Chapter 14
Havali
Havali was thrilled.
He dressed for his outing with Scarlet, watching as the one of those gossip shows discussed the potential mating between him and his female – comparing it to the one between Atem and Peony.
Since no one but the domini who interacted with them knew how humans mated, everyone had to speculate as to what every action and look meant.
Right now, they were debating what they had been doing behind the column.
Havali had chosen a spot that he knew the combots wouldn’t see, but they still had video of him dragging her behind the column to begin with.
His back was also visible at times so, though they couldn’t see her, they did record him getting closer and moving over her.
Mating at the opening ceremonies? - read the line at the bottom. He only chuckled, listening to all the salacious things he maybe, possibly, could have potentially done to her.
All they had done was hold hands.
But the point was that everyone knew he had his eyes on Scarlet. Moreover, everyone was approving of their match. She was domini by law, so it wasn’t a matter of him seducing a non-Coalition species, but it was drumming up support for the humans.
Not his intention, but he didn't at all mind playing into it.
He checked the map of the domini embassy again. Keeping watch of everyone, ostensibly as part of standard security measures, but really, he was just watching Scarlet. Keeping track of the light that represented her. Making sure things were easier for her.
When she crossed the gardens, he broke into the systems and turned off the sprinklers, so she didn't get wet.
When she approached the cafeteria, he had the food machines auto-eject anything old and potentially stale so she would only get the freshest food.
If she was walking towards a locked door, he unlocked it for her.
This morning, thus far, she and Alanna had gone to visit Peony in her nest. Then, they escorted Adassani to the med bay for her usual checkup. Afterwards, the three had gone their separate ways – Peony back to her nest, Alanna to the room she had claimed as a study, and Scarlet to her bedroom.
He imagined she was getting dressed just as he was.
And he felt like the dirtiest, foulest male possible for keeping watch of her like this. But he couldn’t bring himself to stop.
It wasn’t a matter of obsession or control. He didn't mind if she wanted to go anywhere, he just wanted to know where she was. In case she needed him. And it wasn’t something he only did for her. He did it for everyone of importance in his life.
He knew that his Dominani was out at a meeting with other representatives.
He knew that Tuvo was with him, overseeing security measures.
He knew his parents, at this moment, were at the clan home on Turv, overseeing their berry farm that they kept purely as a hobby.
He knew his former pleasure mate was at her place of work and her offspring, the one he had sired but had given over to his mother’s true mate, and therefore the pup’s true father, was playing with his peers at his care center,
He kept track of all of them. At any given moment of the day, he could soothe himself by making sure they were safe and living their lives peacefully.
Scarlet was just the most important name on that list now, and the only one that felt uncertain because, despite what the gossip shows were saying, she wasn’t his mate yet. She wasn’t even close. They were only at step one of the human mating rituals.
It began with the date, and physical intimacy came slowly, in increments, afterward. Judging by what he had learned from observing Peony and Holly’s relationships, sex would follow along with her heart, and when she was ready, he would be allowed to challenge Atem.
Much slower, much more emotionally exhausting, than the domini way of claiming a true mate, which was to jump right to challenging Atem for her.
Or her challenging his guardian for him, he supposed, but he did not see himself as the adassi of a relationship.
His protective anxiety was most certainly a domin trait.
Besides, Scarlet could definitely not defeat him in combat – how the dominant partner in a relationship was decided among his people. He knew a lot about his female, and a prowess for physical confrontation was not among her skills.
That was fine. He would happily defeat all her enemies for her.
He checked one last time, making sure she was still in her room.
He monitored traffic in the city. He confirmed his reservation at the restaurant.
He made sure all of his work was finished and he had no messages waiting for him before turning off all but the most important notifications on his combot.
He didn’t want the machine flashing at him unnecessarily.
Not while he was with her. Especially not during this most important, first outing.
He wasn’t entirely certain how human dating worked.
He had asked Hattie, as she seemed eager and willing to help domini males impress human females, but the most he had gotten from her was that humans needed rings to mark their mating in an official capacity.
Hattie herself seemed quite taken with the idea, describing how she had dreamed about the kind of ring she would get ever since she was a little human.
But that was something for when Scarlet had accepted him. It was too early to present her with a mating ring.
The rest of Hattie’s advice was essentially, ‘just do what feels right’. That seemed exceedingly unhelpful, but he took the advice in the good faith it was given.
Hard to find out what he should do, however, when everything done with Scarlet felt right. He could simply be standing near her and that was enough. He didn’t even need that much if he knew that, wherever she was, she was happy and healthy.
After checking everything one last time, he finally left his room and began the short journey towards hers.
He hadn’t been in charge of room placement – there was a female domini who oversaw the running of the embassy who had done that.
If he had been, he would have put his room closer to the med bay and, therefore, closer to Scarlet.
Still, the walk wasn’t too far. And maybe it was just his eagerness to see her again, now that they were at the beginning of the human courtship ritual, but it felt like he practically flew to her door.
It seemed only a moment passed between stepping from his room and alerting hers that he had arrived.
He couldn’t hear her response from inside, but the door slid open and she wasn’t standing there, so she must have called for it to admit him from deeper inside. That was as good as a direct invitation to enter and he happily took a couple steps in, taking a deep breath.
Already, this place smelled of his female. It was neat and orderly – her belongings all carefully tucked away. The same would be true of her workspace, which was always immaculate. He found her dedication to cleanliness and orderliness charming.
What he didn’t find, however, was his female.
“Scarlet?”
“I’m in here,” she called from her changing room. “I’ll be one second.”
The second, as he understood it, was the smallest unit of human time measurement. He wasn’t sure how that translated to Standard time, but it seemed to take an entire mark before he finally heard the click of her shoes on the hard floor.
Then, he caught sight of his female, and all that waiting was forgotten.
Havali didn't know the exact contents of her closet, he could only give her a general description of the type of outfits that would work for their date. He wanted dearly to be able to pick them for her. To dress her as he desired and show her off in all her glory, but this was good enough for now.
And Scarlet needed no help in showing off her beauty.
She had chosen one of the floor length bodysuits in elegant, shining silver.
It clung, tight and conforming, to her upper body, lifting her breasts and baring her shoulders.
The three-quarter sleeves became more sheer the closer they got to her hands.
A pale-yellow scarf was tied around her waist, the ends fluttering over her legs.
Unlike her upper body, her pants weren’t tight.
The legs of the suit fluttered and flowed, showing off her pale-yellow boots with each step.
She had gathered her hair into a simple, tight, curved knot at the back of her head, adorned with crystal pins, not a single wisp of hair out of place.
He had the feral urge to mess up that work.
To take his perfect female and make her completely undone.
Muss her hair, stain her clothes, own her body.
His fangs ached, his cock hardened, his knot throbbed.
“Sorry,” she said, her voice music in his ears. “I was having such a hard time getting my hair right. I’m not used to the new beauty products yet.”
“You are stunning,” he promised. “And your hair is nice as well.”
She laughed, but her eyes sparkled at the compliment. It was about her looks, and that normally did not appeal to her, but she had put in the effort for him now. It would have been disappointing had he not said something.
And he knew his female well enough to know that, just looking at her.
“I’m ready to go,” she said, picking up her hip pouch. It was how the domini preferred to carry their belongings when they walked. The belt to hold it was hidden by the scarf around her waist and she neatly clipped it in place before straightening the fabric.
“This way then, Healer,” he said, gesturing for her to walk ahead of him out the door.
It was going to be a long night. And he knew, already, that his Scarlet wasn’t going to let him bury his fangs in her neck.
Not now, not ever. He doubted he would be able to push his cock into her and relieve that ache either.
Human females fell pregnant much more easily than domini females, and therefore they were more careful when they fucked.
The idea of his Scarlet round and glowing like Peony and Holly, made his knot ache harder with the urge to bury it inside her and unload all his seed in her womb.
To fill her up and plant his offspring, one that would finally be his, inside her.
Though he had already sired a pup, the boy wasn’t his.
He was an uncle to him since his former pleasure mate found her true mate.
But those few years when he got to act as a temporary father figure before that moment had been wonderful.
He wanted his own young. Offspring that would be his, forever, since they came from his mate. From his Scarlet.
But human females were choosier. They had to be since they, incredibly, became fertile every twenty-eight days instead of only once a year. Havali had to prove himself a worthy male before his female would let him breed her.
A challenge, considering he was not a worthy male.
But he would fake it, for her.
“Will you tell me where we’re going?” Scarlet asked as they walked together through the compound. He had a hover – owned by the domini embassy, lent out on an as-needed basis to whoever requested it – waiting for them on the landing platforms outside.
“We shall eat first, as I am given to understand that sharing a meal with a prospective mate or pleasure mate is part of the human mating ritual.”
Scarlet laughed, so quickly it seemed to surprise her, as she clapped a hand over her face.
“Is that incorrect?” He asked, frowning. “I got the information from Hattie. She told me that dinner was the most common part of the dating cycle.”
“No, no. She’s right,” she held up a hand to him, the other still covering her giggles. “I’ve just never heard it put like that. It makes it sound so strange.”
Ah. She was laughing not at him but at the outsider’s perspective of her culture. And it didn't really matter. He was making his female smile. That felt right. And as Hattie had said, that was the most important thing to do.
“Where are we going then?” She asked when she had calmed down.
“It is a very famous restaurant in the city. Their food is incomparable, and the chef specializes in customizing to the tastes and needs of different species. I already checked and everything they serve should be safely edible to both of us.”
“Of course, you did,” she smiled, as though his attentiveness alone made her happy. “I’m looking forward to it then.”
“Well,” he stopped in front of the hover and lowered the steps for her. He gestured inside with his hand. “Let’s not keep you waiting any longer then.”
“Let’s not,” she agreed.
Then, to his surprise, she took his hand.
Only for a moment. She used it to stabilize herself as she walked up. But she still held his hand. She had trusted him enough to do that.
He curled his fingers around her palm, still feeling the warmth though she had released him disappointingly quickly.
It was just the start of a glorious night.