Make Me Young Make Me Young

Katherine puts down her book, Breakfast of Champions.

Its final words echo.

Make me young! Make me young! Make me young!

I can sympathise with Kilgore Trout's father, says Katherine.

Mnmn-Uh? mumbles Margaret.

Nothing. Go back to sleep, says Katherine.

She presses the lever that is supposed to lay flat her recliner.

Ker-lunk.

I should brush my teeth, thinks Katherine.

She is about to head off to the toilets when she notices that Terence is missing.

And so is young Spike.

Should she wake Spike's mum and dad?

No, thinks Katherine. I'll brush my teeth first.

She brushes her teeth, getting rid of the last traces of passionfruit cheesecake.

That's better. She returns to her recliner.

No Terence. No Spike.

Where could those scallywags have got to?

She sees her cheese knife lying on the armrest of Terence's recliner.

Wiped clean.

It wasn't like that when the cakes were divided. She puts two and two together.

Of course! They'll have gone down to visit Jinjing, with some sort of cake ball.

She picks up the cheese knife and heads down the stairs to the car park and animal prison.

Sure enough, Terence and Spike are standing in front of three cages containing Jinjing, Shih Tsu and The Wombat.

Terence is saying: It doesn't matter!

Jinjing is saying: It does!

Spike: Not if you're not going to eat it.

Shih Tsu: Are there any fish titbits in it?

The Wombat: Or any more of those bed bugs?

Spike: No. There are just two types of cake. One is passionfruit, one is chocolate. The cake ball looks grey because Terence rolled them together in his fingers. But his fingers were clean. Except for the dirty one he didn't use, on purpose.

Terence: That's a very fair description.

Is it? says Katherine.

Everyone looks at Katherine. A grown up, with clean teeth.

They know that because she is smiling.

I've brought my cheese knife, says Katherine. Who wants to be freed from this prison?

Not me, says the Wombat. It's too embarrassing when I make a deposit.

Not me, says Shih Tsu. It's good here. They even bring you water.

Sensible decisions, says Katherine. But what about you, Jinjing? You shouldn't be here anyway. How would you like to come upstairs and sleep with Terence on his  recliner?

Yes, please, says Jinjing.

Katherine open his cage.

It's easy, with the cheese knife.

Jinjing is free.

Terence carries him up the stairs, followed by Spike and Katherine.

Katherine's step is bouncy. She feels young.

Shih Tsu: I wish I hadn't said it was good here. It isn't.

The Wombat: Did they leave the cake ball?

Shih Tsu: No. They took it.

The Wombat: Pff! Bummer.