Stories About Me with You

“What’s the matter?” asked the voice, which Battle Bear could now see quite clearly belonged to a small white mouse.
“Oh,” said Battle Bear. “I’m sorry but I’m very busy today. I hardly have time to talk. I’ve just stopped to try to think about how to get rid of this tick-tocking that’s been following me all day.”
“Ah.” said the mouse. “Yes, I see.”
“What?” said Bear, who was still annoyed and didn’t really have time for nonsense.
“Well,” said the mouse, “you won’t be able to get rid of it. It’s a tick-tock clock. They come and go as they please. It may go away for a while but I wouldn’t be surprised if it comes back again.”
“Comes back!” exclaimed Battle Bear. “Oh no! You mean I may be stuck with this forever?”
“Well no,” said the mouse, “not forever.”
“But, even if I can get it to go away, it may come back?” asked Bear, who was wondering how this mouse knew so much anyway.
“Yes.” said the mouse.
“But I was cross after just one morning with it.” said Battle Bear. “What am I to do if it stays for a long time?”
“Now that’s a much better question!” said the mouse, who now had a slight sparkle in his eyes.

“Better,” said the mouse, “not to spend so much of your effort thinking how to get rid of the tick-tock clock… effort can be much better spent.”
“And let me tell you a secret.” the mouse whispered, “Tick-tock clocks like to pester. As soon as you stop showing them that they’re pestering you, they get bored and usually go away anyway. So the key, my dear friend, is to find out how to stop letting that tick-tock clock bother you.”
“Hmm…” said Battle Bear as he thought about how he could possibly stop feeling so cross when that tick-tocking was so loud and just wouldn’t leave him alone.
“Hmm...” he said again. And as he thought, he found the tick-tocking was already pestering him less. He hadn’t done anything, but somehow talking to that mouse had made him feel something strange.

He felt free.
Free from the clock.
Free from its ‘tick’.
Free from its ‘tock’.

But he still wasn’t sure he knew what the secret was.

“Thank you.” said Battle Bear, still a little confused. Then he looked at the small mouse, more inquisitively. “But, who are you?” he asked, and then wondered whether he’d been a little rude.
“I am anonymous” said the small mouse.
“A nonny mouse?” said Battle Bear, “I don’t think I’ve met one of those before… You’re awfully clever to know so much about the tick-tock clock.”
The small mouse smiled.