Good First Impressions

Written by Wolsal

CONTENT WARNING(S): Injury, implied malnutrition

It was late. Dark. Far too late and far too dark for them to be walking through the woods in search of a needle in a haystack- but here they were. 

Totsy silently cursed her former boss for having them out at this ungodly hour. ‘Just find a black rat in the woods (that they might not even be in) in the middle of the night! Easy!’. Bullshit. 

He kept his ears and eyes keened, holding the worn wooden bat tightly in her grip. They doubted it’d do much if she happened to run into… him. But it was better than nothing. And he couldn’t take any risks right now. Not when she was walking right into his domain. Not when she knew he’d be able to hear and smell them from a mile away. No, he couldn’t take those chances.

The air was crisp, not quite cold, but a welcome reprieve from the hot summer days. There were the sounds of frogs calling- a light breeze managing to penetrate through the droves of trees and lightly rustle her fur. Deep breath.

Totsy did his best to remain focused- shaking off any sleepiness that attempted to creep in. He was hyper aware of every miniscule sound. Every gentle blow of wind through the canopy of trees. Every cricket chirp. Every– 

-Snap-

The sound of a twig snapping made him stop in his tracks. His head swiveled in the direction of the sound- she could hear her heart rate quicken, blood rushing in her ears. They swallowed hard, feeling a bead of nervous sweat run down their face. Maybe- maybe they’d imagined it. He was starting to calm down a bit…

Then the bushes started rustling. A lot of rustling. Had he really found them-? The sounds couldn’t be coming from an animal, the distinct sound of footsteps was unmistakable. They took a few steps back from the bush, straining her eyes to try and see anything. Though it could’ve just been their mind playing tricks on them he could've sworn she’d seen light grey fur flash from a distance. 

…Maybe if she got the jump on him… if they could get a good hit in before making a break for it… then maybe that’d buy her enough time to get back to their shack. To safety.

They held up the bat, getting ready to swing the second he came out of the bushes. She ignored the heavy pounding in their chest, grip tightening on the smooth wood held tightly in his grasp.

A flicker of movement- something was emerging from the bushes- 

She wound back the bat as far as she could, swinging it forwards as hard as he possibly could without a second thought. Nor a first glance.

-Wham!-

The bat connected with the skull of the person that just walked out of the bushes- followed by a thunk as they landed on the dirt path… much lighter than they’d expect. And blow far too low to take him out…

It was only after the hit landed that Totsy actually saw the person they’d just clobbered. A horrifying revelation began to dawn on them.

That wasn’t the wolf.

And there was blood.

Immediately upon actually looking at who he’d just attacked she dropped the bat and let it clatter to his feet.

There, sprawled out on the ground in front of him, was a small frail rat. She rushed over to the person, dread sinking in as it fully sank in what he’d just done. Fuck- why hadn’t he thought to make sure it wasn’t the rat- why did she let her mind get the best of her-

“Shit shit shit-” He murmured as a new wave of panic set in- hands shaking.

They were laying on their back, a nasty bloodied bruise on the side of their head. It was instantly clear that she’d knocked them out cold, though any fears of having killed the rodent quickly vanished as he saw their chest rising and falling.

They carefully reached out a paw, placing it on their shoulder and gently shaking them. “Hey- kid, wake up-” She spoke softly, worry filling his voice. After not being able to elicit a response, Totsy sat for a few moments by the rat. They looked so small, defenseless, weak. 

A nauseating feeling of guilt swirled in his stomach. She’d attacked someone who couldn’t defend themself- someone who didn’t know he was even there- someone she’d been sent out with the sole purpose of protecting. 

Sharply inhaling, they resigned himself to what she knew she had to do. Nobody to blame but herself, he couldn’t even be mad at anyone else. 

Gingerly, they reached one hand under their knees, placing the other hand under their back as she hoisted them into their arms. To their surprise (and somewhat relief) the rat didn’t weigh much. He let their head rest between his chest and shoulder, focusing on their soft, almost ragged breathing as she began the trek back to her shack. 

He couldn’t help but feel a sense of gratitude that he wasn’t too far from home- they’d get there in under 20 minutes. 

 * * *

.

As the welcoming sight of the front porch greeted him, their walk turned into a light jog as they stepped onto the creaky wooden entryway. Fumbling around their coat pockets while keeping their hold on the rat, they pulled out a small rusty keyring. She shoved the old house key into the lock- twisting and pushing the door open with a creak.

Kicking the door shut once they were inside, they carefully set down the rat onto their worn lounge chair that sat in a small corner next to a bookcase. He positioned them as comfortably as she could, lifting a crumpled up blanket to drape around their shoulders. 

Totsy kneeled down in front of the chair, placing a gentle hand on their shoulder in concern. He furrowed his brows.

Now, in a fully illuminated space, she got her first proper look at the rat. As described, they had black fur- the only detail they’d been told to look for. It was mussed up and dirty, though given she figured they’d been living homeless and on the run she wasn’t exactly surprised. 

And, sure enough, rested atop their head was a familiar crown. 3 green eyes seemed to watch the cat forebodingly. He couldn’t help but feel an unnerved shiver run through him. She knew who was watching them. They looked away. 

The second thing she took notice of, aside from the head injury, was just how frail they really appeared. Their fur did a good job hiding most of it, as did their loose clothes, but it was still fairly obvious. 

Their collarbone was fully visible, as were their joints. Even though they couldn’t see, they were fairly certain based on how they felt while she was carrying them that the same could be said for their ribs and spine. 

She made a mental note to get them some food and water once they woke up

They weren’t well- that much was clear. She frowned, rising to her feet and rummaging through a cabinet for a small metal case. He carefully placed the case on the bench. He was quick to fill a small bowl with warm water, grabbing a few washcloths from a drawer.

Kneeling back down in front of the rat she dipped a washcloth in the warm water before bringing it to their head. As delicately as they could, they dabbed at the head injury to try and clean any blood off. Luckily there wasn’t much- though she still made sure there was none left. The rat’s face grimaced a little as the cloth dabbed at their head, making her cringe and pull back the washcloth. 

Sifting through the metal box full of various medical supplies, he finally unearthed a cotton pad and roll of medical tape. She tore off a strip of tape- placing the tape and pad onto the bruise and securing it in place.  

He pulled his hands back, readjusting the blanket around their shoulders to ensure they were comfortable. The longer they looked at the rat, the more something seemed to nag at her. He brushed it off as simply residual nerves from the night’s events. 

She clamored to his feet, dusting themself off and stepping back. Walking into the small kitchen across from their living room they filled up a small ceramic cup with water, placing it onto the side table next to the chair the rat sat on. Looking over to the rat she noticed them beginning to stir, snout scrunching up and ears swiveling to attention. They squinted their eyes open, blinking several times as the fogginess cleared from their vision.

Totsy leaned down enough to be on their level, careful not to make any sudden movements. “Hey kid, how you feeling?” Totsy spoke softly as she could muster, watching as the rat’s eyes fully opened. As soon as they fully registered where they were and what seemed to be happening they shot bolt upright, attempting to get up to presumably flee. In a moment of panic Totsy grabbed onto their shoulders, immediately regretting it as they saw the terror on their face.

“Hey hey hey- it’s ok- I’m not gonna hurt you- I’m sorry I- I thought you were someone else earlier-” She spoke quickly, releasing her hold on them and stepping back. “I’m just here to help you, promise-” 

The rat didn’t respond, still looking abjectly terrified. 

Then, their expression changed- eyes looking up to where the crown was sat and ears swiveling as if they were listening to something only they could hear. Right. He was probably able to speak to them much like he had to her. 

After several moments they looked back to the nervous looking cat standing in front of them, expression still uncertain though notably less fearful.

“There’s some water on the table next to ya’, can I get you anything else?” He asked, gesturing to where she’d left the cup. The rat shook their head lightly. Not very talkative it seemed- not like she blamed them, they’d had a rough night. 

“Oh! Forgive my manners, name’s Totsy- this is my cabin, you can stay here’s long as you need, alright?” He smiled softly at them in her best attempt to put them at ease. 

“What’s your name kid? If you don’t mind me asking of course.” The rat shuffled in their seat, seemingly unsure of how to answer, fidgeting with their hands. 

Totsy stood scratching their head for a few moments- perplexed by the admittedly odd reaction to the question. They thought for a few moments- maybe they just… really didn’t like their name? Maybe they were too scared to say anything?

After several more seconds it finally clicked, a second wave of guilt smacking her in the face. The entire time since they’d arrived here, they hadn’t made a single noise. 

“Are you… able to talk?” He asked gently, kneeling down once more so they weren’t just standing over the rat. They shook their head in response.

Right. That explained it. “Are you able to write- or maybe read then?” She questioned, going through the various potential ways for them to communicate. They shook their head again. His face fell. This might be harder than she’d hoped.

“Alright, that’s alright, I’m guessing you don’t know how to sign either then, huh?” She spoke as gently as she could. In truth he felt horrible for the rat- being put in the position of Vessel had been hard enough for himself, but imagining what it was like in their shoes- she could honestly cry at the thought.

“For now,” she started, “If you need or want anything, just bring me to it or point at it, got it?” they nodded. “And you can keep doin’ what you’re doin’, just shake or nod your head to respond.” they nodded again.

“Alright kiddo, I’ll leave you to settle in, if you’d like you can take my bed and I’ll sleep out here- would that be alright?” He asked. They seemed to think for a few moments, not immediately responding. 

“I promise I don’t mind, it’s the least I can do really.” They took a few more moments before nodding, an ever-so slight smile crossing their face. Totsy let out a silent sigh of relief. 

“If you follow me I’ll show you where it is- I’ll bring you some food and water once you’re settled, if y’need clothes or anything else just let me know, I’ll help however I can, yeah?” The rat nodded, clamboring to their feet. 

Totsy brought them to the small bedroom right off of the living room/kitchen they’d been in- there was a twin bed sat on a rickety metal frame by a curtained off window, a wooden nightstand sat next to the head of the bed with a lamp that gave off a soothing yellow glow in the night. The bed was freshly made, a seemingly handmade quilt draped across it. There was a desk placed next to a pair of closet doors, the desk itself had several worn books stacked atop it alongside a pen and stack of papers. 

“You can use anything you find in here, feel free to make yourself at home- I’ll leave you be, find me if you need or want anything, alright?” She said, her tone kind and genuine. The rat lightly smiled once more, though seemingly more to themself than anything. They nodded. Totsy smiled back, walking out of the room and pulling the door shut behind them. 

.

Lily turned away from the door, climbing into the bed and under the sheets- curling up in the middle covered by the blanket. 

They let out a sigh, body aching and mind still spinning from all that had happened the last several days. They were exhausted.

Yawning, they closed their eyes- allowing the comfort of finally laying in a bed for the first time in a decade lull them into a light sleep. 

The quiet embrace of the nighttime noises hummed into the otherwise silent room, filling the space with a sort of peace that for once, they were free to enjoy.