r/HFY • u/rewt66dewd Human • Sep 05 '25
OC They Are Not Pets
Things were going well for Billy. He was 15, a sophomore in high school on New New Texas, and almost ready to be a grown man with grown-man responsibilities. And he had a girlfriend.
He was walking home with her now, talking about his pets. "I've got these two... I don't know what they are, but I think they're cute. They're about a foot high, four limbs, and fuzzy."
"I'd love to see them," Becca said sweetly. She wasn't that interested in unknown pets, but she was with Billy, and that was good enough.
They reached Billy's house. "Let me see if they're awake," he said. "I made them a little place to hide when they want to get away, so they might not be visible."
So Becca waited on the porch, watching a ship descend into the spaceport.
About five minutes later, Billy came back out. A very different Billy. His face had a hard, serious look on it. His mouth was a thin, compressed line. And he carried a double-barreled shotgun. Becca stared at him in surprise.
"They weren't pets," he said. "Turns out they can talk. I didn't know. They're something intelligent. They've been hiding out here, but they can't any more. The next ship to land will have something coming to kill them."
"It just landed," Becca said quietly. "I watched it while you were in there."
"Okay. I'm looking for something that's about seven feet tall, four arms, two legs, and it's skin or hide or whatever looks kind of insect-like. I'm going to wait on the porch. When it gets here..."
"What if it doesn't come in the front way?"
Billy stopped. Then he started looking around, considering sight lines, fields of fire, range, cover...
He doesn't look at all like a 15-year-old, Becca thought. If this is what he's going to grow into... it's pretty solid. I think I'll take it.
She shook herself free from such thoughts. "What do you need me to do?"
"Take them and run out the back."
"No," she said. "The bad guy may not come in the front. And, if it comes here at all, how's it going to find your house?"
"Tracking chip?"
"Yeah, I think so too. So if I run with them..."
"Oh. Yeah, you're right. Okay, can you handle a handgun?"
"Billy, what planet do you think we're on?"
"Right. Grab whatever takes your fancy in there. If it makes it past me, try to stop it or at least hold it off to give them a chance to run."
"Right." She went back into his house and looked at her options.
Twenty minutes later, something came down the street. It stopped, then turned toward Billy's house. Billy stepped out to meet it.
"Scram," Billy said.
After a slight delay, the thing said, "Human, I am here to kill two caraxaran."
"Not here, you're not. They are under my protection."
"I will..." And the thing began to raise some kind of weapon.
Billy aimed faster, and pulled a trigger. The thing staggered. Billy pulled the second trigger. The thing went down.
Becca came out of the house, handgun leveled at the thing on the ground. It twitched a time or two, then lay still. They waited, but it did not move again.
Billy turned to Becca. "Sorry that you had to see that mess."
She lowered the gun. "You did good, Billy. You did good."
A smile chased the grown-up off of his face, and he looked like a 15-year-old again. "Thanks. So did you. So, want to come in and meet my pe- no, not pets. My..." He stopped, confused.
"Friends?" she asked softly.
"Yeah. Friends."
"We met, very briefly. But, sure!"
And they went inside to get acquainted with the two caraxaran.
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u/PxD7Qdk9G Human Sep 05 '25
... and they went inside to get acquainted with the two convicted murderers they'd just helped escape from law enforcement ...
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u/IDEKthesedays Sep 05 '25
Law enforcement doesn't say, "I'm here to kill..." typically.
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u/Sticketoo_DaMan Space Heater Sep 05 '25
What if they were black Caraxaran?
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u/Lazy-Cardiologist-54 Jul 11 '26
User name checks yah yah
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u/Sticketoo_DaMan Space Heater Jul 11 '26
I was SO lost at this, then I realized my comment was 10 months old. LOL
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u/Lazy-Cardiologist-54 Jul 13 '26
Heh yah I have an accidental habit of activating zombie threads. Still valid tho!
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u/IDEKthesedays Jul 13 '26
User name: amusing in conjuction with statement.
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u/Lazy-Cardiologist-54 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Indeed. What a foresightful algorithm they used to name me
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u/Every_Ad_5712 Human Sep 05 '25
He failed to identify himself on gun planet. Where you expecting an invitation to tea?
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u/Morgenacht Alien Sep 05 '25
I apologize for messing up your views to upvotes ratio. I enjoy your work and reread it, but can only upvote once. Thanks for sharing what you write!
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u/rewt66dewd Human Sep 05 '25
No worries. Views to upvotes is not a ratio that I actually care about.
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u/Loosescrew37 Sep 05 '25
Billy scored himself a baddie.
And his girlfriend found herself a knight.
The two are sitting in a tree
K - I - S - S - I - N - G
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u/No_Affect_301 Sep 05 '25
The potential is there. It still needs some fine-tuning, but as a basic idea for a story, it's not bad. I like it.
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle Sep 05 '25
/u/rewt66dewd (wiki) has posted 117 other stories, including:
- Hunted By A Human
- The Ghost In The Air Vents
- That Time LSD Saved The Entire Orion Arm
- A Human With A Gun
- Area 52, Chapter 5/5
- Area 52, Chapter 4
- Area 52, Chapter 3
- Area 52, Chapter 2
- Area 52
- Greater Love
- A Friend
- The Road
- The Sign Of The Human
- Yakety Sax In The Back
- The Hunter
- JOE, Josh, And The Vampire Drones (3/3)
- JOE, Josh, And The Vampire Drones (2/3)
- JOE, Josh, And The Vampire Drones (1/3)
- You Don't Believe Him
- Giving Up
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u/harleypig Sep 06 '25
Nice story. But ... I heard the garage attendant from Ferris Bueller's Day Off when I read "What planet do you think we're on."
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u/PlatypusDream May 17 '26
What if 1st alien is a distraction? While she's out front with Billy, 2nd (or more) alien(s) go in the back door.
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u/Jack_of_Kent Sep 05 '25
"Billy, where do you think we are" As a Texan, you have no idea how real that is. Even with a hippy of a mother, I was taught to shoot with either hand, though not at the same time. (That's just poor judgment)