15

It had been a day since my Chiva, and life had been pretty quiet. Makane had been oddly a lot more affectionate, often nearby while I was doing something. He'd even gifted me one of his own trophies as a 'congratulations' gift for passing, which I didn't know was a thing here. He'd cleared space in his trophy room for me, and paid for me to get my weapons more personalised and improved.

He went out earlier that afternoon to sort some things as he put it, leaving me alone in the apartment. I was interrupted from doing some studying on the yautja society by a knock at the door. I didn't think we were expecting anyone, and Makane would just barge in without warning. I went and pressed the button for the door, and it slid open to reveal Ite'ri standing there.

"Oh, hi Ite'ri. Did you need something?" I asked, stepping aside for her to come in.

"Makane told me the good news. I wanted to welcome you to the clan personally." she replied. I smiled and closed the door, and we sat down together."Thank you, that's kind of you to stop by."

"I also wanted to speak with you about some of the privileges you have now you are Blooded... from female to female." she said, touching her dreads.

"Oh okay..?"

"I'm sure Makane told you what you are allowed to do now you are Blooded... including taking part in our mating season if you would like?" she asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, he mentioned it briefly. I'm not really into the whole 'having sex with everyone' thing you guys do though."

Ite'ri hummed in amusement, her eyes squinting slightly.

"I assumed so. Oomans pick one mate, yes?"

"Usually, yeah. People sometimes date around first before settling."

She tilted her head at my response, confused by the concept of dating.

"What is this... dating?"

"Oh, it's kind of like picking a mate, but it's not necessarily permanent. It's how we pick our partners, we try out a few people and sometimes it goes well, sometimes it doesn't." I explained and she seemed to understand better.

"Well here, yautja have the mating season, but some choose life mates instead. Most settle when they are older, but some just prefer one mate."

"I don't really think I'm interested in finding someone right now... nobody has really stood out to me." I said, looking at my lap.

As if she'd read my thoughts, Ite'ri spoke up.

"Except Makane?"

I froze and looked up at her. She had a knowing look in her eyes, and clicked in amusement. I felt my cheeks heat up and I looked down at my lap again."Makane is different. I don't think he sees me in that way anyway. I'm pretty sure I'm a pet to him." I said.

"I do not think that. He is very protective over your honour in council meetings." Ite'ri replied, which made me blush more. Obviously the sound of Makane being protective over me made me feel happy, but I still wasn't expecting him to feel the way I wanted.

"He treats me kind of like... a sibling, I guess. He's never outright given me a reason to think he likes me."

"Makane is quite stubborn, he has been since he was a pup. I am sure he feels more for you, Dee. He just needs a push." she replied, putting a friendly hand on my shoulder. I hoped she was right, at this point I'd definitely realised I felt something for Makane, whether it was just a fondness or a full on crush.

"... You really think that?" I asked, and her mandibles spread into a smile. "I do. Mating season this year is coming soon, perhaps things will progress then." Ite'ri said. I nodded, still unsure. From what I'd been told, mating season for yautja was a pretty big thing. For a whole week, all the Blooded adults in the clan went around and coupled up with multiple different partners. 'Parents' weren't a thing as much here, all the young were raised together by mostly the females. Males in the clan often sired hundreds of children, and monogamous couples weren't common. "I thought you guys didn't really... couple up permanently." I said and she hummed.

"Most do not, yes, but older yautja do sometimes choose to settle down with one partner once they have sired many children. That is what myself and Lu'tekke have done." she explained. "What, so you guys both had sex with loads of others before?"

"Yes, I am aware it is not how oomans are, but it is normal for us. I believe Makane is getting towards the age to settle, he wasn't very interested in mating season last year anyway. I do think he will want to be with you this year." she said, and it did give me some hope.

Ite'ri eventually left after we spoke some more about males in the clan, and I was alone again with my thoughts. I liked the idea of Makane picking me for this mating season coming up, but I also knew it might not happen since I wasn't a yautja and I wasn't particularly interested in having children anytime soon. Despite that, I wanted to keep positive so I distracted myself by going off to clean my weapons, and think about what to have for dinner until Makane returned.

It was dark when he came back, clearly in a bad mood. He grumbled and sat down, huffing loudly. He barely looked up when I walked into the room. "Hey, you alright?" I asked, noticing his foul mood. "I am fine." he grunted.

"Are you sure? You seem angry."

Makane sighed and looked at me, before standing up and walking up to me.

"I am just tense. Today was not enjoyable." he said, looking down at me. He pulled me into a hug, which surprised me slightly but I was getting used to his affection more often now.

"What happened?" I mumbled and he chittered, frustrated.

"It does not matter now. We should eat soon, it is getting late." he replied, patting my head before walking into the kitchen area. I watched as he tapped on the food synthesiser, before he caught me staring and clicked softly.

"You are staring, Dee. Why?"

"Oh.. um.. Sorry, I didn't mean to." I lied, looking away. Makane just chuckled. "Come, stand with me. I want to show you a delicacy from here." he said, gesturing for me to come closer. I walked over and watched as he cooked this strange looking meat that smelt like nothing I'd ever known. He made me try some after it was finished, and to my shock, it was one of the best things I'd ever tasted. We ate together and he talked a bit about some other clan recipes he would show me in the future, and I started drifting off after a while. I barely noticed him guiding me to lean on him, chittering soothingly, and I felt his mandibles move against my hair affectionately before I properly nodded off.