Rabbit seemed to be in a rather foul mood. Of course, he was an emotional fellow. Sometimes his feelings got the better of him, and he went to Serious Mouse to drown his sorrows. All that was missing was an impromptu poem at the crossroads outside the Inn. Ruger never dared suggest it, though, for fear Rabbit might actually become a poet. Poetry distilled emotion into a few essential words, something utterly incompatible with Rabbit's endless rambling. Forcing the two together would be a disaster.
Clatter!
He pushed open the Inn's door.
Ruger walked in, spotting Tuzel first, then a rather dejected Little Fairy, and finally the calm-looking fat mouse.
"Do you know? You don't! You certainly don't! It was like divine punishment! Divine punishment, understand? No one would treat an elegant rabbit like that except those wicked gods!" Tuzel shouted. He tipped his head back and gulped down a great mouthful of liquor, then wiped his mouth. "I decided to punish him. Three days-oh, no, two days. I wouldn't babysit for him for two days. I'd made up my mind before coming here... But you know, you ought to know, I'm a softhearted rabbit. And Wizards are always busy. I know those people better than anyone. Busy from head to toe, busy from age one to a thousand, ten thousand. Besides, that little girl is adorable, and her laughter is lovely. You really ought to listen to it more often. So my plan fell through again."
Tuzel seemed a little tipsy. He had never been much of a drinker.
"And she loves touching my ears..."
Rabbit sounded rather proud as he said it.
Ruger blinked, getting a rough idea of why Tuzel had come to drown his sorrows.
"My friend, did you like the gift?" Ruger abruptly sat down