Chapter 42 #3
“You are determined to make me dishonor myself by dropping you,” he said, his voice rough with desire and strain, “but I shall stand strong, vi Seerin Adassi.”
“Water nest maker,” Peony translated, snorting.
“Yeah, something like that,” he agreed with a chuckle.
“What a poetic language.” She moved up, nibbling on his ear, making him groan.
But, true to his word, he remained stalwart and unflinching as he took them up through the palace to their rooms – their den.
To Peony's surprise, it was different from how she had left it yesterday.
Atem had decorated it. Most notably, a new, fur blanket was half tossed over the bed that looked like it must have come from an animal the size of an elephant.
Scattered across the floor were the gently glowing petals of night flowers that she loved staring at on the canopy.
They were glowing because Atem had turned off the lights, closed the drapes over all the windows, and had lit tiny fires burning in little braziers set on various surfaces.
He had turned their room into a den. Dark, cool, quiet, with fur for their bedding and flower petals for romance.
Peony, distracted from her mission of making his knees weak, gasped as she looked around. “Oh, Atem! It's beautiful! You did this for me?”
“You like it?” Atem smiled as he walked her, not towards the bed as she would have expected, but instead towards the lounge cushions where he set her down. “I asked Hattie and Alanna about some of your traditions. The flower petals were their idea.”
“Aww!” Peony beamed as Atem sat beside her. “I love them.”
“I was also informed that I should give you this.” He leaned over the low table, upon which there was a covered tray that she figured held food.
He reached past it towards a small, drawstring bag.
“I was told that this was important for your people and that anyone from Earth would know what this was.”
He opened the bag and, from inside, he poured-
“Rings?” Peony breathed, stunned, staring at the two matching rings.
She hadn't mentioned a wedding or engagement ring to Atem.
She was on his planet, living in his culture, and she was enjoying their traditions and symbols.
Since they mated for life and their mating ceremonies were so informal, they really didn't have the physical markings of marriage.
She hadn't really given much thought to her own marriage traditions.
He was the dominani. It was more important that they follow his traditions.
But the sight of the two rings, one bigger than the other, obviously meant for his hand, brought tears to her eyes.
Atem smiled at her reaction. “It appears I was told true. Peony, why did you not tell me this was important to you?”
“I just... didn't think...” She admitted, sniffing as he picked up the smaller ring.
The twin rings, different only in their size, weren't made of a precious metal. Instead, they had been carefully carved from clear crystal, something that wouldn't interfere with Atem's camouflage, creating complex and beautiful facets that shined in the fiery light.
“This one, correct?” He asked, lifting her left ring finger.
Peony nodded silently, stunned into silence as he slid the crystal onto her hand. It fit perfectly. But when he tried to put on his own, she quickly grabbed it from him.
“That's my job,” she said, holding out her hand expectantly.
He smirked, one fang gleaming, as he held out his hand for her to slide the ring on. She lifted his hand after settling it in place and kissed it sweetly.
“Thank you,” she breathed, trembling from the meaning.
“I know you've lost your entire life. And I can't return that to you. Likely, I will never even find your planet. But for things like this, if I can give it to you, I will.”
“It means nothing to your people. No one here will know what these rings mean.”
“But you will and that's all I care about.” He smiled, interlacing their fingers. “And the fact that it's the same hand that you reached out to me is all the symbolism I need.”
Peony beamed, wiping at her eyes before her happy tears could fall. He offered her a smile before turning to the tray. After uncovering it, she discovered that it was, indeed, food. But not the fruit she had expected that seemed to make the bulk of their diet.
Instead, the large plate was ringed with cubed meat that looked like it all came from different cuts, including the liver that Atem enjoyed so much.
In the middle of the plate was another tiny brazier that Atem lit with a click of a switch at its base.
He picked up what looked like a fondue fork with two tiny tines and speared a piece of meat.
He cooked it over the flame for a second, browning it in a way that only the humans ate, before turning and offering it to her.
Peony smiled and blew on it to cool it down before pulling it off and chewing. The tiny bite was juicy and delicious. The meat cubes must have been tossed in some kind of spice before being arranged on the plate.
“Once a domin brings their adassi to their den, its traditional to offer them fresh meat.
Which I know you can't eat, so I figured I'd cook it for you just a bit.” Atem grinned at her before spearing another piece and holding it over the fire.
“But this is from my own hunt. Tuvo and I tracked and killed the beast last night and I prepared it for you myself this morning.”
Peony laughed. “That's a way better bachelor party than human males tend to prefer.”
“What's a bachelor party?”
Peony chewed and swallowed the bite he offered before answering. “A bachelor party is a party human men have to celebrate before they get married. Er, mated. It tends to be different for each guy, but the stereotypical party is something at a strip club.”
“What's a strip club?” Atem ate one of the liver pieces – he knew better than to offer her one since she hated the weird texture – before spearing another piece for her.
“You guys don't have strip clubs?” Peony reached across the plate and grabbed another piece of liver that she offered to him with her bare hands. “It's a place that men, er, males, go to and they pay females to take off their clothes and dance for them.”
Atem gave her a strange look as he chewed. “They pay females... to sexually excite them?”
“Yeah, basically.”
“And that's... normal? Do the females get any enjoyment out of it?”
“They get paid.” Peony grabbed another piece, but he didn't take it from her, still frowning. “What?”
“Peony, er, do not take this the wrong way, but I have concerns about the males of your species.”
“It's not a big deal. Females have strip clubs too. I mean, they aren't as popular, or, you know, everywhere, like guys' strip clubs, but there are still men who get naked for money.”
“No, I understand. I just don’t get why.
Your species doesn't mate for life like mine does, and I can accept that yours is more sexual than mine.
I noticed that a long time ago. But why would a mated male pay females who are not his mate to sexually excite him?
Especially right before his formal mating ceremony?
Isn't he still mated to her even before that moment.?”
Peony shrugged. “I don't know. They do it because they like it?”
“I hope you forgive me for saying so, but I do not have a high opinion of your males.”
Peony grinned and pressed the liver against his lip until he opened and took it from her, running his tongue along her finger as he did so.
“You are my male now, Atem. So, it would be a shame if you didn't have a high opinion of yourself.”
His eyes darkened appreciatively as he sucked on her fingers, cleaning them completely.