(no subject)

[gala_apples]

Title: Long Snake Moan
Pairing: Alex/Ryland, Alex/OFC, Alex/Ryland/Gabe/Victoria/Nate
Rating: nc17
Wordcount: 16 134
Warnings: consensual but unenthusiastic sex with an OC.
Summary: Like everyone else, Alex's life will have four stages. First was his childhood. He was raised in Fish habitat with parents that kindly refrained from shapeshifting because all the best psychologists believed it alienated the incapable child from their adaptable parents, and all their close friends said shifting made their toddler poop themselves in fright.

At fifteen Alex left his childhood home to begin his five years of scouting, the process of furthering education so every youth can figure out which of the animal classes they should pledge to. Nineteen now, he’s close to pledging. When he does he’ll have to leave his communal living home, his school, and his best friend -and sometimes more- Ryland, in order to live in the wilderness and learn more about the animal side of himself. The things school can’t teach. Presuming he pledges successfully, lifelong symbiosis with one of the great Patrons of Nature -adulthood- is what follows.

Everything is going routinely until Nate makes Alex an offer he can’t turn down; a sneak peek at an adult habitat. It’s highly illegal for all concerned, but Alex knows this is something he wants to experience with Ryland. Unfortunately for him, Ryland is more interested in experiencing Gabe, one of Nate’s open relationship boyfriends.

Alex isn’t sure what class of animal he wants to pledge to. He’s not even sure if he believes in the six Patrons watching over all of them. All Alex is sure of is that he’s loved Ryland forever, and that he’s had a crush on Nate nearly as long, but neither come alone.

Author's Notes: I'd like to thank Jasley, who when I said things like GABE'S GONNA LIVE IN A SNAKE HABITAT! replied with things like 'but how will the city be warm enough for the snakes to live?' You know everything about everything. Thanks for letting me know some of it.
I'd also like to thank Our Lady Peace, one of my three favourite non-bandom bands. Their newest CD has a song called As Fast As You Can, and the first time I listened to it my brain wanted to take it literally. And so there was Victoria, a girl running from a church because she had a snake moan, a girl who still needed friends.


Alex hates having nightmares, now that he’s old.

When he was a child, pre-scouting, it was better. If Alex woke up crying he could shuffle across the hall. The slightest movement of his hand on the hollow door would wake his parents. It wasn’t that they were light sleepers, they just had the sort of sixth sense all parents have; a heightened awareness of when their child needs them. By the time he was bed-side his mom and dad would be making a space between them for nestling in. If Alex woke screaming they would come running, Mom turning the light on to scare away the monsters as Dad sat on the edge of his bed to provide a defensive barrier against those things not scared by the light.

Now he’s a scout, an old one at that. At nineteen he’s months away from pledging. The only beds across the hall belong to four of the seven other scouts. Not a loving adult in the bunch. The bedrooms on the main floor are no likelier to be decorated in floral wallpaper and tidy wardrobes and smell like vanilla. No one in this house wants to hear his whimpers or dry his tears, and if they came running at his screams it would only be to see what’s going on, not out of any real concern.

As a teenage boy he has two things beside his bed; a flashlight and a box of tissues. Alex reaches over so he can snag one and wipe the sweat off of his face. If the box could talk it would gasp. It’s the first time in years he’s used a tissue for something not ejaculate related. Two years ago he’d have a dream journal and a capped pen, but he doesn’t use them anymore. Nothing he ever dreams needs analysis, today included. Being paralyzed while bugs devour him from head to toe- hmmm, could that possibly be pledging anxiety and a fear of Invertebrate? Not very fucking subtle.

Once he’s dry and dressed he heads downstairs. Halfway down the stairs Alex remembers he didn’t flick off his alarm. He doesn’t go back for it. Zacharias needs all the alarms in the world to actually force him out of bed.

Smith and Kent are fighting again. On a scale it’s about as surprising as an Amphie being a flake. Alex hovers in the doorframe of the kitchen, not sure if he wants to go in yet. It really depends on what they’re fighting about. Wesley, a Mam if ever there is one, is already in his customary chair, completely unconcerned about the scene in front of him.

“Wes,” he whispers to not catch the attention of the others. “What’s going on?”

“Smith ate Kent’s fish eggs.”

“Fuck me,” Alex mutters. There’s no way that wasn’t a deliberate slight. Kent’s been saying he’ll pledge Fish since the first day of scouting. Imbibing his patron is his method of prayer. It’s not really Alex’s school of thought, but then he’s pledging either Bird or Reptile, and canary meat is hardly an easily attainable dish.

The good thing about the argument is it’s pure Smith and Kent. It has nothing at all that Alex or the other five members of their house will be dragged into. And that means he can sit down in his own kitchen chair and eat some cereal. He’s over at the Bl house evading Smith and Kent and mooching breakfast at least three days a week. If he can be at home he should be.

Dulani is up next, as always. Not that he’s in the kitchen. Dulani sings as he wakes up. He claims it’s to call his future bird patron, but Alex doubts it. A Bird’s happiness comes out with simplicity. A calm cheer. When Dulani is cheerful he’s fucking obnoxious. If he doesn’t get rejected from Bird and sent to Mammal for that kind of aggression before the pledge year is over, Alex will eat his hat. But if the teen wants to lie to himself it’s not Alex’s job to disillusion him. That’s more a Buggie behaviour, and Alex could never be a Buggie. Hence the dream.

Alex does his best to make it all fade into the background as he eats his cereal. He doesn’t really hate his housemates, but he can’t help but want to be a year older. He has no memories of ongoing fights when he was in the Fish habitat as a child, and looks forward to having that again. Not necessarily as a Fish, he’s pretty sure Reptile or Bird will be equally cohesive. It just makes sense; when you have people of the same temperament living together, things will be less opposed. He doesn’t even look up until the table rattles. Kent’s kicked Smith hard enough to move the chair he’s sitting on.

“Smith, get out of my damn chair.”

“It’s not your chair. You didn’t buy it.”

Technically Smith is right. No furniture or bathroom is assigned. Only the bedrooms really belong to each individual member of Su-Sz house, and that’s true only for as long as they’re scouting. Still, Alex understands Kent’s upset. They’re all closing in on five years in the Su-Sz house. Behaviours and customs are pretty settled, and that includes territory.

He finishes eating as quickly as he can, and bolts out of the house. It’s not every day that he goes to collect Ryland so they can ride the bus to school together. Sometimes Ryland comes and gets him. Whomever is having the worse morning. It just so happens that Bl house is fairly cohesive and Su-Sz house is closer to explosive misery than anything else.

Unfortunately for him, Damon answers when he knocks on the door. He seems distinctly unimpressed by Alex standing on the step. “The fuck do you want, Alex?”

Alex rolls his eyes. At this point in their lives, it should be obvious. “What do you think? To get Ryland.”

“There’s no school today.”

“Shit, really?”

“Yeah, really.”

“My whole house forgot about it!” Which is both surprising and not surprising. It’s not like they’re a house of Amphies, the kind of people that could forget their own names if they weren’t written on their arms. On the other hand, none of them are that great with listening to teachers. They’ll never make the top twenty academic houses. If a teacher mentioned it it’s pretty likely none of them were paying attention at the time.

“Well don’t tell me about it. Go home, go back to bed.”

Alex winces at the idea. Walking back in on Smith and Kent is not his idea of fun. Especially if he has to be the one to break the news that they all got up for nothing. No doubt they’ll both find some way to blame it on the other.

“Or go cuddle Ryland. The fuck do I care?”

It gives Alex great satisfaction to label Damon as a Buggie in his head as he walks through the doorway and passes him. Damon might not be one, but it’s one of the best insults Alex has.

Alex has been in Ryland’s room a thousand times over the last five years. He’s on the main floor because he has a thing about heights, even low heights. Any window that Ryland can’t hop out of is too high in the air. Of the three bedrooms on the main floor, Ryland’s is the furthest from the bathroom. That too is deliberate. He’s a light sleeper and the sound of a toilet flushing would be enough to wake him up. All in all, he picked his room a lot more carefully than Alex did. At fifteen Alex had been new to the concept of claiming preferential territory. He’d just put his suitcase down in the first room he found without a suitcase already in it.

Alex does his best to sneak into his room. He turns the doorknob all the way so it doesn’t click, and walks in on the balls of his feet. It’s not a surprise when Ryland mutters “me sit up or you lay down?” before he’s halfway to the bed. It’s only been a handful of times in the last five years that Alex has actually managed to get a hand on Ryland’s shoulder before he wakes up on his own.

Ryland’s given him two options, but really, it’s not much of a question. Given the opportunity to spoon, Alex will. He kicks off his jeans, completely unashamed about not wearing underwear. He’s never been able to find a comfortable pair, and he changes his jeans often enough that it’s not a hygiene problem. He worms under the covers when Ryland props them up with an elbow. The twin bed makes it a close fit, but a close fit is what Alex wants. Ryland’s bed smells amazing, as always. It took Alex a while to find out why. Fifteen year olds don’t generally ask each other about linen. If only he’d asked the basic conversation starter, what’s your trifecta, he would have found out much sooner.

Alex has never asked someone that question, and he can’t see doing so in the future. Not so much because it’s not any of his damn business, although that’s true. Alex’s reason revolves around reciprocity. If you ask a scout that, they’ll talk at length, but they’ll almost always return the question. Alex doesn’t want to be asked. He has less than zero interest in explaining his trifecta. It always goes badly.

He’s still undecided. Bird and Reptile both appeal to him. At nineteen years and nine months, that’s not acceptable. His peers tend to think he’s weird, and the adults can’t help but warn him that the clock is ticking. Like he doesn’t know that.

When the personal desire component is missing, you’re supposed to rely on the two other parts; family history, and the Patron’s want. Alex can’t say he didn’t enjoy being raised in the Fish habitat. He certainly doesn’t have any horror stories, like Pinder’s about Mammal. All that his pleasant childhood means is he doesn’t hate it enough to count it out completely, and he doesn’t love it enough to race back. Which leaves Alex with Patronage. Each of the six gods have their favourites. Scouts are supposed to watch for the signs of a particular Patron favouring them. Alex has always been really shit at interpretation.

“Smells good,” Alex whispers, as if Ryland isn’t aware.

“Yeah, well, you know why,” Ryland murmurs back.

Alex does, of course. Ryland wants to be a Mammal, and he believes in guided dreams. Underneath his pillow is a potpourri sachet with dried meat, flowers, fruit and dead insects in it. It’s fantastically fragrant, and no matter if the Patron is a carnivore, herbivore, frugivore or insectivore, there should be something in the bag to call it. Alex has gone shopping with him more than once when it’s time to make a fresh one, though he’s never handled the ingredients. It’ll ruin the sachet if any of his DNA gets on the items meant to bring the Patron to Ryland.

Neither of them say anything as Ryland hardens against Alex’s bare ass. It’s the one awkward part of friends with benefits, not knowing at the beginning of each situation if it’s going to be one of the times when it goes somewhere, or if it’s going to be ignored. They’re each waiting for the other to say no.

Alex breaks first. It’s not as if he didn’t half set this up, choosing to take his jeans off when he’s not wearing anything underneath. “You’re hard.”

“Maybe I was having a good dream before you showed up.” It’s not defensive. Ryland hardly ever gets offended. It’s more of a somewhat sleepy laugh.

“Maybe your cock likes rubbing against my ass,” Alex counters.

“Maybe,” Ryland concedes.

It’s the work of seconds to reach behind himself and spread his asscheeks with one hand. It’s not at all altruistic. Ryland feels just as good to Alex when he’s rubbing the head of his dick against his most erogenous zone of skin as Alex knows he does to Ryland when he gives him a tighter area to rut against. Not that it’s a true rut. It’s lazier than that, a slow morning fuck.

“Guys,” one of Ryland’s roommates shouts through the door. Raphel, maybe. Not that Alex really cares. Not at this moment.

Ryland doesn’t stop rocking his hips. Alex could shy forward to make him stop, but he doesn’t either. Raphel -or whomever- probably can’t hear the bed rocking, and if he can that’s what he brought upon himself for interrupting them. Ryland’s obviously cranky instead of indifferent to being interrupted. He snaps, “what!”

“You have less than five minutes.”

“For what?”

“For school, dumbass.”

Alex can fix this misunderstanding easily. “No, man. Damon said no school today.”

“There’s definitely school today, I’ve got a project due. So hurry up if you don’t want to be late!”

Fucking Damon. Fuckin’ asshole Buggie.

Over the quiet sound of Raphel walking away Ryland continues his movements. Alex pushes back, trying to give Ryland as much to push against as possible. He thrusts one last time, his dick sliding up the cleft of Alex’s ass, arm tight like a seatbelt against his chest. Ryland’s come splatters against his back. An instant later he’s standing on the other side of the bed, rushing to get dressed. He’s half clothed before he acknowledges that Alex is alone on the bed, finishing himself off. “Your turn next time, kay?”

Alex doesn’t really need the promise to be happy. That they take turns focusing on each other is just their system. Besides, although he’d never say it out loud, there’s something in him that likes being used by Ryland. He grunts his agreement and jerks his hand a little faster.

The instant he’s done Ryland is shoving his jeans in his face. “We have two minutes to be in the driveway when the bus comes.” Alex takes the jeans then puts them down on the pillow beside him. He’s got come on his stomach and dripping down his back. He needs a second with a kleenex to clean up first. Ryland looks at him and winces. “Fuck. There’s no way you have time for a shower.”

Alex wipes his back as best as he can- it’s harder to reach than the pool on his stomach. Once he’s done pulls his shirt back down as he stands, and whips his legs into the jeans. His arousal grows into a low grade fever as they hurry down the hall, only stopping to cram their feet into shoes and rip jackets off hooks. There’s something kind of dirty-sexy about having Ryland’s fluids on him all day. Alex can just tell every time he thinks about it he’s going to get a semi.

By the end of classes Alex is really ready to go home and jerk off again. Maybe this time he’ll finger himself. Rubbing is fun enough, but sometimes a guy just needs to be stretched open.

There are three buses that stop at the school. The North bus is to all the residences. The clusters of students around the East and South-East bus stops are bigger. At this time of day most students want to go shopping, or towards other entertainment. Normally Alex would agree, but today he positions himself near the North stop.

“Home, already?” Ryland asks as he sidles up to him. Once he comes to a complete stop he slings his arm around Alex’s shoulder. Alex just manages to not shiver.

“Was planning on it. I have some shit I need to take care of.”

“Yeah. I guess you need to shower too.”

Alex wasn’t actually planning on showering, but it’s as good of an excuse as any. “Yeah, among other things.”

He’s half expecting Ryland to get on the North bus with him. They both have other friends, but a few of Ryland’s are older and have already transitioned to pledging, and the others are more partying friends. Alex’s the one Ryland spends his free time with, so it makes sense that Ryland’s going back to his house if Alex isn’t available. He’s not at all expecting Ryland to get off the bus at the same stop.

“Forget your address? Walking me home like some kinda gentleman?”

“No, shut up. I’m crashing your house. It’s been awhile since I caught the Smith and Kent variety hour. Or I’ll talk to Wes about pledging theories. Or I’ll do homework too, or something.”

Which means Alex will have to shower, otherwise Ryland will ask questions. He mentally shrugs as he hangs up his jacket in the front hall and takes Ryland’s so he can put his on the next free hanger. The sudden cling-on doesn’t change Alex’s plans much. He can get off almost as easily in the shower as splayed on his bed.

When he comes back into his bedroom, skin clean and balls empty, tips of his hair still dripping, Ryland is at his desk. Apparently he is actually doing homework. Alex could join Ryland, he’s got his own math questions to finish, but the truth is he doesn’t really feel like it.

“You wanna go to the music shop?” There’s no need to clarify. There could be a dozen music places in the city for all that it matters. Alex and Ryland only spend their monthly stipend at one store.

“I think the question is is there anything I want to do that prevents immediate relocation to the shop. The answer is, of course, no.”

Alex grins. Novarro’s is their place, for all that they’re not dating to have an anniversary date and place and song, for all that three months from now Alex will never see Novarro’s again. Right now it’s theirs, and they’re inside at least six days a week.

The heat on the South-East bus is broken. That and the constant whooshes of frigid air as the doors open automatically have Ryland leaning into Alex for warmth. Alex would point out that with hair like icicles he won’t really help, but if Ryland listened he’d shuffle back and Alex wouldn’t get his half-hug. He stays quiet until it’s their stop, and then proceeds to curse a storm when the full force of the winter wind hits him. Alex continues even when Ryland takes his gloved hand in his. It would be weird if he stopped caring about the temperature just because he was holding Ryland’s hand.

“Hey Nate!” Alex shouts as they enter the store. Going through the door is like walking into a wall of heat. In the fall and spring it seems excessive, but right now Alex can appreciate it.

Nate’s not standing at the counter, but that doesn’t much matter. Alex knows he’ll be somewhere in the shop. Novarro’s has one solid employee, and that is Nate Novarro. The other people always leave. They get fired or quit in equal numbers, with the occasional person that ages out. From what Alex can tell Amphies must be the most annoying people in the world to work for. Having a fluid nature shows itself in retail in actions like constantly rearranging merchandise, and most people can only handle that for so long. Especially when it’s music. Drop a box of songbeads and it’s an hour to pick them all up, and another to sort them.

“Make me make you listen to the new Aya beads!” The returning shout starts in the back and ends with Nate in the storefront.

Ryland looks at Alex. When he shrugs, he turns to Nate. “And how does that work?”

“I can’t pull out a bead and force customers to listen to it. It’s considered too hard a sale, they think I’ll drive away customers. But if you ask for a sample track, I can play it.”

Alex rolls his eyes. “That’s stupid. Every scout that shops here does it because you know every song and know what we should have.”

“Yeah, well, I like my job and I don’t want to get fired and move back home.”

Alex nods. Nate’s in a special position, one only a few thousand adults are ever in. Ninety nine percent of adults transition then stay in their habitats. But a scout city cannot be run by fifteen year olds, so some transitioned adults have to work in scout cities. It’s not something Alex would ever want. He looks forward to having his own community, an attitude imprinted on him while he was being raised in large groups in Fish. Some people though, they consider it an elite honor. Evidently Nate is one of them.

Nate smiles at them. “So you have any plans?”

Alex opens his mouth to ask when. You have to do that with Amphies, pin them down to get details. They’re easily distractible, second only to Fish. The difference is Fish are generally happy to go with the flow, whereas Amphies want specific things, just forget to mention them until they’re having a meltdown because they aren’t getting whatever it is.

Ryland beats him to first reply, although it’s not directed to Nate. “So I think this would be a great point in the conversation to tell you I’ve got us a date this week. Relevant and everything.”

“Really?”

“You wanna get laid, I wanna get laid.”

Alex would point out they got laid this morning, but he knows in Ryland’s mind that’s different. Alex wouldn’t label himself pining for him, but the times they fuck probably mean a bit more to him than to Ryland. “Date, or dates?” Alex would be up for either, at least in theory.

“What, like a threesome? No. Two friends.”

“Guys, or...” On a scale Alex is probably eighty percent interested in guys, twenty to girls. Maybe more than eighty to guys. It takes a special girl to pique Alex’s interest. Ryland on the other hand is a true fifty-fifty coin toss kind of guy.

“Two girls.”

“Okay. I guess.”

“They’re easy scores, man.”

“I said okay.”

“But that’s this week-” Nate interrupts. Alex would like think he seems too interested, but he doesn’t. Nate’s out of his and Ryland’s league, no matter how much they might want the older man to be interested in their sex lives.

“Yeah, Thursday, I think. She said they’ll call when they’ve decided.”

Alex is all of a sudden sure it’s a set up, but before he can comment he’s getting the most insane offer of his life.

“My girlfriend is transitioning to Bird next Saturday. I’ll take you with if you promise to cheer for her, and not brag to other scouts.”

Alex would have to be insane not to brag. Going to a habitat while being a scout is a one in a billion chance. Literally. Alex would guess about five scouts have ever been to a habitat. On the other hand, he’d have to be insane to brag. It’s quite illegal. If they were caught he and Ryland would be arrested. Nate would certainly be fired, if not also arrested. Not for entering the habitat itself, as a scout city merchant he’s got a multi-coloured tattoo. His trouble would be for corrupting minors.

“We will cheer until our lungs give out. Promise.”

“Write it on your calendar, boys.”

Alex hardly thinks that’ll be necessary.

***

“Are we really doing dinner and a movie?”

Ryland looks at Alex over the back of the seat. There were only single seats when they got on the bus, and now there’s only standing room. “What were you expecting, skydiving? I’m not considering Bird, that’s you.”

“Doesn’t have to be skydiving. Could be something interesting though.”

“Dude, ouch.”

It’s possible that Alex is being bitchy. Probable even. He just feels very uncomfortable with this whole thing. Alex has low enough interest in girls that the mathematical likelihood of hitting it off with a single random woman is practically impossible. And yet, here he is, on a bus on the way to a blind date. He can’t bail on Ryland. Ryland contracted for a double-date, if he shows up alone that might prevent him for getting his own sure thing. Alex doesn’t want to fuck him over like that. What Alex can do is be supremely passive aggressive about it.

The restaurant has a definite Fish influence. The colour palette is one Alex is so familiar with that stepping inside is almost like having a flashback to his childhood. Fluorescent blue and green is everywhere, from the carpet to the walls to the abstract murals to the logo on the napkins. He can only hope the food isn’t equally drawn from Fish culture. After fifteen years of having their class’s staple item at least once a day, a scout can go either way. Either it’s a comfort food, or they’ve had enough for a lifetime and will never touch it again. Alex feels firmly the latter about corn.

“Are they here?”

Alex expects Ryland to either lead him to his so called date, or shake his head. Instead Ryland flags down a maitre d. “Carruthers, party of four?”

The uniformed man leads them to a booth. There’s a girl on either side of the booth, which Alex wasn’t expecting. He thought he’d get to be safe beside Ryland, separated by the table. Ryland sits beside the girl with orange hair, leaving only one space left. Alex knows he doesn’t want to be with her the moment he sees her. Objectively she’s the perfect level of hot; hot enough that he wants to imagine her naked, but not so hot she destroys self-confidence. Her hair is shorter than his, white-blonde and styled in a cute pixie cut. She’s wearing a tanktop like she doesn’t know it’s January, and her yellow bra straps coordinate with the white and green stripes on the tank. Her well displayed breasts aren’t even her best qualities, when she introduces herself as Megan she has a great smile.

Attraction isn’t objective, is the problem. He just doesn’t want to hook up with her. Maybe if he was fucking her in the ass and Ryland was fucking her cunt, but not alone, and Ryland’s made it clear this is a one girl each night. He knew this would happen. Being proven right doesn’t give Alex any satisfaction. Now he has to go through the motions knowing full well there won’t be a payoff.

Still, he can do this. Impressing her is like impressing someone at a party; ultimately meaningless because you’ll never see them again, but the right thing to do at the time. He’ll make her smile, and compliment her, and deftly swerve away when she tries to initiate anything, and at the end of the night he’ll go home and jerk off thinking about Nate or Ryland, or any number of sexy composite body parts.

He turns on his smile and turns to her. Gesturing to the menus that are already on the table he asks “what are you going to have?”

“Well a lot of these things are gross to me. I’m a herbivore.”

“Huh.” The less he says the better. There are a few reasons someone might stick to an all plant, or for that matter, all meat diet. Alex knows if he makes a single encouraging sound she’ll start relating hers. Alex doesn’t really care. He’s an omnivore. Always has been, always will be. No matter what he ends up, he’ll always enjoy all in ingredients in a BLT.

The date goes by excruciatingly slowly. At least for Alex, Ryland doesn’t seem to care. The movie is respite. In the plush seats surrounded by other dating couples he doesn’t need to attempt more conversation. He’d be considered rude if he even tried. Although calling the last hour’s words conversation is inaccurate if you ask him. During dinner he talked while she mostly hmm’ed at him. Whatever attributes Ryland picked them for, conversation isn’t one. At least strangers at a party want to talk back.

Alex doesn’t really want to get off the bus at the C stop. Ryland, who probably thinks he’s helping, tugs on the front of his parka as he lets the girls exit first. Alex can either walk forward of his own free will, or stumble and trip out the door and faceplant on the sidewalk. Neither is a very pleasant option.

On the walk to Ca house, Megan slips her hand into his. She’s wearing knitted pink mittens. Alex lets her because it’s easier than refusing. Fuck, if he can just get away with a good night kiss at the door.

But it’s not meant to be. Ryland’s date -Alex didn’t even catch her name- pulls out her key from her purse and leads the way, Ryland stands behind them all and herds them in. Megan shows them where to put their boots, and she puts her mittens on the glove rack on the vent, even though it didn’t snow and they aren’t wet.

They split in in the hallway, three closed wooden doors against drywall painted yellow and stairs with a carpet runner. It’s not like Alex didn’t expect it, he was just hoping it would somehow not. But he goes with Megan when she climbs the stairs, and nudges the door closed with his heel as she lights a stick of incense. The air is already beginning to reek of flowers when she sits on the bed. It’s the only piece of furniture with a flat surface, Alex has to sit beside her. That, or flee, and he’s already gotten this far.

“Don’t you just love double dates?”

“Sure do,” he replies sarcastically. She’s being genuine, one of those innocent types that probably don’t even notice when others are mocking. If he’s going to courtesy fuck like a goddamn gentleman, he can at least placate himself with some bitchiness first.

“I just love the idea that someone else is getting off in the next room.” Okay, this has taken a sharp vere into left field. He knew they were gonna run there, but he thought it would take a bit longer. More one-sided conversation first. “You can feel the house fill with sexual energy. It’s the closest a scout can get to animalistic, Alex. Don’t you love it?”

There is a hand on his dick. There is major hand on major dick. Her fingers are warm, almost sweaty. He doesn’t regret not wearing underwear, it only would have been an added barrier for a few seconds. He bucks into the touch automatically. Putting his own hand on her inner thigh as Megan twists and brings her knee up to face him takes a bit more thought, but he does it. She pulls away before his fingers get anywhere useful. Alex expects her to gear down into kissing, but she stands and sticks the hem of her skirt into her wide belt. She’s not wearing panties. She’s fully shaved. Despite his mental neutrality, his body likes it, at least a little.

“Oh look, we wore the same thing.” Alex makes himself laugh, a casual counterpoint to the rush his date seems to be in.

“What’s your favourite position? Oh, wait. First-” She opens the bedroom door all the way. “There. That’s better.”

Five minutes ago, the door across the hall was closed. Every bedroom in the house had a closed door. Now that Megan’s is open it’s easy to tell that every girl’s door is open. Not so much by seeing, from Alex’s position he can only catch a sliver of the hall. He can hear everyone. Alex would be willing to bet that all eight girls in the Ca house are home, and equally willing to bet all of them are currently in a state of undress, with one or more companions.

It would be great to believe Ryland set this up as a kinky relationship thing. It would be great to think that Ryland wants to hear Alex having sex with someone, that he wants Alex to hear him. It would be pure delusion. Ryland’s just not a kinky groupsex kind of guy. Alex is suddenly positive Megan and her friend hit on Ryland, not the other way around, and of course he had a friend that was also single and interested in a short term relationship until they pledged.

“I don’t really have a specific one? Whatever gets you off.” That’s, after all, the point of this. He doesn’t get to go home and go to sleep until they both get off. The more he enables her, the quicker it is.

***

“It’s not that I ever imagined this. Because what kind of crazy person would imagine this as a possibility in their life? But if I had thought about it I would have figured it for more clandestine, you know? Secretive. Stealthy! You know, something like that.”

Alex knows what Ryland is saying, but he enjoys replying “What, public transportation to the rendezvous point isn’t enough for you?”

“There is something mentally jarring about the fact that we have a literal rendezvous point, but the girl three seats in front of us is doing her homework, and the guy a seat behind us is painting his nails.”

“Black, probably. I can hear his music, he sounds pretty damn gloomy.”

“That’s my point!”

Alex would bet money that Ryland isn’t actually upset about the depressed scout sitting behind them. It’s a lot more likely that Ryland’s freaked out that they’re actually doing this. Over the past week Alex has thought fleetingly of avoiding the risky situation they’re about to put themselves in, but never for more than a second. Primarily it’s the curiosity that catches him. It’s never made sense to him that he has to pledge without more than cursory knowledge of the future - stereotypes and generalisations of the six classes, and only secondhand tales of the habitats. Stuck the way he is between two classes, how could he possibly walk away from the chance to see Bird in all its glory? And then there’s the secondary reason. If they walk away from this opportunity, they’re turning their backs on the fact that Nate trusted them enough to invite them. Alex has liked Nate for too long to end it like that.

They get off the bus the stop before they need to. It’s Ryland who tugs the cord, but Alex doesn’t remind him it’s not the stop. It’s not like Ryland’s suddenly forgotten how to get to the music shop. If he needs the minutes extra walk, then whatever. Alex can give that to him.

They do, however, continue walking right up to the front door of Novarro’s. It’s a little more than Alex was expecting from Ryland, but he knows better than to applaud him for it. Ryland would think he was being sarcastic. The lights are on, the door is unlocked, nothing is rigged to explode, and no police swarm them. It’s all sort of anticlimactic.

Nate and a girl Alex has never seen before at both at the counter. She’s beautiful, Alex can see that immediately. Beautiful and interesting. In short, pretty much the opposite of the last girl he got set up with. But of course, Nate isn’t offering her to him. Nate’s dating her, Alex distinctly heard the word girlfriend in last week’s invitation. He tries to tell himself it wouldn’t have mattered, he wouldn’t have tried anything anyway, but he’s not sure how much he believes it. Alex would like to think that when it comes to genuine attraction, he doesn’t hesitate. After all, he’s gotten the best he can with Ryland, and has put out feelers more than once for Nate.

Her wrists are covered in about thirty bracelets. She pulls at them as she shifts her weight from foot to the other. She’s either nervous or she has to pee. Her first words aren’t hello, but “oh thank fuck you’re here. Can we go?”

Nate shakes his head. “DJ’s not here yet.”

“Fuck!” She swears emphatically. “I really wanna go.”

“I know babe.” She towers over him, but he still manages to take her in his arms. Alex can’t even see Nate’s face from his position behind the girl, it must be against her shoulders. Nate doesn’t stop her moving, they rock together, but Alex would be willing to bet based on before and after facial expressions that she’s more grounded now. Birds don’t take stress well, and transitioning is something that stresses all scouts, but he can’t think of a situation he’s been in where a hug hasn’t made him feel at least a little better.

“Vic, these are two of my friends, and best customers; Alex and Ryland. You don’t gotta talk, but if you want to...”

She doesn’t say anything. The silence is good though. If they started small talk he’d be tempted to ask something like ‘how does it feel to be so certain?’. Alex has never felt sure about anything. He just wants to know. The quiet continues until Nate pulls his phone out of his pocket and after looking at it a second reassures Victoria that DJ will be here in five minutes or less.

Three minutes after the proclamation, a man walks in and locks the door behind him. DJ’s only medium tall but makes up for it in girth. Alex would guess he feels most comfortable as a beluga or anaconda or rhino, until he sees the man’s hand. It’s a multi-colour tattoo, like all adult workers in scout city have. It’s a multi-coloured shell pattern, which means he’s a Buggie. It doesn’t exactly fit Alex’s mental image.

“Who’s up first,” he asks, putting his briefcase onto the counter.

“For what?”

“How’d you think you were gonna get in Bird habitat? You have to get marked.”

Alex isn’t a Mammal, he doesn’t actually have any hackles to raise. All he has is his tone when he throws out his question. “Nate?”

“What? I’m sure I told you.”

Ryland says no at the same time that Alex says when. Really, it’s half his fault. He should have figured there was something Nate was forgetting to tell them. He’s suddenly a lot less sure about following through with this, if it involves an Arthropod marking him.

“Dunno when, but I thought I did.” Alex can tell Nate’s shrugging by the way his arms move on Victoria’s ribcage.

“Relax guys. It’s not gonna be a tattoo. I’m just drawing it then sealing it.”

It takes a long while. Or maybe it just seems like that because Victoria is growing restless again. Ryland goes first, because he has less concern -prejudice is what he calls it, Alex doesn’t agree with the phrase- about letting an Arthropod take his hand. Alex watches with concentration the whole time, not that he would know how to attack if DJ did pull some violent stunt. The man never pulls out anything more threatening than a marker, and when he’s done he sprays it with a fixative. According to DJ, the pattern will only come off with the remover he hands Nate. As Alex sits down and puts his hand on DJ’s knee he makes a mental note to steal it from Nate. He’d rather have it in his possession, not the pocket of an Amphie. Who’s to say Nate wouldn’t forget it somewhere?

When DJ’s done, he leaves, nodding his head as a goodbye. There’s no other reason to delay, so Alex and Ryland pull their coats back on while Nate gets his and Victoria’s from his living quarters on the second floor. Victoria’s the only one without a pattern peaking out from under her cuff. When she notices him noticing, she tugs a pair of gloves on. Alex wants to apologise, but saying sorry for your life being like a experiment for me sounds bad in his head, and it would probably sound worse out loud.

“Come on.” Nate doesn’t wait for a response, just heads behind the counter and through the staff only door.

Alex elbows Ryland as they follow after Victoria. “We’re going into whole new areas. Areas that could be secretive and clandestine! Feel better now?”

“Shut up.”

The words end up biting him in the ass a minute later, once they’re out the back door. In the few feet of gravel behind the store a car is parked. Alex can count on his hands the number of times he’s seen a car in person. Most of his exposure to them has been in movies, where the criminals inevitably need a fast getaway, and a bike won’t cut it. The vehicle practically screams that its occupants are doing something illegal and hush hush.

Ryland evidently feels the same. “You have a car? No one has cars.”

“Buses don’t exactly run cross territory.” Nate unlocks the door and climbs in the driver’s seat. “Get in. Victoria can’t be late, that’s not how this works, but you still shouldn’t leave them waiting forever.”

Alex gets in the backseat because Victoria might murder him if he doesn’t. Ryland uses the other door, knees forced almost to his chest. The seats are softer than on the bus, but there’s less leg room.

“Do up your seatbelt. The car won’t start if you don’t.”

“What?”

“The seatbelt.”

Alex has no idea what Nate’s talking about. He’s not even wearing a belt.

“The thing on your shoulder closest to the window. Pull it, then click it into the holder on the opposite side of your body.” Victoria clarifies. For all that Alex is good at making Nate explain himself, Victoria’s apparently able to guess his meanings without prying. It must come from being his girlfriend.

Once they’re in Bird territory, Alex knows the reason for the seatbelt. Every time they ride over a bump in the road, or dip into a hole, the seatbelt holds tight against his hips and torso and keeps him from flying forward, the way he would on a bus. When Nate finally stops the car Alex is grateful. He doesn’t have motion sickness, not like his little brother used to -still does, for all Alex knows- but being jerked around violently is nobody’s favourite activity. He might have bruises tomorrow.

“Unfortunately for us, the Bird habitat has the worst roads I’ve seen. At least here, far north might be different. We’re gonna have to walk in a bit.”

“Why?” Ryland asks.

“I just said-”

“Why would up north be different?” Ryland presses.

“They still teach about affinity, right?”

“The whole every person has a Patron, every person has a class, every person has a sympathetic species or three thing? Yeah.”

“So, obviously the Birds that choose to live in the tundra have an penguin affinity,” Nate explains, getting out of the car as he does so. They’ve got no choice but to duplicate the action. When all the doors are closed and locked, Nate continues. “Penguins don’t fly. Here if someone’s going somewhere and they don’t have to haul a ton of shit they transition and fly. Since everyone flies everywhere, no one gives a shit if the asphalt cracks. Up north, animal or not, no flying. Which means better roads.”

“Okay, but walk into where?” Victoria asks. She really is a girl after his own heart, never mind that an hour from now Alex will never see her again. Even if he chooses Bird eleven weeks from now, she’ll be out in nature, pledging for a year.

“The ceremonial building. I’ve seen probably a few hundred transitions, I know where I’m going.”

Sometime later Alex can tell they’ve gotten lost. They’re definitely not in the business area anymore. On his own behalf, he’s happy to be wandering. He’s heard Bird habitat described by scouts who were raised here, but it’s different actually seeing the city. Alex doesn’t want to blink for fear he miss something. But Victoria’s not here to spy on a potential future. This is her future, and wandering is only delaying it. “Isn’t she supposed to go straight to the ceremony?”

“No one’s around to notice. Which means no one will be around to help my girlfriend. Besides, this is one of your two options. I thought you’d be interested.” Nate tries to shrug, tries to make his voice easy. Both attempts fail.

Alex isn’t sure how to reply without provoking something. Of course he’s interested. Ryland is interested too, and he’s never considered Bird. For as long as Alex has known him Ryland’s wanted to go back to where he was raised, in a large group of affinitied bonobos. He looks from Nate’s tense shoulders under his thin jacket to Victoria. She shakes her head slightly. Alex juts his head in understanding. If she’s okay with it, he’ll leave it for now.

They’re definitely in a residential area, Alex recognises the description. In Bird it’s all high rise towers, each apartment with a balcony to allow for easy air access.

“That’s where you’ll be living.” Nate points. “Well, next year, anyway. For half the year. You’re a unique class. Everyone else with climate issues just makes it work. Stays human in the bad months, or creates an artificial weather system, or transitions into species they’re less sympathetic to that can handle the weather. Not Birds. Right now this city is at maybe one quarter of its normal population. Everyone else that can afford it has migrated across the country for the winter.”

“Cooool,” Ryland breathes.

Alex shrugs. If he picks this he might be a crow or a pigeon. Some Bird that doesn’t leave the nest during the winter. Routine suits him.

“Any questions?”

“Yeah, one. When can I transition?” Victoria will make a good hawk, Alex decides. Aggressive, straight to the point.

“Fine! Cut our last minutes short.”

Nate’s in serious danger of having an Amphie tantrum. Alex can tell, Ryland can tell, Victoria can tell. It’s a good thing she steps in before Ryland says something and makes it worse. He’s a Mam from the head down, no good at tact.

“I’m sorry. I love you, you know that. But I’ve waited five years to be an adult. I want this.”

Nate doesn’t reply, just turns a quarter circle left and picks up his pace. It’s not the best response, but it’s nowhere near what the worst could be. Scout relationships always have to end, time dictates it. Break ups will never be easy, no matter what class the individuals are. Halfhearted apologies met with silence are better than a fistfight.

The structure they end up at is more of a metal gazebo than a true building. The floor is a solid shining metal surface, flat except for a small platform in the middle. There are no walls, just metal posts that arch to meet in the centre at least three stories above Alex’s head. If the poles were close it would feel like a prison but as they are Nate’s car would easily clear between each post. There are no people, but there must be a camera system or a Bird in the trees surrounding them because less than a minute later twenty adults are coming from the same direction.

Alex doesn’t know anything about pledging ceremonies. Not even Fish. It’s something parents don’t share. It’s common sense that has him staying where he is as Victoria instinctively walks forward onto the platform. Ryland and Nate beside him are confirmation that he made the right choice. The Birds make a semi-circle around her, knuckles of each person’s hands almost touching the person beside them. They’re the sports huddle, Alex and Ryland are the spectators. Alex isn’t sure if that’s what Nate is. Nate cares more than most people care about the ongoing play.

He doesn’t see who passes her a pipe, but he sees the flick of fire when someone lights it. The smoke that Victoria inhales is pungent. Alex can smell it from across the gazebo. Victoria coughs as she exhales, hard enough that she bends over and braces her hands on her knees. Alex knows this isn’t the time to interrupt with a glass of water, if there were even a water source but she sounds brutal. He looks to his left, surprisingly Nate isn’t reacting like he wants to leap in and make her feel better. Maybe it comes from having witnessed this before. Maybe he already knows she won’t die from inhaling noxious fumes.

Intelligent guess would say the crowd is about ritual chant. That doesn’t happen. Instead as one they all shift. Mostly to cold air birds, to suit the climate, but he also sees a sparrow and a hummingbird. They all start chirping. Even in the open air the sound is nearly deafening.

It’s an exaggeration to say the air shimmers, but Alex can see a change in the instant before it hits and Victoria transitions.

Into a snake.

Alex is expecting Victoria to rear up and snap at one of the Birds. He knows from both school and his parents that except under extenuating circumstances, you retain your human thought patterns, no matter how physiologically incapable your trout brain should be of complex thought. It’s what’s separates the fish from the Fish. The first outlier is prisoners and others that stay in their animal body for over a year. Too long and you lose yourself. The other outlier is the first time you transition to a new species. It takes a while to adjust, like getting your sneaker to fit your foot properly, only with consciousness in a new brain. Committing violence against a transitioned person is a crime under any circumstance, outliers aren’t legal exceptions, but disoriented and new, Alex wouldn’t blame her.

The Birds don’t give her a chance. Before she can so much as slither an inch, they’re all pecking at her. Alex makes a mental note to inform Dulani Birds don’t like pledging ceremonies going wrong before he remembers he promised not to say anything.

Alex runs the few steps it takes to get to Victoria, intent on picking her up and shielding her. He’s not sure what kind of grip he should have. Too tight and he hurts her, and possibly gets bitten, too loose and her squirming will be enough to drop her. It won’t kill her, but it’ll make him feel like an asshole.

“Wait!” Nate shouts. Alex whirls to see if he’s being serious and just barely dodges the discarded branch Nate hurls at him. “She’s an elapid!” He goes on when Alex just looks at him. “She’s venomous. Use the branch to pick her up, I’ll wrap my jacket around her to confuse her.”

Turning back, Alex doubts the plan. The Birds look like they’re one more step from dive-bombing him. He wants to flee. He blames his trifecta; his Fish upbringing makes him passive, his probably Bird future makes him weak in low numbers, and they’re three and a snake against a flock.

Luckily one of the three is Ryland, and Mams don’t back down from anything. “All of you fuck off! We’re leaving. All we want to do is leave so fuck off and let us leave before I break off my own branch and start batting you all out of the air.”

The cluster doesn’t back down as much as hesitate on their plan of savaging the trespassers. It’s enough to give Alex the chance to dart forward and scoop up Victoria, and turn and thrust the snake at Nate.

“Most direct route to the car, please.”

“Well, duh.”

It’s amazing how much faster the walk is when none of them are walking, and the possibility of an entire angry habitat attacking chases after them.

“Victoria, babe? I gotta put you in the trunk. It’s only for a bit. Stay calm, okay?”

Task done, Nate gestures impatiently for them to move to the back seat. Their seatbelts are barely on before Nate steps on the gas.

In scout schooling you don’t learn a lot about geography. Continents and oceans, regions and their climates, yes. But never specific cities, or where Mam habitats are in reference to Arthro habitats. The excitement of going to a habitat has worn off under the stress, leaving Alex feeling primarily ignorant as Nate drives them. He has no idea where they’re going, and is aware he knows nothing about any road outside of his scout city.

Just past a sharp right turn is a booth. Unlike the one leading into Bird, this one is manned. Unlike Bird, beyond it is a domed city. The man peers at them then asks “reason for entering?”

Nate smiles blandly. “These two live here. It’s a night off, and Ry here’s been ranting and raving about Simmons Oil for months, so I’m finally gonna try some, just to get him to shut up.”

The guard frowns and Alex knows he didn’t buy it. They’re fucked, they’re so fucked. Then he says gruffly “No such thing as raving about Simmon’s Oil, only giving it its proper due.”

Ryland snorts his agreement, every inch the actor. “That’s what I’ve been telling him.”

“Have a nice night, boys.”

As soon as they’re out of earshot Alex asks what the hell Simmons Oil is.

“Just this oil you rub on. It’s a mild hallucinogen, and it works in human or animal state. It’s Reptile’s number one export. They rebrand it in the other habitats, so no one knows it’s a Rep product, and it makes enough money to keep on being sold, but it does about a thousand times better in Rep cities than anywhere else.”

“Evan never said anything about it,” Ryland protests. Alex doesn’t verbally agree, but he does think Ryland is right. If anyone they know is into trances and seeing shit it’s Evan.

“Mams are usually anti-intoxicant. He probably didn’t want to be lectured at. Anyway, shut up. I need to...” Nate trails off as he stretches and gets his phone from the glove compartment. Alex has wished more than once over the years for a extra pocket when he’s on the bus, but looking at Nate he’s not sure the convenience outweighs the danger of being forced to drive with your knees as you lean completely sideways to reach said pocket.

“Hey Gabe, you at home?...I’m gonna be there in like five....No, no, you can be dressed. In fact, clothes would be great.”

For an Amphie, Nate is pretty accurate. Six minutes later, according to the clock between the glove compartment and the panel of gages, they come to a stop in front of a house that can barely be seen for the trees. Stepping out of the car is ridiculous. It’s January and it’s as warm as July. Nate’s already got his jacket off, thanks to Victoria, Alex peels his off before he combusts from the heat, Ryland doing the same on the other side of the car. “What the hell?”

“I told you earlier, people who aren’t Birds have better ways of dealing with climate concerns.” Nate tosses him the key before he grabs Victoria in the makeshift shield. “Make sure the doors are locked, this is a shit area.”

It takes Alex all of five seconds to check the doors and chase after Nate and Ryland up the sidewalk. It doesn’t surprise him that Ryland is standing dangerously close to Nate’s bundle of fabric and poisonous snake. It’s really more surprising in hindsight that he did it himself. The man that opens the door -presumably Gabe- is about fifty feet tall, and pretty hot. He’s also only wearing a pair of shorts. Alex would guess Gabe’s an anaconda, because of his height, but he’s already been taught once tonight that looks don’t make the species. For all he knows, Gabe’s a garter.

“Hey. Who are your friends?”

“Can we do this inside? I really wanna put her down.”

Walking into the house is like going from the frying pan to the fire. Or more specifically, going from heat to soaking wet misty heat. Somehow the inside of the house is humid. Alex isn’t a meteorological expert, but he’d guess the wading pool in the corner of the living room has something to do with it. The moment Nate puts Victoria down she goes towards it. The way she slides into the water with hardly a splash is almost sexy.

Alex doesn’t need to be told to not crowd the venomous snake. He sits on the opposite side of the room on one of the many lounge chairs. When Alex was a child canvas folding chairs were just for the beach, and so the white painted legs got chipped and the fabric got bleached by the sun. Here they’re surprisingly classy. The legs are made of wrought iron, and the canvas of each matches. The other three join him a second later. Nate and Ryland sit opposite them, Gabe’s leg is wet where it presses against his.

“What’s this about? You know, just so I know.” Alex would think it’s obvious, but maybe Gabe just likes things spelled out.

“Victoria tried to pledge Bird, came out Reptile. I guess she misjudged her trifecta. She’s still in transition. And I’m pretty sure she’s a coral snake, which means William’s sidewinder slice of heaven won’t work.”

“Okay,” Gabe smiles. “That’s cool.”

Alex is halfway through hearing about Gabe’s trifecta - no one asked, Gabe just started a monologue- when the coil of snake in the corner is suddenly a girl with her knees to her chin and her arms around her shins. The chest deep water splashes as Victoria startles. “Where am I?”

“My house.”

“This is Gabe. Remember I told you about my anaconda boyfriend?”

Alex doesn’t have much time to be shocked that Nate was honest about his cheating, or proud for being right at guessing species. In a matter of seconds Victoria is freaking out. “But he’s a Reptile. I’m not- I can’t be here, I have to get back.”

She bolts, halfway to the door before she’s even on her feet. She nearly falls, wet sneakers gripping poorly on the burnt orange tile, but her arm shoots out to brace her and she’s back up again. The door slams twice in rapid succession, once when she goes through, and a second time when Nate sprints after her.

When it’s done settling back to still, Alex, Ryland, and Gabe are left in the room. Alex can hardly blame Nate for chasing after his girlfriend when she needed him, but that doesn’t change the fact that this is sort of awkward. They’ve only known Gabe three minutes, and he’s nearly naked, and they have to have a conversation with him until their transportation gets back. On the other hand, that’s basically the set up for most dwindling parties. Sometimes you have to deal with the guy that lost his pants in a bet, make small talk until the next bus comes.

“So, thanks for letting us come in,” Ryland offers out.

“Yeah, well, whatever. I was home, so. I mean I guess you’d’ve been fucked if I wasn’t, but I was. So why’d you go to Bird anyway? Close friends with her?”

“Close friends with Nate,” Alex corrects.

“Moral support for when his girlfriend fucks off pledging.”

Gabe doesn’t sound particularly bitter, but there must be some sort of feeling to it. Alex can’t contain his curiosity. “How are you both dating him?”

“Timeshare.” Gabe chuckles. “No, no. She had no relevance to me before. It was me when he was here, and her when he was in Scout city. I guess if she’s gonna stay here we’re going to have to negotiate. But up until now, who the fuck cared?”

As soon as Alex realises he’s looking at Ryland, not Gabe, he looks away. What they have is even less than that. He and some girl aren’t trading off evening dates. He’s here to screw Ryland when some girl isn’t.

Alex doesn’t notice the time moving by. Gabe’s a good guy. Even better, he reacts well to all of Ryland’s jokes and accents. It’s almost like being in the audience of a comedy club. On the outside, but just enough breaking the fourth wall to not get annoyed or feel uncomfortable about it.

They’re twenty minutes into trading stories about Mam childhood antics -Alex happened to check the time when they started- when the door opens. Nate’s holding Victoria’s hand, but she seems as calm as she was when they walked into Novarro’s, maybe calmer. Whatever they talked about, wherever they ran, it must have helped.

Alex stands to leave. They’ve done what they’ve come to do; see what Bird habitat is like. They even got a bonus in the form of Reptile habitat, which Alex is grateful for, but it’s time to go home. He’s halfway to the door before he realises Ryland isn’t standing. Neither is Nate. He seems to have no interest in letting go of Victoria, they’re sitting on the floor together. Evidently they’re staying awhile. To not look like a complete idiot he quickly swerves and goes down the hall to the bathroom.

On the whole it’s pretty unsurprising awhile turns into all evening. He’s not sure what he was thinking, expecting Nate to get a task done and move on to another. The longer they stay, the less Alex wants to leave. Nate must feel the same, judging by the goodbye kiss he gives to both Victoria and Gabe. When Nate drops them off outside of Su-Sz house and speeds away Alex can’t help but wonder who he’s going home to think about.

“Good night man. Crazy night, huh?”

“Yeah.” Alex doesn’t know how to say he thinks the experience changed him a bit, so he just repeats “yeah.”

Ryland turns to go, then turns back. “The remover.”

“What?”

Ryland waves his inkstained hand at him. “Need to take this off, and it only comes off with the spray stuff DJ had, right?”

Ryland holds out his hand, obviously expecting Alex to hand him the spray. Instead he grabs his wrist and twists his arm. The colours mix into a pool on his hand and smudge off completely when Ryland tugs his hand back and rubs it against his thigh. Alex isn’t sure it’ll wash off his jeans easily, considering the ink can only be removed off of skin with a special chemical, but if it doesn’t Ryland will just wear another of the thirty pairs of jeans he owns.

“I think you missed a spot.” Ryland deftly plucks the bottle out of his loose grip and gives himself another squirt on the remnants of colour.

Alex doesn’t spray his hand after Ryland gives him the bottle back. He’s not sure why, and he doesn’t bother to make excuses to himself. He just closes the door and goes to his bedroom. He shoves the bottle in his pocket before he takes his jeans off, leaving it nestled beside his wallet. That way he’ll know exactly where it is when he decides to use it.

***

Alex doesn’t see Ryland again until school on Monday. He doesn’t notice until Wednesday that Ryland’s doing the same thing he is; keeping his hoodie sleeves tugged down at all costs. Even once he notices, he doesn’t ask. It’s a weird thing to ask about if there’s no reason for it, and if there was Ryland would tell him about it if he wanted to.

It’s Thursday when Ryland does. He’s not wearing the hoodie again, but it’s something equally not his style. Ryland’s not the type to wear a band shirt with black and white striped fingerless gloves. Alex would go as far as betting they’re not even his. Maybe they belong to Orange Hair from last Thursday.

They’re on Alex’s front step sharing a smoke, hand curled around the lit end so it doesn’t go out in the bitter wind. Neither of them are into it enough to buy their own packs, but they’ll take a drag of other people’s, if offered. The most likely candidate is Smith, who tends to smoke several at a time. Alex is pretty sure his lungs will be withered to grapes by the time he’s thirty. Generally about halfway into his fourth Smith will get bored and give the last half to the nearest person, apart from Kent. Five minutes ago they were the nearest around.

Ryland pushes his fingers under the cuff of his parka and peels a glove off. Underneath it the back of his hand is as colourful as Alex’s is. “I spent all night drawing it back on. Like as soon as I got home. I wanted it back, you know.”

Alex rolls his eyes. Of course he knows. He hasn’t been able to erase his either.

“It’s alcohol marker. It shouldn’t come off, unless I work at it.”

“Just keep it covered. And don’t wear the emo gloves. Someone’s gonna think you’ve started cutting yourself. You’ve got a month until you’re pledging, they’re all looking for warning signs.”

“I only own one hoodie.”

“Borrow one then, dumbass.”

“From you? Then they’ll smell like you.”

For a while things descent into namecalling and longer, more descriptive insults. But eventually Alex brings the conversation back to something serious. “I think I like Victoria. You think Nate will care?”

Ryland shrugs. “I mean, he’s banging Victoria and Gabe. It would be kinda hypocritical of him.”

“Doesn’t mean he wouldn’t care.”

“Wanna go to the shop?”

The question wouldn’t be complicated to an observer, but to those in the know it should be. Everything else in Alex’s life is complicated, and a good portion of that is because of Nate. But even to Alex there’s only one real answer. “Yeah.”

The actual temperature isn’t that low, but the wind make it feel that way. It’s the kind of gale where you’d run because you just want to be at your destination, but if you run the wind will knock you the fuck over for not having your feet planted on the crust of snow. By the time they’re in Novarros Alex’s face feels raw and hot. He hopes it’s not mistaken for blushing, because he’s not. He’s a dude, he doesn’t blush.

He takes off his parka and drapes it over the counter before the heated room makes him faint. The oppressive temperature makes more sense, now that he knows Nate spends half his evenings in a fake jungle climate. No matter what species of Amphie he is, he’s adjusted to Gabe’s lifestyle. Ryland does the same after he steps back. The new employee is either too apathetic to tell them not to, or knows enough to not criticize some of Novarro’s best customers. Whatever the reason, she stays in the corner of the room, sorting songbeads.

“Tasha, go take a break,” Nate orders as he comes into the room and sees them. As she walks into the back the employee mutters something that sounds distinctly like don’t have to tell me twice. Alex has never seen her before, which means she’s only been hired this week. If that’s her attitude already, Alex wouldn’t put much money on her sticking around much longer.

“This is the first time you’ve been back. You avoiding me?”

“We’re not avoiding you. We’re just.” Alex has no way to finish that sentence. “Yeah. Okay. Totally avoiding you.”

“Mind if I ask why?”

Alex has no answer to that either. Ryland does for both of them, he removes his glove again.

“You want to go back. Yeah, I kind of figured. Shook your faith in the system, and you want to make sure the world hasn’t crumbled. Okay, but I’m not sure when I’ll be able to get a hold of DJ.”

Alex isn’t sure that’s his reasoning, or Ryland’s for that matter, but he’s not about to deny Nate’s comment. It would make him seem ungrateful, and that’s the last thing he wants. It would be so easy for Nate to shove them away, say they had their chance.

“DJ?”

Nate rolls his eyes and gestures towards Ryland. “The tattoo on your hand is obviously a drawing. Reptile isn’t Bird. If anyone besides Gabe or Victoria sees it, well. You know. Jail and stuff. Gimme your numbers and I’ll call you when I can make shit work. This isn’t a blow off, I just don’t know his schedule of crime.”

Alex nods, reluctantly. This is one situation where he can’t push the sketchy Amphie for concrete details.

Alex is sitting in on Bl house’s dinner when his phone rings. He swallows his first bite of food then picks up, turning sideways for the illusion of privacy. “Hello?”

“Come over.” It’s Nate, and he sounds insistent.

“Already?”

“Did you change your mind?”

Alex isn’t even close to changing his mind. He’s not an Amphie-to-be, he’s not that mercurial. He just needs to figure out how to explain leaving again so soon after they both came in. “We’ll be right there.”

“See you soon. DJ’s on his way too.”

“Ryland, we gotta go.”

“Fuck off, I just sat down.” His scowl is turned into a childish pout due to the ring of meat sauce around his mouth. It’s hard to look respectable when half your face is smeared with orangish meat.

“Our date confirmed. It’s tonight.” Hopefully Ryland can read into the places Alex put his emphasis and realises he means Reptile habitat is a go.

“You’re both banging someone?”

“Don’t catch something!”

“Do both of you have to bring her flowers, or just one of you?”

Alex doesn’t give DJ flowers. He gives him a thrust out hand, palm down, to which DJ gravely says “acceptable.” And then he sits in the corner while Nate puts on a few things he thinks they need to hear and DJ works on Ryland’s hand. Alex would think he’s being over dramatic about it, except for the fact that Nate’s right. It means a lot of trouble for them all if Ryland gets caught because of shoddy work.

***

Alex isn’t shocked by Victoria and Nate making out. It’s half her house now, she can do what she wants where she wants. And if that means straddling Nate in the wading pool while they’re both in only their underwear, that’s what it means. The very public location means it’s hard for Alex to not watch and perv, but he’s doing his best. Between the Gabe-n-Ryland comedy show and the Nate-n-Victoria softcore porn, he’s quite entertained, if a little jealous.

“I need another drink. Anyone else need one?”

Gabe shakes his head. “Nah, I just started mine.”

Ryland laughs jauntily. “I knew you wouldn’t actually be able to drink that shit.”

“Actually it tastes crazy good.”

“Yeah fuckin’ right.”

Alex doesn’t feel needed in this conversation. He stands and wipes his damp hair out of his eyes as he heads to the kitchen. Something he learned tonight is that Gabe’s quite a lush. He’s got a secondary fridge about half the size for the sole purpose of holding all his alcohols and other intoxicants. The only drug Alex is familiar with is Gutten. A lot of Fish used it, including his dad. It must be a Fish only product because Gabe doesn’t have any canisters of it, and he has everything else a person could ingest.

The bottles used in Gabe’s concoction are in a row on the counter. His glass contains six different shots, with a dribble of juice to ‘take the edge off’. Alex shares the opinion Ryland has, that the drink must taste disgusting. Alex goes the safe route; he pours in two shots of the same alcohol before topping up the glass with juice. He takes a small sip to test it, and another as he returns to the wading room. He just barely avoids a coughing fit as the drink goes down the wrong way when he compulsively swallows at the sight in front of him.

In the short time Alex has been gone things have gotten intense in the wading room. Nate and Victoria are horizontal in the shallower end. Victoria’s panties are see through from the water. If the angle was just slightly different Alex could see if she shaves, but as they lie all he’s got is the side of her hip. More insane than that is Ryland and Gabe making out, the canvas of the lounge chair hanging low under their combined weight. He has to wonder if Gabe tastes as bad as Ryland thought he would.

It’s the same decision as five minutes ago, just kicked up a notch. Does he watch like a desperate audience? Does he interrupt to refocus the attention on him? It’s not like Alex can leave. He can’t drive himself home, it’s only the second time he’s ever been in a car.

The option that has him acting the least pathetic is removing himself and hiding in the kitchen for the duration. Alex exits as unobtrusively as possible, and settles on a padded stool. He isn’t fooling himself for a second. He knows it’s acting, not being. If he was truly being less pathetic he’d be humming along to a music bead, not straining to hear both couples.

***

“Alex Suarez, we need to talk. Right now!”

Alex uses his finger as a temporary bookmark as he looks up and scans the room. He doesn’t recognise the voice, but it clearly recognises him. While his first name is common, his last isn’t.

He’s spent enough time here -practically from open to close each day- to recognise regulars. Evidently he’s not the only scout willing to miss school for chocolate in both liquid and solid form.The only adult he knows the face of is the woman marching determinedly toward him. Yuki is his counsellor. All new scouts get them. Apart from retail it’s the number one imported job. Some scouts treat their counsellors like replacement parents. Others, like Alex, see theirs as infrequently as possible. He’s pretty sure Yuki doesn’t mind. Counsellors are trained to react positively in a wide range of situations. She probably thinks his disinterest in her is a sign of strong character.

Without asking for permission Yuki pulls out a chair and sits down across from him. She rolls up the top of the paper bag of muffins so it doesn’t obstruct her vision. She smells like syrup. Alex always thinks he’s made it up because it’s such a ridiculous detail. No grown adult wants to smell like pancake topping. Except he’s not. Every time he sits down with her he smells it, and his first few moments of their interactions is satisfaction at being right. Even today, when he’s completely miserable, Alex still has that split second.

He knows she’ll wait for him to start the conversation. She always does. The way he sees it, he might as well get it over with. “What do you want, Yuki?”

“You haven’t been to school in nearly two weeks.”

“That’s true.”

“I know so close to your pledge date it all seems pointless. But after your pledge year, your grades will matter. You’ll need them for specialised schooling, so you can get a job.”

Alex knows that. He isn’t stupid. It’s just even though he’s in the pledging 4/1-4/15 education group, and Ryland’s in 3/16-3/31, they’re still at the same school. Ryland will want to talk, and Alex can’t do that right now. Hopefully he’ll get over it before Ryland pledges, so he can say goodbye. A month of silence is a bad way to end a friendship. But who’s to say it hasn’t ended already?

“Alex, are you listening to me?”

She puts a hand on his, and Alex instinctively jerks away. Sympathetic touching isn’t something he wants right now, unless Ryland wants to apologise with a blowjob. But he won’t. According to their friendship rules he hasn’t even done anything wrong. The next moment should happen in slow motion for effect, but it doesn’t. He doesn’t even figure out what’s happened until later. Her fingernail catches on his loose fitting fingerless gloves -which look nothing like Ryland’s- and it tugs down as Alex moves his hand.

Her eyes widen. “What’s that?”

That is the design that Nate got DJ to draw onto his hand three weeks ago. That is a visual reminder of how pathetic he is, and why he should stay away from everyone. That is the most illegal thing he’s ever done.

He should say something. Anything would be better than silence. His body and brain are both frozen in terror. Alex can’t remember the last time he felt this scared. Sneaking into a habitat other than your own is a serious offense. It’s not like he’s been caught shoplifting or graffiting a building. The consequences aren’t going to be a fine and volunteering. He could be in jail for a long time.

“I’m not on shift right now. I don’t have the professional right to interfere right now.” Alex would shout then why did you come over here if he could talk, but he can’t. “You and I will talk about this tomorrow.”

“Okay,” he says. Or at least Alex thinks that’s what came out of his mouth. It might have just been a whimper.

Since there’s nothing else to say, Yuki stands and pushes her chair in. Halfway out Chocolate Delight she stops and turns. “If you’re not in my office by 9am I’ll come looking,” she calls out. The ominous words echo in his head.

When he can’t see her through of the large pane of glass that is the front wall, Alex bolts. He doesn’t even put on his jacket, just clenches the hood in his fist as he runs the three blocks. It’s the only place that makes sense to go to. If Nate’s been doing the illegal transport thing for a while -which Alex assumes, considering how comfortable he was with DJ- Alex can’t be the only example of things turning bad. Nate has to have some sort of plan for this. Even as an Amphie, he has to have some sort of plan.

Alex hasn’t seen Nate in two weeks. Not since he found out that nobody gives a shit about him. In his mind Nate’s just as much to blame as Gabe and Ryland are. He doesn’t have any chance to prepare himself; Nate’s actually behind the desk when Alex comes to a stop, nearly slipping on the wet floor. He doesn’t rush out to steady him, but doesn’t look disappointed when Alex stays upright. There are no customers, Wednesdays are always inexplicably dead.

Nate speaks before Alex can. “This time you can’t rebuild your bridges with Ryland’s hand. Got anything else?”

Growing up in Fish Alex learned how to suppress his aggressive feelings, but he’s already cracked open by fear and he can’t help the seething jealousy that’s made him avoid everyone spilling out like egg yolk. “I don’t have any of Ryland, since he’s busy fucking your boyfriend.”

“That’s not how it’s happening.”

Alex scoffs. He’s heartsick with a side order of scared, not stupid. Nate’s got a girlfriend and he doesn’t care that Ryland took his boyfriend because he’s a wishy washy Amphie. There’s nothing else to it.

“Oh, think I’m full of shit? Well, maybe you’d know if you weren’t hiding like a coward.”

The only retort Alex has for that is he wasn’t hiding because he’s a coward, he was hiding because Ryland and Nate are assholes. He keeps it inside. His last angry comment didn’t help his situation.

“Show me your hand.”

“What?”

“You heard me, Suarez.”

Alex does, tucking his jacket under his armpit so he can take off his glove. He doesn’t have much of a choice. Nate looks like he’s not going to let Alex leave without seeing it, and Alex just wants this to be over. He’ll find someone else to help him. Maybe someone to just smuggle him out of the city. It won’t matter that he never officially transitions or pledges. After all, Victoria hasn’t, and she seems happy. Alex would like to be a happy adult right about now.

“Didn’t wash it off?” Nate asks rhetorically.

It’s weird that Alex feels worse about getting caught now than he did when it was by an authority with real power to fuck him up. The drawn art tells Nate things he doesn’t want to talk about, would never say. “Lost the bottle,” he retorts.

Nate doesn’t look like he believes him, but he doesn’t press the issue. “It still looks perfect, so we’re going to Gabe’s. Come on. In the car.”

It’s Alex’s third time crossing the border, and by far the most stressful. You’d think having a poisonous snake separated only by a thin layer of foam and fabric would beat a quiet drive in the passenger seat, but it doesn’t. When running to a habitat was his idea it was great. Now that it’s Nate’s idea it sucks.

“You’re here early,” Victoria notes when she answers the door. This time she’s in a light cotton dress which is somehow just as sexy as the basic underwear and bra from last time. “Normally it’s after nine.”

“Yeah, well, we gotta discuss a thing,” Nate replies, pushing Alex inside in front of him.

Gabe’s stretched out on one of the lounge chairs, customary fluorescent swim trunks a shade darker than normal. Between that and the pool of water under the chair, Alex would guess he didn’t bother to dry off after he switched back to human.

“So what’s up?”

“Alex here loves Ryland, has a crush on me, and wants to jump your bones. Not sure about Gabe. He’s confused about it. Because he’s an ickle scout that can’t handle emotions that means he’s mad at all of us.”

“Well that’s just sad.”

Alex glares. There’s a difference between calling himself that, and someone else calling him that.

Gabe sits then stands in a fluid motion. He explains “no, sad as in it makes a man feel sad enough he needs a kiss to cheer him up.”

Nate replies “I somehow thought you’d say that.”

Alex doesn’t have long to ponder the statements. Gabe takes Nate’s suspicion as permission and bends in to kiss Alex. It’s deep and slow for a first kiss. It feels just as sexy as it looked when Nate kissed him. When Ryland kissed him. “I can see why Ryland didn’t want to stop.”

“Now is not the time to be thinking about Ryland. Right, Vicky-T?”

She doesn’t seem to mind the nickname. In fact, she’s nothing but smiles as she leans in to get her own kiss. Her technique is different but just as good. Maybe a little better, Alex’s got that spark of initial attraction fueling it that Gabe didn’t. “Right, Gabe,” is her breathless answer.

“You’re in the Reptile habitat of Johod city. That means you should be wearing less clothing,” Gabe announces. Alex looks down at himself. He’s only wearing a shirt and jeans. It’s not like he has six layers on. “I’m not forcing you to. No pressure. But can you honestly say you’ll be comfortable wearing that in this environment until Nate comes back?”

Alex looks around. Nate really is gone. He didn’t notice him leave, but his shoes are missing from the mat beside the door. And the house is hot and humid, exactly the way a boa would want it. Enough so that Alex is surprised the damp hasn’t made the walls start to crumble. Wearing heavy wind blocking jeans is going to get severely uncomfortable.

Realistically getting undressed and lounging with them, making out a bit, won’t make Alex less upset about Ryland’s disinterest. It will help him push it back down so he can put the cork back in it, like he has since they jerked off side by side that first time. He peels off his clothing until he’s in just his underwear -pure luck he wore a pair today- and makes a small pile on the nearest lounge chair.

“How far you want to take this?”

Alex shrugs. The further the better, really. Fucking is more of a memory creator than a kiss.

“This your first threesome?”

“No.”

“Mine neither. What’s your favourite way to do this?”

“I’ve never really thought about it.” That sounds better than ‘whatever position lets me look at Ryland the most’. Besides he’s not sure that would be true. If this was Victoria and Ryland, he’d be hard-pressed to choose. And Gabe’s not exactly an eyesore.

Gabe grins wide enough that Alex could count his teeth. The expression looks good on him. “I guess we get to decide then.”

“Oh, I have an idea. How about you fuck me, and I fuck you?”

“Sounds good?” He’s not sure that needed a double emphasis but there’s no way Alex would say anything except yes to Victoria riding him.

There’s no room on a lounge chair for all of them. Two spooning, maybe, but not all three. Their options are the floor, or one of their bedrooms. Alex thinks that’s what Victoria’s suggesting when she leaves the room to walk down the hall, but Gabe’s hand on his wrist stops him from following her into her room. Victoria comes back naked except for one thing, and Alex isn’t sure it’s technically considered clothing. She’s wearing something underwear shaped that’s actually just straps and buckles, and on the front of it is a plastic penis.

“So when you said you were gonna fuck me, you didn’t mean you were gonna pin me and ride me and use me.”

She smiles, nothing but devious. “I can do the first and the last.”

Alex gulps, and tears his eyes away from where her cock juts out so he can answer without tripping on his tongue. “Two out of three is an acceptable number.”

Victoria nods.

It’s easy to fall to his knees in front of them. Alex’s left calf is in a wet spot but he doesn’t bother to shift over, the small puddle is as warm as the humid air. He hears the soft thud of Victoria dropping down behind him and shivers at the feel of the elastic of his underwear dragging down his hips. Gabe is standing above them, intently watching the progress. It feels too delicate for what this is.

Alex braces his hands on Gabe’s thighs when Victoria lines herself up behind him some time later. Her first push is bolder than most of the guys Alex has been with, possibly because the first clench of asshole against the crown of the cock doesn’t make her gasp. She rocks in forward and forward and forward on the edge of too much too fast. Alex’s nails dig into Gabe as he tries to accept it. Any minute it’ll tilt the other way, be not enough and moremoremore. He just has to make it through.

It’s only when she’s got a steady rhythm going that Gabe runs a thumb against the seam of his lips. Alex opens his mouth and Gabe wastes no more time. His thrusting is as insistent as Victoria’s, like they’re trying to meet in the middle. Alex knows he’s drooling but he doesn’t really care. Drooling is only embarrassing if someone calls you on it, and Gabe sure as hell won’t. If anything he probably likes pushing past slick lips.

When they’re done, sated, they all collapse onto the floor. Each is sweaty and sticky in different places, but when Gabe curls an arm around Alex and tries to pull him to his chest, Alex goes. Victoria’s face is an inch away on Gabe’s other pec. He’s not about to fall asleep, but that doesn’t mean he wants to get up and do something productive like wash off or get dressed. He’s happy where he is.

At the sound of the front door opening, Alex startles away from them. It’s the perfect cue to cover himself in a shield-like object and run out of the room. The problem being none of the lounge chairs have pillows, or knitted throws. His clothes aren’t in arm’s reach. By the time he’s got his t-shirt in hand, Nate and Ryland are in the wading room. Nate has a poorly concealed smile, like he expected this just as much as he expected Gabe to kiss him. Alex can’t read Ryland’s expression.

Victoria announces “I think before we go for seconds, Alex and Ryland should talk.”

“You’re always so smart,” Gabe whispers loud enough for them to all hear.

Alex looks behind him. Victoria and Gabe are sweaty and flushed but they’re still spooning, Victoria nestled in Gabe’s lap, his hands lightly covering her breasts. Alex would much rather scooch back and get another kiss than stand up and have this conversation. When he hesitates Gabe’s toes nudge his back. He obviously agrees with Victoria.

“Do you want to do this here, or in the kitchen?” It’s by no means private, but at least there they’ll have an eavesdropping audience, not a staring audience.

Except, of course, Ryland is a born Mam and he doesn’t care about scenes. He drops to crosslegged on the floor, uncaring that there are small puddles all over the room. “Nate told me the reason you were upset is because you like me. I like you too.”

“It’s different,” Alex mutters. Ryland saying that by no means solves all his problems.

“How?”

“It just is.”

“You’ve never liked me exclusively, I know that much. How can you be pissed I banged Gabe and Nate when you’re still naked from banging Gabe and Victoria?”

“It’s different,” he repeats stubbornly.

“How?”

“Because I’d pick you first!”

“But picking is stupid. Can’t you see that? I have seven weeks until I pledge. Wasting them is so stupid, Alex. Come on.”

And the thing is, Alex is easy for Ryland. Whether or not it’s a healthy relationship, it’s true. He stands, not worried about modesty. It’s nothing everyone hasn’t seen, and physical vulnerability is nothing compared to the way he feels.

“From a fight to a kiss in three minutes?”

“Haven’t you ever heard of make-up sex?”

Alex couldn’t care less that they’re watching and commenting. He’s got Ryland’s tongue in his mouth and his arms around his waist. When one of them reaches out and grabs his ass -he thinks it must be Nate, he doesn’t recognise the grip- it’s a bonus.

It takes Alex a few minutes to remember why he came here in the first place. Orgasms and reuniting are both great things, but Alex is here because he’s doomed, and Reptile habitat was the only place he could think of to go. As soon as the fact punches its way back to the front of his head, he jolts away from Ryland and Gabe. He can tell by Nate’s expression he’s ready to meddle again, so he hastily explains his problem. Nate doesn’t seem nearly as concerned as Alex thinks he should be.

“You’re overreacting. Wash it off, go back, tell her you just wanted to be a Rep so bad you tried to get closer to the Patron through body art. You’re sorry, you’ll never do it again, it was stupid, blah blah. It’ll just be a misdemeanor. You’ll get probation, volunteering, not jail.”

Gabe shakes his head. “No dude. Leave it on. Actually, lemme draw on your thigh and stomach too. Go on the offense.”

Gabe leaves, comfortably naked, and comes back a minute later with a regular marker. Alex guesses he has a point. If this is the strategy he’s taking, all his body art should be in easily smearable ink, not the kind DJ used.

***

Gabe’s plan works. Yuki buys it, and Alex isn’t going to be incarcerated the rest of his life.

***

Alex rummages through the clearance section. If there were any beads Nate thought he’d like he would have told him, but it’s something to do with his hands. Nate’s newest employee looks at him and Ryland when they’re just standing beside the check out desk. It’s less awkward this way.

“When are we going back to see them?”

“Them?”

Ryland snorts, a sentiment Alex agrees with. Like there’s anyone he could be asking about aside from Victoria and Gabe.

Nate gives in. “Well I’m going back tonight, probably. You’re going back never.”

“You were fine with taking us two days ago.”

“Two days ago, Alex wasn’t potentially on a watch list. I’m really not interested in getting arrested. Like supremely uninterested.”

Alex has no way to argue that.

“Doesn’t matter anyway. It was fun, but we’re relationship people. It doesn’t take a genius to know fooling around with scouts can’t last. Even if we like you. Which we do, for the record. Victoria and Gabe were hardly faking it. It’s just, it can’t last. It’s literally impossible.”

Again, Alex doesn’t have a rebuttal. In seven weeks Ryland will be gone, and a week later he’ll follow. He doesn’t have to pretend to know what to say. A second after Nate speaks Ryland slams down a tray of music beads and storms out. Alex shrugs at Nate, then grabs both their jackets and follows Ryland. Just because he’s being an overdramatic Mam doesn’t mean he should freeze to death.

Alex follows Ryland to Bl house. He doesn’t want to go home, his house is an ugly place right now. Smith turned twenty and went to pledge, and he left a letter for each other member of the house. Kent’s been simultaneously threatening to burn his and clutching onto it for dear life, like he thinks someone will steal it. Sooner or later there will be an explosion. He knows it, Wes knows it, Li knows it. If it’s possible to avoid it, he’ll try.

There’s something different about Ryland’s room. It takes Alex a minute to place it, but when he does he has to question Ryland to make sure he’s right. “Your bed smells different.”

“It’s supposed to call the Reptile Patron.”

“What?”

“We’ve gone to Gabe’s multiple times, me more than you. I think not getting caught is a sign.” Ryland shrugs. “I always thought I wanted Mammal, but the Patron never spoke to me. I want to know if the Reptile Patron will.”

When he leaves a few hours later, Alex takes some of Ryland’s Rep mix with him. For the first time in his life he thinks he knows what he wants to be. He can’t really be certain until that moment of transformation, but for as sure as you can be, he is. Maybe it’s his Fish background, but Alex has always wanted a group that fits. Ryland, Nate, Gabe, Victoria, they fit.

Art by inlovewithnight
Mix by morganya

Comments

[gorgeousnerd]

I loved the worldbuilding in this story! I'm a sucker for shifters, and this was definitely one of the more unique versions of the trope I've seen. Awesome job!

[gala_apples]

Glad you liked it! I like the idea of a shifter 'verse being more interested in their animal selves than their human selves.

[doctor_jasley]

You already know you world-build like a boss. So I'm not going to say that(though it's SUPER TRUE)

I could feel the habitats. SEE how everything was laid out. The atmosphere worked well

ALSO, SCIENCE(I know it's only vague biology but it makes my science nerd heart glee)

<3<3<3

BRAVA

[gala_apples]

Any science is there because of you [<3

[inlovewithnight]

I really love the worldbuilding you do here, so much. And also I love the backstory on where the title/Victoria's story came from! That's so cool.

[gala_apples]

Somehow this idea of accidental!snake Victoria merged with this other idea I had of teen vinyl collecting indie Alex and Ray Toro falling in love with the same older man, Mr Blackinton. All the MCR dropped out, and a world was built, and BAM. At least this time the scenes are all complete :)

[turps]

I enjoyed reading this so much.

As usual your world building was great and I loved seeing the world through Alex's eyes.

As for that pegging scene. Hello hotness!

I was sad to reach the end.

[gala_apples]

Victoria is always hot. She's just even HOTTER with a strapon. :D