Transitions

[Clara Hart]

"Hello little Clara." The voice in her dream said. She was standing somewhere different. A corridor she did not recognize, made for beings half again the size of a person. Lights floated in the air along the corridor, and everything was very hazey.

"Do you feel the Source, little Clara? Do you feel the Source of Magic inside you?" The voice said. Clara was vaguely aware of sounds around her, of an alien language she could almost, but not quite, understand.

"Do you know what you are yet, little Clara?" That childlike voice asked again. "Has it been long enough or are you still ignorant of your destiny. Your calling?"

Clara now heard once voice loud and clear, part of the scene clearly rather than the dream-voice. It was distorted and Alien, but louder, more important somehow, than the rest.

"Containment has been breached. Initiating the Ultimate Contingency. It was a pleasure to be your ship. Teleportation in five....four....three....two...one." The scene-voice said, the lights now red and fleshing, and some powerful force rocked the corridor, and it faded.

Clara found herself on the same empty landscape as before. Only this time, grass began to poke out from under the dead earth.

"Do you know what you are yet, little Clara?" The dream-voice said in a sing-song tone before, once more, Clara Hart awoke with a start.

[Dr. Andromeda Reyes]

Andromeda sighed somewhat wearily as she made her way out of the infirmary. She was exhausted, but it was worth it. She had finished two more doses of the concoction she had made to revive the Magi children out of their comas, and TK had made a lot of progress on the equipment she would need to start thawing out Alexandria Wright.

But first, the slender woman needed a long, hot shower and a nap, before she fell asleep on her feet. Andromeda rubbed a little at her tired eyes as she walked, not really paying attention to where she was going. Thus the pretty doctor nearly ran right into someone else walking the opposite direction, and appraently as lost into their thoughts as she was. Andromeda hopped back to avoid the collision, a lot less agile than the other, and wrenched up with a startled gasp.

Josetta stared down at her, her own expression on the stunned side, her blue eye widened. "Andi!" the Pirate Captain pronounced, almost in a yelp. The unhinged sound of her voice very at-odds with her normal, confident demeanor.

Andromeda faired no better, her golden eyes staring up at the taller redhead with the expression of a cornered rabbit in their depths. She had been doing a very good job at neatly avoiding Josetta, ever since the vault incident. And--whether intentionally or unintentionally--the Pirate had also seemed to be steering clear of her as well. And now all of a sudden, here they stood. In the middle of the hallway.

Alone.

"Uh . . . h-how are things?" Jo suddenly questioned, clearning her throat and straightening a little. Striving for a neutral, friendly tone. "In the med-bay," she continued after a slight pause.

Andromeda drew herself up as well, tugging her coat a little more firmly around herself and doing her best to effect an appropriately neutral, business-like tone as well. "Ah, very well, Captain," she pronounced. "I should be able to safely wake two more of the Magi children soon. We'll need to resupply a few medications once we reach the Cove, however," Andromeda announced briskly. "I used the last of my cache to make it." Josetta just nodded, in an officious, Captainy sort of way. Andromeda hesitated a moment before continuing.

Struggling to think of something, anything, to talk about to keep herself from thinking too hard on how heart-numbingly gorgeous the redhead in front of her was. Or how hot and achey she herself was suddenly feeling just from being in the same proximity as the roguish Captain. And remembering all too well just how those wicked lips felt kissing and licking their way down her chest.

"I-I . . . T.K. has been making excellent progress," Andromeda almost squeaked, her cheeks turning redder with the direction her traiterous thoughts were taking. "I think he might be finished with the apparatus we'll need to safely thaw your mother out of chryo by the end of the week."

Josetta was staring at her silently now, all pretense of neutrality gone out of her gaze. Instead it was hot and possessive and it made Andromeda want to melt. She actually felt her knees start to go weak with the fierce throb of want that lanced through her belly.

"I-I think I should . . . I was just on my way to my room, Captain--,"

Josetta suddenly frowned. "Don't, Andi," she demanded then.

Andromeda knew exactly what she meant by that. Don't shove that impersonal wall up around herself. Don't pull away. Don't call her 'Captain.' Yet, to do otherwise was foolhardy in he extreme.

Even still, under that devouring blue-eyed stare, Andromeda felt her will go as weak as pudding. Instead her head dropped back a little, golden eyes going soft and vulnerable. "Jo?"

A moment later the doctor found herself shoved back against the bulkhead with an audible thump. Andromeda let out a slight whimper through the ravenous kiss Josetta was suddenly giving her. The taller woman's tongue thrust deep into Andi's mouth again and again, hard and fierce, as if trying to mark her somehow. Leaving no doubt in her mind--or anyone else's--as to whom she really belonged.

Andromeda stopped trying to fight, curling her arms around Josetta's neck with an eager, needy moan and doing her best to kiss the other woman back. She was still a lot less practiced in it than Jo, but the vault had given her enough practice that she managed to wring an echoing groan from Josetta after a moment.

Both women were completely lost into the desperate frenzy of want, completely forgetting who, what and where they were. The only thing that registered for either of them was hot, throbbing ache and the almost violent need to fill it. Thus Andromeda's fingers clawed somewhat feverishly at Josetta's coat. The redhead reached down to rip it off herself and throw it somewhat negligently behind her, doing the same with Andi's white lab coat before reaching up to cup and then squeeze the doctor's somewhat smaller than average breasts through her blouse.

Andromeda gasped and cried out a little with the pleasure, especially as Josetta had dipped down and was biting and sucking on the front of her neck, hard. Hard enough to leave marks. It was a little hard to concentrate, but Andromeda managed to maneuver one of her hands into caressing one of the taller redhead's own breast, which was about the same size as her own. Finding her nipple already hard, scraping against her palm through the Captain's silk tunic.

Josetta stiffened up a little with another hoarse groan, under Andromeda's somewhat surprisingly aggressive action, a light shudder racing through her slim frame and hesitating for about a half a second to allow herself to enjoy it. And then the Pirate was back in control, reaching down to completely tear Andromeda's blouse open, buttons scattering around them in a wild clatter, though neither woman seemed to care much.

Andromeda gasped and groaned her encouragement as Josetta bent, nipping, kissing and licking at the gentle swell of her breasts still confined in the bra she wore--a somewhat surprisingly lacy, pale lavender confection that had a front clasp. Which was promptly undone and shoved aside. The doctor curled her fingers in Josetta's curly hair, her head thrown back against the wall, eyes shut tight, breath panting heavily past her lips, yelping and moaning out her name while the other female's mouth closed around one of her pebbled nipples.

[Morgan Halcyon]

Morgan stared at them silently for several minutes. At another time in his life, maybe this sight would have been arousing. Maybe.

But now he was just cold. His heart was hollow. He was too tired, too depressed, too sullen to even call out and stop them. Stop his wife slowly slip away from him.

She had forged him into the man he was today. He would have given his life for Jo. He never, ever cheated on her. He had stayed true to her for five years. Five years she had spent unfaithful to him.

Now, he did not even have her heart, if he ever had. Sometimes, like now, he knew that Jo's love was not solely his. It was Andromeda's more than anyone else's. He saw how his wife had looked at the leggy doctor. He had suspected this would have happened since Andromeda had come aboard.

He started on his way to the gym, not interrupting the two women. Partly, he was afraid that, if he did, Jo would not care. That Jo would just look him in the eye and end it.

And partly, he just could not bring himself to care anymore.

The gym. In the gym, he could blow off steam. Work out until he nearly passed out and just sleep, sleep until they hit the Cove. That was what he was thinking of when he entered the gym and saw little Cassi, Cassi who was very, very quickly not being so "little" anymore, in the midst of quite possibly the sexiest thing he had ever seen.

[Cassiopeia Reyes-Hart]

Cassi sighed, her fingers tapping at a music selection in the console near-by. The gym area—darkened and deserted at this time—was suddenly filled with a slow, throbbing, sensual beat. The curvy teen needed a distraction, needed to work off her tension and frustration. It was bothering her a lot, this attraction that Josetta and her sister seemed to be caught into. If circumstances were different, she might’ve been ecstatic for them. But circumstances were . . . complicated. And it was this complication—namely the feelings of the man that both of them seemed to be completely oblivious and uncaring to—that was eating Cassiopeia up from the inside out. Even moreso, as she didn’t really have any good reason to feel this way, that she could admit to aloud anyhow. Which only increased her frustration to a boiling point.

From the time she could walk, dancing had always been the one escape she could count on. So she fell back on it now.

Cassiopeia slowly stretched her arms above her head, extended her legs and pointed the toes of her bare feet one after another, bent at the waist to touch the floor in front of her, and then back in the other direction. Her eyes shuttered as the music around her started seeping into her veins. Cassi was currently dressed in a dark blue pleated skirt that fell loosely to her thighs and a pale blue button-up, lacy blouse that she had half-unbuttoned and tied up beneath her breasts to be out of her way for her impromptu routine. Her long blonde hair she had loosely piled on top of her head, the thick mass looking in precarious danger of coming undone at a moment’s notice.

Gradually Cassi went from warming up to actually dancing. Her hips rocked and swayed slowly to the beat, her arms lifting a little over her head, eyes closing completely as she gave herself up to the music. None of her problems could reach her here, in this place. Here, there was only pure sensation. All inhibitions left her, and Cassi began responding to the sensual beat—her moves becoming steadily more intimate and sultry. Until very soon, the curvy blonde was moving around the gym in a dance that had become a hot, purely sexual thing.

The teen slowly bent down and backward, her hips, abdomen and shoulders undulating and rolling like a snake, all in time to the music. This before she straightened again, twirling over to one of the exercise machines and grabbing onto it like she was clutching a lover. She swayed and slid downward, her thighs slowly parting wide around the machine as she fell into a complete crouch before they snapped shut again teasingly quick and she heaved up once more, her back curved inward and rear thrust out invitingly.

Some girls might get paid to dance this way, as she had told Clara, but that didn’t necessarily mean that Cassiopeia Hart didn’t know how to do it. And much as she did any dance she tried, she could do it very well.

Cassi’s lips were parted slightly as she slid the palms of her hands up her front, hips swinging slowly. The real world was gone now. She was a slave to the beat of the song, her body moving how it would, operating completely on autopilot. Her fingers carefully untied the knot below her breasts then, fingers deftly undoing the few buttons and slipping it off her shoulders with the first twist of her hips. Then a little farther down with another sway, and again, and in moments the blue blouse was fluttering to the floor in a heap, to be completely forgotten. Leaving the curvy teen in her white satin and lace demi-cup bra, straining to contain her now nearly D-cup-sized breasts. Her fingers hooked into the shoulder straps and slowly tugged them downward, nearly freeing her ample breasts before snapping them back up again an instant before she spun away. The force of the twirl caused her hair to come loose, spilling down her back in a thick, tousled tangle.

Cassi had both hands on her waist now, rolling and rocking to the throbbing beat. Her thumbs hooked into the band of her skirt, slowly—teasingly—inching it downward with every undulation of her hips. Revealing the matching white lace tanga-short style panties she had on underneath it. Her moves hinted at experience, as this wasn’t the first time Cassi had experimented in this kind of dancing. And, much like she did every time, in her mind’s eye she was dancing for one man only.

By all rights, it should have been Beau. He was her boyfriend, after all. Beau was sweet, gentle and generous, and doted on her lovingly. He was near her age, they were friends, and their relationship more than made sense. She was mostly content in it.

Despite all that, the man she was currently stripping her skirt off for wasn’t her auburn-haired boyfriend. The man in her mind was a lot older. A lot darker. And a whole lot bigger. She danced in other ways, for other people.

But she only ever stripped for Morgan.

It was wrong of her to even entertain the thought. Especially now, given their circumstances. Not only was he ten years older than her, but he was married to her adopted mother, of whom she loved very dearly. Cassi knew it was wrong. She knew it was beyond taboo. But the knowledge still didn’t stop her from doing it. After all, that’s what fantasies were for.

In her fantasy Morgan was standing there watching her, his dark face tensed with savage want, brown eyes hot and hungry. Because in her fantasy, Morgan Halcyon wanted her as much as she still—despite her every attempt otherwise—wanted him. Her dancing had him completely under her spell. In her fantasy, Cassi left the shy, uncertain teenager behind and became the sultry, seductive woman she wanted so hard to become.

Cassiopeia’s rolling hips finally divested her of her skirt, the material pooling at her feet with a heavy rustle. Her fingertips slipped from her thighs to her belly to her shoulders to her head as the teen continued to dance, now completely stripped down to her underwear. Lost into the moment, her head tilted back a little as her fingers speared deep into the heavy fall of her hair, and she found herself moaning his name—though the sound couldn’t quite be heard over the loud music. And then she turned and spun again, and as the music finally died away Cassi fell back against another machine, half-crouched and holding the metal behind her to support herself.

She was panting heavily, her copper cream skin faintly misted in a fine sheen of sweat from her exertions. Cassi stayed that way for about a heart-beat before she straightened and her eyes fluttered open.

And locked onto Morgan Halcyon standing stock still in the door-way.

[Morgan Halcyon]

Morgan could not stop himself from watching. He had tried, but he physically found himself unable to move.

Well, most of him, anyway.

And when it stopped, and she turned and saw him, for a moment, neither of them moved. Then, her face went bright red and she ducked behind a the machine, the music now gone, and, in the silence, he could hear her sob.

Unlike earlier, when he had only read her lips when she had moaned out his name at the height of the song.

When she did not come out, and another song began to play, Morgan found himself walking to the exercise machine, stride purposeful. He was completely unsure of what his intentions with this were--it simply seemed to be the best idea he could come up with.

She was crying there, crying hard, her face bright red. Morgan knelt next to her a put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, luv. I shouldn't've looked. I should've just turned away instead of staring like a dirty old man."

She wrapped her arms around herself, nearly shuddering with mortification. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't....I shouldn't have done that." She choked, face deepening even redder, spreading to her ears and neck.

Morgan now found himself fully on his knees and embracing her. "You should be able to do whatever you want, Cassi. I shouldn't've watched like some perterted old man."

She felt warm and soft in his grip, and seemed to both yield to his hold and also stiffen uncomfortably at the same time. "No...it's okay Morgan...you're not...I mean...it's..."

Now Morgan was positive that he did not know what he was doing, because rather than let go, he guided her startled face up a little, leaned in, and kissed her passionately and deeply on the lips. Cassi's eyes went wide, but, rather than fight him off, she moaned into the kiss and threw her arms around his neck.

"Close and lock gym." Morgan said quietly after pulling away from her for just a moment, the doors closing and sealing shut. Then, he returned to the forbidden display of affection, and Cassi, probably the most unfortunate part, only let his passion grow deeper, his affection more needy and wanting, mirrored almost exactly by her own.

[T.K.]

Shiyounin watched silently as T.K. fiddled with the disassembled components of the Projection Imager. So far, he had thrown out roughly a third of it's components, setting them aside for use in other projects. Another third of the components he had replaced with his own custom made pieces, reducing it's total size buy about three fifths of the original device.

Caught up in watching him, she hadn't even noticed when he had manually sent her program back to the Mainframe, and then began disassembling her PHI. Within roughly three hours, he had it all pieced back together, if slightly larger than original, and still had left over parts from both devices.

“OK Shiyou, transfer back to it, and test it out.”

Her imaged blinked out, before she downloaded back into the PHI. A few seconds later, she had it's new OS and controls worked out, and her image reappeared.

“OK, now see if you can expand yourself.”

She nodded, and complied. A moment later, she had gone from a six inches tall to almost five feet, before the image began to blur.

“Better shrink just a bit.”

She did so, and the image solidified.

“Hmm. I thought so. Even with my improvements, it's still not quite perfect.” For emphasis, he poked her with a finger. There was a small bit of resistance, before his finger passed straight through her shoulder. “Yep. Looks like the bigger you get, the less solid it can make you. You can touch things, maybe even push a few buttons, but you can't hold or move anything. I'll have to work on it some more.” He yawned as he finished that last sentence, then grinned. “After I get some sleep.”

“AIIIEE!”

He was caught off guard, as he glomped on him, and hugged him, before kissing him on the cheek.

“You're the best Master! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Each thank you was accompanied by another kiss, leaving T.K. blinking in confusion. Not exactly sure what to do, he simply patted her on the head.

“Uh, you're welcome. I guess.”

[Cassiopeia Reyes-Hart]

Cassiopeia was too drunk on the endorphins still raging through her system to fully comprehend what she--what they--had just done, for several minutes. Instead she clung to the powerful man that held her, in the aftermath of her first ever sexual experience, feeling like a warm, contented cat. And then the man she was cuddling against suddenly went as stiff and uncomfortable as a board. Causing her to tense up as well.

There was a long, pregnant pause and then, "I'm sorry, Cassi," he heaved, his voice soft and trembling a little with what might have been something close to fear. And self-loathing. "Oh God, I'm so sorry."

And just like that, any warmth and contentment the blond teen had been feeling went flying out the window. Suddenly the stinging, painful ache of her lost virginity and torn muscle tissue started clamoring for attention between her legs, overriding what was left of the mind-numbing orgasms she'd just had, too many to count. With the pain came the sudden, harsh sting of reality. Cassi pulled away enough to lift her head and stare up at the man that held her, their expressions suddenly mirroring the same shock, tinged with a faint trace of horror.

Oh my God. I just had sex with Morgan. The husband of my adopted mom. And I'm supposed to be dating Beau.

It was strange, she hadn't cared at all about being naked while Morgan was touching and kissing her. Now all of a sudden she was acutely aware of it, and shamed and humiliated in a way that was hard to articulate. Cassi quickly pulled off of him and stumbled to her feet, hissing a little at the twinge of discomfort that that action caused in her nether-regions. Confusion was rampant in her brain and heart as the teen turned this way and that, somewhat futiley trying to find where her clothes had been thrown to. She managed to recover her underwear, bra and skirt in the heavy, highly uncomfortable silence that followed.

Cassiopeia had been in love with Morgan Halcyon for years. The stuff of her deepest, darkest, most tender fantasies had just occurred in spectacular fashion. And in her heart, she had loved every millimeter of it. And yet, she was also being near choked to death with massive amounts of guilt, souring any other emotion she might be feeling. Not to mention crushed emotionally, as she had just given up her virginity to a man who had, just afterward, apologized to her as if he had just done something dirty and disgusting.

Which in turn made her feel dirty and disgusting.

Cassi let out a slight mewl, as the tears that were suddenly pooling in her eyes made it impossible to find the rest of her clothes in the darkened room. And then Morgan was suddenly standing behind her, having replaced his own underwear and pants. The larger male caught her and gently stopped her somewhat frenzied search, his strong arms curling around her and holding her against his chest.

"Cassi, wait a minute," he heaved, tone still rough, but a touch less horrified than a moment ago. "Easy, luv. Just wait a minute." Cassi let out a soft sob, not sure if she wanted to pull away or cuddle back against him. So confused and out of sorts she didn't know which way was up. Especially as the powerful First Mate was nuzzling her hair, making her melt at the possessive affection even as a small voice inside of her cried out that it was wrong.

"I didn't mean . . . I . . . I'm not sorry for what just happened, exactly," Morgan suddenly forced out, only sounding about half-way sure of himself, but stubbornly determined as well. "I just . . . bloody hell, I no better than raped ye just now."

That idea was so utterly absurd that Cassi's tears dried somewhat, and she turned a little to stare up at him with disbelieving eyes. "Raped me?" she parroted. "You didn't . . ." She swallowed a little, face heating with the sordid truth of it, tone going softer with it as well. ". . . I never told you no, Morgan."

He winced. " . . . yer so young. And you obviously have a thing for me . . . ." The black man was suddenly looking so ashamed of himself it was painful to witness. "I know yer voice when I hear it. I know, I know I didn't do anything you didn't want me to do. But I can't help but to think I just took advantage of ye."

Cassi gently pulled herself from his grasp then, wrapping her arms around herself, chilled. "And I know full well that you're married," she pronounced somewhat hollowly. "To my adopted mother. And I'm supposed to be dating Beau." Her expression started crumpling again, self-loathing and guilt chasing themselves across her ravaged face. "Oh God, what have I done?"

Morgan stepped forward again, one of his arms curling around her shoulders, obviously trying to comfort away her hurt. "We did it, Cassi," he corrected softly, sternly. "What we did, we did together. And we can't take it back," he finished, a little sad, before sighing and straightening with sudden determination. "But no one has to know. And this never has to happen again."

Cassi just nodded to that, staring at the floor, not trusting her voice or her traitorous heart. As, instead of making her feel better as it should have, his words only made her feel worse, somehow bereft and cheated. That, despite the guilt, despite how much she knew it was wrong, Cassi still wanted it to happen again. Wanted it with a desperation that was somewhat frightening.

Morgan stared down at her for several minutes, looking torn, before he finally sighed and pronounced, somewhat haltingly, "if you ever need to talk . . . about this, you can talk to me. I might not be the best person for it, but . . . I'll be there for you if you need me to, Cass."

Cassiopeia tried to smile at him, but from his pained expression she imagined that it was a rather dismal attempt that failed miserably. "Thank you," she finally managed, deciding that she needed to end this painfully uncomfortable situation as soon as possible and make a retreat. Before Morgan tore her heart out any farther with his double-edged kindness. She dropped her stare back to the ground, wringing her hands a little. "I-I think I'm gonna just go, now," she warbled.

Cassi turned and started trying to hunt for her blouse. A moment later Morgan gently called her name again, now wearing his own--though unbuttoned--and held the pale blue material out to her. Cassi took it from him, not meeting his soft brown eyes, and quickly shrugged into it.

"I . . . I'll see you later," she found herself pronouncing somewhat inanely, before the teen turned on her bare feet and pelted for the door. Morgan didn't say anything else, letting her retreat with what shreds of dignity she had left.

Moments later Cassi entered her bunk, passing where her sister was sleeping soundly in her bed, entering into the small bathroom space and silently shutting the door. She turned on the shower with faintly robotic motions, stripping back out of her clothes and then stepping under the hot spray. The teen stared down at herself somewhat dully, watching as the dried blood and other proof of her lost virginity slowly rinsed from her skin and swirled away into the drain. Until the tears gathering in her eyes made seeing anything difficult.

Shoulders shaking with surpressed sobs, Cassi very slowly crouched into the corner of the tiny stall, drawing her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and burying her face into her knees. Cassi had told Clara once that your first time was supposed to be special. Somehow hers had ended up feeling wrong, guilt-ridden and sordid.

But what was tearing her up harder than anything was that, despite it all, Cassi knew in her heart that--if given the chance--she would do it all over again. In a heart-beat.

[Dr. Andromeda Reyes]

Andromeda approached one of the beds still occupied with Magi children, doing her best to ignore the clamor of confusion and emotion raging just beneath the calm surface of her face.

She and Josetta had barely gotten a hold of themselves before they'd stripped down completely and made love right there in the middle of the hallway. Probably the only reason they hadn't was because Jane had suddenly walked up on them and whistled low through her teeth. Causing them to rip apart, Andromeda snatching her blouse back closed to cover herself.

The small pilot had merely smirked, shaking her head. Luckily her expression hadn't been sneering or degrading, though the smarminess hadn't exactly been comfortable to witness either. "No, please," Jane had proclaimed cheerily. "Don't stop there on my account. I love to watch."

Andromeda had just groaned in mortification, turning slightly so she could fumblingly redo her bra and start to rebutton her shirt. Josetta--after a slight moment of being flustered her own self--had managed to recover her usual sense of humor.

"Well hell, Janey, by all means. Why don't you just join right in?" The slender pilot had quirked an eyebrow before reaching for the clasp of her top, causing Andromeda to gape and Jo to sigh loudly, rolling her eye heavenward. "Kidding, Jane. Only kidding."

That had caused the dark-haired woman to cackle, revealing that she had probably been mostly joking as well. Mostly. Then she'd continued on her way, whistling the tune to an especially bawdy folksong underneath her breath along the way. By that time Andromeda had managed to replace her clothes into a semblance of normalcy, face burning a mortified scarlet. When she started to go into a full retreat, however, Josetta quickly grabbed her by the arms and pulled the slender doctor back against her, hugging her tightly.

"Don't you dare pull away from me again," Jo had growled determindly into Andromeda's now-loose hair. Andromeda had whimpered a little in futility then.

"Jo, we can't keep doing this," she managed softly. "It's wrong."

"And so is completely shutting me out," the pirate insisted hotly, arms tightening. "I don't know what we're going to do, where we're going to go from here, but I refuse to let you shut yourself up in that emotional prison anymore." Andromeda hadn't known what to say or do then, and just cuddled her face into Jo's tunic as the taller woman gently petted her hair. Finally the redhead had slowly straightened, pulling away with a heavy sigh. "Go on and go take your nap, baby," she proclaimed softly, lifting a hand to brush a tender caress down Andromeda's cheek. "We'll talk more about this later."

That was two days ago. Andromeda had left, then, and hadn't seen Josetta since. Part of her was glad for the reprieve, unsure what they could do to settle this tangle, if anything, that wouldn't end in her heart being broken, or her self-respect completely demolished. The other part of her just ached for the slim redhead in any capacity, completely ignoring the fact that she was the very last thing she needed.

And now, on top of everything, Andromeda was starting to worry for her sister. For the past two days Cassiopeia had been uncommonly withdrawn and quiet, keeping almost completely to herself and rarely venturing out of her room. She had mumbled out something to the effect of not feeling well, when Andromeda or anyone else had asked, though the teen didn't seem to be displaying any symptoms of anything. Other than deep depression. Andromeda had questioned Beau, but the young gunman was just as baffled as the rest of them were as to the cause of her despondancy. She had left the teen mostly alone for the past few days, but if Cassi didn't slip out of her slump soon, she was going to have to do some serious interrogation to try and figure out what was wrong.

Andromeda approached the singular looking male teen and reached up to inject the drug into his system. His name was Nathan Krane, according to the others. One who had the ability to change his appearance to look identical to nearly anyone he saw. Currently the almost effeminately skinny boy's skin was an unnatural black, his nose and ears undersized, completely hairless. And, a moment later, when his eyes flew open they were revealed to be a startling shade of pink, his pupils slit like a cat.

The teen gaped up at her for a minute before his expression suddenly hardened with a now-familiar flash of hatred.

"Calm down," Andromeda advised gently. "No one here is going to hurt you. You're on board the Plunder's Heart. We rescued you from the freightor."

Andromeda gasped a little as Nathan's body suddenly morphed in front of her eyes. His skin taking on a more normal shade of brown, his ears and nose becoming more natural, long blond hair sprouting out of his scalp and his eyes morphing into a soft blue-gray. He kept most of his other features, the new colorings making him almost exotically attractive. And still a touch feminine.

"And I'm just supposed to fuckin' take yer word for it, eh?" he demanded in a faintly twangy accent. Andromeda sighed a little.

"No, of course not. Though I would advise against trying anything violent while you investigate the truth for yourself. Christian Monroe had to learn his lesson the hard way."

Nathan just stared up at her, clearly untrusting and now wary as well. The doctor merely patted him on the shoulder, ignoring the shape-shifter's slight wrench, and then moved over to the next bed, where a small, mousy, brown-haired girl was resting. "Just relax for now, and try to rest," she advised. "Clara will be in shortly to see you."

[Cassiopeia Reyes-Hart]

Cassi lay in her bed, cuddling with Roger and doing her best not to think too hard on any particular thing. She knew Andromeda and the others were starting to worry, not believing her somewhat lame excuse of being sick. When one's sister was one of the best doctors in the system, faking at being ill was pretty much pointless, after all.

Cassi sighed a little, nuzzling her tear-stained face into Roger's soft coat--who remained still and allowed her to cuddle him, making a soft noise of affection and licking at her cheek. She should probably start doing a better job of pretending to be happy. Lest they start to get too suspicious and try to force her to explain what was really wrong.

Before they found out that she'd had sex with Morgan Halcyon in the gym room, thereby thoroughly betraying two people that she loved most in this universe.

The teen groaned a little, eyes squeezing shut even harder, as allowing herself to think back on that night two days ago just made her feel worse. Guilt, pain and humiliation was thick in her head and heart, but then so was breathless excitement, adoration and a powerfully strong, healthy dose of lust. Just remembering the way he had touched her, the way he'd felt inside her, the way he made her feel, made her loins ache in forbidden need.

Which only served to make Cassiopeia feel even worse, that she still lusted for him, still loved him, even knowing it was so very wrong to do so.

Cassi tensed a little when the hail suddenly chimed out in her room. She sat up a little hurriedly wiping at her face. "Come in," she called after a moment, after she felt she'd composed herself sufficiently.

When the door opened and Beau tentatively stuck his head inside, Cassi felt a powerful, painful wrench in her chest. Especially when his green eyes stared at her so worriedly, love and concern etched in every square inch of them.

He loves you. He's never done anything but love you unconditionally. And how did you repay that? By having sex with another man, and loving every minute of it.

Cassiopeia's guilt was so strong at that moment she almost felt physically ill.

"Cass? Are you alright, babe?" Beau questioned softly, so blithely unaware of the sickening guilt raging in her system or the real reason for it. Cassi's head ducked, unable to keep meeting his gaze, her guilt too choking. She tensed when her boyfriend suddenly sat next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and giving her a gentle half-hug.

You should tell him. He deserves to know the truth. Lying will only make it worse.

Beau leaned in to feather a gentle kiss to her temple, and Cassi had to fight to keep from dissolving into tears then and there. "You can tell me what's wrong," he assured, tone loving. "I promise I'll do whatever I can to make it better."

I cheated on you. I had sex with Morgan the other night. I let him do all the things I can't bring myself to let you do to me. And it felt fantastic. And now I feel like a dirty, faithless whore.

Instead of say any of those things, however, Cassi merely sighed. "I'm fine," she insisted softly. "I promise. Just feeling a little sick lately is all. I haven't been sleeping well."

Beau just hugged her tighter, and Cassi suddenly turned to him fully and curled into his chest, accepting the affection and the comfort. Ignoring the voice in her head calling her a horrible, selfish person for taking it, knowing what she had done. Morgan was right. No one ever needed to know what had happened. It wasn't ever going to happen again. That's all that mattered. She would just do her best to forget about it, starting now.

Beau sifted his hands through her hair, his touch almost innocently sweet. Boyishly chaste. Nothing like the way Morgan had fisted the long tresses, making her scalp burn with an arousing tingle.

Cassi shoved that thought away with a determined scowl. Instead she lifted up a little, staring up at him. Beau took the silent invitation for what it was, bending down and sealing his mouth over hers. Kissing her soft at first, and then deeper. And Cassiopeia tried so hard to kiss him back. To enjoy them as thoroughly as she'd drowned away in Morgan's kisses.

But they couldn't come anywhere near it. Not even close.

Cassi finally pulled away after a while, doing her best not to hint at the defeat and sadness she was feeling, giving him a reasonable shadow of her usual smile. "I feel better now," she lied blithely, causing Beau to grin.

"Well that's good." He squeezed her affectionately. "How about we head out to the mess hall and get something for lunch," Beau coaxed then. Cassi blew out a shaky sigh, then nodded.

"Okay, just let me get dressed." Beau bent to kiss her one last time before he got up and left the room so she could get changed. Cassi dressed herself in one of her sun-dresses, then scooped Roger up into her arms and left her room.

Doing her best to smile, to bury her broken-heart deep, and appear as normal as she could. To put what had becoming her dearest memory and worst mistake firmly behind her, for good.

[T.K.]

T.K. yawned as he stretched in his seat. It had taken a while to pry Shiyounin off last night, but he had finally managed to get some sleep. Shiyounin hadn't been in his quarters when he'd woken up, and from what he'd heard from some of the crew members so far, she had been zooming around the ship, terrorizing people with her new 'size'. At least she was finally happy about something.

He hadn't gone to get his breakfast yet, but it could wait until he downloaded the logs, so that he could read over them while he ate. As soon as the information had been transferred to his datapad, he left Engineering, and headed for Mess. He really needed some coffee.

After getting a heaping plate of scrambled eggs, and enough greasy bacon and sausage to clog his arteries for the next decade, he sat down at an empty table, and started in, while he let the Datapad auto scroll through all the previous days logs. He set his coffee down, and scrolled back up, after he read the log about the security over-ride being activated on the Gym doors.

“Now who would need to secure the Gym, and why?”

He filed it away to check later, noting that it had been Morgan who had done it. Now he was really curious.

He bolted down the rest of his breakfast, before heading back to Engineering.

A few minutes later, he had the file pulled up, and scanned through it. As soon as he saw that the security logs showed Cassie to be in the Gym at the same time, he knew something was up. He pulled up the associated Video files, and fast-forwarded to the time Morgan activated the security lock.

“Ittai nani ga shitenda? Morgan no chikushome kissama.!”

He shut it off, before running off to be sick.

He ended up skipping the rest of his shift, as his mind and feelings continued to behave in much the same way as his stomach just had.




Translation:
Ittai nani ga shitenda? : What the Hell is that?

Morgan no chikushome kissama : Morgan the Son of a bitch bastard.

[Willie Barbary]

Willie moved through the halls of the Plunder, munching absently on some sweet rolls that Happy had hooked her up with after a few minutes of sweet-talking and cajoling. The heavy-set man was a stickler for not ruining meals, but a big softie it seemed for the wide-eyed pouty face. Besides, she was so hungry lately that a few extra pastries weren't going to dampen her appetite.

Willie would definitely have to remember to thank Cassi, the next time she saw her. The blond teen had let her in on the secret a few days ago, grinning impishly.

Thus far--baring a few unpleasant arguments and borderline-cat-fights with that bitchy Jane, and her parents' horrified reactions--her stint as a pirate was running rather swimmingly. Willie couldn't even muster up the gumption to be mortified at all the ribald jokes and ribbing that was constantly tossed her way from the pirates who slept on the same corridor as her and Miller. Or the way they'd begun walking around with ear-muffs and cotton stuffed in their ears. Or how one of them had bought her a sound-proofer with some of his ill-gotten gains.

"Call it a selfish gift," the man, named Cooper, had pronounced, somewhat pained as he'd handed it over.

Miller had, of course, refused to use it. Damn that man and his cave-man tendencies.

Willie turned a corner, and tensed as she neared the small gaggle of teens standing outside of the rec room. The Captain's daughter Clara stood in the middle, surrounded by her little Magi click. The cat-girl gave the nervous pilot a small, slow-forming smile as she passed. As if the redhead knew exactly how nervous and frightened Willie was of of her. Which, considering her luck, she probably did.

The tall, lion-like teen glowered at her hatefully, letting out a soft rumbling growl out of his chest. Near him, a new teen she hadn't seen before eyed her with a mix of suspicion and anger.

"Is that her? The Snake's bitch?"

"Yah," another, Stefan, pronounced just as coldly.

"And don't you forget it," she found herself snapping back as she passed, in no mood to be talked down to by a bunch of teenagers. No matter how powerful they were. Faces darkened considerably at that, but Clara suddenly shifted a little on her feet, and immediately the others subsided. But those glowing purple eyes locked solidly with hers, making Willie want to shudder in fear.

Which was suddenly feeling near overwhelming.

"Do not worry, Willona," Clara pronounced softly, tone deceptively pleasant. "I assure you, we won't."

Willie just continued on her way, calling up every ounce of willpower she had to keep her pace slow and steady and keep from bolting like a terrified rabbit. There was something very, very wrong with that girl. With all of those Magi kids. And for some reason no one else wanted to see it.

[Clara Hart]

As the small, dark brown haired girl came to, Clara slipped into the room.

"Hello, you must be Nathan and Angel." Clara said softly. "My name is Clara. You are aboard my mother's ship, Plunder's Heart. You owe her your lives."

"I don't owe a human anything." Nathan sneered.

Clara walked over to the boy, met his gaze, and smirked. "You report to me on this ship, Nathan. I am in charge. If you don't cause trouble, nothing bad will happen to you. If you insist on hurting the people here, I will break you like I nearly broke Christian." With those were, her body glowed with white fire and a very strong wind picked up around him.

Nathan was sufficiently cowed. He did not show it, but Clara could feel it loud and clear. Then the elemental power cooled down, and she walked over to Angel. The girl was small, delicate, with dark brown hair and grey eyes. At best, she was the same age as Clara, but she was mousy enough that she could have been much younger.

"Are you alright?" She asked softly and compassionately. Angel nodded. "Can you speak?"

"Y-yes." She replied in a drawled squeak.

"Good. Rest here as long as you want. I can be here quickly if you need me." Clara replied softly, lessening the child's fear. Angel, unlike the others, was feeling no hatred at all. Just fear, fear of the government rather than fear of humanity in general.

The purple eyed girl glanced at the three unconscious Magi remaining before she left, motioning Nathan to follow her. Clara knew, her forces assembling, the time to act would be soon.

And, regardless of her destiny, the change she sought would tear across the solar system like wildfire.

[Alexandria Wright]

Alexandria Wright sat up with a start, coughing heavily and her fiery green eyes flaring open. Her whole body felt soaking, freezing wet, and ice hung in her hair like tiny crystals. Her vision was, at first, blurry, but she managed well enough to see a woman in a lab coat standing near to her.

"Bucket." She said in between coughs. The dark haired woman quickly complied, and held up a bucket, into which the woman, who looked to be in her mid thirties, emptied the contents of her stomach. She made a mental note to not eat at least a day before jumping into a cryo chamber next time.

The woman put a light to Alexandria's eyes and said something that the still dazed woman did not quite catch. Then, Alex saw a glint of metal, a scalpel on a nearby table. The woman who was inspecting her turned for just a moment. That was all Alexandria needed.

With a flick of motion she got up on her knees in the cryo tube, ice shaking from her tangled and matted orange-red hair, pullled the scalpel from the table, and put it to the side of the tall, dark-haired woman's neck, her other arm coming around the tall woman's throat.

"Where am I?" She asked calmly, her senses coming back to her slowly.

The doctor stiffen with fear, her eyes wide. "Y-you're on board the Plunder's Heart. Your daughter's ship. You . . . you've been frozen in chryo for eighteen years."

"...my daughter? Josetta? Plunder's....is this a pirate ship?" Alexandria asked. The doctor nodded. "And who are you?"

"D-doctor Andromeda Reyes. I thawed you out." She replied, still fearful. "And yes, your daughter is a pirate. The most infamous and feared in the System." The Wright matriarch sighed then and pulled the knife away, letting go of the Doctor and slumping back into the tube, the blade dropping from her hand in the process.

"Eighteen years." Alexandria muttered. It was that point that she realized she was wearing just a white undershirt, he bra, and a pair of panties, all of which were soaked and reacting to the cold.

"Yes." Andromeda blushed a bit. "Once you feel a bit better, I can arrange a warm shower and dry clothes. Until then, it is best we do not warm you up too much to prevent a shock to your system."

"Right, right." Alexandria muttered. "Can I see my little girl?"

The Doctor nodded, and rushed off. Alex stared up at the ceiling now, coughing a bit again as her lungs and other organs began to work for the first time in nearly two decades.

"Mama?" Came a considerably deeper voice than she was expecting. Alex turned her head, which felt like it was full of cotton candy, to the source. Tall, red haired, with an eyepatch rather than two bright blue eyes staring at her.

"Oh my god it is you." Alex said in a shocked voice. "Oh my beautiful little girl." A tear ran down her face. Jo ran to her mother and embraced her as best she could.

"I never thought I'd see you again." Jo said quietly, tears streaming down her face. "Oh Mama."

"Shhh, it's okay, hon. I'm alive and kicking." Alexandria Wright said softly. "You've grown into such a beautiful young woman, Jo."

Jo smiled at her mother, who looked just as how she had left her. "I have someone you need to meet. Two someones."

Alexandria then saw two girls, very nearly equal in age, both of whom had strong magi features. The first was definitely the more buxom of the two, with pale gold hair, silver eyes, and long, elfin ears. The second was the spitting image of Jo herself when she had been younger, save for the tiger-like features and purple eyes.

"These are my little girls. Cassi is my adopted daughter and Clara here is my daughter with..." Jo winced and did not finish the sentence.

"I can guess well enough, dear." Alex said dryly. "And while he may have been a cold-hearted bastard, at least he gave you such a pretty little girl."

Clara smirked at that. Alexandria did not quite like that smirk. It was an expression entirely too Anton for her taste.

Cassi gave her a stammered greeting after staring at Alex stunned for a moment. "Um...h-hello Mrs. Wright."

"Call me Alex, dear. Or, I guess, Grandma if you want. Granted, I don't exactly feel the right age, but I suppose am I technically over fifty, aren't I?" Alex said with a smile. "Now, if you don't mind, I would like a hot bath, maybe some dry sheets, and some fresh, warm clothes."

"Consider it done, Mama." Josetta said, smiling again. "It's good to have you back."

"It's certainly interesting to be back." Was all Alex could say in response before she slipped into a natural, exhausted sleep.

[Cassiopeia Reyes-Hart]

Cassi loped over to where Christian was sitting, alone and apart from the rest of the group as usual. Dressed in a pair of jeans and a muscle-shirt, the moody teen was staring off into the distance, his golden-furred face pulled into an expression of hardened anger. His somewhat unsettlingly feline eyes shifted restlessly, as if lost in memories.

Cassiopeia brought Roger closer against her chest as she stepped over to him and then sat beside him. Ignoring the way Christian stiffened up and then let out a soft, growling huff of annoyance beneath his breath.

"Why won't you leave me be?" he snapped at length. Cassi refused to be cowed by his aggression, merely gave him a cheeky smile.

"Because nobody likes a grumpy-pants," she shot back, making him scowl. But underneath the anger she could see the uncertainty, also, and the bafflement. Having never been teased before, Christian was utterly unprepared on how to deal with it, or her, most of the time. Cassi sighed. "Why don't you come over and sit with the rest of us?" she cajoled, much as she did every time the group got together and Christian refused to join them. The lion-like teen huffed again, turning to glare off into to distance once more.

"I don't feel like listening you you all preen and haw over so much nonsense," he griped moodily. "It's bad enough having to suffer the stench clogging the air."

Cassi gaped, for a moment not sure if she should be amused or offended. "Hey!" she crowed after a moment, laughing. "I do not stink!"

A twinkle of what might have been humor suddenly lit his cat-like eyes. "No indeed. You smell like the lavender soap you used in the shower this morning," he pronounced matter-of-factly, "and of honey and cake from the sweet-roll you snuck from Happy perhaps . . . two hours ago." Cassi gaped, eyes wide.

"Whoa! You can smell all of that? Really?" Christian tensed a little, shifting somewhat uncomfortably in what might have been embarrassment in anyone else.

"Yes. Now imagine a scent as acute for everyone sitting in this room, and then smother it with raging hormones." His nose wrinkled a little, revealing the fangs in his mouth. "A rather . . . unpleasant mix."

Cassi sighed somewhat sympathetically, reaching over to pat him on the arm. The larger teen stiffened up a little, clearly uncertain with the display of affection. It was almost as if he were waiting for her to hit him, completely used to the concept of a tender touch. Which, of course, only made Cassiopeia that much more determined to touch him nicely. Which of course only annoyed him more.

She smiled defiantly at his petulant glare. It was a cycle, after all.

The blond was distracted for a moment by Roger's antics. The puppy bounced excitedly in her lap, yipping a little and doing his best to try and get to Christian. The cat-like teen merely stared straight ahead, expression stating quite clearly that it would be a cold day in hell before he ever lowered himself to petting Roger like the tiny Yorkie wanted so desperately.

"Calm down, Rog," Cassi tried to soothe. Roger seemed to whine louder. Christian withstood this for all of a minute or two before he suddenly sighed loudly and swung around to stare down at the puppy. Almost immediately the dog went quiet and still, almost as if in a trance. A moment later Roger's tail tucked a little between his legs, and the small dog then curled up in Cassi's lap, obediently sedate.

Cassi just blinked at Christian, stunned. "Wow. How'd you manage that?" The furred teen shrugged.

"I told him that if he didn't shut up and be quiet, that I was going to eat him."

Cassi gaped. "You can talk to animals?" Again, that faintly embarrassed shift.

"Not . . . exactly. Animals don't talk the way you or I do. It's . . . more impressions than anything else. Instinct. The dog recognizes that I am alpha to him, therefore he follows the suggestion I planted in his brain." Christian glanced back toward Clara for a moment before he turned straight again, his expression going carefully blank again.

Cassi was silent as well. And do you view Clara as your alpha? Is it simple, animal instinct that drives you? Is that why you do whatever she says? Is that why all of us do whatever she says?

The doors to the rec room suddenly opened, causing all of the teens to turn to see whom had entered. When Morgan ducked into the room, many of them just rolled their eyes and turned away again.

Cassi didn't.

Her breath caught in her chest, and her heart nearly stopped beating, her face slowly turning a deep, mortified red to the tips of her ears as the powerful First Mate's brown eyes drifted through the room and then froze on her. This would be the first time that they'd seen each other since . . . the incident. And seeing him brought up all the memories and emotions she'd barely been able to leash over the past few days. The painful guilt and the burning need. Guilty tears and hot, gasping moans.

Unnoticed by the others in the room, Cassi and Morgan continued to stare at one another for several long, uncomfortable moments. Until the First Mate finally shook himself out of his stupor, shaking his head a little and turning to his original purpose. Which was to apparently snatch up Ivan by the scruff of his tunic and haul him away from the air-hockey table, pronouncing blandly that the burly crew-member would be losing his cut of the next take due to shirking his duties.

Cassi let out a shaky breath after he'd left, staring down at Roger as she pretended to be very interested in re-arranging his blue bandanna. She never noticed Christian turning to her sharply, taking in a few experimental sniffs before glancing back to the now closed door. An eyebrow twitched high on his forehead and a thoughtful, suspicious expression chased it's way across his furred face before it went carefully blank once more.

[Christian Monroe]

Christian had followed the First Mate's scent from the recreation room into the gym a little while later, mostly due to boredom. Though it intrigued him faintly that young Cassi--who was 'dating' the human Beau and who had thus far displayed nothing but almost sickeningly sweet, compassionate tendencies--lusted after Morgan Halcyon. And that the scent of her heavy arousal no longer held the fresh, innocent blush of a virgin.

Even more intriguing, that the much older black man's scent had spiked hot and heavily into the arousal zone as soon as his dark eyes had fallen onto the nubile young blond sitting beside him. Christian snorted slightly to himself. It would be just like a human to take advantage of Cassiopeia's innocence, using her body for his own needs. Christian had scented the arousal that the Captain felt for Dr. Reyes many a time, after all, and the attraction was more than returned.

Christian felt his lips curl back in a faint snarl before he shook his head and determined to put the revelation out of his mind. It wasn't any of his business who Cassi was fucking, and why. Nor did he particularly care. Though he wasn't quite able to quiet that small voice in him that growled, vowing that if the First Mate ever hurt her that he'd eviscerate him with his bare hands. Christian scowled through the unfamiliar emotion, doing his best to ignore that too, certain that it could only be a weakness.

The powerful teen entered the gym area, which held more than one pirate currently working out. Many of whom turned to eye him when he entered. The scent of their fear and nervousness rose up in his sensitive nostrils, cloying and thick, and Christian made a face of disgust. He eyed the exercise machines however, expression thoughtful.

He had been raised all his life to adhere to a strict, almost brutal physical training regimen. He'd started to feel lethargic after so many weeks of inactivity. Perhaps a few hours in here would help. And if he was lucky, his presence would chase out some of the more pathetically terrified creatures, and they would leave him in peace and quiet.