otter.
Hey! You might want to back up a bit, I’m gonna shake off,
she warned, making a shooing motion as she dripped all over the threshold.
Meerkat arrived at The Taigh in a rush, sopping wet from the rain. "Hey! You might want to back up a bit, I'm gonna shake off," she warned as she shooed her daughter away.
Otter scrambled onto her paws and scampered out of the way. Ma!
she greeted once she'd stopped, her eyes gleaming, a smile on her face, and her tail whipping from side to side. Hi!
She sniffed at the air, which was saturated with scents, and tried to decipher where her mother had been.
Otter scurried backward. Meerkat waited to make sure she wouldn’t stumble over her paws before giving in to the compelling urge to shake. Rainwater splattered the dry walls of The Taigh, sprinkling the floor as well. They would dry soon enough.
Meanwhile, she stepped deeper into the warm cottage. She avoided her blanket but sat on a patch of dry grass tucked against the southern wall. Meerkat immediately began to swipe her tongue over her coat, drying it further.
In between licks, she shot a grin at Otter, then looked around to locate Skipjack. It turned out he was snoozing in the far corner, chubby body stretched out on a deerskin there. Meerkat laughed under her breath at the endearing sight.
With her brother napping and rain pouring outside, she knew her daughter must be quite bored. Meerkat gave her pelt a few more token licks, then paused to focus her attention more fully upon Otter.
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