We enter the dining hall in the evening. The merpeople cooks place my food on my tray and I walk off the counters. I cast a glance around. There must be some felines I can have a talk with!

"Hey, Theo!" A familiar voice calls me. "You're feeling better today?"

Shon is smiling at me. He's holding a tray of food too. I didn't think I'd meet him again so soon! I have to thank him too. He saved me from that savage shark at the merpeople's party!

"Hey, Shon! Yeah, I'm fine," I reply. "Thank you for saving me at the merpeople's party and... for your support, in general!"

His eyes twinkle with happiness. Is he... blushing?

"Oh, I... You're welcome!" He averts his eyes from me and scratches his head. "I'm happy to help a fellow human!"

"Oh, I'm no longer a human, though," I say. "My turning process has sped up."

"Infected or not, we're humans, Theo." His eyes fix on me, serious and stern. "Don't you ever forget that!"

"Yeah... I guess you have a point." I smile. I agree with him. Humans might see us as deviants, but deviants see us as humans – an inferior class. They don't think we belong with them, so I guess it's up to us to never forget who we truly are.

"Want to have dinner together?" Shon offers. "There are some free places we could take... if you want."

"Oh, sure!" I nod.

I'd rather sit with him than with Yelen and Annabelle, who are talking about boys all the time. When you don't want to talk about boys, you'd better talk with boys! They discuss many diverse topics. It's more interesting than girls' small talk.

I notice Shon's yellow eyes sparkling with joy at my approval. He leads me to a secluded table in a corner and we take seats.

"So, how're things in the Vampire District?" He starts with a casual topic. It's alright, people who barely know each other always start that way – weather, studies, work... But, since we're prisoners who rarely see the light of day, we can't talk about the weather, studies, or work. So, the only thing to ask your fellow prisoner is how their district is doing.

"Fine, I guess..." I shrug. "I was asleep for three days, according to my friends, so I don't know much about it."

"Really? Yeah, now that you mention it, I haven't seen you around for quite a long time!" Shon says. "Are you alright now?"

"Yes." I smile. "Knut's medicine has helped, I guess. Thank you!"

"Yeah, you're welcome! I'm glad you're alright." He smiles back. He seems like a nice fellow – polite and understanding. "So, what are you going to do now?" he asks. "You said your turning process has sped up... Are you allowed to hunt yet?"

"Yes, if we believe my friends." I reply. "It's great! I'll finally see the light of day again and have some fresh air... That's just what I need!"

"Yeah, I understand," he says. "I'm not allowed to hunt yet since I still can't control my transformations. They occur at each full moon and I go berserk. Like all werewolves, you know?" He bitterly laughs (We infected ones often do that to ease our pain. Otherwise, you may go insane, thinking about your entire life being ruined). "I guess the process speeding up isn't all that bad," Shon says. "Now you can at least control your bloodlust, right? Like, you won't have outbursts anymore."

"Yes, that's true." I smile. He can paint it all in positive colours. He has a good point! I feel comforted now. "Thanks, Shon!" I say.

"Huh? What for?" He chuckles.

"Well, you mentioned something positive about my problems, so it feels better now." I shrug. "When I think about all this stuff, it drives me nuts sometimes... It's good to hear that everything has its good side!"

"Oh, yeah, I get it..." He smiles. "Well, I try to see the positive side all the time. Otherwise, I may go crazy. Like, I was the best at programming in school and was going to apply for university this year. Then bam, a werewolf bites me one night, and all goes upside down!"

"Oh, I... I'm sorry, Shon!"

He was a freshman? Damn, that's even worse than my situation! I was already at university and had passed my freshman year. It was the sweetest time I can remember! This guy couldn't experience it but was shoved in here instead! Ugh!

"It's fine." He shrugs. "I'd feel better if I had a computer in my cell, but... it's fine."

I see tears in his eyes. Damn, poor kid! Why did I even bring this up?!

"I'm so sorry, Shon! I shouldn't have talked about this," I say. "Let's drop this subject!"

I feel awful. The guy was feeling so good and I ruined the mood!

"Yeah, it's okay," he says.

We continue eating in silence. His tears have vanished, but... Ugh, I must come up with a better subject!

"So, how's your district doing?" I ask. It's not the best subject after that awful conversation, but it's all I've got.

"Meh, fine..." He shrugs, but then a smile covers his face. "The officials had a brawl with felines again, so they closed the gates."

"Wait, felines?" I brighten up. He knows something about felines? Maybe their district, too?

"Yeah. Their district is right next to ours," he replies. "As you might know, canines and felines don't get along. Our officials are inborn deviants like in every other district, so they often fight the felines next door." He laughs. "The dudes can never get a grip! Our boss, Terry – the strongest werewolf – is jealous of the felines who control the whole prison. As you may have heard, the warden is a feline too."

"Really?" I ask, pretending I don't know much. "Their district is next to yours?"

This might be a good idea... If I follow Shon to his district, I can sneak into the feline one!

"Yeah," he replies. "I don't know who came up with the stupid idea to place canines and felines next to each other. However, it's funny to see the officials acting all high and mighty and then barking at the felines like dogs!" Shon laughs. "That's one of the best sights in this prison! When I have a good laugh like that, I tend to forget I'm a prisoner."

"Wow, that sounds fun!" I laugh too, but I'm interested in another matter – getting into the Feline District. "So, can I see that too?" I ask.

"Huh?" He seems confused.

"Could you take me to your district now, after dinner?" I ask. "I'd like to see all that for myself!"

"Oh?" Shon looks happy, but he hesitates. "It's forbidden to cross into a different district without an official's permission, though. I'm not an official, and I don't know any prison-keeper who'd do that for us."

"Well, I could sneak in... Pass for a canine, you know?" I smile. "Some canines have red eyes, don't they?"

"Not really... Well, fire foxes do, but you need to be an elemental to pass as one of them," Shon says. "And you, vampires, don't have elementals."

"It's worth a try!" I insist. "If I keep quiet, I might pass!"

I can't believe I'm going to such lengths just to thank a guy, as Annabelle put it. But, on the other hand, sneaking into a different district, breaking all those rules... It sounds fun! I feel goosebumps through my skin. Shon's tiny fur rises on his hands, betraying his share of excitement.

"You know what?" He grins at me with his little fangs. "It's worth a try!"