FREE STORIES 2012(107)

Hay was cut and with a great deal of fiddling and swearing, eventually stacked to dry in the vast garage as planned. Of course, the heating system refused to acknowledge that temperatures were now low enough to kick on, and thus aid in the drying process.

Jack was deep in the heat ducts trying to trace the thermostat leads when he next saw Notch.

The black mouse appeared in front of him and waved. "Ohayougozaimasu!"

"Hi Notch! Thanks for the help with the bolt. I owe you."

"Tasukete! Akachan no seigyo ga dame desu! Kite onegaishimasu!" The mouse gestured back the way Jack had come.

"I don't understand," Jack said.

Notch fell silent a moment and then started again, this time with acting. Mouse pantomime was very entertaining although not very informative. "Akachan!" Notch squeaked and put his paws over his head and then stomped around in circle, roaring. Or at least, that's what it looked like he was attempting to do but what was coming out was ear—piercing squeaks.

"Okay, okay, okay." Anything to stop the squeaks. Obviously something larger than a mouse was terrorizing the rodent tribe. "I do owe you. I'll come and help."

Just about anything was bigger than a mouse, but it might be even bigger than Jack. Backup would be a wise idea.





Alfie was grazing in the meadow by the river, stoically trying to ignore the sabotaged mower that continued to march across the field. Wheel tracks marked the mowers frustrated attempts at its assigned task.

"This is not a pasture for livestock!" The mower complained. It had not taken well to losing its cutting blades. "This is a public recreational facility. We have laws against the likes of you." It avoided a pile of Alfie's manure. "And we have scooper rules! And you! You're supposed to be on a leash."

This was directed at Jack.

"I'm on a leash." Jack pointed out. They'd learned that the mower could summon animal control if they broke certain laws and he never wanted to go through that again.

The mower paused to eye him with a telescoping camera. It took in the collar, the piece of thread, and the mouse in the carry basket, holding onto the end of the "leash."

"Ohayougozaimasu, robotto no kamisama!" Notch squeaked.

There was a long, long silence, and finally, the mower whirled and rolled away, muttering, "It still isn't a pasture for livestock."





"I don't understand how this is our problem." Alfie complained as they worked their way through the city.

"Where would you be if I hadn't come looking to see what was making that god—awful noise?"

"Stupid machines." Alfie muttered. "Damn milk dispenser dried up and then the stable door broke. I couldn't get back in."

This part of the story Jack had never heard before. It sounded similar to his first memories. He'd been raised in a place warm and snug with machines catering to his every need and then suddenly he found himself in the barren empty city. "How’d you end up in that the pit?"

"Got lost. Fell."

Jack had heard Alfie from half a mile away, as the pony gave loud wordless cries of terror. It had taken two hours to calm him down and three whole days to get the much larger animal out of the hole. It required a great deal of cable, pulleys, a sling, and a well—timed roping of a street sweeper's bumper. Renard had helped but only under protest as he was sure the pony would eat them once they freed him. They'd had to stop and actually look up Alfie's species before Renard was pacified.

Renard would call Jack stupid for helping the mice since the cat viewed the mice as food. It seemed only right though to help the mice out since they had fetched nuts and bolts for Jack that fallen out of reach.

"I want to see what got the mice upset. There aren't many others around. There are us, the mice, and the birds."

"And the birds are god awful stupid."

True. They did kill themselves with great regularly by running into windows. If birds could talk, they chose never to speak to Jack, even after several peacemaking attempts. At least the birds put the mice farther down the possible dinner list.

Notch squeaked something, tugging lightly on Jack's leash. The black mouse pointed excitedly at the building that they were about to pass. There were words etched into the heavy glass of the doors.

"What does that say?" Alfie couldn't read. He contended it was because he didn't have hands. Jack wasn't sure if this were true or not; he'd been trying to teach Alfie but the pony seemed unable to grasp the difference between letters. Jack had always been able to read, just as he had always been able to talk.

"Mayflower." Jack read the first word. It was plastered all over the place as if it meant "the." He didn't know the second word. He tried to sound out the syllables for Alfie. "K—re—ch—e. Maybe. Kre—cheh. Kreesh."