A Tale of Fur and Fangs: The Facility (working title)

Chapter 3: Victoria and Valentine

 "You really need to stop doing that..."

The words came from the bottom bunk of the double-stacked beds. They were wedged in the corner of the cell, and on this lower bed lay what looked like a giant mouse, but unlike a normal mouse, it had human proportioned arms, legs, and torso. Its thinly-furred arms were wrapped around a flat pillow that was clutched to its chest. The mouse-creature's eyes had once been as dazzlingly blue as his sibling's, but they now had a dullness to them that spoke of the horrors that he had endured since being abducted by The Facility. He was staring blankly at the whitewashed wall of the cell that kept both he and his sister confined when he spoke.

His sister spun on the spot at his words. She had been glaring at a clear plexiglass wall. Just minutes before she had been berating the mad doctor that was keeping her and her brother prisoner. After the doctor had left the sister had let her mind start twisting with ideas of escape, but her brother's defeatist words had torn her from her thoughts. Without a word she stormed over to the bunks and glared at the figure lying with its back to her. She noticed that her brother had let his worm-looking tail droop onto the floor in is despair. She locked her vibrant, blue eyes on the appendage and, raising her hairless, bare foot, stomped on it.

"Gaaaaah!" The brother's eyes went wide with pain, and his back went rigid, causing him to throw the pillow against the wall. Rolling over on the bed he sat up and took his tail in his hands. He sucked air through his teeth as he rocked back and forth. He gave his sister a sharp glance. With tears of pain in his eyes, he demanded, "What is wrong with you, Vic!? That really hurt!"

He clutched and rubbed at his tail, trying to soothe the pain while his sister, Victoria, loomed over him. The twins had been identical in appearance before their abduction, and even after, they still shared similar features. Both of them had the same golden blonde fur and bright blue eyes, but Victoria's face had a harder look to it than her brother's.

Valentine had always been the softer one when he and his sister were younger. He had never really had the courage to stand up for himself during confrontations, and as he grew older he attracted more bullies for his less than conventional taste in clothing and choice of romantic partners. Victoria was much the same in this regard. Rather than wear a pretty evening dress, she was much more comfortable in a loose t-shirt and baggy jeans. There were times that she would pick on her brother for his lifestyle choices, calling him her "little sister" and tricking guys into hitting on him, but if she ever heard anyone else give him crap about how he lived his life, then they were guaranteed to be eating their meals through a straw for the next couple of months at least.

He was her brother above all else, and the only person in the world that she truly cared about. She'd never shown it before, but the fact that she was unable to protect her brother from Dr. Sullivan tore her soul in two. He was gentle, and never deserved to be treated like this. Now it was that gentle, teary-eyed face that glared up at her from the bed.

"'What's wrong with me?'" Victoria echoed angrily. Spreading her arms wide she gestured to the small eight-by-ten cell that they were in. "How about all of this!?" She had raised her voice now and the sound echoed off of the bare walls causing Valentine to drop his tail and fold his big, round ears down over his head.

Victoria knew that she was being loud, but she didn't care! Not anymore! "How can you just lay there not doing anything!? You haven't even gotten off of that bed in the past two days, and now you're telling me to leave that mutilating bastard alone!? Have you given up completely!?" There was a hint of pleading in her voice as she added, "Don't you want to escape!?"

That had pushed Valentine to his limit. He may have been a soft person, but just like everyone else he had his tipping point. Before his sister could say anything else he swung his feet over the edge of the bed and braced his palms on the hard mattress before roaring at her, "Escape!? Escape to where, exactly, Vic!?" His eyes now had the same fire as his sister's but their intense gaze was on her instead of their captors. "I don't know if you realized this or not, smartass, but even if we escaped we would still be stuck looking like a couple of sideshow freaks!" He lowered his voice as he sunk back onto the bed. "At least while we're here no one will have to see our hideous bodies..."