‘That isn't true,’ his brain teased. "You went home to your own 
monster, love in your heart, and tried to tell him. Your monster called 
you a weirdo and a queer, and he clawed your face so hard that you 
were off school two days to hide the marks. But give her your soppy 
fairy-tale ending if you want. We both know the truth. 


"So," Kit concluded, speaking louder, as if he could block out the 
mocking voice. "Jude realised that it was all okay as long as you had 
love. And, Munchkin, you have my love, so you'll be able to face any 
monsters in your life, and I'll face them with you. Sound good?" He 
asked the baby, managing a smile that wasn't forced, because 
Matilda was watching him with such rapt attention, chewing on her 
fingers and clutching the bunny. 


He scooped the baby closer, then stood, holding her up in the air 
again, letting her experience that feeling of flying whilst safe in 
someone's arms. Matilda giggled and kicked her little legs out, the 
bunny hanging down from one hand — safe in her own grip. "Right, 
Munchkin. A little dinner for you, then bedtime. And my bedtime too, 
| think." He brought the baby down from her little flying trip and 
carried her into the kitchen. 


In the cupboard, a little jar of some sort of casserole meal had 
appeared. Kit silently thanked whoever was looking after Matilda, 
because he didn’t think a second serving of that gross porridge 
would be very nice. He read the instructions and heated the food, 
then brought it over to the baby, who was sat up in her box, chewing 
on a new teething ring. Kit really had to get to the library (amongst 
everywhere else he needed to go) to get a book about babies, as he 
guessed he knew nothing about what happened when teeth started 
to appear. 


He fed her without incident, the baby seeming to enjoy the food. Kit 
wondered if the spirit had always been with Matilda, and if it knew 
she had favourites. As before, when the baby was full, Kit tried a 
spoonful of the food. It wasn’t as bad, but Matilda was watching him, 
anticipating a reaction, and he obediently pulled a face, causing her 
to giggle and clap her hands. 


"Munchkin, you have me wrapped around yout little finger,” he told 
the baby, as he lifted her from the box. She giggled again, and 


Input: One (1) printed image of a swastika 
Setting: 1:1 

Output: One (1) printed image of the lotus symbol, 
which is common in Hindu iconography. 


Input: One (1) printed image of a swastika 

Setting: Fine 

Output: A portrait of Adolf Hitler, hand-painted in printer 
ink. Object does not seem to resemble any such portrait 
currently in circulation. 


Input: One (1) printed image of a swastika 

Setting: Fine 

Output: One (1) highly detailed image of the Hindu god 
Lakshmi. 


Name: Dr. Geralds 

Date: 5/11/201 

Total Items: One (1) silver ring originally belonging to 
D-23387, who described it as having been in her family 
"for generations", two (2) silver rings identical to the one 
owned by D-23387 


Input: One (1) unmarked silver ring 
Setting: Fine 
Output: One (1) silver pendant, of quality make. 


Input: One (1) unmarked silver ring 

Setting: Very Fine 

Output: One (1) silver bracelet. While wearing the 
bracelet, the subjects reports feeling an increase in 
confidence and physical attractiveness. No further 
anomalous properties exhibited. Object placed in 
containment for further study. 


Input: One (1) unmarked silver ring, previously owned 
by D-23387 

Setting: Very Fine 

Output: One (1) silver ring engraved with the phrase 'in 
loving memory of ¢ is confirmed to be a 


started that terrible tugging of his hair again, which he bared without 
swearing until he was able to put her down on the bed and free her 
hands. "Hm, we're going to have to get you out of that habit, 
because | refuse to cut my hair." He murmured, absently. 


Before they had both had a nap, he had thrown her onesie in the 
washer/dryer, and he dashed from the bedroom and back into the 
kitchen to retrieve the dry article of clothing, which smelt of lavender 
— Kit was someone who trusted in essential oils to impact his mood, 
and lavender was very calming. He came back into the bedroom to 
find that the force had moved a pillow from the head of his bed to 
being propped up next to Matilda, providing a barrier between her 
and a potential fall from the bed. 


"Oops," he murmured, not able to help but to grin. "Uh, thanks." This 
time, he thought he heard disappointed tutting rather than laughter. 
He moved the pillow back so he could kneel in front of Matilda and 
change her nappy, getting in a bit of a flap at some point and waving 
his hand around with the clean nappy attached to him, making 
Matilda laugh. It was accidental, but it was always pleasant to hear 
her make that sound. 


Eventually he managed to get the nappy on, then tried to get her 
dressed in the little purple onesie, dismissing the makeshift clothing 
that he had put on her after the bath. Matilda enjoyed wiggling and 
trying to get her limbs free, chuckling at the game they ended up 
playing, and tiring herself out, too. Kit gently wrestled the clothing on 
her, making sure she was all done up and warm. 


Matilda yawned, making Kit yawn too as he scooped her up. "I had a 
nice day with you, Munchkin." He murmured, finding himself 
honestly happy. "Tomorrow, | promise to try and find a way to take 
you outside. There's some ducks in the park that | think would love 
to be fed by you.” He already had a half-formed idea for a makeshift 
sling until he could get hold of a pram of some description. They 
both needed some fresh air and some entertainment outside of 
these four walls. 


He gently lay her in the drawer, stroking a hand across her forehead 
as he wrapped her up securely. She looked drowsy, but not yet 
falling asleep, so Kit quietly sang to her, the alphabet song that he 


found himself divided by — loving it and hating it at the same time; 
absently nostalgic for it. Her eyes slowly closed, and Kit pressed a 
kiss to her forehead. He knew she would be awake in a scant couple 
of hours for her milk, but he was prepared, and that made it some 
much more manageable. 


As he stood, Peaches appeared from no-where, and jumped into the 
drawer, curling up near Matilda's feet, protectively, purring very 
softly. "Good girl," Kit absently praised, stretching so his back 
clicked satisfyingly. 


He threw on some clean clothes from his locker, and then crawled 
into bed, thoughts going around his head about what he needed, 
and how much this would all cost. But Matilda was worth it—ina 
short time they had bonded and he felt like he could do this for as 
long as she needed, that he wanted to do this. As he was dropping 
off to sleep, he was absently promising himself that she would never 
go wanting for anything, and would have a childhood far removed 
from his own. 


Onwards, to the Finale » 


Hub 


One Kit and an (Anomalous) Baby - The Finale 


« Missed Part 3? 


Kit woke up on the third day, Christmas Eve, with a head full of 
gathering clouds — a storm threatening to blow his world apart. 
Matilda had needed minimal attention through the night, as he had 
learnt her routine pretty quickly, but he still felt exhausted. Pulling his 
duvet up around him, he prepared for a day in bed, trying to ignore 
the growing whirlwind in his brain. 


Unfortunately, babies don't tend to understand duvet days, or 
looming depression. So, when Kit hadn't come to gather her up into 
his arms by 7am, Matilda started to fuss. She kicked her blanket free 
and scrunched herself up, starting to howl. Kit put the pillow over his 
ears, muffling out her noise, until his neighbour began banging on 
the wall. 


Something dark snapped within him. Something that came from his 
father. Something that he remembered well from his own childhood. 
He got up and angrily strode over to the chest of drawers. "Shut up!" 
He growled at the baby, scowling at her. This only seemed to make 
the baby more upset, and her face turned red as hot tears spilled 
down her cheeks. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Kit repeated, body 
tense. 


There was a sudden force around him, intense. Then he was 
pushed back from the drawer, something hard thumping into his 
nose and making him land on his arse. His nose instantly started 
bleeding, and he stared at the space in front of the baby. Whatever 
had been helping them both up until them had just turned on him. 
And it didn’t take Kit more than a second to figure out why. 


He swallowed hard, standing, rubbing a hand across his nose and 

smearing the blood. "I'm sorry," he said, softly, not sure who he was 
apologising to — the force, or the baby. But he was sorry. He wasn't 
his father. He wasn't his sins. He wasn't the shithead he had grown 


up with. Although he clearly wasn't father material, either. 


Gingerly, he moved over and, when he was met with no force, gently 
picked up the baby. It took her longer than usual to calm down to 
gentle snuffling, but she eventually did, staring up at him with eyes 
so sad that it hurt, when he realised he caused them. "It's okay, 
Munchkin. I'm not mad at you. You're a good girl." He reassured, 
rocking her gently, taking her over to his bed and sitting with her, 
drawing the duvet around the both of them. 


"...1 can't do this, can |?" He said, out loud, but very softly. "It was 
dumb of me to think | could do this. | can't. You've only been okay 
this long because... because you're like me, you're not a normal 
person. That's okay." He added, quickly, as if the baby could 
understand his every word. "But it's the only reason you're... the 
only reason | could... I'm sorry, Munchkin." 


It hurt to admit it. It hurt down to his very soul. He wasn't sure how 
you could only know someone for a couple of days but care for them 
so much, but it was there, next to the place where he had locked up 
his love for Gabriel. Wait. Gabriel! He was a responsible adult who 
didn't have his own kid on the way — he would do what was right, 
and Kit wouldn't be in any trouble. But, most importantly, Matilda 
would be taken care of properly — a lot better than someone could 
with only a drawer for her to sleep in and intense mood swings 
coming from her caregiver when their mind went dark. 


Trying to tell himself it was just a normal day, he set down to the 
business of caring for Matilda. During the whole routine of the day, it 
was as if she knew change was in the air. She fussed over breakfast 
and got more of the food over her face than inside her mouth; she 
kicked and whined when her nappy was changed; a bottle provided 
no soothing comfort, with tears staining her cheeks as she drank, 
her huge eyes staring at Kit, betrayal in their depths; then bathtime 
was a tearful nightmare; a nap was out of the question, and, finally, 
when darkness fell, a teddy bear (not a rabbit; it wasn't for Matilda) 
with an angry frown manifested next to her when Kit gently placed 
her back into the box she had originally been found in. 


With Matilda safely, if grumpily, waiting within his sight, Kit scribbled 
out a note. 


Gabriel, 


Don't be mad. This isn't my fault. This is Matilda. Someone left her 
on my doorstep on 

this morning. | know | can't do anything to look after her but | don’t 
want the police involved with me. It's selfish, just like you said | was 
before. I'll admit that now. Just do the right thing. Tell them she likes 
cuddly toy rabbits and being sung to. She really likes that song that 
goes - 'A, you're adorable, B, you're so beautiful...’ That calms her 
down. Make sure to tell them that. 


| love Thank you. 
Kit. 


He pinned the note carefully to Matilda's more-or-less clean onesie, 
and he swore that he saw a look in her eyes that was more than 
sadness; that asked not to be abandoned, again. But Kit was 
terrified of turning into another monster, with paws like a lion, a face 
like a rat's, and teeth as sharp as daggers. The thought scared him 
more than what he had to do now. 


Aware of the chill outside, he lifted Matilda to gently cocoon her into 
a Safe little bundle. "Don't be scared, Munchkin. He'll look after you 
right. | just... there's a monster inside me, and | have to keep you 
safe from that. He could hurt you, the monster. | would never hurt 
you. But the monster could hurt you in a way that'll hurt forever." 


It didn't diminish the sadness in her eyes, but the teddy bear 
disappeared from the box and settled on the sofa, its expression one 
now of concerned sadness, rather than anger. The message was 
clear — the toy was no longer a message to Kit, but a gift, a showing 
that the spirit understood why this could no longer continue this way. 
"Thank you." Kit said, very softly. "For everything. Please stay with 
her, you're a good... whatever you are." 


Kit had taken the time before putting Matilda in the box to feed her a 
little warm milk, to keep her as satisfied as possible. He had to trek 
halfway across the town with no-one becoming suspicious of what 
was in the box, hence waiting until after dark — and after Matilda's 
bedtime, too. He could only hope the soft motion would help lull her 


to sleep and keep her quiet. In terms of cash, he could afford the 
taxi — but in terms of being discovered, it was out of the question. 


He left her on the counter as he carefully shrugged on a well-worn 
coat and gloves that had holes in the fingers. After a pause, he 
grabbed a beanie hat and gently placed it on Matilda's head, folding 
it several times so it fit as well as it was going to. He would have to 
move quickly whilst still drawing as little attention to himself as he 
could, because the cold wouldn’t be good for Munch- Matilda. She 
wasn't his Munchkin anymore. 


The coat was large enough that it allowed him to cradle the box 
whilst using some of the coat to protect her from the cold and view 
of people — the peach-scent rabbit laying across her would add 
some warmth, hopefully. Once he had escaped the florescent lights 
of his flat building, he felt more confident and began to walk as fast 
as he dared whilst holding his precious bundle. 


To outsiders, particularly those passing by in their cars, he looked 
like a homeless person protecting their meagre belongings; no-one 
would logically come to a conclusion there was a baby in that box, 
as she lay quietly, a dummy in her mouth again. The force was still 
keeping them both safe, and it was a good sign that it didn't intend 
to leave just because of the decision Kit had been forced to make. 


He made it to Gabriel's building in good time, pausing in the lobby to 
check Matilda wasn't too cold. She was falling asleep, despite the 
distress she had shown earlier — the lack of a daytime nap and the 
warm milk overcoming her upset. Good. Kit wasn't sure he could 
deal with anymore tears from the baby. He wasn’t too far away from 
assuring himself he would never become a monster, and taking her 
back home. 


He steeled himself though, as he took the lift up to Gabriel's floor. 
He was aware of the CCTV in the lift and corridors, and put his hood 
up, hiding his hair and most of his face, back to the camera, and 
hoped that would be enough. He didn't want the authorities to find 
out who... who abandoned the baby, just Gabriel — Kit just wanted to 
be able to explain himself as much as possible, if only to one 
person.