Page 44 of Pet: Torment

It’s been three days since Remus left, and as each day passes, it gets more difficult to pretend the ache in my chest is nonexistent. My body is aware of his absence. Since bonding, I have been able to tell if Remus is near or far. But now, it’s like he doesn’t exist at all, leaving an empty ache in my chest. Only a fewdays ago, my body’s reactions bothered me. But since that day at the river, I can feel my emotions shifting.

I want him to come back. But his disguised plea has stuck with me, making me wonder if there’s a possibility he won’t. I’ve barely had a chance to adjust to this new world. I can’t imagine having to maneuver it without Remus. The new emotions budding inside of me have me antsy about wherever it is he has left to so abruptly.

I pull in a deep breath as I stand before the large window that overlooks the snowscape. Never have I been so in love with a place before. The beauty is as daunting as how this place even came to be—as is everything with Remus.

Part of me is beginning to forget the world I called home for so many years. The awe that comes withXyrannishas been never ending, but in a good way. I didn’t want to enjoy it as it meant turning my back on my world. But the longer I live here, the more I’ve come to appreciate it.

Even if the decision to leave Earth was never really a choice, I made it. I chose to leave my world behind after putting everything I could on the line to see this one. The fact that I am here isn’t going to change anytime soon. Remus has made that very clear.

I quietly turn away from the window, taking in Remus’s home as I pass through to enter the room Remus created for me. He is an alien without boundaries. I laugh to myself as I take in the technology similar to sticky notes on sparse pieces of furniture throughout. I used them to help my self-learning of the language and he has had no objections to me turning his home into a chaotic mess.

I think back to when he found me in his library. He wasn’t the least bit upset that I had been moving everything out of place. He only put what he noticed back in its rightful place, while reiterating that nothing is off limits. He is an organizedalien, whose home was spotless and clean before I arrived. And it doesn’t bother him that I am not.

He is constantly encouraging me to see this as my home.

His patience is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. And his shift from the alien I met on Earth to who he is now is disarming me. I don’t know that I hate it.

The room Remus created for me is as I left it as I step inside. Margot’s plant is thriving even in its new environment. I quietly take in the small tokens of kindness between me and Remus on Earth, my eyes lingering on the newest hair pin he gave me before he left. I pull it from the shelf, eyeing its beauty.

“I feel your sadness. I feel the despair and loneliness that you feel. I feel it, but I don’t understand it.”

We both made a promise that day to try to understand each other when he returns. I smile as I study it. It puts me at ease for some reason. The colors in it are outside of Remus’s usual choice. The main jewel is an inviting green with pieces of light that shift slowly, reflecting the jewel’s color. It’s warm, almost as if it’s alive somehow.

I tuck my hair behind my ear, using the pin to hold it back as I shift my attention to my locket. Remus has kept it safe for me even though I expressed my disinterest in it ever since my brother turned his back on me.

A wave of sadness creeps over me as I reach for it, pulling it open. I remember very clearly the moment I inherited this. It was the instant my mother was killed during the invasion. My father made sure to give it to me before he died, as well. I quietly open it, taking in my family’s faded picture.

I only have Remus now.

Suddenly, a deep warble echoes outside. It sounds similar to when Remus arrives. But I know it isn’t him who is returning. I’d be able to feel it.

I make my way out of the room to the hall that leads to the upper floors where the entrance from the ships is. I note that there is a coat hanging near the door for me, and I smile as I am once again reminded of Remus’s attentiveness.

I quickly pull it on, opening the door just in time to see Ezra walking across the balcony. His signature mischievous grin is plastered on his lips when he sees me.

“Well, aren’t you glowing,” he calls to me with a wicked glint in his eyes. He laughs, shaking his head as he approaches. And as he stands over me, his attention shifts to the pin in my hair briefly before speaking.

“My brother asked that I check in from time to time while he’s away. And it just so happens that I am heading to the capital today. Want to join?”

I never thought I would return to the capital without Remus. But it’s like both him and his brother have said. We are equals now, and I can do as I like. And today, it is attending the final day of Iriel’s trial. I knew Remus had abandoned it to spend time with me before leaving. But seeing how close it was to the end makes his sudden departure even more alarming.

I stand quietly near the entrance to the upper balconies as I watch the Leviathan bustle by without sparing me a glance. It’s strange seeing them act just like humans. I’ve only ever seen the hostile side of these people before coming toXyrannis.

“It’s a beautiful day for a sentencing, huh?” I tense as Ezra approaches, his excitement for Iriel’s demise interesting to watch.

I recall the state he was in when I was brought into the resistance. Iriel tortured him so badly that it got to point where Sky wanted no part of it. So I know Ezra has a personal hatred for Iriel. I’m interested to see what punishment he decides to give when Iriel is convicted.

As I turn to face Ezra, Sky is walking quietly next to him, no inhibitor in sight. My feet are moving before I can think as I pull her into an embrace. She’s warm, like a human is supposed to be.

“It’s so good to see you,” I murmur. And I mean it. There is nothing like seeing a human face in the midst of all of this uncertainty, especially hers—someone who shared in the terror of watching the resistance be pulled apart within seconds.

“You, too,” she says as she pulls away from me with a smile.

“I figured it would be good for the two of you to spend some time together. And what better way to spend it than watching the Leviathan justice system play out against the Leviathan who sold you both out,” Ezra says.

Sky flinches from his words, so I step in to try and change the subject.

“If this is such an important day, why did Remus leave? Isn’t he supposed to preside over it?” I ask.