Many days had passed since the ŝako "game". Honestly... They called it a "game". They never explained to him what a game was. He couldn't exactly ask or tell them he didn't know, so it was impossible to blame them for it. They would probably have told him if they knew what he... No...not "what" he was. In their eyes, he was a "who". To them he was a person. They were still confusing English-speakers but this time different was better. Little by little he was finding out that life really was worth living. Now that he wasn't some living thing to be used, there seemed to be a spark of hope in there somewhere. He didn't know what to do, but right now he had goals and those goals kept him going. Things weren't as bad as they first seemed. He didn't even feel like he was caged anymore!

For some reason though, something prevented him from leaving. It had to be their actions and the way they treated him. They had shaken up his whole world, confused the sanity out of him, brought out instincts he'd never felt before, made him see the world much differently, and completely shattered his routine. Yet...he was so grateful for that.

They hadn't given up on him. He wasn't ruined in their eyes. They were still teaching him English—Tucker was in on it now. One day Tucker even brought in a book for the both of them. Sam had also brought a few small pieces of paper. She would hold them up and they would have pictures of different forms of flugantoj. She would look in the book and then say, "Birdo, bird." Or for different papers, "Hundo, dog. Kato, cat. Pilko, ball. Arbo, tree. Floro, flower."

No one else would've bothered but these two just... They were so different from what he was used to. He never dropped his guard, not for a second! But he felt oddly comfortable around them. They wouldn't hurt him. They never intended to, never had, and never would. If anything he was...safe... What a lovely word...

And he was finally starting to whistling! Took forever but it was paying off. Sometimes he still spat, which was why he never did it in front of anyone else—he wanted to surprise them. Sam didn't realize she was helping him learn how to purse his lips the right way.

She didn't realize a lot of things. Everything she did and didn't do meant more to him than she would ever know. He could come near her without feeling the need to run. She could come near him and he wouldn't even keep track of her movements anymore. She would let him lean over her to watch her draw those mean little characters.

Tucker didn't realize any of it either. The rings kept Tucker from getting too close to him, but he gave him showers—no matter how safe he felt, he could never bring himself to willingly stay in the deponejo de akvo. So it was just showers; that was what that spraying water was. And the foamy stuff that, as it turned out, burned his eyes horribly, was called "shampoo". The other foamy stuff that was spread on the rest of his body and also burned his eyes was called "soap". He didn't see much of a difference. They were both foamy and they both made him smell pleasant afterward.

There was one disappointment though... As great as it would be to talk to them, to tell them everything and know they still wouldn't hurt him, he couldn't. He tried and he tried but no matter what he did, sound wouldn't come out of his mouth. He was persistent and hadn't stopped trying, but it was clear that he would never speak again. He preferred not to think of it that way—the last thing he needed was something to dampen his spirits and knowing he wouldn't be able to talk thanks to the years of torture and silence he'd been forced to endure would definitely do the trick.

But even so...maybe it was possible to whistling the language? That book Tucker had brought really helped, so he didn't have to whistling English; it could be Esperanto if he wanted. Why didn't Tucker bring that in sooner?

But he knew for a fact he couldn't whistling Esperanto.

The door opened and Sam came in with a bowl and a small tube that could bend.

"And I present to you, soup," she said, setting the bowl down on the floor in front of him.

She put the bendy tube in—which English-speakers called "straws"—and bent it. He got the feeling she somehow knew it amused him to watch her bend the straw because she always did it right in front of him, where he could clearly see it. She never put the straw in before she got into the room.

But he had been locked inside a dull cage all his life. Anything new was amazing. If only she knew how much the things she did entertained him...

"Daniel, can I see something for a minute?" she asked.

She still used English around him but she was an English-speaker who had spoken this particular language all her life and appeared to have never once spoken or even thought of speaking Esperanto until more recently. She was so used to English that it came naturally to her. Because he couldn't tell her how confusing it was for him, sometimes he thought she forgot about his language sometimes. Tucker did the same thing but it was all too easy to forgive them—they were trying. And not just trying, they accepted him despite all the disabilities he had. It frustrated the very scientists who had done this to him, so Tucker and Sam were two gifts he would do anything to keep.

He sipped on his soup while she picked up one of his arms, twisting it and looking at it from about as many angles as it would turn. He'd grown comfortable enough with them to let either one of them get near his rings, but thankfully they never really pushed it and the closest they ever got was his wrists. The only time he ever let them get closer was when Sam bandaged him up whenever he hit something. But even then he was uncomfortable and had to keep reminding himself that she wasn't trying to hurt him and that it was just to help him heal. Strangest thing was, he would heal the very next day.

It was when Sam held his wrist with one hand and touched his fingers with the other that his head jerked up and his eyes immediately landed on her hands. There were no bandages.

"It's okay," she mumbled.

Did she forget how sensitive his rings were? Did she really forget? They hurt! She had to know that!

His arm twitched, proof that he was eager for her to let go.

"Hold on, I just want to see something," she sang, grabbing the book and flipping through the pages. "Ĉu vi povas provi klinu viajn fingrojn?"

He looked at his fingers. Honestly...he'd never bothered to try. He hadn't used his hands in so long... But if that was all she wanted him to do, then he probably could. He focused intensely on his fingers and tried to bend them...or at least move them. They wouldn't even twitch though. He'd already lost the use of his voice, but now his hands? Not that it would do him any good with these rings stuck in him but they had to take away his hands too? Why?

He yanked his arm back and his hand fell limp. It wasn't just his hands, he couldn't even use his wrists! They took all that away from him just for...for what, exactly?!

"Daniel?"

He clenched his teeth and looked at her. It wasn't her fault. She had nothing to do with what happened. In fact, he was starting to think she had no idea about the other English-speakers.

"Ummm..." Book time. "Ĉu vi scias pri projekto nomata "Projekto Nivelo Up"?"

WHAT?! How did she know about Projekto Nivelo Up? He never told her anything! But if she did, then that would mean she knew about him. So she did know who he was! But then why was she so scared when she first saw him? That made no sense... Hold on... It also didn't make sense that she was asking him this. Of course! The markings on his shoulder probably told her something and now she wanted to know what they were about. Finally an English-speaker made sense...

He nodded, feeling his lips curve upward again.

"Kion vi scias pri tio?"

He sighed and his smile dropped. It wasn't a yes-or-no question and therefore he couldn't answer it. She treated him so closely to an English-speaker that sometimes she forgot his silence. It was perpetual, neverending. It seemed like she didn't always remember that.

"Right, right, nod or shake..." she mumbled, looking back at the book. "Okay, uh...vi estas parto de Projekto Nivelo Up?"

The only way she could know about Projekto Nivelo Up was by the markings on his shoulder—it was literally the only clue he could give her. But...

He nodded.

Tucker came in before she could flip through more pages to question him further. Honestly he didn't mind answering their questions. He wanted them to know about him. Unlike before, he didn't want his identity to remain a secret. They could help him if they knew who he was. They could hide him, protect him.

"Sam," Tucker started, "how's everything going?"

She flopped onto her bed and let out a long, ragged sigh.

"I found out a little more about him. He knows about the project and says he's part of it," she replied.

"'Says' meaning 'talk' or—"

"You know what I mean!"

"Did you find out what Project Level Up is?" he asked.

She shook her head in response. "That would require endless yes-or-no questions. If he could talk, we might actually learn something, but...looks like we're on our own."

"I hate to say this, but we've been on our own since day one. He can't talk and we can't read minds. Maybe if we found someone who knows about Project Level up, they could tell us what's going on."

"Tucker, that's brilliant!" she gasped. "You actually came up with something helpful!"

He smiled widely and bowed. "Why thank you, thank you very much."

"How do we spread the word?"

"School."

"We're the outcasts. What makes you think—"

"The girls in school practically obsess over rumors and they can't keep a secret to save their lives. If we told one of the girls, we've told all of the girls. And if the girls know..." He let his voice trail off for her to finish his sentence.

"Then the boys will know," she finished. "I never thought I'd say this but it might actually work. Okay. Tomorrow we talk to one girl about it and ask her if she knows anything. We'll spice it up to make it interesting and wait for someone who does know to come to us."

"But you know...there is one little flaw..."

She sat up and groaned. "The perfect plan goes downhill before it's even put into action."

"What if it's supposed to be a secret? I mean, the name itself was written in a dead language and neither of us had heard tell of it until Daniel showed up."

Hey! That was his name; they could be figuring it out right now. Maybe they really did know, maybe they really could help.

"Well, it's not much of a secret if he got loose. Anyone who sees his shoulder will know something weird is going on."

Tucker put a finger on his chin and tapped it for a moment.

"I don't get this though..." he mumbled. "He was in horrible shape when we found him. How did he get that way? You suggested he might've been hiding, but from who? And if he was hiding, then what would compel him to look at your house and think of it as a hiding spot when neither of us knew him? You also said the rings were body piercings but if he's so desperate to get rid of them that he tries to rip them out of his own body, they were forced on him."

"Maybe he was hiding from the person who did that?"

"I thought about that as a possibility, but there's more. He was scared of us and he didn't even know us. We don't have muscle—we don't even look like a threat. He wasn't hiding from one person, he was hiding from everyone. And if you look closely, he's had those rings in him for a long time, even if they look brand new. He's used to walking on the sides of his feet and barely notices that he even has hands. He's learned to hold things with his mouth instead."

"To add to your point about his hands, I asked him to bend his fingers not long before you came in. He couldn't do it. In order to completely lose the ability to move your fingers, those rings would have to have been in him for years on end. And the way they're constantly bleeding whenever he hits them against something means they were taken out and put back in again...but I can't see why anyone would do such a thing."

"Let's not forget how smart he is. No one I know can pick up on chess that fast. It's just not possible!"

"Yeah, that's true. And he said he didn't know how to play it, which meant he saw us play and learned in a snap." She pressed two fingers together and in a split second, a loud SNAP rang in his ears. Trustworthy or not, they were still weird... "Then he speaks Esperanto, which, like you said, is a dead language. He doesn't know English, which is an extremely common one. Then he has 'Projekto Nivelo Up' branded onto his shoulder. Oh, and there's his quick healing process—every time I patch him up, he's perfectly fine the next day, doesn't even have a scar."

"I don't know about you, but I just can't shake the feeling that this has everything to do with Project Level Up," he said.

"Same with me. He— Wait. Wait...hold on... Daniel didn't just have 'Projekto Nivelo Up' on his shoulder. Underneath it was 'E-428'. If he's part of Project Level Up, and he's been labeled 'E-428', then would 'E' most likely stand for— you know what, never mind, i-it's stupid."

"You were about to say 'experiment'. I was thinking the same thing but it really does seem stupid... I mean, that would be like saying there's a conspiracy of some sort and you always see that crazy stuff in movies."

Sam nervously chuckled.

"Yeah...it's not very realistic is it?" she said.

Tucker looked him over, eyes moving over his rings, face, and shoulder.

"His eyes turned green again!" Sam exclaimed. "Tucker, did you see that?! That wasn't a normal color change, they glowed for a second!"

Why were they getting so nervous? They had been talking about him; was he making them nervous? He never meant to upset anyone...

"Daniel, are you 'Experiment 428'?" Tucker asked him.

He frowned.

"You idiot, he doesn't speak English," the girl said, handing her friend the book.

Tucker didn't reply as he scanned over the pages.

"Try this again here... Daniel, vi 'Eksperimento 428'?" he tried again.

He decided it was best not to dwell on how Tucker came to that conclusion and nodded. Part of him immediately regretted revealing what he was, but another part was relieved that they finally knew.

"I've...I've been hiding a human experiment?!" Sam screeched.

That was definitely not the reaction he expected.

A/N

So...does this help at all to make up for the last chapter with its shortness and slow update? I'm hoping it does. Writing a mute character is very hard and even the dialogue was a little challenging.

Everyone please note that this is from Danny's perspective, not Sam or Tucker's. He doesn't realize that his eyes change colors.

So. Now everyone (who knows him) knows he's an experiment. And poor Sam now knows who he really is and OMG HE'S BEEN STAYING WITH HER THE WHOLE TIME. Admit it. You would have a little panic attack too. XD

I also want to thank everyone who gave me encouragement. :') It means a ton, so much more than you can imagine. And for those of you have (over the course of this story, I've gotten some reviews that said this and I couldn't help but smile) told me THIS STORY, the one I thought people would scroll down over without a second glance, was one of their favorites on the WHOLE SITE, oh thank you so much! You have absolutely no CLUE how inspired I am! And I know it's hard to believe considering how terrible my updates have been but I assure you, inspiration just slammed me. And last chapter's reviews, that whole slew of compliments on the story, encouragement, and excitement upon updating, REALLY made my heart flutter.

Someone tell me if you think this chapter was too rushed or if it threw off the story pacing. I feel like it may have rushed the story a bit and because of the ending dialogue, I feel like the chapter itself may have been a tad rushed.