​Charlie the Dust Bunny

​Charlotte sat on the couch, her tablet heavy in her hands as she grew tired. She set the tablet on the table and was just about to head upstairs for bed—something she rarely did on her own. She glanced across the room and saw a tiny ball of fluff, a typical dust bunny, sitting next to the couch. She thought nothing of it until it scurried across the floor.

​It wasn't a mouse, a rat, or a pet. It was a small ball of fuzz, a dust bunny moving on its own. Charlotte, intrigued, watched it as it went underneath the stereo. She got down on her hands and knees and looked under the stereo, where she saw the dust bunny huddled against the wall. This was beyond her frame of reference, but she reached out to touch it, and it vanished. Thinking she must be dreaming, Charlotte headed to bed.

​Meanwhile, the dust bunny, named Charlie, was hiding behind the stereo's leg. His tiny heart was pounding. It was the first time a human child had ever seen a real, living dust bunny, and he feared that the entire society of dust bunnies would be exposed. Charlie quickly floated back to an old cable outlet in the wall and slipped behind the panels to the safety of Dust Bunny World.

​Inside the walls, Charlie was reunited with his friends: Harold, George, Catherine, Bill, Bob, Dopey, Dunn, and Daniel. He told his cousin, Jill, what had happened. Jill suggested they reduce the number of dust bunnies outside the walls until Charlotte forgot about them. Charlie agreed, and they devised a plan: they would get the humans to use the Swiffer more often.

​The plan was simple: one brave dust bunny would sit in the middle of the living room floor. When Charlotte's parents saw it, they would be prompted to Swiffer the floor, keeping the rest of the dust bunnies safe inside the walls. Since Charlie had caused the problem, he was chosen for the mission.

​The next morning, Charlie sat in the middle of the living room floor. Charlotte's dad walked by and didn't notice him, but her mom did. "Honey," she said to her husband, "I think it's time we Swiffer this floor. There's a dust bunny sitting right in the middle of it."

​The dad finished his coffee and Swiffered the floor, collecting all the dust bunnies. The next morning, the couple came downstairs, and there was another dust bunny in the middle of the floor. This continued for some time until Swiffering became a daily routine. This meant the dust bunnies no longer needed to risk going into the living room, and Charlie was safe.

​But Charlotte wasn't so easily fooled. She remembered the dust bunny she saw and believed it was real. She searched everywhere—under the stereo, behind the couch—but found nothing. Finally, she walked toward the old cable outlet and noticed a tiny tuft of dust bunny hair sticking out.

​She quickly peeled back the panel and saw a group of dust bunnies quivering in fear. Charlotte scanned the group and spotted Charlie, the one she had seen behind the stereo. She asked him, "Why are you afraid of me?"

​Charlie, not thinking, answered, "Because if people believe in us, our whole existence will be gone."

​"Why didn't you just talk to me and tell me this was your worry?" Charlotte asked. "I promise not to tell anyone, and eventually, I'll grow up and won't even remember you."

​Charlie and Charlotte made a deal. She would keep the secret of the dust bunnies, and they could continue to live their lives, floating across the carpet and hiding under the furniture, with no one being the wiser.