Pet Ginger Alternate Ending
TITLE
The male two-leg reached a hand through the bars of the cage, trying to pet Ginger.
“Don’t be scared, little fox,” he cooed. “I’m not going to hurt you.” But the hand he extended smelled of death, and Ginger recoiled from it, letting out a fearful growl as she pressed herself into the deepest corner of the cage. He drew his hand away, his eyes darkening with anger. “Dumb fox,” he muttered under his breath. “I can’t sell a fox as a pet if they don’t respond well to humans.” He spun on his heel and walked out of the room, his heavy footsteps fading. Ginger didn’t remember what the world looked like outside of the concrete walls that surrounded her every day. Sometimes, her dreams would contain faint scents of pine, but they would be quickly forgotten upon awakening. Once upon a time, she knew every inch of the forest like …show more content…
the bottom of her paws, but moons of being imprisoned in the two-leg’s den had caused her memories to fade, along with her sanity. The only memory that remained was that of her companion, Axel. But even then, his features had started becoming blurry in her mind. She rested her head against the bars, her stomach growling loudly. The two-leg fed her every now and then, but the food was always stale and foul-tasting pellets, which required her to lap up the oily-tasting water to force it down her throat. Most days she preferred not to eat at all, which resulted in the once beautiful red vixen with being reduced to nothing but matted fur on bones. Ginger closed her eyes slowly, trying to sleep away her hunger. Ginger thought about how she managed to end up in here. Before this, she had all the freedom in the world. She could sleep in her cozy den, the feeling of Axel’s back pressed against hers. The thought of that brought back that fateful day, where her life was turned upside-down. “I’m going to go explore this way, Axel!” She called, trotting towards a trail in the forest as she followed the scent of blood and raw meat. Noticing a piece of raw meat laying in the middle of the clearing, she trotted over, sniffing it curiously. “Axel! I found some food!” She barked excitedly, looking left and right as she tried to locate the flame-colored pelt that she knew so well. Moments later, he padded out of the bushes, but he was growling, ears pressed back to his head. “What’s wrong, Axel?” She asked, starting to pad over to him.
“GINGER! IT’S A TRAP!” He roared, but it was too late. Her paw caught in a snare, and she let out a howl of pain as the jaws of the snare closed in around her leg. The two-leg towered over her, a thick metal stick in his hands.
The last thing she saw was the sneer of the two-leg before everything went black.
~~~
When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a small barred cage barely big enough to be comfortable for an animal her size. The cage was placed in the corner of a dark den, the only source of light coming from a small opening near the top of the den. Boxes were stacked all throughout the room, some almost touching the ceiling. “Axel?” She called out quietly, the scent of her fear filling her nostrils. But there was no answer. Letting out a soft whine, she rested her head on her paws, and closed her eyes. She had almost succumbed to the darkness tugging at her when a loud clang startled her. She leaped to her paws, hitting her head against the top of the cage. She yelped in pain, but was quickly silenced by a low, raspy voice. “Shh, don’t let the no-wing hear
you.” She glanced in the direction of the sound, her gaze meeting a pair of small, beady eyes. She’d recognize those eyes anywhere: a crow. Even here, she never forgot those feathers as black as night as their silhouettes were outlined against the sky. She never associated with the crows much, but in desperate times she would seek their help. Surprisingly, they managed to help her out of many bad places, like that time when they saved her from the clutches of Death the winter her mother was killed by hunters. Ginger prayed that this would be one of those times. “How- how did you get in here?” She managed, unable to believe her eyes. The crow was the first animal she had seen since she was imprisoned in here, and frankly he was a sight for sore eyes. He ruffled its feathers, as if irritated. “I have ways of getting around, you know.” Ginger didn’t press the topic. She hadn’t spoken to anyone in a long time, and wanted to finally have a conversation with someone, even if they were a crow. “What brings you in here?” she asked, tipping her head to one side. “Well, some of my buddies and I have been flying around, trying to help wild animals that have been captured by no-wings. I happened to notice signs of a possible trapped animal in here, so I decided to drop by.” He stuck his chest out proudly, and his coal-black eyes glinted mischievously in the dim light. “Lo and behold, my senses were right.” “What’s your name, O Savior?” She replied, almost sarcastically. Feed his ego, and he might help you out of here. The crow’s claws clicked against the cold concrete floor. “Tequila, at your service. Just like the drink the no-wings have, and I’m just as wild as it makes them.” “Huh. My name’s Ginger.” “The no-wing sure is uncreative when it comes to names, hm?” “Actually, it was the name my mother gave me, not the two-leg. Uncreative name, I guess so. After all, the cunning of us foxes can never match the wit of you crows.” “Oh, flattering will get you everywhere.” Tequila leaned in close to the bars, his beak poking in through the gaps between the bars. “So, what do you look forward to outside of this prison, hm?” She blurted the answer before she even had time to react. “Axel. My companion.” “Ah, love.” The crow made a sound similar to a raspy laugh. “A strong motivation, but also a brainwashing drug.” “Have you experienced love?” Ginger gazed at him curiously. “Ha! Of course, but…” For the first time, the glimmer left his eyes, left with an emptiness that felt strangely heartbreaking. “He isn’t around anymore. I lost him to the flippin’ no-wings.” He shook his head, as if to clear the thought. “Anyways, listen up, sweetheart. I’ll figure out a way to bail you out of here, but you have to give me five sunrises to get everything ready.” She nodded. “As long as you’re getting me out of here,” she responded. “Any longer and I’m going to die by the two-leg’s hands.” “Easy. I’ll also bring you some food when I come visit, so you can regain your strength.” Tequila looked around the room, grimacing at the lack of props at his disposal. “It’s going to require a lot of physical strength to escape from here, so I’ll need you to be eating a lot more.” “Alright.” “In the meantime I’ll start getting ready to prepare for your escape. I’ll need your full cooperation, yeah?” “Deal.”
The male two-leg reached a hand through the bars of the cage, trying to pet Ginger.
“Don’t be scared, little fox,” he cooed. “I’m not going to hurt you.” But the hand he extended smelled of death, and Ginger recoiled from it, letting out a fearful growl as she pressed herself into the deepest corner of the cage. He drew his hand away, his eyes darkening with anger. “Dumb fox,” he muttered under his breath. “I can’t sell a fox as a pet if they don’t respond well to humans.” He spun on his heel and walked out of the room, his heavy footsteps fading. Ginger didn’t remember what the world looked like outside of the concrete walls that surrounded her every day. Sometimes, her dreams would contain faint scents of pine, but they would be quickly forgotten upon awakening. Once upon a time, she knew every inch of the forest like …show more content…
the bottom of her paws, but moons of being imprisoned in the two-leg’s den had caused her memories to fade, along with her sanity. The only memory that remained was that of her companion, Axel. But even then, his features had started becoming blurry in her mind. She rested her head against the bars, her stomach growling loudly. The two-leg fed her every now and then, but the food was always stale and foul-tasting pellets, which required her to lap up the oily-tasting water to force it down her throat. Most days she preferred not to eat at all, which resulted in the once beautiful red vixen with being reduced to nothing but matted fur on bones. Ginger closed her eyes slowly, trying to sleep away her hunger. Ginger thought about how she managed to end up in here. Before this, she had all the freedom in the world. She could sleep in her cozy den, the feeling of Axel’s back pressed against hers. The thought of that brought back that fateful day, where her life was turned upside-down. “I’m going to go explore this way, Axel!” She called, trotting towards a trail in the forest as she followed the scent of blood and raw meat. Noticing a piece of raw meat laying in the middle of the clearing, she trotted over, sniffing it curiously. “Axel! I found some food!” She barked excitedly, looking left and right as she tried to locate the flame-colored pelt that she knew so well. Moments later, he padded out of the bushes, but he was growling, ears pressed back to his head. “What’s wrong, Axel?” She asked, starting to pad over to him.
“GINGER! IT’S A TRAP!” He roared, but it was too late. Her paw caught in a snare, and she let out a howl of pain as the jaws of the snare closed in around her leg. The two-leg towered over her, a thick metal stick in his hands.
The last thing she saw was the sneer of the two-leg before everything went black.
~~~
When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a small barred cage barely big enough to be comfortable for an animal her size. The cage was placed in the corner of a dark den, the only source of light coming from a small opening near the top of the den. Boxes were stacked all throughout the room, some almost touching the ceiling. “Axel?” She called out quietly, the scent of her fear filling her nostrils. But there was no answer. Letting out a soft whine, she rested her head on her paws, and closed her eyes. She had almost succumbed to the darkness tugging at her when a loud clang startled her. She leaped to her paws, hitting her head against the top of the cage. She yelped in pain, but was quickly silenced by a low, raspy voice. “Shh, don’t let the no-wing hear
you.” She glanced in the direction of the sound, her gaze meeting a pair of small, beady eyes. She’d recognize those eyes anywhere: a crow. Even here, she never forgot those feathers as black as night as their silhouettes were outlined against the sky. She never associated with the crows much, but in desperate times she would seek their help. Surprisingly, they managed to help her out of many bad places, like that time when they saved her from the clutches of Death the winter her mother was killed by hunters. Ginger prayed that this would be one of those times. “How- how did you get in here?” She managed, unable to believe her eyes. The crow was the first animal she had seen since she was imprisoned in here, and frankly he was a sight for sore eyes. He ruffled its feathers, as if irritated. “I have ways of getting around, you know.” Ginger didn’t press the topic. She hadn’t spoken to anyone in a long time, and wanted to finally have a conversation with someone, even if they were a crow. “What brings you in here?” she asked, tipping her head to one side. “Well, some of my buddies and I have been flying around, trying to help wild animals that have been captured by no-wings. I happened to notice signs of a possible trapped animal in here, so I decided to drop by.” He stuck his chest out proudly, and his coal-black eyes glinted mischievously in the dim light. “Lo and behold, my senses were right.” “What’s your name, O Savior?” She replied, almost sarcastically. Feed his ego, and he might help you out of here. The crow’s claws clicked against the cold concrete floor. “Tequila, at your service. Just like the drink the no-wings have, and I’m just as wild as it makes them.” “Huh. My name’s Ginger.” “The no-wing sure is uncreative when it comes to names, hm?” “Actually, it was the name my mother gave me, not the two-leg. Uncreative name, I guess so. After all, the cunning of us foxes can never match the wit of you crows.” “Oh, flattering will get you everywhere.” Tequila leaned in close to the bars, his beak poking in through the gaps between the bars. “So, what do you look forward to outside of this prison, hm?” She blurted the answer before she even had time to react. “Axel. My companion.” “Ah, love.” The crow made a sound similar to a raspy laugh. “A strong motivation, but also a brainwashing drug.” “Have you experienced love?” Ginger gazed at him curiously. “Ha! Of course, but…” For the first time, the glimmer left his eyes, left with an emptiness that felt strangely heartbreaking. “He isn’t around anymore. I lost him to the flippin’ no-wings.” He shook his head, as if to clear the thought. “Anyways, listen up, sweetheart. I’ll figure out a way to bail you out of here, but you have to give me five sunrises to get everything ready.” She nodded. “As long as you’re getting me out of here,” she responded. “Any longer and I’m going to die by the two-leg’s hands.” “Easy. I’ll also bring you some food when I come visit, so you can regain your strength.” Tequila looked around the room, grimacing at the lack of props at his disposal. “It’s going to require a lot of physical strength to escape from here, so I’ll need you to be eating a lot more.” “Alright.” “In the meantime I’ll start getting ready to prepare for your escape. I’ll need your full cooperation, yeah?” “Deal.”