\chapter{10}

There was no way he could tell how long he had slept,
but there was one thing that was definitely different:
The unconsciousness that he had fallen into had given way to a normal sleep after a while,
even though it wasn't particularly long or restorative in any form.
Even as Andrew's consciousness glid over the border between sleep and being awake like a dead-tired swimmer,
he could feel that there was real relief on the other side.
Not too much had changed.
He still had a headache and he was still a little queasy;
at the very best the two weren't as bad as before.
And his knee had stopped hurting.
At least something.
It was surprising how undemanding you get when you're feeling bad enough.

He opened his eyes and at first he felt like he was still on the other side of the river in the burnt city,
because he was still surrounded by grey twilight that removed all color and blurred the outlines of things as if he were inside of a blurred black-and-white picture.
On second glance he realized that the explanation was much simpler.
It had gotten dark outside and the holey curtains that hung in front of the windows in the surprisingly large room he was in blocked out even more of the murky light.
If he recalled the few short moments before his senses had faded it was early afternoon.
Apparently he had slept a little longer than he had thought.

That memory let a different,
more alarming picture rise to the top of Andrew's conciousness that he hastily dismissed.
He already felt miserable enough without the tasteless jokes that his overstimulated imagination kept handy.

He blinked a couple more times to get out his stupor,
propped himself up on his elbows and carefully sat up.
Something glid off his chest with a rustle and as Andrew looked down he discovered two things:
He was completely naked and someone had covered him with a shoddy sheet that was bristling with dirt and smelled as bad as the bed he was laying on.

Lightly disgusted, but also at least just as embarrassed,
he sat up completely and swung his legs off the edge of the squeaking folding cot that he had woken up on and slung the grubby sheet around his hips.
The floor that he set his naked feet on was warm.

Andrew slowly turned his head to look around the room with more attention.
The pale twilight was making it hard to discern details,
but nevertheless he saw that the room was very big and furnished with a surprising amount of furniture,
although they were all very old and in not too good of condition.
Anything near enough to discern details seemed to be made exclusively out of metal and had burn marks on it;
apparently anything flammable hadn't survived the catastrophe on this side of the river either.

He heard a sound and turned towards the door that, like the windows, only had a sheet hung in front of it.
The scrap was pushed to the side and Katt stepped in.
Andrew could only recognize her silhouette,
but he could tell that she had stopped abruptly in the middle of taking another step as she saw him sitting on the edge of the bed.

``You're awake?''

``As you can see.''
Andrew started to cough and had to swallow a few times since his voice wanted to fail him.

``Wait'', said Katt. ``I'll get you water.''

Before Andrew could stop her, she turned on her heel and out of the room.
Andrew stared after her befuddled, but he actually was thirsty;
either way she had left so quickly that she would surely be back soon.

He stood up, slung the cloth closer around his hips,
and clumsily felt around the room for his clothes.
He of course knew who had unclothed him
--- even though he wasn't entirely sure why ---,
but he thought it would be more embarrassing to get \textit{dressed} in front of her.

He just barely made it.
As the sheet was pushed to the side in front of the doorway again he was busy tying his shoes and only regarded Katt out of the corner of his eye.
She hadn't come alone.
Behind her a second,
smaller shadow
--- probably her sister ---
stepped into the room,
but stood at the doorway.
Katt carried something in her hands and as she got closer Andrew heard a quiet gurgle that escalated his thirst to an almost unbearable burning in his throat.
Without tying his shoe completely he turned around towards Katt and downright ripped the metal container from her hands.

The water was warm and tasted a bit stale,
but he still gulped it down with large, greedy swallows,
and even though he emptied the whole cup he almost had more thirst afterwards than he had before.
So as not to waste even the last drop he licked his lips and just now noticed how rough and chapped his lips were.
The fever must have impacted him more than he had thought.

``Thank you'', he said and held the cup out to Katt.
``Can I have some more?''

``Later'', answered Katt.
``I don't think that you should drink too much at once.
How do you feel?''

The question was tinged with an unmistakeable astonishment to see him not only awake, but also standing and fully clothed.
She herself had also recuperated quite well.
She didn't necessarily look in the pink
--- she was too lean and the traces of lifelong hardship were dug too deep in her face ---,
but she seemed to have taken the previous day much better than he had,
which Andrew registered with a slight stab of envy.

``How you feel after a day like yesterday'', he said.
``Where are we?''

``Yessterday?'', asked Ratt from the door.
Andrew took a quick look in her direction and a strange feeling washed over him.
The picture from his memory wanted to push itself forward again, but Andrew hastily dismissed it again.
Ratt had an odd way to speak,
maybe even a speech impediment --- so?

``In my house'', answered Katt.
``Ratt and I brought you here.''
She made a gesture as he wanted to say something and continued.
``I would like it if you would sit down.
We know how strong and tough you are,
but that won't matter if you just collapse again.''

That was too much, even with all the thankfulness Andrew still felt.
Eventually she would have to stop getting on his nerves about her carrying him.

Twice, to be exact.

``Listen'', he started.
``I think that\dots''

The shadow at the door moved.
Ratt got closer and stepped into the grey light that streamed through the holes in the tattered sheet that covered the window,
and Andrew stopped mid sentence.
His jaw dropped.
The cup slipped out of his hand and fell rattling to the ground, but he didn't hear it.

He stared at Katt's sister with an incredulous look.

His memory hadn't been tricking him.

And it wasn't a nightmare.

In front of him a one and a half meter tall rat stood on its hind legs.

``But \dots that's \dots impossible!'', he grunted.

``Yeah, I'm happy too meet you too\footnote{This needs some work. Book pg. 149}'', hissed Ratt.
``And if it makesss you fffeel any better, I don't think you're handsssome either.''

``I must be dreaming'', mumbled Andrew.
Man-sized rats that walked on their hind legs and lisped sassy answers didn't exist.

``Please sit down, Andrew'', Katt asked.
``I think we need to explain something to you.''

Andrew actually let himself sink obediently to the edge of the bed
--- even if it was just because his knees suddenly felt like they were filled with pudding,
and couldn't support the weight of his body any more.
Katt watched him very carefully,
and he didn't overlook that she was standing in a somewhat tense position so that she could jump in if he suddenly went limp again.
This time Andrew didn't take her unmistakeable concern for granted.
He really felt as if he could collapse at any moment.
Everything was spinning around him,
but this time it wasn't due to anything physical.
He barely heard what Katt was saying.
He could only stare at the unkempt shape next to her,
who was now also a head taller than him as he sat there.
She sneered down at him with her black eyes like a demon from a fever dream.

But it wasn't a dream. In front of him stood a rat.\footnote{Oh shit! Its a rat!}

\textit{Good God, there was a man-sized, speaking rat standing in front of him!}

``Pull yourssselfff together'', hissed Ratt. ``Have you never seen a girl?''

\textit{Not one like that,} thought Andrew.
He wasn't able to pronounce the words,
it was if his throat had been sown shut.
Girl?
\textit{Girl\textinterrobang}
