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Mr Chompy was on the sofa.
Arthur had left him there on purpose.
Not far. Not out of reach. Just placed carefully between the cushion and the armrest, where the fabric dipped slightly and held him in place.
Safe.
Arthur sat on the floor nearby, close enough that he could reach up and touch him if he needed to. He didn’t always need to hold Mr Chompy. Sometimes it was enough to know exactly where he was.
He pressed his thumb into the seam along the crocodile’s side.
Back and forth.
Back and forth.
Behind him, the room moved.
Amber was talking from the sofa, her voice quick and uneven, words running together. Ruby answered from the kitchen, louder than she needed to be, while Jade said something quieter that still made Ruby respond immediately.
”I’m not doing it twice.”
”You did it wrong the first time.”
”I didn’t -“
”You did!”
Arthur didn’t follow the words. He followed the pattern.
That was easier.
From the kitchen, a cupboard closed - not too loud, just enough to be noticed.
Arthur glanced up.
Mr Chompy was still there.
Green. Soft. One eye slightly lower than the other.
The same.
Arthur looked back down.
His fingers slowed.
Then resumed.
Across the room, Uncle Ilya passed the doorway, one hand briefly straightening a chair that had been left slightly out of place. He didn’t say anything. Just adjusted it and kept going.
Uncle Shane stood at the counter, opening something. The sound was soft, controlled, not sharp enough to cut through the rest of the room.
Arthur stayed where he was.
The house felt settled.
Not quiet. But steady.
Amber dropped from the sofa with a soft thud and crossed the room quickly, brushing past the coffee table. It shifted slightly under the impact.
Arthur’s head lifted.
The movement was small.
But it changed things.
He looked at the sofa.
Mr Chompy had moved.
Not far.
Just slightly deeper into the space between the cushion and the armrest.
Arthur watching for a second.
Then looked back down.
Still there.
Still safe.
His shoulders lowered again.
“Snack,” Uncle Shane said from the kitchen. “If you want it, come get it.”
“I do!” Amber said immediately, already turning.
Ruby followed more slowly. Jade last.
The room shifted again as they moved out of it - voices trailing into the kitchen, footsteps softening with distance.
Arthur stayed.
He pressed his palm briefly against the floor, feeling the solidness of it, then pushed himself up carefully.
Not fast.
He stepped towards the sofa. Reaching out.
His fingers touching fabric first. Then the gap between the cushions.
He pushed his hand in further.
Northing.
Arthur paused.
He looked properly now.
The space between the cushion and the armrest was empty.
Mr Chompy wasn’t there.
Arthur’s hand stayed where it was for a second longer, fingers pressing into the space like the shape might still be there if he held it long enough.
Then he pulled his hand back.
Looked again.
The sofa was the same.
The cushions hadn’t changed.
The dip in the fabric was still there.
But Mr Chompy wasn’t.
Arthur turned slightly, scanning the space around the sofa.
The floor.
The coffee table.
The gap underneath.
Nothing.
The room felt different.
Not louder. Not brighter.
Just… wrong.
Arthur stepped back once. Then again.
His hands came together in front of him, fingers pressing tightly against each other now, no longer moving in a rhythm.
From the kitchen, Amber laughed.
Ruby said, “Don’t-“
Jade said, "It’s fine-“
The sounds overlapped.
Arthur didn’t follow them.
He looked back at the sofa.
Empty.
His breathing changed.
Not fast. Just smaller. Shallower.
He turned towards the kitchen doorway but didn’t move forward.
Didn’t call out. Instead, he stood very still.
Looking.
Waiting.
oOo
Uncle Shame noticed first.
Not the sofa.
Arthur.
He was too still.
Not the quiet kind that fit into the room. This was different - tight, fixed, like something had stopped and hadn’t started again.
Uncle Shane set the packet down.
”Arthur?” He said, not loud.
Arthur didn’t look at him. His gaze stayed on the sofa.
Uncle Shane followed it.
Empty.
That was wrong.
He stepped into the room slowly, lowering himself as he got closer.
”Hey,” he said, softer now.
No response.
Arthr’s hands were pressed together, fingers tight.
Uncle Shane didn’t reach for him.
”Where is he?” He said quietly.
Arthur’s breathing stayed shallow.
Uncle Shane nodded once.
”Okay. We will find him.”
Behind him, Uncle Ilya had already shifted.
”What are we looking for?” He asked.
”Mr Chompy,” Uncle Shane said.
That was enough.
Uncle Ilya turned towards the kitchen.
”Ruby, Jade - hold on.”
”What?” Ruby called.
”Something’s missing.” He replied.
Footsteps followed.
Ruby appeared first, Jade just behind her. Amber trailed after.
“What’s missing?” Ruby asked.
”Mr Chompy.”
”He was just-“
”On the sofa,” Jade finished for her twin.
Arthur didn’t move.
Uncle Shane stayed beside him.
Uncle Ilya stepped forward.
”Alright. We’ll find it. Check properly.”
”I already looked,” Ruby said, moving to the sofa.
”Look again.”
Jade dropped to her knees, checking under the table.
Ruby pulled the cushions apart. “Not here.”
Amber hovered nearby. “I can find him.”
”Look carefully,” Uncle Ilya said.
She nodded, already moving too fast.
The room shifted.
Searching now.
”Think,” Uncle Ilya said, “Where else?”
Uncle Shane stayed with Arthur. “We’re looking,” he said quietly.
Arthur didn’t respond.
In the kitchen, voices lowered.
”Not on the table. Not under the table.”
”check there-“
Drawers opened. Closed.
”Did anyone take him?” Ruby asked.
”I didn’t,” Jade said.
”I didn’t,” Amber echoed quickly.
Uncle Ilya stood in the doorway, watching.
Jade slowed.
She stopped looking at surfaces. And started looking at spaces.
Near the door, a tall plant stood in the corner.
Jade paused.
Something about it-
The angle.
She stepped closer.
”Wait.”
Ruby stopped. “What?”
Jade crouched, pushing a leaf aside.
Green.
Not the plant.
Softer.
”He’s here.”
She reached behind the pot, feeling along the narrow gap.
”Got him.”
She pulled Mr Chompy out gently.
Slightly flattened.
But whole.
Ruby exhaled. “How did he-“
”I had him,” Amber said suddenly.
The room paused.
”I took him to the kitchen.”
Uncle Ilya nodded once. “Alright. Let’s take him back.”
oOo
Jade didn’t rush. She carried Mr Chompy carefully into the living room. Ruby followed. Amber staying close behind.
Uncle Ilya stepped aside.
Uncle Shane didn’t move.
Arthur was still in the same place.
Jade stopped a few steps away.
”Arthur,” she said quietly.
He didn’t look at her immediately.
She crouched, holding Mr Chompy where he could see him.
”He was in the kitchen.”
Arthur’s eyes shifted.
Slowly.
They settled on Mr Chompy.
Jade held him steady.
Waiting.
Arthur’s fingers loosened slightly.
He looked. Then looked again.
His breathing shifted.
Uncle Shane spoke softly. “He’s back.”
Arthur blinked once.
Then moved.
Slowly, his hand lifted, stopping halfway before continuing.
Jade didn’t move to meet him. She let him come the rest of the way.
His fingers rested against the fabric first.
Checking.
The seam.
The shape.
Still the same.
His grip tightened gradually, drawing Mr Chompy back against his chest.
His shoulders dropped.
Jade let go.
Ruby exhaled.
”I found him,” Amber said.
”You helped,” Uncle Ilya replied.
Amber nodded.
Arthur pressed his face lightly into Mr Chompy.
His fingers found the seam again.
Back and forth.
Back and forth.
Slower now.
Steadier.
Uncle Shane shifted slightly beside him, staying close without crowding.
”You’re okay,” he said.
Arthur didn’t answer.
But he leaned. Small. Deliberate.
Uncle Shane stayed still.
Across the room, Uncle Ilya glanced at the others.
“Let’s keep it calm for a bit,” he said quietly.
Ruby nodded.
Jade moved back towards the sofa.
Amber followed.
Arthur stayed where he was.
Holding Mr Chompy.