The Rebellious Mate

9(ii) Silence Before The Storm

Asena had been a law-abiding citizen of a commonwealth with a different political framework. A commoner, she had the same rights as the Premiers or Elites.

'Not anymore. Now, you're a rogue! Sena, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore!'

All she took for granted did not exist. Here she was, an illegal migrant, on a temporary visa.

'That catfight was a mistake. It put you in the limelight. If they discover who you are and where you're from...' Moggie ranted.

Here she'd be arrested for espionage under the Treason Act. Hence, she had to underplay her diction and outlook on the dumpster fire called Europa.

'Glad you accept you're not international, super spy material, Ms. Bond.'

Moggie shared Papa's obsession with the human movies. Vic and she grew up with an idiot box. Fascinated by that world, they both had wished to be skinwalkers. Asena spectacularly flunked the sensory resistance assessment. Vic dropped out; she wouldn't leave with her 'sister' or mother. Yet a decade later, she discarded them without so much as a goodbye.

In the evening, a tailor came for their measurements. Asena expected Zane to summon her for a dressing down after the altercation with Bebi. But there were no ramifications. Instead, an odd silence had descended on their wing.

At night she crept into the ground to let Moggie out. After that, in the early hours, she raided the pantry. Finally, she could eat to her heart's content without the matron dictating her food intake.

Duma found her in there and snickered at her chomping on the leg of the roasted rabbit she had retrieved from the slow-cook ember oven.

"Bebi not wrong. You play a role, to attract the male who suits your terms," he said, stealing the roasted ribs from her plate.

She tore a chunk of meat from the bone and chewed. After swallowing, she sipped the ale. "Someone who can respect my boundaries," she muttered.

Duma huffed and used a napkin to wipe the fat on her chin. "Why use Eros? You hate them."

"I don't... Once I'm reunited with Victoria, this will be easier... depending on how she's faring."

Slack-jawed, Duma stared at her. "So you're here for her?" he yelped.

Asena didn't confirm or deny his accusation. "A familiar face might change my mind. Don't disappear on me, please. All I ask is for a note."

He reached out to ruffle her hair. "Ha! You won't get rid of me if you tried. Thank you. I couldn't... have said all that to Bebi." He tucked her messy locks behind her ear.

Asena hissed, but Duma ignored her warning and grinned.

Resigned, she laid her head on his shoulder and groaned, "You're a pest."

Papa said she needed a gentle shifter such as an elaphocentaur, faunoid, centurion, or snawfus. But there weren't any herbivore shifters or omnivore primatoids around her. And Moggie and she gave big predators, in both forms, a wide berth. They were too gregarious, and often bossy.

"Let's see how the viewing goes. There is no telling who'll be interested in me. Maybe no-one. For now, I'm content to stuff my mouth. And listen, do not listen to Bebi. She's got fermenting dung for brains."

"Whatever!" Duma flicked his wrist and swung his hips while executing a melodramatic exit.

Duma's optimism infected Asena. The prospective suitors were a means to an end. She was after one who had a computer connected to a network. In ten minutes max, she could find out if Victoria was in the system. If not, their social connections or willingness to reunite her with a childhood friend, which was technically the truth, would be ace.