Chapter 8
CHAPTER 8
Lauren
I hold on to D’Var like he is my lifeline. I feel kind of silly being this needy for his nearness, but then I decide I am not going to give a single fuck. I have been kept as a freaking sex slave for years, and that was before I was rented out as a space whore. If keeping a hold of my sanity depends on D’Var being close to me, I am taking it. He does not seem to mind, after all.
When I extricate myself from his embrace, I see that he has some strange bushes with him. They could be plants of some sort?
“What are those?” I ask him, feeling strangely excited over the one which has what looks like berries on them.
“Healthy foods!” he proclaims proudly. His smile is wide and I beam at him in return.
“You got me vegetables? To plant and to eat?”
“Yes,” he says. “Do you like them? ”
My eyes are tearing up again, this time with happiness. “I love them.”
I take a walk around the plants to take a better look. They are huge! Not like earth plants at all. Also, if I want to keep them alive, I may need some equipment because I don’t think plants will be able to grow in outer space without any help. I think back to my Star Trek days and then I remember that Kes had some sort of garden in the ship where she was able to grow plants.
“They are lovely, D’Var…” I start as I turn around to look at him. He is still staring at me with that wide smile.
“Do you have any equipment or any idea as to how we keep them alive?”
“Keep them alive?” he parrots. “I thought you wanted to eat the plants. For Healthy Foods? Also the berries are supposed to be sweet, so I hope you will enjoy those very much!”
I giggle. “If you keep the plant alive, and let it grow, there will be new berries once you have picked the ripe ones. So, I think we need to create some sort of greenhouse, with artificial sunlight? Plants need sunlight to grow.”
He nods and I can see the wheels turning in his head.
“The vendor also sold me supplies when I bought the plants, these must be the things you need. I also think I can make you something. We have solar lights we sometimes use in the medical bay. I can ask O’Rec for a couple and reroute them.”
I nod. “Let’s start with that and figure out what we need on the way.” I touch one of the leaves and it feels just like a succulent plant from home.
“What does the other plant do?” I ask D’Var.
“That one has roots you can eat,” he says. I think about that. I don’t know anything about plants with underground edibles, but this will give me a project to really sink my teeth in when the guys are doing, whatever it is they are doing.
“What is it you guys are doing, exactly?” I ask D’Var as his face does that weird thing again.
“What’s happening? Are you talking to someone?”
He looks at me surprised. “Yes, I am asking T’Rak something.”
I perk up. “You can communicate telepathically?” This is so exciting.
He nods, then he is silent for a while and then he sighs.
“Yes, T’Rak, O’Rec and I have been a crew for many years. Even before the destruction. When you are that close with other Warriors a bond can form.” He grins. “It gives a great advantage in battle.”
I snort, D’Var is a Warrior alright. “So, can you form a bond with other Arracate? Or other beings?”
“With your mate," he says shyly, and he gives me a funny look. I remember him talking about mating and telling me we would talk about that later.
“I think it’s time for later, D’Var.” I say and he blinks. “You promised to tell me about mates later.” I say again.
He nods, and just as he wants to start talking my stomach growls.
“Let me feed you first and then I can tell you all about mates before we go to sleep, alright?”
I really want to protest, but he sounds so logical, and I am hungry, so we go to the Command Center and D’Var fixes something to eat. When we sit back on the bench I decide that this is not going to work long term. So, I make a mental note to remind him to talk about how long I will be on the ship and what our plan is. I have not really been thinking things through, but now that my initial shock is over, I am beginning to think I might have a future again.
We eat in silence. My mind is all over the place, and I am buzzing with questions and possibilities. O’Rec is silently piloting the ship and T’Rak is nowhere to be seen. D’Var seems utterly focused on his noodles, so I let him be. My questions can wait for the privacy of his room.
After dinner he tells O’Rec goodnight, and he takes my hand and leads me to his room. He stops before the door.
“Do you want to sleep here again? You can always go back to your own room if you want, you do not owe me anything.”
I put my hand on his arm. “It’s alright, D’Var. I want to be with you.”
He smiles at me. “Thank you, L’Ren. Thank you for letting me do this for you.”
I smile back. “You have it wrong D’Var, I should be thanking you.”
When we enter his room, he takes me to a big bag that is sitting in a corner.
“I bought you more clothes. You should see if you can find something that is suited for you to sleep in. I will be in the bathroom. You can change here while I am there, or you can change later, in the bathroom.”
He grabs something from a small closet and then disappears into the bathroom. I am touched again by his thoughtfulness. He is doing his best not to crowd me too much, and it is making me want to hold onto him even more. I wonder how he seems to know just what I need as look through the bag of clothes. They are basics; legging, shirts, but all very soft and in soft colors. There are even boots and socks. I love it very much.
No underwear though. I huff a bit. Aliens are so very developed in their technology, but underwear is not something that seems to exist outside of Earth at all. I quickly change my clothes, still bitching in my head about aliens and underwear when D’Var exits the bathroom. I turn around and I freeze, all I can do is stare at him.
D’Var has changed his clothes as well. He has removed the leather bindings, his harness, and he changed his leather pants for soft light gray pants. I think these are the alien equivalent for sweatpants. The pants are low on his hips, and he is all muscle. And all that muscled dark chest is covered in black ink. I can see his tattoos clearly now, without the harness interrupting the patterns, and I am fascinated. They look like tribals and swirls, something out of an ancient earth history book. He is magnificent.
I slowly walk towards him, and he freezes in place, his tail twitches as I get closer. I look at him, my unspoken question in my eyes and he nods. I place my hand on his chest, he feels so warm. His skin is soft like velvet and his muscles are hard underneath.
“Your tattoos are beautiful," I murmur and then I look up at him. “What do they mean?”
He takes my hand and places it on his left upper arm.
“The first markings go here. It’s when a male gets to adulthood. Then with the passing of the trials the markings multiply.” And his big hand is guiding mine over the pattern of thick black lines on his upper arm. When we reach the last one, he places my hand on his chest.
“The markings on the chest start when you enter your first battle. Each battle is represented and each win deserves a special marking," he says while skidding my fingers across his chest. He pauses when he moves my hand to his right arm.
“These are for the Warriors we lost. It is not an equal representation because of the destruction, but we keep those who fell in mind and honor them like this, so we never forget. ”
I caress the lines almost automatically and I swallow. He is so close, and the intimacy of this moment is crackling in the air. My hands move of their own accord and now they are both on his chest. My right hand is slowly moving up to his shoulder and I touch his braid. He pulls it forward and his hair is so soft.
“L’Ren,” he whispers with a restrained voice, and I feel his tail brushing my ankles. I hold my breath, it feels like I am bursting. His tail slowly makes his way up my leg, and his hand caresses my cheek. I let out a soft moan, but immediately feel embarrassed by it. I need to pull myself together, I swallow and step back. Blushing heavily.
“I’ll go use the bathroom now,” I whisper, escaping into the safety of it.
My chest is heaving when I look into the mirror. I barely recognize myself. My cheeks are flushed, but my eyes are sparkling. My hair is braided like something out of an old Shakespeare movie. It lies atop my hair like a crown and ends in one braid across my right shoulder. I aged a lot the past years, I contemplate, as I study myself for a moment. I think six years have passed since I was taken at 22, but I look at least ten years older now. I shrug and let it go. Time to use the bathroom, then go back out to that gorgeous, big alien out there who promised to tell me all about mates.