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A light breeze gently ran through the green grass, patting with its gentle and gentle touch, like a mother stroking a child's back. The house, standing in an open field, was bathed in the morning sun, its inhabitants had long since got up and were washing bed linen and clothes, while a small child was running between them, catching soap bubbles with his face. They burst on his nose, and Mori blinked in surprise, until one of the bird-like maids caught him, gently scolding him for his pampering.
The rays of the sun, giving comfort, and a gentle breeze penetrated through the slightly open window, illuminating the Rider sitting on the bed, who was engaged in repairing the Aia. His eyes focused on the complex artificial intelligence mechanisms in his hands, and he was almost done with the repairs when there was a polite knock on the door. Miria, the 4th finger of the Judge, appeared from behind her, which is too modest for the hostess of the house, looked inside and asked,
"Mr. Rider, are you busy right now..?"
"Oh, Miria, just a minute.…"
The rider closed the back cover on the AI case and launched it. Aia flew up, and green stripes appeared on her display, which together turned into a satisfied expression on her face. Ignoring her master, she greeted Miria, who was standing in the doorway.
[ Are you looking for Mori or do you need something from the Rider? ^^ ]
The patroness of Mori thought for a while. Covering her mouth with a white sleeve, she looked from the floor to the Rider sitting on the bed with Aia and back again. According to ordinary aliens, all seven fingers of the Judge inspired some awe because of their status and power over black holes, but Miria's monastic robes made her softer. Together with the cozy wooden house that she had prepared for Mori, she was like no other by her presence to a human "mother".
Finally finding the words, Miria said slowly,
"I need to talk to Mr. Raider..."
"Okay," the Rider nodded quickly, getting up from the bed and giving instructions to Aia. "Find Mori and keep an eye on him. We'll come to you later."
Following his master's order, the artificial intelligence quickly withdrew from the room, leaving an awkward silence in its wake. The sun rose high enough to fill the room with warmth and light, and the Rider basked in its rays, enjoying this unfamiliar feeling of contentment and tranquility. He watched Miria standing in the shadows, rummaging through her wide sleeves, wanting to find something. Finally, she took out one of the books that was written during the reign of humans on Earth.
"Lately, I've come across a lot of entertaining books describing people's lives," Miria said, flipping through several pages and stopping at one. "And all of them say that 'couples'... know each other's sensitive spots. And I thought that in order to be good parents to Mori, we need to improve our relationship.…"
In fact, they had already discussed the idea that parents should have a good relationship in order for a child to grow up healthy. At least, this was mentioned in several psychology books that I found. But what was meant by these "good relationships" was difficult for two aliens who did not understand the concept of family to understand, so they postponed this question, continuing to behave with each other the same way as before.
Out of curiosity, the Rider came closer to the patroness of Mori and looked into the open book. It had already been translated from Korean and was different from the ones he had already read in Miria's office, easier to read. Eyes quickly scanned the text and lingered on the line that described touching with the addition of very sensual epithets that caused awe. The Rider rubbed his chin, lost in thought.
It could have been a good idea.…
...but the aliens didn't have such sensitive spots. They didn't need to feel the arousal or desire for reproduction that these touches evoke. Different body constitution and culture were one of the barriers that prevented them from being good parents.
But suddenly, an idea flashed in the Rider's eyes.
"Maybe it's different from what it says in the book, but do we also have weaknesses? I think it's a matter of trust."
"It makes sense," Miria nodded thoughtfully.
Frankly speaking, there were many species among the aliens, and they all had certain weaknesses. No one talked about them, especially in the dangerous environment in which the Rider grew up, in order to protect himself from a sudden attack. But telling someone about your weak spot is either a sign of recklessness or a lot of trust. Perhaps knowing something like this can really help strengthen bonds.
The rider rubbed his neck, a little worried. He didn't really want anyone to know about his weakness.… But he was already in Miria's palm, the 4th finger of Judge could send him to jail as a wanted criminal at any moment. Besides, he also wanted to be a good mom for Mori.
With his hand, he invited Miria to sit on the bed, landing on the soft surface himself. His eyes glanced at the figure next to him, several pairs of eyes looked down on him, but there was no arrogance in them, only tenderness for all living things. The Rider was a little confused by this. Coughing, he turned his back, explaining,
"A tail comes out of the back of my head, disguised as hair," the snow-white braid twisted into a ring under someone else's curious gaze. "Cough, although it looks fragile from the outside, it actually protects my neck and back.… It's hard to explain. You can try touching it."
The Rider waved his hand, looking and sounding extremely relaxed, as if he didn't care about such small things. In reality, his eyes were restlessly darting from the open window, to the wooden floor, to the snow-white sheets on the bed.… He shuddered when something warm touched the base of his neck, slowly leading him down. The feeling was like being put on a leash, controlling his movements, not very pleasant, but... exciting. Meanwhile, the fingers slid lower, running along the neck and stopped on the spine between the shoulder blades, slightly pressing, and the Rider involuntarily leveled off, feeling a slight weakness in his limbs and goosebumps running over his skin. The touch began to feel even lower, running along the spine…
"Mr. Rider."
"Yes..?"
The voice sounded too quiet, almost resigned. It was too unfamiliar, even a little frightening, contradicting the image of the tough master of the entire wasteland territory that the others were afraid of.
"Are you in pain? Your tail," Miria looked at her hand with slight concern, "it's holding me..."
"I'm sorry," the Rider cleared his throat.
A long tail resembling a spine slowly slid off someone else's hand, releasing it from the tight grip. This could not have caused discomfort to one of the Judge's fingers, so Miria was more worried about the Rider, whom she could hurt.
"It's all right. It's just... unusual," the Rider calmed her down after clearing his throat and turned around. Now that no one was touching his back, he felt calmer. "What about you?"
When he said that, the Rider was taken aback for a moment. Come to think of it, Miria was too important a person to openly talk about her weaknesses.
But as if it were worth nothing, she wiggled her four wings in front of her face, drawing attention to them.
"It's not that I have any weaknesses," Miria began, "but when I take care of my wings, I don't let others touch them," several pairs of eyes looked awkwardly to the side.
The 4th finger of the Judge was high enough, so the Rider had to get down on his knees. His fingertips timidly brushed over the white feathers, which fluttered slightly under the sudden warmth. They touched them gently, rubbing between the pads; they were so soft. Carried away by the new pleasant sensations of the feathers, which were softer than the white sheets in this house or Mori's cheeks, the Rider felt the wings.
They were standing very close to each other, being close to each other in an unfamiliar way. Miria's four hands rested on the Rider's shoulders and waist, slightly shrinking from the touch on the wings, a pleasant tremor and warmth spread all over her body from the top of her head, it was very pleasant and at the same time ... a little awkward. Miria parted her lips, suggesting that she finish today's research on improving relationships, and looked up.
Their eyes met.
The room became quiet, even the breeze stopped blowing, and the sun rose over the house and the room was in semi-darkness. Miria's shining eyes lit up their faces and the sparkle in her green eyes on the contrary, it was…
[ Mori is looking for Lady Miria and the Rider ^^ ]
Along with the voice that burst into the room, a crash was heard. The Rider's world turned upside down when he found himself on the floor, watching the ceiling and the figure of Miria, who panicked and excitedly extended her hand to him.
"M-Mr. Rider, I'm sorry…"
"Yes, everything is fine," the Rider got up, rubbing his head. It was really sudden, even without the ability to control black holes, the Judge's finger was strong.
Watching them from the window, Aia and Mori looked curious, as if they had caught something they shouldn't have. But the child quickly came to his senses and climbed over the windowsill under Miria's worried gaze and ran towards her, landing right in the arms of four arms. From the outside, this picture looked so warm that it couldn't help but make you smile.
Watching Miria and Mori in her arms, the Rider couldn't look away. Aia flew up to him and suddenly asked,
[ Is this called "a child who caught his parents doing something indecent"? You are making great progress in understanding people. Congratulations~ ]
The smile froze on the Rider's face.