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Chapter Text

"Ollie! Ollie!" 

Ember flings her arms down against her sides in frustration, scanning the surrounding area. 

"Great. Just great," she pants, shoulders slumping as she wipes sweat from her stinging eyes, raking her dark brown hair away from her face. 

An hour in, and she still hasn't been able to find the naughty canine. 

Damnit, Ollie, where are you?

This was her own fault, granted, this was what she got for not paying enough attention. 

She'd been busy all day today, double checking that the power systems were all working, including the backup ones, and making sure her supplies were all in order.

When she had went outside with the intention to put up some extra lights and secure some of her outdoor equipment, she'd been so preoccupied with her work that she'd not noticed that the screen door to her house wasn't locked securely.

It wasn't hard to guess that Ollie, her four year old brown hunting hound, had then pushed said door open and made his escape. 

There was no telling why, honestly.

It could be any number of things. 

Maybe it was because she had been outside and he wanted to be too.

Or maybe it was because he'd seen something outside, like a ground rodent of some kind. 

Or maybe he had just done it for the hell of it. 

Regardless of the reason, once she realized he'd gotten out, it was too late. 

She had not been fast enough to catch him in time,  and he'd leapt over low fencing she had put up, disappearing into the treeline as he barked his head off at some unknown thing. 

She had chased after him, but was no match for his speed, unable to keep up with a creature with four legs and endless energy.

To make things worse, he'd not responded to her calling him back, for whatever reason. 

That was so strange. He never ignores me like he did then. Figures today would be the day, though. 

"Ollie! Here, Ollie!" She calls again, her voice echoing through the trees and bouncing back at her.

The longer he doesn't respond, the more Ember worries. 

I should've been more careful. If he gets hurt, I'll never forgive myself. 

There's all kind of creatures out there, a lot bigger and tougher than her pup, many of which would be more than happy to make an easy meal out of him. 

In addition to that, in just a few short hours, it will be dark, the sun setting for 12 whole weeks, leaving the colony in pitch black. 

She'd never be able to find him then. There'd be no way.

She looks up at the sky, trying to catch her breath.

Already, the sun is dipping towards the horizon, the sky streaked with oranges and yellows and pinks. 

As the light steadily grows dimmer, causing shadows to lengthen and darken everything in eyeshot, she feels her stomach twist. 

I can't give up. I can't.  

She loves her precious pooch with her whole being,  she can't just leave him.

They'd been through so much together, she'd raised him by hand, ever since he was just a puppy, small and sickly. 

She doesn't have much time left, though, and if she doesn't find her pet soon, she'll be forced to turn back, lest she gets lost and can't find her own way home.

The thought is a bitter one. 

She shakes it away as her efforts redouble. 

"Ollie, come! C'mon, here boy!" Ember claps, whistling and clicking her tongue as she wades through the knee high grass of a field.

Dry grass and sticks crunch under her heavy boots, dust and pollen kicked up with every step, making her rub at her nose and cough. 

Chirpbugs, noisy cricket-like creatures, jump around her in the grass, a few landing on her bare legs, their spindly legs scratchy and tickly. 

She brushes them off distractedly, heading further into the trees. 

As she does, an odd clicking noise suddenly starts, rapid and abrupt and making her immediately stop in her tracks. 

For a second, the hair on the back of her neck prickles as the instinctual feeling of being intensely watched surfaces. 

She looks around and sees nothing. 

That doesn't mean that nothing is there, though.

It's a lesson she's learned the hard way, several times over since moving to this planet.

She's had too many near misses, Ollie too. 

Ember fervently hopes it's not a slybeast, trying to lure her closer. 

If it is, that spells serious trouble for her, especially because she'd not grabbed a weapon in her rush to try and stop Ollie's mad dash for freedom. 

As she continues to stand frozen in place, senses on high alert, green eyes darting back and forth nervously, the sound starts again, seemingly closer and to the right of her. 

She slowly turns to face it, preparing to run. 

If she can make it to a tree and climb up it fast enough, she'll be safe. 

Or safer, that is. 

The robust, stocky creatures are better suited for running on the ground, not scrambling up tree trunks. 

If she stayed in one long enough,  it'd get bored and look for easier prey. 

However, as the noise continues around her, she finds herself hesitating. 

It doesn't sound like a slybeast, she thinks. 

Then again, perhaps it is mimicking a new kind of insect, or maybe even a frog? 

Regardless if it is or isn't, I've not heard this noise, whatever it is from, before. That's for certain. 

Ember tilts her head and squints, trying to determine what direction the sound is coming from now, but after a few moments, it fades, as if the source has moved away from her. 

It's a relief.

Maybe I'm too skinny for a meal to be made out of me. Not worth the trouble, or at least I hope.  

She doesn't let her guard all the way down, though. 

Even though the clicking has ceased, she still feels like she's not quite alone.

She continues on her path slowly, cautiously, keeping her head on a swivel for sleek black fur and golden eyes and a bony tail among the undergrowth of the forest as she resumes yelling out for Ollie to return to her. 

Everything remains calm, but as the shadows lengthen, making it increasingly hard to see, and the first call of a nocturnal creature echoes throughout the trees, Ember reluctantly scuffs to a stop. 

A hopeless feeling overcomes her, a lump forming in her throat as she's forced to admit what she already knows. 

She needs to turn around. 

It's too dim to keep going, and she doesn't have a light to help her. 

She wants to kick herself for being so ill prepared, she wishes she'd been thinking quickly enough to grab one. 

Unfortunately, what's done is done, and there's not anything she can do about it. 

Ember stands there for a moment later, blinking away tears before slowly turning to go back the way she came. 

In the distance, a dog begins to bark. 

Chapter Text

Ember is moving before she even thinks, breaking into a sprint in the direction of the barking. 

Ollie!

The barks are frantic and loud, the poor dog sounding scared out of his mind. 

It spurs her on, even as she trips and stumbles over brush and fallen branches through the dark forest, twigs and vines from the trees around her whipping her face as she runs.

The sound of Ollie's barks gradually get closer, and her heart twists in her chest as she runs even faster. 

For a moment, she dares to hope that he'll be unhurt when she reaches him. Just in case, she sends a prayer to whoever might be listening. 

Please let me reach him in time. 

"Hold on, baby, I'm coming," she calls, almost to herself, cursing as she slips over a patch of leaves and almost loses her footing. 

It doesn't occur to her that it could be a trick until the smell of damp earth and rotten meat fills her nose. 

The sound of her dog's barking dies abruptly, replaced instead with the dreadful sound of this planet's most common predator. 

K-k-kkkhiiihaheehahaasss!

Unable to see where it might be coming from, as Darkness has at this point almost completely fallen, Ember braces herself anyway, throwing up an arm to cover her throat instinctively. 

The action saves her life.

Jagged teeth sink into her forearm half a second later, agony immediately lancing through her, and her scream of pain is cut off as the weight of the slybeast slams her to the ground, her breath leaving her lungs in a strangled wheeze. 

Adrenaline surges through her body as she immediately begins to struggle, kicking out weakly in an attempt to dislodge the creature, even as she knows the action is in vain. 

It outweighs her by at least 80 pounds, and with the kind of grip it has on her right now, she'll never manage it. 

That doesn't mean she's going to make herself an easier meal than she already has. 

She can see the flash of its eyes, and with her good arm, reaches out to gouge her fingers into one of them, twisting viciously as she feels it burst wet and hot onto her hand. 

Motherfucker. 

The slybeast snarls in fury and pain around the limb in its jaws, but refuses to let go regardless. 

The loss of an eye is not enough to deter it from a guaranteed kill. 

If anything, the injury makes it even more vicious. 

Ember wails as its claws sink further into her shoulders, then shrieks long and loud as it shakes its head roughly, jerking her side to side. 

The pressure on her arm eases as the slybeast readjusts its grip, and her forearm cracks audibly as it bites back down. 

Pain like she's never felt before making her convulse, the contents of her stomach spewing from her mouth from the intensity of it.

She doesn't have the embarrassment to spare for the action, barely has any room for coherent thought at all. 

This is it, she only has time to think, hysterically, over and over. 

I'mgoingtodieimgoingtodiesostupidhowcouldyoubesostupididontwanttodiepleaseimgoingtodiehelpme-

Even as she pounds at the animal's thick head, Ember knows she's not going to win. Her blows are weakening, and she can feel her thoughts grow slower and fuzzier the more she bleeds. 

She can feel the slybeast release her arm, can feel it's hot, vile breath on her face as it lets out another one of those spine-tingling click-hiss giggles. 

She recoils, squeezing her eyes shut as tears run down to her temples. 

I don't want to die….please…..Ollie…..

Abruptly, an unfamiliar roar sounds somewhere to the side, she doesn't know which one, and the weight of the slybeast leaves her, the creature squealing as it is torn from its prey. 

Ember lies in a daze for a moment, uncomprehending as she listens to a battle between beasts, the forest alive with equally terrifying sounds. 

The cackles and hisses of the slybeast are matched, if not overwhelmed, by the growls and snarls coming from the new, unknown creature. 

Their fighting is accompanied by the crash of the trees and fallen brush, the ground shaking and trembling with their movements.

Ember can't see any of it, but as the slybeast shrieks in pain and the newcomer roars, she knows she doesn't have to. 

Whatever that new thing is, it's more than a match for her would-be killer. 

As much as she doesn't want to be here whenever the fight comes to an end and the victor turns their attention to her, there's no way she'll be able to move, too weak to even raise her head off the ground. 

So she lays there, terrified as she waits for what's to come.

And as abruptly as it begins, the fight ends.

There is a strange metallic noise and a wet, meaty sound, followed by the cry of a dying animal and a victorious roar. 

She's left drifting in the sudden silence around her, and she finds herself staring at the sky blankly, curiously detached from her body. 

She can just barely make out the stars in the gaps of the trees, and as she begins to drift into unconsciousness, a familiar clicking noise reaches her ears. 

.

.

.

Pyode. So soft…..

. 

.

.

When Ember opens her eyes, she doesn't expect to see the ceiling of her own bedroom.

……What?

She tries to sit up, but finds that she's been bundled in blankets so tightly she can hardly move. 

She turns her head, blinking as she takes in the familiar surroundings. 

Yes. I am definitely at home. But how? 

The last thing she remembers is lying on the rapidly cooling ground, staring at the stars as she bled to death. 

It doesn't make any sense. 

There's no way she could've gotten home by herself, and there wasn't anyone else in those woods to save her. 

She wasn't dead, though. 

At least, she felt pretty alive. 

She bites her tongue, just to see, and immediately winces. That certainly felt real. 

Abruptly, she realizes that the rest of her body is not in any pain whatsoever. 

She looks down at her arms, the only things not trapped to her body. With some effort, she pulls her bad arm closer to inspect it better. 

It seems to be wrapped in a greenish material she's never seen before, only her fingers free. 

Some kind of gauze? 

If so, it doesn't feel like it. 

She can barely feel the weight of it against her skin. 

Tentatively, she flexes her digits, feeling them slide and clench against her blankets.

Responding like nothing even happened. 

She swallows dryly, feeling a nervous sweat bead on her skin as her heart begins to race.

How is this even possible? 

The sound of her door opening makes her head snap in its direction, her body tensing as she prepares for whatever is about to happen.

Her heart skips when the sound of clicking starts, the same kind that she'd heard in the forest before she was attacked, just as an enormous figure comes into view. 

It doesn't look like any alien she's ever seen before -and as someone who had planet hopped a lot in her younger days, that was saying something. 

Ember stares rudely at the intruder/her savior, and as her gaze travels over its toned physique, her attention stops at a strange abnormality on its armored chest.

Wait. No. That's not an "abnormality", and this creature isn't an "it". Her. That's a she. 

Her face warms in mortification as she hastily tries to find something else to look at.

In the next moment, she feels herself pale as she takes in the various, dangerous-looking weapons and macabre skulls strapped to the alien's body. 

After a moment of examination, she recognizes a human skull. 

Struck with a sudden terror, her heart in her throat, Ember begins to tremble as she looks up at this -Killer? Assassin? Warrior? 

She doesn't know what to call her.

As the alien comes to a stop at the foot of Ember's bed, her blank, scary mask meeting the human's frightened gaze, Ember finds herself blurting the first thing that comes to her mind. 

"What do you want?" 

For a long moment, the alien doesn't say anything. 

Then she tilts her head, dread-like locs spilling over her shoulders as she replies in Ember's own voice. 

"You."

Chapter Text

What? Want me, how? 

To kill me? Eat me? What?

Ember finds herself unable to speak for a moment, staring dumbly at the alien woman, who hasn't moved from her spot at the edge of her bed, still staring at her unnervingly.

"Um…I don't think I understand…what do you mean?..." She says after a very long, awkward pause, feeling her heart starting to beat unevenly in her chest.

Instead of responding, the alien simply takes a step forward, then rounds the side of the bed. 

Ember shrinks back as she stops beside her, a terrified squeak escaping her when the woman abruptly extends a clawed hand towards her, reaching for her face. 

She flinches and jerks back, albeit too late, her mind immediately going to the worst conclusion- I'm going to die, after all. 

She instinctively shuts her eyes, cowering and expecting her head to be ripped off any second.

She did it to the other guy, whoever he was.

Instead of that happening, though, the large, very warm hand simply cups her face- or well, the entire side of her head, considering how massive it is. 

It's unexpectedly gentle, despite the fact that she can feel her claws resting dangerously against her skin. 

She cautiously opens her eyes to look at the alien, seeing her head cocked to the side again curiously, like a puppy. 

That shouldn't be kind of cute, she thinks, her heart beginning to race and her face heating up as the other woman slowly traces her jaw with two fingers. 

A deep, rattling sound erupts from the alien's chest, and she barely has time to register it as a purr of some kind when the bed abruptly dips, the bedframe whining in protest.

Ember's eyes round in alarm as suddenly, the other woman's massive form is half on top of her, caging her in with one arm as she leans into her space, her body emanating a wave of heat and a spicy, warm smell. 

"Wh-"

Her knee jerk reaction, of course, is to struggle and attempt to push her off ‐ even though she knew that she couldn't, not in a million years. She abrupts sits up to try and get more momentum, and finds herself face to abs with the woman. 

Jeez, she's ripped, whatever she is.

Meanwhile, obviously having understood her desire for space, the alien woman pulls away, moving to a sitting position next to her. Another sound rumbles from her chest as she gazes at Ember, followed by a series of clicks. 

Ember has no clue what the noises mean. 

It could just be irritated sounds, or maybe an apology. For all she knows, anyway. She doesn't speak in clicks…

I really wish I hadn't gotten rid of that translator. 

She swallows heavily, her mouth very dry as she takes in the terrifying sight of the 8ft something creature perched above her, expectantly staring and eerily quiet aside from the odd click.

She licks her lips, frantically attempting to think of something to say, trying to be subtle as she starts to slowly scoot away, ever so slightly, her eyes darting frantically around the room before settling back on the alien.

"Look….I, I'm really glad you saved me-" 

A deep, unmistakable purr. 

Okay, that's really weird, and kind of cute…still!

She tries not to stammer as she continues, failing miserably. "Um….you still haven't told me who you are, though, and I'm still not sure what you meant by wanting me….you're not going to, to hurt me, right?" 

It should be an obvious answer, considering she saved Ember's life, but she needs to ask. Lots of things aren't as they seem, after all, a lesson she is intimately familiar with. 

How is she to know whether this woman's intentions are good?

A sharp growl makes her flinch, and the other woman's dreadlock-like appendages swing as she vehemently shakes her head. 

There's an odd buzzing noise from the mask, and suddenly a human voice, female and frantic and furious, shouts, "No!"

Ember flinches back, eyes wide. What the hell?....What was- okay never mind, never mind, she's communicating, just focus on that. Focus.

She smiles weakly. "Okay, that's- that's great, uh…"

Pull it together! Damn! She's just a woman…a very scary, very well built, alien woman…..

"What's your name? I'm Ember." She awkwardly sticks out a hand for a handshake. 

Her guest tilts her head down to look at it, the mask's eye lenses flashing as she looks back up at Ember's face. 

Ember blushes. Again, as she lowers her hand. RIGHT. She's not going to understand what I'm trying to do. Idiot.

The alien brings a hand to her chest, making several rapid, short clicking sounds that she cannot understand. 

She stares blankly, uncomprehending, and the other woman tries again. "Rai'ja-da."

Ember blinks, taking in the foreign name, trying to wrap the syllables in her head. 

She smiles, "It's nice to meet you, R, Rai'ja…Rai'ja-da?"

Rai'ja-da makes what is, Ember assumes, a pleased noise, nodding and letting her hand drop.

There's another long pause. 

Ember tries to think of something, anything, to say.  

Finally, she settles with, "Umn so. How did you find me?"

Why did you save me? 

Rai'ja-da tilts her head. "Hunt. Fight worthy prey."

Ember's brow furrows. "Worthy….prey?"

"Yes."

Abruptly, Rai'ja-da gets off the bed, looking over her shoulder as she walks over to the corner of the room, like Ember might run off if she doesn't look back. 

I have a feeling I wouldn't get far, even if I did. 

The other woman messes with something she can't see before quickly returning, and Ember's face pales a little at the polished skull in her clawed hands. 

The slybeast. 

Rai'ja-da sits back down on the bed, making the human bounce a little from the force. 

She grips the skull tightly as she shows it to Ember. "I fight. Kill worthy prey."

"I….see. Very nice," Ember manages, stomach twisting at the memory of the slybeast's attack, her arm throbbing in phantom remembrance of its teeth. 

Rai'ja-da immediately lets out a pleased noise at her words, and without further ado, presents the slybeast skull to Ember with a flourish. "For you."

The abruptness of the action is enough to make Ember sputter, and she draws back again, flinching. "What….why?"

Why would I want the head of something that almost killed me?....

Rai'ja-da's shoulders drop. "Do not….Like?" 

Ember hesitates, thinking. 

She doesn't want to say the wrong thing.  

Rai'ja-da had already claimed that she didn't intend on hurting her, and with the fact that she hadn't hurt her, she knew she probably wasn't in much danger. 

Still, I feel like there's something else going on here. I don't know what it is, but I definitely don't want to mess up somehow. 

Rai'ja-da had saved her life, had said that she "wanted" her, and then had tried to give her the head of a creature that had attempted to eat her. 

Oh fuck. Is this some kind of weird alien thing? 

She's not sure how to feel when she realizes she might not mind.

Realizing Rai'ja-da is still waiting for an answer, she smiles, gingerly accepting the skull. "No, no. I do. Thanks, um, it's very thoughtful."

Rai'ja-da purrs again, obviously pleased that Ember accepted her 'gift.'

Setting the heavy skull on her cluttered nightstand and breathing a quiet sigh of relief when it doesn't immediately fall off, Ember turns back to the alien woman. 

"So, um…now what?" 

To her surprise, Rai'ja-da reaches for her mask. 

Ember only has a moment to brace herself for what might be underneath before she meets the other woman's eyes. 

"Oh," she breathes. 

If there was any doubt she's an alien, this definitely dashes it. Damn. 

Despite her initial surprise to her face -the same deep green as her hide, with deep-set yellow eyes and four, twitching mandibles tipped with sharp tusks- Ember doesn't even think to call Rai'ja-da ugly. 

In fact, different as she might be, that's the last thing she'd call her. 

Ember has met a lot of aliens over the years, had even grown up among some of them on the multispecies space colony of Jagaria. 

She's never met one like Rai'ja-da, though. 

For a long moment, alien and human examine each other, until Ember drops her gaze, blushing in embarrassment, sure that she's been staring too long.

She jumps a little as Rai'ja-da moves closer abruptly, her breath catching as taloned fingers tip her chin back up. 

Those yellow eyes bore into hers, and Rai'ja-da's mandibles curl into what could be called a smile as she leans closer. 

"Pretty. Pyode amedha."

Pretty……

A whine on the other side of her bedroom door snaps Ember out of the intense staring contest, and she jerks her head around towards the sound, disbelieving. 

No way. There's no way, right? 

Rai'ja-da chitters something, seeming irritated as she glances at the door, too. 

Ember looks back at her. "Is that....?" Ollie?

".....Yes. Hound."  Rai'ja-da replies, less enthused. 

That's all Ember needs to hear.

She flings herself out of her bed as fast as she can, socked feet slipping slightly on the hardwood. 

"Baby! Ollie!" 

The dog is on her as soon as she opens the door, tackling her and sending her to the floor. 

She giggles as he whines eagerly, licking at her chin as she strokes her hands over every inch of his furry body that she can reach. 

"Oh, you naughty, naughty boy! I'm so glad you're safe!" 

For the next several minutes, Ember fusses and coos over her pup, who's miraculously unharmed. 

A swell of overwhelming gratitude fills her chest as she looks back at Rai'ja-da, who has remained seated on her bed, watching. 

First, she saves my life, then she brings my baby back to me.

Giving her dog a final pat, Ember gets to her feet, brushing fur from her clothes as she approaches the bed, circling to stand in front of Rai'ja-da. 

The woman initially tenses as Ember throws her arms around her, then relaxes as she pulls her into her lap, a loud purr erupting. 

"Thank you. Thank you so much, you have no idea what this means to me." Ember gushes, pressing her face into the crook of the woman's neck. 

Rai'ja-da, for her own part, just tilts her head, glancing over to Ollie back down to Ember curiously, hands settling on the human's back. 

She doesn't say anything, but her pleased purr increases. 

Ember finally pulls away a little, belatedly realizing that she could be completely invading Rai'ja-da's space.

Then, she doesn't seem too upset that I'm all in her business, does she? 

Blushing, Ember shifts, tilting her head back to look at the other woman nervously. 

"Would you, would you like to…stay, maybe? With me, and Ollie. For the Dark?" 

Rai'ja-da doesn't even hesitate, hands tightening on Ember's waist as her mandibles curl. 

She brings her head lower, pressing her forehead to the human's in an unmistakably tender gesture, the action taking Ember's breath away. 

"Yes. I would like to. Very much. Stay."