No love is so certain and pure as a mother's love!
— Barley Beard
Ben turned away from Amber in fear, sprang under his bedroom door, and waddled downstairs.
His stubby legs couldn't carry him down to his mom fast enough. Nothing on his body moved right. He felt like he was wearing clown shoes. It took all of his concentration just to walk, and every few paces he had to leap thirty feet down to the next stair step. His tail thumped each time he landed, until finally he whirled and yelled at it, "Quit following me. You give me the creeps."
Ben wheezed. He was amazed at the smells on the carpet. His powerful mouse nose picked up the strong odors of spilled grape juice and a crumb of a peanut butter sandwich he'd sneaked to his room last month.
Amber raced nimbly beside him, hopping on her back legs and landing on her front paws. "What are you doing? Where are you going? You won't leave me will you?" She sounded frightened. "I've never been out of my cage before."
Ben ignored her. He felt glad she was scared. It served her right!
He stumbled past the Christmas tree, still petrifying in the corner, and limped beneath wads of wrapping paper as large as buses.
By the time he reached the kitchen, a hike of at least a mile, he felt as if he'd collapse. His heart raced hundreds of beats a minute, and his mouth had begun to foam.
He passed a line of black ants, marching across the kitchen floor. As they marched, they sang:
All us bugs up in the cupboard,
love to work the whole night long.
We aren't lazy, we aren't crazy.
We are bold and cruel and strong.
Just as butterflies like sunshine,
Just as slugs love driving rain,
Us bugs love to sing and dance—
Kick your mama in the pants!
Us bugs love to sing and dance
Around the kitchen
Ben watched the ants caper, feeling as if he'd just taken a wrong turn into the Twilight Zone.
He scampered onto the kitchen floor and found his feet sliding on the linoleum with each step. It was almost like being in an ice-skating rink. He passed the fridge and saw a dark alley between it and the wall.
Dust bunnies the size of tumbleweeds lurked in the corners.
A cockroach careened giddily across the kitchen floor, like a remote control car that's gone berserk, barreled into Ben, and shouted, "Everyone to the pantry! Someone left the Cap'n Crunch open, and we're having a luau!"
Ben stared at the cockroach, dumbfounded.
Then he ducked under the kitchen counter and peered up at his mother. There she towered, bigger than the Statue of Liberty. She was staring mournfully from a mountain of moldy dishes to the ceiling and mumbling under her breath, "Please, Heavenly Father, bless me with a maid. . . . "
"Mom!" Ben squeaked. "Down here. Help!"
But with the rumble of the TV in the other room since Dad was watching Pokemon, she couldn't hear him.
YOU ARE READING
Of Mice & Magic: Book 1 Ravenspell
Teen FictionMore than anything, Benjamin Ravenspell wants a pet. But when he buys a mouse named Amber, he gets more than he bargained for. No sooner does Ben take her home, than Amber turns him into a mouse too. You see, Amber has magical abilities, and...
