The dog seemed to think. She had no idea what Black meant by a 'tug,' but the collar did feel brutishly heavy on her own neck. "I think so," she said, but was quick to add, "I'm hungry."

She watched Black a little more closely, though quiet now. She seemed to simply expect him to just summon scraps of food.

________________

Black did not summon scraps of food. Instead, he stood, giving a soft and stern command.

"Wait here."

He turned with an abrupt surge of wrinkle-skinned motion, surging off into the darkness of the tunnel at full sudden gallop. He was gone for some ten, fifteen minutes, and when he returned it was merely to check on the pup and beckon her onward. His nose now had a fresh and bleeding wound on it, but his demeanor was still quite matter-of-fact as he trotted back to Zephyr, slightly lopsided.

"The Dog was bitten. Come." He then turned again, speeding into a slow and lumbering gallop once more as he made his way up the tunnel, eventually pausing to scratch at a small hole. It was narrow enough that Zephyr could perhaps fit in, but he was simply too large. He looked at her expectantly, whether she'd followed or was still lingering down the tunnel.

"In there. Go. Dig. Catch it. Food."

He was aware that the rat might bite her, but it could hardly beat even a puppy in a fight. If she had the courage to tunnel into the crack in the dark wall, she'd get herself a meal easily enough.

________________