Bread wanted to go out. Not just anywhere. He wanted to go somewhere new! Like a beach or the city. Somewhere. Just anywhere else than here!

All he saw was dirt. Dirt, asphalt, cement, junk. Whatever was out there on the other side of the window, it was either rusting or decomposing. After looking at the same background for days, he wanted a change of pace. Something to light a new interest in him. He looked over at Val and asked—

“Can I go outside?”

“Yeah, just go out back.” Val munched away on a thinly sliced avocado pizza. “Outside. Bright and sunny. Hot and humid. Yuck.” She continued watching a boxing match on her phone without ever batting an eye.

“No, I want to go outside outside!”

“Outside outside?” She raised a brow.

“Yeah! I want to go somewhere new!”

“New, huh?” She wiped her mouth clean with her free hand. “Coach, is there anything fun happening around here today?”

“What?” Coach poked his head out from his workshop. It looked like he was welding something. He had a face shield on. “I didn’t hear ya!”

“I said, is there any fun place for the kid to go?!” she yelled.

“Oh, well why didn’t ya say so?”

“I—forget it. Just tell me what you know.”

“Heard there’s a traveling carnival in town for the next four days. Why don’t ya take the lad out on a little field trip?”

“Yay!” Bread cheered.

“Aren’t you coming with?” she asked.

“Me? Ah, I’m too old for that.”

“We should all go!” Bread urged. “It’ll be fun!” He jumped up in the air from all the excitement. That pent up boredom and frustration was going to be no more! He had a body, he was in the real world, and now, he was going to be free to explore!

Val sighed. “Oh, youthful energy. How I don’t miss it at all.”

“Alright, fine. I’ll come,” Coach answered. “Just after I finish this…” He went back to his workshop; sparks flew from beneath the door.

“How long will he take?”

“Oh, probably just a few hours.” She ruffled his hair with her greasy hands. It was kind of icky, but he liked it. “We’ll get there. Night probably looks a lot better anyways. And less sticky.” She chomped down on another slice before her eyes fell back to her phone.

…

Bread never had the chance to ride the attractions at the carnival. He fainted on the spot after having ridden the Ferris wheel. The three of them sat around an empty bench and watched the fireworks bursting into a million dandelion flames.

“The lad’s got motion sickness,” Coach said. “I ain’t even sure how, but I’ll say that body of mine is darn realistic!”

“Shut up, Coach.” Val shifted her attention. “Are you okay, Bread? You feeling any better?”

He nodded. The strangers around him had bright, vibrant grins decorating their faces. They all looked so happy…

But was he happy? Was this what he’d wanted? He could feel a tingling in his chest like a constant electric shock surging through his body. It was similar to that feeling he’d had when he’d seen Val. When he’d seen her on screen for the first time—his heart had thumped hard; he’d felt it jump up and down like a rocket.

Was this the same? Was he really happy?

Kids his age ran across the grassy fields, their parents following along behind. They laughed and laughed. The world was full of laughs. Their moms would hold them up, twirling them around, smiling with them. And their dads… Their dads…

Dad?

No! Bread slapped himself awake. This wasn’t the time for that! He had to be happy; he had to have fun! He hadn’t even ridden the popular zero gravity roller coaster ride! He wouldn’t be satisfied until he’d experienced everything! He promptly popped up from his seat. He wasn’t going to stand around like this. But after taking a few bold steps, he started to see twos of everything. He felt so dizzy…

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“Whoa.” Val caught him before he smacked face-first into the mulchy earth. She pulled him back against the bench. “Slow down there, kiddo.”

“Lad’s determined.” Coach let out a hearty laugh. “Maybe with a larger body, I could make you into a better boxer than Val!”

“Yeah, right—I mean, well, I’m not saying you can’t, but you won’t beat me that easily!”

“That’s your ego talking, lass. That’s why you lost to Long Arms.”

“Wha—where did that come from?” Her expression lit ablaze. “It was a joke! Can you please stop bringing that up?”

“I’m just giving you advice for later, Val. Get rid of that ego of yours and be wary of your opponent. Every boxer you face is a threat whether they’re a champ or a chump.”

She groaned. Her gaze instead fell to Bread. “Okay, how ‘bout we try the petting zoo over at the tents first? Then we can see if you’re ready for any of the rides.”

He liked that idea. He could experience the best of both worlds!

Coach hopped off the bench. “You lot can do what you want. I’m watching the meerkats. They make me feel so tall.” He then strolled off into the dark.

“Well? Shall we?” She held out her arm with that familiar, awkward smile she’d made when he’d first met her.

Bread gingerly grabbed her hand.

“Why don’t we go check out the lions?” she said. “Heard they’re nearly extinct.”

…

“They’re docile creatures,” the zookeeper said. “Especially the Nemean lion that we’ve successfully recreated through documentations of old lore and fantasy! We’ve made sure that he was well modified, so you’re all welcome to touch him!” She said this all while feeding a large chunk of meat to the scary looking lion. It ripped through the meat like it was cardboard.

Do lions come from dandelions?

The thought unexpectedly crossed Bread’s mind. His inner records disagreed, but the name was even embedded inside. That should’ve meant they were somehow related. They were both kind of yellow, had large, furry manes, and looked like the sun when seen from the front. But it didn’t feel right enough. Dandelions reminded him more of this feeling of brightness and happiness while the lion seemed to be a little more on the scarier side.

“Come closer, everyone! He’s safe to touch! We’ve got a collar on him just like the others!”

A small girl trotted over to the back of the lion. She curiously stared at its butt as if it were more interesting than the face.

But then she pulled at its tail.

An ear-piercing roar echoed out—so loud the earth beneath them trembled. Everyone quickly backed away from the lion in terror, and the girl fell back on the grass, eyes wide with what looked to be pure terror.

The lion rammed itself into the zookeeper, knocking her off her feet. The collar immediately broke. Then it turned towards the girl. Its sharp teeth were bared, dripping saliva like melted butter. A low growl gurgled within its throat, and as it prepared to pounce on his fresh snack, Bread’s instincts kicked into overdrive.

His mind blanked; he didn’t know why he did it, but he jumped between the girl and the lion. As the large creature leaped onto Bread, the two went tumbling to the ground, its teeth tangling with his synthetic arms.

“Bread!” He saw Val running. She dashed in and landed a strong punch to the lion’s snout, but it easily struck her aside with a single slap of its colossal paw.

The large beast had him pinned down, its attention now undivided. Saliva poured onto his face as its hot breath steamed up the air with whiffs of old, putrid blood. Nostrils flared, hovering just inches about his face. It peered down as if in contempt, and as its teeth edged closer to his neck—

Sparks.

Sparks flew from his damaged arms, sputtering out in fractal webs. Static discharge filled the air. He could feel the change in the atmosphere. Something was different. He could feel things, taste things. He could see something in the far distance…

Suddenly, he tasted iron—meaty, chewy, bloody. No, it was harder, more solid. He saw bars. Iron bars between him and freedom. He tried to chew through, but he couldn’t. He was trapped, cramped inside a little cage. He clawed at the lock; he tried to get out, but nothing worked. He was stuck. His stomach growled and gurgled; his neck ached. He could see scars on his furry chest, tons and tons of blood on his paws. It hurt everywhere. He wanted to get out. No, he needed to get out. He needed to get out now! He—

Bread snapped back.

He blinked a few times. The lion was nearby, and the tent was still there above him. What was that? It had all felt like a dream.

The lion pounced again, but this time, electric currents randomly exploded out from his fingers. Bread didn’t know what was happening anymore. The lion was thrown back from the force, blowing half the tent away with it. Everyone was sprinting away in panic. Watching the beast struggling to get back up, Bread suddenly realized that he wasn’t afraid of it anymore.

He saw the lion again in all its glory. He could see the ribs showing through, the gashes on its chest decorating its sides, and he knew then and there—those visions weren’t his own. They were the lion’s.

They were its memories.

“I can help you…” He started crawling towards the lion, pulling at the grass, clawing at anything that could help him get closer. That feeling of loneliness and fear he’d felt during that short tussle—that wasn’t from him either. “I can—” But somebody started pulling him back.

No, stop…

He could see the lion pulling farther and farther away—his friend. He wanted to be there for it. He wanted to comfort it. He wanted to give that scared cat a hug—a warm embrace deep from within his heart. He knew it would help. He knew what it felt like. He knew because he understood the lion better than anyone…

They were one and the same.