“You spast!” Bubs’ roared. “Do you have any idea how much food you’ve wasted? How much meat?”
A fist twisted into Yu’s scorched clothes. Pain exploded through him as Bubs hauled him up, dragging him like dead weight. Cursing, the mianid shoved and kicked him through the kitchen door and through the common room. Yu stumbled, screaming, crying, then —
Cold. Freezing air slamming against raw, blistered flesh.
Yu collapsed where Bubs dropped him, snow crunching beneath his trembling body. His breath hitched, caught in his throat.
Bubs loomed in the doorway, the orb-light casting his small frame into a jagged silhouette. “Don’t just stand there, man!” His voice dripped venom. “Cool down in the snow, or should I just hack off that wing and toss it in the stew instead?”
Yu barely heard him. His world was burning. His world was freezing.
Bubs stepped forward and piled snow onto Yu’s back.
Finally, Yu complied. He pressed his burned wing into the snow, then used the other to shove more against his chest, his stomach and his side. Anything. Anything to numb the pain.
But there was no relief, only pain battling cold, two kinds of suffering tearing him apart.
“That’s enough,” Bubs yanked at him, but let go when Estingar stepped in. And then Bubs was gone.
By the time Estingar guided him back inside, Yu was soaked. His feathers clung to his body in wet, brittle patches, charred where the metal had scorched them. He barely registered the heat of the common room, but he was awfully aware of all the stares.
Estingar grabbed a towel from a rack next to the entrance, but did not pass it onto Yu.
Bubs emerged from the kitchen. “Upstairs,” he said. “Change. Before you make even more of a mess.”
If not all eyes had been on Yu before, they were now.
With Estingar in tow, Yu dragged himself up the stairs. His body ached, his burns throbbed, and every inch of him was coated in a mix of soot and melted snow. Somehow, Yu made it to the first floor.
“Back soon,” Estingar did not follow but continued upstairs.
By the time Yu made it to the communal bathroom, his mind was a whirlwind of anger and humiliation. He slammed the door shut. His thoughts flickered dark. More venomous than anything Bubs could ever spit.
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