A/N: I struggled with how I wanted the competition to end. I felt like this was the best way.

Chapter 8: Resolution and Reciprocation

Avery POV:

I am past the white line. I wait for my fate. I remember Elunatee's instructions not to move. The arrow is aimed right at me.

Elunatee's First Shot:

He lets loose with the arrow aimed right at me, He didn't use enough strength. It didn't even travel half way of the distance he had to shoot.

Elunatee's Second Shot:

The arrow soars past me, landing vastly behind. Thankfully, he's so bad at this, maybe he'll miss all ten, but what happens then?

Elunatee's Third Shot:

The arrow nearly hits me, if I moved to intercept it, it certainly would have. The wind knocks it off its current trajectory, and it falls besides me harmlessly. That was too close, I could have been hit.

Elunatee's Fourth Shot:

The arrow sails past me and falls on the ground close to my left. It's another arrow that would have hit me if I moved to intercept it. Am I supposed to disobey is orders from earlier? and try to intercept them?

Elunatee's Fifth Shot:

The arrow flies on overhead. It hits the wall of the stadium. What is he aiming at? That certainly didn't seem like it was aimed at me.

Elunatee's Sixth Shot:

The arrow lands inches away from me. If he aimed a bit better, it would have fallen right on my head. I promise to be a better pet if I survive this His aim is extremely inconsistent.

Elunatee's Seventh Shot:

The arrow lands to my right. His aim was slightly off, it was yet another arrow that I could have intercepted. Yet another shot that almost hit.

Elunatee's Eight Shot:

The arrow flies between my ears and falls harmlessly on the ground behind me. What if it pierced one of my ears? I would be crippled for life. It takes all my resolve not to just run away. I have seen what happens to the other animals that do.

Elunatee's Ninth Shot:

The arrow flies on overhead again. It hits the previous arrow that's embedded in the stadium wall. It's split in two. It's just a game to him? I don't think that was a coincidence.

Elunatee's Tenth shot:

The arrow flies on overhead again. It hits the previous arrow that's embedded in the stadium wall. It's split in three. I finish the event, unharmed, but shaken. He could have shot me at any time but chose not to. Why does he do this? What does he want?

The announcer tells us to leave the field. I slowly move back to Elunatee. Elunatee says, "You, worthless pet, you didn't even move so that the arrows hit you. The other pets did."

Should I mention that he just chose to miss me? It doesn't seem like a wise choice right now. I do want to stay alive. I decide to respond with: "But, I was just following your instructions of how you don't want to hit a moving target."

"You KNEW the scoring system and CHOSE to get zero points. You've even WON the previous two events. This is not an excuse!", said Elunatee. He uses the remote and shocks me for ten seconds.

I wasn't expecting him to be this angry. He, even shocked me! I ask, "Why, are you so cruel now? What's gotten into you?"

"You are a worthless pet and nothing more. You better hope you can win the fourth event, else I guarantee your life won't be pleasant at all."

"Yes, Master", I said in defeat. Gone, was the tiger I could manipulate to my whims. I am now at his mercy. I no longer wanted to die, but I just lost my reason to live. Losing a friend that I thought I had. Is someone a friend if you need to manipulate them? What am I to him? What is he to me? I watch the other people competing in this event. By the start of the fourth event, there was only ten pets left still alive. I am one of them.

The stage appears again, the announcer calls teams of two to the stage two at a time. Arrows that were embedded in the prey are brutally torn out and a score is given. The tiger that landed four arrows in the body, six in the eyes is the winner. The stadium chants Clawheart. That doe is crippled for life, entirely blind. All, so his owner can get fifty dollars.

The stage disappears again, we all await on the edge of the field for the next event. The announcer tells us that this challenge is to get to the other side. A pit appears in the middle of the field. A very thin rope is seen going from one side of the pit to the other. The rope is basically unable to support weight. Below, the pit is filled with molten coals, anyone that fell in is certain to die.

We are to walk across this pit one at a time. I am the last. The first one tries to walk across the pit, as soon as he steps on to the flimsy rope, it breaks and he plummets down below. His screams are heard for a few seconds then he becomes silent. I beg Elunatee, "I won't live through this event, can you please take me out of it? I will do anything." He presses the remote for five seconds on the lowest setting but says nothing.

The owner of the second pet bows out, he takes his pet home. The third pet has to cross the chasm, the rope is still broken and hasn't been repaired. His owner guides him to the edge of the pit and pushes him in there. Another death and this pet had no chance.

The tiger that won the previous round, decides he doesn't want a blind pet. He tells his pet that it's safe to walk across the pit. The pet blindly trusts him and steps into pit expecting there to be a rope. The deer falls into the pit below.

I beg Elunatee, "Whatever you want, I don't want to die anymore. Please, I want to live." He presses the remote again, this time on the third setting for ten seconds.

The fifth and sixth owners all leave the competition with their pets. There's only four of us left. This event is clearly impossible. The seventh owner decides to have some fun. He takes his pet in his hands and throws it into the pit. A badger trying to throw a rabbit. His throw is strong enough to hit the other side of the pit. The pets head smashes violently against the wall. The eighth owner is inspired. He decides to take his pet and tries to throw it to the other side. A wolf can't really throw a sheep all that far. The ninth owner is a lion, he successfully throws the rabbit to the other side of the pit. It dies upon impact with the ground. I am up next. I beg Elunatee, "Please, let us leave, I don't want to die."

He says, "I'll give a choice, you can either compete in this event or beg to be shocked with the remote on the highest setting for two minutes. Decide fast, I'm giving you thirty seconds. Oh, and I won't be trying to throw you across the pit." Death by fire or death by being shocked.

I consider his response and reply, "I want to be shocked on the highest setting for two minutes."

"That's not convincing enough, try again."

"Please, shock me for two minutes on the highest setting.", I say with as much enthusiasm as I can muster for begging to be shocked to death. The shocks never came.

He pets my head and says, "That'll do, Avery, that'll do. Let's go home."

We arrive home with our winnings of a hundred and twenty dollars. His first act upon returning home is to take the collar off me. He then leads me to the bathroom, undresses himself and enters the bath with me. He begins to scrub my face clean. I am left to ponder a single thought, why. Why did he do the things he did today? I don't know. He seemed to radically shift personalities. He was kind and caring before lunch then became cruel afterwards. I just decide to enjoy the bath with him, not talking to him at all. He motions that he wants me to wash him. Why? Why does he do this? I decide to wash him just the same even though he has changed, his fur hasn't. I enjoy feeling the texture of his fur beneath my paws. It's rather refreshing.

He motions for us to get out of the bath. He gets dressed and I wait on his bed. We both sit on the bed doing nothing. He doesn't even give a command. I decide to demand of him, "Put on a shock collar, NOW!"

To my surprise, he complies with the demand and puts one of them on himself. Next, I ask for the remote. I received that too, easily. What, does he want? What am I supposed to do with this? I decide to shock him, to try to trigger a response. He takes the shock without complaint. I try shocking him on a higher voltage. He cries but doesn't say anything. I decide to break the silence, "Why, what's the idea?"

He says, "Our relationship before was never equal, you had your way, one way or another. I am no longer afraid of you, but are you afraid of me?"

"You forced me to eat revolting food. You, played with my emotions. Made me think that I was going to die.", I said. "All to just make a statement?"

He says, "If you find insects revolting, would I even like it?" I don't have the answer to that.

I say, "I don't know. Are you still willing to help me return home?"

"Yes."

"Why did you do all this then?"

He responds, "How else, am I supposed to get you to listen to me? I told you the competition was a bad idea, you didn't even have an interest in listening. We went there anyway because of what you wanted. You also, promised that you would eat the food there. We are friends, not pet and owner. Today, I made sure you kept your promise, don't try to back out of them in the future or make them blindly. In the other events, you were never in any danger. You have somehow become my friend, I wanted a more equal relationship."

I bury my face in his chest and cried. He strokes my ears in a calming fashion. I say "Yes, friends, now and forever." I take the collar off of him and place it and the remote on the table.

His point has been made. We now go to the nearest store that sells clothing for me. I was able to pick out a few outfits to buy. We have seventy dollars left. He tells me, he will spend the remaining seventy tomorrow to try to help me get home. We returned home enjoying each other's company. Supper consists of the usual, more live animals and carrots for me. His parents didn't seem to mind our relationship at all.

We spent the day watching adult television. It was calm and serene. The cartoons we watched displayed a sense of peace and unity. Maybe, there's others here that felt the same. Children's television is barbaric and I don't like watching it at all.

When it was time to sleep. We tried sleeping side by side instead of cuddling each other. I tried sleeping with clothing on, it just didn't feel right. After an hour of trying to sleep and being unsuccessful. I woke him up and told him to strip. I took off my clothing as well. I told him to spoon me. I pressed my back against his belly. I could feel his warm and comforting fur surrounding me. I took his tail and nuzzled it. Yes, a tiger tail will do just fine. I drifted off to sleep.