dot.

8: Meeting a Hybrid

  Dot was curled up and fast asleep, resting himself and trying to recover. He never really dreamt anymore- when he was younger nightmares would plague even the lightest nap, but now he could rest in peace. He guessed that his brain had given up on trying to make night worse than day.

  The door swung open, making him jolt awake with a scared hiss.

  He watched as a man he had never seen before stepped through the doorway and stared at him awkwardly. The man wasn't particularly threatening- but then again neither was Tiro, and Dot knew all too well what that person was capable of.

  He had very dark hair and eyes that matched in colour. His skin was much darker than the Doctor's but lighter than his hair, which fell messily around his eyes in bouncy curls. What was he here for?

  Dot wanted to hiss at him again, but refrained from doing so. Would it result in punishment? He hadn't made any move to hurt Dot yet, but the hybrid was unaware of what sort of horrors he would be capable of.

  "Erm..." The man held up a hand towards him and waved it slightly. "Hi?"

  Hi? This man was weird.

  "I'm Felix."

  Dot shuffled a little more away from him and held up a wing to try and separate himself from the intruder. Unable to contain himself any longer, he let out a short, quiet hiss- and was shocked when the man jumped and grabbed the door handle. Was he scared?

  After a few embarrassing attempts to open the locked door, Felix turned back towards Dot with a face that was considerably more red than it had been before. "Can... can you open this?" He asked, keeping his eyes trained to the floor in shame.

  Dot shook his head in response and allowed himself to relax a bit. Felix's incompetence was most likely an act- but still, it didn't look like he meant to hurt him.

  "It's nice in here." He noted, trying his best to make conversation. "Do you think so?"

  When Dot didn't- couldn't- respond, Felix quickly blushed even harder in embarrassment and exclaimed: "Oh! I uh- I'm sorry, I forgot you can't- uh, you can't-" His speech was stuttered as he tried to apologise; if this innocence was just an act, it was a very good one.

  "Anyway, uh," he coughed and shuffled his feet, "can I sit down somewhere please? That is- only if you want me to, I can stand if you'd prefer." His cheeks were returning to their normal colour, hand scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.

  Dot nodded, and Felix gratefully slumped down against the bottom trunk of a nearby tree before thanking Dot and beginning to inspect its leaves.

  "This is a rosewood tree." He stated, after having looked at the leaves for a short while. Dot tilted his head in a silent question, and so Felix began to explain himself: "You can tell from the leaves. They're widest at the base and about six centimetres long with a pointed tip, to explain it simply. The flowers smell nice, so you have that to look forward to."

  The man's interest in the greenery was completely genuine- but oddly, it made Dot feel less safe around him. Why was he here if he wasn't going to do anything bad? Instead of listening to him talking about the various trees that were planted around his room, Dot was focusing on his own racing thoughts as he became more and more certain that this man was going to turn on him at any moment.

  "This is an alder tree- I quite like these. You know, some people say they represent protection, or determination. I guess that means we're going to get along then?" He laughed as he said this, a smooth, genuine sort of laugh that made Dot's lips twitch upwards in an almost-smile.

  "Oh! And there's two olive trees here. Do you like olives? I don't like them usually, but I find them alright on pizza. My mum finds it quite odd, she'll tell me: 'Felix George Chesly, how come you leave them when I put them in a salad, but eat them covered in grease?' I don't quite know how to explain it, but they just taste better on pizza, you know? Ah, you probably can't eat that- wait, can you even eat olives? Here I am asking if you like them, and I don't even know if you can eat them."

  Dot listened to Felix's rambling, not quite understanding everything he said. The man was in his own little world, perfectly content to talk on and on about trivial things to fill the silence. His voice was deep and soothing, and Dot couldn't help but feel calmed by the speech.

  "So," Felix sat down a few metres away from Dot, making the hybrid shift away warily. Although he seemed like a nice person so far, there was every chance he was merely putting on an act.

  "You like mango? There's quite a bit of it in here." Dot nodded in response, letting his arms fall to his sides as he relaxed slightly.

  "I like mango too. It reminds me of when I visited Canada- not that Canada is known for its mangos, but they were the only snack I ate the whole time, so the taste just takes me back there, y'know?"

  Dot nodded again. He didn't understand, but pretending he did was easier than asking Felix to elaborate.

  "Can you write? I guess you can't, you don't exactly have... hands." Felix tilted his head to the side and stared at him in curiosity. "Am I allowed to touch your wings? Arms?"

  Dot held out a wing for him, feeling his breath hitch the moment Felix ran his fingers over the membrane, but relaxing again when no pain came.

   His fingers were gentle, yet firm. Unlike both Tiro's harsh grabs and the Doctor's soft strokes, Felix managed to create a whole new sensation for Dot- it actually felt nice. When Tiro touched him it usually just hurt, and when the Doctor did it he was too anxious about what she might do next to focus on how the contact actually felt. But as Felix gently stroked up and down the wing, Dot had to fight off another smile.

  It was an alien sensation, and he found himself struggling to hate it.

  Felix finished and put his hands back into his lap, folding his legs while looking at Dot with a childlike wonder.

  "Wow." He smiled brightly, showing off wonky front teeth. "You're amazing."

  Dot just stared at the man, in a stunned sort of shock.

  I am?