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"Oh! Okay!" Espen agreed as he approached Pepper closer. He was low to the ground, but Espen still had to leap and struggle a bit with both his hands to get himself in place. He tried as much as he could not to use his clawed hand, but it was tough for Espen to get his balance.

It took a little bit of fumbling, but Espen eventually mounted properly on Pepper's back and took hold of his shoulder bones. They were strange, like some half of a dinosaur was sticking out of Pepper's back, but that's what made them so easy to grip. He wasn't sure how quickly Pepper would move, so he braced himself.

"Okay, I'm ready!" he said.

Espen felt his body bounce almost violently as Pepper dashed onward. It was fun being up much higher than he would normally be, but at the same time he hoped that they would reach his house soon enough because he was feeling a little uncomfortable, despite the rush of excitement. As Pepper ran, Espen saw the lights of his house and the movement within getting clearer.

"Yeah," Espen nodded eager to be back home, "Canya lemme down now? Dad'sjus inside."

Espen looked around him and noticed how dark it had gotten and was thankful for Pepper bringing him back home, because he could hardly see the forest behind them now, he was worried that he might never have seen even a tree in front of him, and then he'd be lying unconcious in the forest. He decided that next time he went out that it should be earlier in the day instead of nearing sunset.

In the darkness, Espen fiddled around for the doorknob back into the house, when he heard a click as Shane opened the door for him and bent down to lead him back into the house.

"Did you have a fun time?" Shane asked as he helped Espen out of his coat, and then frowned noticing how muddy he was.

Espen turned his head to face the direction that Pepper left in and then back to face Shane and nodded with a yawn, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Lots, anImeta new fwend." Espen replied as Shane closed the door behind them.

"What was it, a mud puddle?" Shane joked "By the way, you need a bath before bed."

Espen winced at the idea of a bath, but realized that he was pretty muddy.

"Nope, eesa monsta jus like me! Rawr! Name's Peppah." Espen corrected.

"I...see..." Shane lied. "Well, I bet he's going home to have a bath and then to bed too...so if he's just like you, you should do the same thing."

"O-kaaaay," Espen resigned.



Once in his pyjamas and lying awake in bed, Espen faced the window and hearing a click, saw Pepper creep into his room and gave him a wink before hiding under his bed to protect him from the white monsters with pointy needles. There was never a more peaceful night while Pepper was protecting him.



Of course, it was just a dream but good dreams were a rarity for Espen. So with his eyes closed, he fell into the deepest and most relaxing sleep he'd had in his life.