Chapter 4

Serval

"My name is Serval," he said, using all his years of training in dangerous war zones and prison camps and criminal empires to keep his words steady.

He knew that humans were sensual bordering on obscene. He'd seen vids and pics of the ones already mated to others and thought he was ready for what was to come.

None of them were even close to the beauty of this female in front of him.

She was small – of course she was. Humans were smaller on average compared to the rest of the universe. But the reality of just how delicate and little she was tripped an instinct in him that he didn't even know he had. He wanted to bundle her up and bring her to a warm pool to soak and relax. One without anything sharp to cut that soft, warm, brown skin.

But she was also so beautifully curved. Her breasts were pressing at the neckline of her dress, close to falling out, while the blue sash around her waist emphasized her small waist but flared hips. She had hair on her head, on her brow, on her eyes – but he rather liked it. The brown strands, darker than her skin, but still somehow shining in the light, dipped and rose like the waves of the ocean, like the waves of her body. Everything about her was soft and rounded and seductive. Even the very breaths she took pushed those breasts against her dress.

And this glorious creature was to be his mate?

He couldn't believe it. There was no way. This had to be some kind of prank.

Her giggle, so nervous and cute, set a fire in his belly. Her lips, plump and pink and parted, somehow seemed almost obscene. The touch of her hand on his, both of them still holding on despite the traditional human greeting surely being fulfilled by now, was like a spark from a stinging sea nettle.

But he wasn't triggered.

And, looking at her again, he became a bit concerned.

How were his mating instincts supposed to trigger? She had no olules. Humans, as far as he understood it, were completely terrestrial as well. How was this supposed to work between them?

Because it was supposed to work, right? They had proven that in the past, right? So, how…?

"I got you a present," she said suddenly, ripping her hand from his. She turned and snatched a box off the table behind her before presenting it to him.

"What is this?" He asked, taking it. He could read the human language across the top thanks to the language imprint he'd received, but he had no idea what ‘chocolate' was or what made it artisanal.

"It's a sweet," she said, clasping her hands behind her back. "A treat. Chocolate is very important on my planet. It's a huge dessert food. And since my channel is sweets themed, I thought I'd bring you the best sweets on Earth."

"Thank you," Serval said, running his hand over the cover. Stunned.

Did she know?

The allowee courting process wasn't long, but it did have a specific set of steps. More cultural than biological, it began with the female presenting the male of her affections with a gift. Not necessarily food, but there was nothing that said it couldn't be.

"I hope you like it," Sophie said, smiling. "No harm if you don't, of course. I'll get to know what sweets you like soon enough."

Serval didn't really like sweets. But he didn't say that. He accepted the box, pulling it to his chest, and gave her a smile. "Thank you, Sophie. I readily accept this gift."

She looked surprised by the sincerity of his words, but then she lowered her eyes, a pleased smile stretched across her lovely face.

Only the knowledge that they were being watched, recorded, kept him from grabbing her then and there and embracing her. Nibbling at her skin. Finding out what someone so beautiful smelled like, tasted like. Drowning himself in her like he may never want to breathe again.

The second step of the courting process was his to fulfill. After accepting her gift, he was to show her his home. Show her where they would live so that she could approve of it. So she could make sure the nesting pool he had access to was suitable for her.

He didn't have a nesting pool here, of course. His family pool was back on his homeworld, but his home was his starship, and he'd have her there soon enough.

"So, Serval," she started nervously. "I hope this isn't a rude question, but what are you? I mean, like your species. I really only know domini and ratchi. Those are the two common ones that we tend to see on Earth."

"It's not a rude question. Those two are your sponsor species, of course you would know them." Serval smiled gently. "I am an allowee. My species is a semi-aquatic one from the planet Wav'aii."

She smiled. As though that knowledge pleased her. "Wow. That's amazing. I can't wait to see it one day. Or, er… I mean, that's not too forward, right?"

"Too forward for my mate to expect to see my home? I think not." He chuckled, hiding his sudden unease. Was she already feeling the pull towards the nesting pools? Human females adapted to the males they mated, and just because he hadn't been triggered yet, didn't mean that her mating instincts hadn't been.

"I'm sorry," she giggled. "I don't really know what to do. I mean, it's like dating, but it's not. And you're so different. I guess I don't know what to expect."

He grinned. She was precious. Even if he hadn't been told that she was his mate, he would have wanted to spend more time with her.

But, again, it just made him wonder how she was supposed to trigger him without olules.

"I suppose, we just try to act natural," he suggested.

"Yeah. Right." She gave him a grateful smile. "Shall we have a seat? I promised my viewers ten minutes of our initial meeting before we get some privacy."

"They're watching us live, aren't they?" Serval's gaze darted up to the camera. He was used to facing it whenever he was recording a segment. But he found himself unwilling to look away from the darling little human in front of him as she grabbed his box of sweets and led him to the couches.

She appeared accustomed to not looking at the camera, but still playing to it, as she made sure to fix her hair behind her ear so that the camera on that side could keep getting a good view of her. This wasn't really what he expected from the recorded meeting between them. It seemed so casual and understated.

For that matter, what did she mean when she said her channel was themed around sweets? Did she cover food or something?

"Sit, please," she smiled at him, patting the seat beside her. "I want to get your unfiltered, raw reaction to chocolate. I bet my sweeties will love that."

"Sweeties?" He did as directed, sitting beside her, angling his body so that he faced her. She seemed somehow even smaller sitting down. But also even prettier. Sitting relaxed her belly, creating a cute little roll. It was adorable.

"My subscribers! That's what they call themselves." She began pulling at the plastic film that sealed the box closed. "Say, hi."

"Hi? Like, speak directly to them?"

"Yeah." She turned, wiggling her fingers at one of the cameras.

His gaze followed hers and he tried to think about all the people on the other end. Serval didn't usually consider the people viewing his segments. He was more focused on the news itself. What kind of show was she putting on?

He mimicked her motion, waving at the cameras, earning a smile from her.

"Thanks for agreeing to do this. I know it means a lot to my viewers. I do a lot of recording in my daily life, but it won't be constant. And if I'm recording, I'll warn you beforehand."

"What exactly is it that you record, Sophie?"

"Oh, a bit of this and that," she shrugged, opening the box. "There are themes, of course. SophServe is the name of my channel. Like soft serve? The ice cream? It's a sweet, but it's also like my name, get it? I have a couple of long running segments. Trick or Treat is my most popular one. For that, I do something that is either really nice or really challenging. Like, one time, I recorded a ten thousand dollar spa package treatment. That was a treat. But then, for a trick video, I went sky diving. That was awful." She shuddered but laughed. And an idea of what she did began to form in his mind – and he wasn't sure how to feel about it. "I also have a cooking segment called Spice of Life. I tend to make desserts and sweets, but I also do some regular cooking too. And then there's my kind of variety segment. That's called Kitchen Sink – and that one is pretty much a free for all. I usually get some kind of dessert or something else and I review it while we do everything. I've done reactions, challenges, Q&As. Sometimes, I just sit and talk. I do have videos that aren't connected to any segments, of course. But those are the main draws of my channel."

"You're a one-person variety show," he said, understanding.

"That's a really good way to put it," she beamed, excited. "They call me an influencer on Earth. Because I just talk to people, and I have their ears and trust. I've formed like a parasocial relationship with my fans. But I've always hated that term. It just sounds so gross. Like, influencer? I'm just out here influencing people to buy things or do things? I started this to have fun. To connect to people. If they like the products I promote, great! But I'm not here for that."

Serval already knew that his mate did something on video. But he had imagined a career more similar to his own. Some kind of news presentation. Or maybe she was an actress.

But what she described was… odd.

"I'm not sure I understand completely," he admitted.

"That's okay." She smiled at him. "It's not hard. You'll get the hang of it. I know my sweeties will want to meet you, see you a lot, but they'll also understand if you're not comfortable on camera."

"Not comfortable?" Serval chuckled. "I'm an investigative journalist."

"What?" Her jaw dropped, showing him the cute pink of her tongue. "No way! You, like, chase hard hitting stories and stuff?"

"Yes. That's my job. I travel all over, hunting down the truth and outing criminals.

"That's amazing!" She beamed. "So, I guess you're okay being on camera?"

"It doesn't bother me, no."

"Great! Then, before the stream ends, let's give the sweeties your first dessert reaction!"

She picked up a piece of the chocolate treat in the box. It was a small thing, hard and firm, brown, with a little drizzle design on the top.

"This is chocolate fudge. Chocolate on chocolate – the most basic combo, but really you can't go wrong with more chocolate. I think, for your first taste of chocolate, this is the best one."

"And this is the kind of thing you do on camera?"

"Oh, yeah. My viewers love sending me sweets from around the world that I've never had to try on camera. And you're a completely untapped audience! You not only have never had Earth sweets, but I've never had alien sweets. They're super excited. I'm super excited. I can't wait to show them my adventures with you in space."

She held out the chocolate piece, as though to say that their adventure started with this.

His mate was strange. Her job was strange. He understood what she did, but he didn't actually understand why or what her audience got out of it. These sweeties of hers. There was no story here. No interesting hook or anything. It was just a series of long running fluff… not even stories, just fluff.

But not all entertainment was gripping, thrilling content, he supposed. And he might not understand it now, but he looked at this female that was supposed to be his mate… and he wanted to.

Serval grabbed her wrist and moved her hand up. Bringing the chocolate to his lips. He parted them, earning a small gasp from the soft, curvy female, and he just knew she was staring at the sharp teeth lining the front of his mouth – so different from the flat line of her teeth.

He was careful not to touch her with them as he delicately plucked the sweet from her fingers.

It was sweet. Creamy and rich. Not at all to his taste.

But the heat in her eyes when he focused on her face, staring at the hand he still had encircling her wrist, was better than anything she could have fed him.