Paz let out a snort. “You started it, doofus.”
“Doofus?” I roared.
Paz broke out into laughter. The bright, tinkling noise doused my burst of rage. In fact, it made me astonishingly happy.
I smirked, letting a huff of amusement escape. “You’re lucky you’re cute. Otherwise I would have eaten you by now.”
Stars glittered in Paz’s eyes. “Oh, yeah? I’m cute, huh?”
What was the flesh-bag insinuating? He had that lecherous look on his face again.
“You are cute the same way Kookee is cute,” I grumbled. “You are both my pets. Therefore, you’re cute.”
“Uh huh. Sure.” Paz’s grin flashed like a crescent moon. “For what it’s worth, Kur’tok... I think you’re cute, too.”
Suddenly, I felt a serpentes slither up my back. I jerked, grabbing at my shoulders, trying to find the accursed thing... except I found nothing.
“What’re you doing?” Paz asked through a chuckle.
“What is that feeling?” I snarled in frustration. “There’s something on my spine.”
Paz leaned over to look. “I don’t see anything except your feelers.”
“I felt it,” I insisted. “It was a strong shivering sensation.”
“Maybe it was just your body?” he suggested.
As he said it, I realized he was right. Again.
Paz’s words made me shudder so hard it felt like a creature crawling up my spine.
I felt appalled by myself. How could this human—this delicate, breakable flesh-bag, my very ownpet—make me feel that way?
I growled softly at him. “Stop your tricks.”
“What tricks? I told you, I don’t have magical powers. Trust me, if I did, I’d show them off at any given moment.”
I jabbed a claw into his chest. “You dothingsto me. Cease them at once, or I’ll eat your leg.”
Paz snorted in the face of my threat. “Just one, huh? It’s like you really don’t want me to run away or something.”
A burst of neon-lime dread flared over my feelers. As Paz’s gaze flicked to them, he frowned in sympathy. I hadn’t realized he wasfamiliar enough with Maeleonsto understand the chromatic bursts. How long had he lived in that stupid village? And how many of those Maeleons had interacted withmypet? I’d fight anybody who even looked at him.
“Kur’tok,” Paz said. “You’re scared I’m gonna leave you. Right?”
“I’m not scared of anything,” I snapped.
But as the statement left my mouth, I felt empty. He was not wrong. Iwasafraid he would disappear. It didn’t matter that Paz only entered my life yesterday. Now that he was in it, I refused to exist without him.
Paz saw through my lie. He put his petal-soft palm on my arm.
“I’ll stay with you,” Paz promised. “As long as it takes for you to believe me.”
His vow must be hollow. He only said it to trick me, to make me feel better.
“You have no choice,” I muttered. “You’re collared.”
Paz met my gaze unflinchingly. “It doesn’t matter. Even if you took it off, I’d stay.”
