Remnya

The wail of sirens invaded the evening, along with the murmur of adults and the cry of children. The hallway resounded with the steps of those who rushed outside to witness the scene. Remnya remained hidden in the darkness, contemplating the consequences of her actions over and over. The crack of Butter's skull still echoed in her head and sent shivers down her spine.

If the adults learned the truth about her nasty ability, they would lock her in the basement, deeming her unstable and dangerous, which meant no one would ever adopt her. Moreover, if the books Zeo had shown her spoke truly, she would be sent to The Eugenics Center of Crysalton, an infamous facility in the big city for misfits like herself.

Her dream of having a family would crumble like a sandcastle.

Remnya clenched her fists and leaned against the cracked tiles of the bathroom, burying her head between her knees. Her eyes burned, but no tear could escape from them; she had promised not to cry ever again.

"Rem?" a soothing voice whispered from the doorway.

"Zeo?" Remnya answered, springing from the floor.

Zeo rushed into the bathroom and turned on the light. His eyes had swollen up, and blood had dried on his lips. "Are you okay?" he murmured, scanning the damage the fire had done to her clothes.

Remnya scowled and nodded, crossing her arms to cover her exposed belly.

Zeo lowered his gaze and bit his lower lip. "It wasn't your fault, Rem. I am the dumb coward who caused all this." A tear trailed down his cheek.

"It's not your fault!" she shouted, narrowing her eyes. "If those jerks had never hurt you, this would've never happened! It's their fault!"

"But—"

"I don't wanna hear no more!" She glared at him and bared her teeth. Zeo flinched and nodded. Turning the light off, Remnya approached the doorway and hesitatingly peeked outside. "Where's the old hag? If she finds out about this . . . "

"Don't worry, Rem. She's busy giving explanations to the police right now."

Remnya swallowed and stared vacantly at the dirty wet floor, wishing Butter recovered soon. As much as she disliked those boys, she never wanted to hurt them.

Zeo placed his hand on her shoulder. "Know that no one mentioned you out there, not even Santi. When they arrived at the scene, Liam was the only one to blame."

"That stupid jerk." Remnya let out a sigh and shook her head, wondering why everyone hated them so much. Zeo was kind, polite, and harmless, so Remnya assumed she was the issue. If anyone deserved to be adopted, that was him, not her. The sole thought of leaving him behind stung the depths of her heart.

"Oh, right!" Zeo exclaimed, interrupting her gloomy train of thoughts, and ran to retrieve a bag he had left by the door. "I brought you clean clothes. I took them from the laundry."

Remnya inspected the bag and then looked at Zeo's tender smile. "Thanks . . . " She pushed the self-hatred into a corner of her soul and rushed to change before the caregivers noticed their absence.

They hid the burnt clothes in a trash can and headed back to the dorms. Crossing the main hall, Remnya observed the green flash of the ambulance reflecting on the cracked walls. Her face turned pale like a ghost, but she hid it under a scowl.

As they passed in front of the infirmary, Remnya grabbed Zeo's hand, stopping him. "What are you doing, Rem?" he asked, widening his eyes.

"You're hurt." She scowled, staring at the trail of blood sliding from the corner of his mouth, and then dragged him inside.

"But I am fine!" Zeo struggled to follow her but didn't try to resist.

Remnya knew that if she didn't take care of him, no one else would, not even himself. However, Zeo was more resilient than he looked; no matter how much they hurt him, his body recovered in no time, even faster than hers.

Silently, they waited for the nurse in a cold room where only a stained fluorescent lamp illuminated their faces. The humidity had cracked the walls; they crumbled to the touch like dry biscuits. A fat rat emerged from a hole in the floor and stared at them with deep red pupils. Remnya crouched and tried to touch it, but it ran away as loud steps came from the doorway.

"What happened now?" Ellyn, the nurse, said, looking at the wounds on Zeo's face. She was a scrawny woman with pale beige hair and insipid gray eyes. Ellyn looked younger than her thirties and always kept a bored expression as if she only lived because the air was free.

Zeo lowered his head and looked at Remnya, who stepped forward. "That Liam and his stupid friends again!" she shouted, fueled by anger, forgetting the consequences for a moment. No matter what, she would never forgive them for hurting Zeo.

"Liam?" The nurse narrowed her eyes. "When did that happen?"

"Well-Uh," Remnya stammered, struggling to think of an answer. "In the afternoon? Liam wanted to undress Zeo, but Butter didn't agree with it, so they started arguing. Zeo took advantage of it to escape, and their fight escalated!" Remnya gestured with her hands effusively in hopes of sounding more convincing. "You know Liam. He's mean and ugly and uh . . . He hates cute boys!"

Zeo's face turned red.

Ellyn raised one eyebrow and scratched her head, processing Remnya's story in silence. But in the end, she only shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I just want to go home early tonight." The nurse opened the infirmary's door and then turned to Remnya with a weary face. "You better go back to your room before Orena returns. Behave properly, and I won't tell her about this."

Remnya froze. "About what?" she murmured as her heart raced in her chest.

"Go," Ellyn said firmly, narrowing her eyes at her.

Remnya swallowed and exchanged looks with Zeo, who looked as perplexed as herself. She bobbed her head, waved at her friend, and headed back to her room, wondering if Ellyn knew the truth about her cursed skill. Why would she keep the secret, though? Since when did she care about her?

Dusk had fallen when she arrived at the courtyard separating boys' and girls' dorms. Remnya lifted her eyes to the sky and witnessed a dim orange glow that faded across thick clouds. Droplets landed on her cheeks, reminding her why she hated cloudy days. Remnya strode into the last dark corridor that led to her room, which she shared with nine more girls.

Everyone had to be in their rooms by eight, except for those who worked, such as Zeo. The pay was having a plate of food at night. Remnya was used to her stomach growling all night, but Zeo had begun bringing her food whenever he could sneak an extra meal into his satchel.

Standing by the door of her room, Remnya spotted her little friend, Amy. A nine-year-old girl with lilac hair and huge green eyes.

"Sister!" Amy shouted, running toward her.

"Amy!" Remnya kneeled to allow her into her arms. The little girl grasped her as Remnya squeezed her malnourished body.

"Are you okay, sis? Did you kick Liam's butt?" Amy asked, her eyes flickering with the innocence of a child. Remnya realized she had never left the room and had no idea about the gruesome events unfolding outside.

"Yes, I did." Remnya forced a smile and pinched her cheek. "You got nothing else to worry about."

"I'm glad!" She jumped with joy and threw a playful punch at her arm.

"What are you doing here alone, though?" Remnya raised one eyebrow and eyed her surroundings in search of anything suspicious.

"I wanted to show you something but don't want the others to see." Amy pointed at her head. "Look, look!"

"What did you do now?" Remnya laughed, ruffling her hair tenderly until her fingers felt a bump on her head. She gasped and widened her eyes, realizing what Amy meant. "They've grown," she murmured.

Amy pouted and nodded, touching the bumps on her head.

"Don't tell anyone about them, okay? I'm sure they won't grow anymore," Remnya said, beaming at her, but a faint worry hastened her heart. It wasn't right. Amy didn't deserve to go through the same hell as her. At least she doesn't have a tail.

"What if they grow like yours, sis?"

"They won't." Remnya's voice was categorical; she wanted to convince herself too. Trying to bury the fear growing in her chest, Remnya stood up and took Amy's hand. "Let's go. It's getting late, and you need to rest. Plus, I got a new bed story for you!" Amy nodded, allowing Remnya to lead her back inside.

The atmosphere of the room was heavy and gloomy as usual. Like every night, Remnya checked her bed for any new prank her roommates tried to play on her; they usually spilled water on her mattress or destroyed her things. However, Remnya was relieved to know she didn't have to fight again that night.

As promised, she read Amy a bedtime story: the tale of a dog and a cat who loved each other, but as usual, she changed the ending for a happier one.

By nine, Remnya dropped on her bed, immersing herself in the warm embrace of a dream, taunting her with the promise of a better place.

*°*°*

In the morning, a sleepy Remnya headed to the office of the orphanage director. The older kids always had to clean the rooms and corridors. Otherwise, they couldn't play outside, but everyone despised and avoided cleaning the director's office, also known as the old hag, Orena.

Even though they had assigned Remnya the worst task, she was relieved they didn't know about her participation in Butter's incident.

A gray mist lingered in the office, along with the reek of tobacco. Remnya's lungs burned as she mopped the floor and tried to gasp for oxygen.

A dying cigarette quivered between Orena's thin lips as she stalked the kids playing in the front yard. Her plump cheeks were red as a tomato, and sweat slid through her wrinkles. The ruckus was reaching her window, so she barked out at someone to silence the brats.

The door burst open, and a caregiver broke into the office, her face pale like a ghost. "Miss Orena!" she called, covering her nose with her sweater.

"What do you want?" Orena rasped, blowing a mouthful of smoke, her red eyes still locked on the kids.

She swallowed and mumbled, "He's here."

Orena threw her cigarette into the front yard and glared at her. "And now you tell me, you twat?" She pushed the caregiver aside and stomped out of the office, the floor shaking under her feet. The younger girl let out a sigh and ran after her.

As soon as they left, Remnya rushed outside to take a mouthful of cleaner air. Detoxing her body with deep breaths, she leaned on the wall and wiped the sweat off her forehead. She lifted her hair in a ponytail and stared at her wet shirt and pants with frustration, knowing that was her last change of clean clothes.

Since most girls were shorter than Remnya, she had gotten used to wearing used male clothes, but no boy, other than Zeo, would let her borrow some. Unfortunately, her friend's clothes didn't fit her fast-growing body. As if being called a horned witch wasn't enough, the kids often compared her with a giraffe.

I guess I'll have to ask Ellyn . . .

The raspy voice of Orena in the distance brought Remnya back to reality.

She rushed to grab a broom lying on the floor and started sweeping the corridor.

From the corner of her eyes, she spotted an unfamiliar face.

A well-dressed man walked next to Orena, drawing everyone's attention with his imposing looks. He dressed in a jet-black suit matched by pointy shoes that shined like crystals. His hair, of a dark umber color, was slicked back elegantly.

His loud steps stopped a few meters away from her.

Remnya shot a glance at the stranger and then pretended not to see him. Orena faked a yellowish smile and talked effusively to him, but the man ignored her. His sharp obsidian eyes locked on Remnya. He observed her in silence as if he was witnessing a rare animal in the zoo.

Frustrated by his insistent gaze, Remnya turned to him with a frown and stuck out her tongue before resuming her job.

Orena's face flushed with anger as she yelled at Remnya. However, the man chuckled at her reaction. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Marcus. We'll discipline her right away!" Orena stomped in Remnya's direction, raising her fist, ready to strike her, but the man snatched her wrist, stopping her.

"No need for that," Marcus said firmly. "It seems like our girl here has the right personality." He grinned, observing Remnya's frowning face. "The Lady will be pleased."

Marcus? The Lady?

Remnya widened her eyes, wondering who he was; no one in the orphanage had the power to stop Orena when it came to beating them, and she had never seen the old lady acting so polite and submissive in the presence of a visitor.

The man gestured for Orena to follow him and turned his back to them, walking away. Orena glared and pointed her finger at Remnya, letting her know the rest of the day would be much worse, and then followed Marcus.

Remnya stuck out her tongue at the hag and kept on doing her job, wondering why such a classy-looking man had dared to enter that horrible place, but especially why he had shown interest in someone like her.

*°*°*

The last sunlight faded behind the town buildings, and another exhausting day of work had ended. Remnya leaned on the window ledge and stared vacantly at the sky. Clouds dissipated as the first stars tilted in the blue-orange hue of the horizon. She took a deep breath, allowing the moist air to fill her lungs.

After dumping all her tools in the cleaning room, Remnya headed to take a bath as ordered by Orena.

When the cold water of the shower hit her back, she writhed in pain. Her open wounds felt like thousand of bee stings. However, after a while, her body adapted to the pain, and she could relax.

It was almost bedtime when Remnya finished and changed into old but clean clothes Ellyn had lent her; a black male t-shirt and sweatpants where she could hide her tail.

Leaving the bathroom, Remnya found someone waiting for her next to the door.

It was Liam's friend, Santi. He leaned on the wall with both hands in his pockets.

She frowned, turned her back to him, and began walking away.

"Wait!" The boy stopped next to her, his bulging brown eyes boring into her soul. Remnya always thought he looked like a goblin.

"What you want?" she hissed.

"I didn't tell anyone about what you did," he said, grinning with crooked teeth.

"I did nothing!" Remnya glared at him. "You and your stupid friends started it."

"It was Liam's idea."

"And you're friends with that jerk."

Santi giggled awkwardly, making Remnya's blood boil. "I won't tell the old hag about it, but I want something in exchange." He stepped closer and touched her hair.

"Are you serious?" She shoved him away. "What you want anyway?"

"Come to the boys' bathroom before bedtime, and I will tell you." He smirked.

"Go to hell." Remnya raised one fist, threatening to slam it on his face.

"If you don't, I will tell the old hag about the fire."

His words felt like a splash of icy water on her back. "What . . . ? Remnya widened her eyes and froze in her spot.

"Remember to come alone. I promise you it'll be fun." Santi winked at her and began walking away.

The sound of his steps echoed in her mind as his small figure vanished in the distance.

Remnya swallowed, her heart racing in her chest. She clenched her fists and held back the impulse to run after him and kick his face. He had put a leash around her neck that threatened to end her last chance to be adopted.

Remnya stood still for a moment, staring vacantly out the window.

The memories of a recent event still lingered in her head. On her last birthday, the older boys had locked her in the bathroom and tried to kiss her. Fortunately, Remnya managed to escape, aided by Zeo and a piece of broken glass.

From the girls, she had heard Santi liked her, and that made her shiver with disgust. Even if he didn't want to hurt her, he wasn't trustworthy.

Yet, if she didn't go, he would reveal her secret.

Her life would be over.

Silence.

There wasn't time to pity herself. Remnya lifted her face, gritted her teeth, and took the first step toward the consequences of her decision.

*°*°*