Hero now had a much better routine set in place for visiting the humans under his care while also keeping up with his family and the household chores. Obviously, the young Borrower couldn’t see everyone every day and, instead, made an effort every few days to see people on different floors, but was always careful to not guarantee a day in case he couldn’t make it. The really good days were when the chores and borrowings that were on his to-do list lined up with the floor he needed to be on to see his friends.

Sam was doing well, but the slight change of weather made him visit these “doctor” people more often. Thankfully after his line broke that day, Sam hadn’t pressed to hold or touch Hero; however, that didn’t mean it didn’t happen. Now, Hero rarely needed to belay down his line, seeing that Sam offered a lift safely down to the shelf. Hero gratefully accepted, finding the sudden drop exciting. There was also no doubt that Sam would be careful while holding the Borrower boy.

Recently, they had gotten to the point to where Sam would lean against the wall and play his game or show off his books while Hero sat on his shoulder. It was an odd sensation for both of them in the beginning (if they were being honest) but that subsided with a little practice and time.

Little Maggie was going to someone who was helping her speak, but Hero also wanted to do his part and help the young human girl. When he went to visit her, he made sure to spend extra time with her and work with her on her letters. Maggie was still a bit young for Hero to be completely comfortable with her holding him; however, one day, they were practicing greetings and Hero agreed to shake her hand again and again. It made the little girl giggle, which made Hero quite happy. She had such a sweet smile and laugh after all.

The woman on the ground floor apartment was the furthest away, but it was still worth the trek to listen to her humming and singing away in her unit. Hero discovered that, as long as he was quiet, he could actually go out and listen to her on the counter or her table, going completely unnoticed. There were a few times like when he accidentally hit his dagger on some glass, making a painfully obvious ringing sound, that he feared he would be discovered; however, even when he remained nearby and still within sight, the woman didn’t notice. It was a benefit to having a blind human in his care.

Still, he wondered if there was anything else he could do for the woman. It sounded like she was having a hard time finding something called a “gig,” but Hero had never seen one of them and didn’t know what even to look for. Still, despite this rough patch, she was kind and friendly, helpful when she didn’t have to be. In a way, her actions were like Hero’s – just trying to make the world a little bit better.

The young man named Watney apparently was in this thing called “university,” where he was studying art. He finished but went back, which was something Hero didn’t quite understand. Watney wanted to learn more about illustration and animation and, oftentimes, focused his attention on these so-called “Littles.” It was still a fascinating concept that Hero wanted to learn more about so, in exchange for Hero’s assistance, Watney obtained copies of the books and let Hero read them while Watney sketched Hero.

Hero acted as a model, running back and forth across the desk and performing certain actions like holding up his weapon, swinging his line, or even opening a book, which was particularly difficult seeing the cover was so much larger than him. Watney kept to his word and made some of the features different, always seeking approval before he posted to this online site called “Tumblr.” Hero watched in awe as this sketched form of himself with a tail and ears ran across the screen, opened the book, and began reading. It repeated over and over again, fascinating the Borrower teen.

Hero’s most recent challenge, however, was what he set out to do that day.

He and his sister were borrowing from one of the apartment kitchens when the human came home. They were already finished and heading back into the walls. Still, the experience was always a jolt to their nerves. While Hero waited for his sister to descend the line, Hero peered out of the partially cracked open electrical cover doorway at the person. The human was a young man with slightly shaggy hair and he carried a large, oddly shaped black box in his left hand.

By the looks of things, he was annoyed. His features held a tiredness and near desperation as he set down the oddly shaped box and proceeded to talk to no one in particular.

“Yes, I’m sure. He just up and quit! That’s the fourth one in three months.” The man paused, nodding to himself. “That’s what I’m saying.” Another pause. Hero ducked into the shadows, concealing this curiosity as the human stomped into the kitchen and wrenched one of the cabinet doors open.

Hero could now see the human was talking into one of the small rectangle boxes called a “phone.” Sam showed Hero his phone, but the human boy couldn’t really explain how it worked. The basic premise was that you could talk to people really far apart, which absolutely fascinated the Borrower.

“I did!” The sudden exclamation made Hero jump, his heart skipping a few beats as his hands flew to cover his nearly involuntary yelp. “I put up all of the posters. I even went and paid for an ad! Dude… I’m telling you… we’re not going to have a singer for our gig this weekend. We’re going to have to cancel.”

It sounds like this guy knows what a “gig” is, but I can’t just go ask. And cancel? Cancel what? A gig? Just because they didn’t have a singer? Hero’s green eyes brightened and excitement skipped in his heart. He knew just what to do; but, to do it, he would have to buck up the courage once again to speak to a human.

~~~

So, there Hero was making his way through the dusty halls of the floorboards to the place under the woman’s apartment. He remembered which unit the guy was staying in and planned on using that rather than gain access to the poster, which was out in the main area. If he tried, Hero would undoubtedly be seen because of the open area. The aspiring hero hoped it would be enough.

In the meantime, his mind grappled with how to best go about speaking to this particular human. Being out in the open didn’t work because she couldn’t see him, so that was out. He knew she could read, but he couldn’t hardly leave a note. He didn’t know her name or anyone in the apartment who knew her, so he couldn’t direct them to tell her about it. For a brief moment, he considered asking Sam to go and talk to the woman but decided it would be weird.

No. He had to do this himself. The adolescent Borrower grabbed his hook and took a reassuring breath before entering the apartment. Of all the places he could be, Hero thought the counter would be optimal. It had a few additional hiding places if she had a bad reaction to learning about him. Also, there was an emergency exit he had been working on by the fridge. It wasn’t pretty, but it was the best he could come up with.

His keen ears didn’t pick up anything in the unit. Perfect. He would have time to get on the counter and wait. The Borrower boy realized this wasn’t the first time he’d revealed himself to a human, but the thought still made his heart pound and skip. It would not deter him. Two people needed help and that was exactly what he was going to do.

He had just made it up onto the counter when he heard the jingle of keys and the door swing open accompanied by the tapping of the stick she carried with her. The instinctual nervousness began creeping back, but he was ready; at least, as ready as he could be as he charged into the unknown once again. Hero could only hope she would be as accepting as the others he had encountered.

The woman set down her things onto the table in the same order as always, hung her stick on the coat rack, and let out a satisfying sigh before walking through the rest of the apartment. Hero watched her glide by his position on the counter and retrieved a glass from the cabinet just over his head. The little Borrower’s heart pounded as he stared up at her. She was much taller than the other humans he interacted with. At least his interactions with Watney consisted of that human sitting down. This woman was standing at her full height, making Hero crane his neck to see her face.

She poured herself a glass of water, an amount that would keep his family sustained for several days, and leaned back against the opposite counter, setting the glass down nearby. There were several seconds where Hero was at a complete loss for words. Was he really about to do this? What would her reaction be? Hero summoned all the courage he could and cleared his throat. This action immediately made the woman’s eyes widen. She stood bolt upright, head turning from side to side to better hear what was going on and eyes darting involuntarily around despite being unable to detect the Borrower standing in the open in front of her.

“Hello?” she called, features hardening with determination.

“Uh… hello,” replied Hero. Sadly, he was softer than anticipated. The woman’s hands were shaking slightly as she reached around behind her for the nearest thing she could grab which, to Hero’s horror, was a pot she left to dry on the stove.

“Who’s there? You’d better get out of my apartment, or I swear you’ll regret it!” The woman began to retreat back toward the living room and the door.

Not good. Not good. Not good. Hero’s panicking brain could only repeat the phrase over and over again. At the risk of being swatted by a heavy pot, Hero ran forward on the counter toward the woman.

“Wait! Please wait! My name is Hero. I’m… uh… well… I’m a…” Hero’s mind was grasping for something – anything – to tell her without revealing his species true name. His mind finally latched onto the one thing he hoped the human understood. “I’m a Little.” Hero held his breath as the wave of confusion set over the woman. Thankfully, though, she stopped backing away in the face of this bewildering statement by the young Borrower boy.

“A what? A Little? Like the children’s book? How stupid do you think I am? There’s no such…”

“No no no! Really! I am! I mean… I don’t have a tail and fuzzy ears, but… well… here. I’ll show you!” The words spilled from Hero like water over a barricade. He hadn’t even realized what he had proposed when he saw a flash of confusion cross the woman’s face. He had her attention. Now, he needed to keep it.

“If… well… if you set your hand down on the counter, I can walk over and show you,” instructed Hero, hoping he was convincing the much larger being. Seemingly, it at least had her attention. The woman’s eyes narrowed and she took a hesitant step forward, pot still raised in preparation to strike.

Hero felt his heart pounding in his chest. It thumped dangerously hard against his ribs, but he had been in this situation before and convinced himself that everything would be okay. If she’s anything like the others, she’ll be curious but will listen. I hope she listens anyway. The woman took another hesitant step forward and placed a nervous hand against the counter by the sink.

“Okay,” said Hero, more to himself to soothe his nerves than to her. “I’m going to get closer now, okay?” The woman gave no indication that she was going to move, but still held her pot in her other hand aloft for the slightest provocation. Hero took in a shaky, calming breath and stepped forward by her index finger and thumb until he was standing barely a hair’s breath away from her hand.

“I’m going to reach down and touch your hand, okay?” he asked, eyes still trained on the pot and every micro-expression on the woman’s face. The woman gave a vague nod, which was as good of a sign as any. Hero, now realizing how much bigger her hands were than Sam’s hands, barely managed to suppress a shudder as he laid his hands on top of her index finger.

For a fraction of a second, her hand jolted and pulled away from the gentle brush of Hero’s hands on her finger. This, however, only lasted for a second as she laid her hand flat on the counter again and let her hand glide toward the Borrower boy until it brushed against his feet.

Hero, on the other hand, inhaled sharply and nearly leapt away from the woman’s sudden movement. She had moved much faster than he anticipated, and her hand had returned just as quickly. In comparison, she had better reflexes than the aspiring hero, which mildly alarmed him. He was just about ready to speak again after this momentary scare when the woman’s hand suddenly turned.

Without warning, her hand rotated and continued toward Hero, catching his head and one of his arms in the notch of her index finger and thumb while the rest of him fit in the palm of her hand. The Borrower could barely utter a squeak before her fingers completely enveloped him and he was lifted off of the counter. The pressure of her fingers startled the air right from his lungs, but he saw her other hand set the pot on the nearby counter. At first, he was grateful for this; however, it was only for a second.

The second hand came up and began feeling along his arm and brushing by his face, poking and pinching lightly. The hand that currently had him trapped flexed, wrapping tighter around his body; but, just as quickly, released. Hero felt each finger readjusting, feeling his frame as he was held aloft. If this human weren’t a stranger and was someone like Sam or even Watney, the sensation would have felt pleasant – like a massage or satisfying stretch after a long day of climbing and borrowing. The woman was a stranger though, and that did not aid his pounding heart and hitching breath.

His words finally came back to him and, all in all, whatever test the woman performed seemed to satisfy her curiosity as the poking subsided.

“Pl… please… don’t drop me. I’m v-very high up right now.” Hero hated that he stammered, but his natural Borrower instincts were sending his head spinning, nerves fraying by the millisecond. The woman seemingly understood what Hero was going through, now looking apologetic, and rotated her hand clockwise so Hero was now staring at the ground, completely horizontal. Carefully, her fingers unfurled and released the Borrower boy. Hero, now free, pushed himself up onto her palm and sat in the center.

“Hey,” her voice suddenly changed from mildly hostile and frightened to sympathetic and soothing. “It’s okay. I… I’m sorry. I mean, you definitely scared me, but… yeah… I’m sorry. You don’t have to be afraid; not of me anyway.” Her other hand idly reached up and brushed along his leg, up his torso, and finally to his shoulders where she began rubbing reassuringly.