The Fairy Boy (G #2)

The Beast

   

    Dylan felt extremely cold.
He shivered in the near darkness, groaning loudly. Where was he? Why did his whole body hurt?

    He sat up and blinked, glancing around. He remembered being kidnapped off the street, taken to a science lab and then given the light test.

    He winced, remembering what had happened when they shone the bright light on him. How his body had transformed into....

    Into a monster.

    That's why it was always so dark. Because whenever his skin was exposed to high levels of light, it transformed. He became a huge wolfish killer. He remembered the pain, the sound of his own screaming.

    He remembered the life size dummy that he shredded in seconds.

    It had been absolutely terrifying. He should have listened to Genny, he should apologize to her. Dylan pushed himself up, shakily walking on his thin legs.

Only when he stumbled out into the open, he was not met with adoring cries of worry, or insult. In fact, nobody seemed to notice him at all.

    Tui was tracing her finger along the floor and watching as it turned all shiny and crystallized. Josie was sitting next to her. Genny was no where to be found. This disappointed Dylan because he liked her a lot, much more than the other two.

    He grunted softly, Tui looked up.

    "Hello there early bird, have any nightmares?" She said rather bluntly.

    "They were quite pleasant until you showed up." He spat back. "Where's the third? I distinctly remember living with three lowly rats."

    She pointed her thumb at another one of the gated doors. "Genny's with her boyfriend,  you missed all the fun, we nearly escaped from this slime pit."

    He kept a straight face but a dagger of fear had sliced through him. They had almost left him here. They had tried to escape without him. Was he really that unwanted? So despicable that they would leave him here in the nightmare pit they all so desperately wanted to escape?

    He dragged himself over to where Tui had pointed. He wanted to know what happened and he wouldn't get that from Tui. Dylan doubted the seven-year old could even speak full sentences yet.

    He pushed open the door and was met with the sight of Genny sitting upright on the small cot and leaning against the wall. Next to her was a tall young man with  shortish blonde hair and large wings sprouting from his back. He wasn't leaning against the wall because his wings were too large for that. Plus the left edge, which was clutched between Genny's pale finger tips, was naked of feathers, read and raw. He glanced up when Dylan entered, then his gaze jumped back to Genny before glaring coldly at him. Genny jumped, startled.

    "Oh, hello Dylan, this is my best friend Will, from the school I told you about. Will, this is Dylan." She introduced, looking back and forth between the two of them.

    Dylan wanted to say something, he wanted to call her out for leaving him to die here alone. But something new was burning inside him, it had started booking ever since he laid his eyes on their hands, which had been resting on top of each other.

    Was he...jealous?

    "Hi." He replied, then left, stumbling back into his room.

    He couldn't understand it, but for some reason he started crying.

    Will winced when Genny touched the wound on his wing again by accident.

    "Sorry," she said, trying to get a better look.

    "It's fine. I'm just glad you're okay." He answered.

    She rolled her eyes at him. "You've been saying that for the past hour."

    "It's true." He said just as quickly.

    She smiled and that made him feel better on the inside.

    "I'm sorry we never made it out." He apologized.

    "It's not your fault." She replied, the wound was raw and sticky, his beautiful pure white feathers were turning pink. It was also hot beneath her fingers, that was a bad sign. It could possibly mean infection.

    "I like your hair." He commented, staring at her with his piercing blue eyes. "You look tough."

    Genny blushed lightly. "I've been better."

    "I could use a shower too." He waited to see if she realized the full extent of his joke.

    Genny bopped him lightly over the head. "Are you calling me smelly, you feather brain?"

    "I would never M'lady. Your way with words outshines any stench."

    She laughed, leaning back against the walls until tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. She hadn't laughed like that in a long time. It felt so immensely good, like taking a hot bath, if you may. It cleansed her from all the sorrow and emotion she had bottled up over these last few weeks. Will looked satisfied, joyful that he could lift her out of the dumps.

    A small girl wandered over to the doorframe. She peered at them with her shiny eyes through a curtain of wavy brown hair. Josie made a small squeak when Will laid eyes on her.

    "Hello there, who are you princess?" He asked leaning down.

    "My name's to Josie and you're William Gilligan, your father worries about you." She said, taking his hand as twirling around.

    Will, looking slightly disturbed, glanced over at Genny who shrugged.

    "She gets these feelings I think, impressions of knowledge. Very random I know."

    "Pleasant." Will agreed.

    Just then, the dim light above them flickered for a few moments, drowning them in near darkness. Then, to mostly everyone's relief, started shining brightly like they did before.

    Until Dylan screamed. Genny rushed out from her bunker to see him writhing against a wall. He snarled at them, his eyes were as yellow as the harvest moon sitting on the ridge of a cloud less night.

    Then a deep, inhuman growl reverberated from his throat.