Best Service (Mira, Garrett)

[Lovely]

March 28, 2009
5:30 p.m.

He sat down again, listening as he always did as it began to get dark. Sleep was several hours away, likely after midnight. It would take that long for him to relax enough to consider such a thing and longer with the storm. Until then, he sat here, scrolling through screens, camera-view to camera-view, making sure everything was as he'd left it. Looters had already made their mark on what was left of this warehouse that stood at the end of a cul-de-sac... a dead-end. Similar buildings nearby with broken out windows watched the road sightlessly over carcasses of burnt-out autos and graffitied rail cars, some still smoldering from a short-lived trash fire started by lightning that afternoon, put out by the sudden, muddying rain. The rain beat down steadily now, softer and lulling against the vent shafts overhead, echoing a steady rhythm that tricked his hearing from time to time as the metal creaked and popped. He tipped his coffee mug up for a sip, staring intently into the glow, looking for anything unusual. He set the cup aside, mostly ignored, as his gaze froze, looking at one view more closely. The doors were locked. He'd locked them all and checked each one twice, but he stared at this one and the crack of light around it at the opposite end of the warehouse, the other end of the unlit hollow he called home despite the debris he didn't own and the rigged wiring piping the electricity he didn't pay for. The light was from outside, a barely visible change between dark door and darker wall, but no less a crack wide enough to let in the light and anyone wanting to come inside. He scrolled through the other screens quickly, reassuring himself he'd only missed the one. One was forgiveable. He'd been distracted by the lightning, making sure the equipment was still safe - that was it. That was it, he nodded, having no failure to admit and no intruder to concern him. He laughed and shook his head. So, he missed one - so what? Who in their right mind, or slightly off-kilter mind, would be out here in the dark and wet for no reason? Looters had been and gone, but missed this room, missed the equipment and the cameras. They'd probably be back, but not tonight. He picked up his keys and started for the door, doubling back to grab his coffee. His hands were cold.

Adrenaline had kept her going but even that was wearing off and the girl stumbled a step, any normal person who had gone through what she had in the past hour would have collapsed in the first five minutes. Mirabella, as she'd been called, walked barefoot across the uneven terrain, her feet scraped by rocks and pieces of broken asphalt as she made her way behind the buildings. The rain washed away the blood from her wounds which would heal much faster than a normal human's would but were not healing as fast as they should for her. She was weakened by the prolonged stasis, being abruptly awoken from it, the accident which had damaged her pod enough to wake her, the fight she'd been in with her captors, and finally the disposal of the evidence. She was aware that she'd been heavily sedated before she'd been put in stasis and fought the drugs in her system, clinging with a fierce determination to consciousness, her senses dulled somewhat but still sharp enough to notice the barely cracked door as she approached the back of the wharehouse. The broken fence she'd crawled through had left angry scratches down her back and side from it's sharp edges. Mirabella wore only a pair of plain bikini cut underwear, those were the only clothes allowed in the pods and her gear had not made it to be with her pod when she awoke. Her captors had been less than helpful and were disposed of with the pod and thier vehicle, she would need to acquire clothing soon but she also needed to rest and recharge herself to be able to face whatever she might encounter out here. She slowly inched the door to the wharehouse open, cautiously peering into the dark shadows and then slowly stepping in out of the storm. She was drenched but did not stop to worry about that just yet, her eyes scanned the room quickly and she listened for noises, drawing the door closed quietly and then turning to find a way to secure it. She did not want others wandering in as she had.

"That's not the vent," he muttered to himself as he heard the shift of the door, the slight change in the tone of the echoing rain. He slipped back into his chair again, clasping his cup tightly. Someone was there, but with the door closed, he was limited to the sight of the camera and not able to see clearly how many had come inside. He took a sip of the coffee for the strength and warmth it would give him and left it behind, moving quickly to take care of the intruder. He had a few options on how he would consider doing that, but for now he appeared to be a lonely watchman caught napping. Even his hair was uncombed, heaped and spun restlessly, left as it had been when he'd woken up that morning. He wasn't planning on having tea with the queen, he said to himself. Though he moved quickly, he appeared to know exactly where to place his feet on the shallow metal steps for the least amount of sound as he exited the tiny room. An untrained ear might think it was only the rain suddenly getting heavier against the thin metal-sheathed walls outside. He reached the lower level, his eyes adjusting to the lack of the monitor light and he crouched down, facing the door on the opposite wall, thirty feet or so away. He watched the figure, seeing only one, and slowly watched closer as whoever it was seemed to struggle to close themselves inside - not the usual trademark of a thief. "Just what are you doing in my building," he asked under his breath with that confusion.

The quiet noises she made while seeking to secure the door masked his movements all the more but once she felt the bolt slide into place, her attention turned back to what was in the room. For a moment she stood still, her head tilting to the side as she listened to the sounds of the rain against the metal and what else she might pick up beyond that. The place appeared abandoned but that did not mean it would be empty or it was safe for her to charge through recklessly. Her fingers brushed a cut on her upper arm that had not sealed due to the rain keeping it soft and damp in addition to her own lacking. She moved slowly into the room, looking for a source of light and something to use to patch herself up until her body could finish the healing process. She had only taken a few steps when she stopped again, she couldn't see Garrett where he crouched but she sensed something which made her cautious. He'd likely pick up the faint scent of blood and even fainter, washed away from the rain, the scent of the chemicals from stasis.

[Lovely]

He bit his tongue, cringing slightly as he realized the words had been spoken but the figure seemed not to notice - or did it? He focused more closely as it stopped to look around into the darkness. An involuntarily growl was building in his chest and he fought it back, trying not to pick a needless fight. It only took a moment to realize he looked at skin, not cloth or armor, and there was no sign of weapons or tools... or bags to throw anything into to haul away. A stowaway? That was that the only word that came to mind, but this ship wasn't going anywhere. He almost laughed, then the scent reached him. Bleeding? She was clearly a she and she was injured, but trying to hole up instead of seek help? He moved less stealthily now, making himself known as he stood from the shadows and slowly approached. "Anybody follow you? How badly are you hurt?" The two questions were spoken before he could stop them. The lack of sleep was affecting his judgement slightly, including his awareness of what he thought versus speaking aloud.

As soon as he moved her gaze snapped toward him, her eyes narrowed a bit, and she set her feet to balance for an attack, but the man didn't appear to come at her with such an intention. His lack of sleep was not the only thing that might affect his judgement, her scent would likely be quite 'nice' to him as well, she'd been enhanced for the purpose of being more attractive to the opposite sex. She wasn't purposely trying to sway his judgement but the enhancement made certain parts of her scent a little sweeter. Her gaze stayed on him and she took a moment before she answered him, judging his intent and watching his every movement. "I was not followed." She told him, positive no one had lived to follow her. Mirabella almost growled herself at admitting to any injury at all but he knew which meant he'd sensed it somehow. "My wounds appear to be moderate. Nothing life threatening."

He found his way around a smile. The blood piqued his interest in its way, but there was something else about her. He gave her a sideways glance and took another slow step forward. "That's good. That you're not hurt too badly, I mean. Bad night to be out. Don't suppose you're waiting for a cab," he said, trying to get a deeper sense and smell the air around her without drawing her attention to it too much. The neighborhood probably hadn't seen a cab in decades and definitely not tonight. Maybe she'd know he was teasing, maybe not. He kept his hands in front of himself, empty and relaxed. The keys dangled off a stretching cord circling his wrist. They rattled softly as he moved closer. He was already aware that she could see at least as well as he could and he kept alert. The thought about the theory of wounded animals made his fingers twitch just a little. She was injured and likely in pain enough from it that he sympathized on some level. The sleep deprivation made his nerves raw on occassion and he seemed to feel the ache himself from her wound. He shook his head. It was more than that, but she didn't need to know that. He stayed where he was now, only a few feet away and he lowered his hands. "What are you doing in my building?" That part he couldn't quite figure out yet.

"I don't suppose I am." She answered him quietly, her head tilted slightly to the side as he approached, she was on guard but not showing signs of aggression. "Bad night.. you mean the weather? Yes, it's quite a storm." She'd been out in it for the better part of an hour, making her way here on foot. "Your building?" For whatever reason, perhaps she was simply tired, she didn't want to fight him. "I didn't know it was occupied. The door was open and I came in to get out of the storm. I will leave." She offered a peaceful solution to the problem of her being in his place, there were other buildings on the street, she could probably find shelter in one of them.

"And bleed to death slowly in the rain? No you won't," he said, shaking his head. "Come back later with help? Not that either. You want some coffee?" He didn't want to sound like he was a thug. He hated thugs. He'd lived that life and he'd be damned if he'd do it again for anybody's dime.

"I wouldn't bleed to death." She said with a stubborn lift of her chin, she wasn't weak or lame but was below her usual standard and she didn't like that. He wanted her to stay to keep her from bringing back others, perhaps that said more about this being a good place to rest - if she could rest with him there. Mira hadn't decided yet whether he meant her harm or not. "Do you have clean water?"

"Water to drink? Yeah. Enough to clean a wound or five? Sure, I think so. It might take.. an hour or so for more, though. I wasn't expecting company," he said, sluggishly calculating out his rations. She seemed confident that she was alright, but the scent of the wound undiluted by the rain told him differently. Most people needed stitches... unless they were like him. The smile flickered a moment and faded. His luck didn't run that way and he couldn't afford to think that way. She was a girl and she needed stitches. He just had to think a little harder where he'd put his kit.

Her hands rested at her sides, her eyes moving slowly over him, able to take in details others would not be able to in the lack of light. "To drink. Coffee is not allowed." She stated a rule that had been part of her life at the facility, she'd been in stasis for years since being moved from there and had yet to know any other way. "The rain has done well to cleanse my wounds. I will not waste your water for that."

"Coffee's not al-...?" He paused and started to laugh. "Says who? I have it, I'm offering and I don't see a watchdog on your back slapping your hand. Not allowed? Okay, if you don't -want- coffee, that's different, but it is hot. Water... okay, I have water. Do you have a name?"

Her head tipped to the other side this time and she showed a faint smile at his reply, her expression amused but as if she was considering something. "I've never had coffee.. many people enjoy it, perhaps.. I should try it." It was strange to choose and not merely follow orders and the rules of others, even in escaping her captors after waking from stasis, she'd followed procedures for cleaning it up. She smiled a little more, though when she realized she was she glanced around as if expecting to be reprimanded for it but he was right, there were no guards or shock collars or.. shackles. Mira lifted her wrists and stared a moment at the marks from years of wearing the special cuffs, the fingers of her left hand running over the indent in her right wrist where the spike went through it. "I have a name.." She murmured softly, entranced by the wonder of realizing she was not bound, would these marks heal as her others, leaving no external trace that they had existed? "My name is Mirabella. What is yours?"

[Lovely]

"Jasper," he said, lying purposely for now. Did she need the real name, and why? He ran his hand over his hair and sighed. Tea with the queen? Not exactly, but coffee with a rain-drenched refugee like himself would be just about as special right now. There was no lie in that. "Come on up here then we'll get you some of that black gold you've been missing out on."

She frowned, the name just made her mouth curve that way.. she didn't like it at all. "Can I call you another name?" She asked as if she were asking to borrow a t-shirt, seeing no insult in her request. Mira moved to follow him, still cautious and moving slow to keep a small space between them.

His brows knotted up. "Why? What's wrong with Jasper? It was my uncle's name," he said, not sure he ever really had an uncle. He still wasn't sure he had someone standing in front of him that he could trust, either, but she hadn't set fire to anything yet or tried to carry anything out into the rain. He took a step back as she came forward, keeping the distance even between them, though he only had a half dozen steps to go before the landing.

"I don't like that name.." She replied honestly with a slight shrug of her shoulder. "I'd prefer to call you something different, but if that is unacceptable.. I'll simply refrain from using your name when possible." Mira seemed more bothered by the name he'd given her than the fact that all she wore was a pair of white bikini panties, that were wet from the rain.

He scratched at his head and let his hand drop as he shrugged. His fingers were getting cold anyway, so arguing about a name was the least of his worries. "Okay, then don't call me anything. Are you allowed to have sugar? I mean, if I had any, would you like it? Coffee is better with sugar."

She watched him scratch at his head and then let his hand drop, he shrugged and seemed to agree with her suggestion, she smiled faintly. "We are not allowed sugar, other than what is naturally found in the food we're given.. but since I am already breaking the rules by having coffee, and you say it is better with sugar.. I would like to try it."

"Me too," he said, watching her more closely as she began to come up the stairs and he could see even more clearly. "I don't have any... I don't think, but if I do find some, I want you to try it. I mean I've tried sugar.. and really don't need any right now anyway," he said, grinning a little. He folded his arms and tucked his cool fingers in close underneath to warm them.

"Thank you.. I don't know how long I'll be able to stay.. please do not waste time searching for it if you don't believe you have any." Her gaze shifted beyond him, starting to take in the area above that they were heading to, while still keeping track of him and his movements. "Does sugar.. make you too hyper or unsteady?" She asked, curious why he would say he did not need it.

"It makes me crazy," he said, pulling his hand free and gesturing around his ear like he was swatting at a small fly. He tucked his fingers back again and took another step up and back. "I'm not going looking for any. Just if I happen to find any.. sugar.. I think you'd like it. Where are you going in a hurry, anyway? It's still raining."

[Lovely]

"What if the sugar has the same effect on me? That would not be good.." She considered whether she should try it or simply avoid it, her gaze more directly studying him and wondering what his version of crazy might be. Mira continued slowly up the stairs and as she came into the light, he wouldn't be able to miss the extent of her injuries. None were life threatening as she'd told him earlier but she was very banged up, the accident, the fight against her captors, travelling here in the rain, and the cuts that ran over her sides and back from crawling through the ragged fence behind the wharehouse.. all of it while only wearing underwear had left her bruised and bleeding. Without the rain continually rinsing the blood away, she looked as if she should not be standing, much less bantering with him as she was. "I need to find clothes, food, bandages, and temporary shelter if not permanent.. since you have clearly stated this is your building, I will have to find something else."

"I didn't say crazy was bad... just don't need the sugar to help me tonight. Electrical storms... revved me up already," he explained a little more clearly, looking over the damages that became more clear. "Clothes.... clothes, clothes, clo-... AHA... I think I have something. Coffee, clothes... sure. My building, I should know where all that is, right?" He didn't know where everything was, but he had remembered coming across a box of uniforms and a box of other supplies that could have been medical. He just had to think where he'd put those, too. "Coffee first. Helps me think."

"One would naturally assume you know where things are in your building." She eyed him with a questioning gaze, slightly confused by his actions and reactions to her. On the one hand it seemed as though he didn't want her there and on the other he came up with solutions which would keep her there. She wasn't pushing herself as she'd been when trying to find shelter, slowing down was causing her to feel more tired and weak, to be more aware of the pain from her various injuries. "Coffee.. first." She offered a slight smile, gesturing him to go ahead and hoping he'd move things along before she collapsed and fell backward down the stairs. Collapsing at all was not what she wanted but at least if she was further from the stairs she might not injure herself even more.

"Right, coffee. Okay, then follow me." He shrugged a little again and she might begin to decipher that it was less due to indifference than it was to damp chill in the warehouse that kept him huddled to himself. He stepped back more then finally seemed trusting enough to turn his back on her. He had no reason not to trust her, he told himself, trying to be convincing enough to believe his instincts. She was different that most. She acted differently and smelled differently than anyone he'd ever met. If she'd wanted anything of his, she'd have done something about it already. She ignored her wounds enough to keep going. He was having a harder and harder time ignoring them, the thicker the rusty ooze in them became without the rain washing them clean. "So... Mira? Are you a long way from home?" He asked over his shoulder as he led to the small security room.

The metal floor was cold beneath her bare feet which ached from the multitude of scrapes from walking over the rough terrain. She followed and did her best to ignore the signals of pain and fatigue that her body gave her, she couldn't give in. The question made her pause for a moment and her expression clouded with confusion. "Yes.. I guess I am.. I heard it's not there anymore." She refered to the facility she'd been in before her latest captors had gotten thier hands on her. One of them men had been quite useful for getting information before she'd finished him off.

[Lovely]

Heard? That implied many things, likely that home was as much a mystery as the rest of her. "Sorry," he said with a thin sincerity. He didn't really care where or what home was, but it sounded to him that if she left, she wasn't getting back to it tonight and possibly not ever. He unlocked the door that had slowly swung closed and led her in to the inviting grey-blue glow. He picked up his cup from the desk and took a sip, then offered it to her to try. "This... is coffee."

"I'm not." She stated softly to his 'sorry', she'd never liked the place but it was all she'd known and whether she enjoyed her life there had never mattered to anyone. They were closer now and even being weakend and drugged she was starting to get bits of his thoughts, the 'louder' ones. "I don't have to go back.." She whispered, a little awed at how it felt to know she wouldn't return to the facility. Mira watched him sip from the cup and then offer it to her, he didn't seem concerned over sharing with her and she gently took the cup as she came to stand in front of him. She carefully took a drink from the mug, letting the taste slowly slip over her tongue and the warmth of it slide down her throat. She shivered involuntarily and her fingers gripped the cup a little more firmly, the heat of the drink making her more aware of how chilled and wet she was. She took in a breath and squared her shoulders, pushing the mug back toward 'Jasper' as her eyes took in the room. "You don't want others in your building?" She noted the equipment and screen, he must have something valuable to protect or he was simply protecting his building.

"No, I don't." I found it first, he thought, taking the cup back and peering into it. He glanced back at her. "You don't like it, do you?" He seemed to hold his breath as he took another sip of it. Her scent rimmed the cup and her hands had warmed it more than his usually did around the outside. He finished the cup as if he'd not had a drink for days. "Fresh is better. Go ahead and sit anywhere that's not too cold and doesn't hurt anything."

She chuckled at his thought and her expression warmed for a moment. "Then why insist I stay?" She countered, curious about how he might answer and listening now for whatever thoughts she could pick up. "I like the coffee.." She assured him with the same quiet but firm tone that showed she was simply being honest and not attempting to play games with him. She really had little control over the appealing nature of her scent, especially with his feral senses but she couldn't deny she found him attractive... strange as it was for her to have any such feeling. He invited her to sit and she considered it but didn't know if it was a wise idea.. she perched just at the edge of a crate. Nearly every inch of her hurt and it was hard not to show some discomfort as she sat stiffly, with her back straight.

He pulled out a similar crate to the one she perched on, and lifted out a jug of water from the set. Some of the containers had labels scratched away of what they'd held before the water he poured into the coffee caraffe. The method of heating the water was a primative design of a hot-wired switch and bared cables he submerged directly into the water itself and clipped onto the caraffe with a lid made from what appeared to be balled-up packing tape. He set the science class down on a shelf away from the equipment that ran directly from wall circuits on cables that were still submerged in the suspended floor. "I'm not insisting you stay. I'm insisting you get yourself healed before you leave. There's a difference," he said, bringing a full jug of water over to her. He set it down and snapped his fingers at her, pointing at her with a wild look in his eyes. "Uniforms! I'll be right back."

In her mind she saw no difference though he insisted there was, she shook her head slightly but didn't point it out. He was quite animated and jumped from one thing to the next as she watched with mild amusement. "No rush on the uniforms. I'm still bleeding."

[Lovely]

"Yes, and the uniforms were never used, meaning they're cleaner than any other rag you'll find to clean up with," he said, recalling he'd thought of that before when he found the box earlier and put it on one of the shelves. He pulled the box out and pulled out an apron and then a coverall that looked like painters' gear.

Her eyes followed his movements and she nodded her understanding as to his intent but also voiced a clarification of her own. "I meant that I shouldn't dress until the bleeding has stopped.. so as not to waste what limited supplies you might have and are allowing me to use. I have no way to return them at this time."

"It's not a waste. I don't think I have any clean towels, so... use this." He handed her the apron that was a bleached cotton and not very soft, but help to wash the blood off. "If you need bandages... well, hopefully you won't, but we can use this. I said it's okay."

She didn't seem to be bothered by the lack of softness in the apron as she wiped her arms, legs, and side to clear away some of the blood that had seeped from her cuts since coming inside. She couldn't reach her back so it would have to be left as it was. The cuts were slowly sealing themselves but not as quickly as they should have been. "I won't... unless it bothers you for me to be like this?" She regarded him for a moment and set the apron to the side. "My wounds will heal with a little time.. if you don't want me here, they can heal just as well somewhere else. I can find other shelter.. I don't wish to.. I am not sure the term.. put you out?"

He chuckled now and shook his head, stuffing the coveralls back in the box for now. "I said... it's okay. You're not putting me out of anything. You're not trying to steal anything from me, so... there's not a problem here that I can see. Except that your arms aren't long enough. Let me see that and turn around," he said, coming over to get the apron and some of the water to help her clean the marks on her back.

"It's okay." She repeated softly, to herself to help her understand what he meant though she still wasn't sure she did, fully. Mira got up off the crate and felt herself sway with a wave of dizziness, she slowly turned so he could tend to the cuts along her back. "I don't wish to steal anything from you.. I only came in to find a safe place to rest out of the storm."

"That's why I'm helping you," he said, pouring some water on the cloth carefully from the jug as she turned herself around. There were other reasons he needed to parse out for himself. She said the marks would heal on their own, but that didn't mean much in normal conversation. The marks on her back were in bad shape and appeared to be the freshest. He barely noticed her wobble, but she did seem to need the rest and soon. He began to dab at the cuts, trying not to hurt her worse. "May sting. These are pretty bad." Her scent on the other hand was that much more intoxicating this close.

He was helping her because she didn't come here to try to take from him? In it's own way it made sense, considering what she'd seen of the outside world.. kindness and honesty were probably not things one found in abundance. "The fence out in the back of the lot is sharp and there was nothing between it and me. Don't worry about the sting or hurting me.. I've felt much worse pain than this. Of course I wasn't fighting heavy sedatives as well as other.. things in my system like I am now.. the sting will help keep me alert.. don't be shy." She half chuckled and reached up with one hand to pull her hair over her shoulder and out of his way.

[Lovely]

"Sedatives?" He paused with confusion enough in his tone that she did not need to see his face as he worked out that bit of detail. "You.. didn't take them yourself, did you?" He wasn't sure she could or would answer that. Sedatives were given to patients who didn't need them to keep them from talking or to keep them from running away and she'd clearly been running... hard. He wasn't shy at least. He chuckled a little as he thought more about that and he spoke closer to her shoulder, somewhat peeking around so she could see him. He could certainly see her. "Do you -really- think I'm shy?"

Her head shook gently as she voiced that he was correct, she had't taken the sedatives herself. "No. They were given to me before... " She was distracted by his voice and his warm breath over her shoulder, her head turned toward him. "You're not shy.." She smiled a little and leaned just enough to tease his mouth with hers, inviting him to show her just how shy he wasn't.

He suddenly felt his mouth caressed with a sweetness he'd long forgotten. The swirl of sudden shining red, faint but visible, clouded his eyes a moment, reflecting almost purple with the dim light of the monitors. It was nearly uncontrolled as her scent and now her taste battered his instincts. "Garrett," he muttered as he backed away from the kiss. He stared, awestruck and nearly afraid to move.

She caught the glow of his eyes and her eyebrow was arched slightly as he pulled back from the kiss. "Garrett?" She didn't move much, not wanting to spook him anymore than the surprise kiss had already. "I like that." She smiled a little, reaching slowly with one hand to caress his cheek.

He pulled her hand from his cheek. "Don't, please," he asked gently, a slight shake of his head. He wasn't sure what he might do with his nerves already fed on caffeine and raw anxiety from the storms and lack of sleep. He didn't want to be unpredictable. "The water's probably ready anyway," he said, grinning a little. He was almost certain now as he watched her and looked at her wounds that she was clearly beyond an ordinary girl. If she wasn't like him, then what was she?

The smile disappeared, the sparkle of her eyes dimmed again as she let her hand drop and turned her head forward, leaving her back to him as he mentioned the water being ready. Mira nodded slightly, trying to figure out what she'd done wrong.. she had been so sure that she'd read the signals correctly. "You lied about your name before.. why?" She asked him, not knowing what she should do and wanting to tell him to ask her the questions she could easily pick up from his thoughts, but she didn't wish to alarm him.

"I wasn't sure about you," he said, watching her cool expressions return. He unhooked the lid and wires from the caraffe and picked up the foiled sack of coffee grounds, pouring them into the hot water that steamed in front of him. Nothing was measured. He just held up the container, peering through the tinted glass to the mound of dark granules inside. It seemed okay and he set it all aside to brew. "If you were just going to knock me out and steal my stuff, I didn't want you to know my real name. Stealing a kiss... well, that's just different. Now just isn't a good time. You're hurt. I could hurt you more. I don't want to do that."

"When someone is hurt.. they should not show affection for another? I thought that was a time when one did.." She slowly turned herself to face him, her expression showed the confusion she felt. Her arms crossed gently over her middle as she watched him fix the coffee. "You shouldn't worry of hurting me more... I am very strong.. I could hurt you."

[Lovely]

He glanced up from the coffee preparations and returned to her side, taking up the rag again to clean her up more. "I don't want anyone to get hurt at all, okay? Affection is nice. It's just something I'm not used to.... anymore. Unfold your arms. You're pulling on the scratches," he said quietly.

"I didn't mean to imply that I wanted to hurt you.." She studied him up close for a minute before unfolding her arms as he'd told her to and letting them rest at her sides. "Affection is not something I am used to.. I didn't mean to make you.. uncomfortable in my attempt at it."

"But you run around out there like that? Surprised it didn't find you all the way here. Though I wouldn't call that affection. Okay, this one's bad. You might want to hold onto something. I think you brought something with you as a souvenir," he said, swabbing and looking over the deeper of the marks that appeared to have caught some debris.

"I didn't have a choice in running around out there like this. Clothing was not provided for me, I had to go as I was." She replied, stating the facts of her current lack of attire. "My priority was to.. stay alive." Mira squared her shoulders a bit, there was nothing but him to hold onto so she kept her hands at her sides for now. "There is only you and I don't wish to hurt you." She explained quietly. "Stop worrying about hurting me.. I know you are trying to help and do not hold any discomfort I might feel from your efforts against you. Do what needs to be done."

What needed to be done was pull the piece that looked like a thick fishhook out of the wound without her bleeding to death in the process. That she was still standing like this added more to his amazement. He considered silently for a long moment as he cleaned away most of the rest from the smaller scratches. He owed her an answer if not some simple conversation at least. "I might need to .. do something unexpected," he cautioned, wondering what she might think or do if she found he could alter himself to help her more.

Mira laughed softly and twisted herself so she could face him for a moment as he paused in his attention to her wounds. "I am properly warned.. as are you.. we are both much more than we seem. Do whatever you feel you need to do." She smiled gently and her eyes washed over him. "I trust you.."

He nodded and motioned for her to continue looking ahead, not at him. "You might think differently in a minute. I need you seriously to consider holding onto something solid.. the shelf or the doorway," he said as the shimmer in his eyes returned and the hair along his temples and neck began to thicken.

"Feral.." She whispered with a smile as the small changes started to happen before her. "How about I kneel and lean over the crate? That might make it easier for you to reach everything.." She turned her back to him and lowered down to her knees, waiting for his next move.

[Lovely]

He'd heard the term once or twice in his life, each time used insultingly, not simply as identification as she seemed to mutter and clarify for herself. His senses did not detect any hostility in her tone and her offer to crouch before him made her scent take an even more interesting turn. To reach everything, she'd said... and there was already very little out of reach. He felt the shudder in his breath as she lowered herself to her knees. He shouldn't have been thinking what he was, but he simply couldn't help what his instincts made him feel. His hair grew thicker into bristly fur and his features stretched and rippled around bones that seemed made of rubber he could shape at will. Within moments he nearly effortlessly transformed into a wolf-like creature, still recognizable as Garrett, but unmistakably a creature of strength and mystery... and danger. His tongue lapped over his jowls and elongated razor-like teeth and he knelt behind her, pressing his misshapen hands and claws gently around the gouge before he grasped the metal shard with his teeth and drew it slowly away from the cut.

She couldn't see him as she knelt and bent herself just so over the crate, allowing him to reach her as he needed or wanted to. She picked up on some of his thoughts and couldn't help the wave of desire that rolled through her, thickening in her scent as he knelt behind her. His every breath would likely be filled with blood and lust, he was strong and that was attractive in itself - nevermind his soulful gaze with his gorgoues blue eyes. Mira swallowed and tried not to think about all the affection she might show him. Her back was bleeding steadily where the shard had been removed and her eyes closed, she didn't make a sound but knew she couldn't heal this one on her own.

He inspected the metal piece and sniffed at it. At least it hadn't been tin. It appeared to be a restraining wire meant to hold fencing in place. It was thick but at least it was not rusted. That did not change the fact it had torn deeply. How can you walk? He thought it, but could not currently ask her. He set the debris aside and looked over the wound carefully, then pressed again where he was fairly sure the bloodflow could be slowed. He pressed harder, then drew his tongue over the cut.

"I'm just that stuborn." She chuckled quietly and realized that he'd thought the question and not asked it, she'd heard it so clearly in his voice. "Actually it's how I was made.. conditioning and training.. I'm made to endure, to tolerate high levels of pain and injury and keep going." Her words were spoken through a clenched jaw as he pressed harder and then she gasped as his tongue ran over the cut. "That's.. different.."

Different? The tone told him that 'different' wasn't entirely good, though he smiled a little with the next lap over the wound as if teasing her and meeting the challenge to see what she would or could endure. He wasn't cruel, though, and would not intentionally hurt her for the sake of that test. He was far more interested in the endurance of the taunt and tease of his touch and warm breath that returned her scent to him. It's been a very, very long time, he sighed in his mind, content to lap the wound quietly and watch the bleeding slow in his care.

It wasn't entirely good but it wasn't entirely bad, either, Mira sighed softly as he continued to lap over the wound. The pain that came with his rough tongue as it ran over the deep gash helped to keep her alert but the other sensations were hard to ignore. "What's wrong with me?.. I should not like that.. should I?"

[Lovely]

Nothing was wrong with her that he could see... or feel or taste. The metal hadn't been rusty, so the would tasted as clean as it could be with the rinse of rain first and her stellar health before that. The sound he uttered was a dark chuckle, flattered that she enjoyed it and amused that she would think she wasn't allowed to feel as she did. She had her own ... ferality... for lack of a better term he could think of to use. Just like hers, he thought, singing to it within her to hear how she responded to it.

He was helping to heal the wound and the combination of her own ability mingled with his was making it go more quickly than she could have managed on her own. Her head tipped forward slightly and she let her eyes close so that she could be more intune with the signals and sensations rippling through her. "Garrett.." She whispered, her back arched slightly and pressed up to the stroke of his tongue. There was something instinctual about her attraction to him and it only got deeper and stronger the longer she was with him and felt his touch. It was like he was inside of her, already a part of her and she trembled with the intensity of it.

Too long, he thought, remembering back to when he'd last cared enough to reach out to anyone. It had been far too long and it made him tremble with a strange uncertainty. He was only trying to help her, he insisted to himself, though the thoughts straightened his fingers and softened them, allowing him to touch her skin tenderly. He wasn't trying to entice but her scent, the way she curled, the tone and tremor in her voice told him he was succeeding regardless. The cut has stopped seeping for now. She would feel how the texture of his tongue changed as he stopped licking the wound and began to kiss her back slowly up to her neck.

Mira had never know the tender touch of a lover or someone who cared, it was new to her but wholly pleasing and she responded with a soft gasping sigh. She'd been created with two purposes, first to be a weapon and second to breed more like her, while able to tolerate intense pain, she was also enhanced for great pleasure. The kisses up her back, had her fingers digging into the sides of the crate. She reacted much like a feral female who was in heat would and she molded herself along his form as he leaned over her to reach her neck.

"I'm sorry. I really shouldn't," he said at her shoulder, closing his eyes tighter to the scenes in his mind he wanted to partake in. He moved her hair from her shoulder and kissed it softly before drawing himself away slowly and contorting into his wolfen form more than before. She was still injured and needed help. He stroked down her back as he slid away from her. "But soon," he partly voiced and partly growled as his face changed and he took his tongue over the cut again. His thoughts swirled chaotically with flashes of the suggestions from her movements and scent. Though he could not say it, he could only think the words 'I want' as he ran his rougher paws along her skin.

The sound of her reply was the noise of the wooden crate splintering in her grip, apparently it wasn't solid enough to withstand being denied what they both wanted. She couldn't pretend she didn't want the same things he did, especially when some of his visions filtered into her own. He told her no but continued to taunt her with his caress and thoughts, even in the swipe of his tongue over the wound. "You really should.." She argued, setting one hand flat against the floor, her growl was not the feral sound he made but was close as she looked over her shoulder at him.

[Lovely]

He should, but every bit of his human side warred against the idea, convinced it wasn't safe and he wasn't worthy. The human lost serious footing as the wood snapped and she insisted, almost pleading to help her in other ways. He continued to sense something strange beneath the reactions, almost a mechanical aspect he couldn't quite place. The instinctual side of his brain continued to override that sensation and he slithered against her again, sliding his hand-paws around her waist and drawing them up her bared, damp skin. He shouldn't, but he wanted and could have her in a breath. Control. His mind spun around on that thought. Perhaps what made her able to withstand her pain controlled her to react and plea and twist herself against him without understanding fully what he could do if he lost his own control. The thought was short lived, blotted out by the all-too-present knowledge that he was fully clothed. He reached back and fumbled with his pawed hands, growling at himself for being inept at such simple things.

Mira sighed and stretched beneath the feel of his hands or paws sliding against her skin, she bit at her lower lip, arching herself into him again. Control was not what made her plea and twist herself against him, it was all him and his effect on her.. making her lose what control she'd had. Her lips twitched into a slight smile at some of his louder thoughts.. she had an idea of what he could do and she still wanted him to lose his control with her. At first she thought he was pulling himself away again as he reached back, but once she felt him fumbling with his paws, she shifted to help him. Her nimble fingers brushed over his hands and then reached to undo as much as she could while keeping herself on her knees in front of him. She took the liberty to let her hands wander and entice him more as she helped him with his problem of being dressed.

She freed his paws to allow him to continue with the ideas that wound tighter and tighter, ripping apart his ability to defy his instinctual desires. She was giving him every permission she could. Garrett's roughly padded fingers tugged at the shred of cloth that she wore, ripping through it as easily as blowing tufts from a dandelion. He uttered a sigh, nearly the sound of a groan of things just outside his reach. Her own fingers brushed and teased, tumbling his thoughts as fast and hard as he wanted to tumble her at that moment.

She gasped with delight as he tore what little she wore to cover herself, the sound of the fabric ripping was the best sound she'd ever heard. Mira wouldn't tear his clothes, though she was very tempted to, she began to more roughly tug and push them away. She wanted him free to do as he wanted.. as they both wanted and she moaned softly when she felt warm skin beneath her exploring fingers. He'd told her to find something solid to hold onto and she'd just found something. Permission was more than granted as she shifted her knees and pressed herself back against him, twisting to try to steal another kiss. "I want." She echoed his previous thought back to him in a heated whisper.

He paused, hearing his thoughts returning in her voice. Had she heard them or had he spoken out loud and not realized it? In less than a breath he didn't care which it was. Her scent had shifted and flowed around him as sweetly as her lithe form turned to reach for his kisses despite the monster he appeared to be. She seemed to know and understand, not fear him at all. His heart was pounding rapidly and he nodded once, shifting enough for ease of movement as he pulled her back against himself and against her fingers that teased him.

She didn't see him as a monster at all, how could she when she herself was a freak, something created in a lab? Garrett wasn't a monster at all in her eyes, he was an amazing and beautiful creature. She nuzzled gently against his cheek before moving her fingers from between them and turning to place her hands on the floor to support her as she leaned down to give herself to him.