"INTRUDER!"

The booming voice tore me from my dreams so suddenly that I jumped awake with a squeal. However, as soon as I opened my eyes and assessed the unpleasantness of the situation, I began to hope that I was still stuck in a dream. A nightmare sounded more appropriate, actually. My attention immediately focused on the long and incredibly sharp looking object being held in front of my face. Striking Blade, I realised with dread. It's a Councillor. Now they'll go and inform Klaru that I've escaped the cells. My heart jumped into my throat and all of a sudden it felt like I couldn't breathe but despite how afraid I was, I remained perfectly still, only able to stare at the deadly weapon hovering between my eyes. I only hoped it remained at a distance.

Beside me, Louis had also stirred. Out of the corner of my eye I could see him looking around in bewilderment. He pointed a finger at the Councillor. "Oi! I demand you drop your weapon this instant or I'll – Norkar?"

As soon as the spear-wielder had been identified, all my tense muscles relaxed and I blew out a relieved sigh. There was no getting my heart-beat under control though; it continued to beat at a hundred miles per hour. My gaze travelled up the length of the Striking Blade to find the male's scarlet skin dwindling down into its human likeness. Only once I saw the familiar face before me, did I begin to fully calm down.

"Your Majesty," Norkar greeted, like his intrusion had been nothing. He looked to me. "Earthling."

I offered him a weak smile as I attempted to pace my rapid breathing.

"Lower your weapon," Louis said for a second time, waving his hand up and down. "Thank you."

Norkar followed the order and stood straight with the weapon by his side. The blade stood a good few feet above him, making it look only the more terrifying. I could still recall the first time I'd laid eyes upon one; active and crackling with that deadly lightning. "You are lucky it was I on duty this morning, Sir. If it had been any other of Miss Klaru's men, they would have killed your human without hesitation."

Your human.

Louis nodded, unfazed by his fellow Junite's comment. "I am very aware. Bit unnecessary of you to shout that there was an imposter, however. Don't you think?"

Norkar looked bashful all of a sudden. His eyes briefly darted up and down and finally rested on the floor. "I, um... I didn't know how else to wake you, my Prince."

That was when I took the opportunity to observe our position. Louis and I had fallen asleep together on the window seat, in each other's arms. We had talked almost the entire night about Junito and the little details I'd missed while looking out at the burning sky.

"If you look closely to the east you can see the King's Star," he said while pointing off past the mountains. I squinted at the pastel pink area his finger was directed, trying to make it out.

"That one there?" I asked, pointing unhelpfully at a cluster of sparkles.

"Yeah, the biggest one."

"OK... So what exactly is the King's Star?" I asked.

"It's the star that guided the first ever Junites to this planet," he told me. I raised a brow and he just laughed. "Yeah, I know. You'd never think that we originated elsewhere but Junito was known as a dead planet for many years. No life signs, no vegetation - no nothing until one day, an adventurer saw something that piqued his interest. The star. Out of curiosity, he decided to follow it. The King's Star circles Junito you see, so it wasn't too difficult for him to find the planet - that and the fact that Junito is the largest planet in the system."

I'd been utterly entranced by his words, trying to fathom what it would be like to discover something as monumental as a new planet.

"So technically you guys aren't even Junites," I pointed out, grinning as a confused look crossed Louis' face. "Because you came from another planet to begin with."

"Huh. I guess so but it was so long ago, thousands of years back, that no one can really remember if we went by a different name back then."

I just smiled and laughed at him as he spent the next five minutes trying to recall if his people had ever been called something other than Junites. Not that it mattered; I liked Junites and I liked him even more. He would always be my Junite.

Eventually, when we gave up trying to make conversation, we sat and enjoyed each other's company, embracing one another as the room remained bathed in red.

We awoke in almost the same position we had fallen asleep; both of us laying side by side, me sprawled across his chest with an arm around his waist and Louis with an arm wrapped securely round my shoulders. With a glance at Norkar, I realised that if I'd walked in on someone in a rather intimate way, I would have felt rather awkward too.

I sat up quickly and ran my fingers through my knotted hair, nervously glancing towards the fireplace where Jason still slept. Due to my still being sceptical about trusting Norkar, the last thing we needed was for him to find out that another human had hitch-hiked to Junito. I dreaded to think what would happen if Klaru ever found out.

"Is there anything I can get you, Your Majesty?" Norkar asked once we were both sat upright.

Louis yawed. "A life where everything isn't screwed up would be nice."

Norkar sent me a puzzled look and I just shrugged.

"Sir?"

"Right, sorry. You can tell anyone who may be waiting for me downstairs that I shall bathe, dress and be down presently. After you send that message, please guard my door until I do decide to emerge. I don't need any of the sneaky Councillors stalking through the hallways and eavesdropping."

Norkar nodded curtly and left with a, "Right away, Sir," and turned to leave.

As soon as the door closed behind him I chuckled.

"What?" Louis asked.

"Nothing, nothing," I breathed. "You just make me laugh, Loudrix. You're ever so formal."

"Well, I have been told that I'm a funny person before," he commented, grinning at me over his shoulder as he reached down to take off his shoes. "I'm going to hop into the shower, get dressed and then head on downstairs. Believe me, I don't want to," he added once noticing the look on my face. "It's just that if I don't, there will be questions asked and suspicions raised. Also, I expect there shall still be some remnants of last night's party rampaging throughout the palace, so I will be expected to go and wish the late-leavers a good-night ... or morning, more like."

"Sounds like fun," I said as I pushed myself to my feet and over to Louis' side. He smiled at me as I tugged at his hand and then wrapped my arms around him. "I wish you didn't have to go, especially so soon. It's already pretty nerve-wracking being in here all day, not knowing whether someone will come in and find you."

Louis tilted my chin towards his face and pecked my nose with a kiss. For a moment I was surprised by his actions but when I remembered last night's conversation and the fact that we could kiss and show signs of affection now, did I smile like an absolute fool. My cheeks flooded with heat as he rested his forehead against mine. "I know," he said, "but unfortunately I'm the prince and I have duties that must be tended to, engaged or not. Plus, there will no doubt be late guests who wish to offer me their congratulations..." He shuddered as if ice had slid down his spine but I knew it was the mere thought of his new fiancé. I'd also feel sick to my stomach if it were me in his shoes.

"Is your shower the same as the one on the ship?" I asked.

He nodded. "Do you two want to shower after I leave? I'll make sure Norkar is stationed close by in the corridor so nobody will hear anything suspicious."

"That would be great, thanks," I told him as I directed my thumb over my shoulder. "I'd better go and wake Jason up."

Louis nodded but there was a glimpse of something in his eye that made me pause.

"What's wrong?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing," Louis uttered, his eyes now on his bare feet. "It's just ... I know that Jason doesn't like me and I know that he also doesn't approve of you being with me."

"Being with you? But we only just-"

"Being with me, being near me, being anywhere in your peripheral vision – the guy just doesn't like me and how close we've become. I think he's jealous."

I could only nod as I recalled the time before everything took a crazy turn, when Jason and I had been waiting for the all-clear to board the ship. That was back when we actually had a plan. Jason had opened his heart to me, told me exactly how he had felt and I'd be lying if I said Louis had nothing to do with his sudden bitterness. On the contrary, it was all Louis' fault in Jason's mind. But what he couldn't come to terms with was the fact it was no-one's fault but my own. I was the one to shelter Louis from the rain, the one to feed and clothe him and help him remodel his knowledge of human life. Louis never forced me once to help him, it was an offer. One I may have been stupid to accept.

I nodded. "I think he is. You can't ever tell him though because he'd hate me if he knew I thought that. But if I'm being completely honest, if it were the opposite way I think I'd feel the same."

Louis raised a brow. "You would?"

"Absolutely. If an attractive alien landed in his backyard and he started devoting all his time to helping them and being around them twenty-four seven then yeah, I probably would feel a little down in the dumps." I paused when Louis grinned at me. "Even if he told me it was only to help them get home, I'd still feel a little neglected."

"Wow," the prince muttered thoughtfully. "You humans over-think everything."

I just laughed and made my way over to kiss him one more time. "You're not wrong there, Loudrix."

Turning and walking away from him was challenging but not as much as walking back into the shelter to find Jason awake and sitting with his back to the door. His head was in his hands and he was humming tunelessly to himself, like there was something on his mind.

Before he could say anything, I told him, "Don't fucking start."

When he turned to face me, his movements were robotic; every limb moved one at a time, his arms and legs following after his head. "What?"

I crossed my arms, trying my best to look stern while wearing Louis' silky robe. "I can tell when you're in a huff and I don't know how many times I've asked you to drop this whole over-protective best friend thing you're doing. It's stupid and I hate it, Jase. I'm a grown woman and I don't need you running after me like some sort of paranoid parent."

Jason scowled at me. "Excuse me, but who started this argument, Flora?"

"Oh, so now it's an argument?" I huffed. Running my hands through my hair again, I realised that for once I was the one in the wrong. But I was irritated because I knew – I just knew – that his blood was boiling and it was all because I woke up beside another man, one that I now found myself deeply infatuated with. "I was just... I know how you can be so I thought I'd try end something before it began. I'm sorry Jason."

He offered a weak smile, his jaw twitching. "I was just going to say good morning."

I stood my ground, waiting for a 'but.'

Jason drew in a sharp breath. "But-"

"I knew it," I huffed, throwing my hands in the air.

"Let me speak, please," Jason begged suddenly, a forlorn look creeping onto his face. "I know you get irritated with me and my constant nagging but Flora, I swear it's only because I care about you."

"But I've asked you I don't know how many times to stop worrying so much. You make me feel like I can't do anything by myself or like I'm always making the wrong decisions and it's ... it's infuriating. Surely you must understand that, Jason. Just think of it like this: consider how irritated you get when you see Louis and I together and try to imagine that's exactly how I feel when you go off at me. But much, much worse."

That seemed to shut him up. He reverted back to his humming and ignored me until he needed to know if it was safe to use the bathroom.

BY THE TIME the trio entered the room I was about to lose the rag with Jason. I'd asked him to drop the subject concerning Louis and I and what we chose to do with our time together, not ignore me completely for several hours in unimaginably mind-numbing silence.

"Thank God you guys are here," I practically squealed, shooting Jason a scowl. I held it for longer than necessary to make sure he knew I was annoyed with him. Not that I'd been awfully subtle before; I'd practically screamed at him upon entering the room.

The Junites took no notice of the tension between Jason and I - if they did, they kept their mouths shut. That was probably because as soon as Bu entered the room, Jason perked up immediately and all seemed normal.

"Hi," he said as she sent a timid wave his way.

I wanted to roll my eyes. What a hypocrite, I thought. Apparently it was alright for Jason to have a crush on an alien but the same didn't apply for me, no – I wasn't allowed. I wondered if Jason would feel the same if it had been a female alien that landed in my backyard and I'd grown attached to her in the way I had with Louis. Would I have fallen for her, a female alien? If she had been anything like Louis then yes, most likely. Definitely.

I cleared my throat, "How's everything on your end?"

Nix took a step towards me and said, "Good, I think. The plan is still to be executed precisely as we intended and Klaru and her men are as clueless as ever. Yeah, all is good..." Her head lowered suddenly, as if she were hesitating.

"Nix, is everything OK? Are you sure everything is fine?" I asked, worried. Her dubious report caused a nervous flip to occur in my gut.

"Hm? Oh, yes. With the wedding plan, everything is excellent ... however, there's one small detail we overlooked while breaking you and your companion from the cells upon the ship."

Jason was on his feet suddenly. "What's wrong?" he asked. "Have we been caught?"

"Keep calm, Companion," I teased, grinning wickedly at him over my shoulder. He couldn't maintain his scowl for long, not when Nix had just left us with potentially morbid news. I turned back to her, paranoid that we had in fact been found out. "Nix," I pressed.

"Well, Klaru is planning – was planning – on moving you from the cells into the palace dungeons. I over-heard her mention something along the lines of the move being effectuated as soon as the celebratory period began to wind down and ... well ... considering the grandeur of the festivities last night, I assumed it would be soon. Very soon. Today, tomorrow, who knows? All I know is that she plans to move you and obviously you are no longer there..."

"She'll know I escaped," I muttered more to myself than anyone else. "And the first place she'll look-"

"-is wherever Louis is," Jason finished for me. I looked to him, surprised that his voice lacked the usual venomous tone it so often occupied when talking about Louis - and also in hope that some wonderful plan was concocting in that brilliant mind of his. Instead, all he managed was, "Well, you're a bit fucked then, aren't you?"

"A bit?" I blurted. "I'm dead, more like. How the hell are we going to get out of this?"

Everyone's lack of helpful suggestions on the matter had me breaking out in a cold sweat. Suddenly it felt like I was having difficulty maintaining a clear thought process, something I'd grown all too used to ever since the aliens had landed on Earth. However, this time it wasn't due to excitement but fear. I was afraid and quite rightly so. I knew – we all knew – that Klaru would have me executed the moment she discovered me missing from the dingy cells.

"Does anyone have a clue what we're going to do then?" I had to ask again after a painfully long silence.

Alzik cleared his throat. "May I make a suggestion?" When I nodded he said, "Why don't you get back to the cells and pretend like nothing has happened. That way, she'll never know that you managed to get out."

Every head in the room turned to stare at him.

"Are you insane?" Bu chipped in. "Do you not recall just how difficult it was to get them out of the cells?"

"I only fancy being stuffed inside a loo once, thanks," I muttered. The thought of going back inside an ETB caused a sudden rush of nausea to make me sway on my feet. I took a seat on the edge of the bed, by Jason's side and dropped my head into my hands. "This is such a nightmare."

Nix took a small step forward. "I'm sorry all this happened to you. But I must remind you how grateful we all are that you saw to the safe... relatively safe, return of our prince. The thought of someone like Klaru ruling Junito makes me want to leave."

"Leave?" Jason asked.

"I would genuinely consider leaving Junito if a corrupted bigot such as her became Queen. I couldn't bear it."

"I believe there would be several of the same opinion," Alzik added, nodding thoughtfully. "She may be known as a royal but there is a surprising amount of Junites who despise her."

"I hated her from the moment I met her. You know, after she decided to stick a needle in my arm and drug me." I could recall that exact moment when the pin prick of the syringe stirred me from my drunken haze. It had been one of those shock moments where you're not quite sure if what you're seeing is true. Unfortunately for me, it had all been happening right there and then. And to think, I wanted to kiss the bitch! "I'm stumped."

"It seems-"

The sound of a door being flung open cut Nix off mid-sentence. Not a moment later, Louis' voice echoed around the grand sleeping chambers.

I jumped to my feet and threw open the shelter door, all caution thrown to the wind. "Louis?"

His wide eyes locked on my face momentarily before he noticed everyone else standing behind me, no doubt as confused as I was. What was he doing back so soon? It had only been a few hours since he had left.

"Hide," he ordered. "You need to hide right now. You too," he added, nodding towards Jason.

"Louis, what's happening?" I asked.

"She knows," he breathed. He gripped my shoulders tightly and shook me like I were a rag doll. "She knows you're not in the cells, Flora. Klaru has the entire Council out looking for you and I hate to think what she'll do if she gets her hands on you-"

"Where do we hide?" Jason cut in, stepping forward. "I'll look after her."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that," Louis said, offering him a small smile, "but that's not the problem right now. I don't know where you'll be able to hide where she won't find you-"

"The shelter?" I asked, turning back towards the threshold.

Louis shook his head. "Every room has some sort of safety wing. She'll look there first. I have no doubt that she'll want to search my room. In fact, it's probably one of the first places she'll look."

"Then what do we do?" I shrieked. I could feel my heart racing again, my palms becoming sweaty. "Louis, please."

Before he could answer me, I realised with dread that luck was definitely not on our side - I could hear several pairs of footsteps marching down the hall in unison. Like robots. Like soldiers.

"Flora," Louis said suddenly. He held his hand out to me and I took it – grabbed it, would be more appropriate. I was utterly confused until he led me over to the window seat, slid the panes open and said, "Do you trust me, Flora?"

I nodded and he smiled widely at me before he urged Jason to join us.

"What're you thinking, man?" he asked Louis, his eyes darting nervously to the open windows.

"Both of you trust me enough to do this again, right?"

Do this again. I frowned as I looked back and forth between the window and Louis' face, not quite sure what he was referring to. Only when I leaned out the window slightly and noticed the balcony on the floor below did something spark in my memory.

"Good thinking," I told him, reaching up to take his face in my hands. I didn't give a shit who was watching or what they were thinking as I leaned forward and pressed my mouth to Louis', savouring the kiss like it was our last.

Please don't let it be our last, I found myself chanting over and over in my mind.

"Jason," I said once I pulled back. Louis's eyes never left my mouth. I grabbed Jason's hand tightly and pulled him towards the open space by the windows. He tugged on my hand hesitantly, his eyes wide. "You always wanted to go bungee jumping, right?"

"No, not really," he whined as I took a step forwards.

The view was spectacular but as I took my first step out, into thin air, my stomach lurched. I knew Louis' telekinetic gifts would aid us in making a graceful landing and no matter how sure I was of that fact, it didn't make the thought of potentially plunging to my death any more satisfying.

"Hurry," Louis hissed. "They're almost here!"

"On three?" Jason muttered unhappily. There was no mistaking the fear in his voice.

"Three!" I shrieked as the footsteps drew closer. I tugged him after me, both of us leaping over the edge of the window and into thin air.

It took everything in me not to scream. The last time Louis had guided us to safety like this had been from the second floor of my house. Not a huge, hundred-floored palace made of polished stone. As soon as Louis' powers kicked in and our descent became a downward float as opposed to a drop, it was much easier to catch my breath and loosen my grip on Jason's hand. I looked down and found my nails had bit into his skin.

When our feet eventually touched the ground, I heard Louis call down, "Stay hidden." Then he ducked back into his room, slammed the window shut and disappeared from my sight. I missed him immediately.

Jason and I scurried over to the balcony doors and out of sight from anyone who felt the need to glance down. We were obscured perfectly from above but what worried me was if anyone happened to walk out onto the balcony and find us wandering around.

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard the bedroom doors fly open from above.

"Where is she, Loudrix?" Klaru demanded.

Hello everyone! Thank you for reading and sticking around through my questionable update schedule (it's currently atrocious, as you are well aware), I am forever grateful. 

Though, I do feel like I owe you an explanation as to why I've been shit at updating. Yes, I have a life and yes I tend to do other things with my time and end up neglecting my stories (bad Cazza) but the truth is this: I've slowly been falling out of love with fanfiction over the last year or so. Due to this, I've found it extremely difficult to fully immerse myself in my writing but I promise, despite all that, I will finish them. I just wanted to properly explain why I take ages to update.

Space joke: How do you pay for coffee on Mars? With star-bucks!

Cazza