They aren’t down to clown, no matter how tempting that kitty kat scratch is, they say. Lick them lips girl, whisper sweet sweet I’m gonna steal this diamond, I’m gonna rob that stuffy old white man in his manor, I’m gonna make you beg into his batty ears. Make him hard under that knightly armor. You know what he likes. Lois ain’t got nothing on you. Keep that boy scout, you purr to her. My man wears that cowl for a reason, you kitty kat coo.

Melissa Llanes Brownlee (she/her), a native Hawaiian writer, living in Japan, has fiction in Bending Genres, The Lumiere Review, Micro Podcast, (mac)ro(mic), 3Elements, Cabinet of Heed, Bright Flash, Sledgehammer, Complete Sentence and elsewhere. She was selected for Best Small Fictions 2021. She tweets @lumchanmfa and talks story at www.melissallanesbrownlee.com.