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Author's Chapter Notes:

After Vela's departure, Leo catches Jackie up on everything she missed over the last day, and the two of them get more comfortable with their living arrangments for the next several days with their naga hosts. 

A plot and character chapter. No explicit content. 

Chapter Twelve: 


 


Jackie and Leo stood in silence for a while watching the empty space into which Vela had seemingly vanished. Both were temporarily entangled in their respective, unique thoughts on the situation. Jackie was somewhat apprehensive about being left in a literal den of snakes with no one but a borrower she had only met days ago to be her anchor to anything resembling familiarity. Even so, she was thankful to be with him. And in no small way, she was actually quite happy to get a chance to know him better in presumably relaxed circumstances. He had not single-handedly saved her, but he had certainly played a huge role. And she was futilely contending with the confusing feelings his selfless bravery had inspired in her. It didn’t help that he was charming and handsome, nor that his mere stature seemed to bring her back to a much simpler time when she was young and curious. She kept thinking of her secret childhood friendship with the borrower, Monique, who had lived in her house. 


Leo was sad to be temporarily parted from Vela. He knew she was doing what she had to do. He didn’t completely understand it, but then, there was a lot about her he realized he didn’t know. He could only trust that the bond they had formed in such a short time was real. He was comfortable that he and Jackie had been left in good hands. He also understood that Vela expected him to relax and have fun in her absence. The erotic display of her feeding on the two young nagas came to mind. He shivered slightly at the memory. 


Leo was still in Jackie’s hands. He looked up at her face. Her golden eyes shone splendidly in the lantern light, her silver hair blowing slightly across her face in the gentle breeze coming into the cavern. He took a moment to take in her other features. The revealing outfit she wore provided by the nagas really emphasized her musculature. And the dim, flickering light of the surrounding torches played off her various scars on her arms and torso. She really did cut a beautiful, striking figure. Her hands suddenly seemed to tighten around him slightly. Jackie was absently clinging to him in her grasp. 


“Jackie?” Leo asked. His voice brought her back down from whatever heights to which her mind was wandering. She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. 


“Oh. Uh. Sorry. Was I holding you uncomfortably?” She asked bashfully. Leo inwardly chuckled. In her human form, Jackie was nowhere near as strong as Vela, but she also lacked Vela’s supernatural ability to properly temper her strength, and as far as humans were concerned, she was quite brawny. 


“You’re okay,” Leo began. “Do you... want to head back to where we left the others?” Jackie turned to look towards the den from which they’d come where the ‘little ones,’ Flo-ren and Flo-tess, accompanied by the gigantic Ek-teen, were waiting. She hesitated. She was a little weary of the nagas. She wasn’t afraid they would harm her. She just didn’t know in what ways they would go about ‘not harming’ her. On some level, she knew that the display of Vela feeding had excited her, but exactly why was difficult to say. The nagas were beautiful, to be sure. But they were so big. And maybe it was just Vela anyway. Leo suddenly grabbed onto Jackie’s thumb and gave it a squeeze. He could tell she was in somewhat of a mental impasse. She looked down at him. 


“I’ll be with you every step of the way,” Leo assured her. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. 


“Okay. But soon you gotta fill me in on all the crazy stuff that went down last night. Like... I feel like I missed a lot!” Leo chuckled. 


“Yeah. I had a difficult time processing it all myself. But when we got here, Vela convinced me to take it in stride. I’m just thankful we are all alive.” 


“Not just that. I mean. I care about what happened with the hunters. But whatever went down with you, Vela, and that behemoth, Nok-toon. And whatever the hell Vela meant by not ending up in any ‘second stomachs.’ You two just got into all kinds of mayhem last night, and suddenly I come back to my senses and feel way out of my depths!” Leo realized that Jackie must be extremely confused. 


“Okay. I owe you a few explanations,” he admitted. “Let’s get back to the den and I’ll tell you everything. I don’t think the little ones will mind, if they’re... awake.  And Ek-teen already knows it all.” Jackie considered this, nodded, and started to make her way back to the den. 


“Okay. Gonna be here a few days. May as well get used to the company,” she said with some exasperation. 


“That’s the spirit,” Leo cheered. 


Jackie and Leo arrived back in the den. Ek-teen seemed to have gotten rid of the table. The room was now much more spacious feeling. The little ones Vela had drank from lied in an embrace against the far wall with their snake bodies wrapped around one another’s, their coils undulating as they squirmed with evident pleasure, the venom apparently still very actively stimulating them. Leo marveled at the effect it appeared to have on the nagas. Ek-teen lay beside them, rubbing their backs softly with both hands lovingly. She perked up at the two walking in. 


“Oh, you’ve returned. I was just tending to the little ones. As you can see, they are very taken by their unique experience with your companion. She made quite the impact. Would you like to settle down with them? I’m sure they’d be delighted to entwine with you both,” Ek-teen suggested. At her words, the two young nagas let out a delighted sigh, but they didn’t open their eyes or break from their snug embrace. Jackie’s grip on Leo tightened slightly. He understood she was a little timid at the suggestion. 


“Perhaps in a bit, gracious host. But first, I think it best that we fill Jackie in on the events of last night.” 


“Of course,” Ek-teen said. She slithered away from the little snake sisters and approached the pair of bipeds. She encircled them and made herself comfortable. “Please, be at ease.” Leo realized she intended them to lie against her coils for comfort. Jackie looked around a little sheepishly. 


“C’mon, Jackie,” Leo urged. Jackie sighed, and timidly sat down and leaned back against the giant serpentine body behind her while she faced the human part of its owner before her. Once comfortable, Leo tapped on her hand, and she looked down at him. “Mind setting me down?” She appeared to hesitate. She really was depending on him for comfort, but she relented, and placed him on the ground before her. He walked into the center of the space between them. 


“So, some of this will be familiar to both of you at different times. But I feel that it’ll be easier to tell the story in chronological order,” Leo began. He launched on the story from when he and Vela had left Jackie in the den. Both woman listened enthusiastically as he described his clandestine operation with the first four hunters. He was met with gasps from Jackie as he described what happened when he and Vela had learned they were grossly outnumbered. Jackie teared up a little when he got to the part at the cliff when Vela had been impaled and lost her hand. 


Leo hesitated when he got to the part when the nagas had rescued them, but he pressed on, carefully watching Jackie’s expression as he described the nagas charging out of the woods and overwhelming—and subsequently consuming—the hunters. To his surprise, she betrayed no sign of horror at what the nagas, including Ek-teen, had done.


“Well, good riddance,” Jackie scoffed. “The leader go down easy?” She asked Ek-teen. Leo was surprised, but then he considered that these men and women had been ruthlessly hunting her to death. Ek-teen smiled pleasantly. 


“You could ask him. He’s right behind you,” she said with a strange tone, flexing and undulating the powerful snake body Jackie was leaning on. Jackie twisted around and placed a hand on Ek-teen’s scales. She stroked them softly towards her tail. Leo studied Jackie carefully. She didn’t seem to show any signs of fear or disgust at what she’d just been told. Jackie continued petting Ek-teen’s smooth and cool skin thoughtfully. Just within this massive body lies the leader of the people who were trying to kill me. This naga saved us all, she thought. She suddenly felt extremely grateful. Leo and Vela could not have done it alone. 


There was a quiet gurgle as something shifted softly beneath Jackie’s hand just behind the scaly wall. She briefly wondered if there was any chance he was still alive in there. Something strange passed through Jackie in that moment as she felt the naga’s body moving its meal along. It was a small part pity, some parts confused admiration and fear, and something else she didn’t know how to describe that made her shiver. She shook her head, and asked Leo to continue his tale. 


Eventually Leo described arriving back to the village and being reunited with Jackie in her wolf form. Her face turned beet red when she learned she had attacked Vela and Leo with incessant licking, but Leo assured her that even Vela had found it delightful after everything else.


“Then, we were, um, shown to our quarters and slept until tonight,” Leo said, suddenly becoming much vaguer than he had been with any other details in the story thus far, and Jackie thought she detected a slight air of bashfulness as well. ‘Peculiar,’ she thought. She also noticed that Ek-teen began to smile knowingly. 


They were clearly keeping something back from her. Jackie had done her best to keep her head down and not make waves of any kind since agreeing to accept the help of Leo and his vampire lover, but that was when lives were at risk and time was short. Jackie was used to being treated differently, but that was by humans, and she actually understood their reasoning, even if it hurt. But this was apparently her newly adoptive ‘tribe.’ She didn’t want to be treated differently by a naga and a borrower. 


“So. How were your accommodations?” She asked Leo directly. He scratched the back of his head. Okay, how do I go about this? He wondered. He was in an awkward position. He would have to be earnest and flattering about his experience spending the night with Vela inside Nok-toon’s belly because Ek-teen was right there listening, and frankly, he wanted to be. It really was very cozy. The strangeness of that wasn’t lost on Leo. He marveled at how much he had come to quite like being inside bellies.


But then, he didn’t want to disturb or frighten Jackie. He wasn’t sure how she would take to the notion that he and Vela had done that, and he was even more worried that she would fear the nagas would expect her to consent to the same treatment, though he was pretty sure they wouldn’t ask such a thing of a human. Humans, unlike vampires, are very ‘suited for eating,’ to paraphrase Ek-teen. The man a few inches behind Jackie deep within the sizable naga’s bowels was a testament to that. He couldn’t think it over forever though. Etiquette dictated his response. He would just have to trust Jackie not to totally freak out. 


“They were completely superb,” he answered Jackie with initial vagueness. He could tell by the look in her eyes though that she was aware of his evasiveness and was growing impatient with it. She squinted at him suspiciously. 


“And where did they put you up?” 


“The beautiful, gargantuan naga, Nok-toon, whom you met when you found us by the reflecting pool earlier, had the good will to host us in a very special chamber...”


“Oh, if that’s— “Jackie was about to accept his answer, but Leo cut her off and continued.


“Inside her extremely luxurious and exquisitely spacious first stomach,” Leo finished. Jackie’s mouth hung open, empty of the words she had been forming. She looked sideways at Ek-teen without moving her head. The naga was chewing on her right index finger and eying Leo... very appreciatively... if not outright lustfully. They had spent the night inside that giant house of a snake-woman’s stomach? Jackie wasn’t sure what to make of that. Vela was one thing, but Leo? Nok-toon was incomprehensibly large compared to him, and he was far from Vela’s level of invulnerability. Jackie thought about Leo deep within the bowels of a naga nearly twice the size of Ek-teen, her nearest reference point for ‘big damn snake,’ and once again felt something strange course through her. 


“You’re very kind in your praise of Nok-toon. She was rather smitten with the two of you as well, and you in particular. I believe you have quite the admirer in her, Leo,” Ek-teen said, distracting Jackie from her thoughts. As the words sank in, ‘Leo has a naga admirer,’ the strange feeling in Jackie took a more comprehendible form... she was jealous. Jealous of what, exactly, she had not yet worked out. But she understood the vague sensation of wanting what someone else has. So, what was it? Was she jealous of Leo or for him? Jackie shook her head, blinking away the mental fog.


“So… w-why?” Jackie found herself asking dumbly. Leo and Ek-teen looked at her expectantly. Leo thought he understood the question but asked for elaboration anyway.


“Why, ‘what?’” The little borrower asked. Jackie hesitated, glancing at Ek-teen and back to Leo a few times before she asked further.


“What made you and Vela decide on that… ‘accommodation?’” She specified.


“Why, because Vela is a nightwalker, Jackie,” Ek-teen said matter of factly, as if that explained all. Leo knew by the scrunched-up expression on Jackie’s face that she needed more.


“Vela cannot sleep anywhere that might expose her to even the slightest amount of ambient sunlight. It’s not as if this was the only option, but evidently, there’s a traditional understanding between nagas and vampires that this arrangement is not only effective and safe, but downright enjoyable,” Leo explained. He hoped that Jackie would accept for now that he was complimenting the experience for Ek-teen’s benefit and not assume anything else by it. But Jackie was not quite satisfied. She decided to leave her other questions on the matter until later, however. She wanted to ask Leo when she was certain he wasn’t putting on a show for their host. Like ‘why did you have to join Vela in there?’ Jackie thought.


“Oh! Of course,” was all Jackie said in reply. She turned her head back toward the giant snake coil she leaned against. “The power to take life and to shield it,” she mumbled, rubbing the smooth skin. It twitched slightly under the warmth of her touch.


“Yes. Though when it comes to beings endowed with sentience, we take much more pleasure in shielding,” Ek-teen said, apparently having heard Jackie’s aside remark. The human blushed, and briefly found her mind wandering just below the surface of the scales she was rubbing once again, only this time the curiosity was far different. Why had Leo gone inside too? Wasn’t it awfully dangerous? Jackie turned to look at the tiny man standing a few feet away from her. She tried to imagine him floating around in gastric juices deep inside the titanic Nok-toon, totally at ease and confident just like he always seemed to be. She couldn’t square it. It just seemed too risky. He looked so small and vulnerable even compared to Ek-teen, whose human half was several times the size of Jackie.


“On the subject of sleeping arrangements,” Ek-teen suddenly began, “now that you’re human again, I presume you’d prefer to sleep off of the ground, Jackie?”


“Oh. Yes. I don’t suppose you’d have any beds though, what with the, um, snake bodies,” Jackie said.


“Unfortunately, we do not. But you’re more than welcome to stay with Leo in what sounds to be his new favorite lodgings,” Ek-teen said with thick implication. “Would you like that?” Jackie and Leo both turned pale as a sheet.


“I… Um…” Jackie stuttered. Ek-teen began to laugh, much to Leo and Jackie’s confusion.


“It’s alright, Jackie. I was only teasing you. I know the answer. And I see that you’re pinned by the desire to appear polite.” As Ek-teen calmed down from her laughing fit, the two bipeds sighed with relief. Leo seriously thought Ek-teen was going to rope them into that. To an extent, he wouldn’t have minded, but he wasn’t sure he’d be safe without Vela, and he knew for sure that Jackie wasn’t prepared for that experience.


“You two can quit being so formal,” Ek-teen said. “Please feel free to express yourselves honestly around me going forward. Vela said that our tribes are intertwined which will make any of my tribe more eager to learn your ways than simply to impress you with theirs. And I’m actually more versed in casual conversations with other, more loose-tongued species. I spent a decade as an emissary before I took over my ordained role as the matriarch of this tribe.” Jackie visibly relaxed.


“Wait… if you’re familiar with the way other species talk…” Leo began.


“I’m aware that your pledge of debt was entirely accidental,” Ek-teen said humorously. Leo burst out laughing.


“Did Vela know?” He asked through his laughter. Ek-teen appeared to consider this for a moment.


“Hmm… no. No, I don’t think so. The rigid, literal ‘naga speech’ code is very natural to me, obviously. I would have relaxed the formalities around her once she declared we were intertwined, obviously, but she had to leave so suddenly.”


“Why keep it up at all?” Leo asked.


“Appearances. There were many others around. I’m the matriarch. I cannot simply address strangers as familiars. Especially not in the midst of battle with trespassers. There are customs to consider. But no one would begrudge me now.” She raised her body and looked at the young nagas blocked from Jackie and Leo’s view by her massive coils. “And the little ones are asleep anyway. Shame. You two missed your chance to cuddle with them in their euphoric state. I’m sure they would have been very enthusiastic to receive you. Oh well. One delight at a time.


Elgara-Ek-teen suddenly began to slither very quickly, her whole body sliding with a soft hiss that filled their ears. She rotated until she arrived at a set of shelves and began moving some things around. She retrieved some blankets and rope from the cupboard-like space and turned towards the pair.


“You’re free to try and get cozy coiling up with me and the little ones. We nagas tend to enjoy sleeping in clusters. It’s warmer. Otherwise, you can use these to make a hammock if you like. Does that suffice?” Jackie’s face lit up at the second suggestion.


“Oh, a hammock sounds great!” She declared. Then, she looked momentarily bashful. “I mean, not that curling up with you doesn’t, Ek-teen. I mean…” Ek-teen silenced her with a knowing gesture.


“Maybe some other time,” the Naga said. “You deserve a good, restful sleep. And you, Leo. Despite your many praises, you don’t actually look all that well-rested yourself,” Ek-teen said with an arched eyebrow. Leo looked at her a little apprehensively and rubbed the back of his neck.


“Oh, you know. It’s just that I had a pretty irregular sleep schedule the last few days what with travel and hunters and such. No biggie,” Leo lied. Truthfully, he’d slept okay for whatever amount of time he had been asleep, but his trip through Vela had eaten up a good chunk of his time to rest, and Jackie had woken him up the day before. His sleep was all messed up. Ek-teen eyed him suspiciously.


“Very well,” she relented. “Am I correct in assuming you would rather share the hammock with Jackie tonight?” Leo suddenly seemed keen on looking anywhere but directly at Jackie.


“I mean…” Leo began.


“That seems best,” Jackie said with certainty. Leo looked at her with slight surprise on his face. He wasn’t sure how she’d feel about that. Jackie, on the other hand, was very much looking forward to the chance to chat idly with Leo about certain topics. That, and she’d be lying if she claimed she wasn’t really enthused by the idea of having the brave little soul so close to her while she slept in this literal den of snakes. Okay. Maybe it’s not just because he’s brave… she thought while eying the handsome little guy.


“Alright then, it’s decided. Jackie, I’ll help you string up the hammock,” Ek-teen offered. Jackie nodded in assent.


Together, the two of them had it hung up a little more than a meter above the floor on the wall adjacent to where the little ones were slumbering.


“Normally I’d be fine with staying up later, but…” Ek-teen glanced down at herself, “it’s hard to do anything but nap when you’re digesting such a large meal. I’m sure you understand. I’m going to curl up with the girls.”


“Of course,” Jackie said. “Sleep well, Elgara-Ek-teen. And thank you. For everything.”


“Yes. You’re a wonderful host,” Leo added. Ek-teen smiled at the pair, bowed her head, and slithered over to dim the light before moving to the smaller, sleeping nagas, coiling around them until she was a steep stack of scaly flesh. Leo thought he heard appreciative sighs of approval escape from somewhere in the middle as Ek-teen briefly disturbed the sleep of Flo-ren and Flo-tess. Jackie looked down at Leo.


“Are you very tired?” She asked.


“Hmm. Not particularly. But we can lie down. I’m sure I’ll get sleepy eventually. Ek-teen was right. I didn’t get the best sleep. I haven’t in a while. Not to mention, I’m not really nocturnal, and haven’t even been trying to be for very long. What about you?”


“Oh, I’m actually pretty energetic. I went to sleep as a wolf before sunrise apparently and didn’t wake as a woman till midday. I’m told I didn’t get up to much mischief last night, so I’m much less worn out than usual. But I’m sure I’ll be able to sleep in a bit. Um…” Jackie crouched down and offered the flat of her palm to Leo. He hopped into her hand, and she placed him on her shoulder. Leo hung onto a few strands of her silvery hair as she climbed unsteadily into the hammock. Before lying down, she patted herself on the abdomen.


 “Mind hopping down here?” She asked. Leo obliged swiftly, darting down her left arm and sitting on her exposed skin facing her upper body. She got settled in and adjusted herself until she was comfy. She laced her fingers through each other just below where Leo sat and he leaned back on her hands comfortably. Jackie let out a deep sigh, her chest rising and falling sharply. Okay.


Thanks for letting me bunk with you by the way. You don’t know me that well,” Leo said.


“You don’t mind? I mean. It’s fine. You’re welcome,” Jackie said, thankful that it was too dark now for Leo to properly see her bashful expression. She sighed again. “Thanks. For uh, for being willing to. You’re the closest thing to continuity I’ve known in a while, ya know,” she finished. Leo smiled.


“Hey, we misfits need to stick together!” He said. Jackie scoffed.


We misfits? What makes you abnormal?”


“Oh, I don’t know. I’m a borrower without a big family, I don’t live off the unknown kindness of humans, and I’m dating a vampire?” Jackie chuckled once at his defense. Then she thought of something.


“And you have a penchant for getting cozy inside bellies…” she said slyly. Leo’s eyes grew a little wide.


“Uh. Penchant? I mean…”


“Come on, buddy. Who Who sleeps inside a snake?”


“Hey, hey!” Leo whispered intensely. “Try not to make it sound so outrageous. We don’t want to insult our hosts.”


“Ek-teen’s asleep. I have pretty good ears. Perks, I guess. Her breathing slowed and evened out almost immediately after she settled down. Anyway, she said we could be frank. So, be frank with me.”


“You have a point. Alright, alright.” Leo said. Jackie remained quiet. She tapped her right index finger on her left knuckle expectantly. Leo felt and understood the gesture. “What? I already explained it to you. Vela needed to.”


Vela needed to. So, it was strictly utilitarian?”


“Y-yeah.”


“And it was utilitarian for you as well? Just… dive right into the belly of a hundred ton beast for a good night’s sleep?”


“I… was just sticking with Vela?” He offered. Jackie didn’t seem satisfied. “Okay, what’s with all the scrutiny? So what, I’ve slept in some bellies.” He saw her jaw drop in the darkness. Oops.


“Some?” She laughed quietly and pulled a strange smile. “Okay. I was just gonna ask how a little guy like you manages to survive in such a massive stomach unscathed, but apparently you really do have a penchant.”


“Maybe a little. Yeah. I mean. It’s not like I’ve done it a lot or all the time. Don’t think I’m a weirdo.”


“I thought you wanted to defend your status as a misfit,” Jackie countered.


“Well, okay. Sure. But I don’t wanna be looked at as a misfit among misfits!”


“It’s okay. I’m not judging. But I guess I’m like… really curious now.”


“About what in particular?”


“Hmm. Okay. How about my original concern. How’s a borrow survive inside a stomach the size of a human hammock?” Jackie asked, rocking a little from side to side for emphasis.


“Well. First of all, the a naga’s first stomach isn’t supposed to be that dangerous.”


“Oh? Is that why Vela warned you not to end up in anyone’s second stomach?”


“Exactly. The first stomach is only supposed to be able to handle chewed greens and stuff for initial processing before it all gets passed onto the actual stomach.”


“And they have control over this mechanism?”


“The older ones, yeah,” Leo said. Jackie was quiet for a moment. She seemed to be considering.


“Okay. If I grant that, and we say it’s somewhat safe…”


“Yeah?”


“I’m sorry. And I’m really not judging. I’m just trying to understand. But, why would you want that?” After she asked, Leo was silent for almost a whole minute. Finally, he spoke up.


“It’s erotic.” He said frankly. Jackie’s cheeks flared dark red. Oh.


“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”


“Nah, it’s fine. It is though. I dunno why. I thought maybe it was just me, but Vela seemed to think so, too.”


“Wait. So you said ‘some,’ and you had this opinion before last night. So… you and Vela have—?”


“Yeah. Actually. That’s kinda how we met,” Leo confessed.


“Okay. I have got to hear the story behind that. I mean, if that’s okay.”


“Sure. I think it’ll be fun to tell.”


Leo told Jackie all about his first night with Vela. He censored his story a bit, leaving our little details like when she removed her top or how she pushed him ‘over the edge’ before swallowing him. But he didn’t hold back in describing how great he thought it all was. He was actually worried he had gotten a little carried away. He paused as he described what he thought it felt like to be inside Vela’s stomach to make sure he wasn’t weirding Jackie out.


“What did you stop for?”


“This doesn’t bother you at all?”


“No, I’m actually pretty intrigued. I confess, I actually wondered because of the size difference how you two managed to… erm. I mean,” she cut herself off, realizing the implications of admitting she’d spent time contemplating their sex life.


“Wait. What?”


“N-never mind. So. Just the one time then?”


“Hmm? Oh. No. Twice. The night we met to sate her hunger pangs, and then…” Leo hesitated.


“What? The next night?”


“No.”


“But the night after that I almost dug you both up, and you certainly weren’t in a stomach. So that leaves… wait,” She gasped.


“Yup.”


“You got double eaten last night?” Jackie said, shocked.


“Uh-huh. It was kind of intense,” Leo said, trying to downplay it a bit. Jackie tried to compose herself.


“Okay. Well. That certainly explains both how you were safe and why you were comfortable going in for it in the first place. So, what. Vela just spits you up before Nok-toon does?”


“Well, not exactly.” Leo said. He went on to explain how Vela’s body had acted strangely the night before. Jackie could barely contain her awe when Leo described how he was sent all the way through her. It does sound a little erotic. She thought. She also noticed whenever Leo transitioned from being very specific to eliding the finer details, and presumed to know how one ought to fill in those blanks. But she was trying to be attentive to Leo’s telling of it all.


“And yeah,” Leo said near the end, “obviously waking up before the sunset is pretty dangerous for a vampire. So she had to go see someone about that…” Leo got quiet after that. Jackie let him have a moment.


“She’ll be back before you know it, bud,” she said after a while. “Don’t count the time.”


“You’re right. I’m less concerned about how long it’ll be before I see her again and a little more worried about… well.”


“What she might have learned once she returns?”


“Yeah, you nailed it.”


“You’re worried the changes are your fault.”


“Seems a little too coincidental not to have something to do with me.”


“Or what you’ve been doing.”


“Hmm? What do you mean?”


“Well. I mean, she’s been eating you. You say she subsists on the spiritual potency of blood. She absorbs it and it makes her immortal. Her stomach—her whole body— doesn’t work like ours. Who knows what having a living soul in her stomach for extended periods is capable of doing. I’m not saying she’s absorbing your soul or anything. But I don’t know. Maybe you guys just have to cut back on this… stuff,” Jackie suggested. Leo looked thoughtful about it. “Or, you know, maybe not. I mean. I hope not if you like it so much. Just don’t spend all your time the next few days worrying about it, alright?”


“You’re right. It’s pointless to toil endlessly. I’ll try not to dwell on it.”


“Yeah. And in the mean time, plenty of hungry snakes about. You know, if you find yourself getting withdrawals or something.” Leo looked at her with wounded accusation until he saw the smirk on her face.


“Okay, Jackie. Make fun of me while I’m down. And I don’t know. Seems a little risky anyway.”


“But what about the whole ‘first stomach’ deal?”


“Yeah, but going into the older nagas on my own seems a little overwhelming. And the younger ones lack the same control. I’m not sure there’s any coming back from the true stomach. Especially for a little guy like me. So, no. It’s really only appealing when I know there’s no danger.”


“True. I hadn’t thought of that. Oh well, guess you’ll have to temporarily forgo your spelunking endeavors for a while, borrower.” They both laughed.


“Yeah. It’ll be okay. I’m sure the nagas will have plenty of other ornery activities planned for us anyway.” Leo yawned, suddenly feeling quite sleepy. “Oh, gosh. I don’t know where it came from, but I think I could sleep!” Leo said.


“Well don’t fight it. You deserve a restful night, Leo,” Jackie said. The borrower looked from side to side.


“So, how’re we doing this?”


“Oh, um, I don’t know. My belly certainly isn’t a safe place to spend the night, Jackie said, giggling.


“Not gonna let up on me about that, huh?”


“No chance. Though I suppose you could sleep on my belly if you’re comfortable there.”


“You move around a lot in your sleep?”


“Not in a hammock this snug.”


“Well alright then.” Leo settled down, lying on his side with a hand under his head. Jackie’s abdomen was a warm, soft wall of muscle. Leo thought he’d sleep well. Far from his worst. “Thanks again for letting me bunk with you.”


“Thanks for saving my life and for being here for me.”


“Don’t mention it. Good night, Jackie.”


“Night, Leo.”


Jackie listened to Leo’s breathing. She was impressed with how quickly he dropped off. He had only been awake for a few hours. She didn’t think it was much past midnight. Guess he really needed it. She thought. Jackie made some slight adjustments without moving too much so as not to disturb Leo. She put her hands behind her head and gazed at the ceiling of the den.


Jackie felt better after talking to Leo. She felt like she understood more, knew more, was more included and ‘in the loop.’ She also had a lot on her mind regarding some earlier sensations of slight jealousy. She didn’t know the borrower all that well, so she didn’t begrudge him holding back on some of the juicier details in his stories. It almost seemed silly when she considered that Leo and Vela had only known each other a couple days longer than Jackie, but then, they were different. They weren’t human. Jackie had known borrowers as a girl, but she’d never seen them fall in love. She didn’t even know vampires did that at all. So she assumed there may be factors she misunderstood.


Jackie remembered her childhood playmate, Monique. They’d been so close. Monique was always there for Jackie’s calling. They had played hide and seek, had tea parties, played ‘house’ with dolls for their family. Monique had been the wife and Jackie the husband. They’d even kissed once, but it was Monique kissing Jackie on the cheek and it had made them both so embarrassed they never spoke of it again. Jackie placed a hand on her cheek now where she remembered feeling that little kiss. She gazed at Leo. She closed her eyes and shook her head softly, turning her thoughts back to the present.


What’s got you all twisted up? Jackie asked herself. She recalled concluding she was jealous. Okay. Let’s work through that. She’d felt a pang of jealousy when Ek-teen mentioned that Nok-toon was Leo’s admirer. So, was Jackie envious that Leo had so many admirers, or was she covetous of Leo’s affection. She considered this. Oh, Jackie. It’s obviously both. She realized. For going on a year now, she’d been alone. She’d lost so much and gained so little. The thing she’d thirsted after the most was any kind of companionship. She was hurt and chased and distrusted. She wanted friends. She wanted to love and to be loved.


Waking up human two days ago to see this little borrower eager to tend to her wounds had made her heart throb with gratitude and longing. But he was taken. That’s fine. He still wanted to be her friend. It almost seemed like Vela was coming around to the idea of friendship too. And their monogamy seems a little flexible… Jackie had observed. She considered this. No, their sexuality was flexible. Their love was exclusive. Either way. Jackie was delighted to have made friends. Love could wait.


Jackie now turned her mind to some of the other strange ideas and feelings she’d experienced this night. She gazed at Leo in the dark. She thought about his stories and experiences. She considered something. She concluded that she was going to have to have a conversation about it again in the morning. But for now, she, too, was feeling the weight of her eyelids. She clasped her hands together right under her breasts and shut her eyes, drifting to sleep in a short while.

Chapter End Notes:

It's back! Wrote 66k words in 22 days on this story back between August and September of 2020 and then took an indefinite haitus for some eight months. The two extremes. I apologize to any who have been patiently awaiting the next installment of this story, and hope that you'll be happy with where I intend to take the tale. I never meant to let it sit incomplete forever. This time I'm going to try and work at a much more reasonable pace and switch projects whenever I feel fatigued so as to avoid another hiatus. Thank you for your understanding, and welcome back if you're a returning reader. 

If you're new and this is your first time reading through to this point, welcome!! Let me know what you think of the story so far!

This first chapter was just a transitional one while I crack my knuckles and shake off the rust. Stay tuned for the next one! 

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