Although she was expecting a decent workout session, given how fit the pair appeared, they exercised for barely ten minutes. Just long enough to warm up the muscles and loosen up her stiff joints before they were nudging her to sit back down and rest. She didn't know if they thought that her injuries were worse than they were, while painful and making it a struggle to eat or talk, they were far from life-threatening.

It occurred to her again that they thought she was younger than she truly was, treating her like a child who didn't know their limits. Maybe their kind aged slowly and that's why they were protective of her? Or maybe because she was female? She had never encountered anything like them before, had they run into people from Earth before? Or were they just natural caretakers and trying to watch out for her despite knowing absolutely nothing about who or what she was?

Sitting against the wall, she fiddled with the hem of her sleeve, leaving her hood pushed back as she studied them. So many questions and no way to get answers. There had to be a way to communicate but how to even start? She had never been outside of her colony and other than a handful of traders that she'd never been permitted to speak with, so she had never had to build a relationship from scratch. After all, everyone there had known each other from birth.

The sound of the food cart drew her from her looping thoughts and she looked toward the corridor. Moments later, the other two looked over as well. She expected them to move to the other side of the cell, to pretend that they had nothing to do with her, based on how all the other aliens had treated her so far. So imagine her surprise when they moved protectively in front of her, Zashi even spreading his wings slightly to create a barrier between her and the corridor. She could still catch glimpses of the corridor and guards, but she was mostly hidden from sight.

Relief filled her at this gesture and she sunk down a little bit to be completely hidden. Call her a coward, but she hated how the guards always leered at her and looked at her with such hateful eyes. It was why she had taken to cowering in the back of the cell completely covered by her cloak. If she appeared meek and nonthreatening, she wouldn't receive another beating. Unless they noticed that she was starting to heal and the cycle started all over again.

Although she couldn't understand the words, the conversation sounded very hostile, hisses and growls from the two in the cell, grunts and derision from the guards. Thankfully, they didn't enter the cell, sliding in the trays with more force than necessary, causing the food and water to slop over a bit. Shouta gave one last growling chuff as the guards disappeared down the hall before the pair scooped up the two trays and moved back over to join her.

Their faces were filled with a myriad of emotions that she couldn't decipher when they saw how she was curled up, before seeming to settle on calm. Not wanting to upset them or make them think that they'd scared her when they had protected her, she quickly uncurled as they joined her, settling gracefully onto the cell floor between her and the bars. Shouta's ears lowered a little and he appeared to be trying to make himself look smaller while Zashi let out a comforting croon.

She offered them a small smile, just the barest upturns of her lips, as far as she could go before her face started pulling uncomfortably. This seemed to reassure them that she wasn't scared of them, causing them to relax as they rearranged the trays, pushing the fullest one toward her, although none of the trays were what one could call filling. Once again, she was baffled by their easy generosity.

She was so caught up in trying to figure out their behavior that she almost missed Shouta going to dip his torn-off sleeve into his portion of water. The key word being almost. She hadn't missed how he'd sacrificed his water portion the day before and although there might be aliens out there who didn't need water to survive, she wasn't willing to risk it.

Taking a deep breath, she reached out and touched his hand, causing him to still as he looked at her inquisitively. Praying that she had understood the word correctly and that she wouldn't slaughter the pronunciation in an unspeakable insult, she forced out shakily, "No."

She winced at the sound as her throat protested harshly against speaking. It sounded worse than nails on the chalkboard, weak and pitchy and barely recognizable as a word. Great first impression. She studied their faces, hoping that they'd understand what she was trying to say.

However, they both just stared at her, stunned. Great.

X

Sho'ta huffed as the guards kept moving down the hallway, making sure to fix their faces in his memory. Their gazes as they had looked for the kit had been filthy and disturbing and he would take great pleasure in making sure that they never did it to anyone else.

Z'shi muttered under his breath, "You need to calm down, love. I know that you don't mean her any harm but she might be scared by your ferocity."

Oof, he hadn't considered that, warning the guards off had been his main priority. The absolute garbage they had spewed had been enlightening and he thanked all the stars that they'd been placed in the same cell as the Terran. Who knew how much longer the poor kit would've been able to survive under the hands of such monsters? But they had her now and none of those wastes of air would be able to touch her from this point forward.

Scooping up the trays, they turned to check on the kit. His heart broke when he saw how tiny she had managed to make herself. Had Z'shi been right and he had scared her with his warning to the guards? Before he could even begin to figure out how to make her understand that they weren't mad at her, she uncurled and sat up comfortably. She didn't appear to be trying to make herself look larger and her scent didn't hold any sour notes of negative emotions, so he hoped they had been able to keep from scaring her.

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Still, both he and Z'shi were careful to settle themselves between her and the cell bars. It was clear how little respect the guards had for the Terran, even if she had managed to kill another slave. He would have to find out where their confidence came from. But that was a task for later, after the op was finished. For now, they had to tend to the kit.

She seemed to be doing better today, the circles under her eyes a little bit less now that she had gotten some rest. She had been so still and slept so deeply during the dark cycle that he'd feared she'd stopped breathing a few times. She had clearly needed every tick of rest she'd gotten and he'd wished that she'd been able to sleep longer. Maybe they could coax her into a nap. Not only that, but she seemed to move easier after a bit of exercise. Did Terrans have accelerated healing?

While he didn't dare purr, not wanting her to confuse it with a growl if she were unfamiliar with Panteras, Z'shi gave out the soft croon his clan did to reassure chicks and nestlings that they were safe. It seemed to work on this one as well, as the corners of her lips pulled up in what he would say was a tiny smile, before it dropped again.

As Z'shi divided up the trays, making sure that the kit got the fullest one because she was undoubtedly still growing and could use the nutrients, Sho'ta carefully studied her. Another point in favor of accelerated healing was the fact that even though the color of the bruises was darker today, the swelling seemed to be significantly less. It was frustrating, not having access to healing facilities to properly diagnose the kit.

Knowing that Z'shi would split his water ration with him, Sho'ta went to wet the sleeve. She could hold it on her face while Z'shi fed her again, hopefully the cool-ish water would help the swelling decrease further. He was hoping that she would let him take a better peek at her throat as well, he needed to assess the severity of the threat.

He was so focused on his task that he nearly jumped out of his skin when she tentatively touched his hand to get his attention. He managed to stop himself at the last moment, looking over at her inquisitively. What a brave kit, initiating contact for the first time.

She opened her mouth and he wondered if she was asking for them to feed her again, something they would be happy to do, when the most horrendous sound emerged. It sounded like the common word for 'no'. But it was so weak and garbled, holding such a heavy accent that it was nearly unrecognizable. But what was ten times worse was the sudden sharp spike of burning pain scent that suddenly emanated from the kit.

With her damaged throat, it must've been painful beyond measure to even force out that single syllable. That she had managed to do it spoke of an iron will even as she looked adorably confused and embarrassed. Had she known what she was saying or was she simply trying to repeat sounds that she had heard before in the hopes of connecting with them?

Their stunned silence must've dragged on for too long, cause she opened her mouth, undoubtedly to try again.

Before she could force a sound out, his mate was there, his hand gently covering her mouth even as his expression was pained. Ah, he must've caught how much it hurt her to speak as well. But how were they going to figure out how to communicate with her?

Speaking was definitely out and she didn't seem to understand basic common. She couldn't nod or shake her head, not with how injured her throat was. She seemed like a smart kit, always watching and listening, so there was a chance that she could learn an alternate form of communication. That left them with either sign or writing. And since there was nothing to write with in the cell, that pretty much left them with sign.

Moving so that he was kneeling in front of her, he told Z'shi, "I think she got the message about not speaking. Uncover her mouth, but be ready to stop her again in case she is stubborn."

Z'shi grumbled but he heard the lingering fright clearly in the Raptora's voice. "It would be just our luck to end up with a stubborn nestling."

He slowly removed his hand, ready to stop her if she tried again, but she just watched them with wide eyes.

Sho'ta didn't smell fear from her, although he did smell something that seemed very similar to vigilance or caution, which was only fair. The pain scent was also fading, which helped his control. Holding up his hands, he made the slashing motion for 'no', enunciating the word clearly alongside the motion. He did this three times before pausing and waiting to see if she connected the ideas or not.

Her eyes had lit up at the second repetition but he'd made sure to also include the head shake as well, since she seemed accustomed to those from where she'd given them permission to clean her injuries yesterday.

She took a deep breath, seeming to steel her nerves, and he prayed that she wasn't about to try to speak again. However, she surprised him with her next actions. She touched his hand, made the sign for no, and then pointed at the water. She did this three times as well and he wondered bemusedly if she thought that all communication in threes.

Once he was certain that she was done, he pointed at himself and then the bowl of water, pretending to dip the cloth. Her lips turned down and she signed no emphatically. So, she did understand what that word meant. What a smart kit. This might be a way to keep her occupied while they were waiting to be rescued.

Making sure to load his voice with emotion so she would be able to pick up on tonal clues hopefully, he asked curiously, "Why?"

This took her a few ticks longer to puzzle out before she seemed to work out what he was asking. Determination filled her face and she lifted her chin slightly. Ah, a stubborn kit indeed then. She pointed at him and then mimed drinking. She then repeated the no and dipping motion before pointing back at him and miming drinking again.

Sho'ta felt himself melting inside a little as he realized that the kit was worried about him. What a sweetheart, to be so concerned when she was the worst off of the three. Because of this, he decided to compromise. "Fine. Half."

He signed the word 'half', repeating it twice, ignoring Z'shi's knowing gaze. The whole universe practically knew that he was soft for kits, so what?

Picking up the bowl, he drank half before setting it down and signing half a final time. Then, before the kit could protest, he picked up the rag and dipped it into the bowl. The kit gave a long-suffering look but didn't cry out, which was good. Instead, she simply accepted the cloth with a small sigh as she pressed it against her face.

Z'shi chirred with amusement at their battle of wills as he finished mixing up her thinner meal. "Goodness, I think that she's nearabouts as stubborn as you are, my dear."

Sho'ta smirked, flicking him lightly with his tail. "Pot, meet kettle."

Z'shi stuck his tongue out at him. "Takes one to know one." He then turned his attention to the kit and cooed. "Open up, time for food."

She stared at him for a long moment before sighing again and opening her mouth a tiny bit wider than she had managed the day before.

What a good kit.