Page 9 of Breaking Ties

“I have spent my life forced into a reality not of my making. This is a clean slate. My prospects have changed, my body has changed, and it looks like I even have pointy ears.” She stroked the curve of her ear lightly.

“You are still evolving.”

“Yes. I can feel it. The physical hunger is being matched with an increase in sexual appetite, so I am hoping that I find a suitable bond. I mean, I know what my match looks like, but I have no idea who he is or if he is even seeking a companion. I know not all of the Hmrain are.”

The therapist paused. “You know?”

“Sure. Anything to do with my life now comes in clearly. I see him, and he is definitely a him.”

The therapist smiled. “You have a vision of him naked?”

“A few hundred images, yes. Some involving myself, but if we don’t meet, that doesn’t happen, and the future resets.”

“What would happen then?”

“I would find another Hmrain who suits me. It won’t be as good of a fit, but I will deal with it.”

“You are committed to life.”

“I definitely am. I have been close to death too many times. Life holds many more possibilities.”

The therapist grinned, showing fangs and one in the middle like an egg tooth. “That is the best thing I have heard all week.”

“So where do I go from here?”

The woman laughed. “You eat again, and then we have private quarters ready for you with your own guards.”

“Why all the guards?”

“There have been attempts to steal high-ranking companion or consort-class females. You are infinitely above them in importance. News of you is being sent to unentangled Hmrain, and responses are that they don’t believe you are real.”

“I am guessing images of me from medical are flying around.”

“And the food court.”

Aubrey blushed a little but nodded. “Right. So more food court and then my rooms?”

“After that, a schedule will be created for training and education. Dance, deportment, negotiation, that sort of thing.”

She nodded. “I am already gaining languages.”

The therapist frowned and checked the file. “Did you have an implant?”

“Not that I know of. Languages just started trickling into my mind. I think I have six so far, and they keep coming.”

“You are astonishing. I will verify your guards are here, and you can go and get more food.”

“I do seem to be on a fixed trajectory when it comes to food. I am feeding the new shape. It’s hungry. The thinness of my body will fade once I am balanced.”

The therapist got up and went to check on the guards. Once their uniform icons had been confirmed, Aubrey got up, walked out to be surrounded, and walked back to the food court.

She waited at her table, seeing nothing but a sea of broad backs, and her food arrived. She set one of the plates aside and ate everything else.

When she got to her feet, one of the guards said, “You didn’t like that one?”

“It was poisoned for me. I decided not to test the skills of medical.”

One of her guards took the plate and returned it to the kiosk where they had purchased it. There was shouting, but Aubrey and her entourage were on their way down toward her new quarters.