The Nature of Predators - Venlil Foster Program (2/14)

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Memory transcription subject: Callsi, Venlil Bartender

Date [standardized human time]: October 20, 2136

The human confined himself to his room of his own volition, and we settled into an uneasy rhythm. I would bring Dustin meals and beverages at regular times, but he wouldn’t give any acknowledgment. Sure enough, the bowls would disappear when I wasn’t watching. I’d find plates sitting empty in the hallway, or clumsily rinsed out in the bathroom sink. I also brought him a box of snacks, just in case he got hungry before meals.

Today was the true test, as I had no choice but to return to work. I’d drained my sick time to surveil the human, and my coworkers were tired of covering my shifts. That meant leaving the predator unattended, with no one to make sure he didn’t delve around our possessions. I thought about padlocking him in his room, but that seemed harsh. What if there was an emergency?

When the mass transit dropped me off, in the outer-ring suburbs, I sprinted back to my home. It wouldn’t have surprised me to find the place wrecked, or for Dustin to have caught some prey in the backyard. No matter what, I had to be home before Jimek returned from school; the bus’ return time coincided with my own. My son couldn’t be alone with a predator.

Faint vibrations hit my ears from the driveway, and I worried startling the predator would trigger his fight reflex. I crept in through the front door, careful not to make any sudden noises. Dustin’s hair was visible above the couch; his eyes must be glued to the screen. I cringed as I realized he was watching a rerun of The Exterminators.

The Harchen investigator fiddled her papers. “The Sivkits wander from world to world. It was a matter of time before they stumbled across something they couldn’t handle.”

“So you’re telling me this colony beast has gained a rudimentary sapience?” the male strategist replied.

“It built a hut out of bones, Fibalo. This is like the human situation all over again: primitive filth starting to spread.”

“Then they’ll kill themselves off, same as the apes. Predators are aggressive and self-destructive, and—”

Jimek slammed the door upon his entry, and nearly bowled me over. The human startled at the noise, like he’d been caught doing something wrong. Dustin bolted off the couch, receding into his lair. Orange droplets hit the tile behind me, and I swiveled around to face my son. Terror rushed through my veins, as I remembered life-fluids attracted predators.

The little Venlil’s cheeks were tear-stained, and I coaxed him to sit on the floor. Checking that the predator didn’t circle back, I fetched a first aid kit. The blood stemmed from Jimek’s ear; it looked like someone deliberately raked claws across his soft flesh. My heart cracked, dabbing the wound with a dry cloth.

“Why do they hate me?” Jimek croaked.

I ruffled his beige cowlick. “Because they’re awful. Who did this to you? We should report them for predator disease.”

“NO! D-don’t. I tried that, and now it’s…worse.”

I wrapped a swath of bandages around his ear, and watched as the gauze took an orange tinge. Thinking quickly, I grabbed strong-smelling pilamon herb, and threw a pawful on his ear. Jimek made a face, but didn’t question disguising the blood scent. He was always an intelligent kid.

Chills danced across my neck, whispering that I was being watched. Those instincts existed to caution my ancestors of a predator’s eyes on them. Swiveling toward my blind spot, I spotted Dustin peering around a wall. The human was scouting a potential target! He scampered away, once he realized he’d been spotted.

“Go to the kitchen, Jimek, and dial the exterminators if I don’t come back,” I whispered. “If the human comes at you, you run. Understand?”

My son nodded. “Yes, mom. Why don’t we call the officers now?”

“I don’t want to kill Dustin. Maybe I can work him down from the blood frenzy. He’s been harmless otherwise.”

“He’s intrigued by this. He thinks it’s hilarious that I’m hurt!”

“Did he say that?”

“No, but—”

“Have you even spoken to him?”

“No, of cour—”

“Wait here, Jimek. I love you.”

Mustering up my courage, I strolled toward the human’s den. After the abysmal results to the Battle of Earth, it was unlikely that Dustin could be sent home any time soon. The city of Montreal was leveled, and unfortunately for me, that was the location of his orphanage. For stars’ sake, the creature was supposed to start school in two days. How could I send him there, after seeing him drawn to Jimek’s blood?

I don’t know how long we’re supposed to keep him around, I thought. The government is following up in a week, but that’s awhile away.

I creaked open the storage closet, and Dustin’s head popped off the pillow. He wasn’t wearing his visor, which gave me my first glimpse at his face. Other Venlil had described that initial feeling in their interviews, but the sensation was irrepressible. Imminent peril was communicated by his gaze; humans had evolved so their eye movements were particularly visible. Unnatural white framed blue irises, and dark pupils were nestled at the center.

Fear chemicals rushed to my head, and I swayed on my feet. The next thing I knew, I was splayed out on the floor. Panic quickened my breathing, as I realized the predator’s shadow hung over me. Dustin was already triggered by the blood incident, and now, he had an unconscious Venlil collapsing in his territory. My pupils darted up, expecting to see slobber oozing from his lips.

Instead, I saw the human had retrieved his visor. His nimble hand landed on my shoulder, and his own demeanor seemed alarmed. Dustin fell back onto the water mattress, burying his face in his hands. Was that my imagination, or were tears seeping under the visor? The Terran child was…upset?

“I’m sorry for spying on you, and watching the TV,” he sniffled. “I d-don’t wear the visor in here.”

I struggled upright, calming my breathing. “Of course…you…you d-don’t. I intruded on your privacy…I s-should’ve knocked.”

“I just wanted to see if Jimek is ok. I didn’t mean anything by it, but everything is ruined now. You’re going to send me back, like everyone else!”

“What? What do you mean, ‘like everyone else?’”

“You think I haven’t bounced from foster home to foster home? My own parents dropped me outside the local police station, and left without a word. It’s my fault. Nobody wants me. Nobody loves me!”

Dustin was becoming hysterical, with his cheeks turning a flushed red. Full-throated sobs racked his chest, broken up by the occasional gasp for air. Tears were flowing nonstop, while mucus bubbled within his long nose. The sudden burst of emotion surprised me, and I tried to process what he just said. Pity clenched at my chest, thinking of him as a child who felt abandoned and unloved.

I seated myself on the edge of the bed, and shoved my fear down. Dustin was right; I’d been planning to get rid of him at the first opportunity. All of a sudden, that notion brought a tinge of guilt. Reaching out with a shaking paw, I wrapped an arm around his neck. My heart hammered, but I tugged the predator’s head against my fur.

The human hesitated, before he squeezed back. “I’m sorry for scaring you, Callsi.”

“No…I’m sorry, Dustin. I’ve never seen human eyes before,” I whispered. “But you don’t need the visor in my house.”

I released him from our embrace, and noted that his crying had died down. My paw extended cautiously, lifting the cold metal off his forehead. His binocular eyes were red with irritation, while a coating of saline threatened to spill over. My brain screamed that this was a predator, but my empathetic side ached at his sorrow. I slowly pressed my pads against his eyelids, and wiped the tears away.

The human drew a shuddering breath, curling up next to me. For the first time, I tried to look at the alien. We’d driven a child to hide away in his room, and made no attempts to include him in our activities. Every action he took was put under a microscope; Jimek and I were waiting for him to snap. Meanwhile, Dustin had no emotional support, as he learned that his planet had lost hundreds of cities.

It was time to start treating the Terran like an actual member of the family. My son wouldn’t appreciate this change of heart, but it was the right thing to do. I wasn’t pleased about an innocent kid crying because of me. Dustin didn’t deserve to internalize such negative emotions, and to feel as though he didn’t belong here. Predator or not, his words were eerily Venlil-like.

“I was going to fix some jams and veggies for dinner. You want to help set up?” I asked.

Dustin eyed me warily. “Yeah, I would. Is Jimek alright? You never told me.”

“Jimek…is fine. The kids at school are horrible to him. He’s quiet and bright, with creativity to boot. They know he’s going somewhere, and they envy that.”

“They’re physically harming him! That’s a lousy way to feel better than someone. Teachers, parents…someone should intervene.”

“Jimek says they don’t. They don’t care.”

The human was silent, a brooding look on his face. We made our way to the kitchen, where a panicked Jimek clutched his holopad. I issued a frantic gesture to put it down, and the Venlil squeaked at the beast’s unmasked eyes. Betrayal sparked in his gaze, as I began tail signaling my message.

Predator eats with us. Be nice, I signed.

Jimek shuddered. No! Refuse!

I sighed aloud. “Jimek, sit down at the table and behave. You’ll do what I say, or you won’t go to art school.”

“The only reason we got this thing is for art school! Why are you being like this?” he hissed.

“You don’t talk back to me! You will not be rude to Dustin again. Are we clear, young man?!”

“I hate you!”

My son stormed over to the table, and glared out the window. Dustin’s eyes had gone wide, but I steered the human into the pantry. My paws opened several jars of jam, and I instructed the human to put a few dollops on each plate. It felt unnatural to order a predator around, even if this one was obedient.

After accruing some vegetables for dipping, I carried the plates to the table. I seated Dustin next to me, but opposite from Jimek’s position. In hindsight, I realized that may not have been the best idea. That left the binocular eyes staring right at my son. The human cautiously settled down, and dug into his food.

“I don’t want it.” Jimek pushed his plate away, and his body shook with fear. “The predator touched it.”

Dustin crunched down on a veggie stick. “Your mom asked me to help. Listen, I’m only here because I have nowhere else to go. I can’t live on my own.”

“They were supposed to find somewhere else, and get rid of you soon. My school doesn’t need more predators.”

“I heard what happened today. I’m sorry.”

“Predatorshit! You might fool my mother with your act, but I know what you’ll do when no one’s looking!”

I slammed a paw on the table. “Dustin hasn’t done anything wrong. He’s a guest in our house, and you’ll treat him as such.”

“Mom—”

“The human is going through a lot too, and he didn’t take it out on you. You know my rule about cursing. On second thought, go to your room and think about what you’ve done.”

Jimek wriggled out of his chair, and shot a look of absolute loathing at the Terran. I was surprised Dustin hadn’t reciprocated the hostility, but I couldn’t count on him to tolerate insults forever. I was responsible for the predator’s emotional welfare too. But my son came first, even if he was the instigator; that left me with a serious conundrum.

There were also concerns about how the human would fare when he was whisked off to school. Education was important for children, but bonding with Venlil would be difficult. It wasn’t clear what his prior academia consisted of; our curriculum might be foreign to him. For all I knew, Terran schools consisted of war strategy and projectile physics classes.

I needed to broach the subject in a tactful, inoffensive way. There were two days to ensure he was prepared.

“What was your favorite class back home?” I asked.

Dustin licked jam off his fingers. “Art, I guess. We had a cool teacher.”

“I’m not talking about extracurricular activities, darling. What about your actual education?”

“I…don’t follow. That was the class we had right after lunch, before chemistry.”

“Art, taught alongside sciences? You’re saying it was graded like other subjects?”

“Uh, yeah. Did I say something wrong?”

I leaned back in my chair, mystified by the human’s claim. “No. I’m just surprised art would be mandatory for you. It’s creative…it’s recreation.”

It made little sense that predators would instruct all children in creative endeavors. Shouldn’t they be more pragmatic than us, in teaching skills that were important to society? Only Venlil with a passion for the subject, and a means to pay for it, received artistic training. It would cost a pretty credit for Jimek to enhance his abilities.

Admittedly, there was something idealistic about all children being taught art. It meant humans considered creative expression important on their world, and labeled it a valuable skill to teach to their offspring. Perhaps these predators did appreciate natural beauty. It was clear they honed emotional values from birth, to develop away from militarism.

Dustin might have the complexity to thrive in Venlil schools after all.

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A/N - Part 2 of the miniseries! With Dustin's introduction to school imminent, Callsi learns of his heartbreaking insecurity. The foster mom attempts to treat him as a normal kid, but Jimek still openly despises him. Will the bullied Venlil ever warm to a predator? 

As always, thank you for reading and supporting!