Dr Knives (II)

The boy (is he a boy? It's hard to be sure) is narrow and long. His face is long, and so is his body, his limbs coltish and awkward. They're lost in his long, padded coat. It almost looks like a black sleeping bag with sleeves.

He looks a little girlish, an impression enhanced by effeminate mannerisms, and a faded pink streak in his fringe. It looks like it might have washed out a while ago, if he'd been able to wash.

Our good friend, the lobotomist, keeps his features steady. It is a conscious effort not to wrinkle this nose at the smell of stale sweat. He exudes a bland brand of kindness. Boring. Safe. He makes small talk, and asks after the boygirl's welfare.

"Are you warm enough? Have you eaten?"

The boy shakes his head. The pale grubby strings shake listlessly like a fortune teller's curtain.

"Stay there." The lobotomist makes a staying motion with one hand, the other sliding to his pocket.

Notice: he has implied he's going to give the boy something to eat, without saying it outright. He's also given a command. The boy looks eager at the prospect of food, maybe even a hot meal, and one he hasn't had to debase himself in any way to get.

The lobotomist strides away, and returns several minutes later with a cup of hot chocolate. The boy might not realise it, but he has been rewarded for his obedience.

"Stay safe, okay? Be here tomorrow at the same time."

The boy is trying to be reserved, with long sloping shrugs and wary grunts, but he would be a fool not to mine this seam for resources.

The lobotomist walks away at last, anxious that the boy might not prove obedient after all. Perhaps I should have brought him with me... What if he's not there tomorrow?

The notion that there are plenty of other runaways doesn't cheer him. He wants this one! The androgyny makes the boy an especially good choice for his Experiments.

He is already planning how he will nurture the trust the boy has in him. What gifts he will bring, what words he'll use. At which precise point ne will coax the boy into a nearby hotel. How he will collect him from there the following morning.

When he rubs his hands together, you can almost hear the snick snick of his knives.