Mated and Alone (True Match)

Chapter 28

Tsok

Misty was quiet.

The meeting hadn’t taken as long as he anticipated, but still longer than Misty was clearly comfortable with. She had begun getting restless by about the second mark, and the last half a mark had been very difficult for her judging by the way she kept fidgeting.

But still, she stayed the entire time and listened.

For now, the High Imperium wanted to hear both sides of the argument for and against mating. They said that they wanted to mediate this discussion, and the other seniors weren’t at all opposed to them doing so.

The Imperium was a member of another species, but they were also incredibly famous for their absolute neutrality. They would place their votes in matters the Coalition brought to them, but they never announced their opinion one way or another until everyone else had already made their own choices. They were highly aware of how much power their position could hold. It seemed they made deliberate attempts to keep it from being powerful at all.

Because of that neutrality, they were a perfect mediator for Tsok and Boktare to argue at. Today, they just listened to all their arguments. There would be time later, they promised, to work towards a solution that made everyone happy. For now, they just wanted to hear everyone’s concerns.

It was all very calm and fair. Tsok had even left the room hopeful. With the High Imperium themselves overseeing this discussion, surely it would come to a quick resolution.

There was a bit of confusion on his part about why the Imperium even judged this matter to be worth their time. They claimed it was a matter of a large cultural shift, but the Coalition was a group thousands of years old. There had been many cultural shifts in the past, and none – or a very rare few – that demanded the attention of the High Imperium.

So, then, why were they here?

But as Tsok was pondering that, walking with Misty back towards Fellbud Manor, he became aware of how quiet his female was.

“Are you angry?” He asked, making her start in surprise.

She looked at him, seeming to have to think about his question. As if she had been so far gone in her thoughts, she needed a chance to replay it in her head.

“Angry? Why would you assume that?”

“You seemed angry at Senior Boktare. About his comments on humans.”

“Oh. That. ” She rolled her eyes quite aggressively. “Yeah, that was pretty rude of him. It was like he was calling my whole species a bunch of sluts who get off on being hunted down and rutted.”

Tsok just stared at her. A bit confused.

She cut that glare on him. “I know you’re not thinking that you agreed with him.”

“I never said that.”

“So, you were thinking it!”

“Humans are, as I understand it, much more sexual than the rest of the Coalition. And Jeanie did seem to enjoy the way Vigo rutted her.”

She crossed her arms, glaring at him. “Are you saying kreecharma females don’t enjoy it?”

“I’ve never heard one say they did.”

“I mean, like, before. Before all this anti-mating stuff. Did females of your species like being mated?”

Tsok parted his muzzle, but he had to close it because he genuinely had no answer for her. He knew why his people had stopped mating. The horrible case of a youngling with precocious puberty and a despicable male that took advantage of that. It had been horrific – enough so that it turned his people off the concept of mating altogether.

But before that…

It wasn’t like his species was unadvanced. Three hundred years ago, when that shift in the culture came, and before they joined the Coalition, they had still been a space faring species. They were conquering their own solar system and making plans to move beyond. An action that, unbeknownst to them, had caught the eye of the Coalition and earned their spot within it. They were more advanced than Misty’s people were now. So, it wasn’t like the kreecharma had been a bunch of barbarians, roaming around, rutting their females in wild attacks everywhere. They had a civilization, they had order, they had a functioning government.

But he honestly didn't know what the culture around mating was before that one, terrible mating that broke them from their desire for it. He could give her no answer.

“Females enjoyed mating once.”

They both turned, looking behind them. Davard must have been following after, though Tsok hadn’t noticed. His aid was giving them a curious look.

“They enjoyed it?” Tsok asked, surprised. “How do you know?”

“The study of history is a hobby of mine,” he said simply before facing Misty. “Our females used to enjoy the ruts of their males. They welcomed it. Admittedly, it could, and did, happen at the worst of times, but one of the male’s instincts is to take his female somewhere safe and secluded for the duration of the rut, so it’s not like females were being taken out in the streets. Well, at least, not in that way.”

“So, two people would just pass each other in the street, get a whiff of one another, then he’d take her away and rut her?” Misty asked, just to clarify.

“Breed her, actually,” Davard said. “The rut doesn’t end until the male can smell that the female is gravid. Even if the first time is enough to take, it still would take days before her scent turned. There used to be specially designed buildings meant to lure in a mindless male to give him a place to hole up and finish the rut safely. Of course, some took their female back to their domiciles, or the female’s domicile if it was close enough to scent.”

“They had buildings for mating couples?” Tsok asked, surprised. “I’ve never heard about that.”

“Oh, you wouldn’t. The last one shut down hundreds of years ago. There’s no need for them these days.”

“Wait,” Misty looked between them. “People still mate accidentally. Right? What happens to them now?”

“There are squads trained to deal with it,” Tsok said simply. “A team of five or so are dispatched to sedate the male and separate the two. Hopefully before the female is assaulted.”

“Assaulted?” She frowned. “That’s a bit harsh, right?”

“It’s what it is.”

“But not what it used to be, right?”

Tsok frowned but Davard inclined his head in agreement.

“That is correct. Females typically didn’t resist the rut. A female doesn’t lose her mind like the male, so they would enjoy it for what it was.”

“And then after?”

“Afterwards, the new mates would spend time together and form a proper relationship. Our species attach quickly and irrevocably to our mates. When we’re not resisting it, of course. Though, it’s a losing battle. Those who mate by accident tend to develop a close relationship afterwards, even now.”

“That is what Senior Boktare is resisting,” Tsok told her. “He will only change his mind if there is a way to know, for sure , that both parties agree to this.”

Misty frowned. She was tempted to offer suggestions – even something as simple as a contract – but she kept her thoughts to herself. These were powerful, smart people. Surely, they’d already thought about that and argued it down.

“What kind of proof does he want?”

“Inarguable.”

“That’s… difficult,” she frowned. “I’m not really understanding. What kind of proof could he possibly want? What would be good enough for him?”

“That’s the problem we’re having. Nothing I suggest is good enough. Verbal agreements can be lies. Contracts can be forged. He also seems to think that people would be too eager to do it. Too excited at the prospect of having sex, and they’d rush into it without considering the full ramifications.”

Misty cocked her head in confusion. “Wait… like abstinence? I didn’t think your people practiced abstinence.”

“The strictest of us do,” Davard said, grinning proudly. “I’ve never touched a female sexually in my life.”

“But it’s not a requirement,” Tsok added, thinking of his past paramours. “Those who do are considered highly admirable, but those of us who do not are encouraged to keep such relationships strictly about the sex and not to mix feelings into it.”

“That explains some things,” she mumbled before shaking her head. “So, he’s thinking that people will rush into mating just for sex, even before they’re prepared for what the rut actually involves.”

“Essentially,” Tsok agreed. “Boktare and I may disagree in what we’re arguing about, but we both agree that the safety and wellbeing of our people come first. We’re just coming at it from opposite sides of the argument.”

“So, you don’t think people will rashly rush into mating?”

“Oh, of course they will,” he chuckled. “But foolish hotheads exist everywhere. I can’t protect the population from every dumb decision. And at the end of the day, they will be with their mate. They’ll be fine. The rut may surprise some of them, but they’ll learn soon enough. And, of course, they will be taught to practice caution and common sense. The education curriculum can include sex and sexuality to teach them what to expect when the rut comes.”

“It used to,” Davard added, smiling. “It can be revived.”

“See?” Tsok nodded once, satisfied. “No problem. Some people will be fools, but that is inevitable. I still believe in letting people find their mate and mate them in their own time.”

“Okay.” She nodded slowly. “Let me ask you this: How come you’ve never talked about mating me?”

“Because I’m not mating you,” he said simply.

“Oh, really,” she said, her voice completely calm. “Any particular reason for that?”

“I’m proving that it’s possible.”

“Even if others are allowed?”

“So long as Boktare has the argument that there’s no way to know for sure, yes. I am determined.”

“And did you ever think to talk to me about that?” Her voice was still totally peaceful, but something about it brought him up short. He hesitated, looking over at her.

Misty’s eyes narrowed. Glaring at him. Waiting for an answer he couldn’t bring.

Because, honestly, no he hadn’t.

And he knew right away that was the wrong choice.

But before he could think of something to say, she was turning on her heel. Misty sauntered away from him, hair bouncing with her rage. He didn’t try to follow. He knew an angry dismissal when he saw one.

And even if he did, he still didn’t know what he would say.

“She’s mad at me again,” he said out loud, frowning.

Davard sighed. “I do not envy you this mating thing. I believe I made the right choice in just donating my genetic material.”