Partner

Having read the previous chapter three times, I still missed the error that Lisa caught. Mik was not attacked by the Sidhe, Souse was. He had walked to the "no-man's land" because he knew it was going to happen and didn't want his tribe involved in it.

This took far too long to write for how short it was.

And I might just be running out of chapter titles O.o I try to pick a word from the chapter that seems to fit and I keep having to try, try again.

Read, Review and Enjoy.




Koln entered the room fifteen minutes later, a concerned look on his face. He glanced about at the males, the one laying in the middle of the floor and the other two huddled together. Koln turned towards Mik, saw the look on the man’s face and moved across the floor to Paw and Souse.

Souse was curled against Essuan, an arm draped around her, claiming and yet protecting her at the same time. Paw sat between the couple and the tribe as the group murmured amongst themselves. All conversation came to a stand still as Koln approached the group.

There was consulting, chatting, talking, Paw clasped Koln’s hand in a friendly gesture and Koln walked over to Mik and sat beside the man.

“I… think I just agreed to share your discipline,” Koln murmured to Mik, drawing his knees up, “Which I find odd… but I suppose it would be appropriate or something.”

“I don’t think we’re supposed to talk,” Mik responded.

“Paw said we could. Quietly,” Koln lowered his voice as Paw glanced over, “We turn the cameras off every six hours, for an hour. Obviously they figured that out. But we don’t know what happened. Cameras came back on, everyone was like this. Took us ten minutes to piece together a possible scenario and another five for me to convince the boys not to sedate everyone.”

“You’re all idiots,” Mik hissed back, “not sedating is the best thing to do, apparently.”

“When I told you to talk to him about it, I didn’t mean-”

“I didn’t get a chance to,” Mik caught Essuan glaring at him and he ducked his head for a moment before whispering at Koln, “I tried talking to him and he went to the center of the room and all of a sudden they all leapt on him. He had it under control until one of them threatened Essuan’s baby.”

“And you…”

“Kicked him in the head,” Mik muttered before adding, at Koln’s look, “he was laying on the floor at the time. Then he was up and he had a weapon and Souse just stopped. Wasn’t sure which was the safest route, or… something. Essuan, I think, can handle herself, but Souse wouldn’t let her. Paw comes around the side, snatches the knife away like the male is a child or something, flicks it about a bit and grins in a creepy way. Tosses the knife aside and punches the guy. Fought like a people. Took the other guy off guard and then.”

“And then?” Koln asked when Mik paused.

“And then Paw told the male something very quietly that scared him. I’ve never seen someone who was so much larger than Paw look so frightened. It was like Paw just… reached into his body and pulled out his spine.”

“… the male’s.”

“Yes,” Mik bobbed his head, “creature’s been there since. They’ve been chatting since. Frankly I don’t know what’s more frightening. The idea that I’m about to be discipline. Again. Or the fact that I’m actually afraid they’ll … rahuen me.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Basically the entire tribe ignores you no matter what you do or how sad you get. I don’t want Paw to ignore me. I… don’t want Lillow to… I don’t want to be ignored,” Mik sighed and put his head down on his arms.

“Sounds about as appealing as a kick to the head.”

“Personally I would rather be kicked in the head,” Mik muttered, turning his head to see if Violet still watched him, “they’ve seemed oddly interested in this all. Two tiny assed tribes, watching each other so very carefully over a dominance thing which Souse seemingly proved he completely owned.”

“But he didn’t. Paw helped. Personally I would have rather Souse let Essuan loose on the … male… Paw used to be a leader, look at this from an underling’s stand point. Why is Paw standing between Souse and the rest of the tribe? Why isn’t Souse throwing his weight around to make sure everyone’s in line. His only concern is Essuan.”

“So? Someone had a knife to his mate’s belly.”

“And that someone is still alive,” Koln muttered back, “Someone put a knife to Paw’s belly.”

“Paw would kill them.”

“But if Paw couldn’t help himself. Are you telling me that you would leave him alive if you had the means to kill him?”

“I’d rend the bastard limb from limb,” Mik growled, “but. The Sidhe ways are not our ways. People would rend him limb from limb. And perhaps it is a worse punishment to leave him alive.”

“Violet’s tribe won’t have him.”

“Looks like nor will Souse’s tribe. Taking a weapon to a pregnant woman? I don’t think even the Sidhe could forgive that.”

“Are we talking too loud?” Koln looked at the Sidhe.

Mik looked up. The group of Sidhe were looking at Mik and Koln. They all looked very serious as they turned in unison to Paw and spoke, in unison. Paw grunted and walked towards Mik and Koln.

Mik felt a cold, hard lump form in the pit of his stomach. He swallowed as Paw pulled to a stop, a few feet away from the pair. Paw crossed his arms as the other members of the tribe slid up behind him. The small Sidhe glowered at Mik and Koln.

Lillow was the first one. She slipped around Paw and blinked at Koln, then at Mik. She looked between them several times and looked down at her hands, then back up at them. The small female made a sound that might have been confusion. Paw set his hands on Lillow’s shoulders, whispered something in her ear.

What was Lillow going to do?

“Boop,” it was as delicate as butterfly wings as Lillow’s fingernail grazed the area between Mik’s eyebrows.

For one startling moment, Mik wondered what male would be able to deny Lillow once she came to full maturity. The moment passed and Mik blinked up at Paw as the male’s face broke into a small smile.

Paw’s hands left Lillow’s shoulders and he pulled another up and around him. There, again, Mik saw the possibility hiding just beneath the surface of the younger male.

Paw was doing it.

Mik blinked as the male booped him. Him and Koln both.

Through the poke of each member of the tribe, Mik saw the possibility of the younger ones, of the forgotten potential of the older ones. Of the second pregnancy, in the early stages that a female that was apparently younger the Paw was hiding from even Essuan. When Essuan approached, her poke was a jab. Her boop was the irritated sound of a woman who still wanted to gut, skin and de-bone the bastard who dared harm her.

She would give her life for that child if she had to. That spark of so much potential that existed yet didn’t. Unlike the other female’s pregnancy, Essuan’s burned with a brilliance that was at least twice that as the other female’s.

Souse was the last one of the remaining ten. His poke was not a poke at all, but a flick of his fingers, catching Mik and Koln square between the eyes.

“Boop,” the Sidhe muttered, “Now. About my green growing things.”


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