Jessie stumbled over Vortran, asleep on the cellar floor, as Jerret reached the bottom of the stairs. The pascal yawned and sat up, blinking at both of them.
“Did you sleep down here Ms. Vortran?”
“Hm?” Vortran seemed to notice her location for the first time, then registered the remains of a loaf of bread in her right hand, “Huh.”
“I guess you’d be comfortable down here. But isn’t it kind of big for sleeping?”
“I didn’t sleep down here, I came down earlier and must’ve nodded off.”
“But it’s not even breakfast yet, why were you down here so early?”
“Why are you down here so early?” Vortran finally noticed Jerret hanging back behind the shelves a little, “You guys hungry too?”
“Mr. Jerret and I are getting snacks cause Aunt Rebecca isn’t back yet with more eggs and it’s my birthday.”
“Oh. Yeah, Happy birthday, Kid.”
“Well really it’s a finding day cause my birthday is earlier in the year but Misa said I could only have one so I picked this one.”
“Okay.” Vortran brushed some of the dirt and dust off of the bread she was holding and quickly finished it off, “I should probably head inside though… excuse me.” She gave Jerret a bit of a wide berth as she headed up the stairs. A blast of cold air announced her exit and it was just the two of them in the cellar.
“Do you want some fruit or nuts or jerky or we have these biscuits that are kinda hard but really tasty…” Jessie started digging through crates and containers, emerging with a couple biscuits and a bag of dried meat.
“I’ll have some of that.” Jerret took a couple pieces of Jerky from her. It wasn’t much but his stomach stopped growling as soon as he tore a piece off. It tasted like deer meat and the doe from the other day sprang to mind.
They ate silently, other than the occasional contented noise from Jessie. Once she finished what she had grabbed Jessie hopped up and headed back to the door. Jerret got up and followed her, finishing the last bit of jerky.
The snow monster was far less startling from behind, and they made their way to the side entrance. Jerret’s fingers tingled as the blood started flowing again, and his nose felt like it was running. He sat down on the floor near the fireplace and Jessie quickly joined him.
“Aunt Rebecca is on the way back so Aunt Sarah says it’ll be about an hour for breakfast. Can you believe how many presents I got?” She was staring at the pile of gifts again.
“Mmm.” The last edge of frost was melting away and Jerret shuddered a little.
“When’s your birthday?”
There was something very tasty cooking in the kitchen. The jerky would barely be enough to hold him. Jessie tapped him on the shoulder and he started.
“When’s your birthday, Mr. Jerret?”
“Dunno.” He wasn’t sure if it was the abruptness of his answer or the answer itself but the kid frowned at him, “I never really celebrated mine so i’m not sure when it is.”
“But then how do you know when you’re older? And how do people know when to get you presents?”
“I guess I don’t. It’s not a big deal though. I don’t need a birthday.” The table was being set by a couple of the younger woman. His stomach growled a little.
Jessie poked him in the shoulder again and he was able to focus on her better. “Would you like mine? I’m not using it. I have this day instead.”
“That’s… very nice of you, Kiddo.” He hesitated, looking over at the pile of presents, “I’ll think about it, okay?”
“Okay. It’s in the spring on this planet, so it’s nice and warm and the flowers are blooming.”
“That’s nice.”
“What would you like for your birthday?”
“Huh?”
“For presents. I like getting toys that do stuff like run around. New clothes are nice too, cause I tend to mess mine up a lot.”
“I don’t really need anything.”
“It doesn’t have to be something you need, silly. What do you *want*?”
“I-”
“Jessica, I need your help with something!” Sarah called from the kitchen, interrupting before he could respond.
“Coming! Talk to ya later, Mr. Jerret!” Jessie scurried away across the carpet, not bother to stand upright.
Jerret watched her disappear into the kitchen before turning back to the fire. His appetite had disappeared for the moment, and his thoughts refused to focus. Around him the activity continued, as irrelevant as the storm outside.
Enesthi 