Believer

The mark appeared the very next morning. She saw it when she lounging across the bed trying to avoid having to get up and face the rest of the day. Like a neon sign it seemed to blare squarely in Victoria's face, taunting her and reminding her of the events of last night. The growing tenderness that pulsated through almost every inch of her body was also a good indication.

Revaz was in the kitchen two rooms over. She could heard the soft thud of his footsteps against the tiled floor and the occasionally clank of a glass being picked up or set down. She imagined he was probably drinking this planets equivalence of a morning coffee. He seemed like the type who would have lavished in the bitter flavor.

Her skin felt flushed as images of the night before briefly flashed through her mind. Like a fresh cut they were still quite sensitive. She found herself barely able to acknowledge the event, and although it haunted the very back of her mind she refused to give it any deep or emotional thought. It was just sex after all....Wasn't it?

He took care of her with very little complaint while her leg healed. It was a much quicker process than she had ever anticipated. Whatever Revaz used to clean her leg every night just before bed it had caused the wound to heal much faster than it should have. But the time two week had passed it had almost entirely closed up and she was able to limp around the house without assistance.

They shared a bed together now, which was no surprise considering that Revaz had already made it very clear that the completed bonding process made them the equivalence of a married couple. At first it was the most agonizing thing in the world to have half of the bed space taken up. Ever since that fateful night he'd been keen on lingering as close to her as possible. During the wee hours of the night she would hear the gentle rustle of the bedsheets as he scuttled over to her side of the bed, pressing his body firmly against hers like they were a set of spoons in a cutlery drawer.

Andrea was allowed to visit again. The very moment she lay eyes on the mark on Victoria's shoulder her lips curled into a coy but slightly disappointed smile. “You couldn't do it either I see? I thought I could ignore Tariel too. It sounds so simple but really it's not.” She murmured while clasping her hands gracefully around the cup of tea Victoria had offered her.

“I was so close too.” Victoria mourned silently as her eyes focused on the floor. “I don't even know why I did it. A part of me felt bad for him I guess, but another part of me just feels like I've wasted my only chance to be free from him. But then, even if I had gotten away how would I have ever gotten home?!” She gave a frustrated sigh while fussing over the arrangement of her cup on the table.

“No offence girly but the only way off this planet for you or me would require learning how to operate one of those spaceships and they're about as complicated as the insides of a super computer. “ She shrugged her shoulders, silently accepting the ill fate they shared as though it were a casual occurrence. “Still, it must have felt good. At least for a little.”

“What?!” Victoria felt her skin crawl at the mere sound of such an embarrassing question. “Oh no...no...no.” She rambled softly but Andrea's mild chuckling told her that her words were transparent. This woman used to live her life around sex. It was only understandable that she would be able to smell out Victoria's shameful flaw. “Okay fine. It...did feel kind of good.” She felt herself go red in the face as she looked up into the much older woman's face. “I always thought it would be painful though. When it happened it was so strange. I still don't understand any of it. Why didn't I bleed?”

“You really were a virgin, weren't you?” Andrea exclaimed with just the slightest hint of amusement. “The whole concept of crippling pain and gushing blood during your first time is a farce Victoria. Not every girl experiences discomfort when she's plucked. I didn't for example, although to be very fair it was a long time ago and I'd done a little 'practicing' before it happened.”

“What do you mean by 'practicing'?” Her insides squirmed as she leaned forward in her chair, mortified by how quickly their conversation had turned to sex. “You can't really practice for that sort of thing can you?”

“Oh dear god did you grow up under a rock?” Andrea laughed this time as she finished the last few sips of her drink and carefully set it aside. “I'm talking about masturbation honey. You know, 'touching yourself'? I experimented with it a few times as a teenager. By the time a boy entered my life I already knew how everything worked down there. Made things a lot less complicated I have to say.” She was running her fingers through her hair, gripping tightly into the dark tendrils in that frustrated way that only humans do. “Why didn't you pick that up? You're 19, didn't one of your friends or your mother teach you any of this crap?”

“No...” Victoria winced. Were mothers really supposed to teach their daughters these kinds of things? “I heard a few girls talking about it when I was school but they never really told me what it meant, and my mother didn't teach me much of anything. I didn't even know what a period was until I got it when I was 15. She didn't like talking about that stuff. She told me it was unclean.”

“No offence but your mother sounds like a crazy bitch.” Andrea exclaimed with her hands stilled burred into her hair. “It's not 'unclean' Victoria. It's natural. Perfectly natural. And a hell of a lot better for you than suppression and paranoia. It's too bad you got such piss poor sexual education. You won't even get to try it now.”

“What does that mean?”

Her lips pursed together in response to the question as though the subject had suddenly soured her mood. “I'd rather not get into it right now. Just don't try to do it. You're not allowed to anymore.”

The subject was dropped right then and there and although they had an enjoyable afternoon together the newly established 'rule' haunted Victoria. Long after Andrea had left she fumed over it. It wasn't even the concept of touching herself that upset her. In fact if Andrea had not mentioned it she might of been happily oblivious of the subject. It was the idea of being controlled the angered her. The very thought that she was 'not allowed' to do something mingled with the events of the past few months made her wildly rebellious. Why couldn't she? After all, it was HER body after all. The only thing of value that she had with her on this bleak and unfamiliar planet. She had every right to do whatever she wanted to with it.

One morning as she was bathing herself the subject popped back into her mind. It had been quite some time since Andrea had given her the hasty 'warning' and it's return to the centre of her thought processing made it all too impossible for Victoria to ignore. She could not help but wonder about it. What made people do such a thing to themselves? What was it like? She remembered listening to the harsh whispers of girls in high school mentioning that it felt good but a small piece of her felt as though

Curiously her hand traveled slowly down her stomach, trickling closer and closer to the sensitive spot between her legs. She'd never touched it this way before. Besides washing it clean every day the womanly part of Victoria's body had never really sparked interest in her before. She explored it curiously, ashamed by the slight tingle that wafted across her pelvis when her index finger flicked across the sensitive little nub that was location a few inches above the opening.

It took a long time for her to work of the courage as she sat on the edge of the tub with her legs splayed open, vigorously rebelling her friends warning. After a painfully long hesitation however she slipped two fingers inside her body. She was surprised at first by how warm and moist it felt, very unlike what she had anticipated. And as she pulled her fingers out and curiously slid them back in a second time she discovered that it sent licks of pleasure up her stomach.

Delighted, she slowly began to pump her fingers in and out of the sensitive opening. The sensations it gave her were exhilarating. Her body felt as though it were screaming. She allowed her other hand to reach down and toy with the pinkish nub, identifying it now as her clit. She was pleasantly surprised by how much the sensations intensified when she did this, like someone had taken her pleasure sensors and turned them up to full volume. A moan caught in her throat as she stretched her legs farther apart, eager with anticipation.

Having all but forgotten about reality and the world around her, Victoria did not expect anything that happened next. Her mind was so intent on how close she was to a release that she did not react initially when the bathroom door slammed open. He appeared in the doorway looking like a character out of a blood churning horror story. The look in his eyes gleamed with a rage that was barely under control and sent shivers down Victoria's spine.

'Oh god...' She mentally thought as he lunged towards her. The hiss that he made was poison to her ears and she found herself weeping softly when he took her by the shoulders and forced her to stand up. “What are you doing?” Her voice erupted in a loud, child-like squealing noise as he pinned her up against the bathtub wall with her feet pooling in the lukewarm water and matted hair clinging to her chest.

“Don't do that...Don't ever do that.” Victoria could not help but notice the angry expression he gave her as he spoke. It had been some time since she'd upset him, but it had never triggered such a red hot rage before. Seeing that enraged look brewing in his eyes made her feel violently ill. He griped tightly into her shoulders, digging his fingernails into the thin skin as he shook her rigidly. “Do you understand me!?”

“I didn't do anything!” She cried out while attempting to push him away but he was much stronger then she was, fully capable of harming her if he'd truly wanted to.

“No!” Revaz growled. She could feel his warm breath across her skin, it was so warm it felt like he was burning her. Her legs began to wobble. If it wasn't for those two hands griping onto her shoulders she would have been a jello-like mess on the ground. “You do not do that Victoria! You cannot. It is wrong.”

“Let go. Let go of me you bastard!” She punched him in retaliation, the very moment she managed to gather some courage . With a closed fist she struck Revaz just hard enough to make him let go of her. He cringed in pain for a moment and cupped the lower half of his face while she scampered around his legs, crawling her way out of the slippery bathtub and onto the tiled floor. She didn't feel sorry when she looked up and saw that his face was smeared with blood. It was either him or her as far as she knew right now, and Revaz for all that he'd done to unravel her life deserved so much more than a simple punch in the nose.

“Look what you have done to me...” He pressed his hand against the front of his shirt, wiping the glistening red blood across the clean white fabric. The sight of the blood made her feel like she was going to be sick. She wished she could have been able to read his mind at that moment. Then perhaps she could have known whether or not he was plotting her demise.

“You deserved it!” She trembled a little but her voice stayed just as firm as it had been before. “I won't let you control me and what I can or cannot do. ”

“Victoria, do you not realize what you were doing?!” He hissed at her again only this time it was much more venomous as he held his hand beneath his chin to collect the droplets of blood still trickling out of his nose. “I feel every single thing that you feel now! I can sense all of it; your anger, your joy...your delight.” As she listened to him she fumbled for a spare towel that had been left on top of the bathroom counter. Draping it over her body she mentally winced while imagining all of the secrets Revaz no doubt already knew now that he could get even deeper into her mind. “I am not going to force you to touch me Victoria.” She heard him speak again and glanced up to find him standing over her, shadowing her like a character out of a bad dream. “But, it is an extreme sign of disrespect and blatant cruelty to me when you in turn pleasure yourself while I am so near. Do not do it again.”

“Or what?” She choked a little as her defiance overpowered her common sense. Sopping wet and possessing only a towel to shield her there was very little chance that Victoria could defend herself against an attack. A chill swept through her body as she imagined all the possibilities. According to Revaz his species has no notions of rape or torture, but he'd never mentioned anything about torture and that opened up a delightful realm of hell that made bile rise to the back of her throat.

“No. Do not assume that. Do not ever assume such things!” He was quick to retaliate to her disturbing thoughts. As he knelt down beside her, she felt him quiver, not from despair but from anger. The kind that suggested he was annoyed with her inability to control jumping to conclusions. It seemed like whenever Victoria had been threatened by him in the past her mind had jumped into paranoid suspicions of possible rape. “You know I would not hurt you that way.”

Long before her senses returned she had blurted out; “Then what way would you hurt me?” The question itself left a hollow feeling of darkness and despair, which seemed to cloud over that tiny little room they were sharing. “Tell me Revaz, if you won't rape me then what will you do? What can I expect when I strike enough wrong nerves with you?”

Mutilation was a possibility. Torture and physical violence perhaps even. Even on earth these things were not uncommon, though when they occurred in extreme cases the news would usually have a field day broadcasting them. They never lasted longer than a week though. That's how long it took for a story to become stale.

Shrugging herself free from his grasp Victoria pulled herself up onto her feet. With her back scrunched against the bathroom door she had almost entirely blocked herself into the room. Her only exit was now holding her up, and even if this bathroom has possessed a window she doubted Revaz would have allowed her to simply climb through it.

His nose was still bleeding. She knew by the way that he clasped his hand over the lower half of his face, successfully concealing the fact that it was still trickling blood. “I assure you I am unable to even express the despair that it brings me knowing that you actually expect violent actions from me. Prior to this day I have done very little to promote myself as a creature of vicious intention.”

“Oh, and I suppose forcefully taking me away from my home is not an act of violence?” She was very quick to correct him when she realized his fault. Digging her fingers into the hard wood she was slumped against Victoria wrestled with the urge to punch him again. He did not respond to her venomous statement, allowing her to fume at him for a few minutes before she turned her head away. “At least if you told me what to expect I could brace myself. It wouldn't just be sneak up on me like some bad dream.”

“No letting you know is torture within itself.” Revaz retorted. He sounded very calm, but she somehow knew that inside he was still just as enraged as he had been when he first walked in on her. “I will not tell you what I will or will not inflict upon you.” He reached out and instinctively she flinched, awaiting that moment when those pale fingers would wrap around her throat and either squeeze or choke the life out of her. Instead his hand fell down, traveling towards the cold metal doorknob. She nearly fell backwards from the shock of the door she had been pressed against suddenly shifting. The surprise flooded her entire body, causing her to shriek as she stumbled backwards a few paces and found herself standing in the hallway with nothing but a damp towel draped around her body.

He said nothing else to her for the rest of the day although as he was storming past her Victoria could have sworn she heard him mutter something under his breath. It was one of the rare instances when she wanted anything other than neglect from Revaz. A part of her was always wanting to glance over her shoulder as the hours ticked by and she slowly anticipated a heinous punishment. But it never arrived. Or perhaps the paranoia of waiting for a punishment, as he had told her, was punishment within itself.

They did not speak to each other over dinner. The tension in the air was as thick as peanut and they stubbornly ignored it. Between bites of food she could not identify Victoria found herself completely in a world of her own. She felt as though she were encased within a plastic bubble. When she glanced up at one point and saw him fixated on his plate she knew that Revaz had emotionally retreated in a similar way.

Deciding what to wear to bed was a nightmare. Having lost all of her comfortable cartoon PJ's and moth eaten T-shirts she had collected back on earth as sleepwear, Victoria was forced to select from the collection of nightwear that Revaz had offered her. Shifting through those delicate scraps of mesh, silk, and lace only made his true affections shine through. Sorting through the collection of blatantly sexual nightwear, Victoria found herself feeling drained and completely embarrassed. She could not stand the way those garments looked hanging delicately from metal and wooden hangers. They seemed to taunt her as she searched through them in her desperate hunt for anything that wasn't figure hugging or transparent.

The in end she selected the floor length nightgown, one that was overbearingly modest in comparison to it's companions. Through she hated the thin straps and the wispy sound the long skirt made when she moved she could not find anything blatantly sexual about it. There were no traces of lace or mesh or anything else of a risque nature. Though her shoulders were completely bare she was fond of how the neckline ended; just a few inches bellow her collar bone. However as she was pattering her way softly into the bedroom that she and Revaz now shared Victoria secretly wished she had been able to find a grungy old sweatshirt instead. Nothing was more repelling than a woman who refused to carry herself to bed with some grace, her mother used to tell her this whenever she attempted to part her from her cartoon printed PJ's.

It was quite nerve racking for her to step inside that poorly lit bedroom. Knowing that he was already in there made her stomach churn. He noticed her presence of course, but did not lift his head to acknowledge her. Instead, Revaz watched her from the corner of his eye, turning his head ever so slightly as she padded her way to the opposite side of the room. Neither of them was ready to wish the other one a 'Goodnight' that required being kind for a moment. As Victoria yanked back the heavy covers and wriggled herself into a comfortable position on the large mattress she found herself wishing she had chosen to sleep somewhere else tonight.

He was not wearing any shirt tonight, a change that had no doubt been made just to spite her. The pants that hugged the lower half of his body were far too big for someone of his size, the waistband seemed to hang desperately to the outer curves of his waist, exposing far more than she was used to seeing . This of course in turn ended up causing a hint of redness to appear on Victoria's face which was his intention as far as she could tell. He was harassing her thoughts, enticing her to respond. Every movement that he made seemed to challenge her will; begging her to turn her head a look over at the exposed flesh as he flopped over onto the mattress beside her. Lounged across the bed with his hands beneath his head she could have sworn she heard him scoff.

Closing her eyes, Victoria forced her mind to go blank as she prepared herself for a very uncomfortable sleep. But sleep never came for her. The sandman denied her rest even after hours had ticked by and the room was completely dark. Every time she tried to drift away into the dreamworld her thoughts would trickle back to the events from earlier that day and she would squirm uncomfortably as her body reminded her it had been denied a release.

Revaz did not stir beside her, but she knew he was awake. No doubt gazing at her as he probed through her thoughts again, searching through them like an old filing cabinet with little regard to how it might have affected her. He must had delighted in the way that her body pined still for a climax. After becoming so upset with her earlier that day it was the most ideal for of karma. The 'punishment' for supposedly being selfish enough to touch herself so close to him was the agony of never being allowed to complete the act. She grimaced when she felt a hint of moisture gathering on the inside of her panties, reminding her of how vile and sexual he'd made her.

She thought it was his hand at first, when she felt something slithering beneath the bedsheets towards her. But then she felt the long, narrow appendage that wrapped itself around her thighs and she knew then what part of him was touching her. As she lay there, clamping her eyes shut and practically trying to wish herself to sleep it writhed across her body. The blunted tip was like a finger, drifting slowly down the skirt of her nightgown. She could feel it. Even with the fabric protecting her she knew what that writhing meant. She knew the tentacle's intention long before it had traveled to her feet and slipped it's way beneath the silky black hem.

He had moved closer to her now. Their bodies were pressed firmly against each other like a pair of matching pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. “Please.” She whispered into the darkness, arching her back when the intrusive tentacle began to work it's way along one of her legs. “D-d-don't do this.”

“It is what your body wants.”

She winced at the sound of his voice. It was the truth of course. Or at least some twisted and mangled form of the truth. Her thighs trembled with the appendage slid between them, reaching up, up, up until the tip was pressed firmly against the warm feminine spot that had secretly been hungering for attention all day long. “Not this way.” She mewled reluctantly. The thought of that 'thing' inside of her was far too nerve racking. Her pulse quickened when she briefly imagined it. There was no way; not a chance in the world that her body could handle such a thing. It was so long...

There was another one. It found it's way around her wrists when she attempted to squirm away, binding itself around them like a finely crafted rope. No matter how hard Victoria struggled against it, the tentacle held tight. The way it squeezed down against her delicate skin only enticed more of the fear that was swirling around inside of her. “No! No, please!” She screamed as she felt the intrusive warmth of his fingers reaching between her legs and sneaking beneath the waistband of her panties.

“Fear again. You are always so quick to jump to the worst conclusion.” He scolded her, although she could not see his face nor tell if it was genuine frustration or some sort of twisted mind-game he was playing on her. “It will not hurt Victoria. I promise.” The tentacle wrapped around her wrists loosened itself as though to confirm the lack of hostility he was so eager to claim.

Her insides knotted when she thought of it; that 'thing' writhing inside of her. Violating the depths of her body like a venomous snake. “I don't want to do it this way.” She replied, not at all surprised to find that the tentacle that had loosened itself would not entirely free her wrists. It kept her restrained still, forcing her to remain immobilized. A wise choice for Revaz perhaps because if he had let her go she would have bounded for the door like a jack rabbit. “Can we do it the...normal way?”

“No.”

Her entire body flinched when she heard him say it. There was a twine of venom in his tone. The lingering remnants of their encounter earlier that afternoon. “You're punishing me aren't you?” She replied. The words came out in a harsh whisper as though she was revealing some ghastly secret. “You're doing this to get back at me for what I did.”

He made her flinch by tracing the very tips of his finger across the outer lips of her tender opening. “A little of it is vengeance yes.” He admitted unashamedly before sliding one finger inside of her. Victoria cringed, disgusted by how eager her body accepted him. “Most of it is not.”

“Then what is it?!”

“These appendages that my species has are marvellous things. They are so adaptable, so useful, so...intricate. We have learned to use them for a variety of different tasks.” As he spoke her rolled her panties down, sliding them down her hips and past her knees. The motion was fluid, but he moved so slowly that it made the event seem agonizing to Victoria. By the time they were completely off she was blinking back tears. “They are not just used as extra limbs all the time. Some of them, the ones that I have out right now especially, are often used for mating.”

“No....Nooo!!” She was screaming again. Only this time louder. It flooded the room, spoiling the serenity of the nighttime air and shattering whatever notions of security that the darkness might have given her. He allowed her to resist him at first. It was futile really, but she still tried, thrashing and flailing her legs violently and never once kicking anything. Not even the blankets on the bed were disturbed by the time her efforts were exhausted, and the tentacle that had been prodding at her earlier was still there.

“Please Victoria, do not cry.” She felt a hand press against the side of her face, stroking the fragile skin and brushing away tears. The coolness of his fingertips absorbed into her, soothing the rising temperature that had plagued her body. The kiss that her gave her was just about the only thing she liked about the situation. Like every other kiss she had ever shared with him she found herself inwardly delighted, and greedily wanting more. He complied to the request even before she had asked, using the tip of his thumb to part her mouth so that his tongue could slide inside. His tongue brushed against hers, pressing down on top of it gently as it explored the depths of her mouth. The intensity that built up between them was like water pressing against the breaking doors of a river dam. It rose and rose along with the temperature of their bodies and by the time that Revaz pulled away from her she felt as though she had narrowly suffocated.

“Trust me.” He whispered against her lips, clouding her thoughts with the vacant memories of how many times he had asked her that. It seemed as though he was forever asking for her trust, but no matter how many times he asked she never truly gave in. Victoria did not trust him on earth as a strange being from another planet, and she would not trust him now as the perpetrator of her abductuion.

“Oh god!” She felt it again, only this time it had moved. The other tentacle, the very same one that had slithered underneath her nightgown earlier, had traveled in between her bare thighs and was resting against the warm opening that was no longer sheltered by her panties. “Revaz don't!” She shuddered when his hand dove under the neckline of the nightie and cupped one breast.

He ignored her request, rolling the pinkish nipple between two fingers. Her emotions wrestled with each other; one side begging her to resist while the other delighted in what was happening. A reluctant moan escaped her parted lips as she closed her eyes and momentarily succumbed to the flickering sensations of pleasure that were wafting throughout her body. He pressed his lips against the delicate skin stretched across her collar, kissing her tenderly in ways that brought back the hazy memories of the time they had spent embraced on her fathers couch. She'd wanted him to touch her back then and parts of her still wanted him to. But even as she lay there, welcoming the sensation of the tentacle sliding inside of her body the memories she had fogged over with question and doubt. This man, after all, was still her kidnapper.

The appendage writhed inside of her, greedily exploring the depths of her body until she trembled. Beads of sweat collected across her skin, spreading out like morning dew. To Victoria it felt as if the room was on fire. Her body was plagued with an almost feverish pleasure. She felt as though she might die. A part of her even wanted to. The tentacle never intentionally hurt her, but it stretched her; widening her opening in ways that she never believed possible and filling her with a horrendous mixture of pleasure and pain.

He purred softly against her chest, burying his head in between her breasts while his hands trailed up and down her spine. She felt the ends of his hair tickling her skin and found herself threading her fingers through it. It was still as soft as she remembered, but dampened by sweat. In a state of complete ecstasy she found it difficult to keep herself still. “Please.” She begged, bucking her hips upwards as her desire for a climax became more and more unbearable. The tentacle moved faster now, pumping in and out of her body so quickly that she was practically immobilized by it. “Oh god!” She winced, tears stinging the corners of her eyes as he coaxed her into a climax. It all happened quickly. Far too quickly. And when she did orgasm she discovered that she was embarrassingly loud. Back arched she cried into the cool night air, entangled in the heat of the moment far too suddenly. It started like the explosion of a firecracker be set ablaze and ended with a slight stinging as the soreness settled in.

“I am sorry. I did not mean to do that.” He winced when she did, acknowledging the discomfort that had now plagued her body. His tone flickered with remorse, acknowledging the harm he had accidentally inflicted upon her with a regretful sigh. She felt him run his fingers through her dampened hair, twisting the long ends as though attempting to soothe her. “I should have stopped. You are in pain now.”

“No don't be. I wanted it.” She whispered, flinching when she heard him murmur something in that strange language again. His tone sounded unhappy, regretful perhaps, but her mind was distracted and could barely focus on it. The pain had replaced her orgasm for some time as the centre of her attention. It distracted her from the rest of the world, including Revaz, whatever 'guilt' he might have been attempting to express and her own thoughts. Her body felt tender. Even the slightest movements quickly became a pain, until she was all but frozen on her back unable to even open her eyes.

Shame did not come until after everything had passed. Nearly an hour after she had reached her peak was when the doubt and despair finally nestled into her thoughts, quickly burrowing into them like a snake. Victoria did not even know why she was allowing herself to become so upset. She got what she wanted didn't she? The pleasure of experiencing another orgasm. The privilege of having a lover to begin with was a blessing in itself. If it was any other woman then they would have rolled over onto the opposite side of the bed with a smile on their face. But Victoria just lay there, numbly thinking over the events as though in disbelief they had actually happened and only able to pine over how sore her opening now felt.

Revaz did not react at first although she felt him twitch curiously when she hugged one of her pillows and allowed the humiliation to wash over herself. He said nothing. There was nothing for them to discuss. Instead they scuttled away from each other, laying on the opposite sides of the bed so that as much distance was placed between them as possible. Victoria suddenly felt like she had been dropped onto a deserted island, yet she could not put her finger on why she preferred this so much. The feeling of complete isolation carried on throughout the night. When the dawn came and the sunlight crept it's way into the room it was still there.

He was still there when she rolled over onto her side. He hadn't moved from the spot he'd fallen asleep in although his eyes were open and staring at her curiously. “You slept well.” He murmured, speaking more to himself than to her. Victoria could not come up with a response. She found herself feeling slightly overwhelmed by the notion that he was even there in the first place. Normally when she woke up Revaz was already long gone. Sometimes even fully dressed by the time she dragged herself away from the toasty warm blankets and cushiony pillows.

“I slept just fine.” Victoria grunted out a response as she climbed her way out of the bed. As much as she liked that delicious warmth and just basking in it for an hour or two she did not appreciate the presence of a bedmate, especially one that seldom blinked. The skirt of her nightgown whisked against the floor, swishing around her feet as she wandered towards the doorway. When she glanced back over her shoulder he was out of bed as well, standing there with his arms stiffly tucked behind his back. He reminded her of a statue; a war monument particularly. And he just stood there, neither staring at her nor anything else in particular. It was only after she had stepped out into the hallway that the floorboards behind her creak and the distinct shuffling of feet let her know he was following after her.

Their morning was uncomfortably silent. Neither of them truly ate anything, and although he seemed to follow her from room to room Revaz never really had anything to say to Victoria. He only left her side very briefly, some time after what Victoria assumed must have been 9:30 but could never interpret on any of the clocks in the house. The numeric system, much like the language on this planet was impossible for her to grasp. She was sitting down in the dining room, staring into her untouched coffee cup when he came back a good five minutes afterwards. She only saw him vaguely out of the corner of her eyes as she swirled her fingertip around the rim of her mug. A flash of brilliant white grasped her attention however and she found herself unable to resist casting a quick glance in his direction.

Though he claimed to work in the medical field the long white coat that adorned him now did not remind Victoria of a Doctor. Buttoned all the way up to his chin and trailing just a few inches bellow his knees it gave her the unsettling vibe of something that a mad scientist might wear. His expression turned mildly sour when he looked over at her having no doubt detected every single thought that had whisked through her mind, including the handful of horror films that his uniform made her distinctly recall.

“Are you going back to work today?” She mumbled, trying very hard to not think of anything as she went back to gazing down at her coffee cup.

“Yes. I have been instructed to return immediately Now that I have completed my mission there is no reason for me to stay home any longer. I am returning to my profession today.” He paced across the room, adjusting the loose sleeves of the coat which appeared to be a little too long for him. After rolling them up to a length more to his preference he stopped right next to her. “And you are going to come with me.”

Victoria gasped having been right in the middle of taking a sip from her coffee. It rattled onto the surface of the table spilling warm coffee everywhere, including her unsuspecting lap. “B-b-b-but I don't know anything about medicine!” She blubbered, feeling her hands shake as she sat there with the warm liquid pooling across her legs. “I've never had any training. Not even a first aid course!!”

She heard him make a scoffing noise as he briefly left the room, returning with a cloth that he used to seep up the spill she had made. “Unless you are completely incapable of carrying a few light objects around I am quite certain you will do your job just perfectly. Andrea will be there to help you if you need anything and I will never be too far.” Victoria winced as she saw him clean the rest of the table off before offering the dampened cloth to her, which she snatched out of his hand and placed onto her lap in an effort to soak up some of the coffee.

“I don't see why I just can't stay here. It's not like I can run away. I don't have any place to go.” She grumbled. “I'd rather die of boredom here than go with you to a job I never even wanted in the first place.”

“You do not have any choice in the matter. You have already proven to me that you could not survive on your own.” He took the cloth away from her first before forcing Victoria onto her feet. “You nearly lost a foot to a common household pest. I am not leaving you here alone.” He had taken her by the arm now, much like how an adult might do with a fussy child, and was escorting her out into the hallway again. Her stomach lurched when she heard him mention the spider. That thing was supposed to be common?!

She resisted him. It was perhaps the most childish thing she could have done but she still did it any way. Victoria, who had never been particularly fond of working with other people on her own planet, had made up her mind very quickly about how she felt about the opportunity to work alongside her abductor. As he guided her into one of the bedrooms that held her clothing she secretly hopped that he was stabbed with a needle by a deranged patient today.

He made her change her entire outfit in spite of only having coffee on her bottom half. And he stood there in the room with her just to make sure she did it. Having those eyes observing from a few yards away as she struggled to get the zipper of her pants closed was quite possibly the most humiliating thing Victoria had ever experienced. As aggravating as the behaviour was to her, Revaz did not appear to be doing it out of maliciousness. He was very quiet the whole time, watching her and waiting until she had completely finished before even daring to approach. He inspected her carefully, brushing his hands quietly across her shoulders while mumbling something about there being dust on them. His fingers gently pressed into the fabric of her shirt, traveling down until they were resting against the curve of her hips.

Her stomach felt as though it was filled with a swarm of butterflies. She could not move or say anything having become rigid and stiff with the anticipation of what might happen. When he leaned forward and his breath ghostly lightly across the side of her face it sent a trail of goosebumps down her body. He smelled pleasant, like he always did every morning. But for some reason the faintly sweet smell that he had always carried around with him seemed much stronger to her today. He kissed her. First on the cheek and then on the forehead. They almost touched her lips too but when he got too close Victoria flinched, reminding herself that she was supposed to be angry with him still and he pulled away from her.

“Shall we go then?” He asked while holding out his hand to her. “I am certain Andrea is anxiously waiting for you even as we speak.”