Supplemental Nutrition

A pleasant chime rings out in the Imporium as Illumine slides open the door. They pull their imps along behind them on leashes– which they both hate.

Dim’s response to being on a leash mostly involves resistance. It is easily mitigated; Illumine carried her the short distances between their house and their car, and then their car and the store– but they had to put her down in order to open the door. They didn’t pull the leash with a tremendous amount of force, though, before the curious smells enticed her inside.

Lit, on the other hand, did exactly the thing that brought Illumine to Burrowgatory’s resident imp expert: eating. The guy seemed to eat everything in sight– hence his coat. It was an inconvenience, at first; Illumine had to make sure their food was totally inaccessible after he turned himself white; then, it was kind of funny, watching him try to bite the couch and kitchen cabinets; finally, though, it became concerning when he actually started to try to eat non-food items he might be able to swallow. Like a chunk of his leash.

Illumine steps further into the shop, pulling Lit’s leash a bit more aggressively than they’d have liked. It was effective, though; Lit stumbled into the shop, and the leash was extracted from his mouth all at once.

The sound of chittering imps flooded Illumine’s senses, but the front counter was mysteriously empty. They eyed the aisle entryways– each decorated with gear and food– looking for the owner.

“Hello?” they call.

They take a step forward. The leashes pull in their hand– so they lean down and scoop their Uniqor up in either hand.

They meander their way down one of the aisles, sort-of looking at the different goods. Lit wriggles in their left hand, interested in all of the different products; Dim is perfectly calm, settling nicely. She closes her eyes, content as can be.

At the back of the shop, there is a door with a glass window. Behind it, Illumine can see (and just barely hear) Hutch, doing something or other. They knock gently on the glass– it still startles Hutch enough to jump. They let a Chirop flutter off their hand, landing on a scratching post, and then open the door.

“Good afternoon,” Illumine greets. “I hear you’re toward whom I should direct my imp-related inquiries.”

“Um… yes?” Hutch is thrown by the strange phrasing. “Yes, I can… answer imp-related questions.”

“Excellent.” Illumine holds out their imps. “These are Dim and Lit.” They raise either up as they say their names.

“They’re awfully friendly for Uniqor,” Hutch observes, offering a finger for Dim to sniff. She does so, and nuzzles her face into his hand.

“I wouldn’t know– I’ve only encountered the two of them.”

“What seems to be the problem?” Hutch asks, switching to introduce themself to Lit.

“Dim is perfectly healthy,” Illumine begins, “if a bit lazy. It’s Lit that is the target of my concern. He eats everything. I mean that literally– not just any food accidentally left out on the counter; even inedible objects find themselves the victims of his voracious appetite.”

“Hm…”

“I’ll spare you the obvious: yes, I do feed him enough. I fed him and Dim separately for a short while, just to monitor their intake– as it so happens, Dim actually eats more. Of course, that could be because Lit is receiving, well, I’ll call it supplemental nutrition. I do my very best not to let him, but of course, I physically cannot observe him every moment of every day. I keep as much as possible out of reach.”

Hutch nods slowly. “Are there any other behavioural problems? Have you noticed any anxiety?”

“They’re very co-dependent and get anxious without the other, but I don’t let them be alone very often. This is an almost-normal occurrence– in fact, Lit was trying to eat his leash not five minutes ago. Granted, it could be the contempt for being bound; I want to acknowledge it may be a separate issue.”

“Of course,” Hutch nods. “What is it you feed them?”

“Oh, elaborate meals. I did a lot of research on what foods are best for Uniqor, and they eat much better than I do. Basically no kibble, and a lot of greens. I try to offer them a wide variety of dishes, too, since they shouldn’t have to be stuck eating the same meal every day.”

“Variety can be a problem with some imps, but I haven’t seen it being too much of a problem with Uniqor. Have you tried switching Lit to a more consistent diet?”

“Well, no- sort of? No, not at all, but I do know that they need to have the same food, or neither of them will eat. Like I said– they are completely co-dependent. I could try switching them both, though, if you think that would help.”

Hutch took a moment to think. “Maybe that would be best, but one last question before I offer any actual advice– how long ago did you get to know these two?”

“The day after the gala,” Illumine answers. They run their thumbs along their imps’ flanks. “They showed up at my doorstep, and very well made themselves at home. I didn’t really want to fight them, so I let them stay; and then I let them go; then they came back, so on and so forth. Eventually, they stopped wanting to leave altogether.”

“They came to you?” Hutch looked closer at Dim. She extended her neck to nuzzle them with the top of her head. “That is… very strange. Is that what you do now? Just let them do their thing?”

“More or less. They have the company of the other; they don’t need my attention. When they do, they do not hesitate; rain or shine, midday or..." They grimace. "...midnight.”

“Hm…”

Hutch turned their gaze to Lit, who looked back at them without a single thought in his head.

“Well, it sounds to me like pica,” they finally said. “That’s what it’s called when an imp craves objects that have no nutritional value. There are a lot of things that could cause it– but I suspect, if everything you’ve said is true, that it’s a matter of understimulation.”

“Understimulation,” Illumine repeats.

“It’s, ah, understandable, I suppose,” they continue. “If you didn’t set out to raise imps, you might not know what sort of care they require.”

Illumine ignores Hutch’s slightly judgemental tone. “That’s good– the solution is simple. What would you recommend I do, specifically?”

“Well, you could start by investing in some toys. I have a good selection, if you’d like to browse.”

“Mm, scraping me for money, are you?”

“What? No, I-”

Illumine laughs. “I’m only teasing. Really, show me what to do– honestly, this little lesson is long overdue.”