“I’m In Your Hometown” by DukeFerret (read by Rob MacWolf)

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You're listening to the voice of dog.

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And today's story is.

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I'm in your hometown by duke ferret.

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Uh, queer romance and sports fiction writer who uploads short

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stories and artwork regularly on his very social media accounts.

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Well, my follow his work by the Twitter handle at duke and duke or the

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username duke ferrets on FurAffinity.

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And sulfury.

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Today's story will be read for you by Rob MacWolf.

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Werewolf hitchhiker.

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Please enjoy.

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I'm in your hometown by duke ferrets.

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At first I thought she was a ghost.

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a white blur under the gleam of my

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car’s headlights before it was gone.

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I stepped on the brake and pulled over.

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I grabbed my cap off the dashboard and exited into the sunset swampland.

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The figure—I saw now as a squirrel—stepped out of the trees several yards away.

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She held a sketchbook in the wing of her cloak, short fur blending black to grey

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to orange when she pulled away her hood.

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She smelled of thyme, like flowers picked from my mom’s old garden.

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The squirrel sized me up as I approached.

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The arms of her cloak were sweat stained in the humid air.

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“Got a letter for me, postie?” Her voice had a whistle to it that I

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hadn’t quite heard around these parts.

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I shook my head.

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“Just making sure you know where you’re going.

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You shouldn’t be out here after eight, y’know.”

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She peered at my mail truck.

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“Why are you here, then?”

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“Drove to Lahe to cover for an employee.

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I was taking a shortcut back.”

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“To where?”

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I pointed over my shoulder.

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“Lowell.”

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“And you’re a possum,” she remarked.

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“Interesting.”

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She reached for her pencil to scribble something on her pad.

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Crickets chirped in the shade of overgrown roadside vegetation.

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No other vehicles sat on the road.

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“Do you live here?” I asked.

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“Same city.” She didn’t make eye contact; she just kept writing.

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“I took transit this morning.

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Then I walked out here alone.”

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“With camping supplies?” No answer from her.

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“Did you bring water?”

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“No.

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I’m just trying to get a closer look.”

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“At what?

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The afterlife?”

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I waited for a laugh or a chuckle, but she just frowned at me.

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I stuffed my paws in my pockets as she narrowed her eyes.

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“The deep swamp.

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I need to take in the lost colony with my own senses.

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The work of people—largely woodpeckers—who lived here before the weather

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pushed them to move away or die.”

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Maybe she was a ghost.

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Did my joke hit too close to home?

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I shook my head.

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“You’ll join them if you run into something venomous after dark.”

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Her rigid frown rose into interest.

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Maybe the first unconceited look she gave me.

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“Really?”

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“My uncle got bit out here once.

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Only made it back to town on his brother’s back.”

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She thought that over for a moment and nodded.

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“Thank you, uh…” She caught a glimpse of my name tag.

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“Riley.

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I’ll walk back now.”

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Dying sunlight filtered through palm branches.

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I turned around and beckoned her.

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“I can drive you back.”

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She raised an eyebrow.

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“While I watch you make deliveries?”

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“The route’s over.” I spread my paws.

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“Half-an-hour beats three, huh?”

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She followed me back to the mail truck, squinting as I slid open the door for her.

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“I didn’t know delivery trucks had passenger seats.”

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I stepped in and sat behind the wheel.

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“Where don’t they?”

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“Home.” She clutched her sketchpad to her chest, then shot out a paw between us.

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“My name’s Luna, by the way.

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Exchange student from Bernan University.”

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The truck hummed as I started it up.

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“A whole continent of coast between here and there.” I looked idly

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at the GPS stationed between our legs and noticed my path back to

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the office turned near her school.

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“That’s what this ‘lost colony’ stuff is for, right?”

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She nodded, then paused to inspect my windshield trinkets, including

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my permit and business card.

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I checked my mirrors and hit the road.

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“An anthropology project,” she clarified.

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“Oh.

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Like, digging up bones?”

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She chuckled.

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“I’m not an archaeologist.”

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I snorted.

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“Hell if I know; I never went to college.

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I started here over a decade ago, and I didn’t need a degree to deliver.

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Or to manage.” With a paw resting on the wheel, I used

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the other to locate my lemonade.

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“Why waste my time?”

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She ignored that remark.

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“It’s really more than just digging.

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I’m not into physical work; I’m an artist.

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And I’m drawing the swamp.”

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“The whole thing?”

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Luna crossed her fingers and smiled.

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“That’s my plan.”

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I let that sit as I took a drink.

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“Sweetie, I think you’re gonna need a bigger canvas.”

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“Oh, I know.

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That’s why I’m only sketching it.”

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That answer didn’t make much sense at all.

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Probably a project organized by some academic dictator with no

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regard for their students’ sanity.

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I shook my head and turned back to the road.

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As we rolled to the edge of the thicket, the sun scorched my eyes between

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the shadows of palm tree trunks.

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We put down our sun visors.

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She still had her head down over her sketchpad, pencil in paw,

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scribbling a couple pages ahead.

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From the short wiggling of her fingers, it looked like she was writing something.

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“Taking notes?”

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Her scribbling stopped.

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“No.” Then she flipped back to her previous page, continuing to

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work long strokes across the page.

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I turned up the A/C until it jostled the pages and licenses

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pinned to the dashboard.

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Below the rearview, the wind shook a hanging picture of my husband.

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Talkative one minute, one syllable answers the next.

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I cleared my throat and tried another approach.

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“What’s your drawing have to do with a lost colony?”

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She suddenly reflected on that, as if my question flipped a switch in her

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mind that pulled her away from her art.

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“Everything.

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It’s just as much about them as those who took their place.”

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I snickered.

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“City kids and their trailer parks?”

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Luna didn’t laugh.

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“That’s part of it.

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The land speaks its own language.”

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“Profound,” I said.

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“I’m sure the academy will love it.”

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She continued as if I hadn’t spoken.

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“It tells us—if shy of context—fragments of who they were and how that

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identity shaped their home.

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What we see now is all the evidence I have.”

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I grabbed my drink with a free paw and pored over that.

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“And what does that tell you?”

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“Nothing.

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That’s why I’m sketching it.

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I’m turning to nature for my muse.”

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“Huh.” I studied her bushy tail as it curled into her lap.

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“I hope that works out for you.”

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“Thank you.”

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A wooden sign pointed towards bordering towns, a marker

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of the fringe of the swamp.

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I stepped on the gas as I noticed the tree shadows lengthening.

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The engine purred with the choir of bugs.

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Luna cleared her throat.

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“May I ask why you left town for someone else’s route?”

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“His wife was due in three days.

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Some kids just can’t wait to get out of there.”

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“Oh my.” Graphite swept across her page.

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“That’s generous of you.”

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“Well, Mike’s been here a decade.

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Lydia’s in my squash club.

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It’s just another hour out of my day.”

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The A/C blew the smell of her fur through the truck when she stretched

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and peered back at the empty trunk.

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“You’re that close with your coworkers?”

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“We have the same routines, meet the same kinds of people;

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just part of being a team.”

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“That makes sense.” After chewing on her eraser, she turned back down to her book.

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“What about you?

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Do you have kids?”

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I shook my head.

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“Well, I was a surrogate father for a friend who couldn’t

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conceive with her husband.

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It’s their job now.

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Donating was the easy part.” I spun the wheel to turn into

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the final stretch of the swamp.

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“But for me?

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I’d love to adopt someday.”

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Luna’s tail flicked.

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“Not have your own?”

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A bit of a presumptuous question.

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I laughed and nodded at the picture hanging from the rearview.

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“I’d have to ask my partner.

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Something tells me he wouldn’t be able to carry one.”

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“Oh!” Her eyes widened at the winking portrait of the T.

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rex.

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“What’s his name?”

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“Luiz.” I waved my paw between us and flashed my wedding ring in the sunlight.

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“Been married ten years.

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He’s a pretty big filmmaker.

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You ever seen Fortress Escape?

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Snout Computer?”

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“No.” She stared back at me blankly.

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“Never heard of them.”

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I shrugged back to the road.

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“Well, they’re popular here.”

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Back the pencil went.

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We sat in silence as we crossed a bridge to leave the swamp proper.

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The robotic voice of the GPS woke me up as I turned past the stop

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sign to pull onto Palmside Drive.

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Sun at our backs, I glanced at Luna.

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“So...why here?”

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“Hm?”

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“You could’ve picked a bigger city.

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Or even a smaller one.

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Hell—you’d find a million other lost colonies further

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inland.” I stroked my whiskers.

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“You got family here?”

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“No, I’m living in residence at the university.

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But for the city…” She brushed through her tail for a moment.

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“My friend left for a neighbouring city for her thesis.

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I almost followed, but I thought it wouldn’t be right for me

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to stay that close to home.”

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I squinted at an upcoming traffic light.

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“I’m not sure I follow.”

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“I wanted to prove to myself that I could live apart from my parents.

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I picked Lowell because it shares the climate of cities I know, yet,

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for being hardly two hours from the border...your culture’s so different.”

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“Is it?”

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Luna dropped the sketchpad on her knees, page down.

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“In every way.

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Take your stores, for example.

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There’s no clerk at the door.” She stretched out her feet.

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“The buses have no leg room.”

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“That’s not just a cultural thing.” I chuckled and recited a phrase

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my dad used to tell me as a kid.

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“That’s called municipal incompetence.”

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Her warm laugh was pleasant to hear.

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“My sample size is small.”

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“Is that an issue in your studies?” I perched my elbow on the window.

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The truck fell silent at the light, apart from the ticking of the turn signal.

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She spent a moment thinking that question over, as if it

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meant the world’s importance.

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“Sometimes I’m afraid I can’t tell the full story; that the evidence isn’t

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there and my curiosity will never be satisfied.” She tapped her paws together,

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mimicking the rhythm of the ticker.

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“What about you?”

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My gaze drifted from the window to her eyes in the mirror.

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“What about me?”

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“You carry around so many letters.

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Don’t you ever wonder what they say?”

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I frowned.

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“That’s never crossed my mind.”

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“How many love letters have you delivered without a thought in the world?

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How many acceptance papers?” A smile pried at her lips.

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“How many sperm donations?”

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The joke hit me like a truck.

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Had to set the gear to park to not rear-end the poor fellow in front.

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“Aha!

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Hopefully they weren’t on Mike’s route!

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But, y’know, you don’t think about what’s in the envelopes.

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You just care about making it on time.”

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“Right.” Luna shuffled her feet.

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“Speaking of making it on time, I was wondering if you could do something

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else for me before we’re at my stop.

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You see, I haven’t really gotten a chance to talk to many residents, so

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I’d like to tape myself asking you a couple questions about the swamp.

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I need some audio tracks for my project, and I’ve been

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looking for original material.”

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Traffic slowed on the other side of the intersection as I thought about it.

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“I don’t know if I’ll be helpful, but we could try.”

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The traffic light turned green, letting us into the city with

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the sun glowing angelic white on Luna’s fur from beyond the window.

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From her pocket she produced a phone.

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“Eight-twenty-three,” she recited into the microphone, “Thursday, July six.

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Interview five.” Luna glanced at me.

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“Riley the letter carrier.”

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“Local postal service branch manager,” I corrected.

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She snorted.

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“Riley the ‘that’.

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To start off, did you grow up here?”

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“Nope.

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Moved here with my husband thirteen years ago.” I flipped up my sun visor.

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She didn’t follow.

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“Have you ever visited the Lahe Swamp before today?”

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“We hiked out there a few times, me and Luiz.”

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“And did you know about the colony?”

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“Never heard of it until today.

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If your project is banking on this, I could drop you off at the museum.”

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“Been there, obviously.” She tapped the pencil against her teeth.

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“Was Luiz born here?”

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“Yeah.

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Grew up about eight minutes from here.”

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“He learned quite a bit about the swamp growing up, I take it.”

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“Probably.

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You want my number?

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I could ask him about it and talk later.”

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She glanced at his picture.

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“Maybe.

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I still want to get through this, though.”

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“Suit yourself.”

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“Did he ever tell you about the area?” Luna watched another truck pass by.

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“The giant trees with holes bored through their trunks?”

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“He said he used to play in them with his friends when they were kids.

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Some hollows have ladders to the branches, which used to be shelter

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for…” I trailed off at my realization.

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“Those are the ruins, aren’t they?”

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“According to most accounts.

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Ones he probably heard about in school.

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You said he grew up on the outskirts of the city, right?”

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“Still had to walk a ways for schooling, if I recall.” I chuckled shortly.

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“That part always shocked me.”

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“What?”

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“That infrastructure was so dialed back.

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My dad was born here, but he moved to Sully before I was born.

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I was in school a little while later than Luiz, but the

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:14:58

buses I rode were years old.”

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“How much older is Luiz?

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Is he much taller than you?”

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“Twelve years.

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And a couple feet.” My eyes drifted to my side window, watching the

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:15:10

palm trees and bushes speed by.

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“Wait, what does that have to do with anything?”

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:15:16

“I have a classmate studying height differences in marriages.

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Even cross-species, partners tend to end up closer than their

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:15:24

averages.” She waved a paw.

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“But I’ve got a friend back in Bernan who’s dating an older fellow too.

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Her parents aren’t too happy about it.”

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“I know that noise.”

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“With the age gap?” Luna was staring out the window and

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drawing again when I peeped over.

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I couldn’t quite see her sketch, but it didn’t look like a landscape.

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“I don’t think Dad’s quite over it.

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He never talked to me about romance after I came out.” I scratched my muzzle.

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“Mom thought homosexuality was evil.

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Up until she died.”

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“Oh.

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I’m so sorry.” She studied me with sympathetic eyes.

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“Even living in Sully?”

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“Just because she lived there didn’t mean she fit in.”

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Luna’s ears drooped.

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I caught it in the corner of my vision as I pulled up to a red light.

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“Did your dad side with her?”

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I scowled at her.

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“What does this have to do with your lost colony again?”

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That stopped her in her tracks.

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Her eyes fell back to her page.

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“Sorry.”

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I took a deep breath.

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A pair of pedestrians walked by—two birds I didn’t recognize the pattern of.

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“Dad used to work in lumber with all those traditionalist macho types.

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He was always hellbent on manning me up—teaching me to be like him.

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More selfish than malicious.

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We haven’t talked since Mom died.”

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Luna hesitated.

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“Ah.

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I’m sorry.”

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I chuckled shortly.

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“You can stop apologizing, you know.”

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“Oh.” She pursed lips that barely hid a smile.

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“I’m not sorry for that.”

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With a smirk, I ran my fingers over the leather of the wheel.

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“Dad met Luiz once.

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It was awkward, and I figured he felt threatened.

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I think we wanted different things out of life, so I stopped returning his calls.”

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“There’s something to be said about found family,” Luna mused.

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“Not to make assumptions about your own lived experience, but you

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shouldn’t have to put up with them just because they’re possums.”

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“Right.”

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Nearing the towers downtown, Luna turned to me again.

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“So, what was it like moving across the continent to stay here?”

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“Well, I had Lou.

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We met when I sat next to him at a film festival.

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Business trip for him, day out for me and my friends.” A car came up on my rear.

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I merged to let it pass.

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“It’s funny.

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It was raining so hard I almost stayed home that day.

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I remember what kind of stuff I was worrying about when I brushed my

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teeth and got dressed that morning.

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Everything that turned out to be so meaningless packed into a day that

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changed the trajectory of my life.”

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She smirked.

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“You called me the philosophical one.”

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“Well, I asked him out before I left.

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I was shooting a lot of shots then, since things hadn’t worked out with my last few

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boyfriends.” I kept my eyes fixed on the road, carefully navigating the half-lane

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left by cars parked on the side of it.

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“He didn’t even tell me about his growing fame until our third date.”

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“Defense mechanism?” Luna spun around her pencil.

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“There’s a lot of crazies trying to date fame.”

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I scoffed.

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“Oh, I’m crazy too!

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I just don’t care about fame.”

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The sky glowed yellow above the concrete jungle.

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Orange hues highlighted the tips of purple clouds marking a day fleeting.

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“Has it been a bit of an adjustment, then?”

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“Yeah,” I said, staring at a billboard in the distance.

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“But you face challenges in any relationship.”

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“Thirteen years, though, right?”

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“Doesn’t mean it’ll last forever.”

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Luna didn’t say anything.

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After a moment of quiet, she looked at me wistfully.

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“Nothing lasts forever.”

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It was a curious thing to say to someone nearly twice her age—not

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that it even felt like I’d lived half my life since that age.

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My parents always talked about that as an existential fear.

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For our differences, there were some things I managed to inherit.

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That thought gave me some butterflies.

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I hadn’t talked to Dad in months.

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“Riley?” She had to repeat it before I heard it.

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I snapped out of my reverie.

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“Uh huh?”

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“I think you missed a right.”

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My eyes snapped down to the GPS screen.

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Then up to the hospital in the distance.

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God damn it.

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“Thanks.

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Got a little off-track.” I glanced over at her phone, still recording from her lap.

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“Speaking of...your interview.

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I think I’ve talked more about myself than I have your subject.”

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Luna shook her head.

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“I asked you about yourself.

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There’s only so much you can say about the land itself.

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And what’s that worth out of context?”

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“The interview was worth a shot,” I offered.

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“It’s worth something more to me.” She turned back down to her drawing.

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“You haven’t studied the swamp like I have, but your experience

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:20:46

of the structures built around it is valuable to me.”

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I sat waiting to turn back onto the correct path.

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A group of pedestrians walked ahead at the light.

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“I wasn’t born here.”

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“But have those thirteen years felt incomplete?

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You had to adapt here as an adult, rather than learn it from birth like

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your husband.” Her pencil stopped moving.

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“You just might see the things lifelong residents are blind to.”

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“Like what?”

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She held my gaze, hauntingly still for a moment.

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Finally, her eyes turned away and she shrugged under the

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arms of her herb-scented cloak.

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Luna’s silence remained as we drove upon ancient stone buildings that clashed with

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the sleek modern towers in the distance.

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I cornered into a busway on the fringe of her campus and pulled over.

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“Ding, dong!” I sang.

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“Riley Transit has reached the end of the line.

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Thank you for riding with us and please do not charge the doors!”

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“With jokes like that, I see why you want to be a dad,” Luna grumbled.

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Her phone camera snapped.

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It was pointed down at her open sketchbook.

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Quick paws ripped out the page and held it to me.

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I blinked down at the sketched face of the possum.

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Behind him stood a T.

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rex resting a hand on his opposite shoulder.

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Luna scratched the back of her neck.

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“I hope I captured his likeness.

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Your picture of him is really small.”

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There was a hopeful glimmer in my eye, matched by Luiz’s warm smile.

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She drew me with my cap, funnily; I guess she couldn’t see me without it.

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“Luna, this is incredible!

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Wait a minute, let me take a picture...” I rummaged through my

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pocket until her paw landed on my wrist.

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“I drew it for you to keep.

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I have everything I need.

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Except…” She held a blank contact entry out on her phone.

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“Could we exchange numbers?

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I’m still looking for leads and I’d love to talk to Luiz directly.

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Or anyone you know who might be connected in any way—through

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:22:51

great-grandparents, even—to the people who lived in that swamp.”

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I took the phone from her.

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“I’ll see what I can do.”

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After swapping contact info, we shook paws.

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Luna then stepped out onto the sidewalk and stood at the door.

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Her smile glowed brighter than her cloak as she held her sketchbook

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and nodded to me once more.

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“Thank you so much!

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This means a lot to me, Riley!”

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I started to wave at her.

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Then a thought that bugged me from the moment I saw her resurfaced.

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“Y’know, you remind me of someone.”

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“Who?”

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Hesitation caught up with my pursuit.

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I’d sound like a total jackass if she took it wrong.

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On second thought, I just shook my head.

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“Nevermind.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:23:38

Just a memory.” My fingers found the brim of my cap.

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“You have a good night.

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I’ll be sure to get back!”

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Luna vanished into the parking lot as I tapped off the GPS and

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:23:41

turned back onto familiar roads.

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I didn’t see much of the city on the way back to the office.

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I was far too preoccupied by the decision Luna prodded me back towards

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to drive with more than simple reflex.

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The muscle memory was so ingrained into me that even in dreams I often

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found myself driving these streets.

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I told everyone I could navigate downtown with my eyes closed.

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Something about Luna made me forget that.

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I sipped my drink, tasting nothing but the last couple drops sitting at the bottom.

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The thought wouldn’t leave my mind as long as I let it foster.

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Luiz was waiting for me at home, and I wanted to do this without him there.

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I knew he would ask if I had to retreat to another room.

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On a quieter avenue, a couple blocks down from the postal office,

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I pulled over beside the curb.

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I fished around for my phone, opened the contact list and

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scrolled past Luna’s entry.

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Names flew under my thumb, years whizzing by, until I finally

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:24:54

loomed upon a long-unused number.

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Headlining his profile was a contact photo at least a decade old.

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There he stood, an aging woodpecker, grinning tall and proud with

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:25:07

his possum wife in his arms.

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My thumb hovered over the call button.

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With a deep breath, I took the plunge and pressed the phone to my ear.

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The sun was gone from view, leaving behind a vista of millions

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:25:25

of colours over the city sky.

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I slouched back in my seat, watching traffic pile up at the

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:25:31

light as the phone rang in my paw.

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The second ring followed.

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The third ring felt as long as a lifetime.

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The fourth ring inhabited its own eternity.

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I knew it.

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I let go of my held breath and sat up straight.

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Why did I think he’d still pick up after this long?

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During the fifth ring, I prepared to hang up before it sent me to voicemail.

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Instead, the ring cut out.

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My mouth went dry.

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I must’ve registered the old landline, because the line crackled a little.

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The signal travelled a continent to reach me, but it seemed as

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:10

though he were lightyears away.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:13

“Riley?” His voice, a familiar whistle, sounded frail, yet hopeful, like a

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:21

man finding an oasis in the desert.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:24

Guilt panged in my chest.

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The intersection light turned green, prompting a mass

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:30

migration of traffic ahead.

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I waited until I could muster up the courage to speak.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:36

What could I even say?

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I peeked down at Luna’s sketch.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:41

The confident possum wore a wordless smile.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:45

His partner, too, spoke only from his eyes.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:47

Yet, with not a word on the page, the drawing read like a letter long

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:52

sealed from the back of the mail truck.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:26:54

Sitting open, it told me exactly what to say.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:27:00

“Hey, Dad.

I saw her in the thick brush: 00:27:01

I’m in your hometown.”

Khaki QOD: 00:27:06

This was.

Khaki QOD: 00:27:07

I'm in your hometown by duke ferret.

Khaki QOD: 00:27:10

Read for you by Rob MacWolf.

Khaki QOD: 00:27:12

Where Wolf hitchhiker.

Khaki QOD: 00:27:13

You can find more stories on the web at the voicemail dog, or find the