Judy does some "cramming" and pays the price. She, also, does something else.


Chapter 8: Headache

“Don’t knock! Just come…oww…in!”

“Wow! That’s snappish!” Nick thought as he turned the doorknob then entered.

The living room curtains were all pulled shut and no lights were on. With the door closed behind him, Nick’s night vision adjusted to the darkness with its customary swiftness. They pick out Judy’s form lying at one end of one of the sofas and he could make out a compress of some type covering her face from below her eyes to above her forehead, and that she held another in one hand.

“Fluff, did you hit your head?” he said in concern as he approached her.

“Ohhhh, if only I could claim that I suffered from a kinetic energy impact injury,” she groaned.

Nick had to think on that for a couple of seconds.

“We call that ‘blunt force trauma’ these days,” he said.

“Mmmm, my definition is more scientifically accurate,” was her reply.

“If you didn’t crack your noggin on something, then what’s with the headache?”

She extended an arm outwards and then waved a paw. He followed the direction indicated to see the table with a desktop computer there. Having brought it in and setting it up a week ago, the fox commenced teaching her how to use it. She was a quick study (though he still got a mental snicker out of her initial difficulties in using the ‘mouse’) and was comfortable with the use of it in little time. Nick had setup a batch of icons on the ‘desktop’ that linked to various news, entertainment, and science sites so she could quick access them, then taught her how to use the “search” feature to find what she wanted.

“Or, at least, get you in the ‘ballpark’,” he’d told her.

He looked back to Judy.

“The comp. was giving you problems? You should have called me and I’d have come to….”

“That…contraption works just fine,” she interrupted. “All too well, in fact.”

Now, he was puzzled.

“Ooooookay, let’s take this from the top. What happened?” Nick asked.

“Sigh. Early, very early, this morning I decided that it was time that I work at getting myself up to speed on the advancements in my field of study that have happened since my…’sleep time’,” Judy said. “So, I sat down, turned on that devil’s device, called up one of the sites with all of those science videos, and began my studies.”

Quiet.

“And how long were you at it?”

It was past 4:00 PM.

“Ten hours and 43 minutes.”

Silence.

“You did almost 11 hours of cramming a veritable supernova of quantum physics advancements into your head? Fur and fluff, no wonder your head is hurting!” he said.

He managed to suppress a chuff of mirth, hoping that she didn’t hear it. He should have known better.

“Yes, laugh at my pain, you vulpine sadist. The day will come when I shall take my just and righteous vengeance upon thee for this!” Judy said.

“Jude….”

“Whaaap!”

The damp towel actually wrapped completely around his head!

“Only my dad, fox boy!!” he heard her declare, then groan.

“Great Evolution! I didn’t even see her move!” he thought as he got the towel off.

“Alright, Fluff. Now, having had this wonderfully delightful experience, I take it that you’ll do your studies in much shorter, more ‘digestible’ lengths?” Nick said.

“That I will, that I will,” Judy replied.

In the following few minutes of quiet, Nick cranked up the desktop and checked it out, just in case.

“Nick.”

“Yes?”

“It’s time I visited Bunnyburrow…time I saw home,” Judy said.

He’d known that was coming, but….

“Judy, it’s been six decades…” he began.

“I know. ‘Time marches inexorably onwards, uncaring of mortals wishes or desires’. Dad and mom are dead and gone, so are who knows how many of my sibs, relatives…friends…”

She was silent for nearly a minute.

“But I still need to see it myself,” she said at last.

“Okay, I’ll make the arrangements,” Nick said as he got up.

He took another look at the languishing bunny, her face still covered with that cool wet cloth…and that’s when it hit him.

“She couldn’t see me but was dead on accurate with her throw!” he marveled.