Hybrid Chronicles: Toby and Mason

Toby was silent for a while. "I was...am..." He sighed. "A frog."

"That's not so bad. I've definitely seen worse.There was this guy at the camp I was staying at, everyone called him Mango for some reason..." Mason shrugged in the dark. "He was mutated with an elephant. He couldn't fit through the door so they kept him chained outside. He had really bad allergies too... the spring was awful." Mason mumbled to himself.

Toby started to respond, but he had started to shiver. The sound of a predatory cat roaring from across the hall startled the young man and he let out a soft 'ribbit'. He pressed his hand over his mouth.

"Sorry," he said, barely audible because his soft voice was muffled.

Mason couldn't stop laughing. "Man that was adorable!" Mason wipe tears from his eyes. "I was I could make some cool sound. All I can do is chirp like a hyena who's had way to much helium." Mason chuckled.

"I think you're the only person that's ever called that adorable," Toby said. He curled into a tighter ball. "I suppose blankets are too much to expect..."

"Well it is. Adorable I mean." Mason laughed. "And yeah, don't expect much in the way of blankets. Us lucky ones have wings or fur to keep em warm." Mason smiled. "I'm a lucky bastard and got both." Mason opened his wings, revealing the tiny pocket of warmth between the thin skin of his wings and his chest which had a slight dusting of bat fur on it, already growing back from being shaved. "Crawl in. I'm nice an warm." Mason laughed.

"Thank you so much. I promise I'm not slimy." Toby's hands timidly sought out the warmth. He quickly cuddled against Mason and let out a loud 'ribbit' at the relief of something to keep him from freezing.

Mason chuckled and closed his wings around the frog. "I wasn't worried about slime by the way." Mason said. He felt Toby cuddle against the fuzz on his chest and his breathing slowed, relaxing for the first time since he had entered the room.

"Shut up!" One of the infected across the room shouted. Mason giggled and closed his eyes and began to fall asleep.

"You're soft," Toby whispered.

"I said, shut up!" The same guy shouted. Mason sat up, supporting his weight on his hands above Toby.

"You shut up!" Mason growled and curled up with Toby again, who was trying hard not to giggle.

"And you're not slimy." Mason whispered in his ear.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ********************

Mason woke and smelled the shampoo his frog boy used. He opened his eyes and found his wings empty.

"Toby?" He looked around the still somewhat dark room. Sunlight poured in from a few windows in the walls and Mason didn't see his tadpole anywhere, not that he had had a good look at the amphibian.

"Toby?" He called out again. He sighed and stood up, stretching. His fur and wings smelled like his tadpole.

'Hmm, tadpole... I like it.' He thought to himself. He ran a hand through his light brown hair and yawned. The door opened and Mason looked up, hoping to see his blind little frog boy there.

'Not even a full night with the guy and I'm already calling him mine, what have I gotten into?' Mason laughed at himself when he saw it was only a handler bringing in food. He sighed and headed towards the food.

"Eat quickly, you have a fight in half an hour." The handler snapped at Mason before walking out. The normal routine occurred and people fought for more food, or fought to keep what little thy had. The strongest got the most and the weakest were lucky if they managed to hide in a corner with a scrap of bread. Mason was glad he didn't have this problem. Of all the various animal hybrids, none of them were insectivores. He hated the crunch the moths made, but he felt sick if he ate anything else.

Once he was done eating he stood. It seems the handlers had been waiting for him because the second he stood up they came in and dragged him out of the room. ~~~~~~ *********

"Where are we going?" Toby asked, still drowsy. He was sad to feel the last vestiges of Mason's warmth fading away.

"Shut up," a gruff voice that Toby didn't recognize instructed, "Be thankful you weren't in there for feeding time. Those animals have no decency. I'm surprised you even made it through the night. Or did you let the vampire play a little leap frog to save yourself?"

Toby blushed at the insult but otherwise showed no sign that the comment effected him in any way. Because of his small stature and soft-spoken mannerisms, Toby had been dealing with those assumptions for most of his life. He'd never given it much concern. Privately, he wondered if he was even inclined to have any sort of sexual attraction.

Mason changed that completely. Toby liked the way Mason made him feel. It was a combination of warm and protected and accepted. Though he'd never experienced it before, he knew what it was. Toby had a crush.

"Where are you taking me?" Toby asked again.

"Your father invited you to join him at the fights. If I were you, I'd show some appreciation. Not every father would pay for surgeries the way he did. Hell, if you were my kid I would've just shot you."

Toby remained silent, hoping that the man didn't have children. He was shocked at the cruelty people showed towards a group that was different by no choice of their own. What gave them the right to judge?

The man opened a car door and shoved Toby forward. Toby got in the car and felt around for the seat belt. He wished that he had the courage to say that he didn't want to go. Something about it didn't feel right.

********* ~~~~~~

Mason was thrown in to a pit and the crowd cheered around him. Another Hybrid was throne in and the handlers switched on their cattle prods, in case they didn't fight. He looked up at the horde of people cheering and booing. He saw people collecting bets and the big boss man in a chair away from everyone else. He stared down at Mason like a king staring at a bug.

'Bite me, jack ass.' Mason thought. As if reading his mind a handler stepped up and shocked Mason. Mason screamed and fell on the ground. The other hybrid stepped into action when the Handler headed towards him. He grabbed Mason by the hair and pulled him up. Mason screamed and reached up with his hands to try and get the clawed fingers to let go.

"Sorry about this, guy." The other Hybrid said. Mason opened his eyes to see that the other infected wasn't holding him with claws, but very large fingers.

"Oh God." Mason said before a fist the size of a baseball glove slammed into his face. The gorilla stepped over to his fallen body and used one massive arm to pick him up by his ankle. Mason dangled at least a foot off the ground as the large, furry, strong man held him.

"No hard feelings." Mason mumbled, already feeling his eye swelling from the blow. His arms dangled above his head, wings unfolded. The gorilla turned and flung his body against a wall. Mason swore he heard something crack. He hit the dirt with a solid 'oof' and waited for the huge beast to return. He heard the large footsteps on the ground and opened his eyes as the monkey reached for him again. He used the claws on his hands to scratch at the creature holding him up by his neck, but he hardly even made him flinch. Mason kicked and struggled against the gorilla and was rewarded with a grunt when he landed a kick in the face.

The gorilla dropped him and he began scurrying away. He made it halfway across the arena when he heard the beast recover and turn around to face him. They stared at each other a moment and after a second the gorilla charged. Mason glanced up and saw the cage on top of the arena. Without hesitation he jumped up, flapping his wings as best he could and grabbed hold of the fencing above him. He dangled from the roof and looked down at his opponent. He knew he stood no chance and just hoped he could prolong the inevitable. The gorilla looked up at him and began getting angry. He beat his chest with his hands and looked at the guards.

"That's not fair, can he do that?" He growled. Mason stuck out his bat tongue. The gorilla glared and tried jumping for him, but Mason was to high. He smiled and looked around at the crowd. It was then that he saw him. Sitting in the once empty seat next to the head honcho was Toby.

"Toby?" Mason said, and felt a large fist grip his tail. He was jerked down suddenly and felt a claw catch on the chain link above. He screamed as he broke his nail and the gorilla pulled him down. He saw the beast raise both fists above his head and slam them down onto his rib cage. Mason curled up and choked. He rolled onto his back, trying to protect his vulnerable stomach, and was met with a kick to the side. He tried to stand and lift himself back up to the cage top, but the gorilla wouldn't give him the chance. He took him by the tail and threw him against the wall, where the chain dome roof met the concrete walls. He felt blood trickle down his face and a few lose teeth. He opened his eyes and was staring directly at Toby's blind eyes. He had thought he had seen wrong before, but now he knew. No one else could have beautiful blue gray eyes like his, and a small patch of green frog skin just under his collar.

"Toby..." He saw his tadpoles eyes widen as he heard the voice.

"Mason?"

"Toby I thought-" He felt his tail grabbed again and he was thrown backwards into the dirt, away from the answers to all his questions. The gorilla raised a fist and punched Mason in the stomach. Mason felt the air leave his lungs and he struggled to pull more in. He attempted to crawl away and felt the large hand wrap around his neck again. He struggled to breath as his face was shoved into the cement wall. He felt consciousness slipping away from him as his face was slammed into it again. He coughed blood from his mouth and his eyes met with Toby's. He knew Toby couldn't see him, but he also knew the boy knew what was happening. He watched the wall grow closer again and the right side of his face connect with it once more. He saw stars and black clouds in his vision, and the last thing he saw was Toby's sickened face.

~~~~~~~ **********

Toby had felt himself getting more and more nauseous with each sound that came from below. Hearing Mason's voice made it worse and he finally couldn't fight it. He dove out of his chair, dropping to his knees and dry heaving quietly. His father grabbed him by the back of his shirt, demanding, "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Toby coughed weakly. "Dad, what are you doing to those people?"

"They aren't people! You're just as stupid as they are. I should have known better!"

Two men grabbed Toby roughly and carried him away. He attempted to struggle but it was useless. He could smell that they were outside and feel the sun on his face. It was the only comfort he had as the two men punched and kicked him for a while before throwing him into a vehicle. Toby winced and wondered if he was hallucinating when there seemed to be a flash of light.

Toby sat up slowly and nervously awaited his fate. The vehicle stopped and he was led to what he assumed was the same night as before, based on the smell. He could hear voices mumbling as the door slammed shut. "Mason?" Toby said, cringing at the hissing sounds. "Mason, please? Are you there?"

"Look who it is..." A broken vice said. A cough followed, and a weak moan echoed once the coughing stopped.

Toby moved towards Mason's voice, ignoring the angry sounds around him. "Mason, are you hurt? Help me find you, please. I'll help you."

Mason was silent for a moment.

"Why should I? What the hell were you doing there? If you were inside of the arena I could understand that, but you were with the big wigs up there... who the fuck are you?" Mason coughed again.

"Don't bother talking to him," A voice said, ending with a hiss. "Let us have him."

"Maybe I will..." Mason's voice echoed the dark empty room.

"Please, I'll explain," Toby said, trying to move closer to Mason, longing for the security he felt the night before. "I promise it's not what it looks like. Mason, I didn't want to be there. I swear I didn't know."

"Yeah right. You're a liar.You lied to me last night, why should I help you now?" Mason said.

Toby felt something touch his shoulder and he whimpered and backed away from the unknown threat.

********* ~~~~~~

Mason heard the blind man shuffling around on the floor, he also heard the sounds of night predators shifting around his tadpole.

"Mason, please!" Toby sounded frightened and tried desperately to find Mason among all the others.

Mason's heart hurt, he felt betrayed by the smaller man. He stayed quiet and he heard the others closing in on their prey.

"I'm not a liar. I didn't know. It wasn't my choice. Just let me explain."

Mason sighed. "Get away from him." He grumbled.

Toby stood shakily. "Thank you," he whispered.

"I'm over here." Mason growled.

Toby took a few uncertain steps. He reached out and gently grabbed on to Mason's leg that was swinging from the rafters.

"Ow, watch it." Mason grunted. Mason shifted his leathery wing down towards the floor to give Toby something to grab onto. Toby was pulled up by Mason's weak and shaking arm, it was obvious he was in pain.

"Mason, please don't be mad at me," Toby said softly. "I'd never hurt you."

"Obviously that's a lie considering you sat there while I got my face beat in by a gorilla."

Toby sighed and tugged at his glove. "I didn't know. Mason, it wasn't my choice to be there. It was my dad..."

"Why didn't you tell me you were related to the man who is directly responsible for me being in here?"

"I was afraid to. It's not like we're close. He..." Toby removed his glove. "When I got sick, he sent me away to have all these surgeries. It's why I'm blind. I didn't know what he was doing while I was gone." Toby spread his fingers to show the thick scars.

Mason struggle to see Toby's hand in the dark. "Come close, I can't move much." Mason grasped his hand, pulling him closer to him. He saw the thick scars Toby was showing him and his heart broke, who could do that to their own son?

"They didn't think they went that far, but they did. They had to keep cutting deeper and deeper," Toby explained. "My hands took the longest, but the grafts they did on my throat to hide the frog skin...those hurt the worst. They were trying to stop the croaking, but it didn't really work."

"I'm sorry I snapped at you. I was just pissed off and confused. I don't think you needed the surgeries. You're beautiful now and I'm sure you were before." Mason said, not letting go of his hand. His claws brushed across the soft skin of his hand and he brought his other hand up to hold it too.

"My dad doesn't care about me, Mason. He just didn't want to be humiliated by how disgusting I was. I swear I didn't know it was you down there." Toby sighed. "You cared for me more last night than he ever has. I'm not going to let him keep doing this to you or at least...I'm staying with you. If they come back for me, I won't go."

"You don't know what you're getting into." Mason started, "If you stay here you have to fight. There will be times when you're alone with other hybrids, I won't always be there to protect you." Mason said. "The only reason those guys backed off this time was because they know I won't be afraid to kick their asses if I have to, once I heal up. One of them could take me with a single finger in the condition I'm in now." Mason grunted and held his ribs as another wave of pain kicked in.

"In case anyone ever asks if a bat could beat a gorilla in a fight, bet on the gorilla." Mason mumbled.

"I don't want to leave you though," Toby said. "I could learn to fight. I know I could as long as you keep me warm every night." Toby blushed and smiled shyly.

"The second part sounds good to me." Mason chuckled. "But I don't think my body could handle a snuggle session tonight." Mason opened his eyes and looked at Toby, who was brushing his fingers across Mason's hand.

Toby looked disappointed. "Can I do anything? I'm so sorry I didn't help you."

"I don't think so. And don't feel bad, you were scared. Even if you had wanted to help, I doubt there was much you could do." Mason coughed. He was silent for a moment before adding, "I think maybe just a small snuggle session would be alright." He smiled in the darkness and pulled on Toby's hand.

"I like you," Toby admitted. "Is that okay?" He was careful as he moved across the wood beam he was straddling closer to Mason.

"Yeah, just watch my ankle." He mumbled, as Toby slid into his embrace. He lifted his arm and draped it over his tadpole. They were silent a moment when Mason breathed across Toby's ear. "I like you too, tadpole." He smiled against the ear.

Toby laughed softly. "Tadpole?"

"Yeah, like it?" Mason chuckled, trying not to hurt his battered body.

"No one ever called me anything like that before," Toby said.

"If you don't like it I can stop." Mason said. "I just think it's cute. I remember catching tadpoles down in the river that ran behind our house." Mason brought forward the vivid memory. "It was always too cold to go catch them early in the season, so by the time we got to them they had just started growing their legs. Fat little round things with tiny legs underneath, always had a frightened look on their face, but they were so damn cute. " Mason smiled.

"I like it. Just as long as you don't think I'm a fat little round thing with tiny legs," Toby said. "I never did anything like that. My dad wanted me to be better in school so I could help with the business. Back then he was an art dealer but I don't think he ever cared about the beauty in it. He's always been about money and reputation. It's why he's mad I'm the one that survived."

"What do you mean he's mad that you're the one who survived?" Mason sat up as best as he could to look at Toby. "I don't want you to keep any more secrets from me, tadpole." he said. "I want to care about you but I can't do that if you don't tell me these things." Mason waited for him to speak.

"My mom and my sister died. I don't really remember much. I had such a high fever, I was delirious."

"How old were you?" Mason stroked his hair softly.

"I was seventeen," Toby sighed. "I wasn't grateful for what I had. My mom was an alcoholic and she was kind of fickle, but I know she cared about me." Toby wiped at his eyes. "Sorry."

"Don't be, I know it's hard." Mason hesitated. "My parents died when I was fourteen." Mason said. "Our house caught fire and the fire department got there in time to save me, but no one else. I was in foster care for awhile and then I was shipped off to the camps." Mason said. "I figure if I expect you to tell me everything, I should be honest with you too." Mason said.

"I'm sorry that happened to you. Were you close to your parents?" Toby gently moved his hands up, his thumb brushing Mason's lip before moving to Mason's ears. Toby petted the fur that was growing back there, softly commenting, "So soft..."

"Ha, yeah, who knew bats were so fuzzy? We were a close family." He said, "I guess when they died I never really grieved... Everything just happened so fast. The fire, and then foster care, and my wings started growing in. The labor camp was rough since I had no family or friends to look out for me." Mason reached for Toby's hand with his own, holding the smaller hand gently. He resented the position they were in, only getting to speak in the dead of night. He wanted to be able to walk around with the man he was interested in. It had just occurred to him that he had never actually been on a date.

"I know I'm essentially useless, but I want to be there for you," Toby said, his voice full of sincerity.

"You're not useless... " Mason started, he turned Toby in his arms to face him, "You're beautiful." Mason smiled. He wished Toby could see him, he didn't mind that he was blind. But it would be so much greater if they could look into each others eyes.