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The mantis cautiously crawls forward on its many legs. Chirping something that sounds an awful lot like a question, it reaches for the morsel with a small pincer. I wince, expecting pain, but the creature is beyond careful as it takes the food from my hand. Instead of eating it, the mantis brings the food to the bars for its family. How sweet.
Tareq watches me with a bright smile, looking pleasantly surprised. To be honest, I am surprised too. I expected to be frightened, despaired, or hysterical, maybe all three. But after a good night’s sleep in Tareq’s arms, I feel rested and ready to tackle the world. The galaxy.
Befriending an alien mantis? Sure, no problem.
Learning not to be afraid of my sharp-toothed cellmate? Bring it on!
“Aren’t you a good little alien?” I coo at the mantis, watching it nuzzle its larger relatives through the bars before scampering back. It nudges at my hand, clearly requesting petting.
With the panda before, it was simple. I’ve never petted a panda before, but I figured it would be like petting a dog. But who has ever heard of petting a praying mantis?
With trepidation, I pat its triangular head the way I’ve seen Tareq do it. The mantis buzzes, leaning into my touch, so I must be doing something right.
“You’re a little cutie, aren’t you? I’ll call you Cricket.” It’s as good a name as any. “Do you like it, Cricket?”
The mantis chirps, and I decide to take that as a yes.
When Tareq stands and walks by me, I freeze but force myself not to flinch. He’s proven he won’t hurt me, and as the most intelligent creature around here, he’s my best chance to escape. Plus, I hate how downcast he looks when I cower from him. He doesn’t like me being afraid of him. I don’t like being afraid of him either.
Curious, I watch him by the bars bordering my former cell. Tareq crouches nearby and unwraps another food package, making a “pst-pst” sound at Cricket. Incredibly, it works, and the mantis runs over to him.
I slap my hand over my mouth to muffle my giggle, not wanting to disturb whatever the alien has planned.
First, he gives Cricket a bit of food. Once the mantis devours it, Tareq breaks off another piece and tosses it into the empty cell. Cricket’s chirp is anything but happy this time. He tries to reach the food with his long arms, but it’s too far.
With what looks like a scowl, the mantis squeezes between the bars, turning and twisting his body until he’s safely on the other side. Tareq mumbles something encouraging, probably telling the animal his language’s equivalent of a “good boy”.
Pointing at something in the far corner of the empty cell, Tareq says a few more encouraging words. Cricket scampers off, returning a minute later, dragging a blanket along. The smelly, threadbare blanket I didn’t even get a chance to use. Cricket delivers it close enough to the bars so that Tareq can reach it. My incredibly considerate alien cellmate offers it to me, miming wrapping it around my chest.
“Thank you,” I whisper, tears pricking at my eyes. “Thank you so much, Tareq.” Suddenly, my situation doesn’t seem so dire. There are obviously a lot of bad aliens around, but I’ve won the lottery with my new cellmate. He’s definitely one of the good guys.
Cricket chirps, as if to remind me of his part in the great rescue of a scratchy blanket. I wrap the fabric around myself before leaning down to pet the insect’s head. “Thank you too, Cricket. You’ve been amazing.”
The mantis preens, letting me pet him before scampering off into the dark cell to explore. I worry he’ll get hurt by some of the other cell occupants, but fortunately, Cricket seems satisfied running around the empty cell for now.
“Can’t believe you taught a praying mantis to fetch,” I say to Tareq, laughing over the idea.
He grins back at me, shrugging. Either he’s telling me he doesn’t understand me or that training an alien mantis isn’t such a big deal. Probably the latter.
He replies in a teasing tone, but the only word I understand is my name. It feels oddly flattering to hear him say it.
Chapter 9
Tareq
I like As’Trah saying my name in her soft voice. I like her smile. I like her soft, curvy body. I like her strength. I like everything about her so much, it scares me.
I’d worried over how she was going to react to waking up in my arms, afraid that she’d start screaming and cause the guards to barge in and hurt her. I don’t want her to suffer any more than she already has. But the human female surprised me.
Even though she’s still afraid of me, she remains calm. It’s admirable how quickly she conquered her fear, forcing me to alter my opinion about her. She isn’t weak. Far from it. Yesterday, she cried, crushed under the weight of her terrible new reality. Today, she stands strong, ready to tackle the challenges to come. A warrior at heart. A worthy mate.
I flick my tail in anger. I need to stop thinking about her like that. Once we’re free, she’ll return home, and I’ll never get to see her again. She will return to her own people and forget all about me. I really have to stop thinking with my cock.
It’s not like I’m in a position to take a mate, anyway. I’m an elite soldier, spending most of my time on dangerous missions or training. Technically, I don’t even have a home. Of course, I’m always welcome at my family’s dwelling back on Qara, but I could hardly bring a mate back to my childhood bedroom.
My mother would be thrilled, though. She’d gladly clear out an entire wing of the spacious residence just for me and my mate. I have three siblings, all with their own mates and cubs, and yet, she never stops bugging me to settle down. My family would love As’Trah, and they wouldn’t care that she’s human.
Would she like my home planet? I don’t know much about Earth, but I vaguely remember the satellite images having a lot of green and blue. Oceans and forests. Qara is the same. Jungles, forests, beautiful meadows. Long beaches with white sand. We could take a walk there, and I could collect flowers for her, and— And why the hell am I still obsessing about this?!
