Asha woke up with a jolt. She was back in her apartment, far from that hunting preserve. It took her a moment to catch her breath, then she reached down and untangled the pelt from around her legs. She wiped her arm across her forehead. She was sweating.

Asha went to the sink and splashed water on her face. She drew in a deep breath as she held the edge of the counter. When that didn't help, she slipped into a dress and went outside for some fresh air. The days on Yaut were unbearably long. The bright sunlight stung her eyes as she stepped onto the front porch.

A growl made her shoulders raise. Ain's voice followed it, "I found him sleeping in the patch of weeds like a stray. I want him kicked out of the clan!"

She'd never heard Ain so angry. Asha tiptoed back towards her door.

There was a deep male voice, "Trespassing won't be grounds enough to do that."

"He killed my hunting hound!"

Asha froze.

The other male spoke up again, "Neither is destruction of property."

Asha didn't consider herself a nosy person, but it sounded like someone had killed the hound she was training. She stepped onto the chair as quietly as she could. It provided her a clear view into Ain's yard. Her eyes zeroed in on Uh'luka. He was laying on the ground, propped up on one arm. His face was bloodied.

Her eyes bounced from Ain to Zagros, then a male dressed in red that she didn't recognize. They stood around Uh'luka. He was the first to spot her. When Uh'luka pushed himself to his feet, Ain struck him in the mouth. One more punch to his solar plexus had him staggering to the ground again.

"I just wanted to speak to Asha."

They each turned around to look at her.

She stepped down from the chair, lowering herself out of sight.

The male she didn't recognize spoke first, "This one has got into a number of altercations recently."

Zagros jumped in, "I agree that his reintroduction to society hasn't been smooth—"

Ain's voice was unmistakable, "Hasn't been smooth? He may look like us, but he acts like a wild animal! He doesn't belong here!"

Asha turned her back to the wall and rested her head against the rock.

She could sense the tension in Zagros's voice, "There are other options."

As they discussed, their voices became harder to distinguish, but Zagros spoke up, "Uh'luka, would you consent to treatment?"

There was a growl, then Uh'luka's gruff voice, "I won't be locked up again."

"Probation then, heavy monitoring."

"He doesn't have a stable residence. It's likely he'll get another trespassing violation. I'm afraid Ain is right; if these incidents continue we'll be forced to kick him out of the clan."

"And if no other clan will accept him?"

"Exile."

Asha held her breath.

Ain's voice lowered, "Banning him from the home planet would turn him into a badblood. I can see him becoming a cannibal within the month."

She lifted her hand above the wall, "He lives with me!"

There were growls and grumbles as Asha went around to Ain's yard. She swung open the gate and halted. The Yaut hound was in front of her. It was lying on its side with its neck at an unnatural angle. For a moment, she couldn't tear her eyes off it.

"You're unfit to handle an unstable yautja like him, ooman."

Asha stepped past the hound to go up to the male in red, "I lived with him in a cage for months and didn't get eaten. So put him under house arrest, probation, or whatever. He lives with me now."

Zagros stepped forward, "Asha…"

"Please don't caution me against this."

Neither of them said another word, so she walked up to Uh'luka. His pupils dilated, darkening his eyes. His muscles drew tight, stopping Asha in her tracks. She was forgetting it was still the mating season. Base desires would be at the front of his mind and as he'd demonstrated over and again, his self-control wasn't at its finest.

"Come inside." She tilted her head towards the house.

Uh'luka pushed himself up, and she led him around to her place.

She kept her distance from him, "There are medical supplies in the hallway. I'll be right back."

Asha made a wide circle around him to get to the front door. When she went back into the other yard, Ain was moving the body of the Yaut hound. She dropped her gaze. Zagros and the other male were having a conversation, so Asha waited near the gate. She picked at her nails until Zagros approached her.

"He's free to leave the house, but he'll be monitored temporarily, and restricted from some areas." He pulled out a metal cuff like the one she'd wore, "Cameras around the city have facial scanners, but see if he'll wear this."

Asha nodded and took the device.

"I'm still in charge of your well-being, Asha. I don't trust that male."

"Don't worry. I'll be fine."

When she turned around, she faced Ain. She almost brushed past him, but the expression on his face made her halt. His green eyes we're steady. His brows we're pinched inward while his mandibles stayed relaxed around his mouth.

Asha swallowed, "Don't look at me like that--like I'm already dead."

"He could hurt you so easily. You're putting yourself in danger Asha."

"So? Isn't that what yautjas do all the time? If I were one of you, you wouldn't criticize me."

Ain had nothing else to say, so she continued past him.

Asha returned to her apartment to find Uh'luka standing in front of the cooling unit. The door to the pantry beside it was wide open and most of the food was already cleared from the shelves. A pile of small bones collected at his feet. He held a large chunk of meat up with both hands. He turned to her as he slurped down another bite.

"What are you doing?!"

Asha marched forward and tried to close the fridge door. Uh'luka bent down and snarled in her face. Bits of spit and food landed on her cheeks. She reeled back, almost losing balance. He brought the chunk of meat to his mouth and tore off a piece with his mandibles. His chest rumbled—that was all the threat he needed to make.

With a sigh, she sat down on a stool and rested her face in her hands, "That was all the groceries I had."

After a few minutes, Uh'luka made a soft chuff.

She didn't lift her head up, "There's no more food. Go eat the sofa."

He chuffed again.

"What?"

She glanced up. Uh'luka had his fist out towards her, offering her food. It looked like a single chicken leg. Her eyes flickered to his face. His eyes were intense. The yellow color with an orange edge around a dark pupil made them look like a solar eclipse. She plucked the meat from his hand.

"...Thank you."

For whatever reason, the humming noise he made had her cheeks turning red.

After cleaning up the kitchen, Asha went to the in-wall cabinet to get medical supplies. Yautjas didn't bruise, so she couldn't see all his injuries, but the gash above his eye had her concerned. She couldn't find enzyme cream or even a healing accelerator. They were probably expensive. She grabbed a spray-on adhesive bandage instead.

"Sit down."

Uh'luka grumbled.

"You heard me, sit down."

"That's not necessary."

"I don't need you bleeding on my furniture. Now come on, it will only take a second."

Uh'luka grumbled as he moved to take a seat, but became eerily silent as she came closer. Asha reached out slowly, testing his reaction. The cords of his new drew tight but nothing else. She used the damp cloth to wipe away the blood first. She followed a line of it around his eye, down to the inward curve of his cheek.

When he started to purr it was barely audible at first, which meant her mind didn't register it. She didn't notice his musk before its effects set in either. Asha leaned towards him with an inhale. The cloth dropped out of her hand. Her fingertips brushed across the grooves of his lower mandible to the small bony protrusion on the underside. As soon as he moved though, it was an instinct for her to jump away from his claws.