Her heart raced. Was it really that easy? While internally she was throwing things around, on the outside she kept up her seductive ruse. She sat on the bed and smiled at him. "Thank you. I am very excited to see you hunt." Her head rested on her shoulder as she cast him a glance through her eyelashes. Purring could be heard coming from his chest. Need to cut back; he's getting too into this, Daisy thought. Getting to her feet she walked to the door. She was about to tell him that she was going to eat but she was cut off.
He had her pressed against the wall. His strong body firmly against her supple curves. The warmth emanating from his body heated her up or, perhaps, it was something else that made heat pool in her lower abdomen. "Th'vk?" She breathed against him. His purring grew in volume.
"Daisy." The sound of her name was foreign from his lips but it sent a delightful shiver down her spine.
One of his hands was trailing its ways from her wrist up her arm creating goosebumps along its path. His mandibles moved to her neck, and against her own will her head moved giving him more access. She felt his tongue flick against her flesh and could not help the moan that escaped her mouth. I – I shouldn't be doing this. . . Her chest was rising and falling quickly. One hand was at her waist holding her between him and the wall, the other was now cupping her cheek as he continued his exploits on her neck. The feeling of warmth grew as his ministrations dipped lower. He then lifted her up causing her to let out a squeak. His leg then moved between her and she flushed at the feeling of his burning skin through her shorts at her center. I should not want this, the thought floated in the back of her mind but her body wanted to do nothing but ignore it. The hand that Th'vk had at her waist rose to her breast as his head bent lower taste her chest. Her back arched to him.
Daisy! You have to stop this!
It was only her mental strength that allowed her to start protesting. "Th'vk, we can't. . . I'm not ready." She panted and tried to push him away at the shoulders.
Underneath her hands she felt his muscles flex, every rippling cord. Slowly, so very slowly that she almost just pulled him back, he stepped away. He lowered her and put his hands on the wall, just above her head. She could see that he was restraining himself, visibly the muscles were twitching. "Go."
Not even questioning she left the room. Almost in a run she made it to the cafeteria, absently grabbing a meal and sitting where Jennifer and Natalie were, away from the other people.
Once she was seated she looked up to see the questioning glances of her friends.
"What?" She inquired as she bit into a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Natalie shared a look with Jennifer and then they returned their attention to Daisy.
"Oh, you know, nothing out of the usual except that as soon as the doors opened all of the Predators in the room turned to stare at you and haven't stopped." Natalie spoke in faux nonchalance.
Daisy turned around and studied the room. True to Natalie's word, Daisy was being stared at intently by the aliens.
"Not only that, but your messy hair and disheveled clothes are. . . well, let's just say that they're sending a certain message that I'm not sure you want to broadcast." Natalie continued.
Daisy tried to comb her hair with her fingers but gave up when the knots became too much. Her clothing was much easier to fix, the top having been so low that a nip-slip would have not been surprising. Daisy looked up to her friends, finding the courage to see their inquisitive glances directed at her as they ate.
"Just ask, the silence is a lot worse." Daisy finally sighed, pushing her plate away and giving her full attention to Jennifer and Natalie.
Jennifer cleared her throat in embarrassment, "So, your appearance when you walked in. . .You can explain why you were so. . . out so sorts."
Daisy tried her best not to let her face heat when she thought about what had occurred between Th'vk and her. "I asked Th'vk about going on the hunting trip with him an-"
"-He didn't rough you up, did he?" Natalie interrupted in concern.
"No!" Daisy shook her head. "In fact, it was kind of the exact opposite of being angry." She lowered her head in shame. "We . . . he and I. . . Ugh!" She threw her face into her hands. "I may have flirted with him to get him to agree and said 'flirting' may have led to a make-out session of sorts." She quickly spurted out the explanation in a rip-off the band-aid fashion.
When she was met with no reply and the silence felt to heavy she lifted her face to see the absolutely stunned faces of her friends. They could have passed as victims of Medusa.
Natalie was the first to speak, "Did you guys. . . go all the way?"
"No, it was just," she cringed as she spoke, "heavy petting." She chose to leave out the tongue for the benefit of all.
Jennifer's eyebrows creased, "Were you able to get him to accept?"
"Well, I would hope he did. That was high-end bribery!" Natalie exclaimed before she turned to study Daisy, "He did say 'yes', didn't he?"
When Daisy nodded the other two women released sighs of relief.
A new silence, one of contemplation, filled the air around them.
"Was it good?" Jennifer probed surprising Daisy.
It took her a moment to respond but she did so honestly, "Yes." She paused before continuing, "But, I am still going through with the plan."
Jennifer and Natalie nodded their heads.
After the meal Daisy wondered about the ship instead of going to the room. She didn't want to face Th'vk so soon after the incident. It was driving her crazy to think that she had enjoyed it. He was an alien. He had mandibles instead of lips. He was incredibly tall. His muscles are divine though, she started to think. And that tongue had been so warm and strong when it worked on my neck. . . Pull it together! She snapped at herself. He took me away from my family, friends, from my home. I should not – I cannot let myself think of him as more than my jailer, no matter the bargain we made.
Somehow while wondering absentmindedly she had made it back to their private quarters. She took a deep breath and walked inside. He wasn't there. The news sent simultaneous ripples of relief and disappointment. She paced over to Jax and kissed his forehead, then continued to do so to HoneyBear and Ed. They each took their turns with her. Daisy felt more of her stress leave as she continued to pour attention on her three children. She wasn't sure when but at some point she had relaxed so much that she had fallen asleep, neither did she remember when she made it to bed.
Jennifer looked across the room to Atok, as he worked diligently on the computer system in his lab. She anxiously picked at her nails as she waited for his response. Her eyes closed and she prayed that the results would be positive. Some seconds, that felt like minutes ticked by. Meanwhile he worked she continued her exploration of his workplace, not that she hadn't seen everything dozens of times by now, but it kept her from being inconsolably bored. She had at one time hoped to become a veterinarian and such a room (though perhaps smaller) would have been how her work space would have resembled. Her eyes scan by containment jars that hold fragments that eerily reminded of her of a horror movie or an exhibit from a freak show. Next, her hands glided over the alien technology present in the room as she tried (again) to the best of her abilities to figure how it worked. Though Atok had promised to instruct her in the operating the machinery, she wasn't sure if that would happen before she left.
Turning her head, she studied her mate. There was a small pit in her stomach and she chewed on her bottom lip. He has been so nice. An absolute gentlemen. Then he turned around and captured her eyes and she immediately stopped nibbling on her lip. Her heart rate increased as she awaited his analysis.
"It is my belief that your femur has completely healed. You should now feel no pain when you do rigorous activities that require that bone."
A wave of relief hit her with so much force that she was forced sit down. Wide-eyed she gazed at him, "I-I… I am really so grateful." A smile bloomed on her face and she stood energetically. "It's so freaking amazing! I didn't know it wasn't going to work – not that I didn't have faith that you would try your best – but after having gone to so many therapy sessions and surgeries on Earth and none of them working to even really erase the pain . . . I just am so dumbfounded that you were able to fix me." She finished as she ran out of air, and quickly inhaled.
Atok rose and bowed his head toward her. "It was my honor to be able to assist you. And, I do not believe that you required 'fixing', but rather healing." His gaze was soft on her and she couldn't help a small blush that crept into her cheeks, her eyes shifting away from him. "As your doctor, I recommend you slowly increase your exercise regiment, it would not do to reverse our work now."
Jennifer nodded her head enthusiastically. "Of course." She tried not to smile at his use of the word 'our', but only partially succeeded.
When they fell into a silence he was the one to enter a new conversation. "How are you friends?"
His question took her by surprise. "Oh, we're – they're fine! Couldn't be better!" Her heart was beating faster than a humimgbird and she knew she was anything but calm. Trying to mediate her tumble, "Daisy is looking forward on going on the hunting trip with her mate. Natalie is always talking about the wirework of the ship, you know, the things that Pol'v teachers her."
Jennifer tucked some hair behind her ear in agitation. Why was she so clumsy sometimes? Way to almost blow it, she thought bitterly to herself. The others would have probably cringed as much as she had internally at her near faux pas.
Atok stared at her silently, which caused her anxiety levels to rise. "Are you alright? I am noticing that your blood levels seems to be rising."
"Oh, um. I just don't feel comfortable being stared at." She nervously crossed her arms and turned away.
She heard a humming sound come from his direction. It was something she had heard before, on the day they has stood alone in their room for the first time. She had been terrified then, extremely so, yet when that noise had escaped him it was soothing, just as it is now. Her muscles noticeably loosened and she was able to turn to him again. She noticed that he was staring very intently at her. His perfect Greek-sculpture body stood absolutely still, at least to her naked eye. How was he creating that noise and why was it having such an effect on her? Ever the curious mind she was had her wanting to find out, however, the more placid side of her won and instead she stood taking in the calming effects of the purr.
Though she would never admit it out-loud she was more than slightly disappointed when he stopped. "Thank you." Jennifer did not withhold a smile.
Atok nodded, "It is my duty as your mate. If you are not pleased it would not be fair. The two must be well together."
While she was grateful for his care she couldn't help but pick out one word, 'fair'. It hadn't been fair when she and so many other women had been taken from their homes. She frowned.
"Have I misspoken?" He questioned and took a step closer.
For a second she deliberated asking, but then she couldn't hold it in. "How anything fair when I, we, so many of us were taking from our homes? You speak of fairness so easily, that I am unsure if it translates. How is it fair when people are uprooted and taken to be sex-slaves for another people, alien or not? To me that isn't fair." Her face had become red from her short rant and she knew she should have been scared, but she wasn't. She had said what needed to be said.
She had courage.
She also had the unbearable silence that came with it.
To her anything would have been better than the silence. It was driving her mad.
Until he finally spoke.
"When a race faces extinction, it is often faced with difficult choices to make. We had to make the choice of finding viable partners to reproduce with after a virus eliminated more than half of our female population. It took time for my people to come to a decision on which other being would make suitable mates. Earth became an apparent choice for its long history of surprising us with its strength. You humans show a resilience that still astounds us for beings that have yet to manage space travel, past your solar system."
Jennifer shook her head, "Extinction or no, it's still not fair."
"No, I suppose not. But, neither was it fair that so many of my peoples' females perished. They were friends, mothers, sisters, and beings with lives. Fairness is not kind nor is it always present. We have done our best to take care of your needs, to try to make your living here the best. Our honor demands it."
"I had my own life! I was almost done with vet school! I had aspirations, and small things that I just enjoyed. How can your honor let you take that away from me, from anyone?" Her eyes had become red and vision blurry.
He stood stonily in front of her. She knew she was taunting him farther than she probably should but he seemed capable of hearing her out so she took the opportunity to express her frustration and sadness. "Didn't it occur to you that maybe slowly your race would recuperate? That it wasn't necessary to kidnap millions of women?"
Atok sighed heavily. "This virus – not a virus really, it's more of a genetic disease. We do not yet have sufficient information on it other than that and there are still females dying. That is why we have resorted to this. It was a greatly protested decision but when the stake of our race's existence became apparent it was accepted, begrudgingly.
She felt exhausted, completely and utterly exhausted. Closing her eyes Jennifer shook her head weakly. "I – I am just going to go to out. I need space right now." She left without looking at him.
Daisy shook with excitement as she stood at the entrance of the smaller vessel, the one they would be taking for their voyage for 'the hunt'. Her three fur babies stood next to Jennifer who had sworn to take the best possible care of them. Daisy trusted her; after all she had been training to be a vet. Daisy knew this was it. This outing was going to be prime time to get the information she needed, and even if guilt ate away at her she would do it. Th'vk had carried that bag packed with her stuff, and there was something to be said about him looking stylish with a fluffy bag on his person. Putting that aside she waved a last goodbye to both her friends and entered the ship with Th'vk.
A/N: So, I know I said I was going to update faster. . . I don't really have an excuse except that I started going to University and it's pretty much whipping my butt. I'm pulling through, but I basically have no time to write because I would rather be sleeping after a rough day or week. I apologize, and hope that you found this chapter to be agreeable. I'm kind of iffy about it. Not my best, but I thought that I shouldn't keep you guys waiting. Anyway, how did you like my shift to a view of Jennifer's day? Like it or hate it? Tell me! Also, I would like to know if you guys would also like to get a view from Natalie. I do take your opinions, so please comment or pm!
For those who welcomed me back with open arms, you are appreciated, and it was you who encourage me to continue.
For those who want to see what is gonna happen when the Great Escape goes down, to be honest even I don't know. That means we will be surprised together! Yay!
For those who thought that one of the girls was preggers, they aren't. None of my three main characters at least, I can't speak for the rest.
For any new readers: Hi, and welcome! Don't be shy to leave reviews, I adore them.
For those who think the girls should stay put: it's kind of human nature to want to escape when one feels trapped. So even if they seem to want to stay, there is also a part that wants to leave and these two parts are pulling at them. Plus, it wouldn't make nearly a good enough fic if they were complacent. I'm not about writing those types of stories.
To all of you, thank you so much for reading! I love and appreciate you all. Don't forget to review because that is my motivator for writing, basically you are all my muses.
