Page 76 of Heart’s Prisoner

"Thank you," she said softly.

He made an odd noise and she looked up to see him baring his fangs, giving her a strange grin.

"What?" Lana said, frowning. She didn't like that look.

"Tika liss na visir," he said.

Lana stared at him, confused. "Ready for a...favor?"

He bowed his head, his smile somehow widening.

It took Lana a minute to understand and when she did she grimaced. "I knew I would regret that," she said wearily. He grunted and she sighed. "Which one?" she asked.

When he gestured for her to follow into the bedroom and then pointed to the tub, she knew.

"You want me to bathe you?"

He nodded, his tail weaving behind him like a delighted puppy. Lana's face heated remembering that odd favor he had made after beating her at a game of chess. Never believing she would actually have to go through with it.

She felt her heart beginning to pound as she glanced over at the tub. "Right now?" she asked timidly.

Xerus let out an exasperated breath and gestured at his torso stained with blood and oil. Lana couldn't argue.

Clearing her throat she stepped over to the base. The tub was the size of a resort jacuzzi, large enough to seat at least five people. Or in Xerus' case, his whole body and maybe one other. Hesitantly she turned the knobs until hot water poured out. As the water rose she went to one of the cabinets, searching around for a scrubber and bars of soap. She knew there was a dispenser on the wall but that would require her to go into the tub which she wanted to avoid.

She heard Xerus shifting behind her but thought nothing of it. As dangerous as he was, she felt safe to turn her back. When she found one bar of soap and a small washcloth she knew she would have to make do. As she grabbed the items and turned to face him, she let out a sharp gasp and immediately turned back around. Xerus had taken off his one pair of clothes–the scaly armored pants that she was so used to and practically thought were a part of him–and now stood fully naked before her.

She got a glimpse of the one part of him she had yet to see and was embarrassed by her reaction as well as the first thought being how surprised she was that he wasn't built like other species she had seen. Which should be obvious. She had seen her share of genitalia from a scientist's perspective and never thought anything of it, even when she was studying the Gyda. But with Xerus it just seemed different and she couldn't reason why.

It was strange of her to react as she did honestly, since there wasn't much there to see at first; just a hard layer of rimmed skin protruding upward in a v-like manner, surrounding a v-shaped slit at the center where likely his real member hid.

Shaking off her shock, she tried to keep her composure. She turned back around and moved to the bath, turning the hot water off. She backed away, allowing him to slip over the edge and into the steaming water. He settled in and positioned himself against the side, placing his elbows on top of the ledge, looking oddly human in his posture as he leaned back, spikes scraping the marble. Lana stood by, watching him as if fixated. He moved his tail slowly around, making ripples, his fingers dipping into the water, legs stretching out.

"Well?" he said. His head tilted toward her, amusement and anticipation gleaming his eyes. Lana chewed her lip then took up the soap and cloth then dipped them into the water. She scrubbed the bar against the cloth until it was soaped up, then moved to stand as close as she could to Xerus' back. She hesitated for a moment then touched at the nape of his neck with the cloth, being sure to carefully work around his sharp spikes. Xerus closed his eyes and didn't move, allowing her to gently clean the tiny, smooth scales around his neck and the tougher, harder ones at his shoulders. She washed in silence at first, scrubbing his back and horns then rinsing thoroughly until he shined.

"What were you doing out there?" Lana asked, wanting to break the awkwardness of her situation.

"Hm?" he grunted.

"You're covered in oil...and I saw you on eight going through the bots," Lana said.

Xerus tilted his head toward her, opening his eyes into narrow slits to leer at her. "You were to rest," he hissed.

Lana flushed. "I was restless. And the bot...I wanted to know what was happening."

Xerus let out a sharp breath and straightened back. His hands slipped to the edges of the tub and clung to the side, nails digging into the stone. He didn't respond at first and Lana thought he never would until he said, "looking fir parts."

"Parts for what?"

Xerus lifted himself out of the water to stand in the middle of the bath. Water trickled down his back and Lana had a sudden urge to wipe it away. "You'll see," he said. He twisted around and Lana made sure to only look at his face. He shifted closer to her until his legs hit the side of the tub. Lana forced herself not to move, only tilting her head up. She clutched the washcloth tightly in one hand to keep it from trembling. Xerus indicated for her to continue and Lana glanced down at his chest nearly unable to move. Slowly she reached out and pressed the cloth to his middle, letting the water drip down his scaley stomach. Heat rippled across her body, sweat forming along her nape as she lowered her hand.

Xerus didn't move nor speak as she cleaned the front of him though she knew his eyes were on her. She assumed he wouldn't tell her any more about the bots so she wracked her brain for something else to say.

"You should know," she said after a pause, "I saw...I saw an infected go on to level one. But there are other people, not infected, there as well. I tried to find a way to warn them but I couldn't get contact."

Xerus grunted. "I will go soon then. When everything is ready."

Lana stopped washing. "You won't hurt the others. The ones not infected..." She didn't look up at him, too afraid to meet his eyes.

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