Monster One-Shots

Like a Blobfish

CW: bone breaking

    "Now you get to see Pop-Pop's work," Olcod cooed down to the little girl.

    Lorelai anxiously gripped his veiny hands. There were so many monsters eyeing her like meat from their cages. Her grandfather didn't seem worried, but she was.

    "I'm scared," she murmured.

    "You don't have to be, sweetheart. Pop-Pop will keep you safe." he assured her. "Now, one of the creatures is due for a feeding time. Do you want to come watch?"

    She nodded apprehensively.

***

    It looked almost wolf-ish yet distressingly human. The creature was clearly covered in fur, and whiskers, ears, and a tail proved it to be inhuman. But it could talk. Upon talking, the creature was threatened with punishment, which often led it to stay silent and just accept the meat lobbed into its pen.

    The walls were concrete. One wall had a metal door. The rest were solid. To view the creature and throw it food, one stood on a pathway looming above the walls. It was guarded by a metal rail. Lorelai was standing on one of the vertical beams with her grandfather holding onto her waist. When Olcod's colleague dropped his walkie talkie, Olcod bent down to get it for him, releasing Lorelai. She had leaned all her weight forward, relying on him to protect her. And when he let go, she plummeted into the pit.

    The creature's eyes went wide as the tiny human crashed into his concrete oasis.

    "Lorelai!" Olcod shrieked. "Get her out now!" he barked to a guard standing by.

    He sprinted down the pathway.

    Lorelai instantly started crying. The arm she landed on was most definitely broken, and she was face to face with a beast. She desperately scrambled backwards but cried out whenever she put pressure on her broken arm.

    The creature's face softened. "It's okay, little one. I promise I'm not going to hurt you. You need to stay off that arm."

    She only started crying more, especially as she scooted into the metal door.

    "Lorelai, it's going to be okay, sweetie!" Olcod called.

    "Lorelai? Is that your name, little one?" the creature asked, "I'm Rufus."

    There were only incoherent sobs.

    "I'm not going to hurt you, Lorelai. Alright?" he reassured her, "Even if I wanted to, I couldn't." He jerked on the metal chains binding every appendage on his body. "These make it, so I can't get close to the door you're against. You're safe."

    "Promise?" she whimpered.

    "Yes. I promise." He purred. "They're going to get you out in a bit. They just have to run all the way down the path, down some stairs, and then past a bunch of security gates."

    She nodded, glancing at the metal door impatiently.

    "Do you like meat, Lorelai?" he asked, holding up a raw slab of it.

    She shook her head.

    "Hmm. I don't have anything else to give you. I'm sorry, little one." he commented, looking around.

    "You're not very mean," she muttered.

    "I try not to be," he said, "Why do you say that?"

    "Because you're a monster, and monsters are mean."

    "Who says you're not the monster?" he challenged.

    "I don't look weird," she argued, wiping her nose with her good arm.

    "You look pretty funny to me," he huffed, "With your fleshy, little arms."

    She pouted.

    He smiled. "Don't worry. You're a cute funny-lookin'. Like a blobfish."

    She giggled softly.

    "Hold on, Lorelai. They're almost there." Olcod called again.

    "Looks like your rescue party is almost here," he announced, "You need to get that arm fixed up."

    "Can we talk again?" she asked.

    "You'll have to ask the fellow up there," he said, "But I'd love that."

    The metal door behind her clicked and quickly opened with a guard rushing inside to pick her up.

    "Bye, little one," Rufus cooed.

    "Bye!" she called.

***

    "Gods, I'm so sorry, Lorelai. I should have never let you go." Olcod mumbled, resting his arm on the hospital bed's railing.

    "It's okay," she said, "I made a friend."

    "You did? How?" he asked.

    "With Rufus!" she exclaimed.

    "Who?"

    "Rufus. The man in the pit." she elaborated.

    "The monster?" he questioned. "No...Lorelai-"

    "He's not a monster! He's really nice." She grinned.

    "Sweetheart…"

    "And he said he wanted to see me again," she said. "Can I see him again? Pleaseeee?" she begged.

    He sighed. "Only you could befriend such a creature."

    "So can I?" she inquired.

    "Possibly," he conceded, "But you're absolutely not going into its cage again."