Partner

I struggled this, which is unfortunate. Ah well. Even I have off days when it comes to updating. "eight" months or so and the sequel starts. Which, unorignally, will likely be called sequel just so you all recognise it.

I'm going to stick with the original starting, which I find humorous and catchy at the same time. Could just be me.

Going to go sleep off the brain dead thing.

Read, review and enjoy

Edited for a question I was supposed to answer and forgot to: Jay was not immitating anything people. The motion may have come originally from the kissing of the ring finger, but it is a Sidhe motion. To kiss with lips means intimate, so to brush the nose is an exploration or a "hey, lets get to know one another"




Paw snorted his annoyance as Jay laughed. The Sidhe slapped at his hand again and looked pleadingly at Souse for help. The leader looked away, up at the ceiling and around behind him as if wondering why Paw was upset.

“Paw, this is Jay, Jay, Paw.”

Both bore their teeth, but Paw ended it by sticking out his tongue. Not in a mocking fashion, just more of a poke and there it was and gone a moment later.

Know what?

What Jay had said weeks before drifted back to Mik and he frowned as Jay introduced himself to Souse and then Essuan before moving over to Violet and introducing himself to her. Jay mistakenly introduced himself to the male in the cast the same way he had introduced himself to Essuan.

Or… Jay knew something that the people didn’t.

By the time Jay returned to Mik, Paw was glaring at the man.

“I have waited with baited breath to meet you Paw, Mik could hardly stop talking about you.”

Paw grunted, glaring harder at Jay for a moment before leaning over to Mik to peck the man on the cheek. Then the glare returned to Jay.

“Though you didn’t mention his temper,” Jay murmured, turning his head to face Mik even as he continued to peer at Paw out the corner of his eye, as if he didn’t trust the other Sidhe, “You painted him as a creature of playfulness and delight. I must say, I judge him to be the exact opposite.”

“Calling Paw two-faced?” Paw responded in a calm tone.

“I’m just saying that if you are going to make friends amongst people, maybe you should tell them the truth. It’s not fair to keep them guessing after what you are when your tribe knows you so well.”

Souse snorted, “Paw is a perfect liar, Mister…”

“Mortag, Jay Mortag,” Jay responded, turning his head back to Paw, “You lie even to your tribe? My, my. No wonder he was shocked.”

“Shocked at what?” Paw growled.

“Why to see me there, I would have expected one like yourself to fill him in on the … details.”

Paw bore his teeth to Jay.

Jay ignored Paw and turned to Koln, “so, these are the magical Sidhe. I must admit,” he moved away from Paw and towards Koln, “I am surprised you allowed me to see them. The government, I would think, would want to keep something like this under their hats.”

“Not quite,” Galt responded, “The Sidhe are an endangered species. Most governments are looking to the stars and asking if we are alone in the universe. We prefer to look at our own world and ask ourselves why the Sidhe chose to remain as they are.”

“A question one cannot answer without meeting the Sidhe,” Jay murmured in response, “what is the goal of this program?”

“To help the Sidhe repopulate, to protect them from extinction.”

“How do you know that, as a species, the Sidhe wish to survive, even? Perhaps their time is done.”

Souse let out an inhuman growl and came to his feet. Hohi answered the growl with one of his one. The Sidhe from both tribes howled their consent and Jay managed not to join in. The Sidhe’s mouth opened, lips pulled away from his teeth, but he managed to change the start of a growl to huff.

“I suppose that answers your question,” Koln murmured, “any others?”

“What kinds of tests have you been running? How many Sidhe have made it to … partners?”

“Blood work, eye tests, we managed an MRI on Paw and body scans on a few others.”

“MRI?” Jay muttered.

“It is like the body scan you get at a doctor’s, only more detailed. Tells us about electrical activity rather than just what is normal.”

“Ah. Ah. Yes. I recall reading about those. Don’t they make a lot of noise?”

“Yes. Paw managed to tough it out, however.”

“And how many Sidhe have survived?”

“Most. We lost three in total,” Galt muttered, “none of the bodies were dissected, they were given proper burials. The man who made the program, Nort, wants to pick apart a body but… well… what he doesn’t know, can’t hurt him.”

“Mm. And… any pregnancies?”

“Essuan, Souse’s mate is pregnant by Paw. We’re hoping on another soon, but we’ve made no attempt to force or coerce them into it,” Koln responded.

“So… you’ve been treating them with more respect than you show your own men?”

“Yes,” Galt responded, “better food, nearly anything they could ask for. What we lack is the proper funding to go ahead and bring in more Sidhe or doing much more than we’ve achieved. We would like to expand the program.”

“No,” Jay responded quickly, “I will not fund the growing of the program so soon. You’re barely a month into it. You’ve been lucky so far.”

Galt and Koln looked at one another nervously.

Obviously the program needed money more than they were admitting. Or… they were worried the northern countries were stepping up their poaching because of the program and were making a desperate bit to save the Sidhe.

“I have the money and the influence to buy a good deal of land north of the city. It has a large forest and would… provide a suitable habitat. Hunting, a lake. There is the small problem of there being a lodge there, used for tourism during most seasons, but with the progress you have made here, I see no reason why we cannot speak with the Sidhe and people alike and bring them to an understanding.”

“And if an understanding cannot be met?”

Jay shrugged, “I have always wanted that lodge as a summer home for me and my family.”

Mik almost laughed.

“One way or another, the land would be made suitable for Sidhe habitation, should the program agree not to grow in the next nine months.”

“What about the Sidhe-”

“The land is over five hundred acres. It borders on a nature preserve. Sidhe are surely not much different than you and I, they will look after their own, even if their own were once rivals,” Jay looked over his shoulder at Paw and Souse, then back at Koln, “of course, if the Sidhe here multiply via natural means, I will say nothing of it.”

“And in nine months?” Galt growled.

“We will see where you are, and what more needs be done.”


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