Clarice Starling, 3 years of age, leaned her head against her father's chest. His great heart thumped against his ribs, baboom, baboom, baboom. Its sound was a comfort to her, it washed away her nightmares.

"It's ok baby, it's all ok now" her father whispered in her ear.

Cheap bedsprings squeaked as he shifted to accommodate her small presence.

"You just go to sleep now baby and in the morning we'll see what we can rustle up huh? Maybe we'll have a treat for you and you'll forget all about those bad dreams of yours. You just got to sleep now, go to sleep."

Baboom, baboom, baboom, and his heart beat lulled her to sleep, his kind face peering at her in the dark, as her lashes closed and her breathing fell into the regular rhythms of sleep. Clarice Starling slept well that night, safe within the ring of her father's arms.

Morning and with it the first rays of light which shone over Clarice's face waking her. Her small fist was clenched over her daddy's thumb, his great snores rumbling away into quite then coming back again. Clarice quietly slipped out of bed and padded softly through their house. Its wooden structure creaked in the wind but it was home and Clarice loved it. Through the hallway which had a couple of pictures, but not many. There were her parents, her daddy holding her in his arms. Her daddy helping her onto a horse. There was her father's dusty cowboy hat, and his great overcoat, with so many pockets full of lots of interesting things. This house was uniquely Starling and no other would satisfy Clarice.

She walked silently into the kitchen and sat on the old, ladder back chairs, letting the sun warm her. She looked through the window and her eyes followed a butterfly as it flew around their small vegetable patch and came to rest on a yellow daisy. Yellow like the butter her daddy spread on her toast, them both liking to watch it as it melted.

A soft creak and her father was there, lifting her out of the chair and into his arms, carrying her towards the bench.

"Your mama's sleeping, so try not to make too much noise honey. I'll pop down to the general store and see about that treat that I promised ya. Gonna be chilly today, wrap up warm love." He spread a faded patchwork quilt over her shoulders and placed her on the bench. "I'll get you an orange juice while you wait, I made it when I got home last night. Some man done and shot hisself, but he left all his oranges in the world, so there be no point in wasting 'em."

Clarice, holding a stained and chipped but otherwise clean mug, watched her father put on his great coat and hat and walk out the door. She listened intently as the old engine of their run down pick-up truck roared into life, her father waiting for it to warm up, and then grumbling down the road out of her hearing range. She was till listening when it came back.

Her father came though the door now, carrying a paper bag.

"I got us here some milk and some of that honey you love to eat so much. Honey and milk now ain't that a good combination." he said, hanging up his hat and coat and coming into the kitchen. He sat into a chair, long in it, his shoes sparkling with dew.

"I know, I know I promised ya a treat" he answered to the pleading look on Clarice's face "And a gotcha one to."

So saying he pulled a cellophane packet of Sno Balls out of the paper bag.

"You're not gonna want to eat all those today baby. Tomorrow we're going fishing and these'll taste real nice with fresh caught fish. We'll just have us one each and save one for your mama so's we can have one each tomorrow."

As he placed the package on the small dining table Clarice ran into his arms. "I love you daddy" she murmured through the smothering thickness of his shirt. He smelled like tobacco and strong soap. They opened the Sno Balls and Clarice and her father silently enjoyed them. Then he pulled a knife out of his pocket, the tip broken off square. He got two oranges out of the cupboard and peeled them with the knife, sharing the sections with Clarice as he went. By the time they were finished both had sticky hands and Clarice's face was covered in orange juice. At that moment Clarice's mum walked into the kitchen, took one look at Clarice's face and started laughing.