He would have been content to banter with the ooman female the entire day, yet he still had a job to do. Ien'heru had received a message about a couple of abandoned younglings in the city that he was to go retrieve, and then he would find out who exactly was responsible for them. The ooman was currently venting in kehrite, probably scuffing up all of the elites weapons. The elite had protested to leaving her alone in there, easily able to commit suicide, but he had sent him away to the market.

When the elite returned, he threw a shiny silver strand of metal at him with disdain. "Hope that is good enough for the ooman princess." he said sarcastically.

Ien'heru caught the object in his fist, and then examined it. It was a replacement collar, as the elite had insisted she began to wear one. Cassarah had a tantrum at him trying to make her wear a thick leather strap around her neck like a dog, and so the arbitrator had sent him away for something more proper. There was no shame in servants and pets being dressed properly and looking nice, and he knew the elite could afford it. Getting her to wear a prettier collar was still not going to be easy though.

He went into the kehrite, to find that she had completely dismantled all of the training targets and decoys. Bits and pieces of her fake opponents were scattered about the floor and she heard him enter she crisscrossed the katanas in front of his neck as though she was to cut his head off. He knew that she was too slow though, and that his head would not come off. She was playing with him and he enjoyed it. He lifted the collar up to her.

"I'm not fooled; that's not jewellery, it's still a bloody collar. I am not his servant!"

"Technically you are, and he has demanded that you wear a collar to show it. There is no way around this."

"You'll have to hold me down and force it around my neck!"

He let out a trill, "Don't tempt me."

She pressed the katana blades gently against his neck in a threat. He thought about disarming her, but knew that he did not need to prove his strength and speed to her. Taking away her swords would only make her afraid and distrusting of him. He would try a different tactic.

"It is made out of earth materials, rare osmium and diamond. It suits you better than the other collar. It looks like a normal necklace. It will do no harm to wear it."

She removed the blades from his neck but said, "I won't give him the satisfaction."

He did not want to turn her against the elite, as that would do no good, so he said, "I request that you wear it. May I put it on for you?"

"No."

"You wish for me to subdue you and lock it around your neck?"

"No."

"You must choose, Cassarah."

"No."

He began to walk towards her, slowly reaching for her. She backed away from him until she was nearly against the wall. She raised the katana blades up defensively but he reached out to her anyway. She slapped the flat part of the blade against his hand. He let out a low warning growl.

He could tell that her heart was beginning to race, but he slid his hand behind her neck, then up to grab a handful of her soft thick hair. It subdued her and showed that he was dominant without hurting her. Why she was letting him do it was another matter, but when her heartbeats began to calm, he tipped her head back to expose her neck to him. He liked the feel of control over her. He liked her being submissive, as well as he liked her fight.

His other hand lifted to lay the collar against the front of her neck, then his hand moved to the back to clasp it. He looked her over for a moment, admiring the sparkling diamonds around her throat before he released her. She hung the katanas back up on the wall, then touched her fingertips to the collar.

"If I ever escape back to earth, I'm selling this bitchin collar for big money."

He let out a chuff of amusement, but would not comment. He knew very well that she would never escape, and if somehow she managed to, she would be quickly hunted down. She had done well though, letting him put the collar around her neck, and he felt he should reward her somehow. He did not really know what she would want, so he would have to ask her.

"I am leaving for a few hours on a mission, is there anything I can get you that would make your stay here more comfortable?"

"You're leaving me with that idiot? Bring me a double bladed karambit first, that's what I always carried with me in the streets."

He was good with weapons, even the most simple alien ones, and he recognized the name of the object she requested. It was like a curved pocket knife but with a blade at each end. If she was his property, he would have quickly granted such a gift. The elite though was a different story.

"He would not approve of me giving you a weapon."

She put her hands on her hips, "Then take me with you! I don't want to be left alone with him. He will start talking about rules and your dumb culture. He bores me."

Cassarah would need to warm up to the elite eventually, as he was not a bad guy, was not her enemy, and she would be stuck with him for some time. However, he liked the idea of her tagging along and it would give him a chance to start giving her orders. "You may accompany me then. Would you like to fly my ship?"

"Didn't I already do that?" She muttered, her voice laced with guilt.

"Yes, well, you did not fly so much as crashed. This time I will show you how to properly use the controls."

He led her out to the ship and told her to sit down in the chair. She obliged, and he began to teach her the symbols and how to manipulate the holograms and buttons. He talked her through it, as she could not read yautja to be able to follow the GPS. Cassarah seemed to enjoy it, even said that it was like a game. Just to be safe though, he flipped it to autopilot once they were over the city.

He did not want her to go running away through the streets, but did not want to insult her by bringing it up. If she wanted to run, him telling her not to was never going to stop her. He had her walk ahead of him where he could keep an eye on her, and she did not mind taking the lead. The yautja who had discovered the two aliens had locked them in the basement of the warehouse, as they had been trying to steal food. Since the yautja did not recognize the species, he had then called the arbitrator.

Ien'heru took the lead after they rode the elevator into the basement, and he warned her, "I was informed they looked like pups, but they could be dangerous."

His control gauntlet hacked into the lock and he opened the door, closing it behind them so that the aliens would not escape. The basement was a storage space with shelves and boxes. He flipped his vision mode, searching for heat signatures. After he spotted one of them, so did Cassarah. He heard her inhale sharply with surprise, and then she went sprinting off towards the small blob of heat.

"Ooman!" He barked, not wanting her to be harmed.