Marshmallow reacted quickly when it began to burn, beat its wings energetically, and moved as far as possible from the flames.
Its fluff had been completely scorched, but that was better than dying carbonized by the hydra's flames.
The now bald cherub flapped its bat wings desperately until falling into Ariel's arms.
"Oh my God, Marshmallow, what have they done to you?" the girl asked disconsolately, hugging the small cherub.
Marshmallow, while having managed to escape, had its body burned and its wings damaged.
It used those same wings to wrap around itself, as if hugging itself.
"I-I'm sorry, I've failed you," the small creature said with a thread of voice.
Ariel looked at it with teary eyes as she caressed it.
"Don't say that. You've protected me many times. You haven't failed me," Ariel said sadly as she hugged the cherub, afraid it would disappear.
The small creature writhed in the girl's arms. The burns still stung.
