Chapter 6

Bet you thought I was dead! Yeah so did I. But I like this story too much to abandon it. In this chapter are my favorite things: Irken purring and antennae fondling. Uhhhhh.

More than 150 years ago…

It was 3:53 am when Chee Min squinted open her tired eyes and huffed out a groan. She managed to get an elbow under herself and propped up in bed before once again hearing a demanding tap tap tap at her window.

How many times do I have to explain Vortian sleeping habits to this bozo?

She made sure to straighten her sleeping shirt out, as it had bunched in places as she slept. Wouldn't want to accidently reveal something. Not that he would understand nudity taboos in Vortian society anyway. If anything, it might just lead to a slew of questions which she didn't feel like answering.

Another impatient tap tap tap made her roll her eyes as she slipped on a more decent pair of shorts. To heck with it, he can wait out there for a few minutes. Gotta learn somehow.

TIPTAPTIPTIP TAPTIP TAPTAPTAP…

She threw open the window.

"Could you not?!" she half-whispered/yelled. The being on the receiving end looked startled by her haggard, sleep-deprived appearance.

"I thought you couldn't hear me. You were in there—I could see you. Were you ignoring me?"

"Yes, actually." Her face deadpanned. "You know it's four AM, right?"

It didn't look like that meant anything to him judging by the blank expression. She sighed and grabbed his gloved wrist. "Come in here before someone sees you."

He scrambled in after her and she shut the window before any more cold air got in. Then she planted the intruder on her bed.

"Sit there for a sec. I'm gonna go pee."

She knew without even looking his face had scrunched in confusion as his PAK whirred noisily, trying to figure out what exactly that meant. Chee Min had already shut the bathroom door by the time his translator had kicked in and he winced in distaste. After a few moments she emerged, patting her face with a towel. When she drew the fabric away from herself, she snorted in amusement at the sight of the Irken, shoulders tense and looking more uncomfortable by each passing second. A fondness tugged in her.

"So…what's so urgent that you couldn't wait till morning to bug me?" she asked, plopping herself down next to the Irken. As irritated as she sounded, she wouldn't admit that every time he came by to see her at her home, her stomach felt a little fluttery. Even at four in the frooking morning. The situation was way too clichéd for her liking—a young girl sneaking her secret boyfriend in through her window in the middle of the night while her parents slept in the next room over. Still, it was…cute. He was cute. So she could tolerate this arrangement.

He looked sheepish before responding. "I wanted to do…something to make up for not being able to escort you to your—to that thing. With the dancing and stuff." It looked like he didn't know what to do with his hands.

So eloquently stated, Chee Min noted. She had to think for a second before realizing he was referring to the Sunset Ceremony.

"What do you mean 'make up' for it? It's not your fault." Indeed, it wasn't like she could place any blame on him solely on the fact that he was Irken and thereby most definitely not allowed anywhere near the Ceremony venue. She could only imagine the chaos that would ensue.

"I mean, yeah, but it's not like I don't still feel bad about it anyway. I thought I would do something nice. Something…culturally appropriate for the occasion." He hesitated a minute, appearing to be thinking, then a port of his PAK opened and a mech arm dropped a small-ish pink box in his open hand. It was topped with a blue ribbon bow. She gazed curiously, first at the box, then at him.

"What? Seriously, I don't need any gifts or stuff like that. You don't have to—,"

"Oh, but I do. See, if I send you off to this fancy-shmancy thing so you can parade yourself around in front of hundreds of potential suitors—,"

"Uh, that's not really what—,"

"—looking all done up with all that face paint on—,"

"It's called makeup."

"—wearing that sparkly purple costume—,"

"Yes, my gown…"

"—everyone there will think you're…available. And they won't even know that you belong to me."

"Naga! Good grief!" She resisted the urge to shake him by the shoulders. She couldn't blame his possessiveness—he was Irken despite how much he seemed…not Irken. Not a typical one, at the very least. However she had sat him down once or twice to remind him that that's not how we talk about people around here, honey. It's not like he meant it in a malicious way. That was just how Irken brains—er, PAKs—seemed to be wired.

It didn't help that Naga hadn't quite grasped the point of the Sunset Ceremony, despite Chee Min having explained it several times to him. Irkens don't listen very well, or perhaps didn't want to listen. Essentially, it was an annual ball during which all young Vortians of a certain age—her own age—could formally debut themselves to society. A sort of—hey, look at me! Look how smart and attractive and charismatic I am! Ideally, now, you actually had all those traits, and used them in order to scope out others more successful than yourself in the hopes of developing professional connections that would one day be very valuable. It was an extremely competitive event that most Vortians took very seriously, as catching the attention of someone important could potentially be your ticket to the top. There were even some young men and women that would attend solely interested in finding themselves a hot piece of…

"Ok." She grabbed his wrists which the Irken had been unintentionally flailing during his spiel. "Look, you know that's not how this thing is. It's not like a guy can claim me just 'cause he wants to. Just 'cause I'm looking pretty and by myself. I don't have to prove anything to anyone."

That may have slightly placated him. He narrowed his eyes as if he didn't trust that she was telling him the truth.

"You're gonna have to trust me on this. I'm your best source of info about these things, after all. Would I lie?" The Vortian pinched the other's cheek playfully and the Irken pulled away in irritation, slapping her hand down.

"My poor little bug," Chee Min added, smiling, "so troubled. So, I am actually curious about what's in the box. As much as I don't need whatever it is, I appreciate the thought."

Naga seemed to perk up with that statement, obviously confident in his gift. "Say whatever you want, you need this. You'll agree when you see it."

Chee Min raised her eyebrow skeptically, humoring him while he presented the little box to her. She inched the lid up and withdrew it.

"Oh my…" All she could do was stare for a few seconds. This couldn't be real; she couldn't accept this. Where did he get this, and how? Was this real life? "Oh my Vort. Oh my VORT. You can't be serious about this." It was quite possibly the most beautiful, perfect Yossha she had ever seen—real life and otherwise. Yosshas were horn ornaments for Vortian women typically gifted by their significant others and were worn on specific occasions, usually at very fancy restaurants or classy social gatherings…or at the Sunset Ceremony. Upper-class Vortians were really the only people who could afford the more decorative, gaudy Yosshas, as they were considerably priced. And this one looked more high-end than she or anyone she knew could ever afford.

She gaped like a fish for a moment before peering up at Naga who looked mighty pleased by her reaction, the smug bastard.

"Ok. First question. How did you—,"

"Irken Elite are paid…how you say…handsomely." He flashed her a toothy grin. She smacked him lightly on the face in return. "So you like it." It wasn't a question.

"It's…yeah. I really do. It's amazing. I just wasn't expecting it. No one's ever done something like this for me." Chee Min finally reached out to pick the Yossha out of its box, having been a little uncomfortable of the idea of handling something so expensive and beautiful. It had intricate metal banding resembling a leafy vine and was embellished with tiny purple gemstones—understated, but elegant. It sparkled in the light of her lamp.

Naga's expression softened as he watched her admire it carefully. After a few moments, he gently took it back from her and unlatched the hidden clasp before reaching up and placing it around one of her horns, making sure to center it. Chee Min watched on wordlessly and sat still as she realized what he was doing.

She jumped up from the bed eagerly and hurried over to her wall mirror after the Irken gave her the go-ahead to take a look. She did her best to contain her girlish squeal but a little bit slipped out anyway. For a young woman of her age, this was a big deal; she couldn't deny that she had dreamed of this moment for a long time. After turning her head this way and that to get a full view of the accessory, she turned back to glimpse at the Irken who was now sitting cross-legged on her bed, his boots on the floor nearby. He grinned sincerely at her delight and the Vortian couldn't help but rush over and pounce on him.

He was expecting it but let her hold him down and kiss him sloppily. The Irken didn't know when these icky little mouthy things became endearing and not disgusting—well, they were endearing because it was Chee Min who was bestowing them. Anything associated with Chee Min had to be good. He had even tried to do the same to her once or twice, as he could recall, but the Vortian ended up giggling, saying it tickled. Naga then realized he may not be a master of all things.

"Thank you, little bug," she said, snuggling up to him with her arms around his neck. Little bug—that was her favorite pet name for him. At first he had balked at the "little" part of it, but came to accept that it wasn't an affront on his height. It was supposed to be cute. Again, because it was her, he allowed it. He put an arm around her. Touch was something he had to first learn to tolerate, then learn to enjoy—and he did actually enjoy it now.

"You don't have to thank me. The look on your face alone was worth it." Chee Min could hear the smugness return to his voice so she pulled his face toward herself again and plastered him with another kiss in retribution. He scrunched his face up, pretending to be grossed out.

They lay there in silence. Chee Min wasn't sure for how long as the grogginess of being woken in the middle of the night was starting to affect her.

"Will you stay here tonight? Just stay and sleep with me?" She knew he didn't sleep, but she also knew he could put his PAK into some sort of rest mode.

He hesitated a moment, presumably thinking about her request. "I can stay a few hours. But I have to leave before sunrise," he told her, searching her eyes.

"Ok." She was content with that answer and burrowed her head back into his chest. Then she snaked one of her hands up, eventually finding what she was looking for. She knew she wouldn't catch him off-guard when her fingers reached the velvety length of one of his antennae which were lying relaxed on her pillow. Despite expecting her touch, the Irken jumped a little as her small fingers tickled the feeler. After the initial shock, a pleasant calming sensation made its way through his body, making him feel heavy and malleable. Truth was, he loved it when she did this; the world seemed to slow down and nothing was quite important enough to get him to leave this spot. It was hypnotizing, and—when he thought about it—a rather concerning power she had over him. He didn't doubt for a second that she could do whatever she wanted to him and he wouldn't be able to lift a finger to stop her. It was a damn good thing he trusted her with his life.

He wondered where she picked up this skill—it seemed to him like she knew exactly where and how to touch him for the maximum effect. With whatever sense he had about him at that moment, he noted that she would slowly massage around the base of the feeler and then lightly brush the underside of it up to the tip. The ghost-like touches left him near putty and he loved every minute of it. His past self would have been horrified knowing a Vortian had this much control over him—could make him so weak, so pliable. It was downright un-Irken but he didn't give it a second thought as a quiet clicking became audible originating somewhere in his chest.

That was another thing that had initially alarmed him—this infernal purring, as Chee Min labeled it. The first time it happened it had startled him from his touch-induced stupor and for the subsequent few minutes he had clutched at his chest in panic while Chee Min looked on, giggling and teasing him. She had exclaimed, "Oh Vort, I'm never letting you live this down!"

She had eventually stopped teasing him whenever the clicking would start up, but it was fun knowing she could make it happen whenever she wanted. She smiled against him, loving how his chest vibrated with the increasing intensity of the clicking. With a few more languid strokes against the velvety length of antenna, Chee Min felt herself being drawn back into the clutches of sleep, feeling more secure than ever curled up alongside the Elite. Everything was…perfect.

Chee Min…

I love her.

But…

Where is she?

Where is my Chee Min?

I love her.

I need to find her.

These were the whispers that brought Veld back from the void. And they terrified him.

Who is…Chee Min?

Sorry for introducing even MORE characters. But then again I'm not sorry because they're essential to the plot. Kudos if you can kind of guess what's going on! Thanks so much to everyone who has read and reviewed, I know there are some people that really wanted to see this continue!