Pet: Torment - Chapter ThirtySeven (Patreon)

Iris

For once, the night sky is empty. The streak of light that usually covers it has been dissolved, leaving only Llora to illuminate the night. Because his siblings were unaware of his plan, the panic that has consumed them has been difficult to watch. And in their desperation, they have both gone to seek out their brother to understand what’s going on. But I know he won’t tell them. They probably won’t even find him. Remus trusts no one, including me. He made that very clear during our last meeting. I hate how helpless I’ve felt during all of this. Even now, the fear that his mother will come find me to finish the job now that her rings have been destroyed eats away at me.

But fear of the unknown outweighs that. Whatever trap Remus has set, it is now in play. And we are all nothing more than pieces he’s using to complete his puzzle.

He said so himself.

I pull in a deep breath, bringing my knees to my chest as I sit atop the bed, staring at the sky. As much as I would prefer to remain at Ezra’s home, with the rings gone and his siblings having no way of knowing where or when their mother will return, they figure the safest place for me remains Xion’s. But I no longer feel welcome or safe here. I don’t feel safe anywhere. I took that for granted when Remus was himself.

I drop my head to my knees, pulling in shuddering breath as tears form. I hate being in the dark on his plans. I don’t know what his endgame is in all of this, and that terrifies me. In his mind, does this end with him coming back to me? Or is this all a plot to get revenge on the person who tampered with his mind? My life is in limbo.

I suddenly feel a warm touch against my ear, drifting into my hair to brush over the hairpin that holds it in place. I look up just in time to see Remus pulling away with it in his grip. His purple gaze glitters in the dim lighting, as calm as I’ve ever seen them as he studies me, his expression blank.

My chest burns, and I have to force myself to breathe in as he moves around me. I quickly look to the door, but it’s closed. As is the door to the balcony. He must have transported himself in here. His eyes remain on the hairpin.

“If you want the real truth, you have to get rid of the rings that surround this planet. Those were your words to me that night,” Remus says.

His tone is chilling. He’s angry.

“I’ve done as you said, and I still have no idea who you are… or why you flit around in my memories,” he says.

My stomach twists, and my chest suddenly feels tight as I find the strength to argue with the Celestivine who despises me, especially now. But I know that if I tell him the truth, if he goes and seeks out his mother, this is all over.

For me, at least.

She’ll know I’m alive. And she’ll know Remus’s mind isn’t as wiped as she wanted. He’ll have no reason to protect me, especially since he’s angry with me for manipulating and lying to him. And she’ll make sure she kills me this time. And above all, Peace will be restored between her and her children.

“It was just a theory. The rings do something to all of you. Maybe it takes longer than a few hours for the effects to wear off,” I say, hoping to buy myself some grace.

Remus laughs, his grip closing around the hairpin.

“A theory?” he asks.

I shrink away as he comes to stand over me on the bed. I know he can hear my heart thrumming wildly against my chest. He intensifies his intimidation by placing his hands on either side of my legs, leaning in toward my face, and I immediately notice the blue flecks within his eyes slowly pulsing with his irritation.

“I have put everyone on this planet at risk to test your theory,” he says.

“At risk from what?” I ask.

His gaze narrows, and I can see him fighting his natural instinct to do something awful to me for speaking to him and asking about this world when it isn’t my place.

He suddenly stands tall, turning away from me.

“What do you think will happen if you tell me why everything is so convoluted?” he asks.

“I will be hunted down and killed. And you won’t even remember to mourn me,” I whisper.

Remus keeps his back to me, his face tilting toward the sky outside my window. His hair is held in a low ponytail, falling down his back as he thinks to himself.

“By who?” he asks.

He looks away from the window, his amethyst gaze falling on me. “Who will hunt you down?”

I pull in a trembling breath, my fingers grasping for my locket. Remus’s eyes follow the motion before shifting back to my face. I see no patience in his expression. This is just a conversation to get the answers he seeks.

“Your mother,” I say. I finally speak the truth.

Remus narrows his gaze seconds before I feel a heavy pressure settling around me. It isn’t uncomfortable yet, but the threat is there. It lingers between us, making me shiver as I sit on the brink of death from the alien that once told me he loved me.

“The words that come from your lips make me want to rip the life from your lungs. And yet you speak them with such absolution. Have you been trained for this? Did someone send you here to fuck with me? To get me to let my guard down?” he seethes.

His tone alone makes me tremble as silent tears spill down my cheeks, over my quivering lips. Remus holds my life in his hands, and as he glares at me with hatred, I suddenly see the slight tremble of his pupil, and it all suddenly makes sense to me.

“You’re scared,” I say. “You feel betrayed…”

He doesn’t move. If anything, he doesn’t even look like he’s breathing. My chest aches as I take him in, standing before me in a way I’ve never seen him. Even though I don’t know what it is he’s experiencing in his mind, I know that he is desperate for answers as his mother’s work slips through the cracks. Whatever memories he has of me must be enough for him to follow what I say...but not enough to believe me entirely.

“I’m telling the truth, Remus. You left to see her, and you never came back. I felt your anger and your betrayal—agh!” The pressure around me grows unbearable, and my body feels like it’s being crushed.

Remus holds me right on the edge as he moves closer to me, the black of his pupil dilating so much that I can no longer see the purple as he glares at me.

“Why do you lie with such ease?” he hisses.

“I am not lying!” I ground out. “I know you, Remus. I know that you don’t need food to survive, but you still like shaved ice in a small town called Mallora. I know that you like to live among your people in disguise. I know that you like to read, and that you enjoy Ifasy. I know that you have ice imported and I know that you would split a mountain for me, and kill Iriel without a trial if I asked because of what he did. And I know that you loved me in your own way, enough to make a room for me in your home with everything I’ve ever held close in my life.”

The pressure around me slowly dissolves as Remus’s expression grows more flustered.

“I’m sorry I took you for granted. I was so angry about the loss of my world, I didn’t take the time to understand why you were the way that you were. But your mother, she is evil, Remus. She took that from you—from us. You can’t ask her about this, and you can’t tell her I’m still alive—” My body is suddenly thrown across the room, and I crash into the wall. Pain ripples up my spine, and I fight to breathe as Remus stands over me.

Blood drains from my face from the heavy pressure that fills the room as his hair shifts slightly around him. I’m still choking on my breath as he kneels in front of me, and a prickling sensation settles over me.

“Speak to me like this ever again, and I will kill you.” I fight the urge to vomit as fear cuts through me. Remus’s presence suddenly disappears from the room, and I am left a groaning mess as pain radiates over me. I lift my head just enough to see the rings slowly forming. They look like slow waves that will eventually connect, and I can do nothing but watch as my last bit of hope is ripped away.

The pain finally becomes too much, and I black out.