Jigsaw

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Pleasure. Intensely warm, glorious pleasure.

I feel so good, I close my eyes and actually sigh.

The only way I can describe the feeling is like when you crack your neck or back and it makes a sharp snapping sound. That's the ℂ℄ℹ︎ℂ₭. But it doesn't end there. Then it feels like warm soup rolling down your throat on a cold day. It feels the same as the feeling you get inside your stomach when you're bursting with real, honest laughter. It's when you step into the warm bath and you're freezing cold and you feel like stone. It's turning your pillow onto the cold side and snuggling deep into it.

It's like something in my brain shifts into place and warmth rolls through my body and I can sense the rat inside stretching out and settling down comfortably within.

When my eyes reopen, a gentle smile is resting on my lips.

But it disappears when I realise where I am once again. I'm surrounded by strangers and the rat that now sits agreeably should not be there at all.

But I can't help but feel that my newly found ears and tail belong, in some way or another.

"Are you guys okay?" Clearing Man asks. I glance at all the others. They're smiling a little too, obviously having also experienced what I did. Somehow, I knew that already. I'm not sure why.

"Yes," Eli answers drearily in his asian-tainted accent.

'Good feeling,' Niss mails dreamily from beside me.

"What happened to you?"

"It was a ℂ℄ℹ︎ℂ₭," I say, but it isn't a word. The sound rolls off my tongue as a remembering; a wonderful sensation.

"Yeah," Chameleon Boy says beside me. "A ℂ℄ℹ︎ℂ₭."

The rest of the group make varying sounds of agreement, all drowsily, the effect of the feeling not yet worn off.

What was that?

"A click?" He doesn't say it right. I notice that much. "Man, you guys are fascinating."

His gaze jumps to me, then away.

"No matter," he then says. "That'll have to be a topic for another time, as will you and your cat." Directed at me, and then he looks down at Niss. Then back up. "Why don't we all sit down or something?"

"Where?" Sam asks. I notice he's got fangs. Two large ones, almost vampire-like.

"I don't know!" Clearing man suddenly bursts out. "I don't know how to do this! It's not like they have a rule book for breaking rules."

"What rules?" My voice, in a calm tone, trying to bring back his cool.

"My company," he says. "All six -" he freezes. Another glance at Niss. "Seven of you are test subjects."

"Test subjects?" Eli whines.

"How come this wasn't on the news or anything?" Brandon asks.

Clearing Man (I have got to find out his name) snorts a laugh without humour. "You think testing on six innocent kids without any sort of permission or legal document whatsoever involved is going to be splashed on the front page?"

"No," Eli says sheepishly.

"Wait." I say, hands out flat. "Let's do this in an orderly fashion. First, names." I look directly at Clearing Man. "You first."

"Dr Vex." He answers.

I turn to Chameleon Boy. "Art Brooks. Carter Brooks, technically, but I go by Art."

I nod.

"Tiny," the small voice pipes up. "Tiny Gratton."

I turn to look at her. It's utterly perfect for her.

"Okay, so we have all the names?" I ask. I point at the chameleon. "Art." At the small sparrow girl. "Tiny." The tall, dark hyena. "Sam." The asian silver fish. "Eli." The hot monkey. "Brandon." At the cat. "Niss." The man with no answers. "Dr Vex."

I pause, feeling an itty bitty measure of control. A hand on my own chest. "My name is Max. Maxine, but, Max."

Everyone nods. At the simple relief of knowing names, the tension eases.

"Alright." I say. "Now, we will ask you easy, logical questions and you'll answer, okay?"

Vex nods, grinning at me.

"First," I say. "Why do we look like this?"

His answer; "You've been tested on illegally. Your genes have been mixed in with animal genes."

The answer spooks me a gazillion, but I don't let it waver me. Though I can't say the same for Eli. He breaks into a bundle of sobs. In my peripheral vision, I see Art place a hand on his shoulder.

"Okay," I say. "Next. Are they going to go away? Are we going to look like this forever?"

"The awakened DNA strands have been engineered to go back to dormant at will," no idea what that means, so I let him go on. "Try it."

"Later." I say. Somehow, I don't want the rat to go. The thought irritates me for some reason. "How were we tested on? I don't remember getting any tests done."

"Of course not." Vex says. "It's illegal. They have to mask the injections."

"The vaccinations," Sam breaths. His fangs hardly show. "I started hurting right after that."

Oh. Of course.

"You're right, Samuel." Vex says.

"Okay," I say. "Next. Who are you?"

"I am from the company," he cackles. "I'm your mole."

"Mole?" Brandon snorts. "Why would we need you?"

"Because the company? They're doing bad things. Things I couldn't begin to explain to you without scaring you." He sighs. "And only you can end them."