by Poppy Rhys
“I said,” she gripped his hand, snapping his fingers backward as he hollered. “That’s rude.”
“Hey!” a shrilling female yelled. A spindly green woman that wasn’t much shorter than her popped up beside the purple guy. “Get your hands off my man!”
Before Willa could say anything, the female pulled back her fist and punched her in the face.
Her head snapped back on her shoulders as she stumbled into Tosh. Immediately her hand flew to her nose as warmth trickled down onto her upper lip. Her fingers came away with blood, the pain making her blink repeatedly as her eyes watered.
“Sonuvabitch,” her voice hit an incredulous notch as she glanced at Tosh. “She hit me.”
Blood dripped down her chin, dotting her white top. She really loved that top, and now it was ruined.
When the female pulled back her hand to punch Willa again, she saw it coming.
She blocked her, her right hand fisting as she quickly throat punched the female.
Her green fingers clasped at her own neck as she backed away.
A roar from the male erupted as he stood, club goers nearby screaming and backing away from the commotion.
Willa closed the distance, gripping his shoulders and shoving her knee against his dangly bits. A new howl pitched from his throat, and she gripped a handful of his hair, slamming the side of his head onto the bar.
He dropped to the ground, unconscious with the gasping female draping herself over him and looking at Willa like she was the crazy one.
When she turned back to the bartender, Tosh’s hand was gripping his nose-trunk with a dagger held underneath it, ready to slice the appendage off.
“The coords,” she demanded, wiping at the blood on her chin. “Now!”
****
Willa made her way through the resident floor to her apartment after she left the medical bay. The green bitch from the bar broke her nose. She’d had to endure a lecture from Jonah while he repaired her, which was excruciating. The lecture, not the repair.
It was almost worth letting her nose heal naturally just so she wouldn’t have to hear Jonah go on and on about how dangerous it was to pick fights in bars. He noticeably ignored the fact that it was self-defense.
But at least she was fixed now. There’d be no physical indication her nose had ever been cracked. Except her top… one of her favorite tops.
She groaned, looking at the bloodstains down her front. She’d have to see if someone knew of a remedy to get the dark color out. There had to be. Of all the technological advances, removing blood stains had to be one of them.
The night wasn’t a complete waste though, because the bartender finally saw reason when Tosh held a knife to his trunk. While he confessed he didn’t know where the Wenden lived, he knew where the jerk would be next month and gave the coordinates.
She would have to wait a month to get her family’s necklace back, but it was fortunate that Rewinn Two wouldn’t be too off course. She’d have to figure out a way to get them there.
When she turned down the hall where her apartment was located, she held up her palm, the biometrics recognizing her. The door hissed open, closing swiftly behind her.
The scent of male musk, and citrus hit her nose, the mixture foreign to her. Her gaze swept to the pale gray sectional that took up most of the living space, and landed on three fiery males who were, once again, naked.
“Umm…” she hummed, her forehead wrinkling as she hopped on one foot to pull off her boot. “Honey, I’m home?”
Four sets of eyes stared, and then... “Mrooowwwww.”
Bandie, her lavender Ro’Catta, went on and on, giving her a lecture. Her second one of the night, but she imagined Bandie was ripping her a new one because she left three strangers in the apartment.
“I had nowhere else to put them,” she confessed as Bandie weaved in and out of her legs, the creatures back nearly reaching her knee. They were tall crossbreeds of Earth’s house cat and Dor Nye’s medium sized, feral Rohga’s.
“You didn’t hurt them, did you?”
More mrrrrs. She had no idea what that meant, but chose to believe it was a no. She grinned, scooping Bandie up and kissing her big paws. When she set her down again, the creature ran back to her post atop the table in front of the sectional, her yellow, bioluminescent spots on her flank and chest flickering.
Willa made her way to the small kitchenette along the wall and quickly pressed a panel, the small fridge door popped open and white mist spilled out. She grabbed a vacuum sealed package of meat and sat it in a warm bowl of water so it could heat up.
She slowly made her way around the sectional, her questioning gaze falling on the naked males. Their clothes were scattered on the floor beneath their feet, and she couldn’t understand why. Didn’t they want to be clothed? It had to be uncomfortable walking around bare as the day they were born.
“You guys have no shame, do you?” she smirked, still confused as she began picking up the scattered items while they watched her, expressionless. Again, it was eerie.
“Listen, I can’t just act normal around your freed willy’s,” she gestured to their laps, trying not to make eye contact with their parts.
They looked at one another, finally showing some kind of response.
“Hey, I saw that,” she said, excited as she sat down on the low lying table beside Bandie who stood watch like the newcomers were her charges to keep in line.
“You either understood me… or you didn’t.” Her brows pulled into a scowl, because it made no sense.
“Willa,” she tapped her chest. She repeated her name and the gesture before reaching out to the largest male and touching his chest.
Immediately, his eyes widened. He looked at her hand, at her, then at the other two.
She withdrew her fingers, confused by their animated reactions.
A sigh deflated her chest as she sat there, their clothes in her lap while they looked like they were about to jump out of their skin.
“Wiilllaaa.”
Her eyes widened, flickering to the source of the deep, unsure voice.
White Freckles said her name!
“Yes!” she stood, excitement zipping through her. “Yes, that’s my name!”
When he shrunk back after she stood so abruptly, she slowly sat back down. “Sorry, sorry. Don’t be afraid.”
That miniscule victory seemed huge in her mind. White Freckles said her name! Granted, she still didn’t know his name, which is what she was really wanting when she offered up her own. But it was a victory! It meant he understood her, at least a little.
“Call me Willa,” she smiled. His gaze seemed to stare at her teeth.
“Willa,” he said easier that time.
She nodded enthusiastically, nearly dancing in her seat at the thrilling development. Her hand tapped his knee. “Yes, Willa. That’s me.”
His eyes glued to her hand upon his knee, same as the others. Again, she withdrew her limb, unsure why they reacted.
“Are you guy’s hungry? Because I’m starving,” she stood, still grinning. “I’ll send for some food. And… pants. Yes, pants.” She really didn’t think she could eat food with so much nudity. Maybe sleep pants would be more up their alley.
Her fingertips rubbed the bundle of fabric she held, her brows knitting together. The material was really rough, like it was made out of a primitive thread. How old were these clothes?
She’d get them sleep pants. They were made of softer fabric, loose fit.
Maybe then they’d keep them on.
CHAPTER SIX
Willa lowered herself to the floor beside the table, sitting upon her knees once she’d slipped into her own sleep pants and a soft tank. The surface had a small spread upon it, because she wasn’t sure how much the trio actually ate. Or what.
She figured she had a good variety of simple stuff.
“Go ahead, sit down,” she gestured to all three of them as they stood there looking unsure. At least they had pants on now. The w
hite fabric hung loosely on them, tied at the top. So far, they hadn’t tried to remove them.
She watched as all of them, almost in sync, lowered themselves on each side of the table. White Freckles sat directly across from her.
“Please, eat,” she gestured to the food, and when they just sat there staring at her, she forked a piece of the shredded meat and put it in her mouth. “Mmmm,” she said enthusiastically, feeling like an idiot.
How did they not know how to eat? They had to be hungry.
****
“Why does she want us to eat with her?” Sem asked, his eyes widening slightly as he realized he said that aloud.
Kyran and Nohr glared at him.
“You said something!” Their keeper’s voice had a high pitch to it. She was surprised, just as she’d been when he said her name.
He looked down at the utensils in front of him, pinching the cold metal between his fingers while he looked it over.
“That’s a fork,” she said. “Wait, you probably knew that. Didn’t you?”
He looked over at Nohr who looked just as uncomfortable as he felt.
Only one of his previous keepers used utensils to eat, and it was strange. Why did a utensil need to be used when they all possessed hands?
“Fffff,” he pressed his lips to his teeth like her. “Fff-fferk.”
He didn’t like the way he said that.
Their keeper laughed, startling them all.
“Ffffooorrrrk,” she said slowly, and he watched the way her mouth moved.
He gulped, wishing he’d never tried saying it in the first place. What if he never got it right?
“Fffff-,” he began, trying really hard to shape his lips like hers. “-ffoooorka.”
“That’s good!” She smiled and pushed the plate of meat toward him, waving her fingers. “Go ahead, take some.”
He sent one last look to Nohr and Sem. They stared back at him. He could smell their uncertainty, and he was sure he reeked of it too.
Awkwardly gripping the fork, he jabbed it into a chunk of meat, but it slipped out when he tried to pull it back.
“You have to kinda scoop it,” their keeper snickered, and he decided he liked the sound. “It’s a little too tender.”
He didn’t understand what she said entirely, but she showed him with her own fork.
What a strange word.
He mimicked her, half the meat falling off the utensil, but a small piece balanced on the edge.
His eyes stared at it, his body refraining from moving a muscle.
He looked up at their keeper for further instruction.
She lifted her fork to her mouth and closed her lips over it.
He slowly did the same, his teeth scraping over metal and sending an uncomfortably sharp chill down his spine. Quickly, he took the fork out of his mouth and set it down.
He didn’t like that. At all.
How did she eat this way?
“I know, that’s the worst feeling,” she said while her face wrinkled. “Try using your lips next time, not your teeth.”
Why did he have to pick up the fork in the first place? If he’d just sat there like Nohr and Sem, he wouldn’t have to go through that torture again.
His shaking hand gripped the utensil once more, but then their keeper said, “Ya know, why don’t we just use our fingers tonight?”
He froze, looking at Nohr, then Sem.
“What did she say?”
“I do not know.”
Her eyes lit up, looking at all of them because they’d spoken aloud again.
The fork continued to warm under his grip, but then their keeper rose up, reaching an arm toward him.
Why?
Her fingers plucked the fork out of his hand and then she gathered the rest of the utensils upon the table and set them on the floor beside her.
They watched as she used her hands to begin feeding herself.
A sigh of relief escaped his lungs.
After a few seconds hesitation, he reached for a chunk of food, and then Nohr and Sem were doing the same. They continued to keep their eye on their keeper’s body, her face, and latched onto her scent to monitor her needs.
This was unusual, as they never ate with any of their previous keepers. This was a first. Usually they ate when their daily routine was finished and their keepers were resting. And the food was never anything like this.
Scraps, gruel, a mixture of leftover foods or tasteless bars were what they were used to.
This made them all nervous.
****
Willa finished her food, but continued to sip her water and watch the trio eat to their hearts content. They’d lost a little bit of the rigidity to their spines, though they still seemed on edge, and she couldn’t understand why.
She wasn’t quite sure how it worked with Khymas, as she’d never known any. She only knew about them due to witnessing a squabble at a port where both wealthy merchants had protectors backing them.
That’s when the idea struck her. She needed her necklace from the Wenden back, but she needed muscle. Discreet muscle.
Hiring was out of the question, as that was too public, too expensive, and they could be bought by anyone with more money.
No, she needed loyalty. Needed individuals that wouldn’t switch sides with the offer of more credits.
She rubbed her lips, realizing how awful she sounded even to herself. Guilt was one emotion she couldn’t really afford to feel, because she had to get that heirloom back.
It had to be better for them to be with her and not with that insect bastard from Shad El’s Flesh Market. Right? She couldn’t imagine they enjoyed being shocked just for show. Once she got her necklace back, she would find them good jobs somewhere in the company to show her thanks.
Yes, that’s what she would do.
“Okay, this,” she made a sweeping arc with her arm as she stepped inside the cleansing room. “Is where the scrubba dub dub happens.”
Silence.
“Ya know, where you groom yourself?”
Their ears twitched.
She pointed at the commode. “This is where you go.”
They stared.
“Go,” she emphasized, wondering if they understood her. She really, really, didn’t want to wake up to a puddle of piss somewhere in the apartment tomorrow.
They looked at each other and then made their way to stand around the commode. To her horror, they untied their sleep pants and fished their cocks out.
Willa startled, stepping back, her mouth falling open as they began to urinate right in front of her!
She slow blinked repeatedly, her jaw dragging on the floor as a sound got trapped in her throat and she quickly turned around.
What the hell.
Well, at least they understood her, which meant no piss puddles. Win.
Maybe she shouldn’t have focused on the commode so much. They obviously thought she was commanding them to relieve themselves.
How awkward.
When the toilet auto-flushed, she counted a few more seconds before she turned back around.
“Sooo…” she cleared her throat. “This is the sink. You gotta wash your hands now, or it’s gonna be all I think about for the rest of the night.”
After a slight hesitation, they took turns at the sink and Willa quickly made her exit, waiting for them outside the unit. She thought it was wise to wait to show them the shower. There’d been enough embarrassment for one day.
****
Willa’s eyelid cracked open, an unusual sound floating to her ears. Bandie’s paw was draped over her forehead, but that wasn’t what woke her.
She cracked open her other eyelid before blinking repeatedly, straining to pinpoint what it was that woke her.
It was the sound of the projector in the living space.
She sat up, a labored breath huffing from her lips as she hunched there among the sea of white sheets and puffy duvet.
An unmistakable moan pricked her ears.
&nbs
p; What the hell?
Before bed, she’d taught the trio how to use the remote to control the projector in case they wanted to watch some vids, but it was… -she looked at the digital clock upon her bedside table- after one in the morning.
What were they still doing up?
And more importantly, why was there moaning?
With heavy limbs, she pushed back the covers, her bare feet slapping against the cool floor as she made her way to the bedroom door. The panel swished open, closing behind her when she entered the living space, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.
“Oh my,” she breathed.
White Freckles was the only one up, sitting on the edge of the sectional with his head tilted to the side as he watched porn.
For a moment, her lips parted as her brain tried to decide what she should do. His ear twitched, and then he was looking over his shoulder at her.
Her lips formed, preparing to say something but nothing came out. What the hell was she supposed to say? No? Bad White Freckles? Don’t jizz on my floor?
Instead, she turned on her heel, deciding it was better to leave that alone and go back to sleep. She could pretend she never saw it.
Yes, exactly, she thought as she crawled back under the covers and stared at the ceiling.
She’d just forget.
CHAPTER SEVEN
She couldn’t forget.
The next morning at first meal, it was all she could think about whenever her eyes betrayed her and flickered over White Freckles. Every time, he was staring at her.
There was a new quirk to his brow, like he was confused, and Willa had an inkling it had something to do with the weird shit he was watching last night because a girl only had so many holes a group of guys could fit into at once.
She sighed into her mug of tea, squeezing her eyes shut momentarily as she tried to scrub the image burned into her corneas.
Of all the porn in the universe, he chose to watch a gang bang. It surprised her, as the more she thought about it –unfortunately-, the more she figured he’d be a soft porn kind of guy.
It’s always the quiet ones.
Her comm beeped, startling her so badly, hot tea sloshed over the sides of her mug and onto the table.
