seen from Malaysia
seen from Germany
seen from Malaysia
seen from Japan
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from China
seen from Canada
seen from Belarus
seen from Malaysia
seen from Slovakia
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Malaysia
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from United States
As attentive as Daphne was, sometimes Andy's mutation provided an extra boost of stealth, perfect for catching her unaware. He mobbed a snowball at the back of her coat, then dove back down to his hiding place behind some thick, green bushes.
If the young man was comfortable and content enough, he could become quite cuddly in the morning. With all his intense training after the arrival of Antonius and Edie's new threats, the jump from the backyard tree to Daphne's bed was a breeze. Usually, they could sleep together all night and have him escape in the morning. However, Andy had slipped up this particular time. He rubbed his cheek, complete with a happy and quite dopey smile, against Daphne's face. His foot twitched under the covers as he slept and he sniffed at her hair. If Ashworth could see their town "beast" in Daphne's bed, they would have nothing to be afraid about. In fact, he was so pleasantly caught in dreamland that he didn't hear shuffling footsteps or the click of the door.
"I think this is what you call an impulse buy," he murmured. Andy exited the shop, a small gift bag in hand, and waited on the sidewalk for Daphne. Christmas was on its way and the young couple had decided to do all their shopping together.
Andy was almost as bad as Charlie when it came to controlling impulses. One minute he and Daphne were looking at sweets, and the next he'd just plucked the cupcake off the display and started eating it.
The doctors had explained to Daphne the peculiarities of the entire situation, including the first hour that Andy had been sitting in the ER and barking like a dog. They assured her that they'd hide some telepaths help sort through his head -- someone had scrambled up his thoughts pretty bad -- and unearthed the graphic nature of his torture. They warned her that Andy would not be emotionally stable, at least not for awhile. But the man was sitting up in bed, a copy of The Great Gatsby in his hands.
"I heard that he'll rip your throat out with his teeth and laugh."
"Isn't she that weirdo who talks to squirrels?"
"I bet you five bucks she'll end up in a ditch by the end of the week if she stays with him."
"She's always walking around with those dresses and umbrellas. Who does she think she is? A princess? I bet she's a stuck up."
"What the hell is she doing with a monster?"
With each whisper, the expression on Andy's face grew more and more tired until he'd practically aged five more years. The man sighed and kept his finger's intertwined with Daphne's petite ones, swinging their hands as they walked through the town square.
"Sorry! Sorry! Excuse me! I'll pay for that later!" Andy sprinted across the town square, almost knocking over a few vendors and getting struck by a car or two. He looked over his shoulder at the group of thugs and yelped.
Andy never showed up at Daphne's doorstep without a gift, whether it be flowers, a fruit basket, or...a tree. The dragon-like creature dropped the small tree from its jaws and onto the front lawn. It pressed its nose against the front door and his talons scraped the wood of the porch.
