We're on our way to the train station. It's been an eventful day so far. First, Emily came to apologise for yesterday. I figure that understanding personal boundaries isn't her strong suit. But if a parbeing can bring themselves to apologise, then they're in my good books. Besides, I kicked her ass anyway.
Shortly after she left, Alex told me we're going to see his family for dinner. All those phone calls he'd been getting were about this yearly visit.
"Are we close?" I ask. The bottom of my pants is wet from the rain. Normally, I prefer going barefoot, but rainy days like this make me long for a pair of boots.
"It's just around the corner," he says.
We arrive at the train station and head to a teller.
"Two tickets to Tazel. One human," he says to the teller, handing her his phone.
"What's Tazel?" I whisper.
"The city where my parents live."
The teller hands back his phone along with our tickets. "Train 47C departs in ten minutes. Gate four."
We make our way through the huge building. There are many parbeings, and a decent number of humans too. The paper tickets have a shiny rainbow reflection.
"Can I hold the tickets?"
He hands them over. "Don't lose them."
"I won't. I'm not a child," I proclaim with confidence as we take our seats at the gate.
The ticket's rainbow reflection changes depending on the angle you look at it. I read his ticket. 'Alex Dunn. Adult. Fr: Yalen. To: Tazel.' "What's Fr Yalen?" I ask.
"You don't know?"
"No?"
He chuckles. "Yalen is the city you've been living in for over a month now."
"Well I didn't get a chance to read the invitation letter before coming," I retort, my sarcasm evident.
I look back down at the tickets. 'Nina Dunn. Adult (Human).' "Nina Dunn?" I question.
"What?"
"My surname is Stockell. Why does it say Dunn?"
"It's the name I registered you with. You're listed as 'Nina Dunn' in the DHM database."
I still don't understand. "But why?"
"It's just customary for pets to be registered under their owner's surname."
I look back at the ticket, running my fingers over the embossed letters – 'Nina Dunn'.
The train arrives. I hand our tickets to the conductor, trying to look as confident as I can despite my neck chain.
Alex chooses a seat, and I sit next to him.
The train is off in only a few minutes. I'm pushed back into my seat as it accelerates. There's a small window next to Alex. It changes from a white blur to a greenish orange as we exit the city. Wait. What if we go past the ruins? "Can we please swap seats?" I blurt out.
"I'd rather not get up," he sighs.
"Please. I really want to look out the window." I pull the biggest eyes I can.
He looks amused. He leans over and puts his hands under my arms, lifts me up and places me on his lap.
"Thanks." I press my face against the window. Right now, it's just wilderness. No ruins yet.
"What are you looking for?"
"I was hoping I might spot the place where I was living."
"Why do you care about that crumby alleyway?"
YOU ARE READING
His Prize
Science FictionNina is captured by parbeing man. He plans to turn her into his pet. He knows she won't go down without a fight, but he's not prepared for how much 'fight' she has packed in her small body. His new pet leaks into every area of his life, changing thi...
