"It sounded like you were about to guess."

"I don't want to guess."

"Why not?"

"I don't like thinking about it very much."

"Because I don't."

"That's only a pretend answer."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

She shrugs. "Well, then, I don't know what to tell you."

Kerron drinks his smoothie, looking suspiciously at her.

She raises her eyebrows.

Finally his smoothie is gone. "Maybe I'll go home now," he says.

"Bye," says the bat lady.

"And I'll tell Mummy and Daddy that I met you and that you want them to leave you alone," he says, nodding smartly. "And then they won't bother you, I bet."

"Maybe not," she says wryly.

"Why would they bother you when you don't want them to?" Kerron asks.

"That's a very good question," she says, "and I don't know what your mother would say if you asked it of her, but I bet it would be educational."

"Okay, I'll ask her then," says Kerron, and he hops off his chair and trots over to the door.

The bat lady goes back to staring out the window.

Kerron goes back to to where his family lives, looking for Mummy.

"Hi!" says Kerron. "On my way home from magic lessons I found Milliways! I met a lady whose colorshapes had lots of black bat shapes in them flying round and round and she had colorshapes that were about you, Mummy, so I went and talked to her."

"You're okay?" Nathan says. "Did you tell her who your mummy is - what happened?"

"She asked and I said," Kerron blinks. "I'm okay. We just talked. She's a human, she can't hurt me, why are you scared?"