Another scare at work today. A guest brought a rucksack with them.. Neon pink, similar to those carried by so many who visit the Stitch.
But what freaked us out was the curved metal tip resembling a blowtorch that stuck out of the top like a mini periscope. Similar to those used to weld or melt steel. The guest was a man in his thirties, and cap hid his eyes. Prime Butter Mouse age.
That Butter Mouse.
Link marched towards him, and my adrenaline skyrocketed from nothing to a full electric blast. I did not know where Deni was, or if we were already too late.
A false alarm. Turns out some guy in the robot forearm industry had arrived straight from work, and had brought a hand and wrist along. Not a wise decision. But neither was Link’s immediate attempt to grab the joint without permission.
We managed to calm the guest down with a few free drinks.A tour behind the scenes on their next visit. By the end he even let Link shake the robot hand.
I still had to take some time in the break room. My hands were shaking, and I did not trust myself to feed the correct amount of flakes to the occupants of tank 57 and 118.
Deni found me, not to provide comfort, but to get a stick to lever a tentacle off their arm. 286 has been shedding again.
'Venus…did you need...a snack?'
‘Deni, where were you?’
Deni watched me, the sucker covered limb flapping and constricting around their silver bicep.
‘I think perhaps…a snack might…help…with things.’
They put a hand on my shoulder, but I still shook. One of the vending bears was trying to catch my attention after they heard the word snack. Usually their grin is enough to keep me motivated. Today I saw how shallow the enamel whites of their eyes are, and the cold metal is within their pupils.
We got some seaweed. Link did not come looking to get us back to work, and Nate popped his head for a fraction, then let us be.
I sat by the Butter Mouse after that. All I can hope for is that this is a safe place. A charm to keep her namesake away.
Clip: Something that fascinates me about this clip is the noise. The building we have seen before. But something is walking. Someone is talking. Do they live in the house? Is that their place of work?