[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Back home, he hung the bark from the ceiling in small mesh bags so that it would dry out. He lay the leaves on the stove to dry out. He added preserving herbs to the berry jars and put them on a shelf. Satisfied with his handiwork, he stretched out on the floor. His mother would have been so proud of him, being able to take care of himself.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He heard them, as they came towards the house. Heard their taunting voices, the plotting and scheming. They were planning to burn down everything he had left. Fools, they were unaware that he was there, listening to them. He jumped out of the house, and started yelling, telling them to back off or he would take them down.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Suddenly, something of his father awakened in Thire. Maybe it was because he was about to lose his home. Maybe it was because he felt threatened. Or maybe it was because today was his eighteenth birthday. Whatever it was, Thire didn't notice, but the mob sure did.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

All of a sudden, his shadow changed to a demon's shape. His eyes glowed as red as burning coals. His voice caused the heavens to rumble. He seemed bigger, taller, scarier than before. And his order, to leave him be, could not be ignored by any who heard it. No more would his home be threatened or vandalised.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

As they ran away, Thire felt incredibly drained. Not just tired, but... properly drained. As if something had sucked all the energy out of him. He barely had the chance to crawl into the house before passing out. As he slept, a massive physical change occurred...

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

His hair grew longer, down to his waist. His torso and legs also grew longer, so he was taller. What had been skin and bone turned to muscle. His pelt grew thicker, and luxuriously soft. His jaw lengthened just a bit, to make him look mature. It was as if he was being redesigned to be attractive.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

When he awoke, Thire felt like he had been used for a football by a bunch of garagnir. Everything ached, from his ears to his toes and back. Not owning a mirror, he didn't realise the changes to himself. He tried to walk straight, but he felt so dizzy. And since when was this hut so small anyway?

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He had always been able to reach the ceiling on a stool, he had had to do it many times. But now, he could almost reach it standing up! He couldn't believe that he had grown so much taller. And in so little time! He couldn't fathom what must have happened to him, or why it had happened. He hadn't even been aware that it was his birthday!

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He had stopped celebrating birthdays when his mother died. There was just no point to it any more... After all, she was the one who did all the preparation for his birthday. And hers was the only one he knew of to celebrate. Without her, there was nothing and no-one to celebrate for or with.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He shook himself, and went to the river to wash. He bathed at least every other day, so he was constantly clean (by Slums standards anyway). However, the other residents still looked at him as if he was filthy. His father had an awful reputation here, and it was a heavy burden for Thire to bear. His transformation may have made him more attractive, but it merely caused the residents to cross themselves and run in fear.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Thire was used to being ignored, but having them run away in fear? That was new, and it scared him how much he liked it. He bathed quickly, not wanting to linger too long, then went home. His fur sent the droplets almost dancing through the air when he shook himself. He didn't notice the amorous looks he received from some of the more rebellious females as he jogged past them...

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

But he noticed a change in himself. He noticed how much easier it was to move, to breathe, to keep going. He had never been unfit, or overweight - a life as the underdog in the slums had seen to that. But it seemed... easier now, somehow. His movement was more fluid, more dynamic, more graceful - as if his body had somehow changed overnight...

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

But that was impossible, wasn't it? He shook himself mentally, and forced the thought out of his mind. He had much more important matters to attend to, like what he was going to eat today. He didn't have anything other than medicinal plants in, and whilst they were good for healing, they weren't particularly nutritious. And there was not use in begging for food on the streets...

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He had learned that a long time ago. Nobody pities someone they think deserves to be where they are. And nobody had ever pities him or his mother. It hadn't been her fault, he was sure... It certainly hadn't been for love, at the very least. Not on her side, and it couldn't have been love on his father's side, otherwise he wouldn't have left...

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

So his mother had been used by a womanising demon, then had been left all alone to raise a baby. She had been turned out by her relatives for her encounter with the demon, and shunned by all who recognised the signs on him. She had been forced to physically build a shack in the Slums on her own, out of pieces of rubbish she found lying around, to house them. She had had to learn how to forage in the rainforest from scratch, what was edible and what wasn't, where to find things, how to hunt... All of it, on her own, with no help or guidance from anybody, even when they could see they were suffering, or starving, or ill...