I'm Not an Animal (Slow Updates)

Chapter 20

I opened my eyes to see that I was no longer in the back room of the restaurant. I was laying in a small wooden room, curled up in a cocoon of blankets and lying on a shag-mat. A fireplace was built into the wall in the centre of the room, and although the fire had gone out, it couldn't have died long ago as there were still glowing embers on the logs.

Zaki and Kaden were curled up on the floor, and the two couches had bundles of blankets that contained Marion and Eleanor. A couple of rugs had slumped from the recliner chair onto the floor. I saw a flurry of rainbow feathers outside, then I was up on my feet.

I walked out the front door and looked back. I had been moved during the night into a small wooden house. The roof was low and it looked as though it only had a couple of rooms, but it was comfortable and had given me a good enough sleep.

The sun was starting to rise behind the house, casting an angelic glow on the girl who sat atop the roof, her rainbow wings open. She hadn't noticed me, so I changed into my Tiger form and leaped onto a tree branch, scrambled up the tree and leaped onto the roof.

"Ruby," I said as I shifted back. She started and turned around. I could see tracks down her cheeks. She smiled wryly and patted the roof beside her. I sat down and she sighed.

"I've been up for a couple hours. I, uh, washed your clothes. They're folded up beside your satchel. I was just wandering around and looking at stuff." She seemed to choke on her words.

"Is everything okay?" I asked quietly. Ruby shook her head and I saw her struggling to hold back tears.

"No," she whispered. "I almost saw my best friend die. It was like some horrific accident, where you can't bear to watch it but you can't look away." Tears burst forth and she fell apart into racking sobs.

"What is this?" I asked, waving my arms at Ruby. "I've seen tear tracks through ash, heard you whimper, watched you step back in fear...but I've never seen you cry! You're Ruby, our happy balloon of optimism that keeps us all afloat!"

"You're comparing me to a balloon?" she asked, sniffling, though I saw a little smile.

"You'd rather I compare you to a rock?" she shook her head, chuckling, and I saw the old Ruby behind the tears.

"Ruby? Tora? Where are you?!" Zaki called, running out the front of the house. Ruby was about to get up when I put my hand on her shoulder and pointed at Kaden, who had just emerged from the building.

"They've run off, you idiot!" he snapped. "One whiff of freedom and they're out of here faster than greased lightning." Ruby opened her wings and lowered herself slowly behind Kaden, not making a sound.

"So, that's what you think of us," she said calmly. Kaden whirled around, shock plain on his face, and blushed furiously at the thought that we'd heard him conversing with Zaki.

"Oi Kaden, think fast!" I called, leaping from the roof. He called out in shock and scrambled backwards but I shifted in mid-air and landed on him. I shifted back into my human form and muttered, "I would never abandon my friends, and I know they wouldn't abandon me. So you get your priorities straight, because if you accuse me or my friends of something again, I won't care if you're with the Society, the Resistance, heck, I won't care if you're God, I will make your life a living hell. You watch yourself buddy, because I might just kill you." Then I stood up and walked inside.

As I walked through the door, Marion walked out of the back room, a towel wrapped around her head. "I'm clean!" she squealed, delighted. "And you're alive!" she rushed to me and hugged me, spinning around madly. "I can't believe you're alive!"

"Neither can I, honestly." I breathed, stepping back. I yawned loudly and stretched, then dropped down on the sofa next to Eleanor. Within seconds I was asleep. When I opened my eyes, Eleanor was shifting beside me. She sat up and yawned. I took one look at her hair and burst out laughing. Her blonde bob was now a blonde blob.

"What?" she asked, patting her head. She groaned when she found her bed head, then looked out the window.

"It's midday, why are you only now waking up?" Marion asked, walking into he room.

"Cheetahs sleep lots." Eleanor spat. When we shot her a sideways glance she slumped forwards. "Fine, I'm not a morning person. Happy?"

"Very." a voice rang out from outside. I looked up to see the bartender walk in, a silver platter stretched across her arms. "I'm surprised you all woke up earlier. I would have thought you'd sleep in." she placed the platter on the table and I saw it was heaped with sandwiches and had seven glasses on it. "I'm Clair, by the way. And you..." Clair turned to me. "You, my friend, are incredibly lucky. More than that! How did you get out? No one has ever gotten out!"

"Resistance!" Ruby cried, half a sandwich stuffed in her mouth. I rolled my eyes and lifted a sandwich.

"The Resistance? How?"

"We knew that something was happening at the Outer Reaches, but we didn't know what. We took in two choppers, cleared out, and tranqued everyone." Kaden jumped in. He was leaning against the doorframe, head hanging low.

"Tranqued?" I asked, giving him an odd look.

"Tranquillisers, Tora. That's how we got your friends here. Shot 'em with tranqus."

"I don't think that's a real word," Eleanor groaned as she stumbled over to the table and grabbed a ham sandwich. She also grabbed a glass and took a massive swig.

"I don't care. We planned to take everyone back in the choppers but there wasn't enough room, and I had to take these five."

"If you remember correctly, I was the one who told you to take us!" I roared, leaping over to Kaden. "You and your snarky attitude and your wild accusations, you better not keep that rubbish up or I'll throw you off a cliff!" I shoved him and he stumbled out the door.

"You'd be lost without me!" he retorted, eyes wild. "Tell me, how would you get to the Resistance now?!"

"Easy! We were heading west, then we were turned to our right, which was north. We just make our way back to the river and turn right again, then we're back on our way." Kaden seemed shocked that I actually knew what I was talking about.

"Guys, please! Stop!" Clair called, running over. I hung my head and breathed out.

"I'm sorry," I murmured, walking back into the room. Zaki took my hand and pulled me into a hug, then he sat me down and sat down beside me. I leaned my head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arm around me.

"So," Kaden started, his voice calmer than before. "What did you guys do to get the Society up your back?"

Eleanor, Zaki and I looked at each other, then we Shifted into our animal forms. Kaden cursed loudly and shook his head, then turned and looked out the door.

"So," I began, shifting back, "what animal are you?"

"That's not important." Kaden snapped, a little too quickly. I shook my head and lifted my satchel. "Now," he continued, "you wanna get out of here?"

"You mean after all this you're still gonna take us to the Resistance?"

"New members always welcome." he said with a wry smile. I breathed out and stepped out the door, followed closely by the others. I stood beside Kaden and looked up at him.

"Lead the way."

***
M'kay, what did you think? I liked it. Any ideas? And I'm thinking of doing a sequel... how does I'm Not A Monster sound? Any thoughts?