"Goose, don't track any mud in the house," Maddy called, her back to the door she heard opening.
"It's not mud, Mom, it's his skin," five-year-old Shawn Spencer replied.
Maddy turned around to see Shawn and a boy in rags about the same age as him.
"Who is this?" she asked.
Shawn shrugged. "I dunno, I found him outside. Can we keep him?"
"He's not a pet. Does he talk?"
"Do you?" Shawn asked the boy.
The boy shook his head.
"Well, why don't we get him cleaned up first," Maddy suggested, wetting a rag and approaching the child.
He backed away, terror in his eyes.
"I have an idea! Can we play in the hose?"
The boy nodded uncertainly along with his new friend.
Maddy turned on the hose and pointed it toward the boy who quickly ran away.
"No, no, no," Shawn called, "Jump into the water!"
The boy watched as Shawn demonstrated. "See?"
He nodded, then slowly walked over to touch the water. Shawn grabbed him and pulled him into the water.
Soon they were laughing and playing in the water together. When they were completely clean, Maddy brought out two towels.
She guided the boys upstairs to Shawn's room, then left them to change.
"You can borrow some of my clothes, Snuff-an-fluffer"
"They called me August," the boy spoke for the first time.
"That's a weird name. I'm gonna call you Gus." He pulled out clothes from his dresser. "Here, Gus."
As they got dressed, Shawn asked. "Why August?"
"That's-" He began to cry. "That's the month they killed my parents."
A/N Should I continue?