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The fleece is not a costume

Process · · 3 min read

A small figure in a white hooded work coverall pushing a floor scrubber down a vast, dim warehouse aisle

The cream sheep-fleece hooded one-piece can read as a disguise. It is not. The night crew found it in their spare-kit bin when Chima started working nights, two sizes too big, with a small brass bell on a cord at the throat.

Keeping the fleece and bell as workwear keeps the class detail in the story. He is a teenager with a shift, a locker, and a supervisor — not a fable creature in fancy dress.

The bell rings when he crosses the warehouse floor; nobody has to look up to know he is coming.

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