“I can’t get my head around this.” Juni says, and she winds some string around her forearm.
Milo lies on his back, watching from a few feet away. “Move your arm around more, in all directions”
Juni is getting more perplexed. “I can’t even figure out what this is for, what am I supposed to do with it?” She says, as more of the spool of pink string is unwinding on the floor in front of her.
“I think you have to flail your arms faster and maybe get some of it around your neck and face.” Milo says, calmly.
Juni pulls some string into her mouth. “It doesn’t taste very good, it doesn’t taste much like anything.”
“Now that it’s all over your face and in your mouth, you should roll around and twist on the floor, I think that will help make sense of it.” Milo says, dryly.
Juni darts out from under the couch, fully wound up in pink string, as the spool is dragged out behind her. “This is such a crappy toy, it’s really becoming an irritation with me.”
Milo gets up from lying on the floor. He leaps up onto a chair across the room and sits. “You’d better jump up onto the couch.” He says.
As Juni jumps onto the couch, the string further unwinds. “I just want this to be over.” She says.
“You need to get away from it.” Milo says. “Get up onto the back of the couch and run back and forth, then go over to the shelf where it can’t follow you.”
Juni jumps up onto the shelf and hides behind some books. ”I don’t know if it sees me or not.”
“It seems like it’s not watching, you should jump down and hide behind the floor lamp for a minute.” Milo suggests.
As Juni leaves the shelf, the row of books are pulled off with the string, they fly all over. “What is happening!” She yells.
“Panic and scream really loud, run around all over the place, try to scare the string.” Milo instructs her.
Juni runs around the room, the string has caught the lamp, it has disturbed an end table and knocked over a glass of water. She tries to run down the hall, to get out of the room, for all the noise and commotion, the string has become lodged under the couch leg and it restrains her. Between being wound up in the string, and caught in place, she can’t move very well. She glares at the spool of pink string. “I hate you, leave me alone! I don’t want to play with you!” She yowls.
“Hiss and growl at it, maybe it will get the hint.” Milo says.
Juni hunches, facing the spool. He glowers at it from beneath her furrowed brow. “If it moves, I’m going to kill it.”
“I think I just saw it move.” Milo says.
Juni turns her head quickly toward Milo, squinting her eyes at him.
Just then, the food lady who cleans collects their poop come through the front door. “Juniper Jane Jackson! What have you gotten your self into! Look that this mess!”
“I didn’t make a mess.” Milo informs her.
The food lady breaks off the string and picks Juni up. “Are you OK, you must be traumatized.” She goes to a drawer and gets some scissors.
“I’m traumatized.” Milo says.
“Just give me a minute, I’ll have you out of this.” She cuts the string away from Juniper, who is shaking. She pulls Juni close to her and hugs her and rubs her neck with her fingernails. “You poor thing, let’s go get you some catnip.”
“I want catnip.” Milo says. “Where’s my hug?”
626 Words
Episode 4 of the Arc of The Bard, the writer’s interview show, is out now.
Do you want to be a guest on The Arc of The Bard?
