Tierney woke up on her first morning as an Asteroid Mate with a smile on her face. She was sore inside and out from her workouts with Tausson the day before, so she decided to forego the gym and spent a little extra time in bed before her morning call with the President.

Nelle could tell something was up right away, and was cautiously congratulatory when Tierney told her. The conversation reminded Tierney that she needed to tell her family what was going on too. She wasn't looking forward to that, especially since she couldn't risk telling them how she and Tausson really felt about each other. If word got out that one Relican had fallen in love, the other Asteroid Mates might hope for a similar outcome with their own pairs, and that was bound to end poorly. They might even run the risk of being considered a malign influence.

Tausson was still technically suspended from his Squad duties until after the blood walk, spending most of his days and nights training, so they had made plans to meet for lunch in the nutrient supply. Tierney's calls with the governors flew by in anticipation of seeing him again. Wanting to look her best, she cut her last call short and spent twenty minutes fussing with her hair, finally deciding to braid half in a crown and leave the rest down. She couldn't look too nice without arousing suspicion, so she settled on a simple white sundress and red shrug.

As she left her room, a bronze crew member was passing by in the hall. He beamed at her and said, "Fair blazing, celebrated one!"

Tierney knew fair blazing was the Relican way of saying good afternoon, but the celebrated one title was new to her.

"Fair blazing," she replied, and started towards the nutrient supply.

He walked with her a few steps and asked, "Are you in need of anything?"

"Uh, no, I'm fine, thanks. Just getting some lunch."

The Relican nodded vigorously. "Squad, be sure to take in much sustenance." Then their paths parted, and Tierney was left wondering if perhaps she looked more tired than she felt.

Everyone she passed greeted "the celebrated one" far more warmly than they had before. Guarded smiles were replaced with bright grins, polite nods with more inquiries regarding her comfort and health. She was stopped so many times by people asking her if there was anything she needed, it took her almost twice as long to get to the nutrient supply. When she saw Tausson already seated, she quickly retrieved a kid's meal and brought it to his table. A moment later, the empty chairs around them were filled by Relicans, all asking her about when she'd been poisoned, if she was feeling better, and what precautions she was taking to ensure it didn't happen again. Tierney showed them the tool Aspri had given her to test the metal content in the meal before she ate it, and they all commended him on his foresight to have studied the symptoms and treatment of metal poisoning on humans, ensuring she had come through unscathed.

All the attention would have been more unsettling if everyone wasn't so obviously sincere. Although she wished they'd all stop asking her what she wanted, since all she wanted was for them to leave her and Tausson alone. She couldn't say that, of course, so Tausson merely gazed at her in amusement as she fielded question after question about her experiences on the ship and if there was anything they could do to improve her satisfaction.

Finally she was done, and Tausson brought her back to her room. Still more Squad members stopped her in the halls, and by the time they arrived, she only had a couple minutes until her next call.

"Is all this celebrated one business because I'm an Asteroid Mate now?" she asked as they hid in her room. Tausson hummed confirmation into her neck as he guided her to the bed. "How does everyone know? It only happened last night."

"There was an announcement," he said between kisses, "through the mechasuits. They'll calm down in a few days. They're just excited." His hands slid down her back and squeezed her rear. "And so am I."

She allowed him to lower her onto the bed, wishing she could forget her work and stay secluded in her room with Tausson forever. "We probably shouldn't push Aspri too much," she said. "If you keep testing him by not caring about your heart rate and whatnot, he might get fed up and turn us in."

Tausson kneeled back and lifted her legs, dragging her towards him. The stiff shield that protected him pushed between her thighs, and it felt so much like his actual cock that a shockwave of pleasure ran through her.

"Okay, okay," she said with a smile, sitting up to kiss him and then sliding off the bed before she got too hot and bothered. "There will be plenty of that at udharjarka."

She started to walk away, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. Resting her arms on his shoulders, she gazed down at him.

Had it worked? She still couldn't believe it. This sexy, gorgeous, powerful, intelligent, kind man loved her. And by the grace of a closeted gay Relican curmudgeon, they were now mates, guaranteed to see each other every day. It wasn't perfect, and she knew there was an expiration date, but right now, living in his world, it was as close to perfect as they could get.

He reached up and ran a hand through her hair, pouting slightly.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

His hand stilled, and he glanced at her before looking back at her hair. "You usually wear your hair up with others. I had hoped... that you only let it down for me."

Being silver-skinned, Tausson didn't turn red when he blushed, but a dark gray. Tierney smiled gently at his vulnerability, the shimmering flecks in his skin becoming less visible, making his usually glossy cheek look matte.

"Compromise," she said. "I do only wear it down for you, and wanted to for our lunch date, but with everyone else around, I had to go half-and-half. I also dressed up a little, if you hadn't noticed." She wiggled in his arms a bit, bringing attention to her carefully selected outfit.

"Oh, I noticed," he said, drawing her back in. He kissed the fabric over her breasts, and slid his hands down past her hips.

"Promise me you'll never wear it down for another," he said, teasing at her hardening nipples with his teeth.

A burning wave of desire flared within Tierney as he reached the hem of her dress and slipped his hands underneath. As his cool skin rested on her bare, trembling thighs, she briefly wondered if she could get away with canceling her call.

"I promise," she whispered.

Tausson's kisses traveled up her throat, and she leaned down to kiss him. Then, forcing herself to pull away, she said, "I'm going to be late for my meeting. I'll see you tonight."

He let her go, though she could see the desire in his eyes. "It won't be the same," he said.

"I know, but it's the best we can do, for now."

Taking a long breath after her left, Tierney prepared for her call. The governors were needy, constructive, and clueless, respectively. She wrote down their concerns -- more electronic adaptors! (one per person!), public transportation? (good idea!), tasteless food! (tell me about it!) -- but found herself growing increasingly distracted and anxious as the day progressed.

The most pressing concern was her meeting with Rasmus. As commander, she now needed to go through him with any projects or requests. Carterra had been reasonable, patient, and accommodating -- everything Rasmus was not. And Tierney was pretty certain he was going to hold a grudge after being denied his choice of Asteroid Mate. But she had a job to do, so when the time came, she armed herself with her notes and headed to the command center.

"Do you need something?" asked First Elic from the command chair, as Tierney entered the room. Her unsmiling face was a stark contrast to the extreme congeniality Tierney had been bombarded with all day.

"I'm here to meet with the commander," she said, nervously eyeing the door to his room.

"He left for a meeting with Chief Raleth on the Nowhi."

Tierney realized she'd just assumed he would meet at the same time as Carterra. Or, she thought guiltily, she'd intentionally avoided confirming in hopes that this would happen.

"Do you know when he'll return?" Tierney asked. "We need to schedule a time to meet."

From beside her on the upper platform of the command center, Hoff said, "When he returns I'll notify him that you wish to converse."

Wish wasn't the word Tierney would have used.

"Thank you," she said, giving him a warm smile and turning to leave.

"Hold," said Elic, getting up and joining her by the door. "May I accompany you?"

"Sure," said Tierney, trying to hide her surprise. First Elic had barely said a word to her since she'd arrived on board.

With the command center a few steps behind them, Elic said, "I'm sorry I've been so cold with you."

"I didn't take any offense," said Tierney. "I figured you were trying to avoid cultural contamination like the rest of the crew."

"Command crew are not beholden to those restrictions," said Elic, a little sharply. But she cast Tierney an apologetic glance before adding, "I fear I was anxious about it though."

"It's fine. Everyone's dealing with a lot these days."

Elic returned Tierney's tentative smile, and seemed to relax, just a little. "Have you transferred to your new room yet?" she asked.

"New room? No one's said anything about another room change."

"There are special lodges reserved only for Asteroid Mates." The Planetary Officer pointed down a hall. "That way. I can assist with your relocation, if you'd like."

"No, thank you," said Tierney. "My room's fine. All my stuff is there, and I've had more than my fair share of relocations lately."

Elic studied her for a few strides, then said, "It's probably for the best. Your pairing with Tausson likely won't last long."

Tierney's head snapped up to look at the tall Relican. "Why do you say that?"

"It's unlikely he'll succeed in the blood walk. Rasmus has been gloating that his weapon of choice will defeat Tausson's."

"How does he know which weapon Tausson selected? I thought it was supposed to be a secret."

Elic stared ahead with a shadowed expression. "He made sure to say that he doesn't know for certain, as that would be a breach of conduct, but I suspect he found out somehow. Rasmus is cunning that way."

They passed a small group of sweaty, smiling Relicans coming out of the free room, and Tierney remembered her stolen moments with Tausson. She'd thought it would be their last time together, but her plan had worked -- they were now mates. Was it destined to end in five days anyway? Was the miracle of their pairing to be ruined by Rasmus's deviousness?

"It's unfortunate Tausson doesn't know of Rasmus's selection," Elic continued. "Then at least the blood walk would be equitable again."

"Can't you find out?" asked Tierney.

Elic shook her head. "I am bound by both the rules of the blood walk and the loyalty I swore to my commander." She cast a dark look at Tierney, adding "All members of the Relican Squad are so bound."

They were nearly to their destination. Elic stopped walking, so Tierney did the same.

"Thank you for accepting my apology," said the Planetary Officer, giving her a weak smile. "And thank you, for honoring Relica with your service as an Asteroid Mate."

"You're welcome," said Tierney, though she was still distracted by what she'd just learned.

"Are you sure you wouldn't prefer an Asteroid Mate lodge? They are much larger and offer greater comforts."

Smiling warmly, Tierney said, "No, thank you." Elic nodded goodbye and turned to go back to the command center.