Feeling better, she waited for Erich to finish scooping, and once he opened the door, they stepped inside—and she froze. It was pitch black. She flicked on her phone flashlight without hesitation.
No There's electricity.
The boy flipped the switch and gave her a look like she'd just invented fire. Nibi didn't flinch.
What if you're some psycho who didn't turn on the lights on purpose? Then why'd you even come in? – Erich shot back, completely And she had to admit— he got her there. Awkward. Why did she come in? Even M.K. tilted his head at her and gave her a disapproving look—right before casually licking his butt.
They were surrounded by a long hallway full of creaky wooden doors, all equally ancient-looking.
We'll deal with this part later. – Erich – It's gotta look modern and fun so customers don't freak out. Right now, it's definitely giving -haunted orphanage- vibes. Agreed… Customers?
You'll see! – He winked mysteriously and led her forward. – These two rooms are full of manufacturing I didn't bother digging into the details 'cause the word -manufacture- already sounds boring as hell.
On this, Nibi completely agreed.
The other rooms are No one rents 'em. But this—this is our holy sanctuary! Come on in!
He pulled aside a curtain made of colorful beads, and they were hit with a wall of sleepy growls, random screeches, and squeaks. In front of them stood open enclosures and big cozy cabins that looked more like church confessionals. Honestly, Nibi expected this least of all and was visibly surprised. But she played it cool and just said:
A zoo. Nice.
Erich wasn't bothered by her chill reaction. In fact, he bounced on the balls of his feet, clearly ecstatic to show off this place:
Not just a zoo—a petting zoo! You can scratch their bellies, pet their heads and ears, and even…
Oh, the tenderness… – Nibi cut in with heavy – You describing every flea-bitten mutt this way now?
For the first time today, Erich deflated like someone had yanked out all his feelings and tossed them in the nearest trash can. One single tear welled up in his eye as he looked at her with maximum puppy-level sadness:
So you can shape shift not just into your dog—but also into your mom.
But I thought you respected her! – Nibi shot back with her usual sass, though noticeably less sure of herself now.
And seriously, why did she snap at him like that? Somewhere deep in her subconscious, there was a quiet answer: she just wanted to wipe that permanently cheerful look off Erich's face and make him suffer a little. But he was right—it was more her mom's thing than hers. Genetics, man. They're not joking.
Don't take it personally, I see you really love animals, so go ahead, give me the grand tour. She tried to smooth things over, and the boy lit up immediately. The only one who didn't seem even slightly offended was the dog, who ran over to a porcupine enclosure and stared at the beast's giant needles in stunned silence.
Honestly, the dog wasn't wrong. There was a lot to see here. Aside from the aforementioned
porcupine, Nibi's eyes locked onto a little pen filled with chickens and geese. A super shady-looking rooster paced the wooden edge like it owned the place, pecking at seeds and throwing judgmental glances around its kingdom.
Then, right at their feet, came a real-life Bambi. The girl actually felt a strange wave of affection, even though she'd never been big on animals. She crouched down and started petting the fawn, while Erich ran off to the front desk (which was currently unattended), grabbed a paper cup, and handed it to her with an explanation:
It's a mix made just for the deer—exactly what they We track the diets of every species here and make sure they're eating top-quality stuff. Gina's out today making arrangements with food suppliers. Once that's done, we're gonna start remodeling the hallway and sprucing up the main room so kids have more fun when they visit. More fun? You're already crushing it. This place could keep any grown-up entertained, not just some random – Nibi muttered, fully absorbed in feeding the fawn. – So you're opening soon? Pretty much, yeah. We lost all our stuff we used to sell in France, but Ardon and Gina managed to save up a good chunk of money—enough to start this new chapter in our family story. Well, good luck! – Nibi said She wasn't such a terrible person after all—at least, she hoped not. That dumb thing she'd said earlier to Erich still gnawed at her.