What if indeed! Poor Oscar is one of my smallest characters and Jacob is one of my tallest! This is such a cute AU idea. Jacob’s meeting with Bowman was so touch and go, because the little sprite snarked up a storm! Oscar is definitely not the same personality type, so it was fun to see how differently Jacob would act with his first tiny encounter with such a timid little guy.
Reading time: ~5-10 minutes
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There was nothing interesting on TV, but that didn’t really come as a surprise. Jacob didn’t watch a lot of television, and decent movies were tough to find on the channels offered by the kinds of small-town motels he chose on his frequent road trips. They went for basic, and that was always hit-or-miss.
Not that Breckenridge was particularly small. Jacob had chosen a little motel in the summer, however, a time when business in an area known for skiing could take a dip. Mountains stood tall and proud against the sky out the window while he lounged on the bed. It was a good place to stop and rest, even with the tacky decorations and worn-down character of the place.
While he settled on a channel showing old cowboy movies, Jacob mused about staying an extra day in Breckenridge. He could wander around and enjoy the mountain air, and the jagged horizon that stood tall and stoic all around. It contrasted with his usually endless horizon view back in Iowa, where the sky was a dome.
A quiet sound derailed his thoughts. On the edge of hearing, occurring between lines on the movie, Jacob thought he heard a rustling noise. It ended as soon as he heard it, but his ears primed to the sound to listen harder anyway. He pinpointed the source easily: his backpack.
His face twisted into a frown as his imagination summoned up the thought of mice crawling on his bag and trying to get into the trail mix he had in one of the side pouches. The mixed nuts, granola, and dried fruit would be a hit with any little creature.
He sighed and set the remote down on the covers. Mice themselves didn’t bother him – he knew what even the nicest places probably had them. But he didn’t want to give them the idea that they could crawl around in his stuff.
He swung his long legs off the side of the bed, and his feet settled on the floor. With a sigh, Jacob pushed himself to a stand so he could investigate.
~~~~~
Oscar shuddered and watched as the human’s shadow rose and covered part of the nearby wall. He was a truly massive one, despite how youthful he had looked when Oscar glimpsed his arrival. The guy definitely had the look of one of the road trip types, probably just passing through. That alone had convinced Oscar to sneak into the room to check out the kid’s backpack. Roadtrippers always had the best snacks.
He’d waited until the human settled on a TV channel to sneak out from behind the dresser. Apparently that hadn’t been enough. Now, Oscar clung to a small pouch on the front of the bag and watched that shadow stretch upwards while the floor shook from thunderous steps. Suddenly, the filched trail mix in his little shoulder bag felt unbelievably heavy.
Maybe he’s just going to the bathroom, Oscar hoped.
He was wrong. Booming footsteps came closer and closer and Oscar trembled more and more. That big shadow was all he could see, looming on the wall near the discarded backpack. It was just a blobby shape from his vantage point, but something at the side shifted.
And then, the whole world shifted.
Oscar sucked in a choking gasp as the backpack lurched away from where the human had left it. He held on tighter to the edge of the pouch where the bag of trail mix had waited and taunted him. He cursed his haste. He should have just let the human fall asleep.
The quick motion stopped and Oscar slammed forward into the bag. The whiplash dazed him and his grip loosened in time for a shadow to fall over him. Oscar realized with a pounding heart that he could feel heat radiating off the hand that approached him.
Writerly Things 