Christmas Eve 2022…
It’s easy for the caged mouse to keep track of the date. A large wall calendar hangs only a few feet from his cage…his prison… in the room of his friend/owner.
For Nathan Owen Castille, it has been a year since he used the Chronivac Version 4.0 to transform into Mus musculus, better known as the common house mouse complete with a pointed snout, large rounded ears, pelt of white fur, long, twitchy whiskers and a long and almost hairless tail.
His whole body, all three inches of it, coupled of course with the additional length from his long tail, tenses with anticipation. He feels Brett’s footsteps long before his friend emerged from the adjacent bathroom in a pair of boxer shorts adorned with comic holiday reindeer.
Brett ignores Nathan and the cage as he picks out clothes for the day.
Nathan watches quietly, no longer bothering to squeak for help incessantly, knowing he will never be understood. A huff of exhaled air lightly stirs some dust among the wood shaving strewn over the bottom of his cage as he follows the process of Brett’s dressing.
The huge 18-year-old pulled on a bright Christmas sweater over his muscular, slightly hairy torso and then does the same with a pair of jeans.
While watching, the little mouse feels emotions flash from anxiety to arousal to inevitable frustration. Will Brett have time to take him out of the cage, play with him, allow him brief contact with another living being?
Brett did stop in front of the cage to address his pet. “Morning Mickey.”
Yeah, that’s right. Brett had named him Mickey. How unoriginal could you get?
Brett listened to his pet squeak happily at him and thought he looked cute.
“Can’t wait to give you your present tomorrow, Mickey.”
Nathan produced some obligatory squeaks.
“See you later, Mickey.”
Nathan watched as Brett left the room, off to experience life beyond the four walls. By now, the long, tedious absences were par for the course. Once his owner left the room, Nathan’s tiny white, furry ears twitched at every magnified sound he heard.
He had long given up on the possibly of getting back his old life and made the best of being Brett’s pet. At least Nathan’s former friend was a considerate owner. A few months after he became Brett’s pet, Nathan received an upgrade from the sterile glass tank. He had lived the past few months in an elaborate cage of plastic and stainless steel bars.
For exercise, he had a long tunnel molded from green, pink and yellow plastic, that he paced relentlessly, especially at night, when he regretted the actions that had landed him in his current existence.
He also had a tiny wheel, which he could use for mindless laps, and ramps leading to different levels of his habitat, including a little blue plastic home.
Brett had put down a carpet of wood shavings, which he changed periodically. Sometimes, when Nathan’s owner got too busy with his life, he sometimes neglected changing the shavings as often as he should have. Sometimes, the weekly cleanings might be delayed for days or even weeks.
After Brett’s morning greeting and departure, Nathan slaked his thirst with a couple of sucks at the end of a water tube attached to the side of the cage before he visited his feeder for a nibble of the nuggets of specially prepared mouse food.
He craved chips and dip, bacon cheeseburgers and pancakes and syrup. Sometimes he had to watch Brett indulge in all sorts of delicious foods right before his beady eyes.
Nathan stared through his prison bars at the final page on the year’s calendar. Three-hundred and sixty-five days since he had made the fateful decision to use the Chronivac for some silly fun.
Now, he was Mickey, a mouse in a cage on top of a dresser in his friend’s bedroom. Day after day after day…