My wildlife rescue called you about a Blue naga a while ago, and this is about that same case— the homeowner had another property, and I’d like you to take a look at this miniature Papython. He’s overall pretty healthy and pleasant in personality, but he’s missing a very large portion of his tail. He gets around with his arms, but would benefit from a mobility aid. He says his name is “Pepper” and that his tail has always been “short,” so perhaps it occurred naturally from birth.
I felt my heart constrict just at the implication of someone ‘docking’ a lamia’s tail, geezus criminey. We’d be happy to help out the little fellow, I’ll get Halim on the case making sure it IS just a birth defect and not intentional harm.
- - -
The mini Papython was just as the wildlife rescue has said, chipper and energetic as any other of his kind with an easy smile and bright healthy eyelights. He simply... Didn’t have a tail. Or at least, a large chunk was missing.
Halim had been able to confirm that the stumpy tail was devoid of scar tissue, suture lines or any other signs of intentional alteration, even though he’d had to take a few moments after the examination to calm down while Cell took over getting the little guy settled in. Just the thought of someone causing such irreversible harm on purpose-!
“Okay, Pepper, what’s your favorite color?”
“ORANGE! NO, GREEN! NO, WAIT, YELLOW! OH, DO I HAVE TO CHOOSE?”
Cell chuckled softly as they shook their head, gently rubbing the pad of one finger on the Papython’s head affectionately as they set down a small box for the lamia to look into.
“No, you don’t have to choose if you don’t want to. I was just asking so we can narrow down something for you to wear that you’ll like.”
“OH! THAT’S VERY NICE OF YOU, THANK YOU! ARE THERE ANY GLOVES? GLOVES WOULD BE VERY NICE.”
“Sure, there should be a couple pairs. Try them on to make sure they fit okay, yeah?”
The Papython beamed, his magic giving his cheekbones a warm pumpkin colored glow of happiness as he pulled himself over to look into the offered box. Cell was glad that Pepper was in such good spirits, and the fact that he actually seemed to be quite healthy and well adjusted despite the situation he’d come out of helped a lot to soothe the twitchy part of themselves that rankled every time they glanced down and saw that absence of a tail. They were going to talk to Halim about possibly making a wheelchair of some kind, like what that one guy built for his master with the paralyzed back legs, but they knew it was going to be difficult to puzzle out the right kind of aid.
Wheels would probably work well for a time, but Pepper would be a lot safer if he were able to get up off the ground, and the kind of mechanisms a climbing mobility aid would need were way past their meager engineering abilities. Build Lego space ships and figures? Sure. Secure tiny ladders to mini walkways all around the house? Done that already. Plan, engineer and construct a mobility aide for a tiny lamia that could climb out of harm’s way? Biiiit beyond their paygrade.
Just one more for the pile, apparently...
“THESE ARE PRETTY!”
Cell refocused at hearing Pepper speak up, and smiled at seeing the little guy pulling on a pair of deep green elbow length gloves, flexing his fingers to get a feel for the fabric and check the fit like he’d been told.
“Looking good, Pepper. They fit okay?”
“THEY DO! THEY DON’T FLOP AROUND AT ALL, SEE?”
The Papython waved his arms enthusiastically to show off how well the gloves fit, very nearly unbalancing himself in his fervor, and Cell quickly moved a hand to support the little lamia.
“That’s awesome, Pepper. How about we see if we can’t find you a top to match? Or maybe we can find something in another color you liked, ey?”
“YEAH! I SAW A RED SWEATER ON THE BOTTOM, IT LOOKED SOFT!”
“Sounds like a good place to start.”
Pepper has been added to Residents.
