Theme 75: Shock

[regularamanda]

Today's theme:

Shock1. Submit your drabble that fits this theme as a comment to this post. It should be between 100-300 words, if you go over/under a bit that's fine! If it's longer than say 400 words, I ask that you post on your journal or fanfiction.net and then submit the link to this post. If you find that your story is going to be very long (

Comments

[rattyjol]

Fandom: Animorphs
Claim: Elfangor & family
Rating: PG
Drabbles completed so far: 25/100

I have never seen Tobias so distressed as when he returned from his meeting with the human DeGroot.

< Hello, Tobias, > I said, one stalk eye tilted upwards to watch his approach. He did not reply, instead choosing to morph human before collapsing on the sofa I keep in my scoop, his limbs tangled carelessly. The television remote lay on the cushion beside him but he made no move towards it.

< Tobias? > I am no expert on human emotions, by any means, but I believe I am correct in saying that he was upset. My stalk eyes bobbed in confusion. < Are you perhaps distressed that I have not yet wished you a happy birthday? >

He let out a kind of choking laugh, the meaning of which I could not decipher.

"Did you know, Ax?" His voice was thick, and muffled by the upholstery. "Did you know who my father was?"

My hoof scuffed anxiously in the dirt. Family had always been a touchy subject with Tobias.

< How could I know that? > I wasn't sure I wanted to hear the answer. My stalk eyes began to shrivel, my tail as well. Tobias only morphed human in the forest when he needed human comfort. He waited to speak until I was fully morphed. and had curled up on the other end of the couch so that our feet nearly touched.

"Elfangor." The appearance of my brother's name alone sent a jolt through my human body, and it took me several seconds to recall the start of the conversation and make the connection. But that was impossible. Obviously I had misunderstood.

"I do not understand. And."

"Don't make me say it out loud, Ax," he whispered, so that I could barely hear him.

"It isn't possible." But no, that was a lie. I recalled being very young when my brother returned from his long absence, refusing to tell anyone where he'd been. Could he have been living on Earth?

"And the worst part is," he said, with a kind of mirthless laugh, "I don't even know whether I should be proud, or freaked out that even human I wasn't human."

"My brother was a great warrior," I found myself saying, although the majority of my being was still busy working through the shock. I couldn't even remember to play with mouthsounds. "You should be proud of the legacy he left behind."

"Oh I am," he said bitterly. "Breaking laws and being eaten alive. Can't wait to follow in his footsteps." We were silent for several seconds before he seemed to realize what he'd said. "Sorry. I-- Sorry."

I smiled sadly. "It's quite all right, Tobias." He did not speak again, and we lay on the couch, feet not quite touching, for longer than I care to admit.