Page 56 of Missiletoe
Vix’s eyes went wide. “What? How could it not matter? Normal people think it matters. That’s why people like us are called evil, Paris.”
“I don’t know,” I admitted.
Maybe it was because my bunny was so small and precious. Or maybe it was because Trixie liked him, and she had excellent instincts. Or maybe it was because the weight of shadows on him were so outweighed by the soft purity of his spirit that they couldn’t begin to compare.
Truth be told, it was probably none of those things. It was probably because… “It’s you, bunny. Nothing else matters if it’s you.”
Silent tears trailed down his face. I decided to offer him water. If he cried that much normally, I’d need to make sure to keep him well-hydrated. I’d stock up on drinks with lots of electrolytes.
I took a bottle of water from the minifridge, opened it, and handed it to him.
Vix sniffled and took it from me, drinking greedily before asking, “So my evil family isn’t a dealbreaker?”
“No. But I would like to know more about what you all do.”
“Oh, okay. That’s fair.” Vix started bouncing gently on the balls of his feet, and I realized that he’d done it every time he’d gotten excited or agitated.
I decided to keep a close eye on him. If he started yawning, I was going to scoop him up and cuddle him until he stopped.
His bouncing sped up, and he continued talking. “Well, I’m not super into the logistics of what we do, so I can’t tell you much. Mostly Gareth keeps an eye on things. He searches for patterns in the world and identifies situations where people are getting away with really bad things. When he finds something that needs attention, he calls a house meeting, and we decide how to deal with it.”
The bouncing didn’t seem to be working out for him, so Vix started pacing around the room.
“I don’t do a lot of mission-type things. Mostly I just make cool stuff, and because of that, everyone is really nice and lets me stay with them. But…sometimes innocent people get hurt from the things I make…and maybe even die. And I know I should pay more attention to that, but I get lost in making things and accidents happen. Apple yells at me about it a lot.”
“Do you want to stop?” That was how his heart shadows were messing him up. I was certain of it.
“Mmm…I think so? I don’t feel much about it, to be honest. But I know I should. So I suppose I’d like to not kill people in case I ever do feel something about it.”
Yep. Definitely heart shadow stuff. Not being able to feel things was a classic sign of trauma. I read it in a book once.
“I can help you not get lost, bunny.” If Vix stayed with me, I would find some way to make it happen. “It’s good to try to improve ourselves so we don’t get stuck and become broken people. But I’ll take you any way I can get you. Even if you are a little evil.”
:He’s fine. Evil is relative, and you humans get way too caught up in it.:
“Trixie doesn’t think you’re evil.”
“Trixie is the very best of good girls and deserves a treat.”
:Yes, I am, and yes, I do.: Trixie wagged her tail and nudged my pocket. I produced a peanut butter dog treat, and she scarfed it down before my hand had fully left my pocket.
“Um. Trixie? I really like you, but can you give us some privacy? The evil family thing isn’t everything that Paris and I need to talk about.”
Trixie nudged Vix’s hip with her nose, stepped into a dark corner, and vanished.
“Magic dogs…” Vix said with wonder in his voice. He stared at the spot where she disappeared before shaking himself. “So, moving on. I have some other things you need to know about.”
I nodded and patted his head. Then I nudged his water bottle to remind him to keep drinking in case he had more crying he needed to do.
Vix fidgeted and kept opening his mouth and then closing it. Then he fidgeted some more before finally blurting out, “How much do you like sex? Because I like it a lot. Actually…”
I waited to see if he had more to say, but the desperation in his eyes made me say, “It’s okay, bunny, you can tell me anything.”
“I need sex a whole, whole lot. There’s something wrong with me, and my sex drive is completely out of control. I’ve been fucking over half the people in my house to keep up with it. I…I don’t know what to do. I want you, Paris. I don’t want anyone else now, but it burns when I don’t do it enough. And I get weird. Like,following a stranger down a dark alleyweird. I don’t want to pressure you or wear you out or make you hate me, but I literally can’t help myself.”
“Oh bunny… I could never hate you.” He really was a bunny, wasn’t he? I would take such good care of him. “How often is a lot? I will give you as much as I can, but…is three times a day enough? That’s the most I can reliably jerk off in a day. Any more than that and I’ll probably need to use toys on you if you need penetration to get off.”
“Three times a day!!!” Vix leapt at me, covered me in kisses, and my feelings for him got so big that if I’d been a dog, I would have been licking him. It was still a possibility. Vix continued, saying, “I’m lucky if I can pull twice a day. Half the time, I only get it once, and then I’m stuck taking care of myself the rest of the time.”
