REND

“Once you put that on,” Deen said, pointing at the red mask floating above my right palm, “you’ll turn into Blanchette, right?”

We were sitting on the living room floor, next to the coffee table, the tiles cold under my legs. Deen had suggested we do our test somewhere with no other people around to avoid collateral damage if I ever went out of control, like at an abandoned building on the city outskirts. Of course, I told her no fucking way, minus the cuss. I wasn’t done tidying up the unit for Mom’s arrival and couldn’t spare two shits to play along seriously.

This was merely a break from my cleaning duties. It’d be funny messing with Deen as Blanchette. How come I hadn’t thought of this before?

And so, we stayed in the condo. I reminded Deen that her trusty Guardian Angel would warn us if the future looked dicey.

“Yes,” I replied. “Like I showed you when I revealed I’m Blanchette.” That was a day after Mushroom Buddy trashed downtown La Esperanza and Deen saved me—still not sure if I needed saving—after I got blasted by a grenade.

“I didn’t get a close look that time because I was shocked,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting that to happen.”

“I guess it was weird of me to do it while we were having breakfast.” I shrugged. The mask that would become a face wobbled midair. “But you got a good look at me as Blanchette in Eve. And also earlier, when I…” I trailed off, finishing the sentence in my head, when I killed the annoying frat guys. “Or maybe not? It was all dark.”

“Yeah, I didn’t really see you,” said Deen blinked. “But I was talking about the transformation itself. I’ve only seen it once.”

“There’s nothing to it. It instantly happens once I wear this. I’ll show you now.” I brought the mask to my face, but Deen grabbed my wrist. “Did your Guardian Angel say something?” I asked. Was I going to destroy this place in some random future? That didn’t seem possible.

“Gabe’s silent,” she replied, releasing my arm. “But I have some questions before you go.”

Go where? I sarcastically thought. I knew what she meant.

Deen considered Blanchette and me separate—I told her that so I could have an excuse if I’d do some nasty things. Just blame it on the Adumbrae. I supposed she quickly accepted it because she didn’t want to think that her best friend could do horrible acts.

“What questions?” I tilted my head, mulling a possible problem. Saying I could partly control my Blanchette self now would impact my deniability when I’d chomp on people.

“As Blanchette, when you’re injured, you’ll want to eat the one who did it to you. Did I remember it correctly?”

“Yeah…”

“Then eating them makes you stronger?”

I wouldn’t say I liked where this was going. Narrowing my eyes at her, I firmly said, “Don’t you dare feed me your blood, finger, or whatever, you get me? The Eve thing was a different situation. I can feel Blanchette is calm now after having eaten… them.”

“I promise I’m not going to do that,” she said, a pitch higher than usual. “But, uh, those guys back in the desert. Why did you… go for them?” She struggled to navigate which words to use without making it sound like I did something terrible. “They didn’t attack you.”

“It was the Adumbrae inside of me growing hungry,” I said, ready with my response. “It had been a long time since it… ate. The last was at Eve. You were there. When my condo at La Esperanza was attacked, I didn’t transform. I controlled myself, despite what I went through.”

“So, there are two ways to trigger the Adumbrae in you? Hurting you, and if sufficient time had passed, it’ll go hungry and lash out?”

I nodded. Sure, let’s go with that. I loved it when people made excuses for me.

“You’re full—” Deen shook her head. “Erm, I mean the Adumbrae in you is full, not you—you’re not the one eating people. Since it’s full, you can—I don’t know how it works—assert dominance over it or something?”

“You can think of it that way. I’m telling you, there’s no need to be such a worry wart. I won’t hurt Mom or any other person. The Adumbrae is pretty much slumbering.”

“I want to make super sure.” Deen sternly wagged a finger at me. “I won’t allow you to meet your mother until I’m a hundred percent certain she’d be safe with us. I can’t always be near her in case something bad happens.”

I chuckled. “So, you’re my mom now?

Deen didn’t laugh with me. “I’m being serious here, Erind.”

“Really? You brought this up to change the topic about me lick—”

She wildly waved her hands. “Shush about that!”

I leaned toward her, a teasing grin on my face. “Maybe… I’ll lick you as Blanchette.”

Pink powdered her cheeks. She sat straight, puffing herself up. “Erind! This is important. Can you take this seriously?” She glowered down at me. Her messy golden hair made her look like an angry lion.

“I am. That’s why we’re doing this test.” I pointed a finger at her, copying her earlier gesture. “But don’t try feeding Blanchette, okay?”

“Why not?”

I groaned, “I knew it…”

“It’s added assurance the Adumbrae is full. I can easily regenerate my—” 

“Amber Deen Leska!” I interrupted, uninterested in knowing what body part she would shove in my mouth. “Majorly gross, okay?” That was my genuine reaction.

I knew she was doing it for the greater good, heroic bullshit, but it was just weird as fuck. Did she not find it odd herself? Drinking her blood in the middle of battle wasn’t a problem. Getting fed her finger as if sharing snacks at a sleepover was a whole different thing.

“If any part of you gets inside of me when I’m in Blanchette form,” I continued, trying to sound as angry as possible, “I’m not speaking to you again.”

“Seems like an overreaction to—” Deen began to say.

I said, “What happened with those frat boys isn’t simple. It wasn’t just because the Adumbrae inside me was starving. A large part of what caused it to stir was those bastards—” Deen flinched at my snappy curse “—harassing us, specifically you. So, I was furious at them at that time. Negative emotions must’ve awakened the Adumbrae. And since it hadn’t eaten in so long…”

Deen blinked, surprised by my new ‘revelation.’ “I-I’m… Thank you for being angry, for my sake. And I’m sorry. It’s my fault it happened.”

“Your fault? How?” I raised a brow. “Oh, I get it. If you’re not incredibly beautiful, those idiots wouldn’t have hit on you and, like, stalked us for miles?”

Deen rolled her eyes. “Jeez, that’s not what I’m talking about.”

“Is this the new form of humble bragging?”

“Wear that mask already!”

“You were the one stopping me,” I mumbled, fixing Blanchette’s mask on my mouth. And the mask becomes a face.

The next time I opened my eyes, I could tell I had changed—a new me. I examined Deen with eyes so keen I could count all the pores on her face. I could even see the thinnest of veins on her eyeballs. It was slightly comforting to pick up the slight imperfections invisible to my Erind eyes.

I wriggled my snout, taking a good sniff of my surroundings. As expected, there was Deen’s trademark cotton candy scent. But there were others as well; I could smell her being alive. Her living flesh, though I couldn’t describe it, and the blood pulsing beneath her skin. There was also a mild trace of her clothes. This was the first time I really focused on examining the scents wafting from a human… or not so human, in the case of Deen.

Another odor made me instinctively wary. Something else was alive. Was it the artificial Core on her chest?

“Erind?” Deen gingerly waved, like testing someone if they could see without glasses. “Are you—yaah!”

I snapped my jaws at the air, the loud crash surprising Deen. It was a tradition I almost forgot to do. The impact vibrating my skull was exhilarating. I could feel overwhelming strength; I was the top predator in this room! Deen’s stupid Guardian Angel couldn’t save her from me. I could try…

No! I shook my head, driving away the aggressive thoughts.

You have one mission here, I firmly reminded myself. Mess with Deen. I shouldn’t let anything distract me.

Deen leaned back, but she didn’t leave her spot, still sitting on her knees, legs folded beneath her. “A-are you okay now?” she asked after I stopped shaking my head.

“Groawrrhh…” Oops, I can’t speak. I gave her a clawed thumbs up.

Deen scotched closer, cleaning the floor with her legs. “Before anything else,” she said, “I want to thank you for saving me at Eve. I should’ve told you that when you transformed in front of me, but I was… was just too shocked I couldn’t process it.”

“Rarghh grrr… graawghh.” You saved me, too, I wanted to say. Without her, I would’ve been barbecued by the Greaves Reactor meltdown.

“You tried to save the people the Adumbrae were killing, and I’m very grateful for that too. I know they didn’t make it, but the gesture told me there is good inside you. Erind is being strong despite her condition.”

Leave it to Deen to turn anything into an emotional scene. I was mildly astonished at how comfortable she was with me. We were less than a foot apart. She was putting a lot of faith in me, Erind, ‘controlling’ Blanchette. Or perhaps, she relied on her Guardian Angel not alerting her of danger.

“That was when I realized Adumbrae can also be good,” Deen went on. “I didn’t know back then that it was you, Erind, but, somehow… I sensed it.”

I turned left and right, looking for something to write with to communicate with Deen.

Suddenly, she hugged me, throwing her arms around my neck. I could’ve avoided it with my enhanced reflexes, but I didn’t. Somehow, I didn’t have the disgust for physical contact I usually did. Not as much, anyway. Maybe had something to do with being Blanchette.

“I’m sorry you’re going through this…” Deen heaved. Was she crying?

I could feel something hot on my neck. Tears? Such a drama queen.

Correction. Such a narcissistic drama queen. Why was she apologizing? She didn’t have anything to do with this. She couldn’t help but make everything about her.

“We’ll find a way to cure you,” she continued. “I promise—omaygad aah!”

I licked her neck.