"Did you recognize me as a Katherine Buchanan when you were a feline?" I asked Rodney, who was now back in his steel bar cage in the basement.

"No. I didn't remember anything about being human. I remember stalking you, killing you, and eating you. But then you showed up again. I recognized your face and the taste of your blood. It threw me off, because I knew I had killed you. So I got curious. Chose not to eat you again" he said. Rodney was leaning against the bars in a slumped position, looking depressed.

"That's what I was hoping for. Now I know why you understood English so well..." I mumbled.

"I didn't at first. But the more you talked to me like I was a person, the more I understood. The more human tendencies came to me. I got smarter" he whispered.

"Oh... well-" when the elevators opened, I tensed. My last few occurrences with the elevator have not been good.

Luckily, Mina slipped out.

'Hi' I signed.

'Hello' she signed back, eye balling Rodney like a hawk.

'What's wrong?' I asked.

'Nothing. I just... I do not like you being down here with him alone' Mina admitted.

'He's perfectly fine. Harmless to me' I attempted to reassure her.

'Yes well...' she faltered off. After a few seconds, she continued, 'what happened after Mr. Calder took you out of the room?'

'We yelled, as per usual' I signed.

'Why are you lying to me?' She cocked her head to the side.

'Why do people always assume I'm lying to them?'

'If you are not lying then you are omitting' Mina must have been a mother at some point. She was too good at this.

'He yelled, I yelled, he asked questions, I asked questions. Nothing special'

"What are you doing?" Rodney asked, looking at us.

"We're talking" I told him.

"With your hands?" he looked so confused.

"Yes, it's called sign language. People don't do it much anymore" I said with a laugh. He nodded and turned away, staring at the opposite wall.

I stared at the back of his red head.

'Why have you forgiven him?' Mina signed.

'I haven't... yet' I said honestly.

'Why are you even considering it?' she persisted.

'Because he's not even the same man! He's changed, maybe not by choice initially, but he wants to go back to being an animal, an animal! And he is practically on the brink of death... 4 lives Mina. 4.' I said, violently signing in an effort to express my distress.

Mina stared at me for a few seconds before signing 'you honestly could not care less that it was him that killed you. Especially because he became your only friend. He has long since redeemed himself for killing you once. Lunkfield was never the source of your anger, something or someone else was' Mina said, punching me with her tiny fists between sentences.

"Quit quit ow geez stop" I yelled out as she 'beat' me.

'No' she whipped up a stern finger. 'No, you two are absolutely infuriating. He hated you for no reason, you hate him for hating you, he is hurt because you still hate him for hating you! No more' as she signed, she became more heated, moving her mouth with the words.

'I-'

'No. No excuses. Promise me that you will fix this. Soon' she said, giving me a look.

'It's not my job to fix-' I started.

'Promise me!' she said, pinching me.

'Fine' I snapped. I sat back against the wall, pouting.

Mina sighed and left, taking the elevator to who knows where.

"She seems nice" Rodney said.

"Too nice. And smothering" I said with a frown.

"Stop pouting, you baby. You can't hate every individual that cares for you" he said, still resting in his cage, seeming down.

"I don't hate people who care for me" I snapped.

"You hate Gerry, I remember that from our time together. You had a heated conversation with her, when all she wants is the best for you, you hate-"

"We were signing, how do you know what she wants?" I interrupted.

"When you live as an animal you learn to read facial expressions and bodily cues of others to survive" he said, giving me a slow look over.

"Oh... look I don't hate everyone, but everyone generally hates me. Or leaves me. Or dies on me. I just don't trust others anymore"

"You trusted me" his eyes were lidded, like he was tired, but he continued to make eye contact with me.

"I did... then you turned out to be the man who hated me enough to kill me as a cover for his nefarious acts"

"For that, I am sorry. I told you, I was... am... a bad human" he said, looking down at his hands.

"Yes... you were. But now... you're not" I said, standing up and walking to his cage door. "I think you deserve a little freedom" I said, loosing the cage keys I had pick pocketed off Mina.

He half way smiled, standing up slowly. I opened the door and he peered out, still nervous about something.

"What?" I asked.

"I'm not stupid. You may be on your way to forgiving me, but Brittock? He wants to kill me... permanently" he said blandly.

I held my hand out to him with a soft smile, which he took.

"Where are we going?" he asked, staring at the glowing elevator button.

"Outside" I said. He looked at me and nodded, returning his gaze to the wall.

He looks so... sick. And lost. And confused. I felt awful about the fact that he was still in a form he didn't want to be. He didn't belong like this, his body some sort of cross between sick, broken human and healthy animal.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened, revealing an empty lobby. As we walked out the door, I saw my backpack gently tucked away behind some window blinds.

"Hold on" I said, releasing his hand and picking up my bag.

I'm mute, not blind. Nice try.

-Mina

"Well that's..." I sighed, shouldering my bag and returning to Rodney.

"Come on" I said with another smile, pulling him out the door.