As much as his mind was screaming at him to grab shit and go the vestiges of old Dustin were fighting a losing battle.
Dustin decided to stay with Lily, and in doing so solidified the young girl's power over him completely. Even though neither of them knew it.
He rose from the apartment floor, bathed in darkness, and gently knocked on Lily's door. The girl opened it, surprised, and chuckled at the sight of the sheepish rat boy standing submissively before her. "Got lonely?"
"Sorry, Lily." Dustin said regretfully. "It was rude of me to refuse your..."
"Hey, whatever!" Lily waved her hand. "Out there or in here, as long as you're comfy, it's all good."
"Oh!" Dustin brightened, his tail swaying happily. "All right, uh... well..."
"You can still sleep with me, if you want." Lily said, hand on her hip and a smirk on her dark face. "Is that what you want, rat boy?"
"Yeah." Dustin said nervously, blushing just a little. "It was getting kind of lonely, and it's my first night like this, and..."
"Get in here." Lily said with a giggle, and showed the rat kid to his place at the end of her bed, a simple soft rug over the hardwood floor.
"Thank you, Lily." Dustin beamed. "You're so nice."
"Yeah, yeah." Lily yawned, lying back into her bed and tucking into the covers. "Good night, whiskers."
Dustin giggled, and settled in to his spot, curling up into himself. In the darkness, his new senses were even sharper. He opened his eyes and was startled to find he could see with perfect clarity. He heard Lily's gentle breathing, smelt the sweetness of her room. He could even hear passing cars outside. He was exhausted, but sleep wouldn't come. Tossing and turning on the rug for a while, he knew what he wanted, and what he needed.
He stared up at Lily's bed, unaware he was starting to shrink down to a full rat again, and wondered if he should bug her for some comfort.