Ch. 12: Preview #7

Here's the last passage of the chapter. I want to go back and tweak the Lady of the Lake a bit, and put together another render or two, then ready to post this and move on to Ch 13, which will wrap up the Exhibition.

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☄☄ “Mouse!” ☄☄

His Mighty’s brusque tone piqued him just a little, as his capable hands pried the knots loose.  He even helped her down … and found his eyes level with her brows.  He was taller than her – a revelation more powerful than any he could imagine.

☄☄ “What have you done!?” ☄☄ she accused, her searing voice amplified through the arena.  Though no longer a towering amazon in his eyes, she was still toned, fierce, and a force to be reckoned with.

☄☄ “Hey!  Answer me!” ☄☄

☄☄ “I … I …” ☄☄  His newfound confidence wavered.  ☄☄ “I didn’t have a choice!” ☄☄

She stormed forward, out of the microphone’s hearing, to berate him in private.  “Explain,” she demanded.  “Right now.”

Her stare made him feel like a tiny Mouse again.  How did she do that?  He animatedly explained about the lake, and how he’d needed the first bottle to make it through.  How he’d only taken the second bottle when he’d had no other choice, his only way to rescue her.

Of course, he left out the part about how damned incredible it felt along the way.

Unexpectedly, his Mighty’s anger softened.  The impetuous teen of the past would have been blinded by rage and dismissed his explanation outright.  But the far maturer young woman before him managed to actually listen, consider, and give him the benefit of the doubt.  “That’s the truth?” she questioned, eye to eye.  “You did it because you had to, not because you wanted to?”

He considered but replied earnestly, “I want what’s best for the team.  Whatever that is.  If that means me … shrinking … again after this, then OK.”

Total relief washed over his Mighty’s face.  “Thank god. I thought you’d betrayed me again. I should’ve realized I’d trained you better than that. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt until I can watch the tape.” She looked past him quickly. “Now that I’m free, we obviously don’t need you this big anymore. I’ll take it from here. You hang back and look for some way to get back to Mouse size, quickly. There’s gotta be a way.”

Theo’s hopes took a hit. “Why not use me while we can?  I can do things now.  You should see how I handled the—”

“Don’t fall into that trap!  Think like a Mouse and leave the Mighty stuff to me.  I’m certain that’s what we’re supposed to do.”

“But the whole Exhibition so far—”

“Hey!  No more debate.”  She put a hand on his shoulder, gruffly turned him, and pulled him forward. “Remember, you’re just a Mouse,” she chastised.  “You’re not a fighter.  Best you can do is keep your eyes peeled and call out if anything happens. Show me how good of a sidekick you can be.”

The condescension in her voice was just too much.  He was so tempted to shove her back and set her straight. He absolutely could have.

No.  That was the old him talking. He had to think more than one move ahead. “Alright,” he forced, swallowing his pride.

She patted his arm like a condescending mother and pushed off gently to leave him behind, venturing into the empty battlement all alone. His frustration swelled. She thought just as lowly of him, even now. Would he ever gain her respect?