Milkweed

In Chapter 4, Uri attempts to make Stopthief more at home in their cellar. Uri brings a new bed for Stopthief and fetches the younger boy clothes from abandoned shops. Uri also bathes Stopthief in the shell of a former building. Using a mannequin’s hollowed-out leg, Uri scrubs Stopthief’s skin nearly raw. Stopthief cries at the rough scrubbing and it is revealed that the boy has never been given a bath. Stopthief has also never been given a haircut and Uri brings him to the abandoned barbershop. While they’re there, Uri cuts his hair and pours blue-colored liquid onto his scalp.

After Uri gets Stopthief cleaned up, the boys notice that people are rushing outside, digging trenches to stop tanks and stacking bags of sand in front of machine guns. The boys hurry to follow the people and they cling to the outside of a streetcar, much to the distaste of its passengers. En route, they notice Kuba, the boy who blew smoke in Stopthief’s face, carrying a lamp as he is chased down the street. A passersby trips Kuba and the lamp shatters on the sidewalk. Kuba is almost caught but manages to slip away at the last moment.