#47 – Devotion
Tobias
I think of myself as a loyal person. I'm loyal to the cause – to fighting the Yeerks. I don't think anybody would question that. I've chosen to live as a hawk in the woods in order to stay in the fight. Sure, I didn't exactly have a great home life before I became a nothlit, but I miss it. I miss sleeping in a bed, in a secure (if trashed and run-down) house. I miss not having to worry about where my next meal will come from.
I'm loyal to my friends. I would die for any one of them. I'd die to keep our secret. I'm not bragging, just stating fact. I can see the big picture from my tree in my meadow. I'd die for humans to keep having a fighting chance, even if I'm not exactly one of them, anymore.
Never had my devotion been tested like this, however.
It was Monday morning, a few minutes before dawn. Marco had come to me for help the night before. I'd agreed, but I'd also reserved the right to bail after thinking it over for the night. As much as I wanted to back out when I heard him crashing through the brush into my meadow, I knew I wouldn't. I've done a lot for my friends, and this was just one more thing I could do to help. And even if Marco isn't my favorite person on the planet, he's still a friend. We've bled together. That'll form a bond of friendship, despite how you feel about them personally.
"Tobias?" he called, doing a 360 and searching the meadow for me.
I mentally rolled my eyes and called, (Coming.) He saw me gliding toward him and squirmed a little as I dug my talons into his shoulder. (Hold still,) I commanded, squeezing maybe a little harder than was absolutely necessary to acquire him. Marco was my friend, and I would never turn away a friend who needed help…but that didn't mean I had to be happy about it. I finished acquiring and dropped to the ground, where I started the morph.
Marco stared, fascinated, as I grew into a copy of him. He had a nauseated look about him, but he stared all the same. "This is so freaking weird," he muttered, more than once.
"Hey, it's not all peaches and cream for me, either," I said as I finished the morph. I heard the voice coming out of my mouth that had annoyed me on so, so many occasions.
Marco seemed to mentally shake himself out of a trance. "That's good," he said, opening the duffel bag he'd brought. He started handing me items of clothing, which I put on. "Remember – you're me. You're a lovable smart ass. You want to be edgy and cool, but not too edgy. Marco the Magnificent doesn't hurt feelings, he just gets laughs. Don't worry if you can't come up with lots of good jokes. I can just tell people I was tired, tomorrow."
I finished dressing and stared at him. "Is that seriously how you see yourself? A lovable smart ass? Not an obnoxious, pretentious dumbass?"
Marco stared back. "Okay, that's what I'm talking about. It was sort of a good joke, but it was hurtful. Don't hurt people's feelings."
I started to tell him I wasn't entirely kidding, but I let it slide. "Class schedule?" I held out my – his – hand, and he gave it to me. I put on his bookbag. "And you're sure the gym bathroom will be empty at 8:30, 10:15, noon, and 1:45?"
"Yep. And the faculty bathroom in the East Wing has a busted lock, so it's there for an emergency demorph."
"You owe me for this," I said evenly as I got ready to head to school for the first time in over a year. I was weirdly excited to go back. I was even more excited to go as someone else. Marco wasn't as popular as he thought he was, but he also seemed to get through the day a lot easier than I always had.
"Tobias, for a day off of school to rest up and recharge my batteries, I'd pay anything." For once, there was no hint of joking in his voice. "Anything you need, just ask, man. I appreciate this more than you'll ever know."
Coming from Marco, that was really something. It made me feel like doing this for him was worth it. Not that he needed to know that. "When I ask you to go osprey and catch me a couple of trout for my day off, I don't want to hear any complaining."
He grinned. "Whatever you say, man." He yawned. "I'm going back to bed." He starting stomping back through the woods the way he'd come. "I owe you, dude!" he called over his shoulder.
You certainly do, I thought, and began the walk to the school on legs much, much shorter than I was used to.