Winters looked his girlfriend over as she removed her cloak and walked to where she had stashed their food earlier in the day, laying the garment over top of the basket. With just her dress concealing her figure from him, it wasn’t difficult to see how his presence in her life had changed her, literally. He didn’t bother hiding his gaze, noticing idly that a couple other guards seemed to be having trouble with wandering eyes as well. He chuckled to himself, wondering what was going through their heads as the ‘village mutt’ stirred their passions. When Veera returned she did so with his canteen and a pair of boiled eggs.

“Snack first?” She offered. “I figure it’s small enough it won’t have us cramping up.” Winters eyed the egg hungrily, feeling a desire for food growing as his body rested following its first bout of the day.

“You’re a very thoughtful mate, you know that?” He asked, trading her a brief kiss in exchange for his snack. A couple guards chuckled at his overt display, but he was pleased to hear that plenty more remained silent. With his back turned he couldn’t gauge their reactions, but he was always down to cause a stir.

“You are a devious man,” Veera whispered to him as her feathers fluttered. She was clearly very pleased with him as she glanced over his shoulder. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re inspiring a bit of jealousy.”

“Who says I’m not? I saw the way they were looking at you.” Winters could feel his voice dropping possessively. He wasn’t sure if it was the exertion, the public situation, or both, but he could feel something arcing between him and Veera that had been dormant of late. Searching her eyes, he felt his heart beat hard against his ribs. She was giving him a smoldering look.

“Were they now? And how did that make you feel, my love?” She cooed softly at him, leaning against the railing of the arena so that she could bend over slightly and swish her tail back and forth for him. Her body language was hardly subtle.

“You’re mine Veera.” His growling reply was equally lacking in nuance. Veera felt her heart race, even as she languidly finished her egg. She licked her lips and stared into his eyes, overcome by the excitement of finally being able to fight, as well as the wonderful spark that her mate’s possessive declaration had reignited inside her. It was all she could do to keep herself from raking her eyes over his form, completely exposed to her from the waist up thanks to his form fitting garment. Even the light sheen of sweat on his face had her body feeling flushed. With a deep breath, she shook herself out of it as he extended his hand to her. “Shall we begin?”

“Yes!” Veera took hold and allowed him to help her over the wooden fence and into the arena, much to the joy of those who had wagered either for or against her. As she and Winters walked to the center of the space, Io spoke to them both.

‘Veera, I believe we should begin with a simple evaluation, as we did with your physical attributes. To start, simply do your best against the Lieutenant. He will block or evade, but not retaliate or attack. Is that fair sir?’

“I think so. Let’s do that for about fifteen minutes and then maybe Io or I will have some tips for you. Sound good?” Winters asked, casually rotating his arms at the shoulder and warming up his legs.

“Yes, I can’t think of a better way to go about this. Should I…begin?” Veera asked tentatively, suddenly feeling extraordinarily nervous as she looked at Winters. She could feel the eyes of her fellow villagers on her, but the source of her anxiety was solely in front of her. Will he think I’m pathetic? Can I even hope to land a hit on him when he’s taken out every guard he’s ever faced? The idea of the man she loved looking down on her instantly created a cavernous pit in her stomach, and she looked down at the disturbed earth beneath her feet. She had wanted nothing more for almost an entire cycle, but now that she was at the precipice, she was afraid. A firm hand came to rest on her shoulder as Winters’ boots and lower legs entered her field of view.

“Feather kitten, look at me?” He requested kindly. She wasn’t sure she could just then. Winters chuckled, bringing his other hand to gently cup her chin with a finger and tilt it up until she met his eyes.

“Get on with it already!” One of their spectators demanded. Winters casually flipped him off.

“Look at me soldier, that’s an order.” Winters’ voice was still soft and kind, but he’d added a core of steel to it, demanding her attention that had briefly been drawn to the others outside the ring. “All I have ever expected of you is your best. Not my best, not anyone else’s best. Your best. I will demand nothing more, but I will also demand nothing less. Is that clear Veera?”

‘Sir, yes sir,’ Io whispered into Veera’s ear.

“Sir…yes sir…” Veera managed, finding herself most incapable of anything other than a simple response. She was sure her heart would leap from her chest any second with how hard it was pounding. Winters gave her a genuine smile as he noticed her pupils widen. With a nod of satisfaction, he separated himself from her and took three long steps backward.

“Good. Now then Veera, as agreed, please do anything and everything in your power to hit me, short of causing yourself injury. Io and I will both be observing you and will give you feedback after a short amount of time. Whenever you’re ready, come at me.” He crouched slightly, turning himself so that his torso was at an angle to hers, and waited. With a nod, Veera swallowed heavily and took her own stance, not really knowing what she was doing. She did feel more capable of fast movement as she bent her knees and tried to assume an identical position to her instructor. Figuring that was the whole point, she began to consider her first move. Having borne witness to every fight her mate had been in since his arrival, she knew that a frontal assault would not work. Not even a hyrven had succeeded in such a manner. With that in mind, she took a step to her right and then another, crossing one leg smoothly over the other as she began to circle him.

“You can do it Veera! Give it your best!” Xan shouted encouragement to her, eliciting a small smile from Veera. Exhaling quickly through her nose, Veera took a final step before lunging at Winters, disappointed and embarrassed as he easily sidestepped her attack. Ignoring the tittering of the peanut gallery outside the fence, Veera turned back to find a supportive look on Winters’ face.

“Again,” he requested. Again she tried, deciding that circling was pointless. The result was the same, with Winters casually dodging her as she put all of her weight into it. This isn’t working! Veera lamented as she stumbled after a second attack, finally righting herself and facing him. He’s too fast for a full attack to do anything, so how about this? Veera crouched into a fighting position again and tentatively took a step towards him, her arms raised. Winters casually took a step back himself. Veera stepped forward again. Winters stepped back again. He’s maintaining distance, Veera realized, continuing to walk towards him as she formulated a new plan. Her mind made up, she lunged forward and attempted a broad swipe with her right paw, claws extended. Winters continued to dodge, a smile showing on his face as Veera carried her momentum into another lunge and swipe, as opposed to allowing it to convey her past her target. It kept her in front of Winters, but a successful strike was not to be found, even as he began blocking the occasional punch or two.

After a few more unsuccessful blows, Veera disengaged to catch her breath and think again. Her blood was already pounding in her ears thanks to the energy she’d expended, which frustrated her all the more since her mate looked completely nonplussed. Damnit! I’m too slow! Her chest heaved with frustrated breaths as she tried to reason out anything that could help her piece together a successful result in the fight. Normally she would have enjoyed the pleased and approving look on Winters’ face, but in the moment it only served to anger her. How about this then? She moved again, trying to pull off something like what Winters had done to Tarn earlier. Once she’d closed the gap enough, Veera swiped at him with her left, palm open. As Winters predictably sidestepped, she used the momentum to carry herself around in an amateurish twisting kick. Winters chose to block it with his right forearm, grabbing her right ankle with his left hand.

“I do love your legs,” he taunted, his voice deep and passionate. Veera’s eyes widened with rage.

“Rrrgh, let me go!” She yelled, easily maintaining her balance on her left leg thanks to her tail, but unable to move from the position he’d locked them in. Her heated reply only further stoked the fire that had been rekindled in Winters’ chest.

“You know, if you’d aimed for my head I’d probably be able to see right up your dress. Maybe try that next time?” He released her as she’d demanded, bouncing back to his preferred engagement distance on the balls of his feet, grinning wickedly at her. He could understand her frustration, but he was nevertheless impressed by her adaptation and willingness to change strategy as soon as it became clear that her current approach was untenable. After fiercely pulling the hem of her dress down Veera began aiming low, trying to mix together punches and kicks aimed at different places on his body in the hopes of opening up a gap in his defenses. After a few moments, in which her ragged breathing returned as she went all out to try to score a hit, Veera felt despondence growing within her. It seemed indisputable that Winters was simply too fast. Even if her tactics were appropriate, her body just wasn’t capable of attacking in a way that would test him. Not even her attempts to deceive him and attack at random were able to even those odds. After another of her swipes was batted away with little effort, Veera retreated with a frustrated growl, running her claws through her crest in frustration. “It’s alright Veera, you’re doing well,” Winters called to her.

“Don’t you dare attempt to coddle me mister!” She shot back, hearing venom seep into her voice as a competitive spirit roared within her. Winters’ surprise showed only for a moment before he crouched again and beckoned to her with a finger.

“Then come at me sexy.” He licked his lips to accentuate the point, driving Veera into a practical frenzy. Now now feather kitten, don’t get ahead of yourself, he admonished her in his mind as her feathers quaked and shook with rage. Don’t let that feeling take over.

“Be careful what you wish for darling!” She shot back, sarcasm accentuating the last word as she attacked from his left before hopping to the right and attacking again to gauge his reaction. Her tail flicked back and forth opposite her direction of movement, keeping her balanced and ready to move quickly. Seeing something she could work with, Veera repeated the pattern again and again, not allowing him to lead her around the ring as he’d done with Tarn. Instead she was slowly backing him into a corner, a predatory smirk slowly forming on her muzzle as her lungs and muscles ached with exertion. She knew it was desperation time, knew that his conditioning, even in his second fight, would far exceed hers. Perhaps noticing the change in her eyes, Winters took a brief moment to take stock of his surroundings, realizing that he was just about in an untenable position, backed into one of the four corners of the arena. The small crowd, which had grown complacent and a bit disinterested, was suddenly vibrant again.

“Nice,” Winters muttered as he focused on a block, throwing back Veera’s left-handed swipe in order to open an avenue for his escape, attempting to leap to freedom.

“No you don’t!” Veera yelled, pushing hard with her right leg and committing herself fully, extending both hands as if to hug him when in reality she wanted to do anything but. As she closed the distance between them faster than expected, Winters was forced to turn towards her and respond to her advance, taking one punch in his right palm before clamping down with his fingers. His grip was hard enough to prevent escape, but not so hard as to hurt her. Her second attack he stopped with his left, grabbing her wrist and stopping her claws just inches from his face.

“Good. Really damn good!” He raised his voice, his body responding to the sudden predicament he’d been forced into. He felt the wooden fence press into his back just below the shoulder blades as Veera tried to push with her legs, snarling at him with fiery eyes and gritted teeth.

“I don’t want to lose to you!” She yelled back, causing his heart to thrum against his ribs. He couldn’t help but find the creature before him exceedingly beautiful, even with her claws extended and feathers flared out as if in warning. Her teeth glinted in the winter sun as she ground out a desperate sob. For the briefest of moments Winters wanted to relent, wanted to allow her the sweetness of victory. Deep down though, he knew that taste would turn to ash the moment she discovered he’d done so. Instead, he matched her gaze with a determined one of his own. I fucking love you Veera. The guards were roaring their approval, thrilled at the scene of a complete novice backing a seasoned warrior into a corner thanks to his own complacency.

“What in the blazes is going on out here?” Antoth bellowed, emerging again from his quarters to see Veera panting and screaming as she tried desperately to keep the human pinned in his vulnerable state. “By the Sentinel…”

“I don’t want to!” Unable to succeed with her upper body against his formidable strength, Veera lashed out with a leg, forcing Winters to block with his shin. They both winced as he kicked back, attempting to sweep her legs from under her. Veera jumped instead, dodging him but opening herself to a mighty push as Winters roared and forced himself off of the wooden rail, throwing her from him. Veera twisted in the air but managed to land on her feet, bringing a hand to the ground to stabilize herself before collapsing on a knee. “Damn it! Kel damn it all!” She punched the ground. Winters didn’t dare admonish or compliment her.

“Get up Veera,” he called to her. “Again!”

“I don’t…I can’t!” She sobbed, feeling her legs getting ready to give from the extended exertion she’d demanded of them. Her eyes burned with tears as her body refused to do as she bade, refused to stand and fight. Io had trained them, yes, but it turned out there was a big difference between improving endurance and power separately and being able to perform at both peaks for an extended period. It left her in awe of her human, even as her heart ached at how wide the gulf between them was. I really am an unreasonable woman, she lamented.

“C’mon Veera, once more! You almost had him!” Xan called to her from the sidelines, joined by a few of the other guards. They too wanted to see the human bested, even if Veera’s victory condition was minimal.

“For the love of the Sentinel, stand and fight Veera!” Antoth bellowed, shocking the rest of his men into silence. “You wanted this; now prove to him that you deserve it!” The captain had reached the fence of the sparring pit, arms crossed over his broad chest as he looked over the proceedings. Winters nodded a silent thank you to the black-furred Cauthan, sporting a narrow grin as his own Cauthan gritted her teeth and pushed herself into a standing position once again. There was no other way to interpret his response to watching her, the way he reacted as he bore witness to her willpower. Whatever lust they’d buried as Veera lamented lost opportunities of motherhood came crashing back as she charged him again, wild eyed and determined, eager to give it one final go. He took her as seriously as he would any male Cauthan, blocking every punch, swipe, and kick she threw at him, waiting and watching for the moment he knew was coming as her rate of attack inevitably slowed. With one final scream of exertion, Veera threw her weight into a final punch, surrendering to exhaustion. Winters moved gracefully to the side of the attack, remaining close enough to wrap his arms around her torso and arrest her momentum, gently hugging her to him as she wept softly.

“I love you Veera,” he whispered.

“I love you too Russell.” He was just about to begin scratching her ears when a weak but unexpected furry fist rammed into his right side, eliciting a surprised ‘oof’ from his lungs. Looking down, he saw tearful but triumphant eyes looking up at him. “I got you,” she said, smiling weakly at him. Given that she’d hit him with her left hand, the strike was conducted within full view of the assembled spectators. What had momentarily been a silent training ground devolved immediately into heated discussion about the validity of the hit and whether it counted or not.

“Oh I can’t wait for spring.” Chuckling to himself, Antoth turned back again and headed indoors.

“Do you have any idea how hot you are?” Winters whispered into her ear, ignoring the others as he focused on their racing heartbeats and heaving chests.

“Darling, right now I can barely stand,” Veera protested meekly, clutching tightly to his sides to keep herself upright. “But I’m glad…you saw me…that way.” Her core throbbed warmly in time with her heart as her feathers remained fanned out, radiating her excess body heat into her human and the cool winter air around them. His words had been unexpected, but after their bout she found that they settled nicely inside her, reminding her of how very infatuated she was with her human, her impeccable physical specimen and the man behind the blue eyes.

“Should we get out of here?” He asked kindly.

‘I believe that would be wise. The two of you have about three hours before the wedding,’ Io reminded them, finally breaking her long silence.

“I should…put my equipment away first,” Veera said, trying to stand and walk back to the range. She didn’t want to be remembered that way, not on her first day. Winters swept her into his arms instead, annoyed at the leather armor that was interfering with the touch of her fur. He delighted in her small squeak.

“I got it, you just rest, alright?” He advised, setting her down gently outside the ring. “Go have another egg or some chesko and drink some water alright? I’ll be back in a minute while you recover.”

“Are you sure Russell?”

“Yes. Take care of your body Veera, that’s an order.”

“Alright darling, thank you.” She waved him off with a smile and walked to the bench, putting her cloak back on before rummaging around for some food. Satisfied, Winters grabbed his vest and made for the storage shed, unbuckling the training armor as he went. It bore a few new scrapes and scratches from his bout with Tarn, but all in all it had held up well. After replacing his own gear, he collected the bows and arrows used by Xan and Veera, returning them to their rightful spots as well. In the time it took him to do so, the guards had still not come to a conclusion over whether or not Veera should be given credit for her hit on him, to say nothing of their wagers. Xan was among those arguing vociferously in favor, a show of support for Veera that was most satisfying to him, even if it was only to secure the young guard a winning bet. He tapped Xan on the shoulder and procured his spare earpiece from a pocket on his vest.

“Sorry to interrupt Xan.”

“What do you think Winters? Do you think that counts as a hit? You must, right?” Xan asked eagerly, looking for another voice in his corner.

“Come on Xan, you know I can’t throw my opinion out there. I was part of the fight! I just wanted to ask if I’ll see you later tonight.” Xan cocked his head for a moment.

“Tonight? Oh right! Zolta and Asha’s bonding ceremony! Yeah, I’ll be there for sure. You and Veera are coming too I suppose?”

“Yeah. We’re going to head out and get ready I think. I had a quick question though. Should we bring anything for them? Is it customary to give gifts at such an event?” He asked with mild concern. He and Veera had not seen either of the young lovers since the morning after their shared dinner, except when Winters had gone to claim his second spear from the temple of Tyrdus. Zolta had begged him off at that time, insisting that he and Veera had already done too much for them.

“It is, yes, but I don’t think you should bring anything,” Xan replied thoughtfully. Winters didn’t bother hiding his confusion.

“Wait, why not?”

“Well, they both kind of think you’ve given them a lot already. You and Veera aren’t exactly wealthy you know?” Xan began shuffling his feet under Winters’ gaze. A few of the other guards had quieted down some and were listening in. Winters threw an arm over Xan’s shoulder and began walking over to Veera.

“Carry on boys; you have plenty of wagers to settle!” Winters called over his shoulder, receiving a couple of perplexed looks in return. “I know they can’t understand me Xan, I just like to have fun. So what’s all this about with Zolta and Asha?”

“Well, between the hyrven and those two chesko that you used to pay for your equipment, I think they feel a little guilty to be honest. Zolta thought the hyrven should have been enough for both,” Xan admitted as they arrived in front of Veera. Winters quickly filled her in.

“Well, you have been very generous Russell, but I still don’t think we should show up empty handed.” Veera gave her two cents. Xan shrugged.

“I’m just the messenger. The two of you are welcome to do what you’d like. Just telling you what I heard.”

“We appreciate it, thanks kid.” Winters ruffled his feathers a tad. “Enough of that talk though. Are you bringing a plus one tonight?”

“A what?” Xan and Veera asked.

“I’m suggesting you ask Eris to accompany you to the ceremony tonight,” Winters told Xan, a look of delight growing on Veera’s face.

“You should Xan! I don’t know if Eris knows either of them well enough to have been invited on her own, but even if she wasn’t I’m sure Zolta and Asha wouldn’t mind.” Veera heartily agreed with her human, excited at the talk of love and bonding. Xan had returned to his thoughtful state.

“You know, that’s not a bad idea! I guess I’d better get going if I’m going to give her enough time to make a decision. See you two later!” Xan returned the translator, turned, and took off towards the barracks, emerging a short time later without any armor and running off towards the northern half of the village, his bet with his fellows forgotten. Veera and Winters watched quietly as they ate the rest of the food she’d packed for them.

“Glad to see that kid’s got his priorities straight.” Winters smiled down at Veera, who was seated on a bench and allowing her muscles to relax.

“Were you like this back on Earth? Running around trying to fix everyone up that you saw?” Veera tittered at her idea.

“Not one bit Veera. I was in Xan’s situation for the most part. Besides, it’s not like I’ve been telling him or Zolta anything profound. I’ve just been telling them to go for it, do what their instincts tell them to do. I learned that one from Jess,” he reflected as they shared a smile. “She’d be proud of you I think; was probably worried I wouldn’t have a woman in my life to kick my ass anymore.”

“I still have a long way to go Russell, but I think she can rest easy. I’ll get there. Shall we head back now? I’d very much like to hear what you and Io thought of our little contest today, not to mention I need to preen my feathers and clean my fur a bit.” She looked down at her muddy lower legs before standing and wincing in pain. “Oh dear, I’m going to be sore tomorrow. This was far more intense than Io’s workouts.”

‘And now you understand why I have been attempting to build you up slowly Veera,’ Io defended her training regimen.

“I didn’t say it was a bad idea! I’m just saying- ah! Russell!” Veera yelled with surprise as Winters easily lifted her into his arms, bridal style. She just managed to keep hold of their basket. “Put me down this instant! You’re not seriously thinking about carrying me through the whole village like this?”

“What? I’ve done it before,” he reminded her playfully.

“It was dark and no one was out! Oh gods this is going to be so embarrassing!” Veera moaned, relatively powerless to stop her human after the effort she’d put into sparring earlier. A couple of the guards waved and called farewell as he walked around the side of the barracks, encouraging both him and Veera to return and test their skills. More were shouting particularly suggestive phrases.

“Hear that?” He asked kindly, adjusting his hold. “You did good Veera. Ignore the rest of them. They’re just thirsty.” She smiled and nuzzled into his chest, quickly surrendering in spite of her self-consciousness. She was too tired and he was too warm.

“Thank you Russell. Io, care to give me an unbiased opinion?” She requested softly as they entered the main thoroughfare. While a few villagers stopped to stare, most of them continued about their business, clearly having grown accustomed to the human and his antics over the last couple of months. A couple of individuals even went out of their way to ask if Veera was alright, something that warmed Winters’ heart from the inside out. Veera happily explained that she had simply overexerted herself and thanked them for their concern before he continued on down the road. Content that she had the floor uninterrupted, Io finally rendered her judgment.

‘That was polite of them. It would seem the two of you are beginning to fit in a bit more, even if you still stand out like a couple of broken crown feathers.’ Veera giggled at Io’s attempt to create a Cauthan-based anatomical simile. ‘To answer your question Veera, I was pleasantly surprised by your display today, and I’m sure the Lieutenant feels the same. It is true that you were thoroughly bested, but that’s not the point, nor was it ever the point. That was simply an artifact of our audience. You had no chance today.’

“Oh that feels wonderful Io, thank you,” Veera muttered sarcastically, though she was soon soothed by the sound and vibrations of a chuckle from deep in Winters’ chest.

‘You asked Veera. Besides, you did not let me finish. The Lieutenant and I were curious about two things today: your tenacity and your adaptability. Martial arts can be taught. The body can be honed and strengthened. But you cannot teach someone how to adapt to an opponent on the fly. You cannot teach someone how to get up again and again even as their strength fails. I do not believe we need to touch on that second point again. Your current state is testament enough to your resolve. In terms of your innate…battle sense, let’s call it, I would say you performed well. At first you simply tried to land single hits. You determined that was ineffective and abandoned the strategy after only two attempts. The next logical step was, of course, to link attacks together. When that also failed, you incorporated positioning into your attacks, trying to open up a hole in the Lieutenant’s guard. Finally, you used the environment to your advantage, attempting to back the Lieutenant into a corner in order to eliminate his ability to dodge your attacks. Russell can give his own verdict, but my opinion is that you are eminently teachable Veera. Thanks to today’s exercises I have a small but useful amount of information regarding how your people fight as well, thanks to the mayor’s son of all people.’ Io paused and looked down from Winters’ visor before throwing her hands up in frustration. ‘The two of you are unbelievable!’ Winters couldn’t help a loving look at Veera, who had closed her eyes and was resting against his chest. She’d curled her cloak around her to further trap the heat of their two bodies.

“And adorable.”

‘Irrelevant but correct, sir.’

“Don’t worry Io, I was listening. Thanks for helping me.” Veera’s voice was quiet but alert; she hadn’t fallen asleep as much as fallen into a very restful state. Io clasped her hands in front of her and gave the Cauthan a motherly look.

‘You are welcome Veera. I believe you will be a formidable fighter one day, if that is the path you would like to follow. For now though, I think we should all enjoy the impending festivities!’ With a laugh and a spin, Io’s outfit changed from that of an HEL drill instructor to a form fitting black cocktail dress that hung from one shoulder and was lightly sequined, ending just above the knee. Winters raised a brow and whistled, unable to avoid noticing the dip of her cleavage.

“Looking good Io. You’re going to be showing us up tonight I think. I seem to have found myself without a spare set of dress blues.”

‘I have the sneaking suspicion that the wedding party will forgive you,’ Io quipped as they arrived at their home. Winters gently hefted Veera a couple inches higher to get her attention.

“We’re here feather kitten…what is it?” He asked. Her nose was twitching as she sniffed him intently.

“You need a…what did you call it…a shower?” Veera informed him.

“Excuse me?”

“Darling, you stink.” Veera began giggling anew as he set her down inside and turned his head closer to his armpit. He recoiled as he inhaled through his nose.

“Oh…I suppose I do. Damn, I was doing pretty well too.”

‘Sir, even with the various decontamination procedures on the Lancer and everything else, you were bound to develop some sort of body odor eventually, either as a result of latent bacteria re-establishing itself or your body’s adoption of Maran microorganisms.’ Winters just looked at her.

“Io, word of advice from a man to a lady.”

‘Yes?’

“Don’t discuss body odor while wearing something that nice, especially not the biology of it.”

‘Point taken, but that doesn’t change the fact that you are in quite the bind here.’ Winters looked over at Veera who had seated herself on one of their chairs and was licking and preening the feathers of her arms.

“You’re lucky you don’t sweat,” he grumbled. “Last thing I want to do is jump in the river. That would probably kill me at this rate.” Io took a moment to explain sweat to Veera, having already postulated that Veera likely used her feathers to ventilate heat. Sweating through fur would have been most inefficient. The Cauthan was disinclined to humor Winters’ complaining.

“Love, you’re wasting time grumbling. So your body uses water to cool itself, there’s nothing we can change about that. For a while it even smelled nice, but now I think you’ve pushed it a bit too far,” Veera told him kindly, emphasizing the bit about her enjoying his normal smell while still conveying that there would be no argument about him getting clean. “Just go get some water from the river and we’ll heat it here. I’ll have a fire going by the time you get back.” She returned to cleaning her feathers and fur. “Besides, I could use a bit of water to clean my feet anyway.”

“Uh Veera…”

“Yes love?” Winters was blushing and rubbing his neck, a display that stirred her inner playfulness. She stood and walked over to him, happy that their fight seemed to have burned off all of the weight of the last couple weeks. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that night, but even so, I think it’s held sway over the two of us long enough. I miss the feeling of his skin.

“What will you do when I’m bathing?” Winters questioned hesitantly, looking over at his armor as a form of escape. Veera laughed and cocked her head. She’d rooted around his things and watched him clean his face enough to understand what was coming, how he’d need to go about cleaning the rest of his body.

“What do you mean silly? I’ll help wash you!” Winters felt his blood run cold as Io erupted in delightful laughter.