Arthur glanced back and forth between the mouse and the fox as they argued. Once again every fiber of his body tense with fear as he stared at the mouse as if it were a monster bound to eat him. Mommy was terrified of mice. She must have had a good reason. Somewhere in the back of his mind a thought came around: [i]why is this tiny thing so scary?[/i] He closed his eyes and took a few breaths to try and calm down and then he heard:

[quote]"I don't approve of being imprisoned!" Dooa squeaked defiantly. "Don't you want to be a little girl again? What about the kids in the restaurant, working themselves weary day and night?"[/quote]

He had to hear it a second time for the words to get through his panic-ridden mind. The mouse and the fox use to be [b]human[/b]?! Why did the Gold Lady turn them into animals? Was she really someone that he wanted to meet? What if there was another way that avoided meeting or killing the Lady?

He looked at Riley with his eyebrows furled with concern. What would she say? 

He turned his attention back to the talking animals. "I don't want to hurt anyone. I know what it feels like to be hurt. It's not fun. I'm sure killing someone hurts too. Like a lot. Plus it's mean." He took a deep breath. "Why not ask her to turn you back? She can do that right?"