31. Ree

31

Ree

I wake up to the feeling of something hot and hard suddenly moving between my legs and pressing against my core.

It's the long length of him, I realize, angled so he is laying against me, but not positioned to penetrate. It's startling, but then makes me groan in relief.

The constant arousal has been hard to ignore and sleep does nothing to tame it.

Then my next thought is that he should have asked and I stiffen. Just when I take a breath to object I hear light snoring, much deeper than a human could ever make, but still recognizable.

"Ohhhh," I say, realizing that this is the equivalent of a wet dream for him.

My hand really, really wants to stray down to feel the tip of him where I'm sure it's extending past the juncture of my thighs. I'm incredibly curious about his shape and texture, but it's one thing for him to do this in his sleep and quite another for me to grope him.

It's still tempting, but I instead move my hand to where his tail is wrapped around my waist.

I hold on tight, then unsuccessfully try to keep my thighs from squeezing him tighter against me when he makes small hip thrusts.

I'm so aroused I already feel myself cresting higher with just that small amount of stimulation. I moan again, squeezing him harder against me, then chide myself and try to stop.

Just when I've decided I really should wake him up, his snoring transitions to a purr, and he moves his scaled hand up to grab lightly onto my throat.

Soon after I feel the slight prickle of claws against my skin and it makes me moan.

Suddenly his grip loosens, and his hips stop moving. His purring stops abruptly and I hear him take a sudden breath.

"I'm so very sorry," he says in a rush, his voice even rougher than usual. "That was completely unacceptable."

I don't tell him that what I find unacceptable is that he has removed his hand from my throat. When I feel his cock retreat I have to hold in a disappointed whimper.

"Well, I could have woken you up, Thivoll," I confess. "I got lost in the moment and it wasn't like I was complaining."

"It was wrong," he says with conviction.

"I don't agree," I shoot back, my hand still gripping his tail and my voice colored with my sexual frustration. "As soon as you realized what was happening you stopped. And I was really enjoying it before you did, so if I can be frank, I'm more annoyed you didn't keep going."

I want to slap myself after I let the words escape, but I've always been too blunt for my own good.

I'm relieved when he purrs again. "In my culture, clasping a tail is a sexual advance, my Ree."

I make a little yelp and let go of him, suddenly getting a sense of how he probably feels right now.

"I'm so sorry!"

"Well, as you said, I didn't tell you and I was enjoying it," he purrs out, putting a pin in reversing our roles.

Something about his tone lets me know he knows exactly what he's doing.

I laugh, and he joins me with his chuffing. It feels good to be sharing a moment of levity with him and even better to be doing it in the warm cocoon of his fur.

Then I realize the light filtering through the trees suggests it's evening.

"As much as I would love to talk over all of our relevant erogenous zones, and possibly touch them if that sounds good to you, I need a bathroom break, water, some food, and then to get Silver in a place I'm not having to worry about her," I tell him.

"I want to touch all of your places and for you to touch mine," he says, his breath hot against my neck. "But I also agree that your Silver needs to be our priority."

Thivoll loosens his grip on me so I can sit up. My hair is wrapped around my limbs in ways that make repositioning difficult.

I have a long strand of it caught under my armpit and my temper flares. "Could you use your claws to cut off all this ridiculous hair? Ugh!"

Thivoll takes a gasping breath. "I love your mane, my Ree. Please don't ask me to do such a thing."

I grumble internally, but must admit it also feels nice that he likes it. "It just grows right back, anyway. I already tried to be rid of it."

He growls, but doesn't comment and simply moves us into a better position so we can climb down. When he sets me down on the forest floor he tilts back onto his haunches so he can run his hands through the offending length of it.

His purr builds and then stops shortly after. "It has changed."

I look down and stiffen at the sight of it. "Is it orange?"

It's a stupid question, but it pops out anyway.

"Yes, you have large orange streaks among the indigo. It's beautiful, but why has it changed?"

I huff out a breath. "Apparently each of us will start to take on the traits, and I assume somehow some of the genetics, of whoever we are around. At least for a certain period until the changes halt. Or something like that. They didn't really explain it."

He's silent for several long moments. "So you are becoming partly manticorid? I've not heard of this technology. I wouldn't think it would be possible and that I would be immune."

"Well, I guess since I'm not immune that it can make me more like you? Or maybe I'll only partially change because at some point I'll be immune? I wish I knew."

I gulp, the realization that everything has or will change suddenly crashing down on me. I can't even rely on my body being the same and just want to find a corner to hide in.

Preferably with ice cream and potato chips.

Thivoll pulls in a breath along the roof of his mouth. "I see. You are afraid."

He pulls me close to him, one hand on the back of my head and the other stroking down my back, over my butt and down my legs. He pulls his hand back up and pats my ass and then starts again.

On the second repetition, it brings a small smile that lightens the heavy weight of panic, if only slightly.

It's been interesting interacting with each other with no good sense of where it's socially acceptable to touch each other.

No need to explain, thankfully, since it's quite pleasant.

I sigh. "All the change has been hard and you're right. I'm a little scared, but mostly I just feel overwhelmed and like there's nothing I can rely on anymore."

A comforting purr radiates from his chest. "You can rely on me. I might not have a lot of control over what's happening to either of us, but I promise I'll do everything I can to keep you safe and as comfortable as I can."

I swallow a lump in my throat and tears spring to my eyes.

I believe him.

In just a matter of days, he's made me feel more cherished than any of my previous relationships had managed to over years. That it took traveling light years and meeting an alien to find it seems pretty much how things would go for me.

Not that what we have could be defined as a relationship in such a short period, but it feels like there is at the very least a mutual draw to one another.

"Thanks, Thivoll. I appreciate that. Right now we need to get back to Silver, but I look forward to more of this later."

I pull back from him, looking into his earnest eyes. "I'll teddy bear you better than ever before, my Ree."

I laugh, the tightness in my chest loosening. "I would love that."

I step to the side, and he tilts forward onto all fours. I like to think that I'm getting a bit more graceful and hopefully pulling less fur each time I climb up. I prefer to keep my delusions, though, so I don't ask.

Thivoll runs just as quietly as ever, stopping for a break at a stream soon after, then we continue loping along.

My arms aren't aching anymore like they were last night and I feel stronger than I ever have. Better able to respond as he dodges trees and leaps over fallen logs.

At one point he slows his pace considerably, his ears mostly pointed toward our right as he angles us left. I assume he hears someone, though I can't ask him who he thinks it might be. Did someone find Silver?

Could she have died in stasis?

My heart's in my throat as I think of all of the possibilities.

Thivoll continues to move away and his ears change directions to let me know the sound is behind us.

When he picks up his pace again shortly after, I let out some of the tension I was holding in my shoulders.