Waking up before the pre-false dawn chill breeze, Demus squirmed out from under the ramp in the backyard he had chosen the afternoon before. He fitted the wood-section back over the hole he had made, and he stood up, brushing the damp dirt off. He walked over to the fence, found the rolled-up, cast-off grey man- tunic that he had hidden there in the dark, and slipped it on. His stomach rumbled a bit, but there was no food to be had. Maybe some plums from where the tree extended over the owner's fence. Not exactly on the way to the dock, but not extremely out of the way either.

Demus quick-climbed the fence and set off. In a trice he arrived at the dock, chewing on the last of three grounded, ripe plums. Sitting down, he realized:

... 'I don't have any bait.'

--- 'Do I want bait or do I want to catch fish?'

... 'I need bait to catch fish."

--- 'So, I want bait?'

... 'No. I want fish. But I...'

--- 'I can have a fun coincidence again, or I can sit around knowing what I need.'

... 'What thoughts this time?'

--- 'Well, I am alive...'

... "I like being alive! I'm glad I am alive! I love being alive!" Demus said quietly.

--- 'Very good. Once I catch the fish, won't it be cool that I caught a fish today?'

... "Once I - what?"

--- 'Just say "won't it be cool..."...

... "Won't it be cool..."

--- 'That I caught a fish today?'

... "that I caught a fish today?"

--- 'Very good!'

... 'Now what?'

--- 'How do I feel now?'

... 'I feel pretty good!'

--- 'Okay. Then I have to wait for the world to catch up. I could make it go faster, but I guess I'm uncomfortable with certain thoughts.'

... 'What kinds of thoughts?'

--- 'Well, everyone and everything outside of myself, going about their morning tasks and ways, what would I call that?'

... 'Never thought about it before. The others? The not-me? The elses?'

--- 'Okay, the elses. Am I glad the elses are there?'

... 'Some of them.'

--- 'Will I call those the 'some elses'?'

... 'Okay.'

--- 'Say: 'I'm glad the some elses are there.' '

... 'Weird.'

... "I'm glad the some elses are there!"

--- 'Good. 'I thank the some elses for being there.' '

... "I ummm, I 'thank' the some elses for being there."

--- 'Now how do I feel?'

... 'I feel dumb.'

--- 'Well, nevermind.'

False dawn lit up the Eastern sky and the chill breeze blew. Cockerell climbed up onto the dock.

>>> "You again! You know your pole is down on the beach?"

Demus looked at the rod he was holding and then back at Cockerell.

--- 'He can't see it.'

... 'No?'

>>> "Look, kid..."

... " 'Dee-moh'."

>>> "Okay, Deemo. I can't just give you bait every day, and you scare fish way too easy. Go away, please?"

... "Just one tiny one?"

>>> "Here's a worm."

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... "Thank you! Thank you so much!!"

>>> "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just go away."

Demus took the worm, and ran along the beach, out of sight of the dock. He flicked out the rod, grabbed the line...

... "There's no hook!"

--- ' Maybe I should twist apart the handle.'

Dropping the worm, Demus twisted apart the handle and found five hooks. Soon, the hook was on the line, the worm was on the hook, and in the water.

Demus stood on the beach, basking in the morning sunlight, now and again checking on the line.

--- 'Can I make the fish bite by worrying about it?'

... 'I guess not.'

--- 'So, I should relax! Sit down, look at the beautiful trees!!!'

Demus sat down, leaned back against a rock in the shade, and then dozed off.

Hours later, Demus woke up to the strange sensation of something licking his hands. Carefully he opened an eye - - a young forest Wolf! Demus sat up and the Wolf jumped back, then ran off. Looking around Demus spotted his rod being jerked back and forth toward the water's edge. He lunged forward and grabbed it up. A small crank popped out of the round thing.

... "What do I do?"

--- 'Pull the rod up and back, then let it go while you crank the reel.'

... "The what?"

--- 'The round dealy-bob!'

Demus started trying that. And as he did, his mind kept whirling.

... 'How did I know... pant! pant! ...what it was called?! It's like I have... pant!! ... two 'I'-s...'

Soon enough the line reeled in, a tiny fish on the hook, but clamped to its tail fin was a small fish's jaw, and to that one another, and another, and then the head and more of a six inch diameter eel or something. Striving, Demus wrestled the chain of fish toward the shore. The third small fish burst asunder and the eel or whatever swam away.

... "That seems really weird!"

--- 'But also kinda ' dumb'?'

... "Yeah."

--- 'Indeed.'

Demus gutted and cleaned the two small fish, saving parts of the third for more bait. He wasn't quite hungry enough to eat them raw like yesterday, but as he thought about it, suddenly he had to make nightsoil! He ran away from the shore. As he found a good bush to squat near...

--- 'If I don't take the tunic off, some dung will get on it and I'll have to live with flies again!'

He hurriedly bunched up his tunic and slippedd it off over his head. Then hus body would not be denied, and he dunged. Fortunately, it seemed pretty solid.

--- 'I should grab a big, green leaf and, uh, 'clean up'!' So he did, then stepped away, shrugged his tunic back on and went back to the shore. There were wolf-tracks around. His fish-steaks were okay, but all the bait was gone.

... "How am I gonna fish tomorrow?"

--- 'Save tomorrow for tomorrow. Am I going to make a fire and cook these myself?'

He walked back into town, to the market-place, and found the quick-foods cart. He showed the fish-steaks to the vendor.

>$- "I'll buy those from you for 1 copper each!"

... "I want to eat at least one of them!"

>$- "Cooked?'

... "Preferably!"

>$- "I'll cook them all, give you your choice and two coppers?"

... "Deal!"

Soon Demus was delightedly munching on fried fish steak, as the morning waned.

Demus found a shady spot to sit in, and rested. Gradually the shade moved. Demus slipped in and out of dozing. Suddenly he was up in the air!

->- "Litil-boy is stupid, hah?" And the bigger threw Demus against the fence. Demus hit the ground in pain, breathing rapidly.

->- "....tolju...bring three for me!.."

--- 'Duck!' Demus ducked and heard the bigger's hand hit the fence where his head had been.

->- "...think yore smart? Y'can't get away!"

and he reared back a foot to kick Demus.

---' Roll left! Stand up! Flick out the rod!'

Demus did those things.

... 'I thought I said no-one can see the rod.'

--- 'He can't see it. He's about to feel it!'

->- "You makin' dis more fun! Go on, run! I'll chase!!"

--- 'Get ready to hit him!'

The bigger yelled and started to run at Demus. Demus sharply brought the rod across the bigger, who fell off to the side.

->- "...whut the Buff!? You gotta divisible whip? Butcha ain't strong enuf, litil-boy!!" He started to get up, but Demus felt his fear become anger and he lunged forward to slam the rod into the bigger again. And again. And again, as fast as he could. He just kept going, hitting the bigger over and over, barely able to breathe.

--- 'Stop!' Demus paused and stepped back.

... "What?" The bigger lay on the ground, bruised and groaning.

--- 'I stopped him. Good job. If I kept going I might get in a kind of a disastrous trouble.'

... 'I guess you're right.' And Demus walked back to the marketplace. Gradually, Demus was able to calm down. He walked around, looking at things. As the afternoon faded toward night, he helped a few people pack up their temporary shops, folding up canopies, loading huge baskets ("panniers"), and cleaning up after customers. Demus was just interested in how the marketplace worked, and he had nothing else to do. While he worked, he pondered.

... 'Do I have to worry about the other biggers?'

--- 'Not if I keep my mouth shut.That bigger will never tell, so no-one will know it happened except the two of us.'

... 'Why wouldn't he tell?'

--- 'It would make him seem weak. If anyone thinks he's weak, they will most likely attack him.'

... 'Gotcha. So, will he attack me again?'

--- 'It depends on how I handle it. If I cringe, then 'yes' he will. If I 'lord it' over him, then eventually he will again. But if I treat him like a friend who stubbed his toe, maybe he won't, ever again.'

... 'Cool.'

--- 'Mmmm. Speaking of which, am I hungry?'

... 'No. ?'

--- 'Is it very cool to not be hungry?'

... 'Am I kidding? It's wonderful to not be hungry!!!'

--- 'Excellent! So, can I look back to when I said : '...won't it be cool that I caught a fish today?', and confirm: 'Yes! It is cool that I caught a fish today! It is wonderful!!!'?'

... 'Yeah! It actually is cool that I caught a fish today! It's wonderful!!'

--- 'Right on! I'm really getting the hang of life. What do I want to do with my life?'

... 'Do? Do with it? I want to live it! I want to be happy and free!"

--- 'Supreme.'

...After farewelling the market people, and darkness fell, Demus felt very tired. He made his way back to the backyard of the wheeled-chair user's house, climbed the fence, took off and hid his tunic, pulled the section of wood away, and crawled into the safe, dry spot under the long ramp. It had been a long day, so it was easy to fall asleep.