Chapter Nine: Skylar

Skylar fought to stay awake while she was under Kweide's gaze. It was unsettling and if she hadn't been exhausted and possibly dealing with a minor concussion she would have succeeded. Her stuffed animals and fishtank light weren't there to give the illusion of safety though. They were all back home and she was here.

She watched him for a few moments longer before her eyes closed and she fell into a dreamless sleep. There was safety inside her mind. Far, far away from him.

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When Skylar woke, a feeling of relief settled itself inside her chest. There was a soft orange glow permeating from a window above them. It cast the light in such a way that only her and her bed were aglow with it. The rest of the room remained shrowded in the now pleasant darkness.

She wanted to peek through the window, just one glimpse of whatever star they were passing by. Something foreign, beautiful and yet familiar. She wanted to see that so badly. 

Skylar glanced towards the shadow laying on the bed and stopped herself from moving. Kweide would catch her and then he'd probably punish her. Or maybe he wouldn't. It was harder to read him behind that mask. He never took it off and she couldn't help but wonder what lay beneath.

Pulled towards him like a sailor to the siren's call, she tiptoed closer, eyes trained on the silver mask beginning to glint with light. As the orange glow shifted she watched it cascade off his hair bands and armor. He was dressed for war and yet he was only sleeping. 

Skylar couldn't help but doubt that she would seem threatening to him. She could barely use a can opener, what could she hurt him with? As her eyes moved to his wall she spotted a weapon or two she could try to use if worse came to worse, not that it would stop him.

A flash of light brought her to stare back to his mask, highlighted now was a deep etching in the mask's left cheek. It was shaped almost like a leaf and simple in style. Below it, however, deep claw marks marred the smooth steel in a way so jagged and primal that they could only be real. Something had made those marks.  Her fingers itched to ghost across the indents or feel the design above them, it was lovely. 

Her fingertips were only a breath away when his hand reached up and stopped her cold. "Mo"

Skylar inhaled sharply and tried to back away, her heart hammered in her chest as she stumbled down. He was staring at her as he let go and she crumpled to the floor. She didn't really pay attention past that as she scurried for her bed in the safety of the light. 

She turned to face him the moment she hit the pelt bed, staring up at him as he stood above her. He was so tall it was terrifying. It took everything in Skylar not to scream as he approached her quivering form. If he decided to kill her she was mincemeat. 

"Mo," Kweide spoke again as he stepped into the bright orange glow. The world lit up in a shower of light as he moved and it took Skylar's breath away in more ways than one. She was scared but some part of her was enraptured by the beautiful light. 

He squatted down in front of her and put his thumb down. "Mo." As she watched she finally remembered what he had taught her. 

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have, no I mean, I shouldn't, I won't ... it wasn't on purpose" Skylar sighed and curled into herself like a human armadillo. "I'm sorry. I won't try and touch your mask again." 

There was silence and she waited for some kind of punishment. He was her captor and that made him her enemy,  but she had to apologize. It was just her nature and it almost felt like he didn't want her there either. Kweide had yet to hurt her so far and that made something feel off about the whole thing.  Why was she here? 

Skylar stared up at him once more. He turned his thumb up before he stood and moved back to his bed, he didn't look away from her after that, but neither did she. 

Predator and Prey stared at each other with distrust and unease.

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Skylar closed her book as Kweide began to speak his first human word. She was near breathless with anticipation. They had spent hours building for this moment, hours of learning the languages they didn't know. She wasn't as good as he was but she was determined to practice the few basic words and some symbols he had taught her of Yautja. It might be her only way home.

Pushing the thoughts of escape aside she urged him to continue, "go ahead. You can do this."

"Hello" Kweide's word was a garbled sound that fell somewhere between mimicry and natural. 

She almost squealed with delight. "That's incredible! You'll pick English up in no time." Skylar tried to stop herself from getting wrapped up in the feeling of pride. He wasn't a student like she had wanted to teach one day... but he was pretty brilliant. 

Kweide said nothing but she saw enough reaction on him, he puffed up slightly like a rooster. Yautja held great egos and carried themselves with pride, at least as far as she had seen. Even quiet ones like Kweide seemed to enjoy being praised.

As he stood a sudden biological need hit her bladder. She hadn't peed since the box that held her vomit had been taken and removed. "Kweide?" Skylar hoped they had bathrooms. She had seen him eat so she knew there had to be somewhere to go.

He tilted his head for her to continue.

"Do you have a restroom?" Skylar looked down, not quite looking him in the eye as she asked. 

"Rest. Here" Kweide pointed to the beds and she followed his gaze with a confused look. After a moment she registered the miscommunication. 

"Oh! I, I didn't mean like sleeping. I meant... well a place I could pee or something." She wrung her hands as she spoke. 

When she looked up at him he tilted his thumb up. "Understood. Come"

Skylar sighed in relief and followed behind him as left the room. Her gaze naturally gravitated towards Kweide. It was unsettling to try and adjust to her new situation, living as a captive wasn't as hard as she thought. Difficult and emotionally taxing, most definitely, but there was no abuse as of yet and there wasn't much expected of her that she couldn't do. 

That could change though, a situation like this was never stable and she wasn't sure of how to handle it if he did flip out on her. She supposed she would just keep being Skylar, it seemed to be working out so far and if he was fine with that, then she would be too.

The sounds of their footsteps droned on as they walked. It was like white noise after a while. It was only when she got too comfortable did her mind stray away. She might never see her dad again, or go to work at the zoo part-time, she wouldn't have any more mental debates over getting new pets. All those things she had loved, all the things she had wanted... were possibly gone for good. 

Skylar sniffed as she tried to hold back her own tears. It wouldn't do her any good to cry about it, but those tears fell like they wanted to and she was helpless. Kweide did eventually turn to look at her. His expressionless mask could ask no questions, give away no obvious signs of his mood, so Skylar had to watch other things. The way his shoulders stiffened or if his head was tilted, those signs were her only saving grace. His current posture meant that he was confused or perhaps unsure. She was sure it was something like that. 

When Skylar wiped her eyes clean he started walking again. She wasn't sure what he knew of human behavior or of what she had just done, but at least he hadn't snapped at her. She was lucky for that.

To distract herself, Skylar observed the hallways. They were all monotonous and entirely like every other one she had seen. It wasn't going to be easy to escape but she had to think of something. Kayla was competent but Skylar couldn't slack off here, she and Kayla needed to get home and that was going to take both their efforts.

"Kweide?"Her blader urged her forward. "Are we almost there?" 

He came to a halt and turned to face her, gesturing to the doorway to his right as he did so. "There." She blinked in confusion, she wasn't a Yautja, but she did think she got the correct message. 

Skylar stepped inside the bathroom and stared at the giant metal "toilet seat" in front of her. She'd have to climb it, but it would work. "Well... here goes nothing," She mumbled. 

It took several minutes for her to figure out how it works but once she did she was never the same. It was a bidet. A freaking alien bidet. God help her she was traumatized at first, but at least she was clean afterward. 

She nearly folded into herself as she fell to the floor laughing when she was dressed. How was she supposed to react to that?  It made more sense than having a roll of Charman or Angel Soft lying around.

Eco-friendly aliens would have been a good campaign, "if they can, so can you!" was the first slogan that came to mind. She giggled again as she pictured the tall and proud Yautja wearing beret's and sipping coffee out of delicate china. The imagery was just what she needed but everything Kweide apparently didn't. As the bathroom door opened a very agitated Kweide was staring, no, glaring down at her on the floor. 

He gave several agitated clicks as she shrugged sheepishly, "I'm sorry. I couldn't figure out how it works at first. Once I did... it was quite the shock." She tried to defend herself but she could tell she was getting nowhere. His body was tense and the clicks he let out made her feel like she was in the principal's office. Except she wasn't able to talk herself out of detention. 

"I'm sorry," Skylar said again. 

Kweide grabbed her wrist and dragged her to a cut out in the wall. "Clean." She complied quickly and watched as cleanser poured out onto her hands and foamed pink. It was adorable and wonderful all at once. She looked up at him, did Yautja know what their soap looked like? Did they realize how cute and offsetting it was to their image? Probably not, but Skylar sure was enjoying it. 

It smelled like something sweet and unknown as she rubbed it into her skin. She could get used to this. Bath and Bodyworks would be jealous of the level of perfection. 

This time, Skylar made a squeak of protest as he began to nudge and push her back into the hall. "But wait, just a little mor-" She cut off as he walked away. He wasn't paying attention to her or her protesting and Kweide was making sure she knew that.

She sighed, he was like a steam engine. "Wait for me please!" Skylar rushed forward to his side. She may not understand him, or his culture, but she would learn how to get along with him. Somehow. 

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Skylar knew the hallway wouldn't be clear forever. The ship was just too big to be empty, but that didn't prepare her to see more of his kind. They towered over her like chiseled predatory monsters. They oozed raw prowess and primal behavior despite their advancements. Such a combination was terrifying. She looked to Kweide in question, what lay beneath his mask? Was it the same as the other's frightening look?

For the most part after that, Skylar kept her head down and stuck close to Kweide. Despite the danger he presented her, there was a sense of safety at his side. Even as one of the Yautja stopped him Skylar molded closely to his shadow. Better to hide than be watched as the others had done to her.

She listened closely as their rapid clicking sounds sounded off, the two were talking but it was all too much for her to grasp. Linguistics minor or not, she wasn't a computer. 

Kweide gave off a few indications of displeasure here and there and that brought Skylar to a point of unease. She peeled her eyes off them until Kweide moved again. It wasn't long before they entered a room with a wide view of the outside. 

Skylar's jaw dropped as she took it in. The stars were uncountable twinkling lights, glorious, vast, desolate. 

How beautifully cruel that was.