Reid had often fallen as a kid. Even experienced dreams of falling, causing him to startle awake as his stomach dropped and the sensation was exchanged for reality as stability made itself known.

But, he was never the one to dream of flying. Whenever kids would talk about what super power they’d want, so many wished for flight. He hadn’t had any interest in it, finding things like telekinesis or invisibility infinitely more useful. 

Now?

He wasn’t so sure. 

As the weightlessness eased him and wind rushed by him, he couldn’t imagine anything being more magical. There was a giddiness…a freedom that came with it as he soared the skies, eyes scanning the unfamiliar atmosphere. 

It was…mesmerizing. 

He didn’t want it to end. As his body dipped and swooshed, dodging and twirling, his eyes ate up the purple sky with jittering sparkles as if the stars themselves had come to dance with him. 

Down below were massive plants of all colors, shapes, and sizes, breathing and singing as if they joined him on his flight. The sweet smell that wafted in his nose was nothing like he’d ever smelled before, yet still held this sense of nostalgia. 

It screamed familiarity when he knew that couldn’t possibly be the case. He had never been there before. And he could not fly.

Then it was over. Like a glass of ice cold water poured over him. As if instead of flying, he really was falling, and it had thrust him back into the waking world. The cause had actually been the warm weight of something slung around his waist. 

Bleary-eyed and half delusional, Reid nearly had a heart-attack until he realized the weight was covered in scales that matched the vivacious vibrance of his own skin since this bonding. It was familiar. It was Kincaid. 

Reid didn’t have to look, didn’t have to see anything more, but the core of him rattled and settled after identifying the interruption and deeming it safe. 

Safe?

Reid was far from safe with Kincaid. 

Maybe that’s why his heart still beat a furious drum and the once suffocating fatigue had quickly dissipated into an alertness wracked with anxiety.

He couldn’t move…for several reasons. One being the arms around him was another shackle to be added to his current collection. Unmoveable. Unbreakable. And really fucking annoying. 

The other? Reid wasn’t so sure that waking the sleeping beast behind him was the best course of action. Who knew what came next? What if there were further traditions and ceremonies that involved something unpleasant? 

Any time someone asked Gabe or Jamila what the bonding experience was like, they’d get this glassy eyed look that spoke of trauma and things never to be relived. Reid had expected that horror but it had yet to come.

It would though. It always did. He wasn’t foolish enough to let his guard down. 

With no other options left to him, he remained still, choosing that stillness over any other action because as tempted as he was, there was little he could do to harm the male. Not even the knives he hid beneath one of the pillows would be enough to pierce those scales. Never stopped him from tucking one away whenever the broths came with toast and a butter spread. As blunt tipped as they were, it still made him feel a little better. 

Just a little.

Feigning the deep rise and fall of a human slumbering, Reid lay there, waiting. He had nearly perfected the art of faking sleep from his many nights waiting up for his Dad when the Rebellion was still fresh. And with someone as out of touch with human habits, Reid was sure that the Naerian would suspect his ruse. 

He lay there, waiting for hours, until the sun rose, bleeding through the cracks of the window where the curtain failed to hide it. Only then did the male stir. 

There was a pause. A hesitation before the arm was removed from Reid’s waist that told him all he needed. His ruse was only that and the Naerian had seen right through it. Maybe it was the heightened hearing or some other sense the alien had, but neither of them acknowledged it. Even knowing that they both were awake, none would dare start the process of what to do next. 

The confrontation.

Instead, Reid kept pretending and Kincaid let him.

It wasn’t until he had gotten up, showered, and left, that Reid allowed himself to relax, releasing a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. 

The strangest thing about it all, was the feeling of apprehension Reid felt as clear as his own, yet foreign in that it did not belong to him. 

This wasn’t a glimpse. This was full blown insight. And it terrified him. 

No, this could work in our favor, he thought. He had to keep in mind that the access to knowledge he gained now could only serve in strengthening the Rebellion. This isn’t something he should shy away from. Not if he wanted to break from the chokehold the damned species had on his own. They thought the humans had been beaten down because they had no true means of contending and that wasn’t completely off the mark. But that would only serve in the Rebellion’s favor, because they won’t be expecting it. 

Now…the main objective? Figure out where the Gemma Crystal farm was. That was their main source of power. 

There had been a huge debate amongst those in the Rebellion. Some wanted to destroy the farm which would rob the Naerians of a vital resource and potentially force them to either leave or die out as their survival relied heavily on them. While the others wanted to steal it from them and use it themselves. It was powerful, no one could deny that. Much more powerful than anything they had on earth. It would catapult humans into a new era of technology and sustainability. Both sides had valid points, but Reid still leaned toward the former. They could get by on their own, without the help of alien resources. Besides, it was like holding on to fire, impossible without getting burned. 

What if housing a resource that powerful made them targets to whatever else lay beyond their solar system since it was obvious that they were not the only intelligent species out there. Some may even argue that in comparison, they weren’t intelligent at all. Why would they invite species like the Naerians to their planet? It would just be repeating history. 

Reid was determined to learn from the mistakes of the past in order to make for a better future. A future at all if he were honest.

Stretching, Reid finally allowed himself to rise from the massive bed of pillows, heading for the bathroom for his routine makeshift bath. He was in the middle of washing his nether bits when two servants shuffled inside the bathroom with baskets, setting them down on the ground nearby. 

Reid yelped, scurrying back and away from them. He couldn’t see their faces as they wore strange white veils but his interest was immediately captured as he noticed the tiny silver key in one of their hands. 

He eyed it, then the pair with incredulous yet slightly hopeful eyes.

“Run and be punished,” the one holding the key said before kneeling and reaching for his shackled ankle. When the metal fell away, it was like a weight had been lifted from not just his ankles but his shoulders, no longer hunching in on himself. 

He’d had only a moment to relish the feeling before they were ushering him toward the bath. The other must have started it while he was distracted by the sudden release. The water was still very low, but they shoved him in anyway. 

It was embarrassing how the water changed color, filled with grime and dirt that he had unsuccessfully washed off. It had been a while since he was properly able to clean himself. Having a proper wash was literal heaven. 

The servants were rough and methodical with their grooming, not missing a single inch. He was scrubbed and scraped, plucked and buffed until he practically sparkled. 

The best part? They dressed him.

Clothes.

He got to wear clothes again.

A simple beige button up tucked into dark trousers was more than enough for him. And shoes. They even brought him a pair of boots to wear. 

Was this the beginning of his freedom? Had not fighting back worked in his favor? It was hard to tell. But if this sudden change was in correlation to the new bite he sported, he wouldn’t think of it nearly as harshly as he previously did. He hated it, yes, that would never change, but it was also a ticket that he feared he would never receive.

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