While Thomas was running around in a cage squealing in his high-pitched rodent voice, there was a buzz that meant somebody was wanting into the apartment building. "Who is it?" Damon asked.
"It's me, baby, is it alright to come up?" came Monica's voice through the little speaker. Damon was confused that Monica was calling him "baby" again. Weren't they broken up? Maybe the world had changed to erase the human Thomas, so maybe in this reality, Monica had never left Damon. Damon smiled and thought it was worth finding out. He answered, "Sure, Monica, just watch your step, I think they mopped the staircase; you might rather take the lift."
Damon looked back over to Thomas. He couldn't help but grin wickedly at the sound of Thomas's squeaking and the sight of him trying to pull his tail off or rattle the catch with his skinny paws. At one point Thomas stopped to glare at Damon, certain somehow that his new owner was responsible for his unimaginable fate.
Then there was a knock at the door which Damon opened excitedly. Monica gave him a tight sexy hug, just like he was used to. Yep, definitely still dating. "Oooh, Damon, you didn't tell me you got a pet!"
Damon decided to try something. "Yeah, just got him today, sweetie. His name is, um, Thomas. Thomas the brown and white rat."
"Awww, isn't he just the most adorable thing ever! And what a cute name that is!"
Monica was giving no indication that she even knew a human named Thomas. This was turning out great!
"Can I hold him?" she asked. Damon froze up for a second.
"Only if you hold him really tight and don't let him scurry away," Damon said casually. Thomas's eyes widened when Damon's giant form appeared next to Monica's in the cage. He squeezed himself tightly against the back of the cage but was no match for Damon's giant hand opening up the little door and swooping up Thomas's tiny body. Damon didn't care that he was being maybe a little too rough with such a little critter. He handed Thomas off to Monica who was a lot more gentle, only firm enough that Thomas couldn't move too much.
"His fur is so soft," she said, "and he's so little he is almost like more of a mouse!"
Damon winced a little bit, unseen by Monica who was mostly focused on his new pet rat. Even as a disgusting little vermin pest, Monica still loved Thomas. Damon had to mentally remind himself that at least he was still human and still had Monica's affections for a human boyfriend. He finally got his blood pressure to go down, and spoke to Monica again.
"Well, when you're finished holding him, just set him back in the cage there, and we'll go to Chez Renard. I've got reservations for us tonight if you'd like a nicer dinner tonight. My treat. Nice little bonus down at the office."
"Ooh, that sounds lovely! I'll go get my special occasion dress out of your closet and we'll be on our way."
Of course, Damon did NOT have reservations. But he'd been to Chez Renard on short notice before; he could bluff his way into pretending it must be their fault they forgot he and Monica were expected. As long as he could flash some cash and prove he could pay the dinner and probably tip a decent amount extra. Damon smiled that in this reality Monica's stuff was still in his apartment. He watched closely that she closed the cage correctly and double-checked it himself after he was gone. Sure enough, Monica came out a few minutes later looking stunning, and then the two humans were gone, and Thomas was left alone in his mini rodent body, mentally weeping that Damon and Monica were leaving him in a cage like this.