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Beef leaned against the doorframe of Etho's storage room. “So you gonna tell me about this super secret project that’s got you busy?”
“Huh? Oh, uh, I don’t really have a project.”
“Then how come you’re never here when I stop by?”
“I said I wasn’t going to be here much for a bit.”
“Yeah, but there has to be a reason. What've you been doing?”
“Just some stuff around the ice farm. Safety proofing and such,” Etho muttered, trying to focus on the observer he was crafting.
“Safety proofing? Uh-huh. Come on, what’ve you actually been doing?"
"I'm not lying."
"Etho."
“Promise not to make fun of me?”
“You know I can’t promise that,” Beef laughed but then stopped when Etho looked unamused, “Okay, I won't. What is it?”
“I found an abandoned kit by the farm, so I’ve been making sure she can’t get into anything dangerous.”
“So that’s why you haven’t been around?”
“Yeah. I know she could probably figure it all out herself, but I just wanna make sure she learns everything.”
“Can I meet her?”
Etho looked up, surprised. “Do you want to?”
“Sure.”
“Okay," Etho said, eyes crinkling from an excited smile, "Okay, let me finish making this observer. You should grab a jacket.”
“Where is she?” Beef asked as they walked into the ice farm.
“Not sure. She’s probably inside.”
"Probably?”
“I mean there’s some tunnels that lead out. She’s not trapped here. She can come and go as she wants, but she’s little, so she mostly stays here.”
They walked around for a few minutes before Beef pointed to a white ball of floof in the snow. “Is that her?”
Etho’s eyes lit up, and he dropped to the ground, making calling noises to her. She got up and started running towards them, but she stopped when she spotted Beef and dived into a hole in a snowbank against the wall.
“I think I scared her.”
Etho shrugged. “You’re the first— well kinda first person to meet her, but she’ll like you. I’m gonna go find her. You can go look around if you want.”
“Sure, I'll go rate your safety-proofing," he teased.
Beef headed over to the tree farm while Etho shifted and crawled into a different foxhole in the snow. After a while, he heard Etho bark from right behind him. He crouched down and pet him. “Hey. Where’s the baby?”
Etho nipped his fingers before running back to the snowbank and grabbing Side Kit in his mouth. He trotted over to Beef and dropped her in his lap, tail wagging.
Beef hesitantly picked her up, worried to hurt her and incur Etho’s protective wrath. Etho seemed calm though as Beef cooed and pet her. Calm enough apparently to just leave the farm, which Beef was definitely not prepared for. He was scared to hold her while Etho was around to monitor, and now he was being trusted to babysit.
He decided to play it safe and just sit on the cold, wet snow, letting the curious kit crawl all over him. Fortunately, he didn’t have to wait for too long—though it certainly felt like an eternity and a half—for Etho to return.
“Whatcha got there?” Beef asked, letting go of Side Kit, who started wriggling to get out of his hold once she heard Etho chatter.
Etho stopped in front of him and Side Kit, proudly presenting the item—a dead chicken. How lovely.
Side Kit was far more appreciative of the gift, pouncing on it a few times to make sure it was dead before digging in.
"I know I got on you for not having a good diet, but I would've made an exception today," he muttered, mostly joking considering how proud Etho looked as he sat beside Beef and patiently waited for Side Kit to have her fill. Etho dragged the remaining part of the chicken to him once she finished.
"All yours."
Beef watched Side Kit try to fit in his coat pockets while Etho finished off the bird. He understood why Etho liked Side Kit so much. She was so tiny and cute and curious and followed Etho around like a colour-inverted shadow.
Beef flung them a few toys that were laying around after their meal and watched them play. He stood up to stretch once his legs started aching from sitting on cold, hard snow for so long, and the feeling of his wet clothes sticking to him quickly set in.
“Hey, Etho! It’s getting late and cold. Think I’m gonna head out,” he yelled.
Etho ran over to him, nudged his leg, and headed in the direction opposite of the door leading out. He turned around every so often to make sure Beef was following. He led them down a staircase and into a bedroom. There was a mattress on the ground and an open chest with clothes and blankets. Etho sat on the mattress and stared at Beef, head tilted.
He scratched behind Etho’s ears. “Okay, I’ll stay. You go get Side Kit.”
Etho hurried out of the room. Beef threw some more blankets on the mattress, kicked off his boots, and swapped his damp clothes for the pyjamas in the chest. He flopped down on the mattress and waited.
He was almost asleep when he heard nails click-clack down the wooden stairs. He sleepily held a hand out, and Etho dropped Side Kit into his hand, who immediately wobbled off to start exploring the rest of the bed. Etho started readjusting the blankets, crawling over Beef multiple times on his mission to spread out the blankets and make sure he was covered.
Beef opened his eyes for a moment when fur tickled his face, and he glanced down to catch a glimpse of Side Kit curled up under his chin, idly chewing on his sweatshirt sleeve. Etho was at the end of the bed, laying over his ankles, contentedly watching the two.
Beef nudged him with his foot and murmured quiet praises about how well he'd done with the farm and taking care of Side Kit, eyes slipping back shut.