Chapter Text
Lex stalked closer to the deer with Scar cloaked to her left. The trees shimmered behind him as he moved. She knew how to be quiet from her years of experience in the wilderness. What she wasn’t used to was hunting. It was ironic, given the mark that the alien beside her had bequeathed her with. Sure, she had taken up marksmanship in the past couple years since Antarctica, but that was strictly at shooting ranges. Since Scar showed up two days ago at her home in the woods of Oregon, he wanted to do nothing but hunt with her. So, she finally accepted – but not before making him assure her that it was strictly for food and not human trophies.
The deer sniffed obliviously at weeds in the undergrowth. Lex stopped, not wanting to push her luck, and raised the sight of the rifle to her eye. She breathed slowly and evenly as she took aim. The deer raised her head and looked around, suddenly tense. Part of Lex felt pity for her, but she reminded herself that she wasn’t going to waste anything. She pulled the trigger.
The deer fell instantly. Scar trilled and surged up toward it. Lex remained where she was, watching the body twitch once, twice, until it was still. Scar uncloaked and looked back at her, wondering why she wasn’t satisfied with her kill. She was satisfied, but she didn’t show it the way he did. She walked over, crouched down, and looked in the deer’s glassy eyes. She placed a hand on the shoulder, then looked up at Scar.
“I don’t know how to prepare the meat,” she said, “Do you mind?”
Scar nodded once and gently pushed her shoulder for her to move aside. She had always been impressed with his comprehension of English. She wondered how many other Earth languages he knew, and how long he had spent studying them. She didn’t want their communication to be one-sided. She wanted to be able to understand his purrs and clicks, too.
She tried not to avert her eyes while he emptied the deer’s bowels and skinned it. She had seen someone do this before. The sights and smells still turned her stomach, but she was determined to stay for it. It was her kill, after all. And if she ever got the heart to go back out there as a guide, she might need these skills if things got bad. Although nothing could be as bad as that .
At first, she thought Scar being here would be a torturous reminder, but his presence was actually comforting. Those two years, she hadn’t known if he’d made it or not. It was good to have a friend back, someone who could understand what she went through. When she returned to the Weyland ship as the sole survivor, she reported everything to the company. They didn’t believe her, or at least they said they didn’t. She had no doubts that they returned to the site and found the giant crater, evidence of the explosion. She could only pray that they didn’t drag the ocean floor for the serpent queen. Since giving that report, she hadn’t spoken a word of the tragedy to anyone, not even family. For all they knew, an expedition went wrong due to poor planning and environmental factors. No one pressed her, thankfully. They understood that the deaths of her team weighed heavily on her. She couldn’t even talk to a psychiatrist. How could she do that without explaining the truth?
Everything was so simple with Scar. He understood her mind. They bore the same mark.
Scar wiped his knife in the grass and rose to his full height. Blood speckled his body. The meat was now cut up, and the hide lay spread to the side. He growled and clicked at her, and gestured sweepingly to the left. She furrowed her brow.
“Sorry, I don’t get it.”
He repeated a short sound and motioned with his hand like waves.
The river.
“Ok, I’ll bring the truck and load this in.”
He nodded and turned to trudge downhill. She walked out of the woods and brought her truck closer to the spot. The meat was heavy, but nothing she couldn’t handle. She made two trips, after which Scar still hadn’t reappeared. She looked around the treeline suspiciously, watching for a ripple of distorted light. Deciding that maybe he wasn’t pranking her, she made for the river. The ground sloped downward, then fell more steeply to a low valley where the river wound through. She walked along the ridge till she saw him. She inhaled sharply through her teeth.
He stood mostly undressed in the shallows. His armor, tech, and mask lay on the bank. The only thing he had on was the metal loincloth. It was much shorter than the one he wore in Antarctica. In fact, his entire new set of armor was much lighter and left a lot more of his skin exposed. Scar was bent over, washing his “hair.” His fingers swept carefully between the locs like they were delicate, which they certainly didn’t look to be. He straightened up and flicked his head back so his hair cascaded down his shoulders and back. Lex was about ready to yell at herself for the way she admired it. She really needed to keep his face in mind when she was like this. But then again, was his face really that bad? His eyes could be so soft…
Scar turned around and waded back to the shore. Lex panicked, unsure if she should just act normal and walk down to meet him, or if she should give him privacy. Were his kind sensitive about stuff like this? She opted for the latter just to be safe. She stalked away, hopefully going unseen and unheard. She made it a short distance before he suddenly appeared beside her, shoving her gently and purring in what she had learned was an amused tone. She looked at him sideways. His mask was on.
“What?” she said bluntly, and he purred again.
Not wanting to get one-upped, she said, “You know, I have a bathroom at home. You can use that when you need to clean up.”
He went quiet and raised his chin slightly. She couldn’t be sure how to interpret it, but he didn’t tease her again.
When they got to the truck, he hopped in the back with his cloaking activated, and she drove them back to her house.
~
Scar shut off the water for the shower. The air was thick with steam since he’d turned the heat all the way up. Yautja didn’t normally engage in such luxuries during hunting trips, but this wasn’t a simple hunting trip, and he was a guest of Lex’s. The heat was a welcome thing, especially first thing in the morning. He ducked under the curtain rod to step out of the tub. His gear lay in a pile on the floor. He grabbed a towel and began drying himself. As he did so, he took stock of his plans for the day. It was time to stop playing around. He had to step up his game if he was ever going to accomplish what he hoped to. He should get a big trophy today, like a cougar or bear. He had given Lex a coyote skull at their reunion – a small, pretty gift. No respectable female would even consider a mate who brought her less than three quality trophies. He knew that Lex didn’t understand his culture, but it was the principle of the thing.
He thought about it long and hard and discussed it with his Elders before he returned to Earth. They approved, only because she was blooded and dubbed an honorary clan member. He didn’t know if she would want to be his mate at all, let alone for more than one season, but he intended to make himself as attractive a candidate as possible. He didn’t know if she had any human suitors. She hadn’t spoken of anyone else, and he hadn’t seen any pictures around her place. It lifted his spirits somewhat.
He draped the towel over the rack beside hers and surveyed the items that cluttered the sink. There was lotion, makeup, hair cream, hair spray. He opened the caps of several and sniffed them, recoiling at their strong scents. He reached for the jar of shea butter, which he inhaled with relish. This was his favorite scent. He got a good dose of it when they were sitting on the couch last night. Lex had just showered, and her legs were coated in the shea butter, giving them a healthy glow. Scar dipped his index finger in the jar and scraped out some of it. He got a little between his hands and rubbed them together so the shea melted. It had a nice texture and consistency. He put his right foot on the edge of the sink and began spreading the shea down his thigh.
He didn’t hear Lex get out of bed, but next thing he knew, the bathroom door was open, and she was standing there. A satin bonnet was on top of her head, protecting her braids. Her eyes were narrow and groggy from sleep, but they quickly spread wide. Scar and Lex were both frozen for several seconds. She whipped her face away, gasped out an apology, and slammed the door. Scar wasn’t embarrassed. It was good for her to see what was on offer. He wouldn’t tease her, though. She needed to work through her feelings herself. He started pulling on his netting.
Lex’s hands shook as she got the coffee machine going. She hadn’t heard him at all! She was so stupid! She should’ve checked to see if the light was on in the bathroom before she stumbled in there. She saw everything – Well, almost everything. She had glanced between his legs, and there was nothing there. Surely, he must have…something. Maybe it was hidden behind a sheath or something.
She rubbed her face hard with her hands. She didn’t know if she could even look at him today. Maybe she should start the morning with something stronger than coffee.
There was a click behind her. Dread pooled in her gut, but she uncovered her face and turned around. Scar stood outside the kitchen, fully decked out. He pointed to himself and nodded toward the door. He didn’t seem upset. At least, he wasn’t giving off that vibe.
“You’re going alone?” she asked, trying to keep her voice from quavering.
He answered with a short word in his language.
“Ok.”
Recorded voices played through his mask, “See you. Tonight.”
“Ok. Good luck.”
He chuffed cheerfully and walked out the door. She could finally exhale.
To take her mind off of things, she decided to throw herself back into work. Since her “retirement,” she had been acting as a design consultant for an outdoor equipment company. She had called out sick the past few days. She caught up on her emails and sent off all her notes to her team lead by the time the sun went down. Things would have to start getting back to normal after this. Even though Scar was here now, her life couldn’t just come to a stand-still. How long would he be here, though? She asked him on the first day, and he was pretty noncommittal about it. She would like him to stay for a while, but she understood if he couldn’t. He had his own family, friends, and life on a whole other world. It was no small thing for him to stay a couple months.
A couple months?!
Did she really want him to stay that long? Lex wasn’t exactly an introvert, but she valued her alone time. Now she wanted an alien she barely knew to stay with her for so long.
She started making dinner. She took a pack of ground beef from the fridge and made half of it into hamburger mix. When the burgers were done, she put the raw beef in a cooler, and took everything to the backyard. She quickly got a fire going in the pit. She sat on a log and ate slowly as she watched the sky turn from purple to black. The fire flicked little sparks into the air. She finished her food and watched and listened to the night around her. Eventually, a tall shape loomed out of the blackness and approached the fire.
Scar dropped a large skull by her feet, and she flinched. She leaned closer to examine the strong jaw and sharp teeth.
“Is this a mountain lion?” she asked.
He wordlessly sat down on the log a few feet to her left. She pushed the cooler toward him and handed him a spoon. He opened the lid and huffed in what she figured was appreciation. He took off his mask, flared his mandibles, and Immediately began scooping the raw beef into his mouth. The first couple times they ate together, they stared at each other almost the whole time. It was just too fascinating to watch. Now, though, she had more self-control. She picked up the skull and brushed her fingers over the smooth, clean bone. She saw him watching her out of her peripheral vision. She looked up at him.
“This is for me?”
He nodded. His eyes, which were always so expressive, were fixed intently upon her. He was worried about what she thought. She smiled.
“I like it. I guess.”
He purred. He pointed to her, then himself, and pointed outward into the woods.
“Hunting again? Please tell me you mean tomorrow.”
He nodded and clicked.
“You know, I’m not like you,” she said, placing the skull down, “I’m not a hunter.”
He chuffed and brushed the mark on her cheek with a bent finger. She was surprised at his touch, but didn’t show it.
“Not like that. I mean, I don’t enjoy it. I survive. That’s what I’ve always done.”
He looked at her for a few seconds, then turned as if to put back on his mask, but he stopped. He straightened up a little and stared into the distance as if readying himself for something. Lex flinched at the croaky sound that came from his mouth.
“Sa-a-ame.”
“What?” she said, though it was more of a knee-jerk reaction than not understanding what he said.
“Sa-ame. Thnngg.”
She took a few seconds to process it while he watched her expectantly.
“Hunting and survival are the same thing?”
His eyes glinted, and he nodded approvingly.
“But don’t you hunt for status and honor? That mark is how you earn your place, isn’t it?”
His eyes fell to the skull at her feet.
“Can-not liiive…wi-thouut…hunt.”
She wished there was some book that she could read that would explain everything about his kind. She wished she understood his speech so that he didn’t have to talk through fractured sentences. She was broken out of her thoughts when he bowed his head toward her. She understood his meaning. This was how he greeted her when he came three days ago. She scooted closer and slowly touched her forehead to his. He began a barely audible purr. After a few seconds, he leaned back. She smiled at him, and he chirped.
“You’re kind of cute when you’re not being an asshole.”
He raised his chin haughtily, but humor glimmered in his eyes. He swept his right hand under his locs and held out a bundle to her.
“Huh?”
He shook them at her and said something in his own language.
“Nuh-uh. This is some kind of trap.”
She had wanted to touch his hair this whole time, though. And he was offering…
She scoffed and grabbed a loc. He dropped his hand immediately and stared straight into the fire, all humor gone from his face. She rubbed her thumb over the smooth tendril. It was fleshy and warm. She pressed it gently, and Scar visibly inhaled.
“Does that hurt?”
He shook his head, eyes still on the fire. She stroked her hand down it. His chest continued rising and falling.
Does this feel good for him?
The thought sent a thrill right through her body. It really wasn’t prudent, but all she wanted to do at the moment was watch him react to this. He had finally shut up, was really quiet and still.
“It feels nice,” she murmured, “Your hair.”
He glanced at her with a languid expression. She finally grabbed a hold of herself and dropped her hand. Scar raised his hand and held it in the air between them, glancing at her hair. She nodded. He pinched one of her braids. He chuffed once, and stroked it before letting go.
“Pretty,” he croaked.
She raised her brows.
“Thank you. Yours isn’t bad, either.”
To be honest, she thought his long, alien hair was nothing short of majestic, like a lion’s mane.
She had to face the effect he had on her. It was probably because she hadn’t been with anyone in months. She was going through a dry spell, so she was drawn to the first muscular body she saw. But was that entirely true? After they escaped the pyramid, as he was taking off his mask, she waited with bated breath in anticipation of what her strong, capable partner looked like. His alien features doused that fire, but it seemed to have woken back up. And here he was, with his mask off, too.
Scar nudged her wrist, getting her to look up at him. He clicked curiously. She inhaled and placed her hand on his forearm. He glanced down at it, but didn’t pull away. If her suspicions weren’t correct, her goose would really be cooked. She dragged her hand up to cup his tricep. A low growl sounded from his throat, but it didn’t seem like a threat.
“I’m sorry,” she said in a low voice, “I don’t know how –”
She was cut off as he grabbed her and hauled her into his lap so she was straddling him.
Oh.
She exhaled a laugh. He bumped his forehead to hers again and growled louder than before. His hands pawed at her back through her jacket. She touched his chest and dragged her hands down his abs. This caused him to pull her even more, till they were almost flush. She brought her hands around his neck, and looked at his mouth, wondering how the hell she was supposed to kiss him. She opted to turn her head to the side and kiss along his cheek. Scar seemed to like this and purred loudly. Something flicked at her cheek. It happened again. It felt like a snake was sniffing her. Wait, was that his tongue?
She pulled back to look. His golden eyes were melting. He opened his mandibles and clamped them on either side of her face. The next second, his tongue flicked out against her lips and cheeks.
Should I open my mouth? Should I…?
Maybe his gums were sensitive since they were usually covered up. Slowly, she planted little kisses around his mouth. She felt odd, but his noises gave her more confidence. His purrs steadily grew louder and became low growls. He grabbed a handful of her ass and pressed their hips together till she could feel the bulge of his crotch against hers. She gasped and leaned back.
“Scar, wait!”
He stopped moving and broke the “kiss” to look at her.
“I-I’m not ready for that part yet,” she said.
He made a strange kind of garbled sound and pushed her away so she had more room. She sighed and ran a hand through her braids.
“Is it ok if we just…make out?”
His brow furrowed in confusion.
“Uh…do this?”
She mimed touching his body. He nodded and wasted no time pulling her back.