Repression

Starfire had been amused when Barbara had asked Richard about her taking her on a night on the town.

"Come on, Richard, it's a simple night out with the girls," Barbara said. "I mean it's been three weeks of you and Bruce taking Kori and Diana to one charity dinner or another."

Starfire realized that Richard had been as amused as she was that Barbara thought she was going to get an argument. Instead, he simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, if Kori wants to go with you, Babs, I trust you have enough sense to keep her out of the sleazy dives, or Bludhaven," he said.

"Hey, I don't like going there as Batgirl, unless I have Bruce, or you, with me as backup," Barbara said.

That had been a few hours ago, and Kori had been pleasantly surprised to find that she was actually enjoying herself. The club they had gone to was relatively calm. Agreed they had to raise their voices a little to be heard over the music, but at least they could make themselves heard.

Kori sipped at her drink and smiled as she remembered Barbara rolling her eyes when she ordered the root beer. She noticed that the other redhead had ordered a cola. She was shaken from her thoughts when she saw Barbara's eyes narrow as she looked at something behind her. Looking back over her shoulder, Kori saw that it wasn't something that had caught Babara's attention, but rather someone.

Seeing that he now had Kori's attention, he spoke. "Hey, cutie, whaddya say we go teach those morons how to dance?"

Kori instantly realized three things. One, the person talking to her had no resemblance to Red X, the only other person to ever call her cutie. Two, she was fairly certain that he was drunk, and three, on an instinctive level, she didn't like him. As Richard would say, he made alarms go off in her head.

"No, thank you. I am not interested," she said, making sure he saw the rings on her left hand.

"Aw come on, cutie. Let me show you what it's like to dance with a real man."

Kori looked over at Barbara. "Why is it men like him believe they are more of a man than Richard?"

Not liking being ignored, the man put his hand on Kori's shoulder and squeezed tightly. "I said, let's dance."

Barbara's eyes widened in surprise as Kori reached over and grabbed the man's thumb and twisted, peeling his hand from her shoulder like the rind from an orange.

Kori turned slightly in her seat as the man staggered to one side, grimacing in pain. "I said that I was not interested in dancing with you, or any one else," she said firmly. "So kindly leave me alone."

"Problem here, ladies?" a deep male voice asked.

Barbara sighed with relief when she saw that the newcomer was wearing a blue t-shirt that had the name of the club on the front. She knew that if he turned around that the word 'Bouncer' would be written across his broad shoulders.

Kori released her hold and looked the man that had been bothering her as he stood, rubbing his now sore hand. "No. No problem," she said. "I believe it was simply a misunderstanding."

"Come on, Lou," another man said softly. "She ain't worth it."

Kori raised an eyebrow as Lou glanced at her, then at the bouncer, then smiled. "Yeah," he agreed. "That's what it was. A misunderstanding."

The bouncer and the two girls watched as Lou and his friend walked away and vanished into the crowd.

"On behalf of the management, I apologize for that," the bouncer said, then looked to his left. "Lana!" he called catching the attention of the waitress that had been serving Kori and Barbara. "Their next is on the house."

"Gotcha, Sean," the blond replied as she placed the drinks she was carrying onto a table.

The two girls talked as they sipped their drinks, and Barbara noticed that Kori was giving her an odd look. "What?"

"Just because I am not interested in dancing with anyone, does not mean that you cannot." Kori almost giggled at the look Barbara gave her. "That was the third young man you have turned down for a dance," she explained. "I know you are not married or in a relationship with anyone. I am content to watch the interaction between the people here, but I would not like it if my presence is keeping you from having the fun."

"Are you sure about that?" Barbara asked, and Kori nodded. It was only a few minutes later when another clean cut looking guy came over and asked Barbara to dance. Barbara shook her head at the broad smile Kori gave her as she headed with him to the dance floor.

Barbara found herself approached by another guy, and she danced with him as well. As the song ended, and the band announced that it was going to take a break. Barbara thanked her dance partner and turned back toward her and Kori's table. Seeing that the redhead wasn't there, she scanned the crowd and saw that she was heading for the ladies room. She also saw that she wasn't the only one that noticed.

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Kori came out of the ladies room and was surprised. Not just because she saw that Barbara was waiting for her, but because of the men on either side of her, one of which was holding a knife to her throat in addition to holding her arm. Realizing that something was definitely wrong, she took a step toward her friend. "You will release my. . . .unnngghhh!" she began, but cut off as she felt something touch the small of her back just before the jolt of electricity slammed into her. She staggered when the current stopped, barely able to keep on her feet as she shook her head to clear it. She heard a low, evil chuckle behind her as she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she was hit with another jolt. Stunned, but still conscious, Kori felt herself pushed against a wall and her hands pinned above her head.

"You shoulda been nicer to me before," she heard Lou's voice say. "Before, all I wanted was to dance. Now I'm not gonna be so nice."

Kori's head started to clear, and she felt that Lou was moving closer to her, and she tried to get her hands free.

"Uh, uh, uh, none of that," Lou scolded then placed the stunner against her ribs and triggered it again.

Barbara ground her teeth as she watched Kori sag when the current was stopped. If Lou hadn't been holding Kori's crossed wrists above her head with one hand, she would have collapsed. Her eyes narrowed when she saw that he was going to give her another jolt, and she tried to move to her friend's aid. "You sadistic son of a. . . ." she began, but stopped as she felt the knife press a little harder against her throat.

"Vetana?" Barbara was surprised to hear Kori ask. She saw Kori shake her head softly before she spoke again. "Why do you do this to me? I have done nothing to you."

Lou didn't answer, but chuckled evilly as he pocketed the stunner, then stoked Kori's cheek with his hand.

Barbara felt her stomach churn as she watched as Lou trailed his hand down, then grabbed the front of Kori's blouse. 'Kori, no,' she thought as she saw Kori's head snap up at the sound of ripping cloth. Her eyes flashed green for the briefest moment.

"Ze. Fe vaya naf rota verla," Kori growled. Her right knee snapped up twice in rapid succession. The first slamming into Lou's groin. The second catching him in the forehead as he doubled over in pain.

Barbara made use of the distraction, her right foot moving back swiftly. Her heel slammed into the knife wielding thug's shin and she raked it down, her high heel smashing into his foot, breaking bones. Her now free right hand she kept bladed as she chopped it into the other thug's throat. Turning back to the one with the knife, she swept aside the stab he made at her, then delivered a spin kick that knocked him out cold.

Barbara turned back to the one on her left just in time to see Lou slam into him, and they both went down. A quick look assured her that they wouldn't be getting up any time soon. "Way to go, Kor. . . . ." she began in congratulations, but trailed off when she saw that Kori had sunk to her knees, hugging herself as she bowed her head. "Kori?" she called softly as she knelt beside her. Getting no response, she looked around quickly then called softly. "Starfire?"

"What's happened here?"

Barbara looked up at the authoritative voice and breathed a sigh of relief. "Diana. We were attacked; have someone call the police."

"Already done, Miss," a soft male voice said.

Barbara looked up as a blond man with a mustache and beard gently draped his jacket over Kori's shoulders, covering up her torn blouse.

"He's with me, Barbara," Diana said. "They both are," she added, indicating a stunning blond woman. "How badly is she hurt?"

"I don't think she is, unless she's effected more by electrical shock," she replied. "This looks more like a repressed memory has popped up, or a traumatic event in her past was triggered." She looked around and saw that the club's bouncers were keeping people back. "Can you contact Bruce and see if Richard's with him?"

Diana glanced around, making sure that she wasn't being watched, and that she was blocked from the security cameras. She raised her right hand to her ear, activating her Justice League commlink. "Bruce, do you copy?"

"Diana," Bruce answered. "Tell me you're with Kori and Barbara, and can tell me what happened."

"I'm with them, but things are too complicated to explain on the commlink. Barbara's okay, and Kori isn't hurt physically, but she's in some kind of shock," she explained. "I take it Richard is with you, and that you're on the way here?"

There was a long pause, and Diana figured that Bruce was filling Richard in. "Right. We can see that police cars now, and should be there in about a minute."

True to his word, Bruce and Richard pushed their way through the crowd just one minute later.

"Listen, lady, I'm trying to do my job and find out what happened here," a male voice argued.

"Even though she's in shock and can't answer you?"

The detective shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his trench coat and looked over at where Kori still knelt, seemingly oblivious to the outside world. "She ain't hurt. If she can't take it, she shouldn't be out here trying to attract attention."

Richard noticed that Bruce started forward at the same time he did, and that Bruce's face mirrored his own anger.

"Bullock, that's enough," an authoritative male voice called out. "If I ever hear you talking about a victim that way again, I'll have your badge."

"Commissioner," Bullock gasped, then swallowed nervously. "What are you doin' here?"

"I was talking with Officer Montoya when the call came in, so I rode over with her," he replied. "Why haven't you called for medical assistance for her, or talked to the other victim?"

"Other victim?"

Commissioner Jim Gordon frowned at the fact that Bullock didn't know even the most preliminary information about the case.

"We tried to tell you that Kori wasn't the only one attacked," Barbara said angrily. She took a deep breath and blew it out, releasing some of her frustration at the detective's actions or lack there of. "Hello, daddy."

Jim Gordon's face paled as he stared at his daughter and realized that she was the other victim. He breathed a sigh of relief at the fact that the only injury she seemed to have as a small scrape on her throat. "Barbara!" he gasped, then looked over at where Richard was now kneeling beside Kori. "Oh Lord, no!"

"Jim, I won't tell you how to run your department, but I don't want Bullock on this case."

"That's no problem, Mr. Wayne," Detective Renee Montoya said. "As ranking female detective on the force, I'd be handling this anyway. Detective Bullock just happened to be the first detective on the scene." Renee looked over at Kori and Richard. "I'll get her statement later, when she's up to it. Right now; I think she needs to be seen by a doctor."

Richard looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, kid, let's get her home."

Richard nodded and let the blond man help him get Kori to her feet. "Thanks, Mr. Queen, Miss Lance," he said.

"Call me Ollie, and this is Dinah,"

Richard nodded, wondering to himself if Bruce hadn't set Diana, Ollie, and Dinah to keep tabs on Kori and Barbara. He didn't wonder long as his concern for Kori was uppermost in his mind. He was relieved that, although she hadn't spoken or given any recognition of him, she didn't resist as they walked her out to the limo.

"I've taken the liberty of calling Doctor Thompkins and Doctor Meridian, Master Richard," Alfred said. "They'll be awaiting our arrival at the Manor."

"Thanks, Alfred," Richard said as he settled into his seat with Kori leaning against him.

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It was almost two hours later when Richard followed Kori into the cottage they had been staying in. Doctor Thompkins had assured him that Kori had not been injured, and that the electrical shocks she had been given should cause any lasting harm. Doctor Chase Meridian, on the other hand, hadn't been able to get Kori to talk to her, beyond a recitation of the events that lead up to the attack, and the attack itself.

"Get her to talk, Richard," Chase had urged him as they watched Kori walk toward the door. "She's trying to push the memory back, but I don't think that's such a good idea."

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Richard ensured that the door was locked, then turned back to Starfire. His face clearly showed his worry over her as he looked over at where she was on the other side of the room. She stood in front of the fireplace and was absently staring into the flames, her arms wrapped around herself, pulling the jacket she still wore tighter around her as if chilled. He knew that the events earlier had shaken her up and awakened some memories that she would rather have left dead and buried. Memories that he was only able to pick up small flashes of as Starfire was trying to keep them from herself as well as him.

"Kori?" he called softly as he walked over to her. He sighed softly at her silence. "Star, come on, talk to me. I want to help."

"And if I desire neither your help or to talk?"

Richard's eyes narrowed at the angry tone of her voice. "Then learn to get over it," he said. "When we first started seeing each other as boyfriend and girlfriend, you told me that you didn't want me to treat you any differently than the rest of the Titans. Well, I'm holding you to that. I don't know what it is that's bothering you so much, but running from it or ignoring it won't make it go away. You need to confront it and talk it out."

Kori turned to face him squarely, and Richard realized that she was still wearing the jacket that Green Arrow, in his guise as Oliver Queen, had given her, covering her torn blouse. He also noticed the anger that now had her eyes glowing softly. "Then do me the honor of not lying to me. You know full well what is bothering me, and you also know why I do not wish to talk it out."

Richard crossed over to Kori and put his hands on her shoulders. "No, Star, I don't," he said softly. "All I'm getting are brief flashes, and a name. Who is Nevan'r and what did he do to you?"

Richard was caught off guard by her shoving him away, very forcefully, knocking him halfway across the room. Reflexively, he rolled to his feet, his hands raised in a defensive posture. He dropped them a second later when he saw the look of shock and shame on her face. "Star, tell me."

"I am sorry, Robin, but this is something in my past that I will not share with you," she said hanging her head. "I am sorry."

Richard stared at her for a moment as she put an elbow on the mantle and rubbed her forehead. "So this is how you repay my trust in you, ne loneva?" he asked softly. "By not trusting me in return?"

Kori heard a soft ping and saw the plain steel band finishing its spin on the mantle before her and finally laying flat.

"Koriand'r, pe alanche shu. . . ." he began.

"Robin, no!" Kori cried, stopping him from releasing her from her Oath of Bonding to him. "It is not that I do not trust you, my husband. It is just that it is a very painful memory for me. One I have managed to keep locked away for almost six years now." She watched his face as she took his left hand and slid the bonding ring back onto his finger. She swallowed nervously at his grim expression. She closed her eyes and took a shuddering breath, and was surprised and comforted when she felt Richard's arms go around her as he pulled her close.

"It's alright, Star," he said softly. "I'm here and whatever happened, I won't let it hurt you again." He felt her nod her head as it nestled against his neck. A moment later, he let her slip from his arms as she pulled back.

"You did not press me on the reason why I cried when we were first together as bond mates."

Richard was slightly confused as he thought back to that night. "You said it was because you were happy. That your doubts about us being able to. . . .do that were brushed aside." He studied her for a moment as she couldn't meet his gaze. "With what I was feeling through our bond, I knew that to be the truth."

"And it was, Robin," she said. "But it was not the complete truth. That night you showed me that our being together like that should be between two who love each other as we do."

"Star, . . ." he began, but trailed off as she shook her head as she rubbed her upper arms.

"A short time before I escaped Trogaar's ship, I awoke to find that my last meal had been drugged. I found that I had been shackled to the wall, my armor removed, and a slave's smock was put on me," she related. "Falgaar came in with a guard and a Tamaranean male who appeared to be a few years older than I was. Falgaar told me that the sessions I was to have with Nevan'r were to be the next step in my conditioning."

Richard watched as Kori started slowly pacing in front of the fireplace, her eyes looking everywhere but at him. Her face remained expressionless, but he could tell by the way she carried herself and moved the emotional stress she was under.

"At first he was nice. He apologized for my being traded for peace, and for what was to be his part in things. We talked for a while, and I was happy to not only be speaking to a Tamaranean, but to be speaking to someone in my native language as well. He was also the first being that I had seen in over two weeks. After a while, I began to wonder what his part in Falgaar's plans was going to be." Kori stopped pacing for a moment, and finally looked directly at Richard. "There is an expression here that I wish I knew at the time," she said. "It is, to be careful what you wish for; you just might get it. At the time I did not notice a band that went around Nevan'r's head, but I would later find out that it was a mind control device. He said something about my looking uncomfortable, shackled as I was, and he suggested that there were methods of Tamaranean acupressure that could relieve my discomfort. Even now, I still do not know what it was, but something in the tone of his voice did not feel right. Despite my declining his offer, he came over and brushed his fingers over my cheek."

Richard noticed that as she was talking, she rubbed her left hand against her cheek as if trying to wipe away some dirt. He was also feeling the revulsion she was feeling, and was shocked to realize that it was directed at herself, not Nevan'r. "Kori," he called softly, wanting to tell her to stop, but she went on as if she hadn't heard him.

"I told him to stop, but I was unable to put any action to my words. I knew, in theory, where the pressure points were, and had been told what their effects would be, but I had never experienced it before." she paused and looked at Richard, her eyes brimming with tears. "I had never been touched like that before, and I was unprepared for the sensations that they caused. I could tell by his expression that he could tell that my protests were growing weaker, as he would ask if I really wanted him to stop every few moments." She stopped pacing and closed her eyes, her fists clenched at her sides. "X'Hal help me! I can not let him do this to me, but it feels so good, and I can feel my resistance fading." She paused for a moment, and Richard could feel her struggling for control, trying to keep herself from reliving the moment. "As suddenly as he had started, he stopped, and simply left the room. Just as I was getting back to normal, Nevan'r came back in and started over again. This was repeated several times, each time I could feel my resistance lasting longer, but never long enough. The last time he came in, he asked me, one last time if I really wanted him to stop, and, X'Hal forgive me, I said no. I cannot say that I gave myself willingly to him, but I did not offer much resistance. I hated him for what he was doing to me, and I was unprepared for what was about to happen. His touch became more insistent, and he. . ." she broke off with a choked off sob, unable to finish the thought. "I had expected only his touch, and for a short time I was correct," she went on, pulling the jacket tighter around her. "I was horrified when I realized what his actual intent was. I asked. . . . .pleaded with him to stop, but he did not listen."

Richard was stunned when the scene, from Starfire's point of view and with the emotions she felt at the time. He saw Nevan'r reaching toward her, then the sound of ripping fabric. He blinked his eyes a few times and cleared the vision, and saw that Starfire was looking at him, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"He would not. . . . .did not," she gulped out. "I must have lost consciousness for a moment as the control collar I was wearing responded to my trying to use my full strength to break my hands and arms free to try to stop him. When I came back to my senses he was. . . ." she paused for a moment trying desperately not to break down into sobs. She looked up when she felt Richard's hand on her shoulder and saw the shared pain in his eyes. She let him pull her into a comforting embrace. "X'Hal, it hurt, Robin. In a way that I have never been hurt before or since."

"It's okay, Star. It's over, and I won't let anyone do that to you again," he soothed as he held her, letting her take the comfort of her feeling safe in his arms as she sobbed.

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"You know, Bruce, I don't approve of your having surveillance cameras watching them," a blond woman said, her face awash in the glow from the monitor.

"Believe me, Chase, this is the only time they've been on. After all, you did say that you wished you could keep an eye on her for a little while."

"Humm," Chase Meridian, the psychiatrist, hummed, conceding the point. "I'm glad to see that it wasn't necessary," she said, looking back at the monitor. "Richard's really doing better than I thought."

"It's because he loves her, heart and soul," A voice said from behind them.

"Intruder alert," a computerized voice said, and Bruce quickly typed a command into the Batcomputer, silencing the alarm.

"Don't you respect anyone's privacy?"

"It was my suggestion, Raven," Chase said in Bruce's defense. "I wanted to make sure that Starfire wasn't going to go back into shock." The blond psychiatrist looked at the couple on the screen. "With what she just told him, I'm glad she was able to talk to somebody about it."

Bruce raised an eyebrow when Raven's expression saddened. "Of all the things she went through while she was on the SHRASS, that was the worst." She watched as the scene faded and the monitor went dark. She glanced over and saw the surprised look on Dr. Meridian's face and the questioning look on Bruce's. "Not long after we formed the Titans, circumstances demanded that Starfire and I tell each other all about ourselves."

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After a few moments, Robin could feel Starfire's sobs subside, and she pulled out of his arms, but only far enough so they could sit on the couch as she resumed talking. As she talked, she kept her eyes locked on her hands, which were clenched tightly in her lap. "When I was taken by Trogaar, I made a vow that no matter what they did to me, I would not give in, they would not break my spirit," she said, then looked over at Robin. "As I told you last Christmas, both Trogaar and Falgaar took great pleasure in telling me of both my parents death and the death of my brother, hoping to break my spirit. I truly do not think they knew just how close they came to succeeding, or they surely would not have left me alone. I may have recovered from that, but in my eyes what happened between Nevan'r and myself broke that vow. Besides the physical pain, I did not feel that I was worthy of either being the heir to the throne of Tamaran or a warrior. During the next two days, Nevan'r was sent to my cell, but was unable to get any reaction from me at all." She looked up at Robin, and he could see the shadows of her depression at that time mirrored in her eyes. "I would have almost welcomed their ending my life at that time, Robin. The last time Nevan'r was with me, as he was leaving, he pressed a scrap of paper into my hand. It was a letter from him to me, asking for my forgiveness for his actions, and telling me that as soon as the opportunity arose, he would end his life for what he had done to me. It also told me of the mind control device that he was forced to wear."

For the first time since he learned the properties of the Shinrah Crystal Starfire had given him, Robin tried to actively enter Starfire's mind to learn of the events she was relating without her having to put herself through the pain of remembering them. He was surprised to find himself blocked.

"No, Robin, I must face this," she said. "I have been hiding from it for far too long." She saw Robin's nod, and felt his seeking presence recede and continued. "Nevan'r had convinced one of the guards that I was no longer a threat to them, and had them remove my control collar, and simply shackle my hands." She was thoughtful for a moment. "When I was able to look back on this, I believe it was a means of his atoning for his actions. A few hours after Nevan'r left me, Falgaar came to me, and showed me a video of Nevan'r attempting to escape. Attempting and failing, fatally." Starfire paused and shook her head. "Something inside me snapped, Robin. Falgaar told me that they did not try to recapture him because he had served his purpose, so they simply killed him. Despite what he had done to me, he was a Tamaranean, one of my own people. He deserved a better death than that. The rest you know, because less than an hour later I landed in the middle of Jump City, my rage still burning within me."

Robin didn't know what to say, but he knew he had to do something to let Starfire know he was there for her, and that it would be alright. He crossed over to her and put his hands on her shoulders, resting his forehead on the back of her head. "Star, I. . . ." he began, but couldn't think of any words to say what he was feeling.

Starfire turned towards him, and pulled his arms around her before putting her arms around him. "I know, my love, master and keeper of my heart. That is the other reason I cried that night. You showed me that what Nevan'r did to me was not the. . . . .senava, oh what is the term in your language?"

"Making love," Robin replied softly.

"Yes, thank you," she said. "What Nevan'r did was not the making love to me, but an attack, cruel and brutal." She paused for a moment, then looked into Robin's eyes, and he could see the warmth there that she held only for him. "That night you showed me how it should be. Your gentleness and tenderness restored my belief in how it would be between us, between myself and the man I love and loves me in return. The main cause of my tears that night was the happiness I felt then. A happiness I had never felt before, but relive each time I fall asleep wrapped in your arms, and when I awaken there."

They leaned towards each other, their lips almost touching, when there was a knock at the door. Knowing that it had to be someone that Bruce knew and allowed on the grounds, Richard reluctantly released Starfire and opened the door. "Mister Que. . . .Ollie," he said remembering that he had been told to call the man at the door by his first name.

"Hiya, kid. I hate to interrupt, but I was wondering if I could get my jacket back?"

"Do not keep them waiting at the door, Richard," Starfire called. "I will change into some undamaged clothes and be right back," she added as she went into the bed room.

"Please, come in," Richard said as he stepped aside and let Ollie and Dinah enter the cottage. "I want to thank you both for your help tonight."

"I'm just glad we were nearby," Dinah said. "Not to pry, but how is she?"

Richard sighed softly. "Better. We've talked some things out," he said. "Just how did you. . .?" he began.

"We were following up a lead on Intergang," Ollie said. "Bruce had no idea we were anywhere near where she and Barbara were."

Richard nodded, and before he could say anything else, Starfire came out of the bed room carrying the jacket and wearing a jade green kimono.

"I know that Rob. . .Richard has thanked you, and I wish to give you my thanks as well," she said as she handed Ollie the jacket and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"It's okay, Starfire, you could have called him Robin."

Robin almost chuckled at the stunned expression on Starfire's face. "Relax, Star," he said. "This is Oliver Queen, also known as the Green Arrow, and Dinah Lance, the Black Canary."

Robin saw that Starfire visibly relaxed at the revelation, and he slid his arm around her waist as she stepped beside him and did the same.

"Well, as I said, I'm just glad we were able to help," Dinah said. "Come on, Ollie, we've got to be going."

Ollie turned toward her, his confusion written clearly on his face until he saw the look she was giving him. "Right, well, gotta run," he said and they left. "What was that all about?" he demanded as they walked to where Dinah's motorcycle was parked. "You all but yanked me outta there by the collar."

"We were in the way, Ollie."

"Of what? They're just kids."

"And husband and wife, both by human standards, and in the eyes of her culture as well." Dinah said as she mounted the bike.

Whatever Ollie was going to say died on his lips as he saw the silhouettes on the shades of the cottage as they embraced and kissed. He sighed as he pulled on his helmet and slid his arms around Dinah's waist as she started the bike, then drove off.