Freak

8.

He left her where she was and went about his day, waiting for her to wake.

After about an hour or so the little girl appeared at his side as he was saddling his horse. Her blond hair looked similar to a bird's nest, if Miss Grimshaw saw her now... and her eyes were puffy with sleep.

"Good morning, sleep well?" Arthur couldn't help the smile tugging at the corner of his lips as she gave a nod, rubbing the palms of her hands over her eyes.

"I thought I'd take you with me to run some errands today, what'd you say about that?" there was an instant spark of excitement in Blue's eyes, seemingly pushing away some of the tiredness.

"Are we going now?!?" She asked, obviously eager to go.

"Go get something to eat and let someone help you with that" he motioned to her hair, causing her to go cross-eyed as she tried to look at the curls hanging down her forehead "and then we'll get out of here, sounds good?" he continued.

"Uhu!" was her only, and presumably affirmative, answer as she turned and ran toward the fire to eat and get ready for the day ahead.

***

"Look Arthur! Look at that bunny!" Blue bounced slightly in the saddle in front of Arthur, pointing towards a patch of trees, while he steered them towards Valentine. There, in the tall grass, sat a snow-white bunny, seemingly not bothered by their presence at all.

"Would you look at that..." he mumbled, more to himself than to Blue. Never once in all his life had he seen one like that. They weren't more than maybe a few meters away and yet it didn't move as Arthur halted his horse next to it.

"Let me down" whispered Blue looking back at him with a smile. Doing as she asked, he dismounted and helped her to the ground. She crouched slightly, carefully placing her feet in the soft grass as she slowly made her way towards it. When she got close enough so that she could have touched it she kneeled to the ground. Arthur was astonished, why didn't it run away?

Blue pulled some dandelion leaves from the dirt and gently offered it to the bunny and to both of their surprise it moved towards her and started eating it out of her hand. Seeing how Blue started reaching her other hand towards the animal Arthur got worried it might turn on her.

"Don't touch it, it might be sick" he warned but it was too late, Blue was already stroking its back with gentle movements, flattening its ears in the process.

"It's so nice Arthur!" the delight in her voice warmed Arthur but he still felt somewhat uneasy about its unusual behavior.

"Yeh yeh, now back away from it, try not to scare it" who knew what kind of disease it could be carrying and what effects it would have on a young child.

"I'm gonna try and pick it up!" she said as if he hadn't just told her to get away from it...

"What no! Blue-" ever so slowly she reached under it and lifted it off the ground "what did I just say-" she turned towards him, bunny cradled to her chest "are you even listening to me?" she most obviously didn't...

"It won't bite me, look how sweet it is, look at its eyes!" Arthur didn't want to look at its eyes, he wanted her to put the thing down so they could get moving.

"Its so soft, feel it" she was now standing right in front of him and he could see its bright red eyes, what kind of bunny was this?!

"No thank you, now put it back"

"Aw come on, just touch it, please." Once those peculiar blue and brown eyes locked with his own he couldn't help but give in, running a finger down its back. It wasn't softer than any other bunny he'd caught but he didn't tell her that, especially considering those bunnies had mostly been fried oven an open fire and eaten...