He laughed aloud. "Turnip? That's silly." *** She was watching him with wide eyes. "Do you have a cold? What tribe do you belong to?"
She laughed too, clearly pleased. "Yeah, it is! My papa is silly a lot, but he was serious! Isn't that weird?" * * * He seemed to recede slightly, his shoulders slumping. "I... I..." He was interrupted by a quick scurrying as a small deer mouse leaped over to them, squeaking quickly.
"Super weird. I've never heard of someone named Turnip!" *** She gasped, her eyes widening. "Is.. Is that him?"
She laughed again, looking around. "Yeah. He's funny. So, this is the attic?" * * * The boy's eyes lit up and he scratched under the mouse's chin. "There you are," he said quietly as the mouse rolled onto his back. "I was so worried."
He nodded, looking around the space that seemed to cluttered with forgotten objects. "Yup. The attic." *** She tilted her head, looking a little nervous. "Looks like you didn't need my help after all.."
"How long have you been here?" she asked, going over to the edge of a tarp and kicking it. * * * "Well... maybe not," the boy said, scratching the mouse's belly. "Do you wanna pet him? Munsheiner is really nice."
He backed up as dust flew up. "My whole life. I was born here." *** She approached nervously, reaching out to pet him.
This seemed to shock her, and she looked over at him curiously. "Really?" * * * The mouse was still a baby, and his fur was incredibly soft. The mouse squeaking, looking up at her with dark eyes.
"No, no," she said hastily. "It's not bad. It's exciting. I just... I thought that every one of us grew up... You know." She pointed to her feet. "Downstairs." * * * He nodded excitedly, seeming to brighten with the return of his mouse. "Yeah! He likes to roll in the dust to clean his fur. Isn't that funny?"
He looked down curiously. "I've never been downstairs.." *** She grinned brightly. "It is. I like him."
She tilted her head curiously. "That's crazy," she responded, shaking her head thoughtfully as she began to walk across the attic floor. * * * The boy patted his hip and the mouse sprung to attention, sitting up straight. The boy reached into the pack on his back and pulled out an old, large, worn mouse saddle, and placed it on Munsheiner's back.
He followed her curiously. "What's it like?" *** She frowned, looking up at him. "Are you leaving..?"
"Downstairs? Well... my house is in the kitchen wall. That's where humans make all the food. Have you seen a human before?" * * * He frowned, sniffling again. "I gotta get a bandage for my hand," he said, showing it to her. It was still bleeding from before. His fingers were dirty and when she actually stopped to look, she would see that his hair was ruffled and messy.
His eyes widened. "I've heard them, but I've never seen one." *** She tilted her head before she brightened, reaching into her back pocket and pulling out a red ribbon. She held it out to him. "Maybe this can help while you find bandages?"
She looked excited. "They're so big," she began gesturing with a spare hand. "So tall. They're really fun!" * * * He looked down at the ribbon, frowning worriedly. "What is that?" he asked, coughing into his arm again.
He looked curious and excited. "Wow... I wanna see!" *** She held her hand out to him brightly. "It's a ribbon! I can tie it for you. I know how to tie!"
"I can show you," she said importantly. "But they're not home right now. They went to the Outside." * * * He looked very nervous at this, reaching his injured hand out to her tentatively.
He looked thoughtful, but nodded as he reached a conclusion. "Another time, then." *** She was very gentle, taking the ribbon and carefully wrapping the wound, tying it off.
She nodded, looking around for a moment before looking over at him. "Can I come back tomorrow?" * * * He sniffled, looking up at her. "Thank you," he said in a quiet voice.
