 | ShatterStorm Productions
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| ShatterStorm Productions
|
(Helena)
It was a dance of sorts.
A dance of danger, darkness and… hope.
I danced it with the best of them. Thrilled at the danger, was one with the night and thrived on the hope. There was even my very own Jiminy Cricket in my ear, a constant presence and conscience in my ear. My sidekick was both the blessing and bane of my existence.
“Huntress?” Barbara’s voice was soft but firm, reining in my selfish enjoyment of the night.
“Here.”
“Something strange is happening over at the docks. There’s a blip from orbit headed for the bay.”
“You’re kidding.”
“I wish. And it’s slowing down. Meteors don’t do that.”
“Terrific, aliens now. That’ll just make my week.”
“Canary’s already on her way, better hurry.”
Something irritated and incoherent even to me grumbled up from my chest and was lost to the night air as I streaked across the rooftops towards the water. There had been little more than the usual crime and mayhem in New Gotham lately. I had wisely let the police deal with most of it rather than put myself in a position to get caught again. A spaceship would alleviate the boredom nicely.
Even if the whole concept was frightening.
(Dinah)
“Hey.” I was so focused on the waterfront that Helena’s voice nearly scared me to death. “Relax kid,” she purred. “Anything happening?”
“Something went in hard enough to create some real wave action, but now there’s just bubbles,” I shrugged and gestured at the agitated water. A touch on the side of my costume’s mask had the binocular vision built into the goggles gone. “I used the infrared to check it out a few minutes ago and the heat from reentry is pretty well dispersed. I don’t know if that’s just water boiling at a deeper depth or the thing is settling.”
Helena made an annoyed huffing sound that was so feline I had to look over. When she became the Huntress, her eyes flashed red and her pupils slitted like a cat’s. It was a shame they didn’t remain that way. It would be easier to tell when she was in feral mode. Thankfully, I’d gotten very good at reading her body language and it was most definitely Huntress that grinned at me and skulked towards the edge of the roof. “C’mon kid, let’s get a closer look.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
I was talking to air as Helena stepped off the roof and vanished from my sight. That left me to grumble about my lack of such cool physical abilities and pull out a grappling hook to scale down the more old fashioned way. Barbara had gifted me all of her old Batgirl equipment only recently and I was still getting used to the bulk of it. After my mother had died and I’d taken on the name New Canary in her honor, my partners had taken it upon themselves to really make me live the life of a shadowy superhero. What would my high school buddies say? Despite that, I loved the responsibility and the feeling of safety in the thick leather and armor. It was the only thing that let me keep up with the shadowy Huntress. There was water damage on the docks where equipment had been shoved around by the waves when the UFO had crashed a few minutes ago.
“Now what?” Helena sighed melodramatically and put her hands on her hips. “There’s nothing here. How are we supposed to drag up a spaceship from the bottom of the bay?”
In response, there was a massive, muffled thump. It radiated up from the soles of my feet and Helena dropped into a defensive crouch. It felt like someone had smacked the ground with a massive hammer. Only from underneath our feet. Then boiling water domed up like a volcano and erupted with a deafening roar.
Helena vanished into the torrent of displaced water only a split second before I was taken as well. Barbara’s voice was lost in the chaos. In the moments that the water held me captive, I felt the desperation to survive seize me. Nothing else mattered. I had to survive. I was punched through a solid barrier that shattered like wood and out the other side. Then something far more substantial stopped my progress and I gripped onto it with the strength of the desperate.
A lifetime or moments could have passed while I hung on for dear life. The killing water sucked back out and I could finally cough the liquid from my lungs. After a few terrifying moments of trying to breathe, I reached up and pulled off the waterlogged cowl. In the faint lights of the city, the bay rolled and churned angrily. I was clinging to a thick support pillar that held up the tattered remains of a large dock. My exact location was a mystery. The entire waterfront was trashed from the explosion and nothing looked familiar among the wreckage.
“Huntress!” I called out and my voice was scratchy and terrified even to my own ears. “Huntress!” there was nothing but the sound of the angry water and my harsh breathing. All the pain in my body was redundant; I had to find my partner. Nothing else mattered. The police would be here soon and I had to find Huntress. It took me a few minutes to realize why the quiet was so unnerving. There was no Barbara in my ear.
The cowl.
Cursing to myself, I yanked the stupid thing back on and tried to ignore the water spots on the goggles. Barbara’s voice flooded through me in tandem with partial relief. “Dinah! Helena! Oh god, no!”
“Oracle!”
“Dinah?”
“I’m okay, I’m sorry I disappeared there for a minute. There was an explosion, I have to find Huntress,” was the mechanical reply I was barely able to grind out. She had to be okay; she just had to be. Barbara went silent, the harshness of her breathing matching my own. We all faced danger everyday and I prayed with all that I was that Huntress hadn’t run out of luck.
Only months of training kept me moving safely through the twisted wreckage of the waterfront in search of Helena. Desperation was bringing tears to my eyes. This couldn’t be happening…
There was an angry growl the enhanced speakers in the cowl picked up nearby and I froze. There was the faint sound of labored breathing and the steady drip of water into the calming bay. Hope choked up my breathing as I scrambled towards the faint sounds. A touch on the goggle controls skinned an infrared image over the built in low light vision. A body, tangled in some rope, dangling like a dead fish over the water.
“Huntress?” I squeaked desperately and threw myself flat onto the broken boards. “Helena? Say something, please!” In my desperation to get to her, I was shocked by the crunch of someone moving across the debris field. “Barbara,” I hissed. “I have a person I think is her, but someone’s coming.”
“And the police are nearly there,” Barbara whispered back just as tensely. Then I saw a flash of warmth in the goggles and puzzlement mixed with the fear and desperation. Before I could react, someone dropped lightly onto the boards beside me and I gaped. Even in the dim light, the pure white hair and pointed ears was a dead giveaway that this unexpected person was more than casual happenstance.
“Let me help,” came a deep woman’s voice and there was a soft touch on my arm. “If you anchor me, I can reach your companion.”
More pouncing footsteps were coming, leaping more than walking, just like Huntress did sometimes. Sirens grew loud and I gave into the stranger’s helping hand. “Okay.” In the lowlight of the goggles, she was pretty and dressed from the neck down in a thick pale gray suit right out of Lord of the Rings. She grabbed my forearms and slid over the edge of the shattered boards to dangle from my grip. Then I saw something moving sinuously beneath her and nearly let go. Especially when it wrapped around Helena’s limp body like a hungry python. “What the hell?”
“Rowena!” A desperate masculine voice in the darkness made me crane my head as a pair of figures moved erratically in the darkness. The weight on my arms was threatening to dislocate my shoulders.
“Hurry,” I growled as the stranger wiggled in my grip.
“She’s too tangled,” she grunted back and the approaching male landed lightly beside me. Now, it had started as a boring enough night, then there were crashing spaceships and tidal waves and the sheer terror I’d been riding like a rollercoaster for what felt like days. Now I had simply the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid eyes on suddenly beside me. That was all well and good, but the guy carrying him was something out of a horror movie. A werewolf, an honest to God werewolf leaned over the ragged edge of the docks and grunted something that was almost intelligible. Both men were dressed the same as the white woman who’d grabbed Helena.
“Got it,” the blonde guy said and slid off the werewolf to fall over the side headfirst. Any alarm I felt vanished when I realized that the werewolf had a firm grip on his ankles and was effortlessly dangling him over the side. “Fancy meeting you here,” he teased the woman dangling from my protesting arms and she snorted at him.
“Very funny. She’s stuck in all these ropes.”
“We have to get out of here,” I broke in desperately and the werewolf looked at me and made a word/sound. “The police will be here any second and they can’t find us, they just can’t.” It made Helena and I sound like criminals, this fear of the police, but I couldn’t care less at the moment. These folks would do no better in custody than I. The woman I assumed was Rowena shifted one of her hands to grab the waistband of the dangling man and alleviate some of the strain on me. Then she grunted and the pull doubled, making me gasp.
“Canary, what the hell’s going on there?” Barbara’s voice suddenly rushed through my ears.
“In a minute,” I hissed back and watched Rowena effortlessly curl herself up to hook one leg around her companion and the other foot into the splintered boards next to my head. There was a thick, snakelike appendage wrapped tightly around Helena’s limp body. The other end was firmly anchored to the white woman’s ass.
“A tail?” I couldn’t help but squeak and Rowena grinned through her physical effort.
“Ian, hurry and cut the tethers.”
“Hold still then, I can’t see clearly if you don’t focus,” the blonde man grunted and there was the glint of some kind of blade. A few expert swipes had Rowena climbing up our bodies and the werewolf hauling Ian back up.
“Come on,” I instructed after ever so briefly checking that Helena was still alive and breathing. Rowena slung my partner over her shoulders in a classic fireman’s carry and nodded.
“Lead the way.”
My feet were moving out of the instinct of preservation even as I tried to explain to Barbara. “Oracle, I got some unexpected help, we’re trying to get away from the police now.”
“Affirmative, I’d draw off their attention, but I doubt it would work. Be careful.”
(Barbara)
Whatever exactly was going on, I hated just sitting here and wondering. The explosion had registered over a variety of media from a couple of local bank ATMs to a wandering helicopter that went for a rough landing after the eruption of water damaged it. Information was flooding the police nets and I watched them avidly while tracking the blip of Dinah’s com set. Then I saw it. “Canary! Switch directions, there’s a chopper headed your way!”
In the time it took my fingers to get me into the helicopter’s internal cameras, I heard Dinah yell in alarm and the roar of rotor blades in her com unit. The scratchy image showed Dinah with three people in identical pale suits, Helena draped over the slightest of the figures, and a pale man piggybacking on what looked like a… werewolf. There was a breathless delay as one of the police officers yelled at them to freeze. He sounded nervous as the enormous hairy figure behind Dinah drew itself to a height of some eight feet and showed a short muzzle full of wicked teeth. Then the man gave the woman an alarmed look and…
And she simply vanished into thin air with Helena still draped over her shoulders.
The werewolf grabbed Dinah and the group of them took off at an impressive degree of speed. “Huntress!” Echoed through the com and I tried to get over my reaction of shock and fear. Then something extraordinary happened. I’d seen many a miracle of technology and metahuman ability, but when the pale woman and Helena’s limp body appeared out nowhere nearly at the tips of my boots, I actually yelped in shock. Particularly when this ‘Rowena’ collapsed onto one knee with a moan and nearly upset the wheelchair and me both.
“Maker,” she hissed softly. “Too much… too far…”
“Helena,” I gasped when I saw the blood on the pale tunic and the unnatural bend in my friend’s lower right arm. “Oh God, she’s hurt. Who are you?” The white head lifted, longish pointed ears jutting from the damp mane and I gasped at the pale, pale violet eyes. Fine white hair dusted over the edges of her face and down the path of both jugulars in her neck. The heavy fog gray tunic was heavily decorated and the metal bits on it looked very technologically advanced.
“You are who the one called Canary was speaking to,” Rowena said in a tone that was statement rather than question. “I recognize your voice. Your companion is hurt but I can help.” She laid Helena gently on the metal floor in the center of all of my computers. Weak with obvious fatigue, the strange woman began searching her pockets and talking at me. “My name is Rowena. I mean no harm to you or your companions. I hope that perhaps you three can assist my pack and I in learning more about this place.” A tiny thing that was a complicated chunk of shiny metal the size of a thumb and a blinking blue light had appeared in one hand and was held over Helena’s body.
“What are you doing?” I grabbed her wrist in sudden alarm. Some of the shock of the situation was wearing off and my tolerance of the weirdness of life was reasserting itself. Those freaky eyes blinked tiredly at me.
“Canary helped my pack and I, as you did by your accurate communication. This woman means something to both of you and I always repay my debts. This is a healing device that will alleviate some of her suffering. Braytak should have the rest of the technologies that are capable of healing her further.” For some reason her soft words convinced me and I let go. The coiled strength in her limb had me convinced me that Rowena could have hurled me across the room if she’d had the notion. There was no threat in her demeanor and I let her do whatever it was that the little device was meant to do. It trailed a bright beam of jade light over Helena’s body, and Rowena lingered over the places where there was more than just water soaking the black shirt. Helena’s tank top had ridden up and I could see the jagged rips in her belly that were borderline deadly. They slowly knit together even as I watched. Bathed in the strange light, the wounds did in seconds what even Helena’s amazing healing abilities would have taken days or even weeks to accomplish.
“Oracle,” Dinah’s slightly panicky voice broke over the speakers and I realized that I had picked a lousy time to be quiet.
“Canary, sorry, got caught up.”
“Where is Rowena?”
“Here. She must be a teleporter. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, we’ve lost the chopper and are headed back.”
“Good.”
“There,” Rowena broke in with weary satisfaction and sat heavily onto the floor. “Her arm needs to be splinted, but she’ll survive now. This device won’t work on broken bones.”
I jumped in surprise when the thick tail wound itself sinuously around Rowena in a protective gesture and the tip curled around Helena’s thigh. “Thank you,” was the only thing I could thing to say, staring at the white fur and the unexpected tail. Rowena’s eyes followed my gaze to her tail and smiled wearily before returning her gaze to my face.
“I knew that my tail would be disorienting here, but I see that perhaps that my looks may be a bigger issue than I realized. Poor Braytak,” she murmured half to herself and I felt badly for her.
“My name is Oracle, and this is Huntress, but I think you already knew that. You’re a metahuman?” The look of confusion was odd to me. This young woman was strikingly non-human looking and must have had quite a dark past for it. Then again, the werewolf that had been with her in the police video footage had made her look remarkably normal by comparison.
“Metahuman?”
“Each metahuman has an ability that sets them apart from regular humans. You could hear me speaking with Canary over the com and you have a tail.” Something flitted across her expression, something intelligent and cunning.
“You and Canary have a fear of the authorities, these ‘police’, and yet helped a stranger that, compared to you, looks dangerous and freakish. I think I need to trust someone and you seem a likely group. I am not completely human at all. The explosion at the water was caused by the self-destruct of my spaceship. It was not supposed to be such a violent affair, but something in the water must have interfered with the process.”
Dinah’s voice suddenly broke into the room. “Oracle, we’re close now. What should I do?” The unspoken question was clear. Bring the strangers to the clocktower or stall them? She knew that Rowena was here, but was double-checking with me nonetheless. I was so proud, a smile broke across my face and Rowena automatically grinned back. Her canines were a bit long, but she looked remarkably normal with that expression on her exotically lovely face.
“I think we can trust them.”
(Helena)
The pain was a new one, throbbing through my temples and gut like lightning before sizzling my right arm in a frenzied burn. A ragged, undignified sound rumbled across my ears, making me wince. The power that made me the Huntress swirled with the brittle pain and left me confused. There was a sound that was remarkably like a growl and suddenly my inner beast was far more powerful than the pain. Eyes open and adrenaline screaming through my veins, I felt my eyes change, the room sharpening as the need to protect myself took over. The beast that loomed over me was a really good horror movie special effect. Even as I coiled, as I moved to strike, Barbara’s voice echoed through the room. “Helena! No!” It registered in tandem to the agony like a red-hot lance shoved up the long bones in my right arm. Barbara’s hands were on my legs, the werewolf’s hands on my shoulders, Dinah’s face twisted with concern over its shoulder.
Then there was that odd sensation of not being alone in my head and there was a familiar presence washing over the pain and panic. Dinah. In my mindscape painted red, I whirled to see her standing behind me. ‘They won’t hurt you,’ she assured me and there was only the Huntress growl. There were few people who could step into my personal space, mental or otherwise, and not get the crap beat out of them. Dinah’s arms around me felt so real that I relaxed into the strength of her body. ‘Your arm was badly broken in the explosion; they can help your body’s natural abilities to heal. The werewolf is Braytak, and there’s a brother sister team you’ll meet later. They helped me get you off the docks, I couldn’t have done it without them.’
There had been a time when I would have fought trusting anyone, but Dinah had more than earned it. Even if I sucked at showing that trust… The pain was nearly gone now, Dinah’s calm ‘voice’ soothing it away. Barbara appeared beside her as I became aware of the world outside my mind again. I was dimly aware of her hands on my left arm beside Dinah’s gentle grip, but all physical sensation seemed so far away. Quiet sleep overtook me because as long as Barbara and Dinah were there, I was safe.
Wakefulness came much more calmly the next time. My senses sharpened as my body began to climb from darkness and I willed myself to not to move. Dinah’s voice was speaking to someone from nearby. “You really came all this way? Just to see your mother’s world? Wow.”
“Yes. I’ve always wanted to see Earth. I’m very glad I met you and the rest of your pack,” a completely unknown voice answered back. My pain was more distant now, the searing agony in my arm now a distant ache. There were other dulled pains, but my Meta abilities were already knitting me back together, I could feel it. There was a tiny whisper of sound in the sudden absence of voices and I tensed. “I mean you no harm Huntress,” the strange voice whispered softly. An odd case of nerves kept me from opening my eyes for a moment. I didn’t want to see this stranger that had seen me so vulnerable, I didn’t want to acknowledge my pain and the need to thank the strangers for saving my life. How I hated being indebted to others. There was no avoiding meeting her, so I slowly opened my eyes.
It was obvious that she was related to the werewolf that I’d seen earlier. There were faint traces of ivory fuzz dusted over the curve of her jaw near her ears and thicker over her jugulars. Wispy white hair grew short and wild over her head like rabbit fur and elongated pointed ears poked through it. Her eyes were the palest violet I’d ever seen, almost colorless as she stared at me with unabashed curiosity. Then one of her ears twitched minutely, the movement so catlike that I actually giggled.
Dammit, Barbara must have given me painkillers or I would have never made that undignified sound, but it certainly made the stranger smile. I did not just make that sound… did I? Her smile deepened, barely showing white teeth. “Helena?” My name brushed across my ears, feather-soft. Through the haze of painkillers, it took a moment to realize that she had spoken. “Helena,” she whispered again and something touched my upper chest very lightly. “Such a beautiful name.”
Dinah appeared over her shoulder, her expression almost comical with relief. “Hey kid,” I managed to whisper hoarsely and the brilliance of Dinah’s smile matched her tears. “I owe you one.”
“You scared the hell out of me,” she managed to say with remarkable calm as my head slowly cleared.
“Yeah well, gotta keep you on your toes.”
“Not like this very often, I hope.”
“You damn well better not,” a blissfully familiar voice broke in and both Dinah and the white woman looked over before moving aside to let Barbara enter my vision. I had rarely been so grateful to see another living being in my life. “Feeling like the morning after?”
“Mmm hmm,” was all I could manage past the effort of holding back tears. I had been dancing the shadows for a long time, and this was about the worst I’d ever been hurt. Barbara tore her eyes away from me for a moment to look at Dinah and the stranger.
“Could you guys give us a minute alone?”
“Wait,” I managed to grate out hoarsely. “Di, c’mere.” Almost hesitantly, she perched on the bed and stared earnestly into my eyes. What the hell possessed me to say and do what I was saying and doing was beyond me. But I knew she deserved it. “I take you for granted and you’ve more than earned being treated better than that. Thanks for being here and watching my back. You’ll have to take care of things while I’m out.”
There were tears in her eyes, but Dinah smiled cockily to alleviate the tension of the moment. “You can count on me,” she avowed with quiet conviction. “Now get better.” Then, to save both our dignity, if that was the right word, she turned her attention to the silent white woman and grinned. “C’mon, I’ll find a place for you and your pack to sleep. G’night guys.”
Quiet footfalls faded away as Barbara’s chair scooted a little closer to whatever soft surface I was sprawled out on. Only then did I realize that this was Barbara’s bedroom in the clocktower. “Want some company?” Before I could answer the soft question, Barbara hoisted herself out of the chair and slid onto the bed beside me. “I think maybe we could both use the comfort, huh?”
I was too grateful for words to have her presence beside me, especially when I felt the gentle pressure of her hand on my uninjured arm.
(Dinah)
When some time had passed and I hadn’t taken my eyes off of the door, Rowena finally prodded me. Glancing back, I was slightly unnerved to see both hands clamped together by her ankles. The woman seemed even more boneless than Huntress. It was the tail that had touched me, as I watched it coil back up around where her feet and hands were tucked close together. “I always did this to keep my hands and feet warm,” Rowena explained with a slight grin. “You should go check in on them. They’re your pack, Dinah. They’ll understand.”
“How do you know so much about Humans?” I couldn’t help but ask. The smile turned wistful and a little sad.
“My mother was Human, remember? Ian is my half-brother.”
“Right, sorry, I forgot. Yeah, okay, I’ll be back in a minute,” I blabbered idiotically and crept over to the door to Barbara’s bedroom. Despite Helena’s injuries and Barbara’s exhaustion, I fully expected the tiny sound of the door opening to earn me at least a dark scowl. I was greeted by quiet and their two bodies sprawled loosely atop the blankets. Barbara’s hand rested on Helena’s arm in a quietly protective and possessive gesture. I grinned and reached out to coax the thermostat up a few degrees before leaving them be.
Back in the living area near the Delphi computers, all three aliens sat in a little knot with some gear I hadn’t noticed in the chaos of the night. Braytak murmured something and Ian flashed him a grin. Some odd awareness flashed across my perception and I walked back over. “You’re half alien,” I stated bluntly and all three of them kind of flinched. “And you can teleport. Anything else we should know about?”
“My father’s people are called the Uorog,” Rowena stated tiredly. “Almost thirty-one of your years ago, they came to this world and took three Humans away with them. It was half willing and half forced. The Uorog were intrigued by what you call Metahumans and were concerned that the awakening genetic strains would die out if not deliberately encouraged. My mother was already pregnant with Ian, and I was born five years later after my parents bonded. Braytak is our guardian and mentor. My mother was a telepath and bonded Ian and I on a mental level. We’ve learned to let him see through my eyes.”
It was more than I’d been expecting. Not just the words, or the weirdness of the story, but the quiet truth in Rowena’s deep voice. I really wanted to trust them, I really did, but there was so much at stake here.
“Perhaps we should rest elsewhere,” Ian offered quietly and I focused again.
“Honestly, I have no clue what to do,” I admitted, feeling every bit my mere seventeen years. They all smiled and began to gather their things. “Wait…”
“Canary, it’s all right,” Ian grinned halfheartedly. “We grew up on a space station. A night in the elements won’t harm us.”
Now the ball was in my court, and with a last glance at the Delphi system and a desperate prayer, I spoke up. “No, that won’t be necessary.”
(Helena)
It was the urgent need to pee that finally woke me up. Groaning, I felt the sensation wash over me, tight and needy. Something just heavy enough to worsen the tightness was resting on my abdomen. A bleary glance revealed a bare arm, sculpted with flat girl muscles, the hand curled possessively around my hip. Barbara’s body was warm where she rested lightly against my left side.
“Barbara,” I groaned softly, desperate to get up and answer the call of nature, but knowing I was too damaged to do it myself. “Get up. Please.”
There was a small sound and my perceptions sharpened. “Helena?” Came a deep, feminine voice and I struggled with wisps of memory. Ah yes, the albino with the cat ears. On silent feet, the odd woman appeared like a ghost beside the bed. “Can I help? Dinah and my packmates are still sleeping.”
Finally, Barbara stirred and groaned lightly. There was something about the feel of her muscles flexing, and the slide of her fingers against my belly. “You’re the sister, right?” The white head nodded at my blunt question. “Help me up. I’ve got to pee like a racehorse.” With their four hands assisting me, the painstaking effort to sit up was finally accomplished. I felt both better and worse than I had expected to. It was that damn right arm that hurt so bad there were tears in my eyes and I forced myself to look at it.
Someone had wrapped it in plastic wrap that was somehow rigid as hardwood. It made the purpled flesh look like grisly leftovers. There were narrow splints beneath the slightly opaque cast.
“Both bones were broken,” the white woman explained as she carefully cradled my damaged arm in one gloved hand. “But only the radius was shattered all the way through, so both should heal cleanly. Braytak set the bones back in place and wrapped your arm in this bandaging compound.”
“Sweet,” was all I could think to say as she gently tugged at my legs until my feet were resting on the floor. The position she was in was kinda odd, her weight awkwardly balanced on the balls of her feet. Except that there was no way in hell that she could be perched like that. A glance at her face revealed that the eyes were just as riveting and freaky as I remembered.
“It’s a tail,” she explained quietly and braced her hands on either side of me to straighten up. As she moved to stand completely, I got a good look at the intricacy of her outfit.
“Love the fashion sense.”
“It serves its purpose,” she quirked a small grin at my light sarcasm and carefully gathered up handfuls of loose cloth at my hips. It was intimate and comforting all at the same time. I was barely surprised when a wrist-thick, sinuous limb curled around my back and the tall woman began to pull on my damaged body ever so gently.
“Hey, watch the tail,” I chuckled breathlessly around the stiff pain as the limb curled under my ass for support. It was incredibly strong, I could tell, despite the gentleness of the iron grip. She had a sweet smile that distracted from her alienness.
“Well?” Barbara asked softly as my weight was settled onto my own two feet.
“Not as bed as I expected,” I mused, as surprised by the answer as she was. The stranger smiled where she held me close to her larger body.
“The healing device is very efficient. I imagine you’re very stiff and sore though.”
“Yeah, how’d you guess?”
“There’s an annoying side effect of the device that it causes cramping in the muscles and flesh it heals. I try to only use it when it’s truly necessary. In your case, it was necessary, but I apologize for the stiffness nonetheless.”
“No wonder I feel like one big charliehorse. Okay, Monkeytail, you’ve been volunteered to help me to the bathroom because I doubt I could stand the humiliation of Di doing it,” I mocked gently and she grinned.
“I understand that you’re not feeling your best, but can you stand for a moment while I reposition?”
“Dunno, try it.”
I knew the delirious euphoria in my veins was my body rapid healing, but it had never been so acute before. The tail slid around my body like a caress as my unexpected nurse stepped around me and took up her grip at my hips again. “I’ve got you,” she purred softly at my ear and I couldn’t even repress the weird shiver that ran down my spine. “Now try stepping forward.”
“Easier said than done,” I giggled helplessly as my rubbery legs refused to cooperate.
(Barbara)
It was quite humorous to see Helena like this. Normally so cool and in control, she was sprawled back against Rowena like she was drunk out of her gourd. The new girl was cradling her with care and tenderness, a small smile playing around her mouth. It was all very sweet and perhaps a bit suggestive. “No one has ever reacted quite like this to the healing device,” Rowena mused as she carefully manhandled Helena’s weight across the room.
“Maybe the quick heal?” I offered and they both looked over to me. Well, Helena kind of rolled her head to the side to peer blearily at me. “The technology speeds healing, right?”
“Right,” Rowena drawled, clearly not following my train of thought.
“Couple that with a natural ability to heal quickly and it might be amping up her systems enough to make her euphoric.”
“Wee,” Helena giggled and Rowena looked at her oddly. “Whatever the hell it is, I feel great. Aside from the whole ‘had the hell beat outta me’ thing. I gotta pee so bad I’m gonna die.” Her voice took on a whining quality on that last statement and I had to fight laughter.
“I’m not sure how helpful I can be with that.”
“Just get me there an’ I’ll be fine,” Helena insisted and I watched the way her feet could barely stay underneath her. No way this was going to work. She might be pissed as hell later for the impending loss of dignity, but I wasn’t going to let her do something stupid. By the time I’d wrestled my body into the wheelchair, Helena’s slaphappy voice was coming from the adjacent bathroom. Luckily, the facilities were oversized to allow me freedom of movement and I could get up close and personal to my adult ward.
“Okay Helena,” I verbally prepped all three of us. This was going to be incredibly awkward and embarrassing, but Helena was still in her clothes from last night and needed to change. “I’m going to strip you. How do your ribs feel?”
“Bruised, but as long as Monkeytail here is gentle, I think I’ll be okay.” With a silent nod, Rowena shifted one arm to curl carefully around Helena’s ribcage, freezing once at a soft hiss. “No, it’s cool, I’m okay.”
“My name is Rowena.”
“Rowena,” Helena slurred drunkenly and giggled. “Man that’s a mouthful. Kin I call you Ro?” The look of amusement and consternation was quite funny.
“If that’s easier for you.”
“Uh huh.”
Their gentle bantering was adorable. When Helena’s lower body was released by hands and tail alike, I could see just how rubbery her legs really were. Next time I needed help in an upright position, I knew to ask for this new woman’s help. That left me to attack the laces in Helena’s tight leather pants. She really did dress like some kind of cyberpunk hussy and the thought made me chuckle lightly under my breath. Even if the look was sinfully sexy on her… The leather skinned off her hips and I had to lift each calf to get them off completely. The thin socks were easy enough, but I hesitated at the silky thong in a purple so dark it was almost black. This really was more information that I really needed to know about the young woman I had taken in as a lost teen and had grown so attracted to over the years. Ah well, you only lived once. I did my best to ignore the sparse thatch of dark curls and pulled the skimpy underwear away from Helena’s legs. I moved away while gesturing at the toilet behind me.
“Your throne,” I teased and rolled over to the linen closet for a couple of towels. “You’ll need a shower too, I’ll bet.”
“Uh huh,” Helena sighed and then her voice turned plaintive once more. “C’mon Ro, I gotta go.”
“Go where?”
There was a note of panic in Rowena’s voice and I turned the chair around. With her back to me, I couldn’t see her face, but the nervous tension in her back was obvious. When I wheeled up beside her, there was the strangest look on her face. Sort of a desperate disinterest mixed with the panic of the unknown. “That’s the toilet,” I said hesitantly and gestured at the device. There was sudden comprehension in her eyes. “Can you get her onto it?”
There was a smart brain behind the violet eyes, I could see that, but her panic was getting the best of her. Then Rowena cleared her throat uncomfortably and spoke in a tight tone. “There are very strong taboos about nudity among my… father’s people.” Oh, I hadn’t missed the uncomfortable pause. There were issues there, but now was not the time. I reached out to put a gentle hand on the strong arm wrapped around Helena’s middle.
“I can’t do this myself, and neither can she. Please, we need your help.” It was exactly the right thing to say, and determination replaced the fear in Rowena’s gaze. In an amazing feat of strength, Rowena crouched both of their bodies backward over the toilet and held them there while Helena let her bladder empty. I understood the heavy sigh of relief. There were some days that my handicap made it difficult to get to the toilet fast enough and it was always a relief to get rid of the uncomfortable pressure. “Straight into the shower now. You might want to get out of those clothes.”
“Luckily,” Rowena said grimly. “They’re airtight, waterproof, take care of all biological functions for some time and they regulate body temperature to an extent.”
“Okay,” I drawled out for lack of anything better to say. So I watched her booted feet step in dragging Helena’s bare ones in with her. “If you sit, we can get the shirt off.”
“Very well.”
The tail uncoiled and Helena squeaked with the changed pressure on her ribs. With a sinuous grace that would put a tree snake to shame, the appendage acted as a hydraulic jack to lower the women’s combined body mass to the floor of the tub.
“I can see the handiness of a tail,” I smiled, feeling a pang of jealousy. Rowena squirmed around and Helena made a whining sound for her to stop. While the warm water thundered into the big tub, Rowena turned her sharp eyes on me. There was a definite resemblance to her and Helena in Huntress mode. Hopefully they would get along once on even footing.
“It’s a blessing and a curse,” she murmured and I watched a gloved hand reach out and lightly touch my knee. The unspoken question was obvious and I felt knee-jerk irritation at this stranger’s curiosity. Yet, I knew she really wasn’t a stranger. In a night, she had endeared herself to us, as had the men in her pack. I could only vaguely feel the pressure of her touch as it traced the shape of my kneecap. While there was sporadic sensation from the upper thighs down, it was entirely unreliable for walking or any other physical activity. The farther down my legs the touch, the less and less I could feel it. Sensations from as far away as my feet were barely ghostly on my best days.
“Spinal damage,” I explained somberly and her expression was quiet and respectful. There would come a day when she would hear the story, but not now. There was an oddly comfortable quiet between us as I grabbed a washcloth and a bottle of body wash. We stripped off Helena’s shirt and bra and jewelry. It amused me to see that Rowena kept her eyes studiously away from anything below the throat. It only took a few minutes to give Helena a quick scrub, but she was sound asleep by the time I splashed water over her soapy curves. Even Rowena looked drowsy from the damp heat and I reached out to touch her head where it lolled against Helena’s dark mane.
“Rowena?” Sleepy purple eyes blinked in response to my voice. “You should take a nap if you think you’re safe here.”
“I don’t move much when I sleep. My tail does, but not the rest of me. We’ll be fine.”
“Teleporting exhausts you, doesn’t it?”
“Unbelievably so. I think I need to recover from the distance and mass I moved yesterday.”
“Okay, just rest. We’ll be nearby,” I soothed softly and stroked her spider-silk fine hair. It was like petting the softest of kittens, especially when she made that rumbling noise that was almost a purr. I set the temperature gauge on the tub to keep them warm and let them be.
(Dinah)
Barbara appeared in the hallway nearly atop my toes. “Hey, how is Helena?”
“Asleep again. That healing device makes her a bit spacey,” Barbara explained with a smile lingering amid the worry.
“Spacey?”
“Yeah, I’m not certain quite how else to explain it. How are the boys?”
“Don’t know. I just woke up myself.”
In the living room was Ian still sleeping on the couch, but Braytak raised his head where he was curled up on the throw rug. The intelligent gold eyes studied the two of us silently and I could remember the feel of his big hand dragging me away from the police helicopter and its deadly guns. He stretched discretely and I belatedly noticed that he too had a tail. Knee length and stiff like a dog’s; it appeared to be nothing like Rowena’s. I grinned at him and received a strange sneeze-like gesture in response. It was strange, but somehow he made his humor and affection apparent. Alien as he might be, the siblings and their mother had obviously taught him well the body language of Humans.
“Good morning Braytak,” I greeted him quietly and he grumbled something back. It had taken me most of last night to realize that it wasn’t that Braytak didn’t want to speak to us, he simply couldn’t. Anatomy differences and all that stuff. Without either of the siblings awake, I’d have to try and guess his body language as best I could. “Are you hungry?” Okay, that perked him right up.
The hamburgers I put together from the freezer were treated as though they were going to bite, but the reheated garlic chicken pizza was a huge hit. The smell of cooking beef woke Ian up and he responded to Braytak’s gurgle of pleasure in the leftovers. “Good waking,” he yawned and swiveled his head around as though examining the space around him. In a flash, Braytak was there to pull him to his feet and lead him to the table. More rumbles were passed between them as Ian was seated and Braytak took up his pizza again. “Rowena is sleeping and I fear my blindness is felt most acutely when I can’t borrow her sight,” Ian explained.
“Right,” Barbara spoke up. “We didn’t even think about that. Sorry.”
“No trouble. I’m spoiled by the ability to look through her eyes. What is this strong smelling dish?”
“Beef. It’s a common domesticated herbivore that is raised for its milk and meat. Dinah added a few spices for flavor, but there shouldn’t be anything too exotic.”
Braytak murmured something and Ian flashed him a mockingly dirty look. “Bite me old man, I’ll be adventurous.” There was a playful cuff that rocked Ian back in his chair. The younger man only chuckled and felt around until he could pick up the little patty of beef. His expression was thoughtful and vaguely disturbed as he chewed. We all watched with baited breath. “It’s very… flavorful certainly, but far stronger of a taste than we’re accustomed to. It will take some getting used to.”
Barbara flashed me an accusing look and I jumped to defend myself. “Hey, I just added a packet of onion soup mix, nothing else.”
(Helena)
For someone accustomed to waking up in a heartbeat, this lazy process sucked. Though I could see how it was certainly more relaxing. Except that I was getting some really weird body signals. Warm water, a hard yet cushy body at my back, and the vaguely remembered pain somewhere in the distance. Actually, I felt pretty damn good. Arms were looped around me in a gentle hug and warm water lapped up to my breasts. Crazy stuff… Where was I? As memories of a white-haired healer bubbled up from my hazy brain, I let my acute sense of smell draw my nose over to investigate the intoxicating scent surrounding me.
Musky and predatory, with a clean tang to mellow it like expensive wine, the smell was like freakin’ catnip. Soft silky threads brushed over my face as I burrowed in to breathe heavily against warm skin. A moan bubbled up, completely out of my control, as the upper brain started arguing with the lusty lizard brain. My tongue snaked out to taste the moisture caught in the silky hair, drawing the flavor across sensitive taste buds. Growling with pleasure, I grabbed some of the strands in my teeth to suck at them aggressively. The body beneath me jerked awake with a snarl and my own inner beast came fully to life. The change swept over me like an adrenaline rush, firing my nervous system up and morphing my eyes where they lay hidden behind my lids. I managed to get in a quick nip at an oddly shaped ear before my prey recoiled with a sharp, feral sound like a yip. In a blur of speed, the hug changed into a wrestling grip, pain flared up dully and something thumped across my nose hard enough to get my lazy ass eyes to try and open. The brush of a soft mouth gave me something else to nip at, more playful than threatening. The gentle curve of a lip pulled away from strong teeth gave me something to catch and worry at while my half-mast vision tried to clear. It was like swimming through honey, trying to get the playful kitten brain, the predator and the logical woman to get on the same page. The almost kisses with my bathmate wasn’t helping any. That low growl made me a little crazy where it echoed into my mouth.
She wasn’t certain how to respond to the pressure of my mouth, teeth still half bared, but the annoyed growls silent now. In those last twilight moments of feral madness, I forced my lazy body to turn in the embrace and really taste her. Lips soft and compliant, she let me share breath with her, mouths intertwined. When I tentatively ran my tongue along her teeth, it was a thrill to feel the elongated canines that caught at my tongue piercing. Then the rigid weight of my arm registered when I tried to touch her silky hair and reality came crashing in. Jerking my head back, I could imagine that her surprised and dazed expression matched my own.
“Ummm… hi,” I stammered like an utter idiot. When the white woman blinked back like a deer in headlights, I saw a nictitating membrane slide over her eyes in concert with her eyelids. Hell of a time to start noticing details! “I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced. I’m…” A gentle touch on my bottom lip utterly derailed my already shaky train of thought. I stared at the violet eyes as they followed the rough-soft pad of the thumb tracing the shape of my mouth.
“Helena,” she whispered like a dream lover and a sharp shiver rushed across my nerves. The predator within recognized her as an equal… as someone who knew what I was. It was a profound shock of recognition and connection. “Rowena.” It was said so softly that I wouldn’t have heard it without the Meta senses. There was an odd purring quality to her speech that thrilled me and made me want to sing her tune. This was insane, but I couldn’t seem to make Huntress believe that. Scattered memories of recent history flooded over me and I remembered her name.
“Rowena,” I breathed softly just for the pleasure of tasting the word. A shy smile flickered across her features and I grinned back.
“We should return to your packmates,” Ro added and resettled her gentle grip on my body. Packmates? My expression must have said volumes because her smile became a bit forced as she stroked my hair. “Barbara and Dinah will be relieved to see that you’re feeling better.” More memories flooded over me: Barbara sleeping beside me, my heartfelt thanks to Dinah, this unusual woman helping me with the toilet and bath. Defensiveness swirled with the fascination and Rowena stiffened in response. So astute, so sensitive to subtleties that no one could ever read on me… no wonder I was captivated. “Put your arm around my neck and hold on,” Rowena instructed quietly and I felt her long body tense in anticipation of physical activity. Somehow she levered our weights up by breaking all the rules of bipedal center of gravity rules, and only slipped once doing it. The tail was doing all the work and I was ever so impressed by its strength.
“Wow,” I whispered and clung tighter to her ribs and shoulders. In moments we were upright, my legs shaky but functioning remarkably normally. There was a whisper of movement down Rowena’s body and the crackle of relaxing vertebrae reached my ears. She moaned softly in pain or relief, it seemed like a bit of both, and I felt that shiver of awareness again.
“That’s the last time I let you sleep on top,” she groused good-naturedly and I had to chuckle, despite the sensations and images running through me.
“Fair enough,” I agreed with a smile. Now that I was standing and my body settling back into itself, more benign sensations than pain were registering. Nakedness, obviously, and the fact that my scalp itched with sweat and dried seawater, not to mention that the bath had turned me all pruney. Rowena still held me gently in the ankle-deep water, arms around my ribs and that tail caressing up and down my leg.
“You feel better,” she mentioned softly and I involuntary yawned until it made my damn eyes water.
“Yeah, I do. Will you help me wash my hair?” I hadn’t meant to sound so desperate and whiny, but I felt disgusting. Patrol was hard work, and couple that with a seawater bath and an overnight soak, my skin was crawling. There was a strange expression on Rowena’s face, sort of a benign indulgence and blind panic all rolled into one. Maybe she really was as unnerved as I was by this heat between us. Even now, I was achingly aware of her sexy strangeness, the predatory stillness of her tall body. “I’d offer the same,” I suddenly coaxed playfully. “But I seem to be short a hand.”
(Rowena)
Years ago, I had made the decision to come to the planet of my mother’s birth. I had expected distrust, had desperately hoped to make a few careful friends, and had carefully prepared myself mentally for all other possibilities that I could conceive of.
I had never prepared myself for anything like Helena the Huntress.
Predatory and playful by turns, she had taught me more about humanity in these bizarre interludes than I could believe. Huntress was more than a secret name for her, I could smell her under the smooth human skin, hear in the harsh breath in her lungs, the powerful beat of her heart. The dichotomy of Human and Huntress was utterly fascinating. The bottle of thick green liquid Helena handed me smelled earthy and of green growing things. She smiled at me over her shoulder, the pale sky eyes warm and curious. The spray of water had made me jump slightly, but now I had the pleasure of watching her dark hair go black as space and paint her skin wet and slick.
“I’ve never seen dark hair before,” I murmured softly as I worked the cleaning gel into the soft mane. “Nor that sunset red that graces Barbara. Mother had Dinah’s coloring and the blue eyes that Ian inherited. Most of the Uorog have yellow eyes, drifting towards red and green at either end of the spectrum.” Helena turned in my arms to let the spray of water wash away the suds.
“Nothing like me, huh?” She teased playfully and I watched in fascination as water droplets clung to her inky lashes. I wanted to touch her face, but I couldn’t do it. Massaging her scalp was an intimacy that was already costing me far too much self-control. Her expression turned curious, head tilting to the right in my hands. There had only been four Humans in my life until the accident at the waterfront. The similarities and differences in these three women were a bittersweet counterpoint to my memories. Clearly uncomfortable at my wary silence, Helena turned to retrieve another bottle. “This stuff next, it’s conditioner to make it soft.” This bottle was full of a creamy pink gel that smelled of some exotic fruit. Her scent mixed with the water and the cleaning supplies was torturing me in ways I could barely understand.
‘You will,’ Ian’s voice floated through my head. Just how badly it startled me was proof of how caught up I was in this stranger. ‘These women are like nothing we’ve ever known. Your attraction is not the end of the universe.’
‘I understand why nakedness is so taboo now.’ I must have made some grumble as Helena eyed me oddly over her shoulder. ‘She’s gorgeous.’
Gentle fingers on my cheek were startling and very welcome. “You’re so expressive,” Helena murmured and stroked the calloused pads of her fingers over my chin. Were these intimate gestures deliberate? Did she know what they meant?
But how could she?
Gruffly, but careful to be gentle, I scrubbed the conditioner through her hair before rinsing her off and stepping out. “Give me your hands,” I managed to say past my rising panic at all of that pale skin I was desperately trying to keep my eyes off of. Helena stood there, eying me with flat, predatory curiosity. “Please.” I couldn’t just leave, because I had no idea if she could get out of the tub with her injuries. The fading black and blue over her chest and belly were hard to ignore. Then her arms snaked around my neck in a hug and I stiffened even as my arms slid around her lanky body. A heavy sigh in my ear made it twitch spastically and shivers rush down my spine and make my tail dance.
“I like you.”
The words were so quiet that I could barely hear them as they tickled across the fine hairs protecting my ear. Now what did I do? This sensual creature kept draping herself all over me, before pulling away like a wary feline. “I like you too. Sit here while I go get Barbara.” It wasn’t easy to get her into the sturdy plastic chair I noticed beside the tub, and she made no move to let me go once I had.
“Sorry to make you uncomfortable, I don’t normally get drawn to complete strangers like this,” Helena mused quietly and when she nuzzled me again, I nearly jumped right out of my fuzzy white hide. “But you smell good.” A nip near my ear made me jump. “And taste better.”
There was a growl to her words as her embrace tightened and shocking heat raced over my body in a shivering wave. I had felt it before, sporadically over the years, but my differences among a pack-oriented society had kept me from ever exploring that heat. Now that beast of desire was loose and I panicked.
Thankfully, the Huntress let me go when I started to struggle, only to collapse painfully onto my tail. Those bright, pale eyes flared red, the pupils pulling into tight, vertical slits before fading back to their normal blue. I realized that my own feral instincts were close to the surface, a growl lodged in my throat.
It was madness and the beast didn’t care.
I had no recollection of moving back to the heat of her body, only the taste of her mouth and the low rumble of arousal that could have been either of us. Never in my wildest fantasies could I imagine what this felt like. The only Human woman I had ever known was my mother, and these feelings were completely alien to my memories of her. Hot and lusty, I burrowed into Helena’s willing mouth and she bit at my tongue before swirling her own around my mouth. The tiny chunk of metal embedded in her flesh was thrilling and disorienting, but certainly kept my attention riveted. She grinned into the kiss at my snarl and her hands were hard and strong in my hair. How I wished I had my hands exposed, my tail bare. So many sensations were lost to me through the sturdy cloth.
Then a startled squeak broke through the hormonal haze.
(Barbara)
Honestly, whatever the hell I had expected to find in my bathroom, this hadn’t been it. Rowena was kneeling between a very naked Helena’s legs learning all kinds of good stuff about humanity. They were wrapped around one another in a passionate embrace that would put any really good make-out movie to shame. When I made a small noise of surprise, both sets of pale eyes were instantly on me. The hormones in the room were so thick and heavy that I felt my own libido growl in interest. They were intensely sexy in their uniquely feral way, and the stark contrast of light and dark, clothed and naked, was only playing that up. Both of them were panting heavily, pupils dilated, lips wet and kiss bruised.
“Good morning,” I ventured hesitantly and Rowena jerked away from Helena’s body as though burned. They both looked guilty, weirded out and hornier than hell. Oh, things were going to get all too interesting around here. With an impressive cougar-like leap, Rowena was crouched behind my chair and growled something that sounded like Braytak’s speech before she was gone.
Flushed and breathless, Helena slowly straightened up and seemed to finally realize she was naked. I grabbed a couple of towels and wheeled over to drape them over her. “You okay?”
“I…” Helena murmured softly and clutched the towel in her unbroken hand. “I have no damn clue what’s going on.” All I could do was towel her wet hair and wait in sympathetic silence until she wanted to talk. “There’s something about her, Barbara. Just… something.”
“So I noticed,” I soothed gently as I roughed up her short mane. “I haven’t spent much time with her yet. But her brother and Braytak are fascinating as well. It seems good fortune has dropped the three of them in our laps. Would you like having your own crime-fighting troupe? They seem like good candidates.” The idea had obviously not occurred to Helena. She seemed equal parts intrigued and disturbed by the idea. So I deliberately pitched my tone at its softest and most gentle register as I looped the towel around her neck and smoothed her wild hair down. “It might be fun, having an equal. And they know that this is your city and they have to earn your trust as its keeper. Dinah too, but you’re the leader as far as they’re concerned.”
“You mean make us a big pack,” she mused distantly, her mind obviously a million miles away. “I’m not sure how I’d handle all these new people.”
“I know Helena, and I’m guessing that this unexpected connection isn’t helping any.”
The pale blue eyes were feral enough that I had to wonder if she still wasn’t in Meta mode. She blinked and leaned forward to lay her torso across her thighs and I was immeasurably grateful to see the feat of dexterity. “She’s reached something in me that no one else ever has, Barbara. It’s like a drug. That, and I feel like I’m still a little stoned.”
“That’s the healing device. It reacted with your quick healing to make you a little… loose.”
At last, I earned a small snort of amusement and Helena raised her head. “Loose, huh?” we chuckled together while I toweled off her back and what I could reach of her legs.
“Do you need a hand getting dressed? I have some sweats laid out for you.”
“Mmm… Thank you, Barbara. You’re the best.”
I had never really seen Helena like this, relaxed, high and friendly. Was it the healing device or Rowena’s presence? Only time would tell.
(Ian)
My poor sister, ensnared by the wiles of one as wild as she and utterly unnerved by it. This could be a very good thing or a very bad thing. Her chaotic memories of our short time here cascaded through my mind. No wonder she was drawn so powerfully to Helena. Since day one, she had been too small and too fragile for the Uorog. It had made her an outcast as a child and forced her to carve herself a place in the tribe as an adult. That her unusual coloring had marked her as the chosen of the Old Gods of the Uorog had only made her life harder. The pack mentality of the always-gray Uorog had set her apart on an instinctual level and few of those furry brutes had ever been able to see past her differences. Thankfully, there had been some exceptions to that rule, but precious few. And she could certainly outwit her furry brethren easily enough! As much brains as brawn, Rowena was a force to be reckoned with.
It appeared as though she’d met her match in Huntress. Her panic and confusion and arousal washed over me as she fled the bathroom, her thoughts a jumbled mess. She leaped across the room in that long, bouncy, four-legged stride and settled beside me. After only a moment, the familiar weight of her skull rested on my shoulder and I rubbed my nose into her damp hair. The tail snaked around my hips to grip me in her unique hug.
“So much Tealk’s child,” I murmured softly and she made a sound as much disgruntled as sad. He had been a good father in his rough Uorog way, ensuring that we were safe from harm. It was never enough though, because he could never understand the two of us. Never understood our quick minds and deep emotions. ‘His neglect was never intentional.’
‘So I keep telling myself.’
Being an outsider had never bothered me as much as it did Rowena. No doubt her instinctual need to be part of a larger whole.
“You guys okay?”
It was Dinah that broke into our silent communication. She was certainly a pretty girl, and had an edge to her like an adolescent first come into her adult teeth.
“Reminiscing,” I explained and gestured for her to take the chair near me.
“Really? That was an awfully quiet reminiscing,” she grinned and sat. “There’s some weird energy coming off you two, I can feel it. Ian, you said something earlier about borrowing Rowena’s sight. Telepathy?” I didn’t know the word and my expression must have said as much. “Talking mind to mind.”
“Ah. Our mother had that ability and she bound us together at Rowena’s birth.”
“It’s a blessing and a curse to never be alone,” Rowena supplied. “When she passed away, the link remained.”
“You guys lost your mom too?” The sound of her sadness was so profound that it made my heart ache. No cub should bear that kind of weight and yet it happened far too often. “God, this sucks! It’s like some kind of sick curse!”
Through Rowena’s eyes, I could see her mask of pain, and the wet tracks of tears. To us, it was a touch of a home we had never known. The Uorog did not cry, for they simply lacked the equipment. That was a Human trait and we learned at very young ages to only indulge in our mother’s presence. Rowena made a strange sound of sympathy that was followed by an Uorog grumble about the cub knowing how to get at her emotions. That didn’t stop her from leaving my side to wrap Dinah in a powerful hug. Unable to see out of functionless eyes, all I could feel was the echo of Rowena’s hug. A curious touch revealed that their bodies were pressed close, arms clenched tightly around one another. All I could do was stoke the soft hair I found with blind fingers. Hopefully the girl would understand the significance of gesture one day.
To the Uorog, an embrace was reserved for battle and the intimacies of mates. Touching the face was a gesture reserved for loved ones. Mother had taught us the value of hugging and Rowena gave Dinah the benefits of those teachings now.
There was a faint sound of what I knew was the small motor that drove Barbara’s chair. In sync with that was the nearly soundless tread of what had to be Helena entering and Braytak moving to place a hand on my shoulder.
“There were three Humans taken thirty years ago,” Rowena spoke softly, her voice muffled by Dinah’s embrace and the quiet sobbing. “Young Mark died when I was just a small child, and old Greg only three years ago. We still miss them both. Mother just faded away from what I knew was loneliness. She knew that Ian and I would be able to take care of ourselves. We loved her dearly, and we always will, but we knew it was time for her to go. She had probably guessed that we intended to come here, and was as proud as she was horrified. The Uorog took her from earth because she was being hunted for being different, and she was worried that we would suffer the same fate. We were determined though, and after her death, there was nothing keeping us at the starstation. We’ve come here in her memory.”
Dinah sniffled and I felt her grip tighten. Something extraordinary and shocking happened. As her shifting grip moved against my hand, it burrowed past the hood bunched at the back of Rowena’s neck. Like the yank of explosive decompression, our minds were pulled into Dinah’s mind. As her breath sucked in, there was a massive download of information, from her hateful adopted family, to her finding her new pack and finding then losing her mother. There were choppy memories of saving Huntress and earning her trust, the faces of the evil men she’d helped apprehend, youthful crushes and protecting the city she loved.
In those moments or a lifetime, our various memories swirled together like mixed water. Rising alarm at the out of control experience finally broke the bond.
“Oh God, oh God, I’m so sorry,” Dinah whimpered as she tried to jerk away from Rowena, who gripped even more tightly. We knew she had gone to far, but we also knew that she had been unable to control it. In her stress of remembering her mother’s recent death, she had lost control. The whole room vibrated in sympathy to her stress and pain. Literally. Things were rattling like a ship in reentry. There were trickles of fear at her power.
“Dinah!” Rowena’s shout broke through the cub’s panic. “You didn’t know, and we’re not angry with you. We’re not. Sharing memories is a rare and wonderful gift. I think we’ve missed having someone else to share our brains with.”
There was a sobbing, hiccupping laugh of relief and Dinah sagged into Rowena’s body beneath my hand. The trembling of the room stilled and I breathed a sigh of relief.
(Alfred)
The atmosphere in the clocktower was distinctly different from the norm. I could feel it the moment I stepped from the elevator. A strange voice was telling some outlandish tale just beyond my sight that was putting a smile on Miss Barbara’s face. Her head was turning towards me as I stepped forward and opened my mouth to greet whatever assembly awaited me. Then a simply enormous furry man stepped from the kitchen and I nearly rattled the tea tray in shock. Great hands deftly clamped over mine and he made a soft sound like a handsome dog attempting to make friends.
“Oh Alfred! So sorry our guests startled you,” Miss Barbara called out and I looked up into a handsome, furry face and kind yellow eyes.
“Good day sir, thank you for your assistance in saving my dignity,” I spoke quietly and saw him quirk a smile. There was a small sound of gentle amusement and he gracefully stepped aside. Without a glance back, I strode over to the Delphi computers. “Good evening, Miss Barbara. I thought it was high time I came to see if everyone was still alive and well in your secret perch.” Stopping in my tracks for a moment, I notice two other strangers at the couches with the girls and an untidy pile of gear.
“Oh, hey Alfred,” Miss Helena spoke up and straightened from her slouch. “This gang is Rowena, Ian and Braytak. They crash-landed in the bay yesterday.”
“That explains all of the fuss at the waterfront.”
Pure white in color, with flashing violet eyes, the young woman that Miss Helena had so casually introduced peered at me from over the back of the couch. “Have they found anything?” She sounded terrified of the answer.
“Nothing but a large crater at the bottom of the bay floor.”
“Thank the Maker,” she breathed and relaxed beside Miss Dinah and the blonde man I assumed was Master Ian. “I’d hate for the locals to try and figure out what that ship was.”
Despite my curiosity, I had duties to perform and three young women that needed my fatherly tending to. “Miss Barbara, I’ve brought a few sandwiches for you.” In the corner of my eye, the girls perked up and I smiled. “I would never neglect the two of you. Come eat. I shall retrieve some other edibles for our guests.”
“No, it’s cool, Alfred, we can share. Damned if we have any idea what you guys like to eat,” Miss Helena chuckled and fired a glance at Miss Rowena that was positively incendiary. My goodness, what on Earth was going on up here?
(Rowena)
I liked it here; there was no denying that. In only a day or so, these women had endeared themselves to me as no other being had before. Even now, Dinah scrambled up from the couch, jostling me, and rushed over the elderly man Helena and Barbara had called Alfred. Dinah returned and handed a plate to Helena before flopping back down beside me. “Here,” Dinah grinned and handed me a wedge of bread with filling in it. “We’ll all share.” With a small grunt of effort, Helena stood and wedged herself onto the couch, leaving me between them like the sandwich filling.
“What’d you get Dinah?”
“Eggsalad.”
“Cool. Mine’s roast beef.”
They spoke over my ducked head as I sampled the eggsalad. It was exquisite and I huffed happily in that sound my mother had always called a purr. With good food, and the feel of their bodies pressed close, I was quite happy. “This is wonderful.” Both women chuckled as I inhaled the sandwich. My hunger was only partially abated, and Helena smiled seductively around a bite of her own meal when I raised pleading eyes to her. It was again there, the insane heat between us. While terrifying, it was a pull like gravity, like magnetism, like a black hole. “Let me taste,” I growled without thinking and moved to kiss her… to sample both her and these strange new foods. The flavor lingered in her mouth, swirled with her own essence and I growled softly. It took a long moment to even remember that there were others in the room. Helena distracted me so incredibly easily. “I think I like this roast beef,” I purred softly across her lips and she shivered reflexively. My inherent alpha personality was reasserting itself and I had a feeling that we were in for a very interesting relationship.
Then Braytak huffed in amusement and I glanced distractedly over at him. “She’s a good match for you, child of white,” he gruffed gently at me in that manner that was uniquely Uorog. “Perhaps this is what you came so far to find.”
I grumbled as though fighting it, turned my head from gazing at him to the pale blue eyes that held me captive. “Perhaps,” I breathed, drawn to Helena’s warmth once more. Some rational part of me realized that we might be making the Earth Humans uncomfortable, but I couldn’t help myself. I was enjoying these kisses, the intimacy of the distinctly Human touch. The Uorog weren’t built for kissing, their slightly elongated faces and mouthfuls of sharp teeth would have made it dangerous and not enjoyable. The things that had set me apart until now were coming in handy suddenly.
Then I felt it.
Like the sharp rattle through the starstation’s superstructure when something had gone horribly wrong, the vibrations screamed down my connection to my brother. Jerking away from Helena’s seductive warmth, I leapt over the couch and was nearly to him when the Vision hit.
(Dinah)
I knew there were some hormones going one between Hel and Rowena, after all I was young, not stupid, but I hadn’t expected to be witness to their… bonding. It was sweet and kinda sexy, watching them kiss, Helena’s good hand gentle and curious in the white hair. The small sounds of pleasure they both made did weird things to my own hormones. Even Braytak’s word-grumble only distracted them for a moment. Never thought Hel had it in her, this lovable and soft side that grinned kinda stupidly under Rowena’s attentions.
Then the new woman made some alarmed noise and exploded into motion. Before I could take a deep breath, she was over the couch and leaping clean across the room in a single, graceful movement. Well, she almost made it. In mid-leap, Rowena suddenly convulsed as though shot and crashed painfully to the floor. She slid until she smashed into the counter that held Barbara’s computers. At that same moment, Ian also cried out and collapsed. Something weird was going on and I intended to find out what.
Helena’s lingering injuries slowed her down just enough for me to get to Rowena first. Braytak was alarmed, but not overly so as he leapt to catch Ian’s crumpling body. Even as my telepathy pulled me into Rowena’s mind, I had to wonder at his calmness.
It was a tornado of images, fractured and chaotic. They were shouting to each other against the racket and I threw in my strength to help. There was thanks and alarm coming from both as the Vision began to unfold. It was intense and surreal, watching events through this weird lens.
There was an explosion that made us all flinch away as the heat and violence washed over us. Emergency personnel, firefighters, police and paramedics swarmed over the ruined building while we watched on. Burned survivors in a hospital, a close-up of maniacal hazel eyes, their madness burning as hot as the fire. A flash of scarred, burned flesh, a dark woman with a sharp, dark gaze dressed as a nun and holding a fighting staff at the ready. Behind her was Rowena, snarling and clinging to the wall like Spiderman. Helena dropped into a crouch in the foreground, eyes burning red and slitted with me stepping from the shadows like a ghost. What looked like Barbara kissing Rowena, wrapped together like lovers. The dark nun was holding a shadowy figure that sobbed brokenly. A broken mirror fractured my reflection like an insect’s eye. A pale sandy gaze lit by a slash of bright light that left the rest of the face in darkness that just might be a little familiar.
I dared not hope and dragged my mind from the clinging morass of this intense sharing. Gasping for relief, I collapsed into Helena’s strong arms.
“Maker,” Ian groaned into Braytak’s chest. “Rarely that vivid.”
“What was that?” I whispered breathlessly and Helena stroked my head gently. It was nice to suddenly having her really act like a sister.
“Future sight,” Rowena huffed softly where she sat with her head in her hands. “The Visions are never easy for him, but this one was like a flood. Later, it may make sense.”
“Waitaminute,” Helena suddenly chimed in. “You can see the future?”
Ian nodded weakly and Braytak began gathering up his big frame as though he were a child. “Yes, but only as it stands in this moment. Our actions may change it. The Vision is fairly accurate, but nothing I would place a wager on.”
(Helena)
The warmth of her presence washed over me even before my sensitive ears picked her up. The smooth scent of her was animalistic and struck a thrilling note deep in my soul. After Ian’s Vision, the three affected had slept all day while I felt my body healing itself further. Whatever that ‘healing device’ was that Barbara had mentioned, it had seriously kicked up my natural abilities. Even my broken arm was a mere ache now, and I could freely move all five fingers.
“There you are,” Rowena purred softly from beneath my perch and I grinned. There had been no doubt that she would find me. There was a weird little niche on one of the decorative columns flanking the clock face. Even Barbara seemed oblivious of it, and the hidey-hole was uniquely mine. Now I would share it with Rowena. She crouched and suddenly launched into a leap that carried her easily to the point of the stone monument that hid me. It was going to be so much damn fun to run the rooftops with her! With the sinuous ease of a spider monkey, she gripped the awkward surface and stared over the city. “It’s beautiful. And huge,” she breathed reverently and grinned down at me. “I look forward to earning both your trust, and your city’s.”
“You already have.” Yep, it had been me that said that so softly. What was it about this stranger that pulled at me so hard? Her look of surprise must have mirrored my own: that, and her bashfully pleased expression. “C’mere, Ro.”
The niche was barely big enough to cradle my body, much less both of us. Slithering down the weathered rock, her feet came to rest straddling my hips and she crouched down as though boneless. Her dexterity was making me drool, the thought of a physical equal an aphrodisiac of incredible power. Tense and anticipatory, Rowena crouched over my reclining body like a ghostly lioness over her kill. Or a wolf, it was hard to tell. Her body language and behavior was an intoxicating cross between the feline and the canine. Her hair was as soft as I remembered, her lips even softer. Perched unsteadily over a drop of hundreds of feet to the street below, we fearlessly kissed and caressed.
“Y’know, I’m really starting to hate this outfit,” I groused in annoyance and she chuckled.
“Why?”
“Because I have no clue how to get it off you,” I growled back and tugged at the hood bunched up at the back of her neck. “I want to feel your skin.”
“You will, just not here. Would you like to be in a shorter cast?”
“Hell yes.”
“Good, come inside where it’s warmer. I’m unaccustomed to wind.”
“Not much of that in a spacestation, huh?”
“No.” Ro smiled softly and paused with a strange look on her face. “You seem to be handling this very well,” she mused as we regained solid footing on the upper landing by the clock face. Some banal part of my brain still wanted to fight this bizarre attraction, but I told it to go to hell and looped my good arm around her neck. With me in sneakers, she towered over me by a good four inches and I had to tug her down to get a kiss.
“I like that you’re different. We’re gonna make a hell of a team. Just you, me and the blackbird, with Barbara and your brother keeping us on track.”
“Black bird?”
“Dinah. She took on a version her mother’s superhero name, Black Canary.”
“A bird?”
“Yep, they sing pretty. My mother usually had one around the house,” I reminisced and Rowena crouched to crush me up against her body to distract me away from the old pain.
“Indeed,” she murmured into my mouth and I happily took her up on her carnal offer. If I didn’t get her out of this damn wizardy outfit, I was gonna scream. So, hanging by her neck with that one arm, I wrapped both legs around her crushingly tight and earned a narrow-eyed growl. I merely grinned wickedly and told my instincts to ignore the alarm her coiling tail was causing. It felt utterly strange, but my inherent naughtiness was beginning to boggle over the possibilities. It was prehensile, and strong enough that I’d bet she could break bones with it, yet dexterous enough to delicately pick up a half glass of Barbara’s wine earlier in the evening. “How do I get to your sleeping area? I think that Barbara wouldn’t appreciate the company this night.”
Just when I thought my dirty mind wouldn’t overload, Ro had to go and innocently push that old button. Sensual images of Barbara flooded my mind, that old, old curiosity overwhelming me. “She doesn’t like girls that way,” I scoffed and Ro huffed in amusement.
“What makes you so certain?”
Good question…
Alfred was seated at the kitchen table, apparently trying to teach Braytak how to play chess. The rich tone of his voice trailed off as both old men looked over at us. I was almost embarrassed at the way his eyebrows arched up slightly. Almost. The fact that I’d gotten any reaction at all was a shocker. To be a shit, I tightened my grip around Ro’s waist to grind our bodies just that fraction bit closer. Braytak and Ro grumbled at one another, the sounds first of inquiry that became affectionate teasing. It was actually very easy to get the gist of what they were saying to each other. Their voices were very expressive. Ian and the rest of the womenfolk were nowhere to be seen. Was that a good thing or a bad thing?
“It’s upstairs,” I murmured and gave the older men a little wave goodnight before cuddling up affectionately to my new lover. There was a part of me that was beginning to understand wolves, with their pack hierarchy and fierce loyalties. How, once accepted, any healthy and viable member of the pack was one of them forever. It really didn’t matter to Rowena or Braytak or Ian that I was a stranger. By their alpha accepting me as mate, I was a part of them now. Forever. That concept would probably terrify me once the euphoria of belonging became more familiar.
The Huntress inside me was impressed with Ro’s raw strength as she climbed the stairs. Then there was the slam of door, and my old bed was cradling our combined weight. There was no need for any words, just the silky feel of her hair in my grip and her body pressing into mine. Except… I still could barely move that damn arm. When I made an irritated noise, Ro propped herself and eyed me curiously. “Problem?”
“My arm.”
“Ah yes, I’d forgotten. Give me a minute and I’ll be right back.”
A quick, hard kiss and she had slipped back out the door, leaving me splay-legged and throbbing in her wake. No one had ever done this to me, made me feel like this. Is this what my animal magnetism felt like to others? If so, I needed to knock it off. It was like a drug, an unbearable tease, to taste that wildness and have it taken away. Even temporarily!
(Rowena)
Neither of the older men had commented when I minced down the stairs and asked for the healer’s case. While I gathered the few things I would need for Helena’s broken arm, I couldn’t help but muse about what was going on. In all my years of curiosity and standoffishness about sex and bonding, I had met no one like her. Now I was in so deep that I was losing track of myself. My Uorog nature was accustomed to it, millions of years of evolution resulting in a people that functioned far better in groups, standing in contrast with the individualism of my Human parentage. Helena attracted both. There was also fascination for her companions: bright Dinah and enigmatic Barbara.
My dark Huntress lay sprawled back on her soft bed, the undamaged arm curled gracefully around her head and one leg drawn up seductively. “You are so stunning,” I breathed and her smile was radiant.
“People have told me that,” she whispered as I sat beside her and placed a gentle hand over her strong heartbeat. “But it means more coming from you, with your exotic looks.”
My skepticism must have shown, because she smiled and brought my fingers up to kiss. “No one outside my family has ever thought me beautiful,” I confessed quietly and Helena moved my fingers so that they cradled her cheek and gave me her sober, undivided attention. “I was too different from the others of my father’s race. All of them with their gray fur and short muzzles, their eyes of green and yellow and their short, stiff tails. Braytak is very typical of the Uorog. When the rare child is born with my kind of tail, they’re very nearly shunned. Only my albino coloring saved me from utter ostracism.”
“Your color?”
“A sign of the old gods,” I growled my hatred of the legacy of my strange birth, but Helena’s mouth on my palm spoke only of attraction and understanding. I would listen to those things now. “As long as I’m beautiful to you,” I whispered softly and she reached up to pull me to her heat again.
“Can I see the rest of you? So far, you’ve been covered up so heavily that the curiosity’s kinda killing me.”
Ah yes, here came that particular psychological trial. Then I leaned away only far enough to see the animal heat in her eyes and the decision was made. Fear had never stopped me from doing anything in my life. I would be damned to the Vacuum if I would start letting it control me now. So I stood up and found the hidden catch in the seals of the uniform. “It’s a fascinating garment,” I explained softly as I watched her eyes watching me. “Airtight and yet letting the body breathe to stay healthy. There’s an undersuit that keeps me clean, so that I needn’t remove the suit for many days.” Those blue eyes were riveted as the bulky outer suit peeled open to reveal the snug, and very thin, undersuit beneath.
“You’ve got curves,” Helena breathed in such an odd tone that I wasn’t exactly certain how to take the comment. Then she grinned sunnily and relaxed. “Sweet.” I liked that word when she said it.
The curves she was admiring were one of the things that likened me to my mother and away from the Uorog. Clinically, I cupped my hands under the mounds and eyed them blandly. “Only pregnant Uorog women swell up like this, but it never lasts past the cub’s suckling age. Yet another sign from the old Uorog Gods, this sign of perpetual fertility.” The sarcastic annoyance in my tone was obvious and Helena only watched me quietly and with no judgment. Her unspoken understanding was truly intoxicating. Then she drew one finger down the middle of my chest and my breath strangled in my chest. No one, except perhaps mother, had ever realized how sensitive the Human breasts were, how they seemed to link my libido straight into any stimulus on the pink nipples. Thankfully, they had always fit easily beneath the suit and I had stayed in work clothes since shortly after coming of age. But the way Helena ogled my curves; I had to wonder about her own, more lush breasts. Her heat gave me the courage to let the outer suit drop and step out of the thick boots.
“Your arm,” my brain finally managed to get past the storm of arousal in my veins.
“Right,” Helena replied with distraction until I scooped up the kit where I had set it beside the bed. “I’ll be good. For now.” That wicked grin did strange things to my nervous system. It was a good thing removing the rigid cast was nothing more difficult than a tool that softened the material until it could be easily stripped away. Then I merely had to lay down new splints and wrap the flimsy cast material around her still discolored limb. Another swipe of the tool on the opposite setting and the clear compound was as hard as stone. Helena groaned as she straightened out her elbow and the joint popped in protest.
“Stiff?”
“Oh yeah. Hold me for a minute while I stretch it a bit?”
“My pleasure,” I teased and snuggled up to her. In the bath yesterday, Helena had nuzzled at my hair, pulled and sucked at the strands until it was almost painful. It seemed only fitting to return the favor and attack the soft, dark mane. My father’s people, the society I had been raised in, had only gray hair. Only the shades of fog, from pale to medium in that spectrum. There were none among the Uorog that were black or white, except me. With her inky dark hair highlighted in browns and reds, Helena was fascinating from the inside out. Her black clothes had shown enough skin to confirm that my mother had been typical for her species, virtually hairless. I was extremely fine-furred for an Uorog, and yet was fuzzy by comparison to Humans. Helena moaned and shifted restlessly as I suckled at her ear and neck, no fear from her as I kneaded the strong jugular with my teeth.
“Dammit, that’s hot,” she hissed and I assumed that it was a good thing as she grabbed at me, arched her spine and growled her pleasure at me. In a lithe twist of smooth muscles, she had me flat on my back, straddling my hips and showing me again how seductive her mouth could be.
(Helena)
Between the fur and the tail, it was a wonder I wasn’t freaking out. Instead, I ignored the nervous tension in her body and pulled the thin undersuit open to get to her skin. The silly thing looked like one-piece footie pajamas. It would have been funny and maybe a bit cute if I had been able to think clearly for even a moment. Bunny-soft swathes of fur decorated her body thin and soft, nearly colorless against her impossibly pale skin. Framed by the scooped collar, I could see that thicker patches grew along her jugulars to meet over her heart. Rowena hissed in shocked pleasure as I began grooming her with my tongue, enjoying getting her know her taste and feel. Now I really was acting like a damn cat and the thought made me chuckle in delight. Mom would have been shocked and amused.
Rowena’s hands had been resting on my thighs, flexing rhythmically with my loving torment of her body. Suddenly, they shifted to grab my loose shirt and I giggled as she struggled to get it off of me without hurting my arm.
“You show bruises,” she mused thoughtfully, tracing light fingers over my torso. The touch made me giggle and moan. “And you’re ticklish!” Her delighted tone was all the warning I got and we were wrestling for dominance. It was a short tussle, what with me short a fully functioning limb and her damn tail, which ended up restraining my good wrist. “So beautiful,” she purred like a panther and nuzzled into my torso, nipping at my collarbone before moving lower. “Are your nipples sensitive?” When she captured one to suckle at, I figured the question was rhetorical. There was the hint of sandpaper to her tongue in combination with the strong suction and it was making me nuts.
“I wanna feel your skin,” I demanded and she sat back on her heels and let my wrist go. The tail danced sinuously in the air behind her head like a hungry cobra. “Take it off, let me watch you, learn you. Please.” There was a glow in the violet eyes that was more than just the reflective properties. Hands shaking with nerves, Rowena began unfastening the jammies while I watched raptly. It gaped loosely around the small breasts I’d felt pressed into me moments ago, revealing a flat tummy and the shallow indent of navel surrounded by fuzz. “Trust me,” I whispered softly and rubbed my hands over her thighs when she hesitated at shrugging the material away. “I won’t hurt you.” Somehow, it was exactly the right thing to say and I was rewarded by the top half of the suit falling away from her slim, muscled torso. “You are exquisite,” I whispered softly and gently touched her baby-soft flesh. “You really are. Let me show you.” The fact that I had never gone this far with a girl was redundant. Instinct and the language of her body told me what she liked. The white fur grew slowly thicker on her belly and abdomen, particularly over her hip joints. Down her spine, the fur was the thickest anywhere on her body, luxurious and matted from a lifetime of confinement. “You don’t have any guard hairs.”
“No,” Rowena panted distractedly. “Never have. No idea if it’s the mixed genes or the albinism.”
“I like it, you’re so soft.” The oh-so-fine hairs ruffled as my fingers ran across them as I mapped the firm flesh they covered. There were even itty-bitty fuzzies tickling my tongue as I managed to coax her close to enough to find out if she was sensitive in all those regular ole Human hotspots. When I suckled at one nipple and she groaned breathlessly, I was happy to be dead on. Tracing down her furry spine, I was rewarded with her nearly jumping clean out of her hide when the base of her tail was stroked. “Sweet, a new trigger point. Wish I could use both hands,” I chuckled through the teeth I had clenched into her excited flesh. My busted hand was kneading the ignored nipple gently so that I didn’t hurt either of us. Pain flash fired down that damn arm, and oddly heightened the feral pleasure coursing through me. I felt so alive that the blaze of sensations was painful in its own right.
“My turn,” Rowena hissed suddenly and she pulled away to resituate her weight heavily onto me. While I wasn’t terribly fond of being on the bottom, I’d show my soft spots for her. An aggressive grunt accompanied my sweatshirt being yanked off and Rowena attacked my neck and upper chest. “So beautiful, so warm and soft. How grateful I am to have found you.” There were tears in her eyes and I smiled at the happy expression.
“Me too.”
(Barbara)
Silence dominated the clocktower this early in the morning. It was luxurious to have the time and space to myself while watching the sunrise. Only, this morning, there was no peace for me here.
Last night I had heard them.
Quite clearly.
Even with Dinah sleeping like the dead, I wondered if she had heard them too. The moaning and crying out… the cougar snarls and the barking of wolves had spoken volumes. All night I’d listened to them bond, their noises animalistic and uninhibited.
All night I’d listened and ached.
Lonely and guiltily horny, I’d listened avidly to the faint sounds they made together and wished I could be a part of something like that. Rowena’s strangeness and my history with Helena swept away by hormones and solitude. I was antsy and tired today, taking no pleasure in the warming sunshine or my favorite coffee. My clothes were scratchy and too tight and my surly disposition matched those discomforts. Worse, it was a sensitive day, my numbed legs feeling deceptively normal.
Were they okay? Should I check on them? There had been more than one yelp of pain last night, the sounds like some wildlife documentary on wolves with the volume up too high. Before I could talk myself out of it, I was in the lift and upstairs. There was one more pause at the door of Helena’s old room where my upper brain tried desperately to talk me out of what I was about to do.
Hazy shafts of sunlight lit the room in such a way to make a Hollywood producer weep. There were clothes scattered about; Rowena’s heavy suit crumpled beside the sweatpants I’d loaned to Helena. A flicker of movement caught my eye. It was the tail, coiling and uncoiling like an indolent cat’s against the royal blue sheets. It had slithered out from beneath the haphazard sheet barely draped over Rowena’s hips. The ghostly pale back was thickly furred down her spine, as was the tail itself. In contrast, the little I could see of Helena’s golden skin looked swarthy by comparison. They were spooned closely together and utterly dead to the world.
There was no way in hell I was going to go over to Helena’s side of the bed to wake them. There were too many unspoken issues with that young woman, at least on my end, and I really didn’t need to see her naked and spooned up with a lover. The bathroom incidents yesterday had wreaked enough havoc with my equilibrium. However, I was a bit concerned with the scratches and bruises dotting Rowena’s back, and the potential damage they may have done to Helena’s broken arm. Rowena seemed like a safer bet to approach, but their twined bodies were on the far side of the bed. Since the damn huge-ass bed took up the vast majority of the little room, I couldn’t get around the thing, so I was going to have to scoot myself across the mattress and hope Rowena didn’t have any hair-trigger reflexes.
In retrospect, the move was truly insane and perhaps I should have just called out and woken them. Both of them were natural hunters and I had no business getting in their personal space. I would be lucky to not get a body part removed. But they drew me the way sunlight drew the green of a leaf. I could no more resist their primitive tug than I could stop breathing.
Hauling my body from the wheelchair, I shifted onto the big bed and Rowena stirred indolently. I froze, and waited for the tail to start its lazy coiling again. Did the silly thing ever hold still? With years of practice muscling my body around with only my arms and back, I slithered closer to the pair with baited breath.
When I was close enough to reach out to Rowena’s body heat, I got a surprise. The tail suddenly slid around me, a brush of sensation against my leg, around my waist and up my side. Guess the thing really did have a mind of its own. All I could do was hold my breath and hope it didn’t strangle me. But, unlike a hungry snake, it settled between my breasts and resumed its lazy movements. My nervous breathing slowed to normal as I relaxed and followed its hypnotic weaving. Only the last few inches moved, and it was very gentle. With tender fingers, I caressed the tip, marveling at the silky texture of fur and the hardness of bone and muscle underneath. Rowena made a puppy sound and her body stirred languorously. Oops, I had forgotten that my new friend was attached. Helena mimicked the sound perfectly and offered a soft growl.
Abruptly, I realized exactly where I was… and exactly how trapped.
Shit.
Helena’s hand appeared, to wind into the white hair only inches from my face and I shrank into myself. In the years of watching Helena grow from an amazing child to an extraordinary woman, I had tried and tried to deny the attraction that had grown in her adulthood. Now this magnetic stranger was just adding fuel to that carefully banked fire and things were getting out of control. They were kissing lazily, I could tell from the soft, wet sounds and a flashfire of heat washed over me.
Rowena’s body stiffened slightly and her head and upper body twisted to peer at me. Damn, didn’t the woman have any bones? There was a bit of surprise in her eyes, but that didn’t stop her from grinning warmly and twisting further to plant a gentle kiss on my lips.
It was what I wanted and dreaded, this musky kiss that tasted of sleep and sex, the rough tongue slipping between my teeth to explore. Rowena kissed like she had no idea that this might be taboo… because she probably had no clue. While my banal upper brain stammered in abject horror, the horny lizard brain whooped for joy and let the sensual burn wash over me.
Whatever the hell I was doing here, it felt damn good. Helena squeaked suddenly, the sound dissolving into throaty laughter, and then into a pleased moan as I felt Rowena’s arm shift. Again, an internal storm of protest, that lasted until the tail brushed over a hard nipple and I jumped. Now it was my turn to squeak and moan.
“What the hell,” Helena muttered and Rowena growled until my entire skull vibrated. It was thrilling and feral to feel, especially when those sharp canines pressed just hard enough into the corner of my bottom lip to scare me. There was no poetry and roses here, just the brush of the tail teasing my nipples and Rowena’s wicked mouth and Helena’s shock and sensuality.
There was a lithe twist of inhumanly powerful muscles that had the tail suddenly wrapped firmly around me, pressing me to Rowena’s back as she twisted around and moved to straddle Helena. I could only throw my arms around her neck, as I was bodily hauled over to sprawl piggyback over her. She was holding Helena down and ravishing that soft red mouth while I watched in fascination. It was glorious, studying and listening to them kissing deeply, bodies pressed together tightly.
I had never watched an amorous couple kiss like this before, the act in many ways more intimate than the actual sex. Suddenly, I felt like an intruder in this room and in this bed. Then I felt a hand in my hair, twining through the long strands and nearly wept. Helena skritched at my scalp, until I let my head drop into the back of Rowena’s neck in relaxation. “Good morning,” the Huntress purred and Rowena growled playfully.
“I think I prefer this pack bonding to violence and trial.”
“Damn Skippy. Anybody gotta be anywhere soon?” With that seemingly nonchalant exchange, I was suddenly pressed between them, both legs propped comfortably on their bent knees and both pairs of pale eyes watching closely. “Holler if you don’t like something,” Helena whispered and her mouth claimed me. All I could do was whimper at the fantasy made flesh. There was nervousness in the gesture, but the beast within was firmly in control. Yet I felt absolutely no fear that they would harm me in any way. While Helena showed me what that smart mouth was capable of, Rowena was trailing a curious hand over my flushed body. They stripped me of clothing and pretenses, redefined my body and heart with hands and mouths before leaving me exhausted inside my own bones.
No one sensation stood out in the storm of fulfillment that had drowned me. Only after the climax had receded was I aware of individual stimuli. Helena’s mouth and tongue nibbling lightly at my face, her moans warming my skin, and Rowena’s strong limbs and soft fur. There were kisses on my belly and thighs, the pale woman curious about my body. It was rare I got any real sexual satisfaction and she was teaching me things about myself with her caresses. “You taste good,” Rowena purred softly against my femoral artery and I couldn’t stop the laughter that bubbled up.
“Thank you,” I murmured softly and opened my eyes to watch Helena examine me. So I stroked her chin and lower lip for the sole pleasure of being able to. “I’ve been curious about you for years.”
“Me too. So this is cool?”
“Quite.”
“Sweet,” she grinned and suddenly became a Human hurricane of activity, leaping at Rowena who took the charge with a ‘whuff’. “I didn’t get enough good mornin’ lovin’ from you sexy.” I propped myself onto my elbows to watch the two young women, bodies intertwined over my right leg. Rowena had managed to get one elbow underneath herself to keep their weight off of my limb and the other was gripping Helena’s wild hair. Watching them kiss, bodies erotically twisted together, was a delectable fantasy in and of itself. Rowena growled and Helena leaned back to nip at her lower lip. Again they wrestled and I pulled my body away as best I could.
“Is that all you’ve got, Fuzzy?”
Rowena growled more loudly at the taunt and leapt at Helena roughly enough that they both crashed off of the bed. “Not by a long shot.”
Concerned, I sat up and tried to peer over the bed. All I could see was Rowena’s white head and shoulders while she looked down at her struggling prey. It was like watching puppies play fight, for there was no malice in the exchange. Nor was any quarter given. Not that I expected anything else from these young, healthy, strong predators. Low snarls preceded one of the Huntress yowls, the sound that a hunting panther would make. In an instant, her bare feet had come up at a nearly impossible angle to wrap around Rowena’s neck and yank her down beyond my sight. I was hard pressed to say which was more arousing, their physicality or the noises in the dimly lit room.
“C’mere you goofs,” I chuckled fondly and was rewarded by a storm of new growls. There was more tussling and Huntress appeared at the edge of the bed in a crouch. She truly was magnificent, lean, wiry and sweaty, with her hair sticking out in all directions and love bites all over her rosy skin. With a leap that shook the bed, she was coiled up near my head while Rowena crouched at the foot. Perhaps this wasn’t such a great idea… “Hey!” They both froze at my shout. “Careful while I’m here. It’s not like I can dodge you two.”
Contritely, both young women pressed gentle kisses to my skin before returning their attention to one another. Rowena sprawled out beside me, with Helena on top, their legs intertwined and bodies rocking together while they kissed. Again the hormones claimed me and I rolled to my side to nuzzle Rowena’s twitchy ear and run my free hand over their sweaty curves. Helena climaxed abruptly, her body bowing into a perfect curve and the most extraordinary animal sound hissing up from deep in her body. As it crested, I stared in fascination as she curved her spine the other way, throwing her head back to let out a sound that was as much a bark as feline whine as groan. “Beautiful,” was all I could manage to get past the lump in my throat. While Helena had always been an amazing Human being, in the incandescent throes of ecstasy, she was pure magic.
The tail was still distractedly caressing up and down Helena’s relaxing back and I turned my attention to the frustrated Rowena. She was such a complete stranger and yet, I felt as though I’d known her forever. While I explored her mouth again, I let my hand trail down and caress one breast. Her skin was silky, a fine haze of the white fur dusting her like peach fuzz. It was utterly strange and maddening to touch her body, which was as familiar as it was strange. Helena was recovering; her ragged breathing evening out as she began nuzzling the white body. Playing at Rowena’s breasts was a blazing hotspot that had her writhing like a dog with an itch on her back. “Barbara… Helena… please…”
“Far be it from me to refuse you,” I chuckled and Helena echoed the sound softly. A nudge from my knuckles had her arching up enough to trail my hand over Rowena’s belly and abdomen. The fur grew thicker the lower I roamed, and the combined heat of their bodies was making me sweat even harder. Rowena huffed in reaction to my fingers slipping inside, body arching wantonly. “You feel exquisite. Relax and come for me.”
Helena growled in counterpoint to my whispered words and thrust her hips forward, driving my fingers deep into Rowena’s overheated body. Both of us gasped at the illicit feeling of the rocking thrusts. The short dark hairs were wiry on my knuckles, Helena’s soft wet dampening and teasing my skin. I couldn’t really do anything but enjoy the ride, caressing Rowena’s straining torso with my lips and feeling Helena’s rough-gentle use of my hand. As the climax raced across Rowena’s nerves, I learned that she was the noisy one, her ratcheting cries uninhibited and animalistic. Helena rolled her hips to draw the experience out before letting our lover calm down. In a flash, I was on my back with a very active Helena suddenly everywhere on my body. It was paradise. Hands, mouth, teeth, the wild dark hair; they were on my breasts and thighs, nipping at my ribs and teasing my grasping hands.
Contrary to popular belief, I had nearly full sensation to about mid-thigh. From there down the feelings started to fade until there was a near-constant void at my feet. Helena knew my body as well, if not better than any lover, having helped me through endless bouts of physical therapy. All that knowledge was put to use now as she carelessly tossed both legs over her shoulder and proceeded to drive me insane with that wicked mouth. There had never been a doubt in my mind that the young woman would be a fantastic lover, with her expressive and strong personality. But that muscular tongue in my sex was utterly maddening, her hands latched tightly to my hips as an anchor. As I pulled at her hair, the growls and sighs drove me further on until the explosion brought on blackness.
(Rowena)
Having knocked Barbara unconscious, Helena turned her attention back to me and growled. Once that arm was healed, I knew I would feel the full extent of her Huntress strength and speed. Already, it had surfaced while we had been making love, besting me easily. It was arousing and terrifying. I had always had the quickest reactions, easily outmaneuvering even the Uorog children. Now, not only had I met an equal, but with the Huntress abilities active and frisky, she was absolutely my superior. To encourage her gentleness, I crouched low enough to put my chin on the sheet and consciously made the tail slow its erratic thrashing. Under less intense circumstances, it would have been humorous to see the expression of confusion on her face at my submissiveness. Over the years I’d gotten very adept at the ritual of submission due to my small stature, even if it inherently irked me. But at least from this woman I would get respect and great sex. It was certainly good enough incentive for me!
There was absolute stillness in Helena’s body as I slithered closer and rubbed my skull up one bent leg until I could kiss her knee. This was no time to go for the obvious spots, the intoxicating scent of her wet sex, the hard pink of her nipples. This was the time to earn her body’s trust on a subconscious level. So I let my instincts trail gentle nuzzles over her legs and over her tense belly, between her breasts and to that primitive soft spot just under the jaw. There was no aggression in my touch, no hint of teeth or bruising suction. This would change the chemistry between us if she responded to it.
“Rowena,” she whispered softly and the tension suddenly flooded out of her body. Triumph and fear of my accomplishment rushed over me.
“I want your gentleness and your strength,” was my soft request and there was a strong grip in my hair. I forced myself to remain passive as my head was yanked back. The feral beauty in her was almost painful to witness, the smooth skin, straight nose, the full mouth and delicate warmth of her. So much power coiled beneath the soft curves and pretty face. No wonder I was smitten! When she ducked and grabbed my lower lip in her teeth to bite down hard enough to hurt, I remained passive and whimpered softly.
She would remain pack alpha until I had reason to challenge her.
Flat on my back now, Helena’s teeth still clamped into my flesh, I felt her crouch over me as though testing that I was serious. There would be strange bruise there, near my chin, but I didn’t care. A flicker of tongue to my trapped lip signaled her acceptance of my surrender and in a heartbeat, she was utterly gentle, her weight pressing into me as she curled up atop my larger body.
“The things you bring up in me,” Helena mused softly as she settled her head under my chin and sighed. It gave me a chance to touch her for the sole purpose of exploration, marveling at the smooth and hairless plane of her back and upper arms. Even the tiny, tiny little hairs that decorated her in places were virtually invisible and undetectable by touch. Except for her skull and genitals and a couple spots where there was the slightly rough patches where she must have shaved. “Why did you do that?”
“My mother always compared the Uorog to a species she called wolves. The hierarchies within various groupings of us were remarkably similar. I need to know who’s in command and you are better suited to the role than I. That display soothed my instincts and yours as well, I’d guess.”
“I won’t abuse your trust.”
“I know. Sleep now, your wounds haven’t fully healed yet.”
With a tug of tail and a looped arm, Barbara’s somnolent body was tucked along my side and I could breathe in their combined scents. Utterly at peace, I slept.
(Barbara)
I rarely enjoyed waking up. Having been converted to the cause of rampant pessimism, all my fears and worries and pains seemed all the sharper after the comfort of sleep. At least when there were no nightmares, and boy did I have some doozies, truly hellish stuff. Not this time though. There was no fear or pain as the sensations of my body and heart awakened. Rowena was pressed tightly to my back and Helena sprawled imperiously atop both of us. They warmed the nape of my neck and my ear, and their bodies were utterly boneless in the manner of sleeping cats and dogs. Despite my embarrassment and knee-jerk alarm at this development, I had to smile affectionately. Damn good thing I didn’t have any constriction issues, they were practically suffocating me.
After a blissful few minutes of drinking in my lover’s warm embrace, I finally opened my eyes and saw the time. “Damn,” groaned up from my chest before I could stop myself and both of them stirred lazily.
“Wha?” Helena murmured sluggishly and Rowena made a sound that Braytak may have understood, but was unintelligible to me.
“Good thing you’re not tremendously heavy, Huntress,” I teased fondly and stroked her bracing arm where it was pressed tightly to my chest. “But I must say that the two of you make a great blanket.” They chuckled and began pressing kisses to my skin. Reluctantly, I spoke up again. “I need to get ready for school.”
“Aw damn, is it Monday? I hafta work tonight.”
While Helena ranted and slithered boneless to the mattress beside me, Rowena propped herself up on an elbow. “School?”
“I’m a teacher as a cover for my nocturnal superhero antics.”
“A teacher,” Rowena mused and kissed me deeply. “How admirable.”
Her comment pleased me in its respect for my vocation. “Thank you Sweetie. Give a girl a hand getting ready?”
“With pleasure. Helena, you stay put and I’ll be back soon.”
“’Kay,” was the weary reply and Helena cocooned herself in the bedding. Rowena snorted in amusement and pulled on the sweatpants Helena had been wearing yesterday until they butted into her tail. There was something incredibly playful and sexy about seeing her exotic form in the hazy sunlight with the gray sweats low around her hips. She roughed her hair up before yawning hugely and I grinned in delight.
“There’s probably a shirt in the dresser over there,” I offered and she followed my gesture to retrieve the clothes. While she yanked on the black tank top, I eyed my scattered clothing balefully. None of it was even remotely within my reach. “Damn.”
“I could dress you, Sunset lover, but I need a shower as much as you do,” Rowena growled playfully and I was suddenly flat on my back yet again, with her strong body straddling me. “I’d rather wrap you in these sky-colored sheets and bathe you myself.”
It was going to be hard to say no to that gleam in her eye. Since there wasn’t much chance of hiding this last day from Dinah and the others, I might as well face my fate gracefully. “I’m all yours.”
(Helena)
“I can’t believe you guys understand this stuff,” I grumbled and chased the last spoonful of Ben and Jerry’s chocolate truffle ice cream around the carton. “These damn things are like something out of Star Trek.” At last I managed to catch the gooey lump and raised it with relish. Only to have Rowena jump up and steal it right off my spoon. “Hey!” My objection was lost in her deep kiss and the shared flavor of her mouth with the chocolate. “Okay, you’re forgiven.”
Rowena merely smirked and settled back down beside her brother. In the course of Barbara’s school day, they had learned the keyboard and mastered the basics of the massive Delphi mainframe. It was a good thing I knew most of the damn passwords. If I was very, very lucky, Barbara wouldn’t kill me for letting them play with her toys. Maybe I should leave now and avoid her wrath.
We’d spent the day cleaning out every scrap of food in the clocktower to find out what foods my new packmates liked. Poor Alfred looked positively startled at the combination of our appetites. Since he had only shopped a few days ago, I felt bad for ruining all his hard work, but my tummy was very happy. The Delphi chimed suddenly and we all looked up at the massive bank of screens. Barbara was home and in the elevator. Now we’d see if she was happy or pissed that someone else could use her computer systems.
Boy, the look on her face was priceless.
“Aww man,” Dinah mourned where she stood behind the wheelchair. “You guys have a death wish. I’m going to go do my homework.”
There was a strange look on Barbara’s face and I hopped off the counter and strode over. “They figured out how to work it in just a few hours. It seemed a good way to help them learn the city. How was your day, babe?” Her expression softened, even if she did look a bit miffed. It faded further as I bent over and braced myself on the armrests of her wheelchair. “Missed you.”
“Mutual. My day was normal and boring and I was anxious to get home. And they figured it out in only a few hours?”
“You sound put out.”
“The Delphi took me years to build. How could it only take them a few hours?” She sounded so petulant that I leaned in to kiss her, long and deep and slow. The woman had a mouth made for kissing, expressive, soft and absolutely delicious. When I at last let us both up for air, she was flustered and I was ready to drag her off to the bedroom to pick up where we’d left off.
“Ummm, they were trying to explain the kinda computer they’re used to and it was totally Greek.”
“That doesn’t take much, Helena.”
Despite the truth of the tease, I scowled, but her cute smirk made her impossible to be annoyed with. Another long kiss and I chuckled into her mouth, “you’re the brains and I’m the brawn, remember?” there was an odd look on Barbara’s face, like she didn’t like how I’d phrased that but had no idea what to say. I was perversely proud at having stumped her. It didn’t happen very often.
“I could be of assistance to you here in the clocktower,” Ian spoke softly and Rowena seemed torn between watching us and paying attention to her brother. “There would need to modifications to the system to accommodate my blindness, but the feat is manageable.”
“You could have your own sidekick,” I supplied helpfully and both Rowena and Braytak snorted in amusement.
“I’m particularly good with hardware.”
The double entendre made me laugh and Barbara smacked my arm. “Behave.”
“You weren’t saying that last night.”
Again Rowena was making that animal sound of amusement, her pale eyes bright. When Barbara looked at the tall woman shyly from under her eyelashes, I was just as tickled as Ro. It was a damn sexy look, full of coy promise. For a long moment Ro didn’t move, just leaned back lazily in her chair and regarded Barbara with predatory calm. Then Barb coaxed the chair forward, tucking the chair between Ro’s splayed feet. That was enough for Fuzzy to lean in and say hello. The contrast of their coloring was an erotic shock. I hadn’t taken time to notice the night before, too caught up in the wonder of their bodies and the power of connection. Rowena’s frosty white coloring against Barbara’s flame hair and warm skin was truly fire and ice. Barbara jumped a little when Ro’s thumbs brushed against her ribs, as the tall woman was leaning heavily on the chair arms.
“Welcome home.”
“Thank you. Come ‘ere,” Barbara whispered huskily and a shiver ran up my spine. They kissed again, deep, dirty fantasy kinda kisses. Was it warm in here, or was it just me? “You taste like… popcorn?”
“Helena fed us today. A little bit of everything in the tower. A nap or some exercise would probably be in order soon.”
Now we all laughed.
** Author’s note ** I love Trancer’s work, and used this passage as inspiration. She was an invaluable help getting this rough version into what you all know as heroes. Wish that the friendship had worked out… the Pacific Northwest can be a lonely place.
Helena could be so persuasive at times. It's not that she had a voracious sexual appetite, which she did, it was something that seemed so Helena. Not a direct cause of her metahuman abilities, but something that came directly from being the child of Selina and Bruce. They both had a certain magnetism that couldn't be denied. With Helena, it had multiplied by ten. It pulled Barbara towards her with a force she couldn’t deny.
-From Trancer’s fic, Secret Smile.
Email: brainshare@shatterstorm.net
Rating: R, for girlie kisses and some bad language.
Warnings: There will be serous adult themes in this story. Kinky sex, threesome, characters getting seriously hurt. Buckle your seatbelts; you’re in for quite a ride.
Category: Mirror universe for the Birds of Prey. While it will bear a resemblance to the original, this is my version of where the story could have gone.
Date: Begun in February of 2003.
Series: It looks that way.
Disclaimer: The Birds of Prey in all their forms belong to people other than me. They just wanted to come out of the toybox and get in some fun. No harm in that, huh? The new kids are mine, and I put a lot of work into them, so I hope you like them.
Spoilers: The tragedy of Black Canary, that’s about it.
Notes: All words in italics are telepathic communication.
Character notes: I created Rowena, Ian and Braytak because I seem to have a fascination with prehensile tails. Really, the whole damn story came from that one concept.
Summary: When some out-of-town strangers show up in New Gotham, things get very interesting for our superheroes…
