Page 86 of Demons Dig Donuts

“Worry about the rabbit later.” Mr. Heiss nudged Indy. “I believe someone else is trying to get your attention.”

“Huh?” Indy looked down to see Dill, who was barely a foot tall, pulling at his leg. “Oh! Dill! There you are!” He gently scooped him up to cradle against his chest. “Look at you! You’re so tiny! A lil’ baby!”

“Baby,” Dill squeaked.

“Oh my God. You’re the cutest fucking thing.” Indy laughed, hugging him close. “Thanks for the help, babe. Aodnait okay too?”

Dill nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay! Fuck. You’ll be able to get big again, right? Like Groot. You’re Baby Groot now. You just need to grow back up. Got it. Yes. Good. So, everybody is all right and—” Indy stared as a flaming, slime-covered lump of lint that wasn’t much more than a set of legs went racing by them. “Oh God. Reginald.”

Mr. Heiss snapped his fingers and Reginald erupted in a plume of fire and turned immediately to ash.

Indy groaned. “You are such an asshole.”

“That was merciful. Putting the thing out of my misery. Here.” Mr. Heiss opened his hand and there were two pennies in his palm. “Now that all of your pets are in order, we’re leaving.”

“Fine.” Indy put the pennies back in his pocket, smiling as he heard Dill squeak out a little yawn. “Aw, tired, babe?”

“Babe,” Dill echoed drowsily, his big eyes fluttering shut.

“Go on and take a lil’ nap. You’ve earned it.” Indy watched Dill vanish away, and then his heart did a little tumble when he realized he and Mr. Heiss were alone.

Well, technically they weren’t since Dill and Aodnait were inside the ring, but details.

Effectively alone for making-out purposes.

Indy let himself get pulled back into Mr. Heiss’s orbit for more of said making out, but Mr. Heiss stopped him with a gentle touch to his chin.

“Patience, Sonnenschein.”

“What does that mean? Is that German for cute little meat sack?”

Mr. Heiss only smiled, the world tilted and blurred, and then they stood in his bedroom.

The windows were all open, showing a lush green forest outside. Indy wondered if it was the same forest he’d seen before, and a shiver suddenly ran up his spine. The more he looked around, the more he realized this was not the same house.

It was all the same and yet it was different.

The air was a stale mix of must, timber, and a hint of musky sandalwood. Warmth radiated from the sunlight pouring in through each window, and the space felt lived in though oddly stagnant. It was as if it had once been a loving home a long time ago before being abandoned, and it had been waiting for someone to return and wake it from its slumber.

The floor creaked loudly when Indy took a small step toward the closest window to check out the forest, and the groan of the floorboards sounded like a yawn.

“This isn’t where you brought me before,” Indy said confidently, looking back at Mr. Heiss over his shoulder. “This is somewhere else. So. Where’s Gammy and King? Back at the carbon copy or whatever it is?”

“Yes,” Mr. Heiss replied with a smirk. “It is a dimension I altered and is but a reflection of this place.”

“This feels like a house. Like, a real house.” Indy narrowed his eyes. “Did you literally move a whole ass house into a pocket dimension?”

“Clever boy.” Mr. Heiss chuckled. “And yes. I did.”

“And why are we here?”

“Perhaps I wanted privacy.”

“Ah.” Indy popped his tongue. “Privacy to talk about that kiss?”

Mr. Heiss smiled, lightly cupping Indy’s chin. “Is talking really what you’re interested in?”