Mission Day Three - Part Two

Ahsoka came off the stage at the end of her last dance with a breathless gasp. The heat of Rex's look and possessively aggressive Force signature practically overpowered her senses to the point where she'd had to block everyone out. Her heart racing from the magnitude of his intensity, she struggled to breathe for a moment before finding her center and taking a deep breath.

She knew Rex wanted her, but she'd never-

"Well, aren't you the new favorite," Zidel commented cattily, another of the working girls, a Zeltron with a nasty streak who'd been making snide comments to her through the show, "I give it a week and you'll have lost your novelty."

"Says the displaced favorite," Ahsoka returned shortly. She didn't like Zidel for all she'd met her bare hours before. "You must have lost your novelty."

"Mine's endless," Zidel snapped. "By the end of the week, I'll be back on top and you, you Togrutan slut, will be nothing but a memory."

If this mission took more than a week, Ahsoka was going to have some serious issues; she wouldn't last a week in close quarters with Rex and his sinfully, faithfully tight leather pants. "You can hope."

Zidel shot her a glare and then, pasting a smile on her face, sauntered out onto the stage to the appreciation of the patrons.

"Pay her no attention, Kora," Ishka's distinctive lilt had Ahsoka turning her head before she remembered that Kora was supposed to be her. "She's always jealous when a new girl gets as much applause as she does."

"I can understand why," Ahsoka told the other girl with a smile. "If Rex didn't keep moving us around to so many new and different places, I'd be protective of my space too."

"Rex?"

"My hustler."

"He lets you call him by name?"

Were they not supposed to? Ahsoka managed to shrug as she looked back towards the stage where Zidel was still performing, shooting the girl a sly look, suddenly inspired. "He says I should know whose name to call in the throes of passion."

Ishka laughed, thankfully. "Just be careful you don't call his name while you're with your customers tonight."

Ahsoka sent her an inquiring look. "You know something I don't?"

"Well, your Rex has been getting a steady stream of men; looks like you'll be busy on your back once the dancing's over."

Busy on your back.

It was a phrase she'd heard at the start of the night and, based on the anticipatory statement from some of the girls, Ahsoka suspected it was a good thing to be that kind of busy. Still… she smiled and cocked her head. "We'll see; Rex is very particular with whom I spend my… valuable time."

"Particular, really? " Ishka stared at her and then began to giggle. "A hustler who's particular?"

"What can I say?" Ahsoka turned to head back to her dressing room with an insouciant shrug she didn't feel, her stomach churning from the close call. "I'm a lucky gal."

"I guess we'll see how particular," Ishka called after her. "There were over two dozen customers who approached him!"

Ahsoka managed to hold it together until she hit her room, closing the door and leaning against it only to wrap her arms around her middle as her legs gave out. Tilting her forehead to her knees, she breathed in deeply, suddenly understanding the blazing possessive undertones of Rex's Force signature.

Two dozen. Rex… Rex I'm sorry!

If only she'd not danced so well, maybe they'd have left him alone?

A knock at her back drew her head up.

"Kora?"

It was a male voice; one of the bouncers?

"Yes?"

"They're calling for an encore; they want you on the pole."

Pole dancing; the one she hadn't tried yet. Taking a deep breath and realizing her ordeal and Rex's wasn't over yet, but just beginning - who knew how many more nights of this they'd have to go through before their contact came looking - she pushed determinedly to her feet. "I'll be out in a minute."

"Encore's in ten."

Ten minutes to brace herself for the heat of Rex's gaze; ten minutes to brace herself for the impact of so many untrained emotions and minds focused on her, fantasizing about her. Ten minutes to brace herself for a dance she'd never tried, and had only seen in video.

She turned to her wardrobe and flung the doors wide. It was a good thing she'd brought just the right outfit.

Rex wasn't expecting the cloak swathed, but heavily adorned, Ahsoka who stepped onto the stage despite the fact he'd been raking in the credits for her dances since the beginning of the night. His analytical mind had already deduced he was being cut in for under what they'd agreed upon and he and the owner of The Catalyst were going to have a little chat once-

Ahsoka dropped the cape that had covered her scantily clad form as she stepped up to the pole in the center of the dance floor, well within reach of the customers. Credit chits and presents were already held high in hands as the men rose to their feet the moment she wrapped her hand about the post.

He felt that touch all the way clear to his toes as her gaze locked with his. Her trepidation would only have been obvious to one who knew her and he gave her the barest of nods, more a twitch of his head, to offer his support. You can do this, he thought towards her, hoping that somehow she'd hear it.

The song started, taking her pose for her starting position, and the show began.

Rex's mouth went dry as Ahsoka strutted around the pole, teasing the men closest to the stage and getting a credit chit in her top for her trouble as she bent too close. She hid her shock well at being fondled, throwing herself into a back handspring to break the hold and nearly kicking the customer in the face.

A roar went up from the crowd as she ended on the pole, wrapping her strong thighs about it, and Rex was lost, absorbed and transfixed as she worked the pole up and down, fast and then slow, all to the cheering of the men around her which had drowned out the music.

He was on his feet seconds later and headed in her direction when one of the patrons was suddenly on stage with her, reaching for her, his grubby paws wrapping around one sienna ankle and hauling her off the pole with a jerk and dragging her down and off the stage.

Ahsoka cried out, and Rex was there a heartbeat later, blasters all but forgotten as he hauled the furry creature away from her, landing a solid punch that sent it sprawling into an ornery crowd of lustful males. Claw marks had left its fur matted with blood and Rex suspected he saw a bite wound as it fell away. "Hands off," he snapped coldly.

"Says who?"

"Her hustler," Rex proclaimed, standing over her with a foreboding expression as the men took him in. There was no mistaking him after the deal with the Deveronian; but there would always be doubters. "This one's for looking only until you pay the fee."

"Hand over the girl and we'll let you go, hustler," threatened one to the side.

Rex didn't blink; he drew and fired all in one motion, holstering the blaster in the same move. An amalgamated mess of protective, dominant and concerned emotions all swirling together, he didn't know exactly what he felt as he glared at the group.

"You can't take all of us!"

"Yeah; give us the whore!"

"Speak for yourself," someone at the back jostled and a small fight broke out, "I want her for myself!"

It was all Rex could do to not shoot more of them as the crowd began to disintegrate into a mob, cries of "whore" and "slut" and various other demands zinging back and forth. Several of the males fell to fighting, but the crowd immediately around him remained focused on the teenager at his feet.

"The little horn head is mine!"

"Ever handle a Togrutan, little sucker man?" Rex's words were deliberately derogatory towards the Rodian; he'd been listening well. He waved at the furry creature who'd attacked her initially. "Did you see what she did to that one?"

"So what makes you think she'll play nice for you?"

Rex didn't offer a response, simply reached down, hooked one hand behind Ahsoka's neck, under her lekku, and pulled her to her feet. Their eyes locked. She came willingly, offering no resistance as he spun her and bent her forward over his other arm, barring her neck in a single move. Acting on instinct alone, he placed his lips on the side of her neck where it was the most vulnerable under her lek and, driven by his need to show dominance, bit her.

She began to quake even as she remained docile in his grasp, her heart suddenly racing against the hard line of his forearm, her whole body tensing. A soft moan, like she was trying to strangle it, caught his attention, also driving home the fact that sound had practically died once again in the cantina.

Lifting his head, he left Ahsoka as she was; neck barred to him, submissively over his forearm. "She's mine." His voice was hard, uncompromising; later he would wonder where the impulse had come. "You want a chance at touching her, you see me first."

Bouncers arrived then, breaking things up, and Rex lifted his arm, pulling Ahsoka completely back to her feet with her back flush against his front. "We're leaving," he told her gruffly.

She didn't protest and Rex tucked her under his arm and led her backstage to change, escorting her to the change room and then in, closing the door behind them. He sat her in the chair, searching her face, his need to protect her receding into concern.

Ahsoka looked shell shocked, her eyes wide, pupils dilated, her breathing still erratic and Rex wasn't sure if she could see him. Not daring to use her real name, he grasped both hands in hers. "Look at me."

She didn't respond, her chest still heaving, her body almost humming and he frowned, feeling that her normally cool skin seemed to be slightly fevered. Her eyes were still glazed. Making a snap decision, Rex shrugged out of his jacket and wrapped her in it before scooping her up in his arms. With one final glance down into her face, he made to take her away.

Ahsoka was barely aware of her change in circumstances.

She'd been on stage one moment and fending off an attack the next, tasting blood, feeling it on her claws, only to be in Rex's arms moments later. In Rex's arms, pressed against his side with his lips on the sensitive curve of her neck under her lek.

The pleasurable sensation of having Rex's lips on her neck had thrown her for a loop, but when he'd bit her…

A powerful surge of heat and desire had rocked her system and left her reeling, even now having yet to fade. It had struck low in her belly, exploding through her body in wave after wave of intense, nearly crippling pleasure.

What happened to me?

In Rex's arms, surrounded by his scent, she was vaguely aware of him speaking harshly with someone before he carried her away. Trepidation crept in as the feel of his grasp, one around her back and side, the other under her knees, penetrated the fog which had closed in about her mind. She shivered in his grasp and his arms tightened. His grip was reassuring instead of constricting yet threatening at the same time.

Instincts she'd never known she had were screaming at her, urging her to something she didn't understand, focused on Rex in a way she'd never been before. She could hear his heartbeat, not just under her cheek, but the steady, if slightly fast, pulse seemed to wind its way into her blood stream. She could smell him, not just because she was wearing his coat.

Anger.

Fear.

Frustration.

Yearning.

All of these she could practically taste, hypersensitive to the changes within him, the shifts and eddies of his emotions and desires all centered upon her. He'd unintentionally started something when he'd bitten her, when she'd let him bite her, setting off a chain reaction that was completely and wholly unexpected.

She didn't understand what it was, but all she knew was that her instincts were urging her to finish it. To reach up, to bite him as he'd bitten her; to mark him… she curled into the coat with a whimper, closing her eyes as she fought against the need, allowing herself the comfort of his chest to rest her cheek upon and nothing more.

Not understanding what had happened or what continued to happen within her, she mentally withdrew and sought the Force, seeking answers. In its vastness and within her own instincts; answers that would be slow in coming as she hadn't the capacity to process what she was feeling or the context in which they should be applied.

Rex carried Ahsoka all the way back to their suite, concern for her having overridden every other desire. His grip tightened as he climbed the stairs, opened the door, and stepped inside, hitting the automatic lock with his elbow. She was shivering now, shaking in his grasp in a way that he somehow knew was different than the quaking that had rocked her back at the cantina.

"Ahsoka?"

She let out the saddest, confused little mewing sound he'd ever heard and it squeezed his heart painfully, his lips pressing to the curve of her nearest montral as he tried to convey his support and regret.

Striding to the nearest chair, he sat, keeping her on his lap, adjusting his grip so that he could look fully into her face. She looked confused, scared - and Ahsoka was never scared. Not visibly so, anyway. He'd done this; she'd been fine until he'd bit her. One hand slid up her back, to the nape of her neck, and he winced, his blood running cold upon feeling the raised skin. He'd marked her; injured her! Even if it had been a necessary show of ownership, he should never have been so violent!

"Ahsoka - I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… Ahsoka? Can-"

Her head turned toward him on the third appellation of her name, the dazed look fading a little. "Rex?"

His hand dropped from her neck as he pulled her close to his chest, leaning back, enfolding her in a hug he was careful to keep gentle.

"Rex, what-"

He released his embrace reluctantly, shifting her to the side so she could sit, as he slid off the chair to take a knee before her. Still wrapped in the softness of his coat, she looked forlorn and lost, her still partially clouded gaze a concern. He kept his tone even; reassuring. "We're back at our suite."

She looked around, as if seeing it for the first time and her posture eased. "Oh. I thought… shouldn't we still be at The Catalyst?"

"Not after that mob pulled you off stage," he was careful not to let the rage that act had ignited bleed into his voice or his touch as he took her hands. "Do you remember what happened?"

It was a moment before she spoke, her brow furrowing as if she was trying to recall. "I remember being pulled off stage," she confirmed slowly, "tasting blood and feeling flesh tear," she flexed her fingers within his grasp, intertwining them with his, "and then you pulling that… whatever it was off me."

Rex waited for her to continue, but she didn't, staring at where his hands gripped hers, and he ducked his head, trying to see her face. "Anything else, Ahsoka?"

"I… remember you… biting me."

He couldn't see her expression but the flush that swept through her montrals was telling. "Yes; I did. I'm sorry."

"Why?"

"I didn't intend to hurt you. I didn't realize it would do… this to you."

"I'm okay," she shook her head as if trying to shake off the effects but still wouldn't meet his gaze or look at him, "it was just… unexpected after being attacked."

She wasn't telling him something. Rex wasn't sure how he knew, but something about her posture was screaming at him that there was more to this that just the unexpected. He'd seen her adapt readily to the unexpected in all kinds of situations that had been as equally as dangerous.

Admittedly he'd never bit her in any of those...

She shivered, as if sensing the line of his thoughts, attempting to free her hands, but Rex tightened his grip. "Ahsoka - what is it you're not telling me?"

"Nothing," shaking her head, she practically choked on the word, reinforcing his belief she wasn't telling him the whole truth. "I just... want to go to sleep, Rex. Can I just... go to bed?"

He let her go and she fled, retreating to the bedroom and closing the door, still wrapped in his coat. Rex frowned as the door closed between them; normally she left it open. Whatever was bothering her had happened after he'd bit her - or maybe during?

Guilty as he felt for making her, he only felt worse - shamed - as he realized that, given the chance, he'd have done it again. For all his guilt and the way his actions and their consequences warred for satisfaction and dismay within him, he'd accomplished the mission he'd set himself. His point at the cantina had been made; his ownership of her had been established. Which had been the whole point of the exercise.

What he didn't understand was her reaction.

Ahsoka had let him, trusted him to handle her bodily. In his mind's eye, he could clearly see her eyes, the only part of her face he'd been focused upon as his hand had curled around her neck, and no other part of her, using the hold to draw her to her feet and then move her. He'd treated her in a way that he'd heard other hustlers treat their girls; in a way that wouldn't blow their cover.

Cantinas were, apparently, mines of information, almost none of it good, about women and how to use or abuse them. To say he'd been appalled with what he'd heard would be putting it mildly, but Ahsoka's warning had been well taken. None had tried to joke with him, but he'd been bombarded with coarse suggestions, descriptions and desires as they were shouted at the dancers, Ahsoka included.

It bothered him, but he bore it because she did.

Having her pulled off the stage and knowing that the furry creature had wanted to bend her over a table, flip up her skirt and pound her, as it had said, he couldn't not get involved. The mental image had been disturbing and alarming as he'd envisioned the damaged the furry thing could have done to her tender flesh. Ahsoka was his to protect and he'd done so. Perhaps he could have chosen another way to make his point, but a show of dominance had settled the crowd and given them an out.

Had he been wrong?

Rubbing one hand across across his face, Rex looked around and his gaze caught on the holonet terminal that was across the room. It had only been used the once when they'd first arrived and, as he looked at it, an idea formed in his mind. Could... it be a Togrutan thing? Her monstrals and lekku had flushed along with the rest of her, indicating an embarrassment and she hadn't been able to look him in the eye.

Had her reaction been racial? He'd read up a little on Togrutans in general when she'd become a part of Torrent Company, or rather, General Skywalker's apprentice. Admittedly, he'd not read much beyond general tendencies, preferring to get to know her himself.

Until now, it hadn't been necessary to do anything more; Ahsoka had always been more than forthcoming about her heritage and race, sharing traits and dismissing misconceptions. To say she was atypical of her race was an understatement, but her physiological reactions would be the same, no matter how else she differed.

Could he perhaps find something on the holonet that would help him explain her behavior? Would she appreciate it if he did? He wasn't sure, but he knew he had to do something. Having her shut down on him, he needed to know why and if this would occur again. If there was the possibility, he couldn't risk biting her again. And if he did have to bite her as part of their cover once more, he resolved to be more gentle; she wouldn't suffer his soldier's brutality.

Pushing to his feet, he headed for the terminal and sat before it, staring at the blank screen for a moment before placing his hands on the activation pad. It came to life almost instantly and he wasted no time in spelling out his first search inquiry.

Torgutan biting.

He didn't know what else to call it and, as a result, what he got as he sat there and went through links after link, was far more than he bargained for. Certain words turned up again and again, resulting in further searches and, as the moons of Ord Mantell set and the sun began to rise, Rex was still at the holo terminal. Link after link, holo after holo, he told himself he should stop, a voice in the back of his head saying that Ahsoka wouldn't appreciate his prying. That he'd long since discovered what he'd hoped to find; what he'd been afraid to find.

Mating ritual; showing favor.

Submission; sexual trigger.

Docility; sexual dominance.

The words ran around and around in his mind, chasing one another even as he repeatedly told himself he needed to stop, he found he couldn't.

He didn't halt his search until he heard Ahsoka stirring in the next room, the shower starting. Then, and only then, did he shut down the terminal, sitting back with an almost blank expression, the information tumbling over and around inside his head in a jumble.

A jumble of information that really had no point of context.

All he knew for sure was that Ahsoka had submitted to him completely in the club, utterly allowing him to move and shift her as he wished. She'd trusted him as her friend to do what was necessary to get her out of the situation.

Not that she couldn't have extricated herself, he knew rationally, but her role required she have a protector; him. She'd simply allowed him to play that part, right? No matter what the holonet said, no matter that she'd exhibited the signs mentioned in the articles he'd read, it had to have been a part of their act.

But... that didn't explain her behavior upon their return to the suite. Shouldn't she have recovered more quickly if it was an act? Logic told him yes until he remembered the raised imprint of his teeth on her neck and the guilt struck him hard. He'd bitten her, marked her - was she still marred this morning? For all the injuries she'd taken in the past, seeing the mark of his physical violence upon her skin had shaken him- what had it done to her?

Ahsoka had brushed off his apology the night before, but had that been her shock talking? He didn't know. There was too much he didn't know for all the information he'd assimilated through the night, too many variables to form any kind of logical conclusion.

He'd simply have to wait and see how she was when she came out of the bedroom and hope she could forgive him.