Snippet #1869468

Lucius
I couldn't sleep tonight, too many thoughts clouded my minded: thoughts of Bella's safety, thoughts of the Kingdom, thoughts of the prince. I'd been tossing and turning for hours, and I had to find something to occupy my mind till my body forced itself to sleep. I looked to the end of my bedroom at the large tank adjacent to my bed; Lola was fast asleep, curled up with her tail laying gently beside her.
"You up, girl?" I asked, hoping she would wake up. She didn't mind being woken up in the middle of the night, as long as it was by myself. Nero had almost gotten himself stung quite a few times by disturbing her. Not too many people in the Kingdom understood how a man could own a wild Moralaghian scorpion as a pet. About the same size as a large dog, Moralaghian scorpions were native to the deserts of Moralagh, and usually very aggressive. I found her at a travelling "circus" as they called them. A touring band of the absurd and the odd, essentially. She was confined to a small cage with barely enough food to keep her alive. I had to purchase her. I've tried many times to explain to Nero how I could see the sadness in her eyes, but he finds the concept ridiculous. Moralaghian scorpions are more intelligent than we give them credit for, its unfortunate that they're mostly hunted for food.
Initially, her training was very unsuccessful: she refused to eat, she constantly attempted to claw me and sting me. Though if one feeds an animal long enough, they usually begin to trust her. After I broke down her trust barrier, she opened up to me like a puppy would. It was months before I actually let her come within stinging proximity, but now I trusted her enough. Six years later, we're the best of friends. Other than Bella, Lola is my closest friend.
Lola poked her head up and turned to face me and she immediately began her usual attempt to climb the glass tank wall. I eventually figured out years ago that this wasn't an attempt to kill me. I climbed over the eight foot tall tank wall and landed a few feet from Lola. She instantly knocked me over and scurried around me excitedly. She most likely wanted to play fetch, and tonight would be a good night to distract myself with a simple game.