“So, how’s the school taking it all? You know, me and Josh are here. What you did apparently. Thanks again by the way, I can’t believe he took me out with one punch…”

“Expect a lot of get well cards soon. Did they tell you that someone leaked the school camera footage?”

“What? No way! So everyone’s seen it?” Julia sat up in the hospital bed.

“Yup. Everybody’s favorite activity right now is shitting all over Josh. Not just the students either. I heard some of the parents after school doing it too. The video’s kind of grainy, but it’s pretty clear he hit you first before I, uh, went to town on him.”

“Can I see it?”

“No, I mean you don’t have to. I’m not very proud of it, seeing you get hurt just triggered me…”

“You were defending me, it’s fine. C’mon show me! Everyone’s already seen it anyway. May as well get in front of the curve.”

Alice was tempted to say that the ADF would have it scrubbed by the end of the day, but that wasn’t fair. It was true, almost everyone else had watched it. Even some of the smaller national news sites had run an article. Before the ADF found out and began suppressing the news. Apparently the Treason to Earth act let them pull basically any story they didn’t like if it was supportive of the Spawn. Alice wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but it was working to her advantage here at least.

“All right,” Alice said.

She pulled out her phone and handed it over to Julia after finding the downloaded video. She sat there as Julia watched it. She grimaced at a few points, but didn’t seem disgusted at Alice’s brutality as Alice had worried she would be. The video was less than three minutes long, but it felt longer. Alice was surprised she had been hitting Josh for so long as he was on the ground. It had only felt like a moment in her panicked state. The video ended and Julia handed back the phone, and they stared at each other for a moment.

“So?” Alice said,

“What?”

“Er, what did you think?”

“Good job. It was super brutal, but…”

Julia put her hand to her bruised face.

“...but I would flip out if you got this hurt too. And even then I don’t think I could take out Josh. He was at least twice your size. And you had just run for miles and miles at your practice. It’s better for you to be a bit brutal than getting hurt fighting someone who knocked me out with one punch. I’m lucky I only came out with a concussion. I should be out by tomorrow if I’m lucky.”

There was silence for a moment before Alice spoke up, “Did I ever tell you that I got a concussion too? When I fell down the stairs in Harmony?”

“I forgot that actually. What was it like?”

“Well, I was out of it for a few days but then I felt fine. But with all the Spawn around, they put guards on my door so I couldn’t leave. I left when they changed shifts just before midnight.”

“Wow… Spawn?”

Shit, shit, shit. “Errr. Another name for the Infected. But for all of them, not just the ones that took over the humans.”

“Huh. Where did they come from, if not from humans?”

“I think this is another secret, but they can make these big spike things that create more. But I only heard about them in the Neighborhood Watch, never saw one myself.”

“That’s scary to think about. That they could just replicate on their own. Just through people is scary enough.”

“Yeah.”

The door to the patient room opened, and the two of them turned to see Mr. and Mrs. Hanover walking in.

“Alice!”

Mrs. Hanover rushed and hugged her suddenly.

“Ah, thanks for protecting Julia. Who knows what could have happened if you weren’t there. I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“Urf,” Alice responded with the air crushed out of her lungs.

Mrs. Hanover let go, and Alice could breathe again.

Feeling uncomfortable she replied,

“Well, it was my fault anyways. Josh was really trying to hurt just me, especially after…”

Julia’s eye widened and she shook her head side to side desperately.

Alice changed what she was going to say mid sentence, “...Julia said she didn’t like how he had bullied me.”

Mr. Hanover came over and stuck out his hand. Alice hesitantly took it, and he took a firm grip and pumped her arm up and down a few times. He spoke in a gruff voice.

“Thank you. My daughter couldn’t wish for a better friend. To think she was dating that maniac…”

Alice’s heart sank as she released his hand. What kind of friend was she really? That Spawn could be coming to kill Julia any moment because of her. If they had never met, the Spawn would have never cared about Julia at all. It would just be after Alice and playing whatever sick game it was after with only her.

“Now Alice, don’t look down.” She looked up to Mr. Hanover to see a vindictive light in his eyes.

“I’ve spoken with your father, and we’ll be pursuing legal action. That horrible boy and his repulsive father won’t be able to bother you again. People are taking your harassment claims a little more seriously now those two wastes of space at the police station aren’t in charge of the case anymore.”

Alice wished that were true. She wondered if Josh knew what had happened to his dad. She didn’t think he was going to make it through a court case, living with that Spawn. He was probably safer here in the hospital honestly now that he was less useful to the Spawn’s plans for her.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“Great,” Alice said.

His smile dropped a little at her lackluster reaction, and Mrs. Hanover nudged him.

“And don’t blame yourself for your… episode," the man said, "The fact you’re sitting here feeling guilty despite everything that happened means you’re doing it right. But… If you feel like you can’t talk with anyone, we have…”

He fumbled in his pockets and pulled out a card that he handled to Alice.

“...A therapy place that’s on there. They can help you deal with any lingering guilt. Something to discuss with your father.”

Alice stared down at the card, and was almost tempted to accept the offer. It was a nice gesture. It had felt nice to break down and tell Julia about her problems. But Julia wouldn’t betray her. Alice had gotten therapy originally. After she left Harmony, the ADF was assessing her mental state.

She had only realized two weeks in that every word she said had been recorded and noted in her file. She had seen the notes of her therapist when one of the higher ups of the ADF opened up the file in front of her in some sort of intimidation move. Even outside, she knew the ADF would buy or wiretap anyone that she saw. Nothing she said would be private. So she just smiled politely and put the card in her pocket.

“Thanks for that. I’ll talk to my dad about it.”

— — — O — o — O — — —

Julia had fully recovered, and everything was settling back to normal. Or something like it. Julia had been strangely distant ever since they got back to school. Alice worried Julia looked at her differently now after what had happened. Thought she was dangerous or something.

But despite that, Alice could only getting more and more nervous as Mr. Taylor remained out of sight the whole time. It was a strange twisting feeling of relief and despair when he finally contacted her again. She froze when she saw him emerging from the doors of the school, a bundle of papers under his arm in a bulging folder.

All the homework assignments that Josh had been missing in the last week. The Spawn seemed to be insisting that the injured guy do the assignments even while in the hospital, and the school hadn’t refused him. He was still smiling widely as he had when Alice saw him last.

Seeing her, he diverted course and Alice looked around desperately looking for escape. But he shook his head side to side and let his eyes linger on some of the nearby students and Alice froze. What if he killed somebody just to spite her? What could she even do to stop him? Alice wished more than ever she had the spatial pouch that had all the Potential based weapons Francis had left her. At least those had a chance of killing the thing before it transformed.

The Spawn stopped just a few steps away and looked down at her, and its smiling lips peeled back, revealing glistening white teeth.

“Why little Alice. What a coincidence. I was just thinking about you actually. I was pondering the importance of choice in life. Without it we’re nothing but animals, don’t you agree?”

Alice just stood there, and noticed the strange squirrel with the black diamond on its back watching them from a nearby tree. Alice had the weirdest feeling that it was following her.

“Well?”

“Yes! Choice is very… very important.”

“Good! Good. So I will begin our little game with high stakes. Choose. One or the other. Three days. This Saturday. Go and be with the one you cherish most. Break the rules and they both go. Do you trust the ADF to defend dear old dad and save your little friend with your precious choice? Or sacrifice your friend to my… entertainment. To save your father. Choice… I enjoy it. Now… Go, choose. And I will be watching. Remember the game is just between us.”

It raised its voice and an expertly fake remorse entered its voice as Alice spotted Julia rushing towards her.

“As I said, Sorry about my son’s behavior," the Spawn said, "I truly apologize, I never expected him to attempt something so terrible. Have a great day, and a great weekend. Goodbye.”

And with that, he turned and left. Julia arrived a few seconds later.

“That was not okay!" Julia said, "Who does he think he is, walking up to you like that after everything he and Josh did. I’ll tell my parents, this’ll finally get that restraining order to go throu…”

“No, Julia. That… that’s not a good idea.”

“What do you mean, not a good… Did he say something to you? Threaten you or something? Alice, why are you so pale? Alice… Focus on me.”

The strange squirrel clambered down the tree and scuttled over to the two girls. Julia jumped as it ran straight at them and gasped slightly. The squirrel ran straight towards Alice’s legs and that was enough to make her snap out of it and step to the side. The squirrel darted past her and jumped up to sit perched on top of the backpack Alice had put on the ground as she waited.

She and Julia crept closer as the Squirrel remained still as a statue. It tilted its head so its eyes were pointed directly at Alice. She felt pressure behind her eyes for a moment, but before she could react something formed. And Alice felt a strange connection to the Squirrel. A woman’s voice sounded in her mind, echoing like the words were bouncing around the inside of her skull.

‘I think I can help you save your friends. We can help each other. Take me home with you, and you can save both. There would be no need to play Infiltrator of Authority’s games anymore.’

Alice stared back at Squirrel still standing silently on top of the backpack, wondering if she was crazy. But what else could she do? She’d take whatever crazy help she could get…

Out loud, she replied to Squirrel. “Okay, I’ll take you home with me.”

With that, she stepped forward and opened the zipper to her backpack and Squirrel obediently crawled in only her head poking out to inspect the surroundings. Alice carefully picked up the backpack and carefully returned it to her back without jostling Squirrel too much. The strange bridge between their minds remained, but it felt weaker somehow whenever she wasn’t looking directly at Squirrel. Alice finished adjusting the straps and turned back to Julia, who stood there slack jawed. All thoughts of Mr. Taylor apparently forgotten.

“What. The. Hell. Are you a Disney princess or something?”

She took a hesitant forward. “Ignoring the insanity of you just taming a random squirrel in five seconds flat…”

She leaned to the side so she could see Alice’s backpack, and her eyes lit up.

“...can I pet it?”

Alice blinked, and twisted her head around to look at Squirrel, little head poking out and nose wriggling and sniffing the air. It was very cute. Squirrel seemed to sense the question.

‘What? Oh, yes it’s fine. As long as she doesn’t cover my vision.’

Alice cleared her throat and answered Julia’s question. “It should be fine, just never cover her eyes. I heard that freaks most animals out. But she seems pretty calm otherwise.”

“Well I guess you would know, princess.” Julia stepped forward and started brushing the head of the squirrel with two fingers, her hands too big for any more. Alice tried to turn to watch, but it was awkward to do without shifting the backpack too much.

“Ohmygosh. This is amazing,” Julia said.

Despite herself, Alice felt a little jealous. She wanted to pet the cute squirrel too. A sense of amusement wafted over the link, and Alice felt a little silly at the thought.

“Does she have a name?" Julia said while still petting the squirrel, "Ms. Animal whisperer, What was the guy’s name? Doolittle? Like him.”

That was a good question. Alice tried to project her curiosity down the link. She didn’t do it perfectly, but the Squirrel seemed to understand. For a minute, Alice thought she had something wrong and so she just shrugged at Julia who continued her petting. Finally, the squirrel replied. ‘Jessica.’

Alice blinked in surprise. ‘Jessica.' The squirrel clarified, 'That is my name. Or was.’

“Jessica. That’s what I’m naming her,” Alice said.

Julia snorted. “Hah. That’s a human name. She’s a squirrel, why would you do that? So boring. We should think of something cuter like… Wow, I’m blanking…Scruffles. No, that’s a dog’s name. Lame. C’mon, help me here Alice.”

“Uh. I think Jessica is fine.”

“Still meh. But I guess it’s fine.”

Alice twisted around to look at the squirrel again. It was a human name. She wondered what she was getting into. Just where had this squirrel come from?