Chapter 25
TWINK
“So what can you shapeshift into?” Roger asked Kryton.
After Daddy headed to the back of the ship to talk to his ex, I continued offering scritches to Pluto while Roger and Eric had started peppering our alien rescuer with questions.
For Roger, I assumed this was like if I met a serial killer and could pick their minds about why they behaved the way they did.
Although, despite how eager he seemed to have someone to give him answers to all his extraterrestrial questions, guilt nagged at me for how I’d lied to him earlier, something I kept being reminded of every time he glared at me in the middle of one of Kryton’s responses.
It wasn’t just that I’d lied to him and made out like he was being silly for looking into this alien stuff. It was that, by being involved with Daddy, I’d put his and Eric’s lives at risk.
“It depends on how you mean that question,” Kryton replied.
“If you’re asking if I could eventually shift into most things, I would say that’s likely, but if right now you wanted me to shift into a giraffe, I couldn’t because I’ve never taken that form before, and really I don’t plan to anytime soon.
Furkers prefer certain forms, and I do enjoy this one, and judging by the way you’ve been looking at me since you got here, you do too. ”
He winked again, and Roger’s brow furrowed. I wondered if he was considering the same sorts of things I had about Daddy—if he really could see himself messing around with an alien with a bunch of tentacles. Really, if he knew how fucking hot it was, he probably wouldn’t have had any doubts.
“Come on,” Kryton said, standing up a little taller. “What else you guys got?”
He seemed to enjoy answering these kinds of questions, like he finally got to share with someone this world of knowledge in his mind.
“I’m more interested in the ship, to be honest,” Eric said, looking around at all the gadgets and gizmos.
“Okay, then,” Kryton said, just as Daddy returned, a sorrowful expression on his face. I didn’t imagine it was easy talking to his ex. Hell, if my ex had tried to kill us, then…hmmm…that analogy might not work.
“Sorry, Eric,” Kryton said. “I did want to chat with Daddy for a minute now that he’s free. This is Furker business and all, but I won’t be long, and then I can show you around.”
As Kryton and Daddy chatted, Roger glared at me some more. “So, no aliens in Harmony Springs, huh?” His voice was coated with all the resentment I figured he’d been harboring since the attack.
Eric’s eyes widened. “Yeah, as much as I want to be in on this awkward conversation, I think I’m gonna explore the ship,” he said, and proceeded on his solo tour. It was for the best.
“About that…” I began. “I felt like shit when I told you that. I didn’t want to say something that Daddy wouldn’t have wanted you to know, but I know that was a shitty thing to do to my best friend. I’m sorry. Please say you forgive me.”
Roger studied me, deciding if what I did was forgivable. His expression finally relaxed. “Well, if you’re wondering, it sucks when you find out your best friend is keeping from you the fact that his boyfriend is an alien.”
“I wish he was more than my boyfriend,” I said, sounding disappointed as I thought about the sort of bonding Daddy had told me about.
His annoyed expression lingered a few moments before he cracked a smirk. “You really like this guy, don’t you?”
I watched Daddy and Kryton in conversation.
“Like doesn’t really cover what I feel for him,” I confessed.
“Today, when he was looking for her, I was so scared that something might happen, and yes, I didn’t want him to get injured, but also, I just…
I think it really made me realize how much I feel for him.
I don’t know that I’ve ever felt like this before. ”
The corner of his mouth twisted downward. “Maybe I could forgive you for lying to me. I guess this wasn’t exactly something there’s a rule book for.”
“Well, if you or one of your UFO enthusiast friends find one, you’ll have to let me know.”
“Oh my God. Those guys would lose it if they knew I was in here,” he joked. “Now come here. Give Powerbottom a hug, asshat.”
I did just that, and Daddy stepped away from Kryton.
“Sheila’s quite something, though,” Kryton observed.
Daddy nodded. “One of the most beautiful creatures I’ve ever beheld.”
This earned a cringe from Roger before Daddy added, “Of course, not more beautiful than my Twink.”
Roger inspected me, as though trying to find the comparison between Sheila and me, then said, “I think that’s negging. He’s abusive.” The smirk that played across his lips assured me that despite our issues, we were okay again.
“I think we’ve settled everything we need to here,” Kryton told us. “Maybe another time for that tour, since I assume you’re all ready to go home.”
“What? Already?” Roger asked.
“You, Roger, don’t have to go home if you don’t want to,” Kryton said.
Roger’s gaze wavered. I could tell he was considering it, but then he shook his head. “Eh, I gotta get going.”
“Oh, and one more thing, Daddy,” Kryton said, sounding amused by the nickname. “You know we have to follow the Justice Department rules, and now that this Tier 5 species knows about our kind, their minds have to be wiped.”
Daddy glared at him.
“Wait, what?” I asked.
“Oh, man,” Roger added, while Eric chimed in with, “Can you make me forget a few other things too?”
Kryton approached us and massaged his arm cuff so that several lights streaked across it.
“Wait, how far back am I going to forget?” I asked, turning to Daddy.
Was I going to forget him? Would he not be able to see me again?
“Kryton,” Daddy said through his teeth, clearly disapproving, though not nearly as bothered by it as I figured he should be.
Kryton snuck Daddy a playful look before shrugging. “Come on. Let me give them a hard time.” Then to us, “The fuck do you guys think this is? Men in Black? No one’s wiping anyone’s memories—at least, not today.”
I realized I’d been holding my breath, and could now finally breathe again knowing he wasn’t about to tear my memories of Daddy away from me.
“But,” Kryton added, “you can’t run around telling all your friends about this.”
“Powerbottom?” Daddy asked.
“Yeah, Powerbottom?” Kryton said, grinning.
Powerbottom—I mean, Roger—rolled his eyes. “I’m not gonna tell any of those guys. Jesus, if Charlie can keep a secret, then I definitely can.”
“Who the hell is Charlie?” Kryton asked.
I raised a hand as Roger said, “I won’t tell anyone.”
“And anyone I would have told is already in here,” Eric said. “So I think you’re good.”
“In that case, as a member of the Justice Department, I have the authority to deputize Tier 5 species to help me with my missions, so you can all consider yourselves special agents for the Justice Department. Not that it will really matter, since Daddy and I are the only Furkers on this planet. Oh, and before I let you go…” He headed off through another hallway and promptly returned with a large crystal, about the size of my hand.
“I didn’t want to say anything when you first mentioned your ship needed one to return, but I ran a check, and it’s fully functional. ”
I suspected this was the hyperblemic crystal Daddy told me about, the one that, if he could fix, then he’d be able to get his ship up and running.
“I’ll be heading out tonight to take Sheila to the Justice Department,” he explained, “but I’ll return to Earth, and if that crystal doesn’t do the trick, upon my return, we can get a team here to recover your ship and get it into a shop for repairs.”
What did that mean for me and Daddy?
As we exchanged a glance, I unfortunately knew the answer.
He didn’t have much time left here.
The adrenaline that had me going since Sheila attacked us dissolved, replaced with sadness. I didn’t want him to go. Not yet.
Eric slipped between Roger and me. “Well, Special Agent Twink, Special Agent Powerbottom, wanna grab something to eat on the way home?”
I was so disappointed with Kryton’s reveal that I couldn’t enjoy Eric’s humor, which made me feel terrible.
Of course Daddy wanted to get back home. He had a mission to complete, and he needed to get back to his own kind.
My disappointment settled in as we wrapped everything up with Kryton, thanking him before disembarking his ship, nestled between a Thai restaurant and a bowling alley, which was really convenient for Roger and Eric, who went for Thai.
I wasn’t really hungry after everything that happened, so Daddy and I headed back to the Kaylog with Pluto, who fell asleep in my arms.
En route, Daddy must’ve sensed how I felt. We were probably halfway back to his ship when he suddenly took my free hand, interlocking his fingers with mine, gripping tight.
For a moment, it made me feel better, but only a moment.
We were silent on the way back to his ship. Maybe because we were tired from the long day. Or maybe because we were both considering what life would be like once he left.
Regardless, it wasn’t until we got back to his ship and found a spot on the sofa for Pluto that I finally turned to him. Seeing that beautiful face, knowing that soon it would be gone, made my throat tighten up.
“I’m sorry,” I muttered.
“Sorry?”
“I should be happy that you get to go back home.”
“I should be happy too, but I’m not either.”
I could feel tears coming on.
Don’t do this.
As I tried to blink them away, Daddy moved closer, hooking an arm around me. “I don’t like the idea of being away from you. I care about you, deeply. You have no idea how scared I was that something might’ve happened to you today.”
“I felt the same. I was trying to act normal to keep your secret, but all I kept thinking was what if something happened to you and I couldn’t help.”
He studied my face. I wondered if he was memorizing every feature and line, the way I was doing with him.
“I know this might not be ideal,” he said, “but would you be willing to wait for me? To complete my mission? It’s going to be a long time. My planet isn’t anywhere near here, and my mission isn’t an easy one.”
His words gave me hope, but it mixed with fear. “Can Furkers do that? Be somewhere else and not think about mating with someone else…or something else?”
I knew this didn’t have anything to do with Daddy, but with my feelings about Carter, how easy it had been for him to stray, even when I was right there with him.
He tightened his hold around me. “Twink, you really have no idea how special you are to me. I don’t want to scare you, but I care about you so much.
I think about what it would be like to bond with you.
To make you my mate. And it’s all I want right now.
I don’t want that to make you uncomfortable around me, but it’s the truth.
I wish your language wasn’t so limited because then I could express to you all these feelings within me, but the most of it is, I love you. ”
His words washed through me, the fear of him leaving replaced by the simple knowledge that I wasn’t crazy.
“I love you too,” I confessed.
We stood there for a moment, gazing into one another’s eyes, fully appreciating the moment before he moved steadily closer, his lips grazing mine before he took a kiss.
It was his to take, that was all I knew.
My cheeks prickled with sensation as his tongue slid into my mouth, caressing in that familiar way as he cupped his hand against my cheek.
And in a moment, I felt two tentacles against my back.
His kiss was too much for me. I hooked my arms around him, clinging to him with desperation, wishing I could keep him here with me forever. But I at least wanted to have this moment.
“Let’s pretend you’re not going home,” I whispered into his mouth. “Let’s have a night where it’s just you and me, in love, and nothing else matters.”
With that, I felt more tentacles sliding tentatively around me…three, four, five, six, seven, eight… All eight!
“It’s okay, Daddy. I want the real you. I want all of you.”
As he drew me close, his body shifted against me as he continued with relentless kisses.
The rip of his jeans echoed around the ship, and as he grew taller, he hoisted me up by my thighs.
“Take me, Daddy,” I begged.