Octavius didn’t have any particular location in mind, so when he foundhimself in the attic, it was as much a surprise to him as it was to the people already sitting in there.
“Hi,” Perdita said, waving him up.
“Hi, Dee; hi, Rome; hi, Pulitzer,” Octavius said to his two siblings and their family pig, as he crawled forward and took a seat next to his brother and sister. “What are you guys doing up here?”
“Couldn’t stand being in my room anymore,” Romeo said with a shrug, Litzy asleep in his lap.
“Same,” Octavius said.
“Same,” Perdita replied.
In almost-cosmic timing, the attic trapdoor opened again as Fola appeared wearing silk pajamas, pushing herself up into the attic space.
“Hi,” Fola said as she shuffled into the seat next to Octavius.
“What brings you here?” Perdita asked as Fola settled down. “Also couldn’t stand being in your room?”
Fola shook her head. “No, I just thought I heard someone moving about in the attic, so I figured you guys were here.”
“What if it was an intruder though? Or a murderer?” Octavius asked, ignoring the way his throat tightened around the word.
“Well, unlucky for them I have a black belt in tae kwon do.”
“You do not look all that scary in your pink silk pajamas, I must say,” Perdita said.
“All the more reason they would be caught off-guard. I think things through, you see,” Fola replied.
Octavius decided not to point out the fact that Fola was wearing a Birkenstock on one foot and a high heel on the other. It didn’t seem like the time or place. Instead, he focused in on Romeo’s fingers, which were tangled in what seemed to be a ball of yarn that was almost as big as Pulitzer.
“Are you knitting something, Rome?” Octavius asked, eyes widened in fascination.
Romeo nodded. “Yeah, I’ve been trying to make Litzy a scarf for weeks. But to no avail, it seems.”
“That’s cool… Litzy would like that, I think,” Octavius said.
“How do you know what Litzy would like?” Fola asked with a raised brow.
“Well, seeing as she’s tried to eat my sweater on several occasions, it’s safe to say that she probably wants a knitted garment of her own.”
“Or she wants to eat you,” Perdita pointed out.
“That too. I can’t blame her for it though—I’m probably very delicious.”
Fola rolled her eyes at his statement. “Or she can’t tell the difference between grass and your damaged scalp,” she said.
“Either way, all I’m hearing is that I am delish!”
Perdita laughed out loud and the sound of her laughter sent a jolt through Octavius. He’d missed that sound.
Just then the attic door opened again and a grumpy (though, when was he ever not grumpy?) Bilal appeared, also dressed in pajamas.
Octavius wasn’t sure what time or day it was, for that matter, but wondered if it was nighttime because of Fola’s and Bilal’s attire. But seeing as Perdita was wearing a dress, and Romeo jeans, a hoodie, and flip-flops, he really had no idea—and, he suspected, neither did they.
Bilal ungracefully tumbled forward into the attic, still wearing a cast—albeit a smaller one—and almost landed right on top of Fola.
“I could hear you guys through the cracks in my door. You’re all so loud, did you know that?” Bilal said grumpily.
“And we can also hear you and Anwar through the cracks too whenever he’s over, so stop complaining,” Perdita replied.
